At the manor, things were certainly not idle.
A massive object now occupied more than half the hilltop.
Lucia had hauled the fallen warship back…
As for how she had moved it, Lucoco didn’t know, and she didn’t dare to ask.
She simply noticed a few palm-sized indentations at several corners of the warship, radiating an indescribable aura of domineering power.
She had only taken a single nap…
Most areas of the warship were damaged.
Fortunately, the energy module was relatively intact, and several remaining cabins could still be used normally.
Lucoco currently found herself a luxurious cabin that was clearly a girl’s room.
With a quick glance, she concluded this must be Princess Lino’s room.
Books from the shelves were scattered everywhere, and a fallen wardrobe stood half-open, spilling out silks and fine fabrics.
Various pieces of furniture and equipment driven by Magic Crystal Stones were tumbled over.
In the corner sat a basket of Magic Energy Crystals and several magic wands.
To one side was a small cubicle labeled **[Alchemy Room]**.
Every single item in this room looked incredibly expensive!
‘I’ve struck it rich!’
Lucoco’s eyes flashed with excitement.
“Woohoo!” She cheered and began her “treasure hunt,” overcome with joy.
Lucia followed behind her, rubbing her slightly sore shoulders, watching the little one bustle about with a smile.
She had already surveyed every part of the warship.
Important equipment, data, and dangerous items that children shouldn’t touch had long since been hidden away by her.
She would wait for someone from the Holy See or the Royal Court to arrive before handing those things back.
As for leaving this broken warship here, she naturally had no intention of returning it.
She felt completely justified!
Even if she demanded a brand-new ship, she imagined no one would dare say a single “no.”
Compared to the “unfinished shell” of the manor, this broken ship was clearly more suitable for living, and it had all the daily necessities.
It was a leap from the Stone Age to the Industrial Age.
It fundamentally saved them decades or even centuries of hard work.
From now on, they could live inside this iron shell and lead a peaceful, slow-paced life.
As for what Lucoco would do when she grew up, Lucia didn’t particularly care.
As long as she didn’t lead an army to occupy the territory of the Light Camp, she wouldn’t interfere.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, another week passed.
The clinking and clanging sounds had long since moved from inside the courtyard to the outside.
Lucia wiped the fine sweat from her forehead, looking at the assembled carriage with satisfaction.
Actually, there were surviving vehicles inside the ship, but Lucia felt that ending a journey in just a few hours was quite boring.
It was better to drive a carriage and wander slowly to truly enjoy the leisure.
“Yahahaha!”
“Xia! Xia!”
*Sputter, sputter, sputter!*
Lucoco’s arrogant laughter and Luti’s strange cries echoed as they sped past accompanied by the low hum of a steam engine.
It was Lucoco taking Luti for a “drag race,” flying through the dense forest on the hilltop.
**[Investigator’s Special Small Steam Hovercraft. Powered by Magic Crystal Stones. Load capacity: 1 ton. Water consumption: 5 liters per 100 kilometers. Official Price: 500 gold coins.]**
Having packed up her tools, Lucia checked the time.
Seeing it was about time, she cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, “Coco! It’s time for training!”
*Sputter!*
Lucoco, who was about to head down the mountain, immediately braked and turned around upon hearing the call.
“Wahoo!”
“Xia!”
They sent withered leaves flying and came to a steady stop under the tree.
The long tentacles pressing the accelerator turned back into short little legs, and the tentacle shifting gears returned to being her right arm as she floated wobbly to the ground.
She was so small that she had to stand to drive the hovercraft, but her flexible, retractable tentacles made up for the shortcoming.
“Xia xia!” (I’m going to water the plants.)
Luti did a kip-up, bounced to the ground, and wiggled her fish-behind back to the manor.
“Coming… what is it?”
Lucoco bounced over to Lucia in two or three steps, looking at her expectantly.
“What Level is Coco now?”
Lucia asked while condensing a water ball to wash her hands.
“Level 15.”
“So fast?”
Lucia looked surprised and instinctively used Appraisal Art.
She was indeed Level 15, and her experience bar was still slowly rising.
“Demon King… trait,” Lucoco scratched her head and explained.
The damage from Gabriel’s sword strike had only been one-third digested.
“Mother won’t ask too much; as long as you know what you’re doing.”
Lucia knelt down and pinched her soft cheek with a gentle smile.
“Next, Mother will teach you Augmentation Magic, okay?”
“Okay!”
Lucoco’s eyes lit up at the words.
She hadn’t expected Lucia to know all four types of magic: attack, defense, healing, and augmentation.
Her status as a God-favored seemed increasingly authentic and reliable.
She couldn’t help but feel emotional.
‘It really is great to have a knowledgeable and fierce mom!’
