20 It is both a goodbye and a promise

The following is an excerpt from the diary of Para Dax

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On April 20th, we arrived at the lighthouse, where the servants had already taken in. When Prince Umi tells them that they can't go back to the Black Building, and that there is a shortage of food at the moment, they are disappointed.

…… As for the reason, we lied to them that there was an earthquake, and of course no one would believe it......

…… We quickly completed the detailed plan of the food quota, and the rest of the food was enough for us to last for a month, and if our ships were as agreed, they would come here in early or mid-May, and we would not have to worry about food at that time.

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On April 21, Daniel kept asking me if I was injured, and he often criticized Ryan for going too far in knocking me down at the time. However, we all understand Ryan's anger and hope that he will know that we are protecting and caring for him.

…… Daniel mentioned to me that when he was collecting the teacher's body, he found some other spell stones on his body, which contained many of the magic that he had shown us on a regular basis, such as puppet magic. Daniel suspects that the teacher doesn't know magic at all, and that he uses it through spell stones. This inference is possible, and mastery of theory and practical application are two different things, the former can be used as a teacher, and the latter can be used to do practical research...... But it really didn't matter, and when I asked where the spell stones were, Daniel replied that they had burned the morning before.

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On April 22, Albert and Ryan arrived, and everyone was not excited about the reunion. Ryan didn't talk to anyone at all, and found a secluded corner to stay in, with food and water brought to him by Albert. Prince Umi says that this is the best, and impulsive young people need to be calm.

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On April 23rd, since I had been busy and chaotic before, I had to record what happened this time when I finally had a free time, so that I would not really forget any important information.

First of all, the planet we live on is named "Planet 10", and it should be named after a fairly advanced and powerful super civilization, whether it will be the place that the teacher calls "Earth" is unknown for the time being, and our planet and several others (maybe dozens?) Hundreds? Planets, as always, are part of this huge experiment, which they call the "Stellar Project," which we would more appropriately call the "Stellar Curse......

The experimental process of each star is divided into "rebirth", "development", "testing" and "harvesting", and the four processes are constantly circulating, figuratively speaking: our planet and the life on it are like gladiators in the arena, they are trained to fight, and those who win will be incorporated as guardians, and those who lose will lose their lives - but the difference is that in this astral experiment, even if you win the test, you will eventually be harvested and start a new cycle again...... Although I can't predict how much impact the role of the teacher will have, it should speed up the process of "development" by hundreds or even thousands of years, because the necessary condition for the start of the "test" is that the score of the planet must meet a certain height, that is, the number of people on the planet, the degree of scientific and technological development, the military strength, the degree of stability of coexistence civilization, etc., all reach a certain value.

Strange, is our planet under surveillance all the time?

What puzzles me is that the process of "harvesting" is inferred from the name, and it is very likely that something is being extracted from the star, but why not just extract it? Why does it have to take enough time to develop, then have to go through testing to transition, and finally start harvesting? What physical object will take thousands of years to develop? Culture, population, technology, language, mineral resources...... I can't figure this out at the moment.

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On April 24, a servant fell ill and was very weak, probably having eaten spoiled food. Prince Umi tried to keep everyone calm, and there was no room for panic to spread in these difficult times.

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On April 29th, everyone's body continued to weaken, the daily quota of food could only barely be maintained, everyone was visibly emaciated, and everyone tried to stay in the lighthouse, not to move, to avoid physical exertion.

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On April 30, Prince Albert took out his treasured moonshine to share with everyone, and the servants were delighted and their morale was finally raised a lot.

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On May 5, the sick servant failed to hold out......

A few servants even demanded that the dead man be eaten! Such a thing that violates human ethics is actually said by them! Prince Umi even agreed! What happened today completely turned my mind upside down, didn't they feel guilty when they ate the remains of their former companions? No, I can't write anymore......

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On May 11, the record continued from today, the food was being consumed quickly, but still no ships docked, the morale of the servants was at rock bottom, and two more had just fallen, and they had to be given more food on the fly, so as not to have the same tragedy as before.

