A civil war, a real civil war.
Unlike the armed conflict between the nobles in the region, the limited war between the lords to redivide the land, and even the military operation that Gwen was preparing to regain control of the southern border, Ansu was about to face a real civil war.
The redivided royal family and the border dukes would be the promoters, leaders, and participants of this war.
And behind all of this was the All Things End Society, an evil cult that hid behind the veil of darkness and was full of mysteries.
Their power had expanded to such an extent!
Gwen was almost stunned. He looked at Clement with a trace of astonishment. Although this high-ranking cult member had become a puppet under the control of Tyre's tentacles, Gwen still had to look at the person who had just ignited the fuse of the civil war in a new light. "Why did you start this civil war?"
Clement's face showed a trace of struggle, as if his remaining will was resisting answering this key question. But after a moment, he still spoke in a low and muddled voice. "What we want is a war … any kind of war …"
"You want war?" Gwen's brows knitted tightly. "What do you want war for?"
Clement mumbled vaguely. Tyre snorted softly. A faint halo immediately floated on the surface of the tentacles, and all of Clement's resistance was disintegrated. "War … brings sufficient … raw materials …"
Gwen did not give up. "Raw materials? Raw materials for what? "
Clement groaned in pain. Tyre, on the other hand, was a little puzzled.
"There's a very strong Mind Prohibition … It's even stronger than my Sound of the Deep Sea." Miss Siren showed a helpless look. "This prohibition erased part of his memory just now … I didn't even have time to see how it worked."
"There is such a thing?" Gawain was rather surprised. He did not know that the cultists had left such a 'safety lock' in the head of a senior-rank member. Then, he asked Clement indirectly in a few different ways, hoping to get some remaining clues. But the result was as he expected — he got nothing.
He could only confirm the following facts:
Prince Edmund was involved in patricide and had some sort of vigilant and subtle 'cooperation' with the Endgame. Prince Edmund's goal was to end the Second Dynasty's' puppet royalty 'status and take complete control of the country. On this basis, he probably had many follow-up plans. The Church of the Endgame needed war to provide them with some sort of' raw material '. Whether it was the civil war in Ansu or the war between Ansu and Typhon, they all met their requirements. On Typhon's side, there was a hidden force of the Endgame. What about Rosetta? Emperor Augustus was very likely to be a collaborator of All Things End …
That was all the information he could get from Clement.
After the interrogation, Gwen glanced at Amber who was standing beside him and reminded her, "Don't you have a question too? Go ahead and ask. "
Amber glanced at Gwen and then at Clement. She gritted her teeth and took out something from her bosom.
She handed the ring to Clement and said, "I heard it. Do you know where this ring came from?"
Clement's cloudy eyes took a long time to focus on Amber's hand. He muttered in a low voice, "The Shadow Royal Ring … An ancient ring …"
"Do you know why this ring is in the hands of the Ansu King?" Amber stared into Clement's eyes. It was the first time Gwen saw such a serious, serious, expectant, and complicated expression on her face.
Where did this ring come from? It seemed to have a very important meaning to Amber.
Gwen couldn't help but be curious about it.
Clement quickly replied, "The Shadow Royal Ring … belonged to Francis a long time ago, right?" Moen's possession … I don't know who it belonged to before it fell into the hands of Francis II … I only know that it came from the ancient Kingdom of Gondor … "
"You're saying that it's an inheritance of the ancient Kingdom of Gondor?" Amber stared, "What else? Don't tell me no one knows the origin of this ring? "
Amber's question was obviously too complicated. Clement kept muttering in a low voice for a long time before he said something meaningful, "It … has something to do with the Shadow Realm … can communicate with the creatures in the shadows …"
"… It's the same as not saying anything!" Amber couldn't hide the depression on her face. Even her usually alert ears were drooping a little.
Gwen had never seen this carefree half-elf in such a depressed state. He couldn't help but be curious, "Is this ring very important to you?"
"Yes." Amber nodded and took out another ring from his pocket. The appearance of the ring was exactly the same as the 'Shadow Royal Ring', but it was clearly damaged. The intricate mageweath inside the ring had lost its effect. Gawain could only sense that it was a metal ring without any magical waves. "This is the other one … When I was very young, my adoptive father told me that this ring was the only thing that could possibly be related to my identity when he picked me up. It wasn't broken at first. It only became like this when I awakened my Shadow Talent … "
"Your background …" Gwen finally understood why Amber showed such an expression just now. "According to what you said just now, you got the Shadow Royal Ring from Francis II?"
"That's right." Hu Po nodded. "It was because he used the Shadow King Ring to summon a spatial door that I was able to run from here to the border … I originally thought that I had finally found a clue about my parents, but I didn't expect that it was just a ring."
