Sword of Dawn

Page 376

Another portrait next to him also came alive, and he glanced at Rosetta: "It doesn't look very good, look at how tired he is, it's not so easy to rule an empire. Child, you should learn to regulate your state, don't Spend your life early."

Several other portraits nearby immediately joined in.

Rosetta ignored these buzzing conversations, and just said indifferently: "This palace appears more and more frequently, what changes does it indicate?"

"It's so indifferent..." the portraits said one after another.

Rosetta just looked at them blankly.

"What change do you want? Do you want to be closer to us?" Emperor George Augustus laughed hoarsely and lowly. "It's a pity that although we also want the day of family reunion to come soon, you still refuse It's very good, this nightmare is far away from you..."

"But other things are getting closer and closer to the real world you are in..." Another portrait next to it added.

"Something else? What?" Rosetta frowned. "Any other 'God's Legacy'?"

"Then we don't know..." Marjorie Augustus, who was next to George Augustus, muttered, "But it seems to be different from ours... It's some kind of personality similarity, Powers are also similar things, but they are only similar. Perhaps it is because of this 'similarity' that we have a feeling and the curse on you has been activated."

Listening to these vague words and thinking about the corresponding clues in the real world, Rosetta frowned tightly. At the same time, he also heard the voice of his father, Marjorie Augustus It came again: "All in all, you should be more careful recently. It seems that the real world you live in will undergo some changes. It may not be aimed at you, but its mere existence is enough to threaten you."

George Augustus also said: "We can't help you in the real world here 'inside', but we will try our best to expand the induction and look for its clues, and at the same time, we will also search as deep as possible in the dreams and illusions of history. Clues, maybe...can help you."

Rosetta raised her head, looked at her father and grandfather, looked at those older Augustus, watched them speak one after another, offer advice, and watched them fall into lively discussions and make suggestions for themselves, he But he just maintained a cold expression and took two steps back.

At the place where he was originally standing, the patterned stone bricks had already been filled with a layer of ink color at some point, and countless tentacles-like wriggling things with a little bit of starlight squirmed and extended out of the ink color, blending with the surrounding air. More shadows emerge to form a connection, dancing as if to grab hold of something.

"I won't bother you to do more things," Rosetta said in a cold tone, "It's better to return to the dream world."

Those dark tentacles with a little bit of starlight instantly accelerated their dancing speed, as if falling into a frenzy, and those portraits who were talking to Rosetta gently and enthusiastically offering help a moment ago glared at her in unison. , a pair of eyes turned bloody at the same time, each face became hideous at the same time, each voice rebuked loudly with anger:

"Damn you! We want to help you so much!"

"We are full of good intentions, but you are only jealous—you are destined to be an unkind tyrant, a fatuous king who has betrayed the teachings of our ancestors!"

"You will be spurned by your subjects. You will bring nothing but corruption to this empire, and its only path forward will be destruction!"

"Come back, go back to your family, go back to your father and grandfather, only we are your real family, see yourself clearly!"

The reprimands became louder and louder, gradually mixed together, and gradually turned into incomprehensible murmurs and ear-piercing screams, but Rosetta Augustus just frowned and stepped back quickly step by step. More and more tentacles emerged in the air, as if frantically wanting to bind him to this place, but those tentacles disintegrated before they touched Rosetta, and turned into a cloud of dust, just like things in a dream cannot Hurt the living people in the real world and return in vain.

But Rosetta knows that as long as he has the slightest hesitation, the slightest weakness and compromise, these tentacles will not be so "harmless".

He retreated to the door at last, out of the reach of the portraits.

"I'm sure your help is genuine - but it would be better if you didn't want me to be 'family reunited' with you so much."

After leaving a word with a sarcasm on his face, he decisively left the room.

The door in the dream was slammed shut, completely blocking the chaotic and crazy whispers in the room on the other side of the door.

Rosetta walked towards the outer area of ​​the palace along the corridor she had come from.

On the walls on both sides of the corridor, the hanging portraits came alive one after another. The Augustus of the past 200 years appeared on the portraits one by one, making all kinds of high-pitched voices to Rosetta passing through the corridor. Cursing, or grotesque whispers that make you sleepy and disturbed, and the evening light from the window shakes restlessly, as if the whole palace is alive and full of anger.

But in the end, nothing could hurt Rosetta, who resolutely rejected this nightmare. The ruler of Typhon quickly left the most dangerous corridor and left the place where the portraits could gaze.

