Chapter 2
However, seeing the proud expression on Lia's face, Merlin hesitated a bit.
"Hehe, my teacher Merlin, I'll reluctantly show you!" Lia picked up the bamboo tube she had made and went to a field.
Lia dug a hole and inserted the bamboo tube into the soil. Merlin, curious, walked over to see what Lia was doing.
Seeing Merlin approach, Lia warned, "You'd better stay back, Merlin."
Hearing this, Merlin could only suppress his curiosity and take a few steps back.
Seeing this, Lia extended her fingertip, and a small flame rose from it. She lit the fuse with the flame.
As the fuse started burning, Lia immediately ran back quickly, reaching Merlin's side, and covered her ears.
Merlin looked at the burning fuse, then at Lia covering her ears, feeling a bit confused.
But with a "boom," accompanied by a flash of light, a violent explosion sounded. Like thunder in the sky, it shattered eardrums, and Merlin was so startled he fell to the ground.
"Hahaha, I told you to be careful~" Seeing Merlin fall on his butt, Lia's face lit up with joy. "The power of gunpowder is just as I imagined."
But Merlin didn't mind Lia's teasing; he stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants.
He was amazed by the explosive power of that small thing. Even from dozens of meters away, he could feel the shockwave. If a human were hit up close, he couldn't even imagine it.
Merlin and Lia walked to the exploded field, where a large crater had been blown out, with white smoke still rising from it.
"Lia... how did you do that? And can the power of this gunpowder be even greater?" Merlin looked at Lia curiously, wondering how this little girl had created something so powerful.
"The power of gunpowder depends on weight. The more gunpowder, the wider the explosion range. With 10 tons, you could completely erase a mountain," Lia said proudly.
Now that she had advanced gunpowder, reviving Britain was just a small matter. But a tiny Britain couldn't satisfy Lia's appetite.
She might as well leave Britain to her elder sister. Her current target is China!
That's right, it's between the 4th and 5th centuries AD. The great nation in the East is in the warring period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, so this is the best opportunity for Lia to go East and unify China!
At this time, if she can unify China, it would be legitimate.
As for little Britain, she'll just let her elder sister have it. With gunpowder in hand, it would be foolish to stay in Britain and play games of deception with her sister.
Besides, Britain is too small. It would take too long to develop properly, and with her elder sister eyeing her, only a fool would stay here!
After all, with gunpowder's help, even without any foundation, she could quickly raise an army and, aided by firearms, sweep across all of China!
Reviving Britain or something is too small-scale. Who wants to be stuck in such a small place!
If she's going to do it, she'll go for the biggest!
With gunpowder invented, she could later develop flintlock guns, cannons, and other firearms. It's time for cold weapons to exit the historical stage.
Of course, you might say Lia is blonde with blue eyes—would China accept her?
No no no!
This is the Type-Moon World, where hair and eye colors are all sorts of weird.
For example, Lanling Wang has white hair and purple eyes, Li Shuwen has red hair, Qin Liangyu has black hair and green eyes, or Chen Gong, Lü Bu, Huyan Zhuo, Yan Qing, and even Ying Zheng don't have black hair and black eyes.
You could say, whether she's recognized as Han Chinese is up to Lia herself. If she says she's Han Chinese, then she is!
Once Lia goes to China, she can not only speak Chinese but also write Chinese characters. If Lia says she's not Han Chinese, probably no one would believe her!
"Erase a mountain..." Hearing Lia say this, Merlin was stunned again.
That's comparable to many Noble Phantasms. Most Noble Phantasms can only achieve that level, right?
"Does this thing have any drawbacks?" Merlin thought for a moment and asked.
He had seen the advantage of gunpowder—its unparalleled lethality—so drawbacks must exist.
"Drawbacks of gunpowder? Honestly, there aren't any. If I had to say, it's afraid of fire and water," Lia thought and said.
Afraid of fire because a single spark can cause an explosion. Afraid of water naturally due to dampness, making it hard to ignite.
"How did you make this thing? I see you playing around a lot—always playing with mud or cooking something strange," Merlin said curiously.
"Play with mud, my foot! I was gathering materials for gunpowder. I can't do everything alone, so I had to take it step by step."
She had worked hard on experiments, spending a lot of time, and Merlin called it playing with mud—utterly unbearable!
"Is that so? Haha." Scolded by Lia, Merlin laughed awkwardly.
