Under the boundless blue sky, the mirror-like shallow water stretched as far as the eye could see. In this unbelievably vast world, anyone who stood in it would inevitably feel a growing sense of insignificance.
Rosetta could not help but look around the place again. Then she withdrew her gaze and said with a hint of emotion, "The believers of Eternal Rest once described the power of the 'extraterritorial wanderers' … Someone mentioned that the chosen one was qualified to meet the extraterritorial wanderers in a special space, but none of them had really seen this place. Is this the place they were talking about?"
"Something like that. But those believers have a lot of misunderstandings about me." Gwen smiled. "They seem to have exaggerated my … danger, and since they have chosen to side with Typhon, they will not use good words to describe me, the 'enemy'."
Rosetta looked at Gawain solemnly. Even though he was in a strange space, and even though he did not seem to have the initiative to speak of, he was still very calm here, and did not feel that he had no control at all. "I'm very curious — you, Gawain Cecil, or an extraterritorial wanderer … in this world, are you a human, or a wandering, god-like existence?"
Gwen spread his hands. "I have just defeated a god with you. I thought we had the most basic trust between us."
Rosetta was unmoved. Even his expression did not change. He just continued to look at Gwen.
"Well, you can think of me as a traveler, a 'human' who is similar to you, but with some special experiences and abilities." Gawain sighed helplessly and said in a more casual manner, "This way of understanding is more helpful for us to build a friendly and trusting relationship. Don't think of me as an 'extraterrestrial wanderer.' Most of the time, this name is only used to intimidate those dark believers."
Rosetta frowned. His slightly gloomy face had a thoughtful expression. After a few seconds, he broke the silence. "So, what do you want to talk to me about by bringing me to this' place '?"
"Just a little contact. You know, since the outbreak of this' war ', the communication between Typhon and Cecil has been in a semi-stagnant state. This is very dangerous. Now that the biggest threat is finally gone, I think we need to make contact as soon as possible. This will help to avoid any … chaos in the highly tense situation between the two countries," Gwen said seriously. "After all, both our armies are now in a very chaotic post-war scorched earth."
Gwen's tone was very friendly and even had a sense of relaxation. However, Rosetta could hear a lot of deep meaning in these calm words. He looked deeply at Gwen before slowly saying, "This fire is burning hot enough. You and I don't want it to continue to burn."
"It seems that we have reached a consensus on the general direction." Gwen looked into Rosetta's eyes. "Then we have a basis to return to the negotiation table. As for how to let this fire slowly extinguish, we will have time to talk about it later."
Rosetta's expression did not change, but he could not help but breathe a sigh of relief in his heart. He knew that one of the worst-case scenarios of his many post-war scenarios would not happen. Although it may not be cheap, it was better than a war that would spread to Oldenheim. After he relaxed a little, he could not help but look at Gwen again and said very bluntly, "To be honest, I thought you would not stop. For Cecil, this is a rare opportunity. Typhon is so weak now, and Oldenheim is almost in front of you."
Rosetta's straightforwardness surprised Gwen. He looked at the ruler of Typhon in surprise and raised his eyebrows. "Then guess, why don't I do it?"
Rosetta was silent for a moment before he said in a deep voice, "You can't swallow the entire Typhon. This vast and densely populated land will only make Cecil fall into a quagmire after the war. Other than that, I can't think of a better reason. "
Gwen looked deeply at Rosetta. He had to admit that Rosetta was at least half right.
He did want to let the fire continue to burn, and even take the opportunity to directly invade Oldenheim and merge the two human empires into one. It seemed very attractive and even exciting. Unfortunately, the logic of the real world was not so simple.
As Rosetta said, Cecil could not swallow the entire Typhon, not even one-third of it. Typhon was not the wild and backward southern border, nor was it the white paper of Ansu after the civil war. It did not have 'their own people' like Victoria and Bodwin who were willing to bring an entire noble system to join them. It was a modern empire that had entered a period of great industrial development. The system of officials was clear and strict, and the populace was beginning to be civilized. The vast land had nearly a hundred million people, a stable ruling order, an independent and complete cultural system, and countless people and officials who were loyal to the Augustus royal family. It was a concept completely different from the Ansu of the past.
The above points did not change much even after the war.
On the other hand, Gwen was also very clear about Cecil's own situation. Under the strong surface brought about by advanced technology and transnational trade, what was hidden was still a country that had just gotten rid of the shadow of civil war. Many areas were still trying their best to recover and rebuild. The wounds caused by the civil war and the divine calamity of the previous dynasty had just healed, and the shortage of officials and staff in the government offices across the country had barely been filled. The clean-up and elimination of the old nobles and civil war speculators had not ended. The food crisis had just passed, and the food reserves in the national treasury … was not even enough to sustain the war until this autumn.
If they really wanted to fight, with the current situation in Typhon, the Cecil Army might really be able to reach Oldenheim, but it would only be a quagmire that would drag Cecil into. The people of Typhon would not be defeated so easily like the nobles of the southern border and the Saint Plains. The continuous small-scale conflicts would probably last until next year or even the year after. A new ruling order could not be established, and the huge increase in population would far exceed the capacity of Cecil's government office. The long period of not being able to make ends meet would wear down Cecil's weak reserves, and the resulting supply shortage and deterioration of social security would snowball out of control.
