Gawain was almost certain that the people who appeared in the fragments of the meeting, whose figures were shrouded in a black fog, those who had sailed with Gawain Cecil, were a group of Stormchildren who had not yet been completely consumed by madness and paranoia.

Of course, they could still be called "Storm Priests" back then.

This is also in line with his reasoning: seven hundred years ago, when all kinds of advanced magic technologies of mankind were declared out of order, the only people who could help Gawain Cecil complete that mysterious voyage were the Storm Priests who were in charge of all kinds of sea magic.

And from the timeline, when Gawain started that mysterious voyage, the three major sects should have completed the rituals on the Ancestral Peak, and they should have fallen into a frenzy.

So who protected some of the Stormchildren's sanity so that they could complete Gawain Cecil's mysterious voyage?

Lantern......

There is only one name that Gawain can think of: Selena Gefen.

The lantern in his memory is vague, but it has a strong sense of familiarity and intimacy, which comes from Gawain Cecil, indicating that the image of the "lantern" has left a deep impression on the latter's memory. Selena Gehrfen was not on the dinghy at the time, but since the lantern was hanging on the bow...... Perhaps it symbolizes that Selena Gehfen's "power" at that time was accompanied by Gawain Cecil in some surreal form.

Gawain rubbed the corners of his forehead, remembering a piece of information that Daniel had sent to him before-

Although it is not clear the specific time and process of Selena Geer's death, among the information that the archbishop's first-level priest can consult, it can basically be determined that the "Dream Saintess" died within a short period of time after the Ancestral Peak ceremony, and the cause of death was martyrdom, which protected a large number of priests and believers of the Dream Church at the cost of their lives.

If it weren't for her martyrdom, I'm afraid there would be no remnants of the "Eternal Sleeper" order in the future: the Dream Church specializes in spiritual power, and due to the influence of the nature of the gods, their connection with the gods is closer and more direct, and the members of the Dream Church were far more severely affected than the other two churches.

Since Selena was protecting most of the members of the Dream Church at the time, ...... If she still has the strength to spare, it's possible that she will "take some shelter" with some Storm Priests for the time being.

The timing of Gawain Cecil's voyage is not clear, but it is certain that after the establishment of the Ansu Kingdom, the defense system in the south is basically stable and the rear can be entrusted with peace of mind.

Extrapolating from the timeline, Selena Gerfen should have been martyred at that time, and only the lantern appeared in her memory, but Selena Gerfen was not seen, perhaps for this reason - Selena "herself" did not appear in front of Gawain Cecil at that time.

She protected the expedition in the form of a soul, and the so-called lantern should have been just a subconscious symbolic impression left in Gawain Cecil's mind.

Gawain's eyes sank: If that's the case, then this matter is interesting.

He has been looking for clues to that mysterious voyage, looking for the records left by the people who sailed with Gawain Cecil at that time or the clues of their descendants, but he has never found anything, he thought that those companions have been completely erased in these seven hundred years, and the inheritance has been cut off, but now it seems that there is one of the biggest insiders who is still "alive", living in the network of the mind.

Does Selena Gehr know the secret? If she knew...... Does she know the connection between Gawain Cecil and Gawain? Do you know that there may be a "soul deal"?

Gawain Cecil made a deal with his soul that was made in the course of that mysterious voyage, and if Selena had actually come aboard the ship in some form, she would have known something.

She probably knew that the soul in Gawain Cecil's body had been replaced, long before the term "extraterritorial wanderer" appeared, and she should have known it long before Gawain unveiled his coffin.

However, according to the information from within the Order of the Sleepers, she never seemed to show this, and she was like a completely unaware person, and along with the other cultists, she referred to Gawain as an "extraterritorial wanderer...... Is this intentional? To disguise what? Or are you waiting for something?

And based on the last conversation in memory, a Storm Priest said "everyone will forget about it in a while", and Gawain guesses that this memory of the voyage must have been sealed by Selena Gehr: as the most powerful transcendent in the realm of souls and dreams at the time other than Megael III, she was more than capable of doing this.

So what was the reason why she took action to seal this memory? And it seems that she also sealed the memories of everyone in the entire team at that time - will there be any hidden dangers in keeping this memory? Will it leak? To whom? Who can peek into these secrets from the memories of a legendary powerhouse?

Gawain vaguely had some speculations, but because of the lack of evidence, he did not dare to take it seriously.

Victoria just waited patiently on the other side, knowing that Gawain was thinking about something very important, and it was quite inappropriate to bother at this time.

In the end, it was Gawain who took the initiative to break the silence.

"Is that estuary at the junction of the Principality of the Holy Dragon and the northeastern part of the empire currently under our control?"

The memory of the voyage was sealed, but now some fragments emerged from the darkness, and the opportunity to break the seal seemed to be because Victoria Wild mentioned the estuary, and in order to continue to explore this mysterious past, and also to explore the actual needs of the sea, Gawain needs to know more about the current state of the place.

After all, seven hundred years have passed, and the country has been turned upside down by two civil wars, and is located in a small outlet to the sea on a distant border...... After so many years of ups and downs, it may not be the same as it was back then.

"Nominally...... It's still Imperial territory," Victoria replied with a nod, "but it's been unnoticed for years. By the end of the Ansu calendar, there were only a few dilapidated villages, and the outlet to the sea, nominally belonging to a shabby viscounty, was now assigned to the province of Basur. ”

"Nominally, that's it." Gawain breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time felt a hint of urgency and pressure.

