"If I answer 'mind' now, will anything happen?"

Xiuge sneered in his heart, of course, he naturally nodded in agreement on the surface.

With the permission of the guards and the elder Zeke, Schug took the revolver with him, and then walked out of the lobby of the hotel with Zeke Ernst, surrounded by the guards.

The glass shards that had been spilled on the ground during the accident had not yet been completely cleaned up, so when the wheelchair pressed against the ground, the glass shards made a slight shattering sound under the wheelchair's tires along with the snow particles.

It's cold outside, and the snowflakes are constantly piling up on the ground, but they haven't yet taken shape.

The Ernst Manor was still very quiet, and the three gunshots fired by Schug did not seem to have any effect on the manor itself, and the guards who patrolled the edge of the woods remained silent, only to give a brief salute as Old Zeke's team passed by, and then went on with their work as if they were mechanical.

Zeke Ernst was indeed very old, he was curled up in a wheelchair, wearing not only a thick coat, but also a blanket to protect him from the cold, in addition to this, Xiuge also noticed that the wheelchair he was sitting in was very heavy, not only with a set of elaborate mechanical decorations behind it, but also a series of magic crystals embedded in the armrests.

Obviously, this is also a special device that combines two different technologies: steam and magic.

As an old man, Zeke Ernst seemed silent and weak on such cold winter nights, and he rested his palms on the armrests of his wheelchair, enjoying the warmth of the machine.

The Ernst estate is indeed huge.

It is greater than what Shug sees in the memory of this body.

After walking for a long time, he finally saw the symbol of this ancient family - it was a huge mansion with a large area and a different architectural style from the existing Wattle houses, it did not have such sharp spires, the overall structure was thicker and more stable, and the color was not the usual gray-black tones of the Waterl Kingdom, but more pure white.

The white stone bricks that make up the huge mansion stand out in the light of the magic lamps that have been erected next to the mansion, and despite the maintenance and renovation of the entire Ernst manor over the years, these weathered stone bricks still reveal a sense of age and vicissitudes.

But they are still majestic and majestic.

It stands in the midst of vast meadows and gardens, just as the Kingdom of Wattle stands on the Lowe Plateau.

The historical origins of the Ernst family are older than the Kingdom of Waterl.

Some say that this family migrated from the plains, while others say that they were once inhabitants of the western sea, but these are just folk rumors and legends.

In the Ernst family's own records, they were rooted here, imbuing the seasons with ancient traditions, customs and culture, so that the noble identity and blood flowed in the land.

Some people may wonder why such a powerful and long-established family would always voluntarily subordinate themselves to the kingdoms that succeeded them on the Lowe Plateau, rather than becoming the real ruler themselves, the Ernst family has never answered this question positively, but on different occasions, the leaders of the Ernst family and their external spokesmen have also expressed their own and the family's opinion more than once - the Ernst family has no intention of obtaining supreme secular power, they are more concerned about the continuation and prosperity of the family.

For this view, Xiuge agrees.

Because he knew that even in the stories he was familiar with two hundred years later, the traces of the Ernst family members were still widespread in the world of Vann.

But that was a distant story after all, and after the previous experience, Xiuge no longer dared to take the developments he knew about as an absolute reference.

After all, the very concept of fate is riddled with contradictions.

Believe it or not, conform or not, change or not...... It all seems to be happening all the time.

Xiuge's gaze crossed over the old figure in front of him, and then himself

The Ernst family mansion moved into the night sky where the snow was constantly falling, and in that boundless darkness, it seemed that there were palms manipulating and fiddling with everything in this world.

But Shug still didn't want to believe in the so-called gods and fate.

As a human being with free will, he didn't want to be subordinated to any kind of predetermined arrangement, and in this sense, he was able to approve of what Theseus had said during that meeting.

"Instead of following the script, it's better to improvise...... I'm not the same person as the hapless guy who melted into the statue two hundred years later."

As his thoughts were carried out, Xiuge let out a long breath, which turned into a narrow white mist in the cold air, and then disappeared in the wind.

"Boldon is cold, isn't it?"

The old man's voice suddenly came from the front: "This year's winter is coming a little faster than usual, how can it snow so often in the past."

Old Zeke did not seem to expect any response from his words, but said to himself, "It will not be long before the cold wind will blow to the plains, and the rivers and lakes will freeze over, and the soldiers will have a hard time."

Shug hesitated for a moment, then responded, "When I visited the Fifth Chasseur Regiment, I saw a lot of new equipment, and perhaps with the help of steam technology, our soldiers will be much more comfortable than they used to be."

"Hehe, I'm not just talking about our soldiers."

Old Zeke shook his head, "No matter how good and innovative those equipment are, it will be difficult for them to be assembled into every legion and every team in a short period of time...... Waterl's allies may be able to adapt to the cold climate a little, but for the soldiers on the plains, it must be very difficult and painful to be on duty and fighting in winter."

His tone was sincere, even a little embarrassed, which surprised Xiuge.

A marshal known for his iron and skill in the kingdom of Wattel would have compassion for the enemy's soldiers?

"War, boy, are you familiar with war? Do you understand?"

Hug chose to remain silent at this moment.

In his past life, although he had seen many texts and videos related to war, and even the land that raised him had struggled to be reborn in the midst of the monstrous war, in the final analysis, he was still just an ordinary person born in a peaceful era and a peaceful country.

