The defense line of the Long Wind Fortress, the third railway junction.

With a crisp bell ringing on the platform, a huge, majestic iron-black steel train slowly drove into the hub station and stopped smoothly at the side of the platform.

The barrier near the platform rises and becomes one with the barrier of the track itself, blocking the cold wind blowing from the plains, and some of the interfering light and dark streaks cast on the surface of the shield also prevent the prying eyes that may exist in the distance.

At the end of the platform, high watchtowers are guarded by soldiers, and in the bunkers that are level with the platform, the muzzles of the orbital accelerator guns and the firing ports of the scorching rays are protruding, and there are heavily armed soldiers patrolling everywhere, and the secret posts are all over the platform and outside, turning the entire hub station into a front-line fortification armed to the teeth, either explicitly or covertly.

"Iron Throne - Earthly Monty Python," Maryland stood on the platform, watching the heavily armed black train stop next to the platform, and many technicians stepped forward to check the train, showing a slight smile, "With a second armored train replenishing this line, the defense of the Long Wind Fortress can finally be relieved." ”

"Iron Throne-Zero will have a chance to repair it too," Philip, who had short blond hair and was wearing knight's armor, smiled as well as Maryland, "the overload damage it did last year hasn't been completely repaired yet, and every time it accelerates, the tail of the second arsenal section shakes like it's about to jump out of the track." ”

After that, he paused, and then said: "After the delivery of these two standard armored trains, the heavy factories in the rear will temporarily focus on the production of civilian trains, and the second-tier factories in the Kant and Gülen regions will be responsible for the manufacture of the 'downgraded armored trains' you mentioned earlier." They should be produced much faster than the Iron Throne.

"In addition, the superiors have finalized this type of light armored train, corresponding to the Iron Throne, and they have been named 'Iron Scepter'. Given that the Iron Scepter will definitely have a lot more than the Iron Throne, and it is also more likely to have various modifications and variants, unless there are special circumstances, they will probably only be numbered and not named separately. ”

Maryland nodded as he listened, the construction of the Long Wind Defense Line has been progressing smoothly, which has greatly reduced the pressure in the middle-aged knight's heart, but on the one hand, while the pressure has been reduced, he has to face the changes in Winterwolf Castle on the other side of the border line, since last winter.

The "Wolf General" who had been forced back and called back to Aldenan for accountability had long since returned, and not only did she return, but she still had a firm grip on the Winter Wolf Legion, controlling the entire defensive line, and was more actively strengthening the strength of the Winter Wolf Castle.

"That little wolf general...... It's a little more troublesome than I thought," Maryland frowned, "She must have brought back a lot of key information and a lot of support when she returned to Aldenan last time, and now more and more magic vehicles and advanced machines have begun to appear on the Winterwolf Castle, and the Typhonians use them to build fortresses and strengthen defenses, and the wolf general seems to be planning to improve her troops with the help of these new technologies - she hasn't seen tanks, but she's definitely seen this information." With the magical background of the Typhonians, coupled with the sharp mind of that wolf general, sooner or later they will find an alternative to the tank. ”

"Technological progress is the general trend," Philip shook his head, "In Your Majesty's words, the Typhonians began to prepare for the industrial outbreak more than ten years ago, their Burning Acid Acid Factory was five years ahead of our alchemy factory, the reserve of literate workers was seven years ahead of us, and the agricultural reform was ten years ahead of us, in this case, it is already a miracle that we have relied on magic technology and the government department system to catch up so much in less than four years, and it is already a miracle to expect the Typhonians to be dull and stupid at this time, It would be easier to expect their emperor to die tomorrow. ”

Maryland looked at the supreme commander of the army in front of him with some surprise: "...... It's rare to see you joking. ”

"I'm not kidding," Philip said seriously, "I've heard that Typhon's royal family has a family disease, and most of them fell into madness and died in their old age, and now that Rosetta Augustus is already middle-aged, in terms of probability, the probability of him dying tomorrow is indeed higher than the sudden reduction of intelligence of millions of Typhonians......"

