The various streamers receded like a tide, and in the golden rotunda, the figures of archbishops disappeared into the air.

Daniel, who had finished attending the meeting of the Supreme Bishopric, also stood up and bowed slightly to Selena Gelfen, who was still in place and did not leave: "Then, I'll go and check the situation of the pan-consciousness stabilization barrier first, Archbishop Selena. ”

"Thank you, Archbishop Daniel," Selena nodded slightly, "Your security team is very important to us right now. ”

After a flash of light, Daniel also left the hall, leaving only Selena Gehr standing quietly in the large interior space, and a mass of starlight aggregates floating above the round table, mixed with dark purple backgrounds and silvery white dots, with the surrounding outlines fluctuating and contracting.

After a long silence, a long sigh suddenly came from the starlight aggregate: "Selena, today's situation reminds me of seven hundred years ago. ”

"The situation is really bad, Your Majesty the Pope," Selena said softly, "and even ...... Worse than seven hundred years ago. ”

"The druids have failed, the people of the deep sea have been lost in the deep sea, and the path we are sticking to seems to be facing a desperate situation," Pope Megaard III's voice sounded quietly, "and perhaps in the end we will have to give up the entire psychic network completely, and even pay for the lives of hundreds of our compatriots...... But what I regret most about these losses is that our efforts over the past 700 years seem to be ......."

"Your Majesty, it's too early to say this," Selena abruptly interrupted Megaor III, "We're not yet at the point where we have to make a choice, what's in Sandbox One...... At least for now, we're holding them tightly. ”

But it is already consciously trying to escape, it has realized where the boundaries of the cage are, and the next thing it will do will to seek to break through. If it gets out of Sandbox One, it will be able to enter the psychic network, and with the help of the psychic network, it will be able to rule over reality through its fellow citizens who live in the real world, and at that time, I'm afraid we will really have to call it 'Him'. ”

Selena was silent, but in her heart she remembered her experience in Phantom Town, and the "extra person" who almost returned to Dream City with the exploration team.

Although Phantom Town is only a "spillover projection" and not the body of Sandbox No. 1, at a time when the pollution has gradually spread, the things in the projection want to enter the mental network, which is itself one of the attempts of the "things" in Sandbox No. 1 to break through the cage.

She couldn't help but clench her fists a little harder, and couldn't help but think of the darkest and most desperate days seven hundred years ago.

Contamination from the gods has robbed thousands of minds, the most determined priests and believers have been plunged into a frenzy overnight, the once deeply revered "Lord" has become an unspeakable monster, the inhabited Church has been torn apart, and the countrymen have lost and fallen in a frenzy......

It took hundreds of years for the remaining compatriots to regain order, and it took hundreds of years for the remaining compatriots to recover, and because of that little hope, even bordering on self-deception, these survivors who wandered on the border of sanity and madness made plans paranoid and got to where they are today.

Then, in just two or three years, all roads were cut off, and seven hundred years of perseverance and the faint hope turned out to be nothing more than the delusion of mortal arrogance.

All efforts are just paving the way for the gods.

But is ...... "trying to survive" really just delusional in itself?

Selena raised her head, looked at the slowly wriggling starlight aggregate in mid-air, and said calmly: "Maybe we are on the wrong path, but that doesn't mean that the right path doesn't exist, in the end, we've only tried three paths." ”

The voice of Megael III came: "What did you say...... It reminds me of Franken's last message to me before he fused with the body of the false god. ”

"Your Excellency the Grand Imam......" Selena blinked, "what did he say?" ”

"He said, 'There are many paths, I'll try one of them, and if it's not right, don't give up'," Megael III's voice was calm and indifferent, but Selena heard a hint of emotion from it, "Now that I think about it, he may have vaguely sensed that all three of our paths were hidden at that time, but he didn't have time to warn us, and it was difficult for us to try other directions." ”

"The druids tried to create a 'controlled god' with humanity, we tried to cut the chains from the depths of our souls, and the people of the sea tried to ascend to the elements and merge with the wreckage of the Storm Lord......," Selena recounted, one by one, "It now seems that we may have been too arrogant when we first discussed these three paths. ”

Megaor III was silent for a long time before he spoke: "In any case, since the path of cutting the chains is what we have chosen and opened, then we must face everything about it, including preparing to bury this path, this is ...... Responsibilities of Pioneers. ”

"Yes, as you say."

"Rest, I'm going to think about the future of the Order."

Selena lowered her head, and in her perception, Megael III's consciousness gradually drifted away from this place.

She held this position for a long time, and it wasn't until a few minutes later that her voice softly rang out in the empty council chamber: "...... Pioneers......"

……

After the meeting, Hetty didn't communicate with anyone and returned to his office in the government hall alone.

The entire third floor of the government hall is quiet, and on the rest day of the 10th week, most of the non-urgent matters will be left for the next week, and the archon's office will also be rare and quiet.

The warm air device emits a slight humming sound, the warm air flow blows out from the ventilation pipe in the corner of the room, the magic crystal lamp on the roof has been lit, the bright light dispelled the darkness of the dusk outside the window, and through the wide floor-to-ceiling windows, you can see that the streets on the opposite side of the square have been lit up, and the citizens who have enjoyed their leisure time on the rest day are returning to their homes under the lights, or going to the taverns, cafes, and chess and card rooms in the streets and alleys to gather.

Looking at the citizens who came and went, looking at the imperial capital that was far away from the darkness in the artificial lights, Heti suddenly thought of the sentence he heard in the previous meeting-

It was not the gods who created man, it was man who created the gods.