The overall situation of the empire was initially decided, but the sequelae caused by that war still need to be slowly healed.

It is possible for the situation in the border areas to change, for the disputed areas to be encroached upon by neighboring countries, or for disputes with neighboring countries in the process of remeasuring the borders and building additional defenses.

If something really goes wrong in this regard, it can only be "since ancient times".

"On the other side of the Awakening Sound, an outlet to the sea should be built as a foothold for future exploration of the sea," Gawain looked at Victoria and said slowly, "At the same time, the opening plan of the far north coastline will also remain unchanged, and the 'North Port' will be established to restart the northern continental route." ”

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Gawain thought for a while, and added: "On the other side of the Dragon Sound, the port foundation must be laid, according to the standards of military ports, and in the future, some facilities for testing ocean-type warships will be added there......"

Victoria raised her eyes: "Battleship...... A magic warship for ocean warfare? ”

"Yes," Gawain nodded, his tone tinged with emotion, "We're not the only ones who can think of the ocean...... Typhon has a much longer and better coastline than Cecil, with a large number of natural harbors and offshore resources, and sooner or later they will also look to the ocean. Maybe it's already in action now. ”

Victoria's eyes couldn't help but change slightly on Victoria's usual expressionless face.

A sense of urgency arises.

Gawain's thoughts diverged a little after he finished the order:

The Fjord of the Evoking Dragons is still part of the Cecil Empire, but its geographical location makes it sensitive between the Duchy of the Holy Dragon and the Cecil Empire.

The establishment of military ports, the establishment of large-scale military research and development facilities, and even the stationing of troops and permanent warships will not be small.

It seems that it is necessary to take advantage of this diplomatic event to establish good relations with the Holy Dragon Principality.

Good news for Victoria...... It's just in time.

……

Chaotic darkness seemed to envelop the whole world, and above the flat and colorless plains, a woman in a white dress with a lantern stood silently in the air, staring at the uninhabited town that hibernated in the night.

This is the "imaginary zone" located outside of the Dream City, an unaddressable area marked by the psychic network, and the average Dream City resident (Eternal Sleeper) cannot even perceive the existence of this area without authorization - even if they stand in Selena Gehr's position at the moment, they can only see a void of darkness in their field of vision.

This characteristic of the "imaginary number zone" effectively avoids the spread of pollution.

But the strangeness of that town is beyond imagination, it seems to have thoughts, as if it has reason, it is actively seeking a way to break through the blockade, and it is trying to find a way to enter the backbone structure of the psychic network.

After a long quiet look, Selena suddenly turned her head to look at the dim sky beside her.

A man in a white robe with a gentle temperament sketches his figure out of nothingness.

"Grand Imam Selena, are you still monitoring this area yourself?"

"There's no one better suited for this job than I am - the ghosts in the network don't need to rest," Selena nodded slightly to Yuri, "What's going on?" ”

"Preparations for the second expedition have been completed, and I have come to inquire about the timing of the next operation."

"Next week nine." Selena said.

"I see," Archbishop Yuri nodded, and then his gaze followed Selena to the uninhabited town in the distance, "This phantom town...... Has anything changed? ”

"As always, it's quiet, as if time has frozen," Selena said indifferently, "that church never appeared again, and no bell rang in the town—according to the information revealed by the priest in the previous church, yesterday should have been the day the bell rang." ”

Archbishop Yuri speculated, "Perhaps...... It only comes to life when we enter the town. ”

Selena was noncommittal for a moment and asked, "Has anything changed in Sandbox One?" ”

"There are no changes to the sandbox, and we are not making progress."

“…… No news is the best news. ”

"Indeed, as you said," Archbishop Yuri said with a sigh, and then took a slight step back, his figure fading, "Then I'll go back first, there's still work on the sandbox control team." ”

"Let's go."

After Archbishop Yuri's aura disappeared, Selena lowered her head and quietly looked at the lantern in her hand for a long time.

It seemed like a long time before she broke the silence softly as if talking to herself:

"Will you be a silver lining......

……

The cold wind swept through the hills southeast of Winterwolf Castle, and the cold power towards the end of winter was terrifying, and even the soldiers who had been stationed in this northern fortress all year round could not help but shiver when the cold wind blew.

But even so, the sentinels inside and outside the main fort still stood up straight in the cold wind, maintaining their majesty and momentum as Imperial soldiers.

Because there are special guests visiting this border fortress.

In the main hall of the castle, Andesa Wendell, who had long silver-gray hair, wore women's armor, and wore a family heirloom sword at her waist, stood straight in front of the steps, and her silver-gray eyes of the same color as her long hair were full of solemnity.

In front of her was a team from the imperial capital of Aldenan.

Leading the procession was a beautiful woman dressed in an intricate and ornate black court dress, fair-skinned, tall in tall figure, with straight black hair hanging down to the waist, delicate gold chains encrusted with fine rubies hanging from between her hair, and her eyes as deep as water reflected the face of Andesa Wendell.

The woman in the black court dress had a faint smile on her face, but she exuded a calm and noble temperament, which made the people around her involuntarily respect, but added a subtle sense of distance.

"Her Highness Matilda," Andesa Wendell bowed before the Imperial Kaolin flower, "and welcome to Castle Winterwolf."

"Beyond here, it's Cecil's land." ”