As a result, his understanding of war has always been mutilated and one-sided.

Even if he had gained the memories of the soldiers through the Descendants of the Abyss, he still couldn't understand the real war.

After all, peace in the broad sense has indeed lasted far too long, and even professional soldiers rarely have the opportunity to set foot on the battlefield.

"Hmm...... When I was younger, I used to be obsessed with social balls, so for a long time I felt that human activity was like one ball after another, and war was the biggest and most enthusiastic of them."

The old man stated his point in a somewhat curious tone: "There are always many reasons why the ball is held, or rather, we can always find different reasons for it, and once it starts, there will be people, organizations or countries involved...... And the content of the ball is often not limited to dancing, but also the opportunity to talk to each other, exchange information, and even do some business."

Speaking of this, Zeke Ernst sighed slowly, "Son, you shouldn't have been to these social situations much in the past, have you? Don't worry, there will always be opportunities in the future, as a young person, don't be too boring."

The servant pushed the wheelchair forward, and finally, in the midst of Old Zeke's words, Xiuge and the others finally came to the mansion.

The lights in the mansion are bright.

"At least from the outside, it hasn't undergone a so-called renovation...... Or is it not yet started?"

Hug looked around carefully, lest he miss details about the Ernst Mansion.

Here, he didn't dare to cast magic or use magic at will, because from the moment he stepped through the door of the mansion

From that moment on, Shuge already felt that a large number of complex and non-interfering rituals were working here.

He was sure that this was definitely not in line with the so-called plans for the renovation of the mansion.

Even if he was just a beginner in magic, he knew that when conducting building inspections and renovations, whether it was the protective rituals engraved in the walls of the building or the special rituals buried deep under the building, they had to stop early, otherwise there was a high risk of irreversible accidents, which was mentioned in the basic "textbook".

There are many elderly people in the Ernst family, and many of them like Zeke Ernst need to rely on wheelchairs to get around, so the mansion is not only equipped with elevators, but also has a gentle slope above the stairs that can be climbed by wheelchairs.

Paintings dedicated to the glorious past of the Ernst family are hung and placed in the corridors and living rooms of the mansion, and the portraits of people from different eras, as if to engrave every experience and important person of this ancient family in the hearts of everyone who walks through it.

The guards dispersed, and two armed maids approached, one of them taking over the wheelchair, and the other, after bowing, took the revolver rifle from Shug's body.

On their bodies, Xiuge smelled an aura similar to that of the sword-wielding hermits of the Law Council.

The dangerous aura that comes from being transformed by a lot of potions and magical rituals.

He followed Old Zeke up to the second floor, and after stepping through a series of stairs and stone bricks inscribed with magical rituals, he entered a brightly lit hall.

Xiuge's eyes lit up involuntarily, because this was actually an exhibition hall.

An exhibition hall with a plethora of different weapons.

From improvised clubs, to swords, to the earliest crystallized guns, to the new firearms that have recently appeared...... In it, Xiuge also saw a number of mage items that should only exist in the Legion system, such as the old-fashioned magic scrolls, the first edition of the magic book that Merlin Le and began to promote after the reform, and the sword, shield, and bow and crossbow .......z.br> made from the Witch Silver, which were specially used for the Wild Mage

As for some standard alchemy supplies, there is no need to mention them.

With a brief glance, the Magic Path Pendulum, which was used to find traces of magic, contained two full display cases here.

But what really caught your eyes were the heavy weapons placed in the middle of the hall, surrounded by huge glass cases and silver guardrails.

The old crystallization cannon that has been widely used for hundreds of years, the throwing metal magic cannon that has been used for many different magic ceremonies in a pioneering way, the prototype of the "St. Steele Cannon" that began to appear a hundred years ago and represents the evolution of the new crystallization cannon, and the magic cannon with multiple rows of small barrels and deadly crystalline fragments as scattering bullets specially built to cope with dense infantry arrays......

It is not difficult to see from these strange weapons with different functions that people still have a great passion for destroying their own kind and other living beings.

At the forefront, Hug saw a behemoth forged from intricate metal, inlaid with magic crystals, and combined with a giant steam machine.

"Muki Type 3...... Steam crystallization cannon."

Old Zeke's voice came from the side: "It's the one who shelled the city of Selen."

"Not only is the firing principle very different from that of the crystalline cannons of the past, but the range and the types of shells that can be used have also improved dramatically......

The wheelchair slowly came to Shog's side, and Old Zeke said, "The Murch family is shining this time, maybe it won't be long before their workshop will become the exclusive workshop of the Wattle royal family, and the orders of Saint-Stihl and Hayne are piled up in their warehouse, hehe......

Shugg turned his head, and he saw Zeke Ernst's incomparably bright eyes, and then he heard the old man in front of him say, "I really want to hear your opinion on the city of Salem, and on the relationship between Wattle and Derene."

"I don't

What do you know?"

"Oh? Really?"

Old Zeke had a smile on his face, but his tone was full of doubts: "Son, if you really don't know anything, then my student won't want to see you in the first place."

"I know that the family has caused you a lot of unhappiness in the past, so I think it's okay for you to hate your father, to hate those who have brought you injustice, and even if you want to take revenge on them."

The old three-clawed falcon held his cane, and his wrinkled fingers gently rubbed the eagle pattern on the top of the cane: "As the current master of Ernst and your elder, my only request to you is that you let go of all your resistance to the present, accept them, and embrace them."