The open plains of the wilderness stretch out in sight, and the endless fields are already covered with layers of greenery in the early spring, the wheels of the magic guide car crush the hardened road, the lampposts and signs by the roadside are constantly receding outside the car windows, and farther away, the towering walls of the castle are already in view.

Matilda, dressed in a court dress and a shawl with black hair, looked out the window of the car at the wilderness, her face calm and her eyes deep, as if she was thinking.

She and her envoys had completed their mission to Cecil, and were now on their way to Fort Covenant in the magic cart sent by the Fortress of the Wind Fortress, and the personnel sent by the Winterwolf Castle were waiting there at the moment - the majestic castle built for the signing of the peace agreement between Ansu and Typhon still serves today, and as a landmark on the border between the two empires, it is still a symbol of "peace" today, but the king who signed the peace agreement has passed away, and a dynasty has come to an end in the flames of war. Today, only stone-built castles still stand on the frontier, flying the new imperial flag, signaling a new era of peace.

How much of this is worth lamenting, and how many historians and philosophers will leave a pen and ink on it?

Matilda retracted her gaze and looked at the majestic officer sitting opposite, the commander of the Fortress of the Long Wind, General Maryland personally escorting the mission, a symbol of the sincerity of the Cecil Empire.

"Your Highness Matilda, we are almost there," General Maryland said, noticing the gaze on the other side, nodded slightly, "I hope this trip to Cecil has left a good impression on you." ”

"It was an impressive and enjoyable trip," Matilda smiled, "General Maryland, thank you for escorting you all the way." ”

The convoy drove smoothly up the ramp in front of Fort Treaty, the flags of Typhon and Cecil fluttering high above the gray-white walls and towers, Matilda's gaze swept over the open space on the side of the ramp, and in the clearing where the soldiers were standing, she saw several black magic vehicles painted with shields and crown insignia.

It was a magic guide sent by Winterwolf Castle, made by Typhon himself.

The gray-haired shawl Andersa Wendell led her knights to stand in the cold wind of early spring, watching the Cecil convoy arrive at the square of Winterwolf Castle, and from the carriage were Her Royal Highness the princess and the scholars and nobles of the empire, who had successfully completed their mission.

and the commander of the Fortress of the Long Wind, General Maryland Onar.

Soon, the personnel of the two sides were handed over according to the agreed process, and after signing and exchanging the necessary documents, Maryland had time to take a serious look at the young "wolf general" standing in front of him - on this long border, he had dealt with the young lady more than once, but the opportunity for the two sides to be so calm and close to face each other was not easy to appear, he looked at Andesa in front of him, who could almost be his daughter, and smiled slightly: "General Andesa, my mission is complete- Your country's mission has arrived safely at the border. ”

Andessa's light gray eyes also stayed on Maryland for a long time, and then she nodded: "Thank you for escorting." ”

The two reached out at the same time, both hands clasped together, and parted after a pause of just the right second.

The Cecil departed.

As Andhersa stood on the high ground of Winterwolf, her eyes chasing the magic vehicles painted with dark blue insignia for a long time, Matilda stood next to her and asked, "What are you thinking?" ”

“…… Nothing, just think that Maryland General ......" Andesa shook her head halfway through and turned to look at Matilda, "Is everything going well?" ”

"It's a good harvest," Matilda said with a faint smile and as if casually, "it's been almost twenty years since General Bard disappeared...... The Maryland general was very similar to him in temperament and age. Speaking of which, if it weren't for the disappearance of the year, it would have been your father who was guarding this border at this moment, not the young you. ”

Andesa frowned and looked at her friend with a straight face: "Your Highness Matilda, this topic is not interesting. ”

"I'm sorry," Matilda said immediately, then changed the subject seemingly casually, "Let's go back to Winterwolf Castle first—I haven't set foot in Typhon in days. ”

Andesa nodded—she knew it was time to talk about Cecil's trip.

Half of this "Treaty Fort" on the border between the two countries is, after all, under the noses of the Cecil.

On the way back to Castle Winterwolf, Matilda and Andesa share a car.

"Tell me what you've seen and heard of Cecil?" After leaving the castle with no outsiders around, Andesa was visibly relaxed, and she asked curiously at her friend sitting across from her, with a faint smile on her face.

Matilda also smiled: "I need to go back and talk slowly, before that, I have something I want you to see." ”

As she spoke, she pulled out a palm-sized cube that seemed to be assembled from many identical metal cubes and displayed it in front of Andessa.

Andelsa's eyes widened in curiosity, she could already feel the faint magic fluctuations from the strange cube, but she couldn't tell what kind of magic prop it was: "This is ...... What is it? ”

"A gift from His Majesty Gawain Cecil, a magical 'Cecil Cube'," Matilda said, her fingers gently fiddling with the rune-engraved metal squares, "Andesa, if I'm not mistaken, you don't have a talent for casting spells, do you?" ”

"That's right," Andesa nodded, "that's why I chose to be a rider...... Well? ”

She didn't say the second half of her sentence, because she was surprised to see that a streamer suddenly appeared on the surface of the strange metal cube, and after the runes were lit one after another, the metal creature that was originally ordinary and only had faint magic fluctuations actually opened a faint cyclone - this was the effect of the breeze shield!

"It has a small magic web device inside, and the runes on its surface can be combined according to the rules to form a variety of basic magical effects......"

Matilda looked into Andesa's eyes and spoke unhurriedly, while the wolf general, who was sitting across from her, quickly showed a thoughtful look after the initial astonishment and curiosity, her pale gray eyes became deep and dark, and she did not speak for a long time.