In the dozens of deductions made by the Archon Group, Neural Network, Naretil, and many other parties, the final conclusion was almost the same: Typhon could not be completely occupied, nor could it be completely assimilated. Cecil would eventually withdraw from this quagmire. Other than a few years of economic stagnation or even regression, the only gain for the two countries was a hatred that would last for about two to three generations, and the collapse of the prestige of the highest government office.
If this war could be delayed for a few more years, perhaps the situation would be different. However, there were not so many 'ifs' in the real world.
But this was only half of the reason why Gwen chose to stop this' fire 'from continuing to burn.
"Have you ever thought that even if I can't swallow the whole of Typhon, I still have many other options?" He looked up and looked into Rosetta's eyes. "For example, I can dismember your empire, or support a puppet regime in Oldenheim. I can also block and divide the economic cycle of Typhon. This is far easier than occupying a country …"
He did not specifically explain what he would do, but just mentioned one general concept after another. While Rosetta was deep in thought, Bertilla, who had been silent since the beginning, suddenly could not help but say, "There are so many ways to do it?! I didn't think of it … "
Rosetta looked at Bertilla subconsciously with a strange expression on his face. "You are, after all, one of the ancestors of the Augustus family …"
Bertilla's expression was very serious. She sighed as if she had seen through everything. "That's all in the past."
Rosetta forced himself to turn his eyes from Bertilla back to Gwen. He looked into Gwen's eyes and said, "I don't think you mentioned this to threaten or warn me. This is too superficial for you."
"Yes, I just want to say one thing — the future can be very bad, but we don't want to go in that direction." Gwen nodded. "The methods I just mentioned, from Cecil's point of view, can bring great benefits, but the price is the overall loss of the entire human race. Cecil and Typhon will only be left with a long-term conflict and conflict, and many generations will have to live in suspicion and discrimination, and the damage caused by this relationship may never be repaired. The overall development of the mortals will be slowed down because one of the countries with the most potential will have its wings clipped, and the other countries … may be in danger …"
"There's another very important point." Rosetta suddenly spoke, interrupting Gwen. "The kind of order you have been actively promoting and trying to achieve — the community of mortals' destiny — will be ruined by Cecil's actions in reality."
Gwen was stunned for a moment, and then slowly smiled. It was no longer a polite smile, but a kind of joy from the bottom of his heart.
"Yes, if I do that, I'm afraid no one in the world will believe in the concept of 'the fate of mortals' as a whole, '" he said with a smile. "What about you? Do you agree with my idea? "
"… It seems that you really want to create such an order," Rosetta was silent for a moment, and said in a serious tone, "an order that treats all humans as a whole …"
"First of all, not just all humans, but all mortals, including every race on the Lolun Continent, and even those intelligent creatures outside the continent," Gwen corrected with a serious expression. "Second, it's not that I want to create this order, but it's a natural fact, a natural law of the world."
As he spoke slowly, a breeze suddenly blew between the vast expanse of water and the sky. The wind ruffled the surface of the water, and under the slightly swaying water surface, images suddenly emerged.
It was the battlefield overlooking the battlefield from the sky. It was the devastated Winterfort Defense Line after the war. A shocking crack covered by lava and black crystal-like scorched earth spread all the way from the plain to the main peak of Winterfort. Smoke rose everywhere on the vast land, and further away in the image were cities and villages, as well as quiet woodlands and snow-covered farmlands in the winter …
The image kept zooming out until it was impossible to distinguish the specific details of the country. It kept zooming out until it finally stopped at a view of the vast land shrouded in clouds.
Rosetta stood up and subconsciously looked at the land reflected in the water under his feet. He instinctively thought that the view should be wider, but it stopped at this distance, and he could only see half of the wasteland of Gondor.
"This is the land we live in. When you look at it from the sky, you will find that all the cities and villages have disappeared, and the borders between the countries are impossible to talk about." Gwen's voice came from the side, waking Rosetta from his thoughts. "Of course, we still need the concept of a country, the concept of an individual, but on this basis, all of us … are just residents of this land.
"We face a common world, all the grace and all the challenges of this world, we face the gods, and we also face the demonic tide that will come back at any time, as well as those unknown threats. If I said this before today, you may feel that it is unreal, but today … the shockwave of the disintegration of the God of War had just swept across the roof of Winterfort.
"And you should know that what we face … is not just the God of War.
"We still have many gods. Many gods who once protected us and still continue to protect us. They cover the whole world. Not only do they affect the human countries, but they also affect the elves, dwarves, fairies, orcs …
"We have succeeded in defeating a god today, but you have seen the price with your own eyes. How many countries in the world can do the same thing as Typhon and Cecil? This … you should know very well.
"That is why I said that all mortals are a community of fate in the face of the 'world crisis' of the gods and the demonic tide. This is not my decision, but the world's decision. It is part of the natural law of the world."
Gwen stopped, and the breeze in this space gradually stopped as well. The reflection under the water disappeared little by little and returned to the endless blue. Rosetta finally let out a soft sigh. He glanced at Gwen. "When I think of your identity as an 'extraterrestrial wanderer', I feel even weirder now … You are even more concerned about this world than the people of this world."
"That's why I said not to think about the 'extraterrestrial wanderer' for now. I am not staying in this world because I find it interesting." Gwen smiled and shook his head. "Besides, what I said just now was not to convince you, nor to show you my 'concern' for this world. Like I said at the beginning, this is just a 'contact'. We need such a private contact, not at the negotiating table, not in a formal setting, but just a 'chat' that does not have to be made public. I am here to tell you some of my thoughts. As for how much you can understand, or how much you are willing to understand … that is your business. "
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