Chapter 346 - 296: Idiot No. 1 (Part 2)

Unlike the precise mortars from his past life, the Bang-Bang mortar shells were still unstable. This meant several mortars had to be fired at once to attack an entire area.

But a weapon like this was the best Shire could currently produce for dealing with large groups of enemies.

"Just like you said, we'll inject Blazing Fire Glue into the nose cone." Agatha heard the joy in Shire's voice and set down the papers in her hand. She stood, walked over to a corner, and retrieved a mortar shell, placing it on the workbench. "Mary brought it to me yesterday."

"It's already finished?" Shire carefully picked up the shell. He had designed it based on the appearance of mortar shells from his past life, and holding it now, it really did look like the original. "This is very light."

"Mhm, I switched the nose cone from iron to earthenware." Agatha pointed to the head of the Bang-Bang mortar shell. "I also made some modifications to the tail. This makes it lighter so it can fly farther. Besides, an iron head might not be good for dispersing the Blazing Fire Glue, but earthenware won't be a problem."

"That makes sense." Shire nodded as he looked at the shell. The explosive power of a Bang-Bang Fruit was nothing compared to the explosives from his past life. Using too much iron would actually be counterproductive. "And there's another, even bigger advantage to doing it this way."

"A bigger advantage?"

"Mass production," Shire said with a smile. "Making them from earthenware is much faster than using iron. We only need the central part that encases the Bang-Bang Fruit to be made of iron."

"Don't tell me something else has happened?" Agatha frowned. She could hear the implication in Shire's words.

"Mhm. I suspect someone will be coming to bother us again soon." Shire fiddled with the Bang-Bang mortar shell and nodded. "We defeated the goblins from the Feathered Serpent Kingdom before, but I doubt they'll give up so easily. From what I understand, they're not the type to accept defeat. Their next attack is probably already in the works."

"I see." Agatha looked at the shell in Shire's hands and pursed her lips. "I knew there was a reason you've been rushing me to get this thing done. Honestly, to think that I, a student of history and grammar, would end up doing the work of a master artisan."

"It can't be helped. For something like this, you're the only one I can rely on." Shire looked up at Agatha with a smile.

"Whatever. It's done now anyway." Agatha ignored Shire's smile and returned to her desk, continuing to fiddle with the diagrams. She occasionally picked one up to compare it with several white stone tablets nearby.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going. I'll come back tomorrow," Shire said, putting the shell down.

"Mhm." Agatha was already immersed in the world of Ancient Runes again, not even bothering to look up.

...

'This must be the place.' Little John looked up at the magnificent Cathedral before him. A giant oak tree stood in the small plaza in front of the Holy Oak Cathedral's main entrance.

The sound of birds chirping came from the oak tree, and he could also see red squirrels scampering among its branches.

Little John continued to scan his surroundings when he saw a member of the Clergy descending the steps. He immediately went up to him. "Hello, excuse me. Do you know someone named Sofia?"

"Sofia?" The Clergy member paused for a moment. "Are you referring to Sofia Earth?"

"Uh," Little John hesitated. "I'm sorry, I don't know her last name. I just know her as Sofia."

"Does she have any distinguishing features?"

"Features..." Little John said immediately. "Does being sleepy and dozing off all the time count?"

"Hahaha," the Clergy member immediately covered his mouth and laughed. "That's definitely Sofia Earth. She should be inside the Cathedral. I saw her at breakfast. But she's not part of the secular affairs staff, so she's probably in the back of the Cathedral right now."

"Then how can I see her?" Little John smiled. "To be honest, I'm a friend of hers."

The Clergy member looked Little John over, his tone tinged with surprise. "She actually has... my apologies. Tell you what, I'll take you to her."

Soon, with the Clergy member leading the way, Little John found a sleepy-eyed Sofia.

"Oh, it's you, Idiot Number One." After rubbing her eyes and thanking the Clergy member, Sofia looked Little John over again.

"What the heck is 'Idiot Number One'? My name is Little John."

"Oh, sorry. You and that little goblin... you were a bit..." Sofia twirled a finger at her temple. "I was originally going to call you Big Idiot and Little Idiot, but then I thought 'Big Idiot' sounded a little impolite."

"Wait, so you're saying I used to be dumb?" The corner of Little John's mouth twitched. "And 'Idiot Number One' is supposed to be polite?"

"Alright, I'm very sorry, Little John." Sofia gave a slight bow to show her apology, and the movement caused her loosely tied hair to spill free.

"Never mind. You should probably fix your..." Little John trailed off, pointing at her hair.

"After breakfast, all I wanted to do was go back to bed for a nap. I didn't expect you to wake me up." With that, Sofia turned and ran back into the Clergy's quarters behind the Cathedral, tossing a "Wait for me!" over her shoulder.

A few minutes later, she reappeared, tidying her hair as she came down the stairs. "So, what did you need? Are you here to buy more Holy Water?"

"No." Little John waited until Sofia had finished putting her hair back in a braid before continuing, "The Chief sent me to Torch City to run some errands. You mentioned you were living at the Cathedral in Torch City long-term, so I came to see you."

Then, he pulled a small cloth sack from a leather pouch at his waist. "The Chief had me bring this for you. Red Bull."

"Ah!" Sofia let out a small gasp and immediately took it with both hands. She stood there, frozen, as the image of a green figure and a pair of eyes filled with Divinity flashed through her mind.

"Your Chief... how is he now? No, I mean, how are his people?" Sofia asked, clutching the small sack of Red Bull.

"They're fine. When I left, he had just taken a group into the forest to begin exploring." Little John shrugged. "You know how it is. The Nightmare Forest is huge. Who knows what's buried in there, or what we might find."

"Exploring? That doesn't sound like something goblins would do at all."

"Ordinary goblins don't."

Sofia didn't reply to Little John's comment. She just nodded slightly. 'It seemed what he said made sense; exploring was exactly the kind of thing a goblin like Shire would do.'

"So, you just came to bring me the Red Bull?" Sofia asked, tilting her head.

"Mhm, that's pretty much it. Of course, if you need help with anything, you can find me." Little John fumbled in his clothes for a moment before handing her a slip of paper. "This is where I'm staying. You can come find me if you need anything."

Sofia took the note and glanced at it. "The Port District? That area is full of cheap inns. Why are you staying there?"

"I have some things to take care of," Little John shrugged.

"You're not... here looking for someone, are you?" Sofia laughed.

"Looking for someone?"

"Yes, looking for Shire Merlot. Who knows how many Adventurers in Torch City are trying to track him down. After all, a bounty of 300,000 Gold Coins is enough to last several lifetimes if you get it."

"Uh, well..." Little John scratched his head. "You can just assume that's what I'm here for."

"I knew it. You're an Adventurer too, here to try your luck." Sofia smiled at him, her expression saying, 'No matter how you try to hide it, you're still Idiot Number One.'

Meanwhile, by a window on the third floor of the Cathedral, Bishop Luther was watching them from behind the glass. 'For that child to actually have friends... it's quite surprising.'

'But the time is almost here. Forgive me, child.'