"Is it the same with the goddess of magic......

Hetty couldn't help but muttering to herself, her fingers lightly outlining the four basic runes of wind, water, fire, and earth in the air, and then she shook her hands into a fist, pressed her fist to her forehead, and whispered the name of the goddess of magic, Mirmina.

This is the standard procedure for mages who believe in the goddess of magic to perform simple prayers.

As a somewhat special deity, the goddess of magic Mirmina does not have a formal church and cleric system, and the mages who are in charge of supernatural power and lack reverence for the gods worship the goddess of magic more as a psychological sustenance or a "source of knowledge" worthy of awe, but this does not mean that the "divinity" of the goddess of magic has been shaken and weakened in this world.

Gods are real, even the mages who are keen to inquire into the truth of the world and believe that knowledge and wisdom can explain the workings of all things, so they undoubtedly believe that the goddess of magic is a true god.

It's just that their feelings for this god may be more "rational" and "peaceful" than the feelings of other believers about the gods they believe in.

The mages are all shallow followers of the goddess of magic, Mirmina, but they have almost never heard of the existence of a fanatical follower of the goddess of magic among the mages.

And Hetty ...... It can be regarded as one of the more devout mages who believe in the goddess of magic.

This point, even if she knew about the disobedience plan, even if she participated in and promoted the many "theocratic secularization" projects of the ancestors.

Because in her concept, none of these things detract from the light of the goddess of magic herself - the gods have existed as they were, and since ancient times, they have existed forever, and they are as natural as the stars in the sky, and they do not change due to the behavior of mortals, regardless of whether "theocracy secularization" or "theocracy is granted", they are just correcting the wrong behavior in the process of mortal beliefs, even if the means are more drastic "disobedience plan", it is more like an attempt for mortals to get rid of the influence of the gods and get out of their own way.

It's all a mortal's own business, and it has nothing to do with God—that's probably the way most mages think.

Yet what she heard at the meeting today shook the foundations of the gods.

The prayers to the Goddess of Magic turned out as usual, and Heti could feel a mysterious and inexplicable power surging in some very distant dimension, but she could not hear any instructions from Mirmina, nor could she feel the divine power descending.

Mirmina was the only god who almost never sent down oracles, or even performed miracles or magic, and if it weren't for the most basic response to her prayers, the mages wouldn't even be sure that the god was real.

"Goddess...... You should be able to hear it, right? In a brief lull after the prayer, Hetty whispered in a tone that seemed to be talking to herself, "You may not have time to respond to every voice, but you should be able to hear it......

"Are you really the result of the collective thought of mortals...... Are you a star-like being, or a collective illusion of us mortals......"

The goddess of magic, Mirmina, did not respond, only the indescribable feeling of detachment, sacredness, and serenity still floated in Hety's heart, but soon the calm that came from the response to her prayers suddenly disappeared.

Hetty heard a knock on the door behind him: "Hetty, didn't bother you, did you?" ”

Hetty quickly turned around and saw Gao Wen standing at the door, she hurriedly saluted: "Ancestor, you have something to do with me?" ”

"It's nothing, it's just that your door is not closed, and there is still a light inside, so come and have a look," Gawain walked into Hetty's office and gave the latter a casual look, "I just saw that you seemed to be praying?" ”

"I ......," Hetty opened her mouth, but nodded slightly after a slight hesitation, "I'm praying to Mirmina, the goddess of magic." ”

"Ah, I remember that you were a disciple of Mirmina," Gawain said unexpectedly, "looking at you, you are in a somewhat uneasy mood, aren't you?" ”

"I'm worried about you," Hetty bowed her head, "I'm fine, actually." ”

"It's a pity that I'm not a believer in any god, so it's hard to empathize with you at this time," Gawain patted Hetty on the shoulder, "but I know that it's uncomfortable for anyone to suddenly be challenged with their ideas that have accompanied me for decades. ”

Hetty looked at Gawain and suddenly had the audacity to ask, "In your time, how many people like you did not believe in any god?" ”

“…… More than you think," Gawain said slowly, after a moment of silence, "but a person who doesn't believe in gods is not necessarily a person who doesn't have a faith. ”

Hetty tilted her head slightly, thinking a little and feeling a little emotional: "A lot of what you say is always full of philosophy. ”

"Sometimes it's just the lessons of the past," Gawain shook his head with a smile and looked into Hetty's eyes, "Can you come out on your own?" ”

"Yes."

"That's great, but if you really have difficulties or can't get out, you can come to me at any time - we are family."

Hetty looked at Gawain and suddenly laughed, "Of course, Ancestor. ”

"Today is a rest day, go back early," Gao Wen hummed, glanced at the sky outside, and said with a smile, "On the last day of the year, don't work overtime in the government affairs hall, tomorrow I will grant you an extra day off, have a good rest - I will help you arrange this matter." ”

This time, Hettie's smile was especially heartfelt: "Yes, Ancestor! ”

The two of them left the room, and in the huge office, the light of the magic crystal lamp was silently extinguished, and at the same time as the darkness poured up, the light of the street lamps from the square and street outside also dimly shone into the room, outlining the furnishings in the office.

In the silence, a little light suddenly appeared.

At the location where Hetty had sketched the four basic runes and prayed to the goddess of magic, a translucent glow suddenly condensed, and after a few seconds of silent shattering, the scattered light flew through the room like a stream of fireflies, and was gradually absorbed by the printers, magic net units, and magic net terminals set up all over the room, and there was no trace left.