In the relatively "normal" long hall, those ubiquitous low-pitched, murmuring voices seemed much friendlier at the moment.

In the depths of the palace, a vague sigh came into Rosetta's ears, with helplessness in the sigh.

That was the source of the curse, the sigh of the real master of the palace.

For Rosetta, the best response to the owner of this voice is - don't respond to him.

The evening light from outside the palace shone into the long hall through the tall glass windows, casting pale golden grilles in the hall. Compared with the previous moment, these lights no longer wavered.

Rosetta exhaled softly, preparing to leave this hall and return to the outer area of ​​the palace.

But suddenly, his footsteps stopped, and his eyes fixed on a certain door on the side of the long hall—the handle of that door was turned, and then it was slowly pushed open a gap.

Rosetta's spirit tensed up instantly.

In this palace, every door means different degrees of danger, and those who open the door actively have the most complete malice.

But this is not necessarily the case. Sometimes the dreams of members of the Augustus family will be connected, and the person who opens the door at that time may be...

A figure wearing a black complicated court dress, with black hair draped softly and decorated with thin golden chains, pushed open the door and appeared in front of Rosetta Augustus.

The Typhon ruler breathed a sigh of relief.

"Father?" Matilda was visibly nervous for a moment when she saw the figure in the hall, but she was relieved after confirming that it was Rosetta's face—the surviving family members would not be The evil spirit in the palace said, "You also... fell into a dream?"

"It seems that I fell asleep at the same time as you." Although Rosetta relaxed a little, she still looked dignified when facing her daughter, "It's already midnight here."

"I'm in Cecil's capital, just falling asleep, and it's still some time before midnight," Matilda said, "Did you do something here? I just felt that this palace suddenly became... extraordinarily restless. "

"I went to the deepest part and asked some questions," said Rosetta briefly. "They should be very angry by now."

"...Are you in danger?"

"Of course, there's no security here."

As soon as Rosetta finished speaking, a piercing scream suddenly came from the corridor leading to the deep area of ​​the palace. Xu Xu's whispers fell silent for a short while.

But soon, the screeching sound disappeared, and everything returned to normal.

"...is your brother," Rosetta broke the silence after a few seconds of silence, "he is the 'latest one' here, and his voice can occasionally penetrate the barrier of the corridor and affect this side. "

Matilda took a breath, and couldn't help saying softly: "Brother..."

"He has left to become a part of this palace," Rosetta said solemnly and earnestly, "Matilda, always remember, remember the boundary between you and this palace, even if there is your brother here, there are Your grandfather, and your uncle and aunt, you also have to remember, they are all gone, they have become 'them', the evil spirits here, the dangerous existence that is always trying to drag you into the deepest .

"Only by keeping this in mind at all times can you be safe, and at some point in the future, after I also become a part of this palace, you can still live safely."

Matilda lowered her head: "...I will keep it in mind, Father."

The expression on Rosetta's face eased a little, and he nodded: "Since we met here, let's talk about your experience.

"What kind of place is Cecil in your eyes?"

Chapter 0805 The Day of Action

""The Foundation of Everything"?

"Newborn physical examination and basic nutrition security plan?

"The village pharmacist's crash guide?"

Listening to Matilda's detailed description of what she saw and heard in the Cecil Empire, Rosetta Augustus frowned unknowingly, with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Some of these things I saw during my visit to those facilities, some of them were heard and inferred when I contacted and talked with local people, and some were written in local newspapers and periodicals, posted On the bulletin boards in the square and other places," Matilda said, "it seems that these are not secrets, and His Majesty Gawain has made them public very frankly."

"These are indeed not secrets, and there is no way they can become secrets. They are public..." Rosetta didn't stretch her brows at all, and asked immediately, "Have these plans been implemented? Their government affairs office can realize these bold plan?"

"As far as I know, most of them are still in the promotion stage, and some are even in the preparatory stage. Even if they have been implemented, they only cover some areas, such as the newborn physical examination and basic nutrition security plan-it seems to be One of Gawain Cecil's earliest new policies has only been popularized in the southern border."

Speaking of this, Matilda paused, and said carefully: "But I doubt that these bold things will be realized in the end-their government affairs office is full of confidence in this, and a large number of prepared talents have entered the education In the latter stages of training, and within the territory of Cecil, there is no second voice to question the orders of Emperor Gawain."

Rosetta didn't speak for a while.

