Gawain finally knows the truth about the Augustus family curse.
The truth was more twists and turns than he expected.
As an insider of related events, Megall III believed that the "Eye of God" who escaped that year had suffered a decline in status after entering the bloodline of the Augustus family. After being diluted by mortal blood from generation to generation, After deterioration, it has essentially become spiritual pollution that does not possess divinity - but Gawain does not dare to be so optimistic.
After all, he knew about the ancient god-killing wars, knew that the gods had returned to the world in disguise again and again, and even knew that the power of the gods was actually the projection of the collective will of mortals. After mastering so much information, he did not I don’t think that the “Eye of God” integrated into the Augustus family bloodline will disappear so easily.
It's just that he can't verify anything now - even if a member of the Augustus family is standing here, with the current technical conditions, Gawain doesn't know how to confirm the "God of God" "eye" state, so I can only think about it.
Megor III did not hear Gawain’s last soliloquy. Recalling the Orlandale incident two hundred years ago, the dream pope who was no longer human could not help but sigh. After half a minute of silence, his voice came again from the undulating aggregation of stars: "Your Majesty, this is all I know about the curse of the Augustus family."
< p>Gawain also woke up from his thoughts. He looked at the former pope in front of him and nodded gently: "They are all very important information and very valuable."Then he paused. Then he said: "It is really a miracle that you survived from Orlandale back then."
"Everyone underestimated the strength of those ancient ruins. Some incredible ancient technology made it possible The core and the bottom layer are almost indestructible, and the collapse of the upper area just completely covered up the fact that the interior is intact." There was a hint of emotion in the voice of Megall III, "At that time, Typhon was in chaos due to the collapse of the imperial capital and the large number of casualties among the upper-class nobles. In the chaos, they could only spend most of their energy on rebuilding order and moving the capital... What's more, with the technical conditions at the time, they couldn't confirm the situation at the bottom of Orlandale.
"As for us, We had a backup channel to evacuate from the exit outside Orlandale, but we knew that there was only a dead end to get out under the current situation - we hibernated in the underground palace, relying on the supplies in reserve and what we could collect from the ruins of the upper city. They spent the first few months with a small amount of supplies, and then slowly began to send some people out to investigate the situation. Many years later we restored the middle and lower floors of the underground palace within the solid framework of the ancient facility and built a new dome beneath the collapsed area... It was no easy task indeed. "
"I can imagine," Gawain nodded, and then asked, "I am thinking about something. Back then, you used the term ‘evil god’ to negotiate with Emperor Typhon, convincing him that what was underground in Orlandale was not a god, but an evil spirit. The other party believed it, but after that AugustusThe Du family will definitely not let this matter go by like this - even if it is to investigate the curse they suddenly encountered, they will find a way to figure out the truth in the Orlandale incident. Do you think they finally know what's underneath Orlandale? "
Megor was silent for a few seconds, then slowly said: "I think they should have investigated part of the truth. They generally know that the curse they suffered actually comes from the gods.
"The reason is very simple. Not all the priests of the Eternal Sleeper have always stayed in the underground palace. When the Orlandale incident occurred, some priests were active outside. It is inevitable that some of them will end up in Ogu in the future. When the core and senior leaders of the cult were buried under Orandale, these priests did not know that we were still alive and lost their psychological support. Many of them would tell everything in order to survive. "
Gawain frowned and said in a deep voice: "In other words, the Augustus family knows that it was the gods who brought them the curse, and even to a certain extent - they know it as well as you do. The gods are gradually going crazy, and knowing the gods is actually equivalent to the countdown to the end."
"The arrested priests should have told this part of the truth, but the Augustus family chose to believe it. It's hard to say how much," Megall III replied. "They may regard this as the nonsense of cultists. Of course, given the real existence of the curse and the various evidences in the Orlandale incident, they may also have limited belief. What those priests said."
"The main religion of the Typhon Empire is the faith of the God of War. In addition, there are also small-scale activities of the churches of the God of Commerce, the God of Blood, and the God of Death." At this time, Amber suddenly Said, "The Typhon royal family has not taken any obvious action to crack down on these churches, but there is no support or closeness in any form."
Gawain couldn't help but look at Amber - he hadn't asked anything yet , but her answer was exactly what he needed.
After a moment of thinking, he asked: "Has any member of the Augustus family been an open believer or received any form of baptism?"
"No," Amber shook his head, "At least not in the intelligence that can be collected - but it does not rule out the existence of secret baptisms, although the probability is very low."
Gawain asked again while thinking: "In Austria Before the Langdell incident, were there any religious believers in the Augustus family?"
"I don't know about that," Amber shook his head, "The Military Intelligence Agency has not investigated this specifically. . But this part of the information is not confidential. We should be able to find clues from the official information released by Typhon..."
"I can answer," Megall III suddenly interjected, "Yes, and there are more. One - before the Orlandale incident, there were members of the Augustus family who were baptized by the god of war. The number was not large, and it was often a symbol of the exchange of interests between the royal family and the church, but there were indeed baptized people. ”
Gawain breathed out softly.
"Then we can assume that the Augustus family will no longer allow family members to become believers after the Orlandale incident," he said softly, "As for them not attacking the domestic church... this does not Not surprisingly, this may be due to social needs and national interests.
