Inside the Lenburg base, Gawain met with the soldiers of the Kingdom Army who had been rescued by Sölderlin.

Leading the soldiers was a northerner of medium stature, short brown hair, and a high nose, who had already changed out of his original tattered armor and into the comfortable clothes provided by the base, and although there was still a trace of fatigue on his face, his mental state was obviously much better.

When Gawain walked into the slightly humble barracks, the knight who had escaped death immediately stood up, and he took a few soldiers with slightly dazed faces beside him, and bent down and saluted with a little nervousness and panic: "My lord, I am Barna from the royal capital?" Mitchell, my soldiers and I are so grateful for your generous shelter......"

"Sit down, Mr. Mitchell, I have some questions for you," Gawain motioned for the knight in front of him to sit down, and he sat down casually on the chair next to him, "First of all, introduce yourself—you should be able to guess that I am Gawain?" Cecil. ”

This is the legendary knight who, years ago was only in the pages of legends and historians, has returned from the realm of the dead to reign as ruler of the South.

The nobles of the royal capital have a variety of descriptions and speculations about the southern ruler, most choose to stay away, a few see it as a threat, a few have the malice of conspiracy theorists, and almost everyone agrees that this legendary pioneer is out of step with his time - he has the arrogance of a Gondor, the roughness of a pioneer, the savagery of the first nobles, and the incomprehensibility of the resurrected, this is Barna from the royal capital? Mitchell in his social circle to Gawain? Cecil built all the impressions.

Mitchell briefly glanced at the legendary Duke in front of him with the most disrespectful gaze, and as he was about to transgress the rules, he looked down and made a gesture of waiting for orders.

The pioneer hero in front of him did not wear a strange costume that did not conform to the times, nor did he exude an unsettling atmosphere, he was as recorded in the most orthodox history books, tall, majestic, wearing armor, as if he was forever on the battlefield, his eyes were sharp, but not cold.

"Are you used to living here?"

This first question was somewhat unexpected by Mitchell, who was momentarily stunned and quickly replied, "Yes, thank you for the comfort......"

Clean hot water, tidy rooms, clothes, food, precious medicines, and most importantly, safety – it's impossible for someone who has just escaped death to complain about such an environment.

"Very good," Gawain nodded slightly, "I would like to know the specific situation of the 'crystal cluster infection', as well as the final breakthrough route of the Northern Legions......"

……

A makeshift camp on the outskirts of Pompeii.

Barbed wire and repeating gun towers were layered on top of each other, heavily armed soldiers stood guard around the perimeter, inside and outside the camp, and the light and covert magic monitoring and vigilance devices buzzed and operated, and despite the small size of the camp itself, the astonishing level of protection made it look like a fortress armed to the teeth.

There is only one reason for such strict protection: this is the place where the gods are polluted.

Deep in the camp, in a spacious and bright laboratory, Kamel was suspended more than a dozen centimeters above the ground, and on the platform in front of him, a cage composed of shield generators and a solid steel fence was firmly embedded in the base made of reinforced concrete, and inside the cage was the core of the laboratory's mission-

A crystal giant that has completely mutated and lost human cognition.

The three-meter-tall humanoid creature stood silently behind a sturdy barrier of energy shields and physical fences, not in any way as a "monster" in most people's senses, in fact, quite the opposite: its gaze was calm and sensible, even with a kind of detachment, it stared at the archmage outside the barrier, without saying a word.

"I've heard Pittman say that you refuse to talk to the 'weak old-time humans,'" Kamel said as he floated closer, humming, "so here I am—I'm curious if my form is old-age in your mind." ”

The Cluster Giant did not respond.

"Looks like you're still refusing to talk – do you think someone is going to save you? It's far from the front lines, and you're so far away from your deformed compatriots," Carmel continued...... "I know you're sensible, you can still think, but you've been replaced with a whole new worldview, and in your mind, maybe the crystalline infection is the normal life form, and the uninfected humans are actually some kind of pathology...... But I'm curious if you remember your thoughts as a human and your emotions as a human after this transformation......"

After another round of silence, the giant finally spoke, his voice carrying a kind of low tremor: "When the New Age comes, you will realize the defects of pure flesh and blood—extinction will come naturally, and we are helping...... You guys. ”

The giant was visibly hesitant to say the last word, for it wasn't quite sure if it should include the floating glowing spirit in front of him as "you."

Regardless, Kamel doesn't seem to have any human organs on his body that can be mutated......

Kamel didn't care about the sensational parts of the other party's words, he just stared at the mutant in front of him with two shining arcane lights, and his voice was low: "Your so-called New Era is the Demon Tide. ”

The Crystal Giant was silent.

"As far as I know, individuals like you with special powers and full sanity belong to the Commander of the 'Crystal Giants', and the remnants of druid dark spells on your body suggest that you should have been a priest of the Church of the Dead—or a martyr."

“……”

"What class did you belong to in the Society of the End of All Things? Imam? Or a withered priest at a lower level? Or a forester? ”

“……”

"Where did you get the information about the Demon Tide?" "Why are you sure that you can survive the tide by taking this form?" "Have you ever heard of the word 'sin'? Do you know what it means? "Where did you get this transformation technology?"

Kamel's questions followed, but the Crystal Giants remained silent, and eventually, after an even more unbearable silence, Carmel suddenly said, "You know, this is the path that the Gondor Empire has traveled back then—and I'm part of the plan?" I've seen it fail with my own eyes, and your self-proclaimed evolutionary form is only one of the first failures we've eliminated......"

He had expected that such words would somehow touch the prisoner in front of him, but the crystal giant only looked at it calmly, and only said after a moment:

"I've heard that the southern frontier has unearthed fortresses from the Gondor period......