These plans do not lie in how much they have been realized, but their existence alone has already greatly touched the far-sighted Emperor Typhon, and he involuntarily launched a series of reasoning, speculating that Gawain Cecil Thinking about possible ideas, thinking about the possible significance of these measures.

"Father," Matilda noticed Rosetta's expression, and couldn't help saying, "Will the things the Cecils do... all have a huge impact?"

"It's not just a huge impact. What Gawain Cecil is doing is laying the foundation for a more distant future..." Rosetta said in a deep voice, "He seems to believe in the power of ordinary people, and he is sparing no effort Improving the overall role of ordinary people in the operation of society, I am not yet sure whether he is right or wrong in doing so, but his thinking... I really haven't thought about it."

"Do you think there is something worth learning from here?" Matilda asked curiously.

"...This still needs more observations," Rosetta said in thought, "The key point is that these plans of Gawain Cecil are too bold, and bold plans mean high investment and unknown Before fully understanding the mechanism behind his actions, we cannot blindly affect the operation of the empire itself."

Matilda lowered her head: "I understand, I will collect as much information as possible."

"Well," Rosetta simply nodded, and then asked, "In your opinion, what kind of person is Gawain Cecil himself?"

"That legendary hero..." Matilda showed a thoughtful look, "I have heard many stories about him, but a real person is really different from a hero who is deified in the stories. He is gentler than I imagined. Regardless of his respective identities, he seems to me to be a generous and friendly elder. Although I am sure that many of his actions in contact with me have political considerations behind him, he expressed The temperament that came out is still beyond doubt.

"In addition, he doesn't have the feeling of an 'ancient man' at all, and he doesn't have that sense of barriers across the ages, but considering that it has been the fifth year since his resurrection, it is understandable—except for bringing ancient wisdom and experience. Besides, he's a thoroughly modern man."

Rosetta seemed to show a slight smile: "It seems that you have a good impression of him."

"As you once said, he has a temperament similar to yours."

"Then about the inspection of the foreign student program..." Rosetta said again, "What do you think now?"

"This matter itself must be promoted. We must learn more about the cutting-edge magic technology, and we must expand the economic and technological circulation to Cecil." Matilda is obviously thinking about related things these days, and she replied unequivocally. Hesitation, "But on the other hand... just like you feared, we will inevitably face the situation where the overseas students sent abroad will be shaken by assimilation."

"Oh?"

"Cecil's imperial capital is a bustling and fascinating city, and there are strange and new things. There are rich and unimaginable entertainment activities here, instead of only monotonous and boring hunting and dance parties. They have more newspapers and Magazine, there is a wonderful magical pastime called 'Magic Web Radio', and it is said that there is also a fascinating 'Magic Shadow Drama'. Gawain Cecil himself is a good hand at controlling people's hearts. We have received reports about 'Lu Now, I have seen with my own eyes the collection of books and newspapers that recorded the changes in the situation in Luan City at that time-the control of the psychology of ordinary civilians and the prediction of group behavior by that thing are simply chilling, and even more grasping It revealed the psychological weaknesses of the upper-class nobles and priests, as well as all the characteristics of words and deeds that can carry out negative publicity...

"These methods may not be directly used on foreign students who represent friendly exchanges, but the tricks behind them... are worthy of vigilance.

"I have reason to believe that the international students we send to Cecil will inevitably be affected, and there is a high probability that it is not a direct lobbying, but a subtle way of life.

"The lifestyle and cultural atmosphere of Cecil City are too... irresistible to young people."

Rosetta just listened to Matilda's words quietly, the expression on her face remained unchanged, as if she had expected all this.

It wasn't until Matilda finished speaking that the ruler of Typhon asked unhurriedly, "How much can you come back?"

"...I don't expect too much from the noble children in the past two years," Matilda said bluntly, "Thirty percent, an optimistic estimate."

Rosetta nodded and said calmly, "Okay, quite a few."

The father and daughter fell silent for a while, and both of them fell into the same silence.

After a brief silence, Rosetta said suddenly: "Recently, the power of the curse has been rising, and you must have felt it."

Matilda nodded: "Yes, this is my second 'dream' after arriving at Cecil."

"Some things may happen in the real world, which are related to the root of the curse. You should pay more attention to the abnormal changes around you recently, and also pay attention to whether there are abnormal things in every normal dream," Rosetta still had a straight face, But he still ordered like an ordinary father, "If you encounter difficult troubles... pray to the God of War.

"It is better to bow to a righteous god who still maintains reason than to bow to a mad god."