Maryland: "......"

After being stunned for a few seconds, Maryland, who felt that the current topic could not continue, could only shake his head and forcibly change the topic in another direction: "According to the predetermined plan, Typhon's mission will arrive at Fort Treaty in two days...... Do you have any other arrangements for this? ”

"Everything will be done according to the plan that has been laid down before," Philip said casually, "Prepare the reception, pick up the mission and escort it safely to the car—take care to drive the two Iron Thrones to Paramel and the northern hills in advance, and keep the military area secret." ”

As he spoke, the young army commander turned his head and looked Maryland in the eye.

He laughed: "Typhon and Cecil are rivals, and the more this happens, the more we have to show our chivalry - we will politely pick them up and send them away, and your task is to make them see nothing in the process." ”

……

At Cecil Palace, Gawain receives a secret contact from Daniel.

The Eternal Sleepers have finally completed a series of preparations, completed the reinforcement of the sandbox and analyzed and sorted out the last "Phantom Town" exploration report, and today, they will start a second exploration of the mysterious uninhabited town projection!

After arranging the things in the real world, Gawain did not waste time, precipitated his spirit, and connected to the mental network of the Eternal Sleeper.

As the creator of the Sleeper's Psychic Cybersecurity System and the biggest bug maker, he is already familiar with the whole process.

After the chaotic change of light and shadow, Gawain arrived at the dream city in a state of eternal perfection, and followed the address left by Daniel to the assembly site of the Eternal Sleepers.

It was still the same circular square surrounded by fallen leaves and decorative columns last time, and the three main figures in the square were still the familiar three archbishops, Daniel, Yuri, and Selena Gehr, whose images were an elegant middle-aged mage, a young man with a gentle temperament, and a lady in a white dress with a soft face holding a lantern, and in addition to the three of them, Gawain also saw an unfamiliar face this time:

An unusually tall man stood next to Daniel, who looked to be in his mid-thirties, dressed in a black robe with intricate patterns, and with short red hair, who looked quite imposing.

His name is shown as Archbishop Magnum, the pinnacle of the highest rank, and his position is in Typhon.

Gawain glanced at the red-haired Archbishop of the Eternal Sleepers, and quickly matched him with the information submitted by Daniel, one of the older Archbishops of the Eternal Sleepers, who was said to have a rather violent temper and a unique insight into the realm of consciousness.

Grumpy or irritable Gao Wen can't see it, but the other party's name sounds quite big......

After complaining about the other party's name in his heart, Gawain couldn't help but glance at the other party's height - the big man who was almost on par with Gawain made the red-haired archbishop stand out when he stood in the square, but the giant-like body was wearing a spellcaster's robe, which made Gawain subconsciously think of Wright wearing a priest's robe-

This kind of figure really doesn't look like a spellcaster, but the several Eternal Sleepers standing in the square at the moment should be the images of the psychic network used, and I don't know what this archbishop, who has a big name, looks like in reality.

Gawain's mind diverged for a moment, and his gaze swept over the high-level tool men wearing owl masks behind the four archbishops - compared to the last time, the Eternal Sleeper's exploration this time was obviously much more solemn and cautious, not only did the number of priests covered with these masks increase to six, but their robes were also embroidered with eye-catching patterns - each with different patterns.

Is this to avoid the "extra person" situation like last time?

But relying on this pattern...... Does it really work in an environment like Phantom Town where you can influence judgment and tamper with your thinking?

A little doubt flashed in Gao Wen's heart, and in the few seconds he observed and thought, the ten-person exploration team in front of him had also completed the preparation and negotiation work before departure.

