Gwen's interest was piqued by the details of Modiel Werde's notes.
No matter how he looked at it, the food and drinking water mentioned by the adventurer from six hundred years ago were like … canned and bottled water.
This inconspicuous little detail gave Gwen extra thought. Although he had realized that the Giant Dragon was an intelligent race with a longer history than humans, and therefore might have a more powerful civilization than all the countries on the continent, it was not until this time that he began to seriously think about the height of a civilization that could ignore the Demonic Tide and continue to develop.
Canned and bottled water were inconspicuous. At this moment, Cecil could easily produce them (in fact, similar products had already appeared). But the canned food that Melita brought to Modiel was a symbol, a symbol that could make Gwen ponder deeply. His thoughts could not help but expand in this direction, and even gradually extended to the strange direction of "Do the Dragons eat in human form or dragon form?" and "Is there a huge difference in the appetite of the two forms? How does the human form eat while maintaining the huge consumption of the dragon form?" But soon, his scattered thoughts gathered together and pointed to a question he had always ignored.
The Dragons were a race that was not affected by the Demonic Tide and obviously had the same curiosity as humans … They had developed for so many years, but why had they not entered the space age?
Did they not yearn for the stars? Or was it that the Dragons were highly dependent on the planetary environment and encountered a bottleneck in the process of leaving the planet? Or was it simply that the technology tree was not right, so they had not broken through the atmosphere for countless years?
Vaguely, Gwen felt that this was a very critical question, but no one here could answer his question.
"Next time, I'll ask Melita …" After a moment of thought, he whispered to himself, "This time, her name actually appeared in this travelogue … I should really ask her about it."
As he spoke, his gaze returned to Modiel Werde's notes.
"… I explored most of the places on this Steel Island in the next few days — I mean the places that can be entered. I didn't know how many years this ruin had been abandoned, but there was a lonely atmosphere everywhere. However, these ancient buildings were unusually sturdy. Even after so many years of wind and rain, they were still indestructible. Apart from the unimportant structures, the pillars, foundations, and roofs were stronger than any man-made material I had ever seen. They also had excellent magic resistance …
"… X month X day, when the Giant Dragon lady agreed to return, the uneasy premonition became a reality — she did not come.
"X month X day, Melita still did not appear after waiting for an extra day … I could not help but think of her abnormal behavior before she left, her terrible mental state … It seems that she has really forgotten, and even directly blocked the memories related to me from her mind.... This is unbelievable, but the only possible explanation. I can't help but be very curious about what happened to the Giant Dragon lady that led to such an unsettling result.
"I don't know any other Giant Dragon, so I can't tell if this is some kind of 'disease' of Dragons, but I suspect that all of this has to do with this Steel Island itself. This is a forbidden place, a place that even Dragons fear … Now that I have been abandoned here, as an even more pitiful fellow, I am afraid that I have no right to worry about the health of a Giant Dragon. I have to solve the problem of my own survival first.
"There is still some food in the metal boxes and bottles of water left. It won't be a problem for me to last three days, and even if they run out, I can continue to obtain supplies from the sea. As a powerful mage, I don't have to worry about dying of thirst or starvation at all. Unless the chaotic turbulence reaches the island, I can probably survive here for a very long time … But I don't want to die alone in this strange place!
"I've come up with some plans to leave the Steel Island and return to the human world, but before I carry out those plans, I've decided to first explore the entire ruins, in hopes of obtaining some resources or other helpful items … Fine, I can't lie to myself. It's my damned curiosity that has taken effect. Modiel Werde is a daring and unrepentant fellow, and I just can't control my impulse to take risks!
"Now, I've already explored the entire island, and there is only one place left that I haven't explored yet … that awe-inspiring gigantic metal tower."
From here on, Modiel Werde's handwriting suddenly trembled violently, as if he had entered a very excited state while recording all this —
"… I have to record everything I see, everything that is shocking and unbelievable!
"Today is the X day of the X month. As expected, Melita didn't appear, and I've fully recovered after a night's rest. Today is the day of action. After bringing along a few supplies, I came to the foot of the gigantic tower. It wasn't difficult to find its entrance. In fact, when I was exploring earlier, I found several doors at the base of the tower, and the most exciting thing was that some of the doors weren't completely sealed. They were slightly open.
"The first time I passed through the open door, I walked into its interior, and after passing through some dark and abandoned corridors, I heard a sound and saw a light — Mirmina, the Goddess of Magic! The interior of this tower is actually alive!
"Well, that's not accurate. What I mean is, the interior of this tower … is actually still operating! After being abandoned for who knows how many years, the exterior has become mottled and old, and it looks lifeless, but the interior has been operating all along!
