Chapter 1459: Blood Pressure Spiking and Dropping
In this world, all living beings are like prisoners trapped inside a pitch-black room. Embedded in the walls are countless tiny mirrors, no bigger than sesame seeds, scattered like stars. Meanwhile, an invisible man-eating beast prowls silently in the darkness. Ordinary people cannot see or hear this beast’s movements; only those special mirrors occasionally reflect glimpses of its scales or claws. Through these fleeting reflections, mortals might seize a chance to find the sole path to survival before being devoured.
Unfortunately, those mirrors are too small and distant, and everyone’s feet are stuck in place. Ordinary people simply cannot make out those faint, blurry reflections. To track the beast’s trail, they must rely on a magical tide observation device. But here lies the biggest problem: building such a device is far from easy.
Listening to Rebecca’s words, Hetty fell into a brief silence.
She knew that fighting the magical tide required more than just an observation device. The real key was the “protection system.” Yet, for that system to work, the parameters obtained from the observation device were a necessary prerequisite. Following the ancestors’ principle of “one step at a time,” no matter how the protection system’s issues were resolved later, the observation device had to be built first.
After a long moment, she looked up and met Rebecca’s eyes. “With our current technology, it’s completely impossible to build this ‘vibration ignition point,’ isn’t it?”
“Not completely impossible—just very unlikely,” Rebecca said carefully. “With our most advanced energy matrix technology and the energy purification experience we gained from the ‘Gate’ project, we can barely reach the energy level needed to ignite the vibration point. But that’s only the ignition threshold. How to maintain stable operation afterward, and how to sustain the special spacetime structure inside the focus, remain unresolved. And…”
Hetty’s expression was calm. “And what?”
“The chance of losing control over the vibration point is extremely high. The whole system will be barely functional, with many technical parameters below standard. Its safety will be a huge concern. We’d be building an energy source that humanity can’t control, then hooking it up to a machine whose principles we only half understand, hoping it can run steadily for months or longer. If it explodes, it won’t be a simple ‘boom’ in a lab.”
Seeing the seriousness on Rebecca’s face, Hetty felt a chill run through her heart.
If even this usually carefree girl was this tense over the project’s failure risk and consequences, then the potential disaster was beyond ordinary imagination. After all, Rebecca was the one who could casually conjure fireballs the size of city gates with a smile!
Rebecca noticed her aunt’s strange look but couldn’t quite place it, so she quickly brushed off the small doubt and continued, “Also… whether or not we can do it, we have to make sure the observation device works on the first try. It’s huge, and we probably won’t have the time or resources for trial and error…”
“I want to hear your plan,” Hetty interrupted, her gaze serious. “I know you. When you come to me with a technical challenge, you usually already have a bold solution in mind. I’m not concerned about feasibility right now—just tell me what you intend to do.”
Rebecca hesitated, unused to her aunt’s tone, but after a moment nodded. “I do have an idea… though I don’t know if the ancestors or Miss Veronica will agree.”
She paused again, then cautiously added, “The energy from the Deep Blue Well should be enough. I looked over the data Veronica provided. That natural magical surge source can definitely ignite the vibration point. But…”
“But what?” Hetty frowned. “Don’t beat around the bush. Just say your plan—I’m not going to scold you.”
That loosened Rebecca’s tongue. “The problem is, the current scale of the Deep Blue Well’s surge isn’t large enough. Relying on just one main network rift for power probably won’t suffice. We need to open several more rifts. I’ve calculated it—we just need to ‘blast’ the Deep Blue Well a little… The Dawn of the Mortal World’s supercritical accelerator volley is roughly enough to—Aunt? Aunt, are you okay? You don’t look well!”
Hetty clutched her chest, gasping for breath. She realized she’d been careless. The moment Rebecca stepped in, she should have switched on her mechanical mind, cold logic, and calm demeanor—and kept a couple of fast-acting revival potions handy. Years had passed, yet Rebecca’s words hadn’t softened with age; if anything, they’d grown more potent alongside the empire’s growing military might.