"Hmph, in fact, if sugar could be added to this gunpowder, its original power would be even greater!" Saying this, Lia's face showed pride.
In the real world, there's a saying:
One part saltpeter, two parts sulfur, three parts charcoal, add some sugar for a big Ivan!
This isn't just talk. Mixing in an equal amount of sugar can increase the original power by 10 times! Imagine the terror of destroying a mountain multiplied by 10.
But in this century with low productivity, sugar is expensive as hell, far beyond what poor Lia can afford. So, adding sugar to gunpowder is a luxury she can't consider.
Lia herself is so poor she's almost eating dirt; where would she get money for sugar, a luxury only nobles can afford?
"Do you think with gunpowder like this, reviving Britain is still hard?" Lia said proudly.
"Indeed, it's not too hard." Merlin couldn't help but sigh.
Although Britain is still in the last age of myths, that's individual prowess. Soldiers aren't that powerful; they're just ordinary soldiers.
Faced with firearms like this, it would only be a one-sided outcome.
End of recollection!
Thinking carefully, her miserable experience was all because of that bastard Merlin!
Damn Merlin!
Being pushed is a fact; complaining is pointless. Besides, she didn't lose anything, and the system rewards were really sweet!
System: "Hug successful, system activated. You gained a skill from the other person (Necromancy·Summoning)."
Chapter 3: Were You Peeking Last Night?
Necromancy·Summoning: As long as you have corpse materials, you can revive the dead. The strength of the revived depends on the materials, with no consciousness from their previous life. "Damn, my sister really is a witch, having magic like this!" After reading the skill description carefully, Lia was speechless. Isn't this a necromancer's skill? Her sister really dares to learn anything.
This skill has its pros and cons. After all, it summons the dead and can't be used in front of others. Once used, she might be labeled a witch or heretic. But whatever, she's about to run away anyway. Whatever happens to her elder sister later has nothing to do with her.
As for Guinevere, who was originally her wife in history—doesn't she like Lancelot? She won't have any relationship with her anymore, and she can pursue her own happiness. Clearly, not being King Arthur is a great choice! As for whether Britain will fall into chaos later, Lia thought for a moment. With Morgan's ability, unifying Britain might be difficult, especially with the Vile King Vortigern around, but protecting Camelot shouldn't be a problem! Thinking this, Lia grew even more determined to go to China!
Lia quickly put on her clothes and went to find Merlin.
"Merlin, Merlin, wake up!" Lia knocked directly on Merlin's door.
"Aww. So early in the morning, Lia, don't you sleep?" Soon, Merlin opened the door, yawning.
Sleep your head off! I was attacked by my sister last night! Didn't you notice in the next room?
With Merlin's abilities, couldn't he detect her sister's actions? Could this guy have been watching the whole time?
But after thinking it over, Lia felt it was unlikely. Unless Morgan had a fetish for being watched doing that kind of thing, Merlin probably wouldn't have noticed. In the Type-Moon World, Morgan's magical skills far surpass Merlin's.
"Last night? Morgan came last night! She didn't do anything to you, did she?" Hearing Lia mention Morgan's visit, Merlin looked utterly shocked. Lia studied Merlin's expression closely; it didn't seem feigned, so Merlin truly hadn't known about it last night.
"What could she possibly do to me?" Lia blushed slightly, unable to voice that kind of thing.
Lia composed herself and said to Merlin, "Merlin, I've decided. I'm going to the East!"
"The East? You mean Camelot?" Merlin asked, puzzled.
"The East is the continent across the sea, not Camelot," Lia shook her head.
"What are you going to do across the sea? Are you planning to travel to other countries first?" Merlin found it strange, unable to grasp Lia's train of thought. "Something like that."
Lia didn't know how to explain it to Merlin either. In any case, she wanted to leave Britain first; she had no desire to be pressed onto the bed by her elder sister again, pleading for mercy in a submissive tone. Merlin thought for a moment and felt that traveling to other countries would greatly benefit Lia's future governance, so he nodded in agreement.
The two only packed lightly. Merlin looked at Lia, who still resembled a village girl, pondered for a bit, then tapped her with his staff.
Instantly, Lia's original clothes transformed into a set of white armor.
Lia touched the attire on her body but didn't feel much of a difference.
"Since you're not interested in the sword-pulling method, I'll give this to you early," Merlin handed the stone in sword to Lia.
Lia took the stone in sword and saw inscribed on it:
"Whosoever draws this sword shall be the King of England!"
