Leaving the reception hall, Xinbadi was waiting for him in the castle courtyard.
"So, is the Grand Chief interested in your diving suit?" the Sandfolk asked with great interest. After spending a week together, the two had become quite familiar and could be considered half-friends. "What's the reward for discovering the relic? An explorer's title?"
Rex shook his head in disappointment. "He doesn't plan to buy the diving suit..."
"Oh... I see," Xinbadi quickly reacted. "But it's normal that the Kingdom of Graycastle doesn't need it. Once the news spreads, the Fjord Chamber of Commerce will definitely notice your invention. The sea is a treasure trove, that's what you said yourself, right?"
He did say that, Rex thought. Since the King of Graycastle decided to summon them, he obviously attached great importance to this matter. Then, according to the recruitment terms, he would definitely receive a generous reward. Whether it was the reward itself or the explorer title, it could attract a lot of attention and topics for him, so that the reputation of the diving suit would resound throughout the Fjord Islands.
But...
He smiled wryly. "His Majesty's reward is a book."
Xinbadi was stunned. "What did you say?" The Sandfolk lowered his head slightly, his eyes moving to the object in the other's hand. "Could it be..."
"It's this." Rex nodded helplessly. The book was not thick, probably only a few dozen pages, and there was not a single word on the cover, let alone exquisite borders and prints. Even if it was given by an ordinary nobleman, it would seem quite shabby, and it didn't look like a decent reward at all.
Such an award could not bring fame, and it might even attract ridicule if it was said out loud.
"The Grand Chief shouldn't be like this..." Xinbadi stomped his foot. "Even I got a reward of twenty gold dragons. As the initiator of the salvage plan, you should have gotten more than me!"
The straightforwardness of the Fjord people made Rex feel a little warm, but he knew that it was definitely not worth questioning a ruler who held great power with such a matter - because the other party had already offered the condition to realize his wish, but he was still hesitant.
At this time, a personal guard came over. "His Majesty has prepared accommodation for you. Please follow me."
"Thank you." He bowed quickly, then motioned for Xinbadi to follow him - in any case, he should go back and take a good look at the contents of the book first.
Not long after leaving the castle area, Rex suddenly heard a strange buzzing sound.
It sounded like a series of muffled thunder from the horizon, but it was even crisper.
He gave a soft "huh" and looked into the distance, following the sound.
He saw a vaguely visible black spot in the blue sky.
A bird? He just had this thought, but quickly denied his guess. This distance was probably several miles away. What kind of bird could fly with such momentum?
The Sandfolk had obviously noticed this anomaly as well. His whole body tensed up, like a warrior entering alert.
"That thing... is coming towards us!"
"An enemy?" Rex asked in surprise. "In the royal capital of Graycastle?"
"I don't know... but it's definitely not some kind of bird or beast!"
"Relax," the guard leading the way said calmly. "That's just Princess Tilly's favorite toy. Although it's hard to believe when you first see it, you'll get used to it after staying here for a few more days."
"The princess's... toy?" The two found themselves completely unable to understand what the other party was saying.
"His Majesty has also advised Tilly to try not to leave the test flight field as much as possible, but she thinks the field is too small to fully display her skills. Apart from the residential area, the factory area, and the Whirlpool Sea, there's only the route through the castle area left," the guard said with a nonchalant expression. "But I always feel that she's deliberately showing off her skills to His Majesty."
Still unable to understand.
However, even if he couldn't understand, Rex caught a hint of pride in the other party's expression.
In less than a few breaths, the black spot that was still far away in the sky was already close at hand - in the roar that was close to a roar, the Fjord people saw the most incredible scene of their lives.
A metal creation with two pairs of long wings swept over his head like a hurricane. Its shadow was dozens of times larger than the largest seabird. Just looking at its shape made people feel that it was extremely heavy, but it was precisely this extremely heavy iron beast that was soaring in the sky at this moment. At the same time, he also saw a woman's figure in the iron beast. Although he couldn't see it clearly, it was indeed carrying people in flight.
Van...
Rex's mind suddenly jumped out of this name.
The Materialists' Association was not a well-organized association. He didn't have much contact with the other party either, except for going to watch the public verification of the flying wing that day. Honestly, he even hated Van a little, because his unrealistic delusions made the Materialists' Association, which already had a bad reputation, even worse.
But now someone has completed this feat in an even more exaggerated form.
Looking at the twin-winged iron beast circling the castle, a huge wave was set off in his heart.
...
The guard took the two to a hotel called "Diplomatic Building", left a sentence "My name is Sean, if you have considered it, you can come to the castle area to tell me the answer at any time" and then turned and left.
Xinbadi was still immersed in great shock. He muttered about the blessings of the Three Gods for a while, and then ran to the window to look out, not knowing whether he was afraid or wanted to see the incredible creation again.
Rex locked himself in the bedroom.
He stared at the unremarkable book in his hand, as if he wanted to see His Majesty's thoughts through it. After a full quarter of an hour, he opened the cover.
In this quarter of an hour, he made various assumptions, from ordinary biographies and eulogies to introductions to the customs and cultures of Neverwinter City, or even generous contracts disguised as books, or even threats to force members of the Materialists' Association to move to Neverwinter -
But there was nothing.
The first page only wrote one sentence, the law of buoyancy.
An object immersed in a static fluid experiences a buoyant force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object, acting vertically upwards through the centroid of the displaced fluid.
At first glance, it seemed very awkward, but after reciting it several times in his heart, Rex gradually widened his eyes.
He quickly turned to the second page, which was actually full pages of arithmetic formulas. Probably considering his understanding ability, each formula was accompanied by detailed annotations. The more he read, the more difficult it was for him to take his eyes off it.
Volume, density, buoyancy... these concepts were not unfamiliar, and could be said to be familiar, but at this moment, he seemed to see them for the first time.
Each word was no longer an abstract expression, but a number with a unit; whether an object sinks or floats, and to what extent it sinks, could be known by calculating it with a pen.
Rex instantly thought of the large steel ships and hydrogen balloons sold to the Fjords - they seemed to become real and clear in his memory.
Further on, there was a submersible that could sink and float autonomously. Although it was just a conceptual diagram, it was undoubtedly feasible in conjunction with the previous formulas.
And in the last few pages of the book, he even saw a special large ship that could not only sail on the water like an ordinary sea ship, but also shuttle underwater like a fish. Its huge body could accommodate hundreds of people, and even the most deadly wind and waves posed no threat to it underwater.
Rex was completely shocked by such an idea.
At the same time, a sense of blandness rose in his heart.
It was as if he had finally taken a small step on an unknown road, and just as he was rejoicing, someone had already pointed out the entire path.
Thinking of the iron beast roaring past, it seemed that Neverwinter City had more than one such path.
He already understood the meaning of the word "reward".
If he rejected the King of Graycastle's conditions, then with the contents of this book, he would definitely be able to reach a new stage in the diving and salvage business. However, the second stage would be the limit that an individual could reach. As for the third stage diving ship, it was basically out of his reach in this lifetime.
If he agreed to Roland's invitation, this book would become the most powerful means to persuade others, and the Materialists' Association would also be reborn.