Just like last time, Archbishop Yuri was in charge of opening the "passage" to Phantom Town, he opened his hands, and the pale golden runes then outlined a complex circular circle on the ground of the square, Daniel and the others stood in the center of the circle, and the red-haired Archbishop Magnum spoke: "This time, be vigilant, no one should trust their first impressions too much. ”

"Of course," the golden rune flashed in Archbishop Yuri's hand, and the man with a gentle temperament smiled, his gaze swept between the ten-man exploration team, "Not only do we increase our vigilance, but this time the monitoring team in the rear will also conduct more active and effective tracking and surveillance, and no additional people will be mixed into us." ”

The Sleeper has also updated its monitoring technology this time?

Gawain remembered the "extra person" last time and was deeply surprised by it, and at this time he was somewhat relieved to hear Archbishop Yuri's words, so he walked into the rune range with a smile and stood in the position of the eleventh person.

As the teleportation light and shadow began to flicker, Gawain's gaze shifted slightly, falling on Selena Gelfen.

The serene lady with the lantern just stood there quietly, holding the lantern in her hand, quietly looking ahead, unaware of the gaze from outside.

Gawain's mind fluctuated - was Selena Gerfen really involved in that mysterious voyage seven hundred years ago? If she was really involved, how much did she know about the events of that year? If she even knew about Gawain Cecil's "deal", then did she know the truth about the "Extraterritorial Wanderer"?

If she had known that the "Extraterritorial Wanderers" had taken possession of Gawain Cecil's body, what was she waiting for in silence......

The scene in front of him was blurry for a while, and when the chaotic light and shadow stabilized again, the empty phantom town appeared in front of Gawain's eyes.

He and ten other Sleepers stood in the square in the middle of the town, exactly where they had been the last time they had left here.

Murky, dark clouds hung over the town as always, and an eerie mist rose and fell in the distance, leaving the huge town empty, without any inhabitants or lights.

There were no bells in the town, no church in the square, and the last mutation seemed to be completely gone, and the town took on the appearance of the first visit.

"There's a very strange atmosphere, indeed," said Archbishop Magnum, nodding his head, his voice loud, quite startling when it suddenly exploded in this empty and silent place, "Empty dreams...... In a psychological symbolic sense, does this represent some kind of escape? Or extreme loneliness? ”

Everyone seemed to be accustomed to the voice of Archbishop Magnum, and Archbishop Yuri only frowned when he heard this: "If this is a dream of a certain 'one' mind, it may be able to be analyzed and explained by psychology, but this may be a mental projection formed by countless people in the No. 1 sandbox, then it is difficult to say." ”

"Then group psychology," said Archbishop Magnum, waving his hand indifferently, "in the final analysis there are only a few dreams of this tendency: fear, avoidance, intense longing, or extreme rejection of something. ”

"It's still too early to analyze this, so far we have only come into contact with one mind related to Sandbox One, that is, the strange and suspiciously malicious elderly priest, and we can't be sure that the operation of Sandbox One is in line with the various psychological laws of the real world," Selena shook her head, "but what happened in this town should indeed reflect reality to a certain extent - according to the report of the sandbox management team, if you don't dodge the day when the bell rings, you will be killed." The legend of 'delete' should correspond to the timed reset operation in the early days of Sandbox 1......"

Gawain immediately became interested in the new term Selena mentioned.

"Timed reset?" After exchanging glances with Gawain, Daniel showed a puzzled look just right, "What's that?" ”

Considering that Daniel had only recently been promoted to archbishop, and that it was understandable that he didn't know much about some of the early things in Project Zero, Yuri didn't have any doubts, and casually explained: "In the early days of the project, Sandbox 1 was not perfect, and it needed to be partially reset every ten days, deleting the virtual inhabitants generated in the sandbox, and only keeping the 'world' itself in the sandbox.

"We suspect that the virtual inhabitants left some memory fragments after they were deleted and have been kept in the brains of some of the Brain Servants to this day, and these memory fragments have affected the collective subconscious of Sandbox One, leading to the strange custom of 'The Day the Bell Rings' in the Sandbox world."

Daniel nodded, and suddenly said, "I see. ”

On the side, Gawain looked thoughtful when he heard this.