"Get rid of this inscription," Lia pointed at the words.
Merlin said nothing, only sighed softly. He passed his palm over the blade, and the words vanished completely.
Lia casually swung a few sword flourishes before sheathing the stone in sword.
The two took one last look at the small village where they had lived for over a decade and left without turning back.
After leaving the village, Lia finally wore the most excited smile she had shown in many years.
They walked straight ahead and, after a few days, arrived at a coastal city by the sea.
After inquiring briefly, they learned that a large commercial ship had departed just a few days prior. They would have to wait a week for the next one. Navigation technology during this era was quite underdeveloped, so large ships were infrequent.
Lia could only look to Merlin, hoping he had a good solution.
"Don't look at me. I have no way to handle this either. Let's find an inn to stay at for now," Merlin shrugged.
Since Merlin said so, Lia had no choice but to follow him.
Led by Merlin, they soon found an inn. After booking two rooms, Merlin disappeared to who-knows-where.
But given Merlin's personality, Lia could roughly guess where he had gone.
Lia wanted to go out and explore too, but she had no money, and the era was rather chaotic, so she chose to stay in her room. From her room, she glanced out the window and could see the docks.
From Lia's perspective, many workers were carrying goods at the docks under the scorching sun, occasionally hearing the overseers' shouts and curses. After watching for a while, Lia sighed involuntarily. The lives of commoners in Europe during this era were truly miserable, no different from Slaves.
Although Europe developed very well in modern times, before the feudal era, it had always lagged far behind the Central Plains.
After staying in this city for two days, Lia hadn't even seen Merlin's face, which made her secretly resentful.
Damn Merlin, who knows where he's gone off to fool around, leaving her alone in the room bored, not even taking her out to play.
After thinking for a moment, Lia decided she would go out to explore today no matter what, and also catch that guy Merlin.
After having lunch, Lia headed outside.
After wandering for a bit, Lia felt it was better to stay in the room. The city's streets were simply too unclean, with a foul smell detectable from afar. Especially when Lia saw a basin of yellowish waste casually dumped by the roadside, she quickly distanced herself from such areas.
"These Europeans are so unclean," Lia muttered a few times before hurrying away.
As she walked, Lia stopped in front of a red building. She noticed quite a few people here, with many men coming and going, though she didn't know what they were doing.
Chapter Four: A Little Loli
But since those people weren't stopped, it was probably open to anyone.
Lia glanced at the sign outside: "Pasha"? It gave off a high-class, elegant vibe, with ornate yet tasteful decor and a faint, pleasant fragrance wafting from inside. Lia didn't understand what it meant, but she could vaguely hear much laughter coming from within.
With so many people, could it be a theater?
Lia thought for a moment and decided to go in and see. But as soon as she reached the entrance, she was stopped.
"Is it not allowed to enter?" Lia looked at the burly man blocking her, somewhat puzzled.
"Miss, do you know what kind of place this is?" The man glanced at Lia's armor, clearly high-quality craftsmanship, likely a noble lady playing at being a knight. Knights were quite popular in this era.
"Isn't this a theater?"
The burly man was taken aback by Lia's words. One could call it a theater, but it wasn't really a theater.
"Miss, with all due respect, someone of your status shouldn't come to such a place. This is where nobles and wealthy merchants come specifically for entertainment, so..." The man didn't spell it out, but Lia understood. Though curious about what was inside, Lia didn't enter. As the man said, given her current status, entering would only cause trouble for herself. Lia pouted. For some reason, she felt Merlin was hiding inside, reveling in joy. The thought alone made her quite unhappy!
Lia sighed and was about to leave.
Just then, angry shouts came from inside, "Quick, catch that little girl! Don't let her escape!"
Amid the shouts, a little girl ran out. She looked no older than 7 or 8, fleeing in panic. Behind her were several men with fierce expressions.
Hearing the men's shouts, the two guards at the entrance immediately moved to block the doorway.
Seeing the two guards, the girl's eyes filled with despair, but she gritted her teeth and tried to charge forward.
How could her frail body possibly overcome the two burly guards?
As she rushed forward, one of the men grabbed her, lifting her easily like a chick. Seeing the girl still struggling, one of the pursuing men slapped her hard across the right cheek. "Ah!" The girl cried out in pain. Instantly, blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and her right cheek swelled, looking utterly pitiful. "Hurt someone and still dare to run? I'll beat you to death!" The man then kicked the girl in the leg.