Chapter 1179: Expert Advice
After hearing Gawain’s words, Amber was stunned for several seconds before snapping back to attention. She stared wide-eyed at him. “So you really do have family ties? Then wouldn’t that make you an elder to Rosetta…?”
“Even without that connection, I’m still an elder,” Gawain glanced at the half-elf and waved his hand dismissively. “But even if you count that distant relation from seven centuries ago—do you really think Rosetta would recognize someone that far removed today?”
“Hmm, when you put it that way…” Amber’s expression remained a bit dazed, then she lowered her head and started counting on her fingers. “A distant relative from seven hundred years ago… Hey, I’m suddenly curious—are noble circles really that small? How come you can trace your family tree upward and still find relatives everywhere…?”
Gawain just smiled and didn’t answer Amber’s question. After all, he had only mentioned the topic in passing and wasn’t particularly interested in it—it wasn’t part of his life or his emotions. Unlike memories of the magical cataclysm and the pioneering expedition, which still lingered in some form after seven centuries, that was long gone, just a piece of history.
But Amber’s curiosity was hard to satisfy. She blinked and leaned closer when Gawain stayed silent, pressing him, “Hey, you rarely talk about your family from seven hundred years ago. You never mentioned your children or your wife… By the way, how did you end up hooking up with the distant cousin of Typhon’s founding monarch? Did you two meet during the expedition?”
Once her curiosity was sparked, the half-elf just wouldn’t stop babbling, circling around him. Gawain was at a loss and sighed helplessly. “I was busy fighting on the battlefield when I was young, didn’t have much time for personal matters. Plus, the situation was chaotic back then, so everything got delayed. Then one day, Charlie remembered and said he wanted to introduce someone to me—I don’t even know how he found Roland Augustus…”
Amber listened, wide-eyed, to these untold stories that weren’t recorded in history—or at least not in such vivid detail as Gawain described. At the end, she couldn’t help but draw out a long “Ohhh,” her expression strange. “It sounds reasonable, but coming from you, it just… doesn’t feel like something that would happen to someone like you.”
Gawain chuckled. “Something that happens to ‘someone like me’… What do you think that would even look like?”
“Well…” Amber opened her mouth but couldn’t come up with a follow-up. In her mind, she had conjured up all sorts of epic legends and heroic tales, but trying to fit those stories onto the real, living Gawain in front of her felt pointless. She didn’t know the Gawain from the history books, and this one she had literally dug out of a coffin… often didn’t quite match the historical record. “Forget it, I can’t think of anything.”
Gawain smiled and reached out to ruffle Amber’s hair casually. “I’m pretty sure I’ve driven a lot of historians crazy, especially those who focus on biographies.”
“Good that you know,” Amber sighed. “Just from what I know, at least a dozen scholars from the Old Ansu Historical Society who studied Gawain Cecil’s biography have already switched to other fields…”
This little detour didn’t distract Gawain from his task. Within minutes, he was back in his study, where Hetty had already placed the organized documents on his desk.
Gawain lowered his gaze, scanning the printed words—messages sent in real time from distant Aldern through the newly established cross-national communication line between the two countries. Now that the alliance was formed and relations normalized, this line grew busier by the day, with countless transmissions passing through towering signal towers, relay stations, and communication hubs. Only the most critical messages made it to Gawain and Rosetta’s desks.
Like an unprecedented plan to knock on the door of the gods.
Gawain took a deep breath and opened the “fax.” After skimming the introduction, his eyes caught several key phrases:
“Based on the resonance link between deity and divine realm… speculative nature of the divine thought… remnants of gods theoretically extensions of the divine realm… purified arcane energy can form the ‘skeleton’ supporting the passage… exploring the security of the war god’s divine realm…”
Following these phrases were several large, clear images, apparently from a top-secret laboratory somewhere in Aldern. Typhon’s mages had recorded the scene using imaging technology rivaling the magic network terminals, then encoded and uploaded the data into Cecil’s magic network. In the pictures, Gawain saw fragments of iron-gray armor sealed within anti-gravity fields and energy barriers, experimental magical platforms, and scale markers for size comparison.
Hetty stood by Gawain’s desk, watching his expression grow serious. She chose her words carefully. “It seems the Typhonians aren’t as weak in this area as we thought. A laboratory of this scale, along with the infrastructure to support it, can’t be assembled in just a few months—especially with these technical personnel involved.”
“The Augustus family has been secretly researching the mysteries of the divine realm for a long time,” Gawain nodded. “Even during the era when they coexisted with the Eye of God, they found ways to deceive its judgment. That’s normal—they’re not a family to sit idly by. But in the past, such research could only proceed slowly and on a small scale. Even if they had scattered results, they couldn’t translate them into any concrete action—much like the Morningstar family of the Silver Empire did back then.”
Hetty sighed with some admiration. “The emergence of the Theocracy Council made rulers reach a consensus. Studying the gods went from heresy to a desperate act of salvation for both mortals and gods. Plus, scattered technical data was quickly consolidated. The technicians, who had been groping around nervously and directionless, finally gained some confidence. Now, these audacious projects can be openly pursued…”
“Even so, this is the boldest of all bold ventures… knocking on the door of a divine realm,” Gawain waved the documents in his hand and asked, “Where are Kamail and Veronica now?”
Hetty nodded. “They’ve been notified. They should be here soon.”
No sooner had she finished than a familiar gentle female voice came from outside the door: “We have arrived, Your Majesty.”
