Chapter 890: Lying in Wait

Staring at the suddenly excited Amber, Gawain was momentarily at a loss.

This goose’s thought process must be seriously flawed.jpg.

It had thrown his own emotions into disarray.

“You… maybe calm down first,” Gawain said helplessly, glancing at this so-called ‘shame of the empire.’ “I was just about to praise you a little…”

“Oh, then praise me!” Amber immediately put her hands on her hips, but the next second her attention shifted elsewhere. “By the way, what’s going on with this shield? Didn’t you say you were just going to ‘communicate’ with it? How come it suddenly started smoking during the process?”

Gawain looked down at the Guardian’s Shield on the table, now cooling off, and casually replied, “…Maybe it was subjected to more pressure than it was meant to handle.”

As he spoke, he silently mulled it over in his mind.

The connection process with the Sky Station had been completely different from the previous satellite link-ups, which set off alarm bells in his head.

It seemed that even though he had somehow become a “satellite expert” by accident, connecting with those ancient space facilities wasn’t necessarily safe. Danger could come from the most unexpected directions.

Based on the interruptions and anomalies during the connection, Gawain guessed the cause might be twofold: on one hand, the Guardian’s Shield—this relic from the stars—probably had some kind of limit. It couldn’t sustain a long-term data link between human consciousness and the Sky Station, as evidenced by its overheated state. On the other hand… his own mind might not be able to endure this kind of communication that exceeded human limits, judging from how he felt just before the connection cut out.

Whether this second limitation was due to his mental strength or the physical limits of his human body was still unclear.

Just then, Amber’s voice interrupted his thoughts from beside him. “Hey, hey, what are you thinking about? Don’t you want to call someone to check this out? This is a big deal…”

Gawain looked up. “Call Hetty—also Kamail and Veronica.”

Amber paused for a moment, then quickly pieced together what he meant from the names he mentioned. She nodded and vanished into the shadows of the study in the next instant.

Gawain returned to his desk, staring down at the Guardian’s Shield, which had now completely lost its fiery red glow.

The silver-white “star alloy” material cooled at an astonishing rate. Placing his hand on it now, it was only warm to the touch. The scorched, curled papers and the marks left on the desk were the only proof of what had just happened.

“This desk is ruined…” Gawain muttered to himself, slowly withdrawing his hand from the shield’s surface. His mind involuntarily recalled the images he had seen during the connection, stirring his thoughts once more.

Despite the risks, the gains made it all worthwhile.

“The Sky Station…” he murmured, “By its scale, it truly lives up to its name…”

Suddenly, a voice echoed inside his mind: “Received. Repositioning connection—connected to Sky Station.”

Without warning, a wave of dizziness hit him. Instantly, Gawain’s vision was flooded with the Sky Station’s surveillance feed—chaotic, overlapping images, miniature projections of planetary orbital facilities, and rapidly refreshing data tables. Deep within the display, he even glimpsed his original satellite monitoring perspective—all arriving in a flash, then vanishing just as quickly.

Gawain forcefully severed the connection invading his mind, breaking out in a cold sweat.

He stared wide-eyed at the Guardian’s Shield lying quietly on the desk. He hadn’t even touched it.

As the discomfort from mental exhaustion eased slightly, Gawain tried to piece together what had just happened. The only explanation he could think of was that his reckless contact with this “stellar relic” had triggered a result similar to what Gawain Cecil experienced years ago. Over the past few minutes, this artifact had established a permanent link between him and the Sky Station—not just a satellite, but the massive orbital space station itself!

His nearly drained mind obviously couldn’t handle such a massive data exchange. That brief connection had nearly knocked him unconscious before he could even process the images.

Frowning deeply, Gawain steadied himself against the desk, calming his chaotic thoughts and breath. His gaze locked on the “Kingdom’s Guardian Shield,” his mind racing with rapid-fire speculations and decisions…

But he didn’t dwell on it for long—Amber’s swift footsteps announced the arrival of Hetty and the others in the study.

Hetty was the first to enter. She immediately noticed Gawain’s pale, troubled expression and gasped, “Ancestor? What’s wrong with you?”

Amber rushed in next, startled by Gawain’s appearance. “Oh my! You look even worse than before…”

She almost blurted out “on the verge of death,” but the dual threat of the Pathfinder’s Sword and the Guardian’s Shield stopped this ‘shame of the empire’ from speaking further. Gawain shot her a sharp look—he already guessed what she was about to say. Honestly, if she had said it, he might have been tempted to combine sword and shield and slam her into the ceiling right then and there…

“I’m fine. Just the aftereffects of mental overexertion,” Gawain waved dismissively, slowly regaining his composure. He looked at Kamail and Veronica, who had just entered. “I was trying to activate some ancient functions of the ‘Kingdom’s Guardian.’ It hasn’t been used in years. Seems it’s not in good shape.”

Kamail and Veronica didn’t know the full story but didn’t press further.

Kamail floated over to the desk, examining the shield for a moment. His voice trembled slightly, filled with arcane energy. “Residual traces of energy shock… Looks like there was a serious overload here just now. The fact that you’re unharmed is the most important thing.”

Veronica approached Gawain, holding her platinum staff in one hand while tracing a sacred symbol in the air with the other. A gentle, holy light descended, enveloping Gawain. Instantly, much of his discomfort faded, and his drained spirit recovered significantly.

“Thank you,” Gawain said to Veronica. “That’s very effective.”

“It’s my duty,” Veronica replied softly. “So, what did you want to see us for?”

Gawain glanced around the study, nodded, and spoke in a low, serious tone: “I want to go somewhere—the Rebellion Fortress.”