Matilda gently turned the block, cutting off the magical effect of the Breeze Shield, and said in a sigh-like tone, "It seems that you are also aware of the ...... this thing is showing Meaningful. ”

"Let the runes be combined into a magic circle, and the magic effect will be stabbed, and these runes will be engraved on more than twenty blocks, while ensuring that the interference of all runes will not exceed the tolerance limit of these blocks......" Andessa's tone was deep, even with a hint of solemnity, "Although I don't have a talent for spellcasting, I have learned the basic principles of magic, Matilda, how many kinds of ...... are there in this cube"

"The kind of combination these little squares can make is a number that you and I would be amazed at," Matilda whispered, "and anyone with a good mind will quickly realize that it's impossible to rely on 'luck' to exhaustively sort these runes—to make them combine for a specific spell effect, strict mathematical rules must be followed. ”

"The laws of mathematics ......" Andesa subconsciously closed her eyes, "So...... Have you cracked this pattern? ”

"Not yet, but I've figured out part of it," Matilda sighed softly, "Andesa, the laws of mathematics are only part of it, there are so many things that are revealed behind this cube, and from a certain angle, this 'Rune Rubik' even symbolizes part of the essence of magic technology, and this part of the essence alone has already stumped almost everyone in the Mission......"

Andesa looked at the Rubik's Cube in Matilda's hand steadily, and only broke the silence after a moment: "The Cecil made this cube to ......"

"Toys."

Matilda didn't wait for Andrisa to finish before she took the initiative to reply, and only after the latter's expression stiffened did she smile: "Andesa, this cube is very cheap, and the structure is much simpler than you think, its value lies in the 'knowledge' behind it, and the cubes themselves...... In Cecil, it is used for children to play with, to inspire their interest in runes and their ability to think, and it is a kind of enlightenment toy. ”

"It's just a toy...... Andesa whispered with a frown, unacceptable, "it's just a ......"

Matilda's tone was much more flat than Andelsa's: "Gawain Cecil gave it to me as a gift, which may be a disguised display and deterrent, but on the other hand, it is also a truly valuable and precious 'gift'. ”

She had thought that Gawain would show her the powerful army of magicians, or let her visit the kind of mobile mechanical fortress that was enough to deter high-level transcendents, but the other party gave her a small "rune cube", and this ordinary cube soon showed its "power", Matilda has been fiddling with this Rubik's cube for several days, every day, the touch and shock brought to her by this Rubik's cube is increasing, but to this day, she can look at it calmly, and even gain something from this "deterrence".

"It's what every normal ruler does to show off his country's strength, but Gawain Cecil isn't just a ruler," Matilda said as she fiddled with the Rubik's Cube in her hand, "and he's showing off his valuable knowledge in this way." Andelsa, you should be able to see that this Rubik's Cube is easy to copy, and it is not difficult to decipher its mathematical laws if it is placed in the hands of those who are proficient in mathematics and physics - although I have not fully summarized the laws hidden in these blocks, I can feel from it that the Cecil people have mastered some kind of 'truth' in the rune realm, and the greatest significance of this cube is to tell us about it. ”

"Are you going back and give this 'Cecil Block' to the Imperial Engineers' Association?" Andessa's mind had calmed down, and she looked at Matilda curiously, "The people over there should be better at dealing with this 'new thing' that is beyond the realm of traditional magic." ”

"Of course, Lady Windsor Marpel and Master Daniel will be interested in it," Matilda said without hesitation, "In addition to research, I am also going to make a large number of copies of it, produce it in factories, and let it flow to the ...... of the people."

"Like Cecil is doing?" Andesa said thoughtfully, "Think of it as ...... Some kind of enlightening toy? ”

"At least these squares are more affordable entertainment for the burghers than hunting and drinking parties. The development of magic technology has taught me one thing, that is, the 'classical age of knowledge' has passed, and in this era, if a kind of knowledge cannot be connected to society as a whole, then its development speed will be greatly affected, or even stagnant at any time......"

"You've always thought longer than I have," Andesa said with a smile, "but anyway, I think you have a point, and I support your decision." ”

Matilda nodded, but didn't speak again, just stared intently at the constantly rotating rune cube in her hand, letting the scenery outside the car quickly retreat, falling into a long thought.

……

Cecil Empire, North.

When the glorious sun rose to the top of the mountain, and the hazy and pale wood-grained disc was set on the top of the northern mountains like a crown, the visitors from the Principality of the Holy Dragon finally reached the northern border.

In the northeastern checkpoint of Winterhold, the heavy and sturdy magic gate of the "Wind Shield Fortress" slowly opened with a creaking sound, and the energy barrier that enveloped the entire fortress rippled slightly, and the mysterious dragonborns officially sent a mission for the first time in thousands of years to step into the realm of humans.

Byron and Duchess Victoria led a procession of officials to greet them, watching the Dragonborns as they entered the fortress from behind the gates.

They inevitably have a hint of curiosity about each other.

Sir Gorosh rode aboard the tall earth drake and stepped into the human fortress with a majestic expression, behind him were the dragonborns who also maintained solemn order, and the dragon seal witch Lady Azarena, who was the "advisor to human affairs" on this trip, walked side by side.

Suddenly, he felt something strange about the Dragon Seal Witch next to him.

Sir Gorosh turned his head curiously, only to see the proud red-haired lady's eyes widen and look ahead with a rather strange expression.