The study door opened, and two sources of light entered Gawain and Hetty’s sight: Kamail, radiating arcane brilliance all over his body, and Veronica, surrounded by a faint holy glow. As they stepped inside, the room instantly brightened even more than before, causing Gawain to squint.
Amber, who had been standing silently behind Gawain, coughed twice and couldn’t help but speak up, “Could you guys maybe tone down the brightness a bit…?”
“Apologies. I was a bit excited after receiving Lady Hetty’s message,” Kamail said as he quickly dimmed his almost blinding arcane light to a normal level. Veronica merely glanced at Amber, and though she said nothing, the holy radiance around her also dimmed.
“Let’s put these minor details aside for now,” Gawain nodded, his gaze sweeping over the two ancient rebels before him. “You should already know what’s going on—our neighbors have pulled off something big.”
“Yes, we’re aware—though only roughly,” Kamail nodded. “Now we need more detailed information…”
“Is this the file from Aldern?” Veronica stepped forward, eyes fixed on the papers in Gawain’s hand. “May we take a look?”
“Of course,” Gawain said, picking up two more prepared documents and pushing them toward Kamail and Veronica. “These are copies, prepared especially for you. It’s definitely incomplete—Typhon didn’t send detailed technical data. These are just the drafts they’re willing to share publicly. But once we respond, more detailed information will be disclosed.”
Kamail took the documents like precious treasures, then used arcane power to flip through the pages rapidly, reading far beyond normal human speed. Veronica flipped through hers in a flurry, scanning the contents directly into her mind. By the time Gawain withdrew his hand, they had already finished.
Gawain wasn’t surprised. Speed-reading and memory spells were common among spellcasters, though they required twice the energy of normal reading. The time saved allowed the discussion to move forward quickly. He nodded seriously at the two technical experts. “I want to hear your opinions on this bold plan from Typhon… Please advise on the risks, feasibility, and value.”
Kamail and Veronica exchanged a glance, a calm, steady look between them. Then Veronica, the former rebel leader, spoke first.
“Regarding risks, I want to remind you of one thing… Do you remember what event triggered the Rebellion Plan during the Gondor era?”
Gawain quickly recalled and found the relevant records. “During maintenance of the Deep Blue Well, you accidentally opened a rift directly leading to a certain divine realm. The mages who entered and investigated looked directly at the divine realm, learned many ‘divine truths,’ and discovered the gods’ frantic countdown. They went mad, which directly led to the later Rebellion Plan.”
“Yes. We opened a rift deep within the source of the Deep Blue Well—though even today, we’re not sure which divine realm it led to,” Veronica nodded. “The mages who investigated didn’t even truly enter the divine realm. They only glimpsed it from the ‘critical boundary’ formed by the well, yet one by one, they went insane.”
Hetty looked thoughtfully at Veronica. “So you mean the risks are enormous. We shouldn’t do this, and we should try to dissuade Typhon?”
“No,” Veronica shook her head. “I’m only emphasizing the inherent risks of the ‘divine realm’ itself, to highlight the seriousness of this matter. As for this specific case… Typhon intends to open a ‘gate’ to the war god’s divine realm. I believe that’s not a major problem.”
Gawain said nothing, just gestured with his eyes for Veronica to continue.
“The reason is that we’ve essentially become ‘immune’ to the war god’s divinity,” Veronica said bluntly, without beating around the bush. “Since the Battle of Winterhold, when the war god fell, the divine influence of the war god has rapidly faded worldwide. All the intelligence we’ve gathered so far confirms that the divine powers within the war god’s domain have vanished. Further tests on the war god’s remnants show that the divine contamination left behind no longer affects mortals. This all fits perfectly with the theoretical models we’ve developed regarding divinity and ideological currents: the mortals’ act of killing the god achieved the most complete ‘decoupling.’ This civilization has finally broken free from the war god’s chains.”
“So, since the war god’s divine contamination no longer affects us, the divine realm left behind shouldn’t impact us either—in our eyes, it should have degenerated into just an ordinary alternate space. According to the latest theories, it’s a projection formed by mortal thought currents in the ‘deep sea.’ I don’t know the war god’s realm’s current true state, but at least theoretically… it’s harmless.”
“Theoretically,” Gawain deliberately repeated the word.
“Yes, we can only speculate based on theory,” Kamail nodded. “The risk still exists. After all, we’re only inferring the state of the war god’s realm from the fragments we have, and our theoretical framework on divine operation and ideological laws is far from complete. In fact, only when we truly break free from these chains will we fully understand all the underlying laws. Until then, the risks of exploration will always accompany the explorers.”
“The risks of exploration will always accompany the explorers…” Gawain exhaled softly. “You’re right. Nothing is ever 100% safe. But as things stand, do you believe these risks are controllable? Acceptable?”
The two technical experts exchanged serious looks—Kamail’s face was unreadable but his eyes were grave—and both nodded.
“Then we can respond to Aldern’s side,” Hetty broke the silence. “Should I draft the reply now?”
Gawain thought for a moment and waved his hand. “Wait a bit. I think… it’s best to consult the other experts first.”
“The other experts?” Hetty paused briefly, then quickly caught on. “Ah, you mean those retired ones…”
“Prepare the anti-divinity shields—full power. I’m heading to the Rebellion Courtyard first, then I’ll check in with Enya,” Gawain said, nodding. “Can’t have them just playing cards all day with nothing to do…”
(End of chapter)