Now that everything was out in the open, many things could be discussed openly.
Gwen believed that Selena Geerfen should have been mentally prepared to be exposed when he, an "extraterrestrial wanderer," appeared in the mental network openly.
After all, judging from the current situation, the mental network was almost transparent to an "extraterrestrial wanderer."
"What's the relationship between you and Patty?"
Hearing Gwen's words, Selena did not look surprised. After a moment of silence, she said with some emotion and relief, "You finally asked about this …"
Then, without waiting for Gwen to speak, she took the initiative to ask, "Do you care about Patty very much?"
"Why? Is it strange for an 'extraterrestrial wanderer' to care about a human girl?" Gwen asked with a smile, "Do I have to be as indescribable as you think, lacking the feelings and morals that mortals should have before I can be considered a qualified 'extraterrestrial wanderer'?"
Selena was stunned, and the corners of her mouth seemed to curl up a little. "Inherent impressions are not so easy to break. I hope you can understand this.
"As for Patty … Don't worry. I'm just 'with' her. I have never hurt her, and I don't intend to hurt her."
Gwen's eyes did not move away from Selena. "Why did you choose Patty?"
Selena's voice was very soft. "As a 'spirit' who has lost her body, my soul is splitting every moment. I need a real mind as my own 'mind calibration point.' I rely on continuous self-calibration to repair my soul. Only in this way can I prevent myself from sliding into an undead who loses her mind step by step.
"Such a mind calibration point is not easy to find. It requires a congenital match between the soul and the acquired conditions."
Gwen's brows did not relax much. "So, you found Patty because she happened to be a 'match' with you?"
Selena shook her head after a brief silence. "No, we didn't actually find Patty … Although she was also one of the 'candidates' who met the conditions, we originally wanted to find the daughter of another rich businessman in the south at that time."
"Then why did you choose Patty?" Gwen was puzzled. "Judging from her physical condition, Patty was obviously not the best choice at that time … Did something happen to your original target?"
Under the lights of the night, Selena's voice sounded softly, "… because she wants to live."
Gwen looked at Selena in surprise.
"When I was wandering in the dark dreams of the Southern Territory, Patty's mind attracted me like a firefly in the dark. A dying soul exuded a will to live that surprised me. When I tried to talk to this weak mind, the first word she said to me was' hello '. She was still very polite after what she had gone through.
"Indeed, as you said, Patty was not a suitable choice. She was even on the verge of death at that time. Perhaps soon after I chose her, I would have to choose the next mental calibration point. But I don't know if you still remember this saying: those who save themselves should always be helped."
"It is one of the rules of the Church of Dreams and one of the psychological rescue rules that have been passed down since the Gondor era." Gwen nodded. "I just didn't expect you to still abide by it."
"… For 700 years, I have violated it many times," Selena said with a self-deprecating smile. "But occasionally, I still want to abide by it, just as a reminiscence of the past."
"So, Patty is your 'occasionally,'" Gawain said as he suddenly remembered some of the situations mentioned by Hu Po when he reported to him about the investigation progress of Gilan Hill. He could not help but rub his chin with his fingers, and a thoughtful look appeared on his face. "According to the description of those who had taken care of Patty, Patty had 'miraculously' survived the most dangerous stage. Her survival in the end was incredible in the eyes of the pharmacists and other professionals. You have something to do with this, right?"
"I didn't do anything," Selena said with a faint smile. "I just switched with her when she was in the most pain.
"The crown has no effect of blocking pain and perception at all. In addition to being a medium for ordinary people to enter the dream world, its only function is to switch me with Patty when she wants to sleep. Even she doesn't know this.
"Of course, now she no longer uses the crown, and she no longer needs it. I know you gave her a magic device to help her sleep. For Patty now, that thing is enough. "
Gwen did not hide his surprise, nor did he hide his doubts. "So … when Patty falls asleep, it is actually you who controls her body. Then who is the one who accompanies Patty in the mental network?"
"It is also me, just a split avatar. But occasionally, it is Venti, Rachel, or Erilia."
"… What you did for Patty surprised me."
"It is nothing to me. I have experienced death once, and it was much more painful than Patty," Selena said, shaking her head. "And I am also using Patty to calibrate my mind, using her as a kind of vessel. This is a fair deal."
Selena's voice trailed off, but there was more she did not say.
She knew very well that what she had done to Patty … was probably just some kind of self-touching and self-consolation. It had nothing to do with nobility or even conscience. It was just to make her feel more at ease when she faced those Brain Servants.
Gwen just looked quietly into Selena's eyes. In some kind of tacit understanding, neither of them pointed it out.
"Now Patty no longer uses your crown and can no longer access the mental network," Gwen broke the silence. "But obviously, you still have the ability to roam in the mental world without using a medium. Will you still see Patty?"
"Now the mental network is very unsafe. It is good to keep Patty away," Selena said. "As for me … although I am still with her now, I don't plan to appear again. Let her treat it as a childhood dream, just like the 'green elf friend' of every child when they were young."
The 'green elf friend' was a saying that had been circulating in many parts of the northern part of the continent for a long time. People believed that there were spirits in the huge seeds of the giant tree that fell in spring. These 'spirits' could calm frightened children and help them sleep. Young parents usually collected the fallen giant tree seeds in spring and carved them into puppets for their children as playmates. In such a custom, many stories with the 'green elf friend' as the core were derived. There was even a saying that 'every child will have a green elf friend in childhood' that was widely spread in the northern part of the continent.