“After all, even in Cecil today, there is the Holy Light Church as the main faith and several other small-scale churches. ”
Gawain’s last words were just casual words, but Megall III thought of the “war priests” in the Cecil Empire who were fully armed and loyal to the emperor. He couldn’t bear the starlight and clouds surging all over his body.
Gawain couldn't see the face of Megall III from a cloud of twinkling stars. He just subconsciously tapped the seat with his fingers while thinking. The armrest, as if talking to himself, said softly: "The situation is starting to get interesting..."
...
After continuing to exchange some sporadic questions, Megall The third generation left.
In the spacious study, only Gawain was sitting at the desk, and Amber was standing in front of Gawain.
"I heard a big secret tonight. "Now that there is no one else on the scene, Amber immediately stretched out without scruples, muttering as he stretched, "It seems like the Augustus family and the Eternal Sleeper are really... entangled. Not sure. "
"Reality is always so bizarre, it is beyond our imagination than the bard's story," Gawain said calmly, "In this way, at this moment, Rosetta Augustus The scale of accepting the eternal sleepers in the country... this matter is even more dramatic. "
"After all, the Orlandale incident happened two hundred years ago," Amber blinked. "For most ordinary humans, it was already 'ancient' - a person buried in The ancient stories deep in the archives can only be a story to the modern Emperor Typhon and the priest of the Eternal Sleeper. "
"You sound more and more like me now. "Gawain couldn't help but smiled and glanced at Amber.
Amber immediately bared his teeth, but he didn't burst out with a lot of nonsense like usual. Instead, after thinking briefly, if He said thoughtfully: "Speaking of which...according to the information brought by Megall III, the relationship between the anti-tide empire and the gods in ancient times may be more complicated than we initially imagined. "
"Have the ability to build advanced devices that can contain and control the power of gods, but use this technology to build altars to welcome gods..." Gawain's expression was slightly serious, "Melita Purney Ya once said that mastering super high technology in advance without breaking through the shackles of the gods will only bring disaster. I have been thinking about the meaning of her words. The ruins under Orandale... seem to have answered the question. Part of me wonders. "
"It's a pity that the ruins are really gone this time," Amber muttered regretfully, "The Eternal Sleeper blew it up from the inside again before evacuating, and those secrets are no longer available. There is no way to know. "
"Maybe one day we will have other ways to dig out those secrets," Gawain shook his head, "But now, at least those eternal sleepers have brought a lot of information, and there will always be something valuable in it. "
...
After a night's rest and a whole morning of final weighing, Sir Gorosh and the advisory group he led came to Gawain Sethi again. in front of you.
Gawain sat on his favorite high-backed chair and watched the dragonborn take their seats opposite. The clerk and assistant officers were ready beside them, their expressions calm and indifferent.
The information told by Megall III last night brought him a lot of thinking and deductions about the future, but the things he wanted to pay attention to were not just Typhon and the "eye of the God of Dreams" "Now, he calmed down his mind and prepared to continue the unfinished negotiations with these powerful dragonborn from the far north mountains in front of him yesterday.
Sir Gorosh first bowed to Gawain, then cleared his throat, and said in a frank and polite tone: "Your Majesty, first of all, thank you for your hospitality again.
"We have carefully considered the many projects and ideas about the future that you proposed yesterday. In terms of conclusions... Please forgive me for being rude. I personally prefer a straightforward and frank way of speaking——
" The Principality of the Holy Dragon is temporarily They are not ready for full-scale business contact with Cecil, especially regarding mine development, joint venture colleges, and basic engineering construction. The Dragonborn have no intention."
Gawain raised his eyebrows. It was raised slightly to an extent that others could not detect.
Sir Gorosh said he was straightforward and frank, but in fact what he said was quite euphemistic - no matter how euphemistic the language was, it could not change the meaning of his words.
Everyone at the scene heard it clearly: the Dragonborn rejected more than 70% of the terms of the many projects proposed by Gawain yesterday.
And it seems that their attitude is very firm. This is the result of their careful consideration. It may even be a decision made after contacting the Dragon-Blooded Archduke through some method. It cannot be changed or reversed in a few words.
However, driven by curiosity, Gawain couldn't help but ask: "I want to hear the specific reason."
Sir Gorosh and Ah beside him Serena looked at each other, then turned her head, and met Gawain's eyes seriously and calmly: "Your Majesty, the Dragonborn has a sincere and frank attitude towards this exchange, and I believe you do the same.
"We are all looking for new friends in this vast world, for a common and bright future for both parties.
“There is a saying in the Holy Dragon Principality: A climber alone has courage, and a climber together has both courage and wisdom. Dragonborn are not as closed and exclusive as the outside world imagines. In fact, we are happy to We make friends, but we make friends who can climb the peak together and advance together and retreat together.
"Your Majesty, in the past thousands of years, dragonborns have rarely set foot outside the northern border. mountains, because there are so many mountains on this continentEverything that happened failed to arouse our interest, and now we have opened the door, which we opened on our own initiative - we opened the door to find an ally, and the Dragonborn hope that everything can be based on equality, respect, and mutual benefit. , on the basis of frankness. "
Gawain looked quietly into Sir Gorosh's eyes. After two seconds, he suddenly laughed.
"Of course," he said very happily and easily , “Then let’s discuss a plan again. ”
His attitude was very calm, as if he had anticipated everything.