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On May 15, when the food was about to bottom, Prince Umi asked everyone to collect leather goods and boil them in water, which were originally made of animal skins and should be able to eat them. It may be that they are so hungry that they show an extremely excited expression when they eat.

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On May 18th, I didn't know if we would be able to hold on, most of the people were so hungry that I could not stand up, and I could only barely pick up a pen to record. Prince Umi still resolutely encourages everyone, and I think it was the confidence and strength that the "magic of foreknowledge" that day gave him, and that belief made him so strong...... He'll be a good king, I'm sure!

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On May 21, a ship finally docked!! It was our Dragon ship, and Prince Umi ordered the food on board to be distributed to everyone, and everyone was finally saved! The captain also brought good news, the ships of the Kingdom of Sprout and the Kingdom of Aube were halfway there, and they arrived later! After a difficult month, we finally got through it!

…… The people on board were sympathetic and curious about our situation, and Prince Umi lied that there was an earthquake in the hermit's dwelling, and that quicksand had buried everything, and the servants did not say much, and we were silent about the truth.

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On May 23rd, the ships of the Kingdom of Aube and the Kingdom of Spreet docked, and a lot of food and drink were brought down, and tonight we held a celebration to celebrate our weather!

…… Ryan has never been seen, and he may have been on board after his country's ship docked. We can only sympathize with what happened to him, and hope that he will become strong.

…… Prince House formally invites Daniel to return to Aube with him, and the two fall in love after cooperating with each other in the battle with the teacher. Daniel also agreed with House's suggestion, and I think the main reason is that the eastern continent where the Kingdom of Obey is located has a lot of comet sightings, which is a good starting point for him to explore when he is about to start looking for comets.

…… Prince Albert was so drunk and bad at drinking that it was hard to imagine what would become of Splalet after he succeeded to the throne. But Prince Umi thinks that he is wise and foolish, and will make a good king, so I hope so. But...... What if Ryan inherits the throne? To be honest, I'd love to take a look.

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On May 24th, Prince Umi ordered the lighthouse to be destroyed, which puzzled most people, and forced the servants and sailors to use their tools to dig large holes in the outer wall and load-bearing walls of the lighthouse, and finally we pulled the lighthouse down with the help of ropes, but it was unsuccessful, and the lighthouse only collapsed halfway. Prince Umi didn't insist any longer, as long as the lighthouse wouldn't give directions to the foreign ships.

…… Three ships are about to set sail tomorrow, and we will also carry our luggage and baggage on board, and Prince Umi destroys the dew collector that has been providing us with fresh water for a month, and one of the collectors also has the "Enhancement Spell Stone", which is what the teacher calls an amplifier, two of the original six were used on Prince Umi and me, and three were used to help us cast "Prophetic Magic", which is the only one left. Prince Umi carefully put it away, not knowing what it would do for it later.

…… Captain Goliath of Spreet says that Prince Lane has been silent since he got on board, but he has a good appetite, and it seems that he should be out of the emotional slump a little.

…… In the evening, Prince Umi invited Daniel, me, House, and Albert to drink together, and everyone recalled the time they had studied together over the past year, and couldn't help but feel that fate was really playing tricks on people, and last year, we thought that the lighthouse in front of us was a guiding light, and now we look at it, this lighthouse is the bait of the trap...... In any case, we escaped the trap and had to fill an even bigger trap, and the key question is – can we succeed?

…… Everyone is drunk......

…… Everyone was crying......

(End of diary section)

On the morning of May 25, the ships from the three countries were ready to set sail. The crew were a little disappointed, and those who had seen the hermit's dwelling before described it as a place of great beauty, but this time they couldn't help but feel sorry that they hadn't been able to see it with their own eyes. The starving and even having to eat the corpses of their companions to survive had a sense of relief in stark contrast to the two emotions that is somewhat ironic.

