The door to the study opened, and an old mage in a black dark robe, hunched over, with artificial nerves wriggling behind his back, appeared in front of Rosetta Augustus.

This is not the first time they have met.

Daniel had been a reclusive mage in the countryside, but before that he had been one of the high-ranking members of the Royal Mage Society, and now he is one of the most outstanding experts of the Industrial Architectural Society, he is also the mentor of the President of the Royal Mage Society, the creator of a large number of new technologies in the Empire, and the master of technology sought after by many of Aldenan's nobles today, and he has won the trust of the royal family, including Rosetta Augustus herself.

Rosetta the Great has always been courteous to technicians, and he doesn't mind Daniel's terrifying appearance at all, and at the same time a slightly stiff smile appears on his face: "Master, I hope my summons has not affected your work." ”

"It's my job to work for you," Daniel said, bending slightly and respectfully, "I'll be happy to answer your questions in the technical field." ”

Rosetta nodded, and waited until the old magician was seated before he asked, "It is said that the imitation of the magic guide car has been successful?" ”

"Yes, the prototype will be tested in two days," Daniel replied, "and if all goes well, we will get it into service as soon as possible." ”

"Your intellect is an immeasurable treasure of the Empire," Rosetta couldn't help but sigh, "with new means of transportation, plus a new railway system...... We can finally solve the problem of transporting raw materials and finished products in the factory. ”

"My personal wisdom doesn't matter, the imitation of the magic guide car is the result of everyone's joint efforts, and compared to our small ......wisdom," Daniel said, shaking his head slightly, "perhaps we should sigh more at the wisdom of the Ansu people, who first created the magic guide, and then created such a sophisticated and powerful machine as the magic guide car. ”

"Strictly speaking, it is the wisdom of the people of Cecil—I have called you to-day to discuss this matter with you."

Daniel lowered his eyelids to hide the flickering glimmer in his eyes in order to maintain a respectful posture towards the imperial power, and he lowered his head slightly: "Please speak." ”

"The magic technology originated from Cecil—including the magic net that we copied, although it is different from Cecil's magic net in terms of structure and unit specifications, but many of the characteristics are very common," Rosetta said unhurriedly, "In addition, there is the railway system that is now under construction in the west and south of Aldernan, which is the product of the Cecil, and all the core technologies are in their hands......"

Daniel raised his head: "Are you worried that these technologies that originated from the Cecil people will eventually threaten the security of the Empire?" ”

"Even if you don't think about it, it's not right to put the lifeblood of the empire in the hands of outsiders, even if it's just a part," Rosetta Augustus said solemnly, "The Cecilians are good at harnessing the power of the magic web, and now they have built railways in the empire - those powerful trains can transport goods, weapons and armies, and I can even now conceive some plans for fighting wars based on railways, which Cecil can't have imagined." ”

How big is the role of railways? Rosetta Augustus had only a general impression of the detailed information about the train brought back by the expedition team, but after seeing those details, he realized almost instantly what a terrifying power and potential application this near-disruptive technology had.

It can transport enough troops to capture a city to its destination in a short period of time, can maintain logistics at a very low cost, and if it is for other countries, cutting off the railway can instantly paralyze the supply of goods to a city or even a region - its transportation power is so powerful that many things that are unimaginable on traditional roads and horse-drawn carriages are made possible on the railroad.

Last winter, the Council of Nobles and the Royal Advisors were greatly shaken by the information on the railroad, and they discussed with shock and nervousness about the feasibility of laying a railroad in the territory of the Empire, which lasted for three days and three nights, and finally gave Rosetta a report of more than 90 pages, which first confirmed one thing:

Typhon needed this advanced transportation technology because Typhon's factory needed it.

Subsequently, two of the most significant potential hazard assessments were presented in the report -

First of all, be wary of the Ansu using the cross-border railroad to launch an attack on the Empire - with the speed of the train, if the first wave of attacks arrives without warning, the guards at the pass may not even have time to blow up the tracks.

Secondly, how to protect the railways within the empire, ensure that they are completely under the control of the empire, and prevent them from being sabotaged by the enemy.

As an empire emerging from war, Typhon has never lacked vigilance against war, especially when the empire has grown to a certain ...... After the critical state, Ansu has become the imaginary enemy in the hearts of almost all of Typhon's upper echelons.

Daniel looked at Rosetta Augustus silently for a few seconds, then his slightly yellowed eyes rolled slightly.

"Your Majesty, I'm just a technician, so I probably can't quite understand your military concerns, but from a technical point of view, I can give you some advice."

"That's exactly what I wanted."

"The key is energy, or rather, the magic net," Daniel said calmly, "whether it is a railway or a train, they all rely on the magic nets laid along the way, and if the Ansu, or Cecil, really want to attack the Empire, many of their war memories will also need to rely on the magic net to operate - they must have a limited number of magic nets that they can carry, so it is key to prevent the Empire's magic net from falling into the hands of outsiders."

"I've been thinking of a control structure for the Magic Net lately, maybe we can set up a general control of the Magic Net in the most core area of the Empire, so that it can shut down the supply of the Magic Net in any region at any time, or even destructively......

