Chapter 129: Night Attack from Roon

By the early hours of the morning, Lin Lan finally let out a satisfied sigh and collapsed onto his bed with a contented smile.

Ninety percent of the skills on the light screen in front of him had been activated.

The cost? Every last mental cube brought back by the poor brute chirping creature now lying beside him was completely gone.

"Chirp, tweet..."

The pitiful creature let out a weak, sorrowful cry, which only made Lin Lan chuckle.

"What's the big deal about a few wisdom cubes? I have thousands more," Lin Lan reassured it with a grin. "I'll get you some more to make it up to you."

Hearing this, the creature perked up slightly, its chirps less despondent.

"Now then, let's see what these skills can actually do," Lin Lan murmured to himself.

With all activatable icons lit up, save for those requiring special conditions, Lin Lan was eager to test his newfound powers.

Lying back on the bed, he raised his right hand to the ceiling.

A long-handled lightsaber, glowing with a soft white radiance, materialized in his hand out of thin air.

"Chirp?"

The creature beside him stared wide-eyed, as though it had just witnessed a ghost.

"Using light-based powers at night weakens their effectiveness, huh?" Lin Lan mused aloud. With a thought, the radiant lightsaber darkened, its glow turning into an ominous black.

The room's light seemed to distort unnaturally as if the black blade were swallowing it whole. Even the chandelier on the ceiling dimmed unnaturally, creating an eerie atmosphere.

"This... is the power of the brave," Lin Lan whispered, gazing in awe at the ominous weapon in his hand.

But that was only the beginning. By creating spells and carving circles, he could amplify this power further, drawing in elemental energy for potent attacks.

What Lin Lan didn't realize was that his ability to wield every elemental attribute made him utterly unique.

Centuries ago, the nations of Liao Continent had pooled their respective heritages into the brave's skill tree, expecting only a few elements to be mastered. 

They hadn't anticipated someone like Lin Lan using modern shortcuts to max everything out.

If Lin Lan knew this, he would have smirked and said: 

"Times have changed, old-timers."

As the black lightsaber dissipated, the room returned to normal. Normally, summoning such elemental powers would have drained a user's mental energy significantly.

But thanks to Lin Lan maxing out every mental endurance skill in the tree, he felt no such burden.

"Just you wait, Abbott," Lin Lan muttered, thinking of the Demon King Army cadre who had once attacked him. 

"When I meet you again, I'll show you what it means to mess with me."

Now equipped with the brave's power and the shield generator from Battleaxe Military Industries, Lin Lan felt invincible.

"From now on, no one can touch me!" he declared with glee, laughing like a theatrical villain.

The small creature beside him trembled in fear.

"You, my first loyal follower," Lin Lan teased, pointing at the trembling creature. 

"Stick with me, and I'll make sure you're living the high life!"

"Chirp, tweet!"

Hearing Lin Lan's words, the creature excitedly wrapped itself around his leg, clearly understanding his tone if not his exact words.

However, just as Lin Lan was basking in his newfound powers, he heard soft footsteps outside his door.

Had someone come here so late?

Lin Lan immediately lay back down, pretending to be asleep, and instinctively cradled the small creature in his arms.

The footsteps stopped outside his door. Lin Lan expected a knock, but instead, he heard the unmistakable sound of a key being inserted.

Click.

The door opened and then shut quietly.

"???"

Lin Lan, still feigning sleep, was shocked. The only people with keys to his room were himself and Brunhilde. 

Who else could have one?

As he pondered this, the soft sound of footsteps grew closer.

"Commander~ Are you asleep?"

A gentle voice reached his ears. Lin Lan immediately recognized the intruder—Roon, the pink-haired Iron Blood ship girl.

"Commander, pretending to sleep is very naughty, you know~"

Lin Lan sighed inwardly. Pretending to sleep before one of his ship girls was a futile endeavor.

Reluctantly, he sat up, releasing the small creature, which bolted toward the balcony, opened the window, and fled into the night.

Turning toward the intruder, Lin Lan was met with Roon, now seated at the head of his bed. 

She was dressed in a sultry black gauze outfit, her flawless figure and smooth, fair skin illuminated by the moonlight.

"My dear Roon," Lin Lan said with a smile, "if you wanted to visit, you could've just knocked. Where did you get that key?"

Roon's lips curled into a gentle smile, her brown eyes shimmering with both affection and something deeper.

"Commander, I missed you... but I can feel you've been avoiding me."

Her soft, almost mournful tone pierced Lin Lan's heart.

Roon had always been one of Lin Lan's most trusted and beloved ship girls. 

Her gentle personality had made her his secretary ship for a long time, but after discovering her darker, bloodthirsty side, he had grown wary.

Now, faced with her tearful gaze, Lin Lan's resolve crumbled.

"Roon, I've always cared about you," he began, guilt tinging his voice. "If I've avoided you, it's only because—"

Before he could finish, Roon threw herself into his arms, silencing him.

"There's no need to explain, Commander," she murmured, her voice soft and understanding.

Lin Lan held her close, overwhelmed by the warmth of her embrace. Her intoxicating scent filled the air as her delicate fingers caressed his cheek.

"Roon knows," she said softly, her lips brushing against his ear. 

"You've been afraid of my jealous side, haven't you? But I'll try to control myself, just for you."

Hearing this, Lin Lan couldn't hold back anymore. Wrapping his arms tightly around her, he buried his face in her pink hair, letting go of his long-held hesitation.

Roon might be complex—a ship girl with a dual personality—but she was still his. 

And Lin Lan had made a vow to love and cherish every one of his ship girls, no matter their quirks or flaws.

As the moonlight poured through the window, the two held each other close, their connection deepening under the quiet autumn night.

And so began Lin Lan's first battle after gaining the powers of the brave.

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