Everyone else had boarded the boat, and Umi, House, Daniel, and Albert were on the shore talking to each other for the last time of their lives.

"It's time to say goodbye." Albert shrugged, his expression relaxed, but anyone could tell that he was most reluctant to part.

"yes, I don't know when we'll be able to meet again," House lamented, "I really hope our two countries don't go to war." ”

Albert smiled and said, "At least while I'm alive, none of this will happen." Then he turned to Daniel, "Don't forget to come and see us when you look for a comet passing through our country." ”

"Definitely!" Daniel replied earnestly, "I'll go to Dragon too." ”

Umi didn't respond, his gaze staring thoughtfully at the ruined lighthouse.

"He may still be worried about what the teacher said, that using the 'Enhancement Spell Stone' will accelerate aging." Albert said, in exchange for a puzzled look from Umi, "Oh, I heard Parra. ”

"Actually, it's easy to solve, Prince Umi." Daniel interjected, "You can delve into time magic and extend your life; You can also delve into transformation magic and become a certain long-lived creature, as long as you keep your transformation state, you can also prolong your lifespan. Daniel said, and Albert and House on the side looked surprised.

Umi finally spoke: "Then I'll be a dragon!" ”

"Dragon?!" House and Albert exclaimed together, followed by mocking laughter, "Hahahaha...... How can a legendary creature change? "Hahahaha...... Read too many fairy tales...... but the laughter soon stopped, and they were relieved by Umi's hard work.

In the coming time, each of them will give a lot, bear a lot, and sacrifice a lot......

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When the time of parting finally came, Umi said goodbye to his friend with only one sentence -

"Everyone, we'll see you in the future!"

It's both a goodbye and a promise.

The five of them sighed in unison, looking in the direction of the desert, in the direction of the black buildings, in the direction of what had once been light and hope...... Their expressions were calm and calm, as if they had just made a major decision about their fate.

House broke the silence and said, "I don't expect to see you again in the future, because in the future, my name may not remain...... However, I am willing to fight for this future, even if it costs my life. Then he made a "everyone feel free" gesture to board his boat.

Daniel bowed to the others and followed House aboard.

Umi patted Albert on the shoulder, smiled meaningfully, and got on the boat without looking back.

Albert didn't say anything, he got on the boat on his own, he was the last to go offshore. On the coast, only the half-destroyed lighthouse is still crumbling, screaming in the sea breeze......

All the ships lifted anchor and sailed eastward, and after passing through a twilight dust, all three ships sailed smoothly into the ocean, and the land behind them became a place where water and sky gradually faded away, and the lighthouse, which was once a landmark, was destroyed and could not be recognized from afar—it was a beacon of hope, light, knowledge, and enlightenment, but now no one gave a second glance at it. In the days to come, the absence of this landmark would have made it difficult for other ships visiting the hermit to continue the journey, which was Umi's purpose in destroying the lighthouse. Coincidentally, House later ordered his cartographers to erase Watch Island from the map, leaving the island less known as a "transit point" and making it more difficult to reach the desperate desert from the sea, which is why Watch Island did not exist in later nautical charts.

After noon, the three ships began to sail in different directions, and at their respective locations, the three ships invariably said "Future, goodbye" in flags—both a goodbye and a promise.

In the time that followed, Albert and the Lane brothers, House and Umi, the princes of the three kingdoms, never saw each other again.

The former hermit's abode has fallen into a long silence, and only half of the lighthouse seems to tell: I am the lonely watchman of the hermit's abode, waiting for the next visitor—

Or—

Waiting for eternity.

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More than twenty years later, Albert's daughter Lilith visited by chance, but her arrival did not add any life to the place. The penthouses of black buildings, the ruined lighthouses, the stone paths that stretch nowhere, and the legends about the hermits in the desert have all been ruthlessly worn away by the wind, sand and time...... The little-known experiences and memories of the desperate desert also faded away with the departure of several main characters......

The torrent of time has swept away almost everything, and the story is coming to an end.