Matilda glanced complicatedly at her father, who was still maintaining a heroic and majestic aura, but had already begun to decline inside. After a long silence, she slowly lowered her head: "Yes, I will remember your entrustment, Royal father."

……

The visitors from Typhon received decent and thoughtful reception in Cecil City, and all the scheduled visits and negotiations were proceeding in an orderly manner.

Gao Wen and Matilda completed the initial contact and negotiation work, and then the main affairs were transferred to the government affairs office and other diplomatic personnel of the mission.

Matilda and her entourage had their own arrangements, and as for Gawain... he was finally able to temporarily focus on the more difficult matters at hand.

The scheduled date for the operation of the Order of the Eternal Sleepers has arrived.

In Gawain's dormitory, Hetty, Rebecca, Kamel and others were specially summoned to prepare for the next thing.

"Auxiliary runes are ready," Kamel floated in front of Gawain, on the wall and ground behind him, the glistening runes were surging as if breathing, "These runes will provide you with certain Mental protection and additional links to the real world - although you may not need the former, the latter will ensure that you have a sharper perception of the real world in case of 'over-immersion'. This is from the immersion chamber The technical achievements of the second phase of the project."

Gawain nodded, and looked at Hetty who was standing beside him: "I may act for a longer time this time - although the Eternal Sleeper will slightly speed up the time of No. [-] sandbox after the operation starts, so that we can There is a relatively longer time to act there, but considering safety factors, the time acceleration there is limited, and the possibility that I need to 'sleep' for two or three days in the real world cannot be ruled out—the Government Affairs Office and the Typhon Envoy I will leave the work of connecting the regiments to you."

"Please rest assured," Hetty nodded vigorously, "I will not let you down..."

As he said that, the eldest princess of the empire, who had followed Gao Wen from the very beginning and experienced all kinds of tests of the Cecil Empire from scratch, couldn't help showing a hint of concern: "You must also pay attention to safety, you must What we are facing, after all, is..."

Hetty opened her mouth a few times, but she still didn't say any dissuading words—her reason told her that it was neither mature nor realistic.

But rationality could not dispel her worries. Looking at the "ancestor" who was about to go to a special battlefield to face unimaginable challenges alone, her uneasiness showed no signs of weakening.

It's not that she has no confidence in her ancestors, but that the enemy she has to face this time is really beyond the norm: a monster in a nightmare, how does the ancestors plan to deal with it?And once something happened to the ancestor... all this waste of time... what should I do?

Gawain knew Hetty's worry, he smiled: "Don't worry, I have my own measure.

"I know it's dangerous, but just like when you and Rebecca chose to stay in the castle to fight against those mutants, there are some things...someone has to do it."

As he spoke, he looked behind Heidi, and at a certain "intercontinental friend" who was holding his tail in a daze.

"Tyl."

Tyre suddenly reacted from his mind: "Ah? Oh, here it is."

"This time, I can't be sure where your 'biscuit' will come out," Gao Wen said, "Although it is confirmed that No. [-] sandbox is in the main control center of the real world, the upper-level narrator is from a dream. When it enters the real world, it is very likely to jump along the dream and transfer to any place where humans gather and dream, which may cause you a lot of trouble."

"Don't worry, I've already told the queen about this, and my sisters will be ready," Till immediately shook the tip of his tail, "It means changing from a fixed-point meal to a need to actively forage for food, no trouble No trouble."

Amber, who was standing beside her, couldn't help but widen her eyes: "Is that how 'foraging' is used?"

On the other side, no matter how serious the potential crisis is, Gao Wen couldn't help laughing when he heard the disorganized speech of a certain deep-sea salted fish channel: "It's best if you think so. Speaking of it, The 'Upper Storyteller' this time may be very different from the 'biscuits' you have come into contact with before, it can be regarded as 'spiritual food'..."

Amber stared at Gao Wen again: "Is this the use of 'spiritual food'?!"

Till waved his hand, rolled his tail slowly, and quietly coiled himself into an elegant lump in a corner of the room, and said lazily: "Whether it's 'spiritual food' or not, it's not really useful for us sea monsters. It’s best to be out there, that means things are not out of control, that means a lot of people survive, doesn’t it?”

Gao Wen quietly glanced at the Kraken who was already sitting in the corner and even started to doze off, then looked away, as if responding to the other party, and also as if saying to himself: "This is exactly my purpose."

Afterwards, he came to the large bed, ready to establish a connection with the spiritual network.