I'm playing Frostpunk in Arknights

Even though the workers had arrived at their destination, they were still inside the hunter's hut.

Wang Zhan was puzzled. Could these NPCs refuse orders to work overtime?

Scrolling the mouse wheel, Wang Zhan moved the camera view to the front of the hunter's hut. Through the window, he saw the workers laughing and changing into hunting gear, which put him at ease.

The game seemed more realistic now, even including time to change clothes.

After a while, the door to the hunter's hut opened, and fifteen infected workers, now wearing crude hunting gear, emerged. Carrying lanterns, they headed into the snowfields. By the next day, they would bring back fifteen units of raw food, which could be processed into thirty rations in the cookhouse.

With the area around the energy tower now empty, what was next?

Of course, time to eat!

To ensure he didn't miss Alina's return with reinforcements, Wang Zhan ordered some takeout. Thanks to Mu Ye settling his debts and giving him some money to sustain himself, he could afford something decent.

"Let's go with a beef bowl and soup," he muttered.

After ordering, Wang Zhan continued researching the recruitment system. While it allowed him to recruit various groups and individuals, the requirements varied greatly.

For example, wandering infected could be recruited by simply offering warm shelter and food. However, the requirements for the Internal Guard were to uphold the emperor's will and purge all heretics—a condition Wang Zhan knew would bring nothing but trouble.

Some characters, like Lord Kal'tsit, were outright unrecruitable, with their conditions either hidden or blocked. The same went for the Chunqian Organization, a disaster relief team from Yan Country, which was also unavailable for recruitment.

Scrolling through the options, Wang Zhan realized that while he had workers to construct buildings, he would soon need engineers to research technology and upgrade the energy tower.

"Babbage…"

An academic from the Ursus Royal Academy, he was the chief engineer of a small mobile city and had extensive research experience.

His recruitment requirements? A fully autonomous research environment and being addressed as a genius.

What? Such strange conditions.

Well, Wang Zhan could understand a talented individual having some vanity, but why was there no mention of living conditions?

Out of curiosity, Wang Zhan sent out a recruitment request.

[Recruitment request sent. Please wait for a response.]

"Please wait for a response…" It seemed he couldn't directly recruit Babbage due to unmet conditions. What if the scientist reported this recruitment attempt to the Ursus military?

Wang Zhan doubted it. Babbage was unlikely to abandon his prestigious position just to work at an energy tower. Most likely, the request would go unnoticed.

---

An hour later, Wang Zhan sat at his computer with his meal. On-screen, Alina emerged from the northern canyon, accompanied by a woman with dragon-like horns. Wang Zhan zoomed in and clicked on the woman, revealing her information:

[Talulah (Infected) Occupation: Warrior]

A warrior? Could she tighten screws?

"Just ahead, Talulah, that's the energy tower I was telling you about," Alina said excitedly. Talulah couldn't understand why this energy tower seemed so important to Alina, but she followed along, listening to her friend's enthusiastic description. When did that tower even appear?

"Alina! Stop!"

The tower was far larger than Alina had described. Judging by its size, it stood about eighty meters tall with a diameter of roughly twenty-five meters. How could such a massive structure appear out of nowhere?

If this wasn't part of the military's plans, how could anyone erect such a colossal building in the snowfields?

Alina tugged at Talulah's sleeve, smiling as if anticipating her skepticism. "This is the energy tower I've been telling you about. It can understand and respond to us!"

A talking energy tower?

Wang Zhan chuckled to himself, while Talulah, on the other hand, looked utterly bewildered. She stared at the tower, her golden eyes searching for any signs of life within its steel frame. What was she supposed to say to a structure?

"Don't hesitate. Come and meet him," Alina urged.

Talulah silently observed the energy tower from within the canyon. Its rugged exterior didn't resemble anything made by Ursus. Yet, its intricate structure reminded her of certain prototype machines from Victoria. Was it steam-powered?

But there were distinct differences.

"Energy tower?" Talulah watched as Alina shouted at the structure. Her golden eyes betrayed her confusion. Yet Alina's expression suddenly turned serious.

"You're saying only I can hear you?" Alina asked.

Talulah felt her body tense again. She trusted her friend deeply, but the current situation was absurd, forcing her to reconsider.

"I see," Alina's serious expression softened, replaced by a faint smile. Turning to Talulah, she said, "The energy tower said you should touch its body."

"Alina… are you under too much stress lately?"

Talulah's voice was filled with concern. How could Alina possibly believe a tower was her savior?

"Maybe a little, but my enemies are far weaker than yours," Alina admitted, noticing Talulah's worry. "Don't worry. This isn't a hallucination."

Following Alina's instructions, Talulah approached the energy tower. She trusted her friend but remained cautious of any sudden changes. Reaching out, she touched the tower's cold surface.

It was icy, reminiscent of the walls of Lungmen she had touched as a child. Solid and unyielding, it felt even sturdier than the ships of Ursus.

But there was no voice.

"You still can't hear anything?" Alina asked.

"No, I can't."

"So, touching the energy tower doesn't automatically grant the ability to hear me," Wang Zhan muttered, realizing the situation had grown more complicated. He needed to prove his presence to Talulah somehow.

Lacking wood for construction, he couldn't demonstrate his abilities through building.

Temporarily muting his microphone so Alina couldn't hear him, Wang Zhan thought, If everything around the energy tower is under my control, then my secretary should be able to allocate resources…

However, offering them food might just make them think it was military rations from Ursus.

As firelight spilled into the canyon, the guerrilla fighters had arrived.

Wang Zhan unmuted the microphone. "Alina, tell Talulah that once all the guerrilla members have arrived, I will ignite the energy tower to help you through the night."

"Ignite the energy tower?"

Alina gazed up at the towering structure. The sky was clear, the moonlight cold, and the canyon was engulfed in darkness.

"Don't worry, I'll relay your message."

"Did that voice talk to you again?" Talulah sighed. If Alina's mind had truly gone off the rails, who could she turn to for help?

"Yes. He says he'll ignite the energy tower to help the guerrillas through the night."

Ignite the energy tower?

Talulah, standing amidst the shadows of the canyon, looked up at the tower's peak under the starlit sky. What kind of spectacle would it be to see such a massive structure lit up?

"Talulah, why are you leading your team here?" Wang Zhan shifted his view and spotted a white rabbit among the shadows of the canyon. She broke away from the group, walking directly toward Talulah. At the canyon entrance, a hulking figure with antlers led the guerrilla fighters toward the energy tower.

It was Buldrokkas'tee.