At this time, Tyre, who had been silent, suddenly said, "Let me interrupt. This Clement said that the Shadow Royal Ring has always been in the hands of the old king. Amber, are you the illegitimate daughter of the king?"
It wasn't just Tyre who thought so. In fact, Gwen also had this idea after knowing the relationship between Amber and the Shadow Royal Ring. But before he could say anything, Solderlin, who was listening not far away, shook his head and said, "Impossible. Look at Amber's ears."
Gwen looked at Amber with a puzzled expression and asked, "Ears?"
"The edges are here, upturned." Amber pointed to her long pointed Elven ears. "This is a paternal trait. It means that my father is an Elf. If it's a maternal trait, the edges of a half-elf's ears will be flatter and extend further back. "
"So there's such a difference …" It was the first time Gwen learned about this kind of little knowledge. Even the Gwen of the past? Cecil was only more knowledgeable in the human realm. He wasn't clear about this aspect. "So Amber, your father must be an Elf … According to the lifespan of an Elf, there's a high chance that he's still alive."
"I think so too. Although I don't know what race my mother is, I believe that my father must still be alive." Amber raised her head and said firmly, "Since the Shadow Royal Ring is a treasure of the Ancient Kingdom of Gondor, my father must be a very powerful Elf, right? And he left me another ring … This must be for the chance to reunite in the future! "
Gwen looked at Amber, who had a complicated expression on her face, and smiled. "Of course, this is the most logical inference."
"But after so many years … I only found one ring … and it was from a dead person … The king's treasure, who should I ask about its origin?"
Gwen was silent for a few seconds, then slowly raised his head and said softly, "Take down the Captical, and you'll definitely find someone to ask about it."
"Oh …" Amber murmured, but after half a second, she reacted and exclaimed, "What?!"
"The war has begun." Gwen sighed softly. "Whether we like it or not, it has already begun."
The grotto of the Shadow Experimental Field quieted down. Only Clement's muffled murmurs and Tyre's tentacles stirring the pool occasionally broke the silence. After a long time, Solderlin looked into Gwen's eyes and said, "There's a bigger cloud behind this war than the war itself. The cultists of the Order of All Things End are looking forward to this civil war. You know that."
"Of course I know." Gwen nodded slightly. "But this war is inevitable. The hidden danger of the Second Dynasty has been buried since the day the Duke of the Northern Region supported an illegitimate son to the throne. The peace of the kingdom for so many years has been maintained by the constant compromises of the Moen royal family and the checks and balances of several dukes. In other words, as long as the members of the royal family do not intend to compromise, and the grand dukes do not intend to maintain the balance, then this peace will immediately lose its foundation. This force that has been accumulating for hundreds of years is extremely powerful. Neither you nor I can stop it. "
Solderlin sighed and could only admit that what Gwen said was true.
Gwen did not continue to speak. Instead, he silently pondered over what Clement said.
The Order of All Things End was looking forward to this war because this war would provide them with precious' raw materials' for one of their 'undertakings'.
Gwen did not manage to find out what that 'undertaking' was, but through indirect questioning and his investigation of the Order of All Things End, plus his understanding of the truth of the fall of the gods and the change of Druil's faith, he could roughly infer what the cultists wanted to do and what the 'raw materials' they needed might be.
After that, Gwen asked Clement a lot of questions. In the process, he confirmed that Clement was a high-ranking bishop in the Order of All Things End. Other than that, he also collected a lot of information about the Order of All Things End.
The interrogation lasted for almost the entire night.
In the end, Tyre ended his' control 'on Clement.
As the tentacles left the body of the cultist, his flesh and blood began to collapse and decompose uncontrollably. He collapsed like a melting wax figure. In the end, only a pile of clothes covered in sticky substances and a few fragile, porous bones were left on the spot.
The cultist who killed Francis II and ignited the first fire of the civil war in Ansu died a horrible death.
"It's really disgusting." Tyre looked down at the edge of the pool and could not help but stick out his tongue. "Just like the Deep Sea Mud Monster …"
"You should retract your tentacles first." Gwen frowned at the siren. "To be honest, your appearance is no less shocking to normal people than the Deep Sea Mud Monster."
(Author's Note: I want to announce something on my birthday. Probably a lot of people already know … My wife is pregnant! It's been three months! She's going to have small eyeballs next year!
But my wife's reaction to the pregnancy is very serious. Her body is very weak now. I have to take care of the family, so my energy might not be able to keep up. So, I'm adjusting my work schedule and writing habits. I should be able to ensure that my updates will not be interrupted. But there's a change from double updates to single updates. I hope everyone can understand … Now I'm the only one taking care of the family.
Finally, wish me a happy birthday =. = Hope my wife's body gets better soon.)
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