Lucia had no idea that in less than a year, her identity had evolved multiple times in Lucoco’s mind: from a wild mountain woman, to a struggling retired logistics worker scraping by, to a God-favored suspected of being a Goddess, and now to a firmly established God-favored!
Lucoco picked up a wider wooden board and placed it under the tree to use as a stool.
Her former burlap clothes had long since become rags for wiping tables.
What she wore now was “high-end goods” tailored by Lucia from the clothes Princess Lino had left behind.
Her hair was no longer tied with grass rope; instead, two bows fastened her twin tails.
To prevent her dress from getting dirty, she even lifted her hem and tucked it between her legs before sitting down obediently.
She was so skilled at it!
It was as if she had worn such things before.
“Mother will first teach you Defense Augmentation Magic…”
Lucia picked up a flat wooden board and took the “ink bucket” (Lucoco’s ink).
She dipped a wooden stick into it and began sketching the spell formula while explaining.
***
Over the past few days, near the borders of **[Echo Territory]**.
The gathered Players had almost entirely dispersed.
The occasional few who appeared were veterans responsible for transporting newbies to help them “break through.”
The total number of novice Players in **[Echo Territory]** had already exceeded 4,000, but less than 200 had managed to cross the river basin.
The NPCs living by the river had found their greatest amusement lately: holding cups of plain water—which tasted sweeter and sweeter every day—while watching those **[Players]** fight monsters.
They were utterly perplexed.
A monster that any random guard or even a strong man at the village entrance could easily handle—why did these **[Players]** find them so difficult to deal with?
The Players had their own grievances.
Why were the stats of these NPCs so terrifying?!
Forget the town guards and village patrols!
Even the damn guard dog at someone’s house was a being capable of soloing monsters!
What kind of a “Novice Village” area was this ghost place?!
The Players who entered **[Echo Territory]** began investigating everywhere and quickly pinpointed the cause: the water source.
Previously, the Player from the Holy See who had posted on the forums was tracked down by other Players, who sent him private messages asking for the situation.
Unable to decline their enthusiasm, that Player proactively posted a new thread: *Regarding the Latest Progress on the Echo Territory Water Source.*
[The private messages are exploding! Brothers, stop messaging me privately!]
[My investigation team and I are currently tracking the source of the water mutation.]
[If there’s any new information, I’ll add it to this thread.]
[Latest investigation results:
First: This water has the effect of strengthening the constitution, but it only has a special effect on native creatures; the effect on Players is negligible. It also seems to have a growth-promoting effect on plants, but it’s unstable. For example, vegetation in one area grows crazily, while another place shows no change.
Second point: As everyone has probably noticed, the closer a monster is to the water, the higher its intelligence becomes.
Third point: This is very important!! This water is exceptionally sweet, hehehehehe…]
[So, everyone, enjoy it to your heart’s content! This is a blessing! A blessing!!!]
[We will continue to investigate… continue to investigate… hehe… investigate forever…]
[Oh~ I saw the silhouette of that great existence again!]
After that, the post had no further updates.
There had been no movement for two days, and the Player’s private messages were closed.
[Brother, are you still there! Say something~]
[I say, this guy didn’t run into trouble, did he?]
[+1…]
[Are there any other brothers serving in the Holy See? Report it quickly!]
[Someone already reported it yesterday. The Bishop and the others are discussing follow-up arrangements.]
[I say, why does this thing feel like the Abyssal Tide from twenty years ago?]
[The time it destroyed the small country where Gabriel was?]
[But no one has been polluted this time. The NPCs are all quite normal.]
[If it were the Abyssal Tide, the source would have been found long ago, right?]
[I think it’s better to let the newbies still in Echo Territory evacuate as soon as possible.]
[Agreed. If you haven’t crossed the river, don’t push it. Those who have crossed should use Return to Town to get out quickly.]
Out of safety concerns, most Players began to choose to evacuate, but a small number still chose to stay.
Particularly those Players who had already crossed the river basin; almost none of them chose to use Return to Town.
***
Turning back to Lucoco’s side.
After memorizing the Defense Augmentation formula on the board, she slipped away to her favorite spring.
Stripping completely, she shifted back into her Octopus Girl form and jumped in with a splash, happily scrubbing herself with bubbles.
This was almost a daily routine.
Her sticky tentacles and arms had to be scrubbed every day to become smooth, soft, and non-sticky.
Her body fluids drifted through the water, dyeing the stream a light purple as it flowed all the way down.
It was pulled into the underground river by the undercurrents beneath the deep pool of the waterfall, turning into sweet water that gushed out from various water sources.
It nourished the plants and creatures of **[Echo Territory]**, letting them grow robustly.
Regarding this, Lucoco was perhaps completely unaware, or perhaps she simply didn’t care.