"I'm not surprised by your presence.

"But you're getting one thing wrong, ancient magisters, and your failures are not due to technical factors, not because of problems with this route.

"You have failed because you have not been completely disobedient enough......"

With that, the Crystal Giant stepped back twice, and it returned to the middle of the cage, where it sat still, no longer accepting any conversation.

Kamel's efforts were fruitless, and he finally left the lab in desperation.

Outside the lab, Pittman, dressed in gray robes, and several researchers had been waiting for a long time.

"It has a few words to me, but little useful information has been revealed," Carmel said to Pitman, sighing, "As you have judged before, most of these 'command-level' Crystal Giants are transformed by the die-hard martyrs of the Society of the End of Everything, and in this way they maintain control over the Crystal Legion, and the mouths of such fanatics can barely be opened. ”

"As the Crystal Cluster expands, sooner or later they will select a new commander from among the transcendents who have undergone transformation, and this commander should be able to pry his mouth open, so we don't need to rush," Pitman said, and then seemed to notice that Kamel's mood was a little strange, "What else did it tell you?" You don't look good......"

Kamel was surprised: "Can you see my face?" ”

"I can't see the look, the color is still quite obvious, and now it's quite green......"

“…… It's not a big deal, it's just that the last thing that guy said made me a little concerned," Kamel shook his head, "The Society of the End of All Things did get part of the legacy of the 'Disobedience' plan back then, and they created the gods in the process of continuing this plan, but the Crystal Giant said that they were even more 'disobedient'...... I don't understand what that means. ”

"Can it be more 'disobedient'?" Pitman raised his eyebrows, although he was also a member of the Society of the End of All Things, but obviously he did not understand the evil plan of the Society of the End of All Things, "You dug up the grave of the god of nature back then, cut all the flesh, and refined the blood and flesh of the gods to vaccinate the whole country, can there be anyone more disobedient than you in the world?" They really created a false god, and I don't think you are disobedient......"

"So I can't understand," Kamil said, humming, and shook his head, "What about you?" What were the results of your experiments? ”

"After isolating the Crystal Cluster Infected and the 'Commander' transformed from ordinary people, all the test subjects showed obvious signs of weakness and stagnation, and the remaining thinking ability was rapidly disappearing, as if the mental activity of the lower-level Crystal Cluster Infected was maintained by relying on the 'Commander'......" Pitman spread his hands and sighed, "In short, there is no salvation - the mutation from the body to the spirit is irreversible. However, those who have not yet mutated and only carry the infected may be saved, the last batch of infected people are now in a stable state, and the usual treatment of plagues and curses is useful to them, and I am looking for the most effective purification solutions, as well as the key triggers that caused them to mutate from 'carrier' to 'mutant'. ”

……

Cecil City, where a spring rain washed away the rooftops and crisscrossed streets, was still as bustling as day in the darkening daylight.

A graceful snake tail climbed the city's tallest magic network radio tower, wrapping around the amplification antenna at the top of the broadcast tower, Tyr's body clinging to the steel magic mechanism, she leaned out, and her eyes swept over the distant city, sweeping the factory floor that was already lit up and running around the clock.

War is raging in the far north, and while the land of the Duchy of Cecil remains safe, the effects of war will permeate every aspect of people's lives. The war began to be discussed in taverns and cafes, news and opinion articles from the North began to appear frequently in the newspapers, and factories, which had entered the so-called "wartime state", were operating with unprecedented efficiency.

Countless war machines lined up to leave the workshop, and before the gears and bearings cooled, they rushed to the front with a bang; The technicians, physicians and non-commissioned officers who have just graduated from various academies are full of vigor and vigor and are moving towards their respective positions and lives; As a result of not facing the war, the business operations within the Principality were not affected in the slightest, but became more prosperous than ever. The city, fueled by the power of the magic industry, is so vibrant, so lovable, that even the lazy Tyr can't help but be stirred up by it, and some reverie about the Kraken's homeland—

Tyr didn't know what the Kraken's hometown looked like, she was a new generation born after the Antavien crashed into this world, the Kraken Empire had declined after the "Great Crash", and it was no longer in its former glory, but on the teaching machines, on the broken materials stored in the memory chips, and when the ancient Kraken recounted their distant and vague memories, Tyr had heard descriptions of her hometown more than once-

It was a living world, with oceans covering the entire planet, and in the depths of the deep and gentle waters, the world of the Kraken was thriving, machines were running around the clock, AI-controlled cities were shining on the seabed, undersea trains were galloping between trenches and ridges, aircraft were speeding out of the water, satellite clusters and orbital facilities surrounded the planet, overlooking the beautiful water world......

The Krakens may not really be able to go back.

But Tyr's gaze swept over Cecil, the creatures of the land, who had a homeland, and who were building this place with all their passion.

Maybe one day, they will build this place as beautiful as that "beautiful water world".

The lost Kraken took a soft breath, opened his mouth, and chanted in a low voice.

Invisible forces permeated this ethereal song, vibrating the magic around it, vibrating the amplification antennas of the broadcast towers, shaking Cecil's magic web—and then through the myriad relay towers between Cecil-Black Forest-The Great Wall, the Sentinel Tower, the Great Wall.

The song rides the ripples of space and crosses endless storms and oceans.

In the eastern part of the Endless Sea, the city of the Siren, "Antavien", which has been bathed in starlight, listeners on night duty looked in amazement at the strange frequency that suddenly jumped out of the communicator.

A moment later, a maid of the depths swung her fishtail and swam into Queen Pettia's bedchamber—

"Your Majesty! The missing Tide Master has been found, she returned from swimming in reverse, and is now in the Western Continent!

"She found human allies there!

"She asked if you would like a cookie?"

"Bookmark for easy reading"