Elven sentry on the borders of the wasteland.

If it hadn't been for Thorderling's reminder, Gawain really wouldn't have thought of this—though he did know about the sentry's existence.

In fact, when Cecil was still a principality, Gawain first succeeded in establishing contact with the Silver Empire at the southern tip of the continent through the transit of this outpost—that was only a few years ago.

"The Silver Empire's Outward Traveler's Outpost is a permanent neutral stronghold, recognized by all nations for thousands of years, from the distant Gondor Age to the Kingdom Age after the Second Frontier," Thorderling said, "As things stand, there are some problems with this vital armistice negotiation going on wherever it takes place, and it would be better to do it at the Elven Outpost northwest of the Shadow Swamp." And on the other hand, the elves are also very suitable witnesses...... At least in terms of longevity, we are certain of witnessing covenants of more than a thousand years. ”

Gawain admitted that he had really not considered this idea before, but when he heard Sölderlin's words at this moment, he suddenly felt that this made some sense: "...... Seven hundred years ago, the Pioneer Act of the Nations was also concluded under the witness of the elves......"

"And what do you think?" Thorderling looked at Gawain, "Do you agree?" ”

Gawain thought for a moment, and after half a minute, he nodded slightly: "This seems to be the most suitable plan at the moment...... Personally, I approve of it, but it's not just me who agrees. Send a message to Winterhold to see if the Typhonians agree to this—and also check with the Silver Empire to see what Belsetia thinks. ”

"The Empress must be happy to bear this witness," said Thorderlin with some confidence, but nodded nevertheless, "of course, I will report this to Her Majesty Blasetia." ”

Gawain snorted, but his serious expression did not relax much, but fell into thought again, Amber on the side noticed the change in his expression, and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?" What's wrong with you? ”

Gawain woke up from his contemplation, and he shook his head: "There's nothing wrong with it, it's just ......"

As he spoke, he looked at the map hanging on the wall not far from the hall—it was a map of all of Typhon and Cecil, as well as some of the countries surrounding them, on which the mortal kingdoms were intertwined, with vast empires, scattered kingdoms, and city-states attached to the great powers...... It's all clearly marked. Gawain's gaze swept over the names, old and young, and his gaze deepened.

"Perhaps...... We should not settle for a mere armistice negotiation......"

"Not just an armistice negotiation?" Amber felt a little confused about Gawain's thoughts, she scratched her hair, "Ah, is that the story you told me earlier, that is, in the middle of the negotiation, you dropped the cup, and then jumped in through the window next to you, and five hundred white knights with power hammers shook all the tables in the audience......"

"Stop, stop, stop......" Gawain's ambitious plan was disrupted by this half-elf as soon as he was halfway through, and while hurriedly shouting to stop, he regretted from the bottom of his heart that he shouldn't have taught this shame of all things so many words - of course, he must have done it after regretting it, but at least at this moment he really regretted it, "I shouldn't have taught you this nonsense...... My train of thought was almost out of order. ”

Amber didn't think so: "So what do you mean?" ”

"We have resisted a catastrophe," Gawain quickly regained his seriousness as he said slowly, his messy thoughts quickly sorted out, "The fact that two human empires are fighting it head-on, and our enemy is a real, mad god who has descended on the earth, should be a major point in the course of all mortal history - it should not be just a 'result' of the war between the two human kingdoms, Typhon and Cecil." ”

Amber blinked, and didn't seem to react yet, but Thorderlin on the side faintly grasped Gawain's train of thought: "You want to ...... Through this catastrophe, the plan of 'disobedience' is promoted around the world? ”

"No, we can't directly promote disobedience - this plan is too radical for people in the world who don't know the truth, and the terrifying truth behind it will scare many potential allies away in advance," Gawain shook his head, "but we can indeed take this opportunity to make the continent countries more aware of the existence of the crisis, so that more people can unite, and let more people prepare - the fall of the god of war will soon have an impact, the corresponding magic will be invalid, and the related psychic steel seal will disappear, All countries will quickly realize the lack of the god of war, so this catastrophe itself cannot be hidden, so we might as well make it public. ”

“…… Truth be told, for many people, the impact of this incident is probably no milder than that of the 'Disobedience Project,'" Toldlin sighed with a wry smile, "but I still agree with you that we should make things bigger." ”

"We need to prepare two meetings," Gawain nodded, "one is our truce with Typhon, and the other is ...... We need to invite as many allies as possible, we need to establish a new international order and international relations that bring everyone together – of course, it's too early to tell, but I think we can be ready to get started. ”

Gawain spoke at length about his thoughts, and what he had told Sölderling at the moment was not a whim - he had already had an idea a long time ago, and had even discussed it several times with Hetty and the others.

In his opinion, this world is really not a gentle and bright paradise, the existence of divine disasters, black traps and demon tides can be regarded as a catastrophe for mortals at any stage of history, even as a legendary powerhouse and a monarch, he will always have a feeling of trembling when he lives in such a world, let alone ordinary people in this world.

In the face of this unfriendly world, Gawain never thought he was strong, on the contrary, he frankly admitted his weakness, and even admitted the weakness of the entire mortal group, it is precisely because of this that he attaches so much importance to the development of society as a whole and the ability of the entire mortal group to survive in the face of disasters - when a disaster like the demon tide comes, the survival of a few strong or lucky people is meaningless, and only if civilization survives, the mortal group can be regarded as alive.

This was the realization he had when he led a group of refugees to pitch their first tent on the banks of the Baishui River, and this original intention has not changed to this day.

