Early in the morning, Roland had his office floor filled with all sorts of test props. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

From solids to liquids, minerals to ingots, inorganic to organics.

"You look pretty happy. The nightingale crouched down, picked up the small soup packets on the plate, and threw them into her mouth.

"Of course, there's a new witch in town, and she's so incredible," Roland raised an eyebrow, "Also, don't think I didn't see it, you just stole the test item, right?"

"And several," she wiped her mouth, "Lucia's abilities are useful?"

"It is extremely useful, whether it is decomposition or reduction, it can bring great progress to the smelting and manufacturing industry. Roland said excitedly, "With Anna, the strength of the machine can be increased several times, even if it cannot be mass-produced, as long as a few mother machines are made by hand, it is definitely a qualitative improvement for the production level of the town." ”

Although the scale is extremely accurate at the beginning, it is limited to the defects of the material itself, and the wear and deformation of the machine tool in the production process is becoming more and more obvious, and the tool is broken and chipped. Without Anna's replenishment of maintenance parts, these machines would only last a year or two at most.

Lucia's ability to precisely control the composition of materials makes it possible to use high-strength cast iron, steel, and even alloys to increase the service life, efficiency and level of machining to a new level. For example, something that can only be produced by Anna for the time being, such as a revolver, can also enter the mass production sequence.

"Really?" said Nightingale, jumping back on the table, "but she didn't seem to think so. ”

"Because she hasn't really realized the value of her abilities, just like Mystery Moon. Roland said disapprehantly, "If Lucia could read through The Theoretical Foundations of Natural Science, she would definitely not have such thoughts again." ”

"......" Nightingale silently stuffed two handfuls of dried fish into her mouth.

When Lucia finished breakfast and came to the office, the aptitude test officially began.

Roland watched expectantly as she turned the test items into piles or small piles of different substances—iron ingots and iron ore turned into silvery-white particles, and if you looked closely, you could find some variegated powder on the side. The grapes and meat steaks remained unchanged, while the xiao long bao became water, meat scrap and flour.

Halfway through the transformation, she suddenly stopped and said with some embarrassment, "I seem to ...... Drained all the mana. ”

Roland looked at the nightingale, who nodded, "She has very little magic stored in her, it looks like a fluctuating cloud of smoke, but this is the first time I've seen this color." ”

"What color?"

“...... Grey. She said.

Roland returned to his desk and beckoned to Lucia, "The magic of witches grows with age and training, and you're not yet an adult, so it's good enough to be able to do this." When the little girl reached the table, he pushed the parchment he had prepared in front of the other party, "Since you have decided to stay in the border town, sign this contract." ”

Lucia looked down at the end of the contract, and couldn't help but gasp, "One golden dragon a month?" Your Highness...... But I haven't finished testing my abilities yet, have I?"

"It has nothing to do with your abilities," Roland shook his head with a smile, "as long as you are a member of the League of Witches, this contract is valid forever." ”

"Is it true that even if a witch's powers are useless?" she asked, incredulous.

"You can understand it that way," said the prince, "but I believe that any witch's abilities have their own unique uses, but they are discovered in a different order. So you don't need to worry about not being useful. He paused, "Also, you should have heard from the other witches about the real reason for the Mana Phage, so in order to ensure a smooth awakening day, you will have to practice your abilities every day. After dinner, the book teacher will teach the witches in the living room, and you will have to attend the lecture - even though you have mastered reading and writing, it is still necessary to learn the elementary math and natural basics. ”

"Yes, Your Highness. Lucia nodded vigorously.

"You have a younger sister, don't you?" Roland laughed, "and bring her with you in class, she's old enough to be educated." ”

Lucia was slightly stunned, and after raising her head to confirm that he was not joking, she bowed happily and saluted, "Obey." ”

After the little girl said goodbye, Roland put the signed contract in the drawer and looked at the various test products on the floor thoughtfully.

"What was the result?" asked Nightingale.

"Surprising," he said, picking up the plate of xiaolongbao, fiddling with the finely chopped meat and flour inside, "like this...... When the flour is kneaded, the gluten contained in it forms a net-like structure, which gives the dough its flexible stretchability. Once cooked, the gluten made up of protein will be denatured due to high temperature, and even if it is ground into powder, it will not be able to return to its previous delicate and smooth appearance. The transformation is irreversible, but ...... "Roland pinched a small cluster of powder and spread it out in the palm of her hand, and it felt silky to the touch, like freshly ground flour," she brought the flour back to its original appearance. ”

"Well, I don't understand," Nightingale pouted, "but then, her abilities can be seen as reducing matter?"

"Not really," Roland pointed to the iron ingot, "if it were only restored, the iron ingot would have turned into iron ore, but in fact it was broken down into iron dust and other impurities. ”

“...... And what exactly is her ability?" she wondered.

"It's not clear for the time being, but at least it's surmising that maybe her abilities have both effects, and that the exact form of manifestation depends on her knowledge. ”

"See...... Knowledge?"

"Steaks aren't very different from iron ore in nature, they're made up of a variety of particles, but Lucia's ability can only break down iron ore, not on steaks, I think it's probably because she can't understand organic matter...... Or the composition of living organisms. Roland explained that he wasn't sure if that guess was correct, but there was no doubt that Lucia was the one who needed to learn the extra knowledge as soon as possible.

Three days later, when a second fleet of fugitives from the East arrived in town, the same outbreak occurred on board, this time even more severe, with almost half of the crew infected. Through questioning, Roland learned that some patients had dark spots on the first day after boarding, which meant that they had been infested with strange insects earlier, and the incubation period was shortened accordingly.

At the same time, Roland also received a letter from the royal capital, and the wax was printed with the mark of the Margaery Chamber of Commerce.

After reading the contents of the letter, his brow furrowed.

The plague is raging in the royal capital, and the church declares it to be a witch's conspiracy and tells the populace that they have a holy medicine against the plague. A large number of infected people also appeared outside the royal capital, and Tasa chose to temporarily suspend the transportation of fugitives due to safety concerns.

If the timing had not been miscalculated, the first fleet to return would have returned to the royal capital in four days, bringing with them the news that the town would cure the plague, but those who had already been infected would not have had a chance to make it through the nearly week-long journey on board, and the church's preaching had given him a hint of conspiracy.

After much consideration, he decided to send a team to escort Lily to the royal capital. Otherwise, most of the people of the royal capital and the fugitives from the east will die in this man-made disaster, and those who survive will become devout members of the church.

Roland had to avoid this as much as possible. (To be continued.) )