Scratch that.

What "half the paperwork"? Apparently, the dungeon space was just the prelude to a whole new list of bombshells that everyone had been quietly keeping from them.

While no one could even begin to explain what a dungeon space really was, one thing was becoming painfully clear to the Nox couple.

Luca, the other cadets, and House Kyros had been using this so-called dungeon space to develop practically everything that had shocked the Empire of Solaris in recent months.

And that was saying something.

They were even shown to the farms, handed the same fruit that people would almost kill for, as if they were casual snacks.

Except here, they really were just casual snacks.

Minister Kordell blinked down at the fruit in his hands, where a handful of strawberries gleamed like tiny jewels.

"So," he said slowly, "how long do they take to grow?"

Luca smiled faintly. It was a very Nox kind of question, and for a moment, he thought he could see a bit of Kyle and Killian in the man's sharp gaze.

"It really depends on the crop, My Lord," Luca replied politely. "While it's faster here, it's not only because each day outside is equivalent to three here. The farmlands themselves are special and tend to produce faster than normal with greater yields. But if needed, there are also ways to coax the plants into maturing even faster."

The minister froze mid-bite.

"Three days?" he croaked, his voice cracking like a broken circuit.

He nearly choked on a strawberry.

The Empress, who had been nibbling on an apple, chuckled in amusement. "We had the same reaction when we first heard about it. If you have more questions, Minister, it's best to ask them while lying down in the medical bay. It helps to be bedridden before you pass out so you won't have to be dragged around."

Marquise Evelyn stared at the Empress like she wasn't sure whether she was joking or issuing medical advice.

If she only knew.

Princess Nina, on the other hand, tilted her head curiously. "Where are we going now, Brother Chipmunk?"

Luca straightened and smiled at her. "I thought it would be a good idea to explain what the auction was really about. I'm sure we've confused the Minister and the Marquise a lot."

Confused would be an understatement, but Minister Kordell figured that even if he had been told outright, he would still be deathly confused. There would simply be a layer of disbelief because how could such things even be plausible?

As they followed Luca, the path ahead opened to a structure that looked completely out of place among the endless green.

It was massive, made of gleaming metal and reinforced glass, humming with faint power. The whole thing looked like a modern complex that had no business existing inside a dungeon.

When the large doors slid open, the Nox couple froze.

Inside was a sprawling mecha manufacturing laboratory. Mechanical arms hung from the ceilings, and countless materials could be seen everywhere. It was clean, clinical, and breathtakingly advanced.

Luca gestured casually. "This is where I usually make biomechas."

There was silence.

He didn't seem to notice it.

"I used to build them alone or with Xavier," he continued lightly, "mostly because of the nature of spiritual energy. But recently, my good brother has been learning too, so the place isn't as empty anymore."

He smiled as he looked around, clearly proud of the space, only to realize that the Nox couple hadn't said a word.

He turned to face them and nearly jumped back in surprise.

Minister Kordell was twitching at the word "biomecha." His eyes were darting from one machine to another like his brain was struggling to process everything all at once.

Luca panicked. "Ah, wait, please sit! There are seats here!"

He quickly pulled out chairs and guided them over, nearly tripping over himself in the process.

Marquise Evelyn recovered first. She sat down beside her husband and immediately began fanning her hands in front of his face, as though cooling down a machine about to overheat.

"Breathe, dear," she said softly. "You're overheating again."

Luca realized a little too late that he had forgotten to explain what made biomechas different. Feeling both embarrassed and amused, he clapped his hands lightly and began his demonstration.

He summoned D-29, who appeared with his usual sparkle and smug pose (complete with the most unusual sound effect that came out of nowhere), before pulling out the Marshal's combination mecha that he had been holding temporarily for fine-tuning. Then, as if it were the most normal thing in the world, Luca brought out the new base models they had started producing.

He smiled as he turned back to face them, ready to begin.

Thud!

"Eh???" Luca squeaked.

The loud thud came not from surprise but from the minister himself, who had now slumped forward on the table like a man who had just witnessed the birth of a new civilization.

"Minister?" Luca yelped, dropping the tablet he was holding. "What happened?!"

Marquise Evelyn, as if already used to crisis management, waved her hand. "It seems he hasn't encountered such exciting things in a very long time."

"Exciting?" repeated the Empress, who was watching with an amused expression.

"Terrifying," corrected Evelyn with a sigh as she patted her husband's shoulder. "He'll recover."

It took several bottles of lemonade and a good ten minutes of muttering to himself before Minister Kordell finally lifted his head again. His complexion was pale, his hands trembled slightly, and his tone was deadly serious.

"Okay, child. Shoot. I am ready," he declared. "I think I have conditioned myself to prepare for things like someone saying we're grandparents now."

Everyone stared at him.

The Empress gently pushed another bottle of lemonade in his direction.

Unfortunately for him, no amount of conditioning could have prepared him for what came next.

By the time Luca had moved from explaining biomechas to combination mechas and then to the new base models, the Nox couple were beginning to realize what kind of entity they were actually speaking to.