And in order to realize his "ambition", he must push his ideal order to the whole world—once, such an idea seemed arrogant and naïve, but now he sees an opportunity to take the first step.

Gawain raised his head and looked northeast, and through a window in the corner of the hall, the snow-capped peaks of the Winterhold Mountains loomed into his vision: "Now, it's up to our 'neighbors' to join us in this new era. ”

……

The devastation wrought by the fighting was staggering, and even the majestic hilltop fortress was devastated in the aftermath of the disaster.

The walls were scorched black, the towers and banners around the castle had crumbled and crumbled, and the majestic Winter Castle still stood on the high hill, but a full quarter of the fortress structure had been wiped out by the previous explosion—the remaining three-quarters stood in the cold wind, and among the ruined courtyards and the collapsing corridors and pillars, the mages covered in dust and soot were busy repairing them.

They were trying to keep the fortress from collapsing as much as possible, and trying to re-fortify and fill in its broken walls and main building with magic, the repair work was not going well due to the massive waste energy that permeated the entire Winterhold fortress complex, but at least for now, the castle main hall and several surrounding corridors were safe.

The black-haired and black-dressed maid walked down the cracked and dusty corridors, her short-heeled boots making crisp footsteps on the stone floor, and despite the mess around her, she remained as graceful as she walked in an obsidian palace, and her delicate face concealed all changes in expression, as it had been for many years—no one could guess from the face of Diana, the head maid, what was going on in the heart of this lady who had been loyal to the House of Augustus for hundreds of years.

After passing through the foyer and hallway, through two small empty rooms, she came to the freshly cleaned living room, where Rosetta Augustus was sitting in a chair with dark red cushions, as if thinking something.

"Master," Diana said as she walked toward Rosetta the Great, "I'm back." ”

"Welcome back, it's been a hard trip," Rosetta looked at the black-haired maid and nodded slightly, "It seems that the Cecil people didn't embarrass you." ”

Diana folded her hands in front of her waist and said meticulously: "Gawain Cecil is a sensible man, and his officers are strict in their adherence to the rules. ”

Rosetta looked Diana in the eye, "Tell me about your experience with the Cecil - is there anything worth reporting?" ”

There seemed to be a glimmer of light in Diana's eyes, and she opened her mouth, but hesitated in the last moment before speaking, and this brief hesitation immediately surprised Rosetta - he had never seen this "Iron Lady" have such a "hesitant" reaction since he could remember!

But after a moment, Diana spoke: "Beside Gawain Cecil, there are 'remnants' who have survived from the ancient days of Gondor to the present day. ”

“…… Not surprising," Rosetta tapped lightly on the table, her expression was natural, "With the information we have so far, there is at least one archmage from the Gondor era among Cecil's technicians - as a 'pioneer hero' who has been resurrected from seven hundred years ago, Gawain Cecil is even a Gondor relic, and he has more Gondor inheritance in his hands than anyone else.

"But...... You brought this up so deliberately, I guess the remnants of Gondor next to Gawain aren't ordinary people, right? ”

“…… Ophelia Norton," Diana said, "a member of the royal family of the Spark of Gondor, the captain of the Iron Man Corps, one of the leaders of the Disobedients, a cutting-edge technician—her current name is Veronica Morn, and she is the princess of Old Ansu. It's some kind of soul immortalization technology, but it's missing from my database. ”

Rosetta paused as he tapped lightly on the table, and he sat there expressionless, motionless for the next few seconds like a black iron sculpture.

"Master?" Diana looked at each other, "What do you think of?" ”

Rosetta's fingers that had stopped in mid-air finally landed on the table, and he sighed with some subtlety in his expression: "Honestly...... I'm starting to envy our neighbors a little. ”

Diana thought for a moment and reminded, "You've said something similar before. ”

"But this time it's different," Rosetta shook her head, "I'm not just envious of the resources that Gawain Cecil has, I'm even more envious...... His sharp thinking and perspective on things make the resources in his hands always more effective. ”

There was a hint of confusion in Diana's expression very humanely: "Why do you say that?" ”

"You've just returned, and there's been a bit of a lag," Rosetta said, picking up a transcribed document from her desk and handing it to Diana, "before you set foot in the castle, the Cecil sent us this via a makeshift communication line. ”

Curious, Diana took the document and scanned it in an instant, while Rosetta continued: "In addition to the armistice, Gawain Cecil also mentioned another thing, 'advocating the establishment of a community of mortal nations'. He hopes to use this war to attract the attention of the entire continent to reveal the threat of the Divine Plague, and to use the influence of Cecil and Typhon's respective settlement districts to build a vast ...... An order that spans the entire continent. ”

“…… Ambitious ideas," Diana commented pertinently, putting down the paper, "but at this point in time, it is possible to realize it – although according to my calculations, not all countries will respond to his call, but as long as some countries are willing to join, this 'alliance' will have the power to shock the world." The threat of cataclysm may not be so clear for those countries far from the war, but the economic benefits of joining the alliance are clear. ”

"Yes, obviously, and the Cecilians have always been very economically," Rosetta said, "and they will certainly make good use of their strengths." ”

Speaking of this, he suddenly smiled and shook his head: "When many people's minds were still stuck in the siege of cities and the occupation of territory, he had already begun to plan a new order for this world. ”

"And what do you think?" Diana looked up and watched Rosetta silently.

“…… He said that he was not an idealist, but now he has put an extremely ideal vision in front of me, and I want to face this 'invitation' with absolute reason, but unfortunately, this world is not completely rational......" Rosetta sighed softly, or admired, "Sometimes we need to take a little risk to face the challenges of the future - this invitation, I accepted. ”