As for the evidence behind these legends, it was confirmed after the First Druid Research Center of the Empire successfully isolated a harmless calming component from the Giant Wood Seed.
Some slightly divergent thoughts flashed through Gwen's mind. He could not help but shake his head with a smile. "Patty has long passed the age of believing in the 'green elf friend.' You choose to fade from her sight because you don't want to disturb her future life? "
"She is recovering and will live a more normal life in the future. And in a normal life, there is no need for a ghost from the dark cult to stand beside her all the time."
"… I don't intend to interfere with your decision, but I just want to remind you that you have no right to decide what a normal life is for Patty," Gwen said slowly. "Cecil is a more open and inclusive society. Even a plant can become a legal citizen of the empire. You should learn to adapt to all this."
"… I will remember your reminder and consider it seriously."
"I hope so," Gawain said. Then, he glanced at Selena, who was about to leave. "By the way, before you leave, I have something for you. It may be of some help to those who have been corrupted by the Narrators from above."
Selena's interest was immediately piqued. "What is it?"
"Some runes." Gwen smiled and sketched a few symbols in the air. "A gift from the deep sea …"
…
A few minutes later.
The invisible spiritual connection gradually faded away. Selena Geerfen, holding a lantern, quietly disappeared into the air like a waking dream.
Gwen did not look back. He just looked at the city under the lights and starlight as well as the Dark Mountain Range in the distance that only showed a hazy outline in the night.
Everything seemed to be very calm, but under the calm that the world knew, dangers and turbulence were constantly surging up without end.
Before this, it was impossible for Rosetta Augustus to be unaware of the existence of the Order of the Eternal Rest within her own empire. But for a long time, her main focus was obviously not on this dark cult.
But that was in the past. If he knew that the shadow of the extraterrestrial wanderers had appeared in this dark cult, if he knew that the ruler of the neighboring country had reached into the hinterland of his empire …
Gwen could not help but look forward to Rosetta Augustus' reaction.
It was foreseeable that after the Sandbox 1 incident, Typhon would usher in turmoil. Large-scale eradication of the cult and internal investigation were inevitable.
Even if the Eternal Sleepers were prepared, their forces in Typhon would be severely damaged and they would have to secretly move to Cecil.
As for Gwen himself, he did not care about what would happen after the information of the extraterrestrial wanderers and the Cult of Eternal Sleep was exposed to Rosetta. First of all, he and the Cult of Eternal Sleep were already prepared. The transfer of core personnel and information would begin soon. Secondly …
From the beginning, the Cecil Empire's infiltration of Typhon was not focused on the cult forces — culture, technology, economy, these things on the surface were the key.
From the beginning, Rosetta must have thought that Cecil would use some method to infiltrate Typhon, and this kind of infiltration was a normal "link" in the process of "communication" between the two empires. In this case, Gwen was happy to have something to attract Rosetta Augustus' attention and let him focus on dealing with the Eternal Sleepers in his territory. Let him not care about the Phantom Theater, the Cecil merchants, and the "civilian technology companies" …
During the whole process, the only thing to pay attention to was to let Daniel stay hidden and pay attention to his own safety. After all, he was the only key person who crossed the "open line" and the "hidden line" at the same time. He was not only a high-level technical spy planted in Typhon, but also an important node of the Eternal Sleep Congregation.
So for the next period of time, Gwen would let Daniel stay away from the Eternal Sleep Congregation's affairs as much as possible to avoid exposing himself.
Anyway, he, as an "extraterrestrial wanderer", had openly participated in the Eternal Sleepers' bishops' meeting. There were some things that he could do himself without Daniel's frequent transfer.
…
At midnight, the bright stars shone in the sky of Oldenheim, but there was a layer of hazy fog that blocked the cold brilliance from the universe. Under the layers of thick fog, the imperial capital, which was named "Millennium City" despite its young age, was sleeping in the darkness. Dark spires, towering walls, and solemn towers were arranged in rows in the fog as if reflecting the orderly and hierarchical rules of the empire.
In this foggy imperial capital, only the Obsidian Palace and a few towering towers could break through the thick fog and bathe in the clear starlight.
Rosetta Augustus woke up from his dream and saw the cold light shining through the glass window into the room dyed with a layer of dusk-like color.
He quickly got rid of the grogginess brought about by sleep and completely woke up.
After putting on a coat, the middle-aged ruler of the empire came to the window with a cold and indifferent expression and looked out.
The light of dusk shrouded everything, and the familiar scenery of Oldenheim was no longer outside the window.
The streets and houses of another city were bathed in the setting sun, and the faint golden light spread from the distance to the outer wall of the palace, immersing everything in this cursed dream.
It seemed to be happening more and more frequently …
Rosetta Augustus frowned slightly, but the indifferent expression on his face did not change much. He just took half a step back from the window, then turned to the door, pushed the door open, and walked out of the room.
According to the rumors circulating within the family, choosing to protect oneself in this cursed dream and locking oneself in a safe room was the first step to complete failure and being swallowed by madness.
Rosetta did not know whether this statement was right or wrong. He only knew that from the first time he fell into this dream, there was only one way to deal with it.
Face it.
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