"Unless the enemy takes control of the core of the empire and captures the imperial capital and palace, their activities in any area of the empire will be cut off from their energy supply......"

“…… It's a good plan," Rosetta Augustus thought about and said slowly, "yes...... Very good. ”

As he spoke, Emperor Typhon raised his eyelids and looked into Daniel's eyes quietly.

The artificial nerve cord behind Daniel still squirmed slightly, and his face was calm and calm in the face of Rosetta's gaze.

"Master, this matter will be handed over to you, please come up with a plan as soon as possible and hand it over to me for personal review."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The old magician left, and Rosetta picked up the materials she had put away and looked at them again.

"Ansu ......"

He muttered the name of the ancient kingdom that was in the midst of a whirlpool, and there was a calm look in his eyes, neither hostile nor sympathetic.

Cecil's sudden rise was a surprise, and the incredible technology and the presence of Gauvin Cecil himself made him feel a long-lost threat, so the powerful ruler of the empire couldn't help but think of something "defensive".

But essentially, he still prefers to attack.

"After this battle, the blood of the Ansu people should be almost exhausted......"

Daniel left the Emperor's study, leaving the long corridor in front of the study, and it was not until he passed through the antechamber of the obsidian palace, left the main entrance of the palace, and walked to the square in front of the palace, that he took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly.

The artificial nerve cords that were crawling on his back squirmed rapidly for a few seconds, and it took a few seconds to regain their composure.

Thanks to the knowledge given by his master, he was able to control his emotions and reactions so successfully, if he had been almost out of control before, it would have been impossible to complete such a difficult negotiation.

After relieving himself a little, the old magician looked up and began to look for his apprentice, who was supposed to be waiting for him in the square.

Mary didn't stand where she was supposed to stand.

Daniel's brow furrowed slightly, and he couldn't help muttering as he looked around, "That idiot...... Where did you go......"

He didn't look for long, and after only a few minutes, he saw his familiar dark-haired female apprentice—

Mary ran to the edge of the square at some point, and was crouching in front of a little girl who ran from nowhere, and when she looked at it from a distance, Daniel even saw two magic balls of light jumping in Mary's hands.

Like a lowly street clown, she ran out into the square to play tricks on passing children?

Daniel was stunned for a moment, and then walked over angrily, and until he walked behind Mary, the young female mage had not reacted, and was still vigorously conjuring magic balls of light to tease the little girl in front of her, the latter opened her eyes wide, and watched the performance of "Sister Mage" in surprise, but she finally noticed the old mage with a gloomy and terrible face, and immediately shrunk her neck in fear.

Only then did Mary notice the familiar aura behind her, and she shuddered almost subconsciously, then quickly stood up, turned around, and saw the gloomy face of the tutor without surprise.

She immediately lowered her head and nervously wrenched her hands together: "Guide...... Mentor...... I ......"

"What's going on!?"

"This kid is lost, I ...... I just want to ......"

Daniel's angry words were about to come out, but he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment after hearing Mary's words, and then he looked down at the little girl.

A lost little girl, dressed decently, so she shouldn't be a child laborer who ran out of a factory, but it's not up to the level of being able to enter and leave the palace, and most of them are citizens living nearby.

For some reason, another thought popped into Daniel's mind -

A long time ago, when Mary ran into his mage's tower in a daze, it seemed to be so big......

He looked up at the female apprentice with a nervous, even frightened expression.

Now, the little girl who ran into the mage tower in a daze has grown up.

If Mary hadn't run into his mage's tower, what would she be like now? Would you look at an old magician in such trepidation, waiting for punishment? Or they will live peacefully with their parents, or they will be married and have a husband......

Daniel's face moved, as if he wanted to squeeze out a pleasant smile, but the shriveled and stiff muscles didn't seem to be able to do such a complicated thing, so he had to shake his head and reach out and press the little girl's hair: "Don't run around, getting lost will make parents worry." ”

Then he raised his hand and beckoned to the guards near the square.

The guards immediately ran over with great diligence, not daring to slack off in the slightest - even if this soldier didn't know the chief scholar of the Imperial Industrial Association, he had just watched Daniel come out of the obsidian palace accompanied by his attendants, so he naturally had to treat him respectfully.

"This kid is lost, take her to her parents - I'll confirm this with your chief later."

Daniel casually commanded, and the soldier agreed in a row.

It wasn't until the soldiers and children had left that Daniel glanced at Mary: "Incorrigibly stupid." Even with your status in the Workers' Guild and your connections in the Council of Nobles, you can command any soldier on this street, but you only know how to coax children with a few tricks. ”

Mary lowered her head and did not dare to say a word.

Daniel's gaze fell on Mary's neck, on the iron rune necklace.

"Remember what I told you about leaving the area I've set for you?"

Hearing the teacher's words, Mary reacted in shock, and almost subconsciously reached out to touch the iron ring around her neck.

Before something more terrifying could come to her, however, she saw her mentor reach for her—the hand that gripped the ring around her neck, followed by a soft click, and the ring that had been with her for so many years was lightly opened.

Daniel muttered, "I knew that bringing this thing to you wouldn't stop you from running away, so let's throw this away."

"When you get back, throw away those idiots' neck rings."