Was her niece’s wild imagination somehow linked to the power of the main cannon?
Countless thoughts flashed through Hetty’s mind, but she maintained her auntly dignity, forcing a warm, gentle smile as she met Rebecca’s eyes. “Do you know how the Gondor Empire fell?”
“I know—the Deep Blue Well exploded. But my plan is different!” Rebecca quickly explained. “It’s controlled. We’re not trying to blow up the whole well, just open more network rifts to ‘divert’ more of the Deep Blue currents into the material world. It’s like drilling a few small holes in the barrier outside the network. The Deep Blue network itself exists in the gap between the material world and the deeper realms. Making a few holes won’t damage the currents themselves, and the slight energy diversion won’t affect the planet’s overall power system…”
“Let me catch my breath first,” Hetty raised a hand, inhaling deeply. Her gaze fell on the pile of documents on the table. The dense notes and diagrams suddenly seemed like dizzying whirlpools and bottomless abysses. She stared at them as if peering into the stormy future of their world.
Whether she liked it or not, the future would come.
“I’ll finish reviewing all the materials you brought tonight and submit them to the ancestors first thing tomorrow,” she said, calming herself with a hint of resignation. “This kind of decision… is probably beyond what one nation can decide on its own.”
Rebecca nodded. “Okay, you read first. I’m going to the alchemy lab while it’s still early.”
Hetty looked puzzled. “So late, and you’re going to the alchemy lab?”
“To get some herbs,” Rebecca smiled brightly. “I want to make some brain-boosting herbal soup for the ancestors first thing tomorrow morning. Didn’t you forget what you just said?”
Hetty: “…”
The next morning after breakfast, Gawain had just entered the study when he saw the huge stack of documents Hetty had sent over—and the dark circles around her eyes that were definitely not makeup.
After skimming the files and hearing Hetty recount Rebecca’s thunderbolt-like “solution,” he immediately understood where those severe dark circles came from.
“When I first heard she wanted to use the Deep Blue Well to solve the ignition energy problem, I thought it was a bold but creative idea,” Hetty sighed. She noticed Gawain’s subtle expression; even a broad-minded ancestor like him was clearly shaken by Rebecca’s plan. “But when I heard about her ‘modification’ plan for the Deep Blue Well, I almost thought she’d lost her mind.”
After a long pause, Gawain put down the files with a long sigh. “She hasn’t lost her mind. That’s just how her mind works.”
“What’s your opinion then?” Hetty watched his expression closely. “Are we really going to take this bold—almost insane—approach? Bombing the Deep Blue Well to drill an energy matrix on the planet’s surface, then building the magical tide observation device on top? Though Rebecca calls it ‘precision blasting’ in her plan…”
Gawain pondered for a moment, then said slowly, “We have to admit, theoretically, the process is reasonable and feasible.”
“I don’t want to admit that at all,” Hetty said, conflicted. “Are we really so desperate that we have to take such a risky gamble? Rebecca hasn’t given specific risk probabilities yet, but just a rough estimate kept me awake all night.”
“Maybe we are that desperate,” Gawain met her eyes, then shifted tone. “But this is only a backup plan. This concerns the fate of the entire world—it’s not something we can decide on our own. And no matter how smart Rebecca and her team are, they have their limits.”
He paused, then added, “We need to discuss this with other alliance members, especially get the opinion of the Ophelia Matrix. The Deep Blue Well holds a special international status. Even the Cecile Empire can’t just act recklessly on the Talash Plains. Other nations have smart people studying the data from the Noyans too. Maybe… someone else will come up with a better alternative.”
Hearing Gawain’s steady, powerful words, Hetty slowly nodded. The restless anxiety she’d felt since last night began to ease, along with her soaring blood pressure. She couldn’t help but feel grateful—at her position and time, having such a reliable elder to lean on was truly a blessing.
