"Achoo!"
Having been rescued from the block of ice, Lin Lan was now in the large bathroom on the second floor of the villa, looking thoroughly dejected as he rinsed his frostbitten limbs with hot water.
Thankfully, as a hero with an exceptionally high elemental affinity, the ice element hadn't penetrated his body. It had merely encased him in a block of ice.
He only suffered from minor frostbite, which was already mostly healed.
If it had been an ordinary person, things could have turned out much worse.
While washing himself with hot water, Lin Lan reflected on two important lessons.
First, the choice of materials for drawing spell talismans—especially the type of paper—had a significant impact on the talisman's effectiveness.
The faster the paper burned, the quicker the talisman's effect would activate, much like the fuse of a bomb.
Without adequate burning time, it was easy for the spell to backfire and harm the user.
Second, although he was able to draw talismans using the skills in his hero's skill tree, he still needed to train and improve his proficiency.
Just like in classic RPG games, the higher your crafting proficiency, the better you can control the effectiveness of what you make and unlock hidden features.
For example, besides freezing enemies, that ice-sealing talisman could also be used to protect the user by freezing the surrounding air—if used in reverse.
But that would require Lin Lan, the one drawing the talisman, to control its power with great precision.
As his blood fully circulated and warmed him up, Lin Lan let out a wry smile.
If Enterprise hadn't used her ship rigging's arrow with pinpoint force to break the ice, he might have stayed frozen until the block melted naturally.
He recalled the photo that Gridley had handed to him, barely holding back her laughter. It was a snapshot of him frozen in ice with a stunned expression, captured at the perfect moment.
He wanted nothing more than to crawl into a hole and disappear.
What a humiliation! He tried to look cool but ended up like that—utterly disgraceful!
Looks like he'd better wait for Akashi to return and use her merchant-grade professional talisman paper to draw his spells.
For now, Lin Lan had no plans to use xuan paper for talismans again.
After a hot bath, Lin Lan stepped out into the steam-filled hallway, changed into fresh clothes in his bedroom, dried his hair, and headed downstairs.
As soon as he reached the first floor, a mouthwatering aroma hit him—it smelled like steak or something similar.
Enterprise, Essex, Anchorage, and the others, who were sitting on the couch watching TV, looked up at him with concern, which only made Lin Lan feel more embarrassed.
"Uh... Enterprise, thanks for earlier... I didn't expect the talisman to be that powerful."
Blushing slightly, Lin Lan walked over to the couch and thanked Enterprise.
"Commander, your superpower is seriously surprising. You'll have to be more careful from now on."
Wearing a revealing outfit, Enterprise let out a breath of relief and smiled upon seeing Lin Lan unharmed.
Essex, dressed similarly to Enterprise like they were sisters, also sighed in resignation upon seeing he was okay.
Indomitable had mentioned the commander had superpowers, but Essex hadn't believed her—until now.
This method of summoning ice blocks with a talisman was just as mysterious as the fox spirits from Sakura Empire.
"Hehehe, Commander, you actually tried to give us something that dangerous as a gift? Who knew you're even more scheming than little Saratoga!"
Gridley grinned mischievously as she teased Lin Lan. The girls had decided Lin Lan's talisman was meant to prank them, just like Saratoga's usual antics.
At this, Lin Lan glared and quickly explained with a serious face:
"That was an accident, not on purpose! Who in their right mind pulls a prank and ends up freezing themselves?"
"Hmph, we get it~"
"You little reporter, always spreading lies. If I really wanted to prank you, would I go through so much trouble?!"
Completely flustered and furious, Lin Lan had had enough.
He transformed into a big bad wolf and in two steps reached Gridley, grabbing her and playfully roughhousing her.
"Waah! Enterprise, save me!"
The cute little blonde chibi struggled desperately in Lin Lan's arms, but there was no escaping the commander's clutches.
Her soft cheeks were at the mercy of his large hands, getting pinched and squished.
The other Eagle Union shipgirls just smiled and watched the show, enjoying the drama. After all, Gridley brought this on herself.
Bringing up the most embarrassing topic in front of the commander? She deserved it.
"Dinner time! Stop fooling around, stupid commander!"
Just as Lin Lan was about to sit down on the sofa with the defeated Gridley still in his arms, Hammann's voice called out from the kitchen.
Dinner, prepared by Hammann and Maury, was incredibly lavish. The table was loaded not just with steak, but also Italian pasta, roasted chicken, and fish soup.
In addition to the main dishes, there were fresh vegetable salads, sliced fruits, freshly squeezed juice, and even cream cake.
Looking at the array of dishes, Lin Lan was momentarily stunned. This was way beyond what he expected.
All this, and Hammann and Maury had only spent about two hours preparing it.
The little silver-haired beast-eared maid standing by the table placed the last plate of fried chicken cutlets and puffed out her flat chest proudly as she said:
"Hmph, dumb commander, stunned by our cooking, huh? How are you going to thank Hammann for this specially prepared dinner—wah! Don't touch my ears!"
Lin Lan had already found the perfect way to thank this Eagle Union tsundere maid.
Hammann's face turned red from his affectionate assault. Though she protested, her body didn't resist one bit.
Maury came out of the kitchen after cleaning up, smiling as she untied her apron and said:
"Everyone, sit down and eat while it's hot. There's plenty for everyone!"
Lin Lan then realized that Enterprise and the others were still standing, so he let go of Hammann and signaled everyone to take their seats and begin the meal.
This kind of hearty Eagle Union-style dinner—focused on grilled and fried meats—was exactly Lin Lan's favorite.
Back in the Ironblood faction, although there was also plenty of meat under Roon's cafeteria management, it was mostly hams and stews.
Thinking about how each faction had its own unique taste, Lin Lan was already looking forward to the variety of dishes he could enjoy when he returned to the port.
Especially Dragon Empery, Sakura Empire, and Sardegna—those three factions had cuisines that were truly deep and rich in flavor.
Of course, he also reminded himself to be extra cautious when it came to the Royal faction.
Just thinking about their infamous "Stargazing Cuisine" made him feel queasy.
He feared that eating it might send him straight to the galley god for emergency treatment that same night.
As Maury had said, there was more than enough food tonight, satisfying Lin Lan's appetite, which had grown since arriving on the Eastern Continent.
After dessert and cake, dinner officially came to an end.
Hammann volunteered to clean up the table, while Lin Lan and the others returned to the living room.
Noticing the wall clock, Lin Lan saw that it was already past 8 PM. No wonder it was dark outside through the windows.
After a moment of thought, Lin Lan looked at the group of Eagle Union shipgirls and smiled as he extended an invitation:
"Well, it's already this late—why don't you all stay here for the night?"
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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