Chapter 128: What Will Come Has Come

"This is my home."

"This is the third time I have heard you say these words."

Alice was brought to Rosa's rented house once more. Rosa still lived in a very unassuming home, even in the prosperous capital. This third house looked very similar to the two houses in Mana City, and even the furnishings were mostly similar.

With a cramped look on her face, Rosa brought a chair over for Alice. Then, she found herself another chair, sat facing Alice, and asked in a depressing voice, "Why did you come to Holl City? Don't tell me you chased me all the way here?"

"This is honestly a coincidence. I didn't think you were also at Holl City," Alice said, shrugging.

Initially, when Alice took out the navigator to search for Rosa, she thought that the other party was still at Mana City, and she planned to get Father Kasandora to contact Rosa on her behalf. However, the navigator showed that Rosa was also in Holl City, to her surprise. Moreover, it just so happened that the other party was in a bar located only a few streets away from the March Academy. So, Alice had promptly left to find Rosa, not even bothering to bring Luna with her.

"To hell with this coincidence…" Rosa wanted to cry. Her expression when she looked at Alice was akin to a sheep waiting to enter the slaughterhouse. "What are you here for this time? I only bought a few pairs of underwear recently, so I really can't give you any more."

"What kind of person do you take me for?" Alice looked at Rosa in discontent. She had only asked for Rosa's panties twice thus far. Did the other party have to get so hung up over such a small matter? "I came here to ask you about the dwarves. Do you know any dwarves from the Gryffin Kingdom… Nevermind. It doesn't have to be the Gryffin Kingdom. Do you know any dwarven artisans?"

"Dwarves?" Rosa's expression changed when she heard Alice's question. "Are you going after dwarven underwear as well?"

"Can you stop talking about underwear?"

Alice didn't know whether to laugh or cry in this situation. It would seem that Rosa was still brooding over the matter of the stolen panties. However, after thinking it over, Alice felt that Rosa's reaction was more or less normal. After all, she had practically emptied Rosa's closet of panties the second time she visited Rosa's house. This was probably a memorable moment that Rosa would never forget.

"What do you want with the dwarves, then?" Rosa asked curiously. She also breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that Alice wasn't aiming for her panties this time. "If you want to order custom weapons or defensive equipment, there are plenty of weapon and armor stores in the city that can fulfill your request. Some of these stores are even run by dwarves."

"No, what I'm looking to make isn't something you can find in regular stores. Moreover, it isn't a task that just one or two dwarves can complete," Alice said, shaking her head. Then, she asked, "Have you heard of power armor before?"

After thinking it over, Alice decided that it was fine to tell Rosa about her true goal. After all, Rosa wouldn't dare to reveal her secrets even if the other party knew about them.

"Power armor? I heard a little about it before."

Sure enough, just like Alice expected, Rosa had learned about many things during her time as a thief.

"A senior thief of mine talked about it when we were drinking. If I recall correctly, it is a topic many countries are researching, and it is a piece of specialized warfare equipment that combines offensive and defensive capabilities," Rosa narrated. Then, she looked at Alice in surprise as she asked, "Are you trying to get them to construct you a power armor?"

"Yes. I need one built in the shape of a tall and muscular man," Alice said. Then, she waved her hands around like a little girl begging for a toy as she said, "I also need it to have the best mana conductivity. I heard that there has been a breakthrough in power armor technology recently and that the latest model can achieve perfect synchronization with the user's mana output."

Rosa knew Alice's true identity, so she instantly knew what Alice wanted a power armor for after hearing Alice's description. It was evident that Alice needed the power armor to recreate the fictional Hero she had described to the public.

Moreover, after thinking it over, Rosa felt that Alice's plan was feasible. This was because the power armor was a new weapon developed only in the past decade. It had never even been put to use on the battlefield before. So, nobody would think that the Hero would be using a suit of power armor as a disguise.

"Why don't you just ask for standard enclosed armor instead?" Rosa asked curiously. "It should be much easier to replicate the appearance of a man if you are using only a normal suit of armor."

"Ordinary armor can't conduct mana," Alice said, shrugging helplessly. "If it can't conduct mana, it's going to blow apart as soon as I cast magic in it."

"I guess you're right. In that case, power armor is indeed the only thing that can meet your demands," Rosa said, nodding. "If you are looking for dwarven artisans, I can help you get in touch with some, but they're not from the Gryffin Kingdom. They belong to the Ymir Kingdom's Dwarven Technical Unit. I once helped the unit's captain. If I talk to them, I should be able to get them to make a suit of power armor for you."

"That's great!" Alice said, slapping her thigh. "Money isn't a problem. I will entrust this matter to you."

"Leave it to me."

Rosa smiled, finding her conversation with Alice this time quite pleasant. After all, she was only responsible for helping Alice contact the Ymir Kingdom's Dwarven Technical Unit. It wasn't a difficult task to complete. Moreover, just like the female bartender previously said, this was a way to form a good relationship with the Hero.

"Oh, by the way…"

Just when Rosa thought that her conversation with Alice was about to conclude successfully, Alice spoke again, "You should've worn quite a few pairs of underwear this month, right? Give me a few pairs."

Rosa's originally happy face instantly crumbled.