Just then, footsteps echoed down the hallway outside the study. The heavy oak door swung open, and Rebecca entered carrying a large basin of steaming, oddly smelling herbal soup. Her bright, cheerful voice filled the room like the first ray of morning sun. “Ancestor! I made you some soup… Oh, Aunt, you’re here too!”
“Soup?” Gawain stared at the dark, unidentifiable liquid in Rebecca’s hands, herbs floating on top. “What is that?”
“Brain-boosting herbal soup,” Rebecca beamed. “Aunt said you’ve been under a lot of mental stress lately and might not be thinking clearly, so I made you something to help.”
Gawain slowly turned to Hetty. “…Hetty?”
Hetty felt her blood pressure spike again in an instant.
Gawain glanced back at Rebecca—her smile still radiant, as dazzling as a nuclear flash lighting up the morning room…
The little cart’s wheels rolled over the stone path in the garden, the faint creaking sound soothing and peaceful in the stillness of the early morning. A cold breeze of early winter swept through the courtyard, causing the hem of Betty’s maid uniform to flutter slightly. She couldn’t help but sneeze, then rubbed her nose and looked up toward the flowerbed not far away, now barren of blooms. “Winter’s here… Last year at this time, we were still at war.”
A gentle, warm voice came from the cart she was pushing. “Are you catching a cold?”
“No, it’s just the cold wind making my nose itch,” Betty quickly shook her head, smiling as she spoke to the golden egg resting on the specially designed stand atop the cart. Then she reached out to tuck the blanket wrapped around the egg a little tighter. “But you—there’s some wind in the garden. Aren’t you cold?”
“…Actually, I don’t really need to be wrapped up like this,” the voice from the golden egg sounded a bit helpless. “You could put me in the Arctic ice or in molten lava, and I wouldn’t be harmed…”
“That’s different!” Betty shook her head seriously. “Legendary heroes aren’t afraid of cold or heat either, but they still wear clothes when they go outside…”
The golden egg: “…You’re right.”
Thus, the once-god of gods of the dragon clan resigned herself to the “arrangement” of a somewhat scatterbrained little maid, allowing Betty to push her out to the center of the garden. To any onlooker, the scene was utterly strange—Betty, the head maid of Cecil Palace, pushing a modified cart piled with blankets, inside which lay a softly glowing golden egg, and the two “companions” chatting as they strolled through the garden…
But for the attendants and guards who worked in the garden, this sight had long since become commonplace.
Every now and then, the head maid would come out pushing this cart—to let “Lady Egg” bask in the sun.
Most of the attendants and guards didn’t know the true origin of the golden egg, but that didn’t stop them from gradually growing accustomed to this special “royal guest” and forming a friendly bond with her.
“Before I knew it, you’ve been taking care of me for quite a while now…” the golden egg suddenly spoke, a note of wistfulness in her voice.
“Seems like it,” Betty thought for a moment, recalling her time with “Lady Enya,” and a small smile appeared on her face. “But for you, it probably isn’t that long—His Majesty said you’ve lived for a very, very long time…”
“No, I decided to count from the day I was reborn in this form. I’m two years old this year,” Enya said casually. “A new beginning, a new life—that makes things more interesting.”
Betty blinked in surprise. “…You can count it that way?”
“You can.”
“Oh.”
Betty gave up on overthinking it. She pushed the cart to the sunniest spot in the garden, squinting up at the sky and savoring a rare moment of peace.
Just then, her gaze caught a window on the second floor, and a figure standing nearby.
That was the room with the blue velvet carpet—High Lord Gawain’s study.
“…Looks like Princess Rebecca’s been scolded again,” Betty whispered to Enya, peering closely. “I see her standing by the window as punishment…”
“Probably got into trouble again,” Enya said with a smile.
“But Princess Hetty seems to be standing there too…”
Enya’s voice held a hint of surprise. “Ah… that’s a bit unusual.”
(End of chapter)