Upon entering the armory, Malin first began to select protective gear. Due to his reduced size, he couldn’t fit into his previous breastplate, but fortunately, there were some soft armors made of exotic silk. Malin used Melo as a filler and inserted it into the soft armor, enough to defend against all known and unknown gunpowder-powered bullets in this world.
As long as they weren’t fired by a deity.
The Big-eared Fox had already taken out a shotgun. Malin and she quickly dismantled the 21-inch barrel and replaced it with a 12-inch sawed-off barrel. Hearing that their target was an area controlled by Chaos, Malin chose to use buckshot—enough to inflict significant damage on those standard Chaos cultists.
"Milani, I can’t take you with me this time," Malin said as he took the little squirrel out of his hood—Lorrin would be transformed into full-coverage armor to protect Bippo, and Milani, having little combat ability, could only stay to watch the house.
The little squirrel looked unhappy, but after receiving three pinecones, finally contented, was embraced by Faye.
Faye came over with soft armor pants that had a thermal lining, and Malin undid his sleep pants before donning them.
Maya brought over a belt filled with shotgun shells, and Malin took the belt and wrapped it around his waist.
Jessica helped Malin with a short coat that had a spiky lining and a thermal layer and assisted him in putting it on.
Lillim slung a gun sling over Malin’s left shoulder and fastened it to the shoulder of the coat.
"May my lover be invincible in battle," the Big-eared Fox Matilda said as she came up to Malin and kissed his face.
Malin picked up Bippo, which Lorrin had already wrapped up, and placed it in his hood.
He hung his .45-caliber revolver and holster on his right waist and connected the shotgun’s stock hook to the gun sling. After accepting a grey otter fur knitted cap from Faye, Malin bid farewell with a kiss, "Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon."
He then left the room.
Lady Anna seemed to appreciate Malin’s efficiency, as she opened the portal and stepped in.
Before entering, Malin smiled at His Majesty Goethe, "Your Majesty, I have to go."
"As a father, I despise these uninvited robbers, but I want you to come back alive, so I don’t want my daughter to cry, understand?" His Majesty Goethe said with a frown and a very fierce tone.
In response, Malin nodded vigorously, "I understand, I won’t take my life lightly."
Portals were somewhat unfamiliar to Malin, but they were surprisingly compatible with him. It was said that some people experience various issues while passing through portals, like getting a good vomit. Malin had no such issues.
Following Lady Anna through the portal, Malin found himself in a place similar to a camp, surrounded by blue-eyed, black-haired humans. Some wore the brown and grey typical of the Sydney Union, while others were blonde, though they were scarce.
"Lady Anna, welcome. Being able to invite you over this time makes us very confident about our next move," a tall man with black hair and green eyes approached. Although he was a bit older, he unexpectedly had the attractiveness unique to middle-aged men, and of course, his small mustache was a bonus point. Back in the day, Malin had a full beard, commonly known as Big Beard, though it wasn’t very thick.
"Hello, Viscount Bianchi. After hearing about the Farol Principality’s situation, I’ve decided to come with my colleagues from the Mage Tower to offer our help," she said.
The two shook hands, and the man known as Viscount Bianchi noticed the fully armed Malin, "Ah, Lady, who is this...?"
"Malin, Malin Gaiate, a friend of my daughter, just entering his blood activation period. Don’t underestimate him; he will hammer anyone who does into the ground," Lady Anna said earnestly.
Viscount Bianchi seemed not to acknowledge Malin fully, but he hid his emotions well and extended his hand to Malin, "Welcome to the Farol Principality, Mr. Malin."
"Hello, Viscount Bianchi," Malin shook his hand, releasing it after three seconds, "How do you find me?"
"Indeed, as the lady said, I am in awe of your strength," Viscount Bianchi said, surprised but clearly pleased after having experienced a bone break and healing in the span of three seconds—uh-huh, it looked like Malin had truly earned this guy’s respect through his demonstration of strength.
Keeping this in mind, Malin and Lady Anna followed the Viscount toward the central open tent in the camp.
"Anna, my dear sister, welcome to the Farol Principality. It’s been a long while," a silver-haired man greeted Lady Anna with joy as he approached and gave her a very refined cheek-to-cheek greeting.
"Alessandro, my brother, I didn’t expect to see you here today. It’s wonderful," Lady Anna said with a smile.
"The Goddess of Fate is indeed a merciful lady; I thought I’d never see you again. Come, I have someone to introduce to you." The old man introduced Lady Anna to four gentlemen sitting around a table in the tent and used the term "from the same school" to describe her.
Oh, from the same school, meaning they shared the same mentor. That explains why they addressed each other as brother and sister.