Chapter 141: Alje

That night, in a guest room of the North Wind Fortress.

Robin polished his Tang Sword, the silver‑blue engravings on the blade shimmering in the candlelight.

He began to recall his meeting with Alje earlier that day, feeling that something was amiss.

Suddenly, the window opened silently, and Alje slipped in like a cat.

"Good evening, Lord Xun," he said bluntly, sitting opposite Robin, "Mind if we chat?"

Robin lifted the tip of his sword slightly: "Visiting like this?"

Alje shrugged, pulling a mechanical pocket watch from his coat—inside the dial, the precise whir of gears was clearly audible.

"Do you recognize this?"

Robin's pupils contracted slightly.

It was a craft of the Mechanical Church.

Alje's smile turned dangerous: "Below Frost Fortress, something has awakened, and the 'key' you hold is exactly what they need."

Outside, the north wind howled, like the breath of some great beast.

Robin's Tang Sword hung slightly lower, its blade still aimed at Alje's throat, yet his tone was chillingly calm:

"What exactly do you want? No, what does the Frost Eagle clan want?"

Alje's smile gradually faded, a sharp glint flashing in his ice‑blue eyes.

He gently pushed the sword tip aside, took a yellowed parchment map from his coat, and unfolded it slowly.

On the map, the underground layout of Frost Fortress was clearly visible—more striking, however, was an inverted Mechanical Clock Tower marked directly beneath the fortress, identical to the ruins beneath Aobei Di a year ago.

"We seek the 'Awakening'," Alje's voice was low and dangerous.

Alje tapped the clock‑tower symbol on the map with his fingertip, the gear sound of the mechanical pocket watch echoing distinctly in the silent room.

"Three hundred years ago, the Frost Eagle clan's first Grand Duke—'Frost Blade' Aidemeng Shuangying—made a pact with the Mechanical Church."

His voice carried an ancient cadence, as if reciting the clan's secret history.

"We offered shelter; they granted us 'Eternity'."

Robin's pupils contracted: "…are you the guardians of the Mechanical Church?"

Alje chuckled lightly, shaking his head: "No, we are merely 'Cage Keepers'."

He pointed to a mark deep in the map—a gear entwined with chains.

"Beneath Frost Fortress lies the sleeping 'Core' of the first furnace—the will of the Mechanical God. What you destroyed in Aobei Di was merely its shadow."

As the candle flickered, a hint of struggle flashed in Alje's eyes before his flippant demeanor returned.

"My father—the current Grand Duke of the Frost Eagle—wants to fully awaken it in exchange for the Mechanical God's 'Gift of Immortality'," he sneered, "but I think it's better left asleep forever."

Robin's Tang Sword suddenly trembled, the silver‑blue engravings glowing faintly. Alje's gaze snapped to it, his voice suddenly urgent:

"Your sword—the Watcher's 'Key'! It can completely seal the Core!"

He seized Robin's wrist: "Help me destroy it, or the North will become a second Aobei Di… no, it will be worse!"

At that moment, a faint "click" sounded from outside the window—like metal joints rubbing.

Alje's complexion changed abruptly, and he instantly blew out the candle.

In the darkness, he lowered his voice:

"They've already found you… the 'Gear Eye' is everywhere."

Moonlight streamed through the window lattice, casting a fleeting black silhouette outside—a half‑mechanical monster, precise gears turning in its eye sockets.

Robin's pupils snapped shut as he stared at the fleeting black shape outside—the Gear Eye.

Its body resembled a patched puppet, metal joints glinting coldly in the moonlight, and the most unsettling part was its head—devoid of features, bearing a massive continuously turning gear, a crimson mechanical eyeball set in the gear's center, silently watching the two inside the room.

If Robin hadn't wielded the key, ordinary people—not even Legendary Knights or First Ring Wizards—couldn't see through the Gear Eye's cloaking ability.

That is why they dare to surveil openly.

"They're stronger than a year ago," Alje's voice was pressed low, his fingers absentmindedly tracing the gear patterns on the pocket watch.

Robin's Tang Sword quivered slightly, the silver‑blue engravings flickering erratically, as if warning of something.

Alje swiftly drew the heavy curtains shut, took an ice‑blue rune stone from his waist and pressed it against the window frame.

The rune stone glowed faintly, forming a barrier that blocked prying eyes.

"After Aobei Di, the remnants of the Mechanical Church lay low for a year," he explained quickly, "but they've evolved—not simple steel puppets anymore, but 'living machines'."

Robin recalled the Gear Eye moments earlier—its movements smoother than the former mechanical guards, even bearing a strange vitality.

"They can parasitize human bodies, reshaping flesh and merging with machinery," a hint of disgust flashed in Alje's eyes, "Three villages in the North have already been 'Assimilated'."

Alje pulled an ice crystal pendant from his coat, containing a pulse of silver‑blue energy—identical to the markings on Robin's Tang Sword.

"I stole a 'collectible' from my father," he sneered, "This is a seal fragment the Watcher left behind… he intended to use it to weaken the Core's bindings."

Robin's Tang Sword suddenly convulsed violently, the silver‑blue engravings on its sheath bursting into dazzling light!

Alje stepped back sharply: "It's resonating!"

Amid the silver‑blue glow, a strange memory suddenly surfaced in Robin's mind—

Melinda stood at the center of the inverted clock tower, silver hair streaming, mechanical wings fully unfurled. Her voice entered Robin's consciousness directly:

"Remember, the Mechanical God does not die… it merely sleeps."

"When the Gear Eye opens, it will first devour the North… then the entire Koren Archipelago, eventually summoning the End‑World Rose."

"The key must be inserted into the heart… but the price is…"

The memory abruptly cut off.

Robin staggered, bracing against the wall, cold sweat beading at his temples.

Alje stared at him intently: "What did you see?"

Suddenly, the door was knocked.

Ailina's voice came from outside the door: "Alan, have you rested?"

Robin rubbed his temples and said: "I'm resting; what's the matter?"

Ailina said: "I have something to talk to you about."

Alger gave an ambiguous smile, coming in the deep of night; what does this so‑called 'chat' mean—how could this playboy not understand?

"I'm leaving now; tonight I'm just saying hello. We have a chance to cooperate, and gradually you'll come to trust me—I'm leaving now."

Alger said that and then slipped out the window.

(End of chapter)