The Last King Of Darkness
Chapter 409 - 279: The Moment of the Shining Stars (Two in One)_3

Chapter 409: Chapter 279: The Moment of the Shining Stars (Two in One)_3

"But there are some things that resources alone can’t change..."

Rod lay lazily in Molly’s soft embrace, feeling her smooth, round legs, as if all the fatigue of the day had vanished.

"Like what?"

"The Underground City has crammed in over three hundred thousand people, but it was originally designed as a base for combatants, without considering ordinary people. The people at the lowest levels need to climb more than two hundred flights of stairs to reach the surface. Some women and children can’t make it up in a whole day, and the congestion is causing us a lot of trouble."

It didn’t take long for Rod’s mind to turn and come up with a solution.

"Don’t we have the Spiritual Energy Giant Crossbow? Once Spiritual Energy is input, it automatically tightens the crossbow string... We could modify it by extending the string and hanging a box below; once it’s powered by Spiritual Energy, we could pull the box up to the surface."

Rod briefly explained his concept of the Spiritual Energy elevator; it was no different from elevators in the original world, except that its power source had been replaced with Spiritual Energy.

And the Underground City, being a cylindrical pit, is perfect for building a row of elevators along its circular walls—won’t that solve the problem?

Molly quickly understood what he meant.

To be fair, the plan wasn’t complicated, the hard part was the thought process; no one had ever thought in this direction before.

This problem had plagued them for over ten days, yet he solved it in just a few seconds.

Molly looked at the side profile of the big boy in her arms who was still rattling on about safety measures and emergency brakes for installing the elevator, all the while his restless hands were not forgotten.

He was so strange, both mature and childish, both clever and dull, both slick and naive, both lascivious and yet so very polite.

Molly couldn’t see through him, but she knew he was her Star of Hope.

He was so young yet had already led them to achieve such a great enterprise, lighting up the dim lives of countless people.

She was one among those whose lives had been illuminated.

Molly gazed at him, her heartbeat accelerating.

Rod was speaking when suddenly his lips felt soft; a sweet fragrance rushed at him, and Molly’s tender red lips had found his.

"Uh, Molly, what are you doing..."

In a soft voice, Molly said, "Don’t refuse me, all right?" Her voice was gentle, tinged with sadness.

Rod’s heart skipped a beat; as he looked up at her, Molly’s delicate cheeks were flushed, her light-colored eyes rippled with emotions, the stern, indifferent expression had long vanished like a thawing iceberg.

Molly was indeed beautiful.

Her most distinctive feature was her sophistication, whether it was her face, figure, hairstyle, or even her glasses and clothes. Sophistication was the most profound impression she gave people.

But previously she was too stern and aloof, just like a head teacher, always talking about meeting needs or providing service, making it seem like he was some sort of machine that would start working once the needs were met.

Rod didn’t like this kind of treatment akin to that of a mercenary, which was why he had rejected her multiple times.

But at that moment, these barriers melted away like ice, and under the soft glow of firelight, with Molly’s eyes sparkling, radiant and beyond beautiful, Rod swallowed hard, the words of refusal stuck in his throat, unable to be voiced.

The light of the fire flickered, bright and dim.

The gap in the silent barrier was quietly sealed.

——

——

After a night had passed.

Rod opened his eyes feeling refreshed and clear-headed.

The person beside him was lying in the crook of his arm, deep asleep.

Moved by the moment, Rod desired her once more before he left with satisfaction.

Molly had been tossed and turned all night and woken up early in the morning, completely exhausted, she fell back into a deep sleep almost instantly.

That whole day, she didn’t leave Rod’s room and all the tasks had to be handled by Rod himself.

Everyone in Star Town was absolutely astonished and didn’t know where the delicate, pretty, and capable Miss Molly had gone.

And Lord Rod, who never used to bother with affairs, was now sitting in the Administration Hall attending to business personally.

That day, the question Rod was asked most frequently was, "Where has Miss Molly gone?"

Rod had to repeat the same answer hundreds of times.

"She’s feeling a bit under the weather, sick and in need of rest, so I’m taking over her work."

Every person’s reaction to his answer was different, but ecstasy was universal—they were ecstatic that their legendary leader had finally started working.

Then, the nightmare began.

Honestly, Rod did feel a sense of guilt, as he hadn’t expected Molly to be so inexperienced, talking as if she was a seasoned veteran ready to fulfill needs and provide services, when in reality, she was quite the novice and had been tossed and turned rather harshly, unable to get out of bed for the entire day.

So he thought about doing his best to satisfy Molly by doing a good job.

With this in mind, Rod handled each matter with great care, and even went to consult the Book of Knowledge when he was uncertain about something.

But Rod lacked any administrative experience; he was truly just a master of theory and found that actual execution was not his forte.

Yet, in an effort to make it up to Molly, he racked his brains and did his utmost.

And the Book of Knowledge kept making a ruckus in his mind, shouting and calling out, dragging him into the Dream Realm from time to time, either piloting air bubbles, observing the trajectory of stars, or encountering omens.

For the entire day, Rod was in sheer agony, feeling completely drained.

Luckily, the results were good, and everyone sang praises about his work.

Although he didn’t pay attention to details as Molly did, his wild imagination, unorthodox methods, and ability to see the big picture achieved unprecedented great effects.

And this news spread quickly to all corners.

Everyone’s perception of Rod was refreshed once again.

The First Elder Amendo had to admit that this year’s new star was very likely a leader-type prodigy.

Archbishop Horus, Defense Chief Darin, and other figures involved in the Holy Fire project were more convinced than ever that Rod was the key to their success.

King Candidate Jon was filled with emotion, sending messages to his confidants Velas and Vivian, urging them to gain Rod’s favor as much as possible.

He planned to reserve a significant place for Rod in his own future plans for kingship.

Qingyu, another candidate and de jure future consort, found herself in deep trouble.

"The preordained consort list has surpassed two thousand... Doesn’t that mean I can only sleep with little Rod once every two thousand days? That’s way too long..."

Merchants like Mahara and others were caught up in euphoria.

They were utterly convinced that their hefty bet was placed rightly; Rod was undoubtedly the brightest new star of the year, and as long as he grew, a wonderful new world would unfold before them.

It wasn’t just them; at Jinworth Academy, within the secret branches, at the Hunter Tavern, on Iron Cross Street, all Rod’s former friends and companions were overjoyed and looking forward to his future, even more dazzling brilliance.

Only the shadows lurking deep in the sewer were whispering anxiously, knowing that their plans had to be carried out soon.

----

Rod was unaware of all this and, even if he knew, he wouldn’t have cared.

At that moment, nothing was more important than the task at hand.

In the Dream Realm.

At Star Square.

In the deep night sky, stars returned to their positions.

The moment for the stars to shine had arrived.