“The Rebellion Fortress?” Kamail sounded surprised. “It’s currently under lockdown. The Shadow Realm isn’t safe… Why do you suddenly want to go there?”

Gawain was silent for two seconds, then said slowly, “To see the corpse of the Nature God…”

Veronica and Kamail exchanged a glance—though Kamail had no eyes, his gaze was bright. They had their guesses but said nothing.

Kamail nodded. “Understood. I’ll make the arrangements.”

“Should we bring Miss Tyr?” Hetty asked from the side. “In a way, she’s an expert in fighting gods…”

“…Better not,” Gawain shook his head. “Her methods aren’t applicable to us—and at this hour, it would be hard to wake her.”

“Yes, Ancestor.”

…

A massive, magnificent corona hung high above the peaks on the western side of the Dark Mountains. This celestial body, marked with woodgrain-like patterns and swirling cyclones, solemnly illuminated the world below. Amid the interplay of sunlight and clouds, a squadron of dragon riders in training swept diagonally over the western forest.

On the way to the Rebellion Fortress, Gawain leaned out the window, instinctively gazing up at the sky.

The sky was clear, with moderate clouds. The vast blue stretched endlessly. He scanned the horizon, but even with his legendary vision pushed to its limits, all he could see was blue sky and white clouds—nothing else.

No colossal orbital ring spanning the sky, no twinkling satellite lights or silhouettes of space stations. Given the scale of the Sky Station as seen in the miniature projection, that enormous structure should cast a grand shadow on the land. Even though the entire Cecil Empire lay far from the equator, looking southward on a clear day, one should be able to see that magnificent ring.

In fact, on any clear day, across most of this planet, the Sky Station should be visible to the naked eye—even ordinary people could see it clearly.

Yet Gawain saw nothing. He could only guess, based on prior impressions and a faint connection, that some arc of the Sky Station hovered somewhere above, accompanied by a cluster of satellites. Further out were the ancient “Star Bridges” and smaller glowing space stations orbiting near the atmosphere. Those cold, ancient tombstones watched over the land, their forms completely concealed by an equally ancient optical cloaking device.

“Ancestor?” Hetty’s voice came from beside him. “What are you looking at?”

“The sky,” Gawain withdrew his gaze. “Nice weather.”

Hetty smiled brightly. “Yes, the weather’s been good lately. Many crops in the south are already being harvested. The new Minister of Agriculture, Romlin, is planning the next season’s planting…”

Listening to Hetty’s casual chatter, Gawain’s restless mind suddenly calmed.

He looked toward the Dark Mountains. The concrete road from the military zone stretched deep into the natural barrier. Far off on either side, vast fields awaited harvest or had just been harvested. The newly built communication tower shimmered with crystal light overhead. Agricultural machinery stood by the fields, and a drilling crew was setting the first foundation piles beside the railway in a low-lying area…

No matter how many ancient tombstones floated in the sky, for the people on this land, at least today, the weather was truly good.

Gawain leaned back in the magitek vehicle’s seat, closing his eyes slightly to let his still-weary spirit recover further.

…

Entering the military lockdown zone of the Dark Mountains, descending to the lower levels of the Rebellion Fortress, passing through the Shadow Realm’s rifts and vast voids, and through the ancient Gondor teleportation gate, Gawain once again reached the deepest part of this ancient facility.

The Rebellion Fortress, located in the interdimensional crevice of the Shadow Realm.

Though the Gondor facility was not fully dormant, and although the technicians of Cecil had removed all movable equipment and materials, the fortress’s integrated power system and divine-shielding system still quietly operated.

The ancient lights cast a steady glow down the deep, endless corridors and grand hallways. The walls, densely inscribed with countless runes, and the energy barriers continued to stand guard as always. High above, Gawain, Amber, Hetty, Kamail, and Veronica reached the far end of the outermost corridor. Kamail activated the alloy protective wall there, revealing a shimmering energy shield that separated the corridor’s interior from the outside. Through the nearly transparent barrier, the view beyond the fortress was fully visible.

The shattered land, composed of countless floating boulders, stretched out before them. Ancient binding devices and heaps of metal wreckage held captive the colossal form—like a mountain in size—of the natural deity, the great stag Amon. Pure white radiance enveloped the deity’s corpse, the light slowly shifting and pulsing, exuding an endless aura of sacredness.

Veronica gazed at the bound giant stag within the fortress’s “Garden” area, a trace of melancholy crossing her face. She spoke softly, “I only ever saw Him in reports before…”

“After all, you were mainly stationed at the capital of Gondor back then,” Gawain glanced at Veronica. “Kamail was the one directly in charge here.”

“Every time I return here, it unsettles me,” Kamail murmured, his voice low and buzzing. He looked toward Gawain. “So, now—can you share your thoughts with us?”

“The primary material for the Kingdom’s Guardian Shield came from the supply warehouse at the Vipland Observatory,” Gawain said deliberately, as if bringing up an unrelated topic. Veronica quickly recalled something, her brow furrowing slightly. The former rebel leader said, “I remember that was one of Gondor’s research facilities, located in the north…”

“Yes, it was used to study meteorite fragments unearthed locally—the meteor shower that fell on the Vipland region in ancient times,” Gawain nodded. “Veronica, Kamail, you should be familiar with this—when did the Vipland meteor shower occur?”

Veronica answered immediately, “About three thousand years ago…”

“Exactly. The Vipland meteor shower happened three thousand years ago,” Gawain confirmed, speaking calmly. “The fall of the White Star was also three thousand years ago.”

Veronica’s eyes widened slightly.

“Everyone, fall back to a safe distance,” Gawain told Kamail. “Open the barrier—I want to examine the corpse of the great stag Amon.”

(End of chapter)