"I saw a cylindrical hall, brightly lit, with huge pillars running through its dome and floor. There were countless flashing lights running around the hall, making buzzing sounds or clicking sounds. In the center of the hall, there was a huge pillar made of metal and crystal. The inside of the pillar was hollow, and occasionally, I would see some very rapid flashes of light flashing by. Magical projections were floating in many places in the hall, and a large number of runes and geometric figures were constantly floating on those illusions. Those were words that I didn't recognize, of course, those were words that I didn't recognize!
"A sudden rush of ecstasy overcame me, and I felt that my failed expedition had suddenly been worth it--what a startling discovery it was! A prehistoric ruin that was still in operation, the legacy of a civilization unknown to mankind! It was right in front of me, displaying its greatness in a shocking manner. I couldn't help but loudly recite the name of the Goddess of Magic, more pious than ever. Of course, the Goddess didn't respond at all, not even the slightest reaction, but I didn't care … I came to the center of the hall, to the pillar, and then made an even more amazing discovery.
"This entire pillar … I don't know if my eyes are playing tricks on me, or if my excitement has spoiled my judgment, but it seems to be made of the Eternal Slate! The entire pillar is made of the Eternal Slate!
"I've seen the Eternal Slate in the Church of Holy Light's collection. It's only one square foot, and the edges are broken. It's protected by the priests as if it's a treasure, and even buried in the deepest part of the tombs of the popes. How precious it is! But here, in front of me, there is a pillar that looks like a bell tower, and it seems to be made of that material!
"I wrote these words with excitement, and now, I'm going to try to touch that ancient metal. If it really has some kind of commonality with the Eternal Slate, what kind of reaction should my touch cause …"
Reading up to this point, Gwen suddenly frowned.
Modiel Velde's behavior … was a little abnormal.
Although he was indeed a very bold adventurer, and also had a side of impulsiveness due to his exploratory heart, his actions in that metal tower … were a little too impulsive and reckless. It was not at all like the judgment that a wise and powerful sorcerer should make when faced with the unknown.
And this violently trembling handwriting, the slightly exaggerated way of writing … Everything seemed a little off, as if another consciousness was suddenly mixed into Modiel's actions, and this consciousness was secretly changing the adventurer's actions little by little, and the adventurer was not aware of it at all!
But since this notebook had been passed down, and Modiel Velde had returned safely and continued adventuring for many years, Gwen felt that there must be a corresponding explanation or reflection left behind by Modiel (if there wasn't, then the situation would be terrible), so he patiently continued reading.
"… When my hand touched that pillar, all my doubts vanished.
"Without a doubt, it was the Eternal Slate, or rather, another large-scale 'divine artifact' made of the same material as the Eternal Slate.
"I felt some knowledge enter my mind. This place suddenly became familiar, and the words floating in the projection became recognizable. I also instantly knew the name of this place … Ah, it's called 'Monitoring Tower 1', and it's also called 'North Pole Foundry Center'. It's a factory, a factory that was once used to produce weapons …" "Oh, it's called 'North Pole Foundry Center'.
"I also know that there are two other monitoring towers in the world, but they are not factories, but some kind of … channel? Bridge? I don't know the specifics of that knowledge … "
The words on the notebook suddenly became more chaotic and scribbled, and the trembling lines even seemed to contain some kind of madness. Gwen frowned tightly. Next to those words, there were notes left by the scholars in charge of repairing the ancient book — chaotic and meaningless letters that could not be read at this stage.
And among these chaotic words, Gwen only found a few useful descriptions:
"… I know how to use this machine! I know … I've also found the foundry materials, but the past users haven't had the time to use them all … I have to record how to use it … (unrecognizable text)!
"Knowledge! Precious knowledge!! I have to record it down (messy strokes), I can't miss a single word!
"I plan to create something to prove that I've been here, oh … I have an idea … (messy scribbles)"
Every paragraph was mixed with a lot of marks of forceful scribbling. This disturbing mark seemed to reveal some kind of … resistance, as if Modiel was constantly writing something and then scribbling it away himself. After a few paragraphs that could barely be read, Gwen suddenly saw a few huge letters on the next page that seemed to penetrate the back of the paper:
"Leave!!"
There were only these few letters on the entire page.
Gwen's eyes were attracted by these letters, and his eyebrows could not help but twitch. He was a hundred percent sure that Modiel Werde was in trouble after entering the tower — his behavior was definitely out of control, but not completely out of control. His remaining rationality and almost conditioned reflexive "recording behavior" left these disturbing words, and in the end, he was extremely lucky to escape from this state.
The word "leave" showed the final victor of this battle of wills, but for some reason, the handwriting of this word was different from any of Modiel Werde's previous handwriting … Gwen even faintly had a strange thought. He felt that these few letters were not left behind by Modiel, nor were they left behind by the consciousness that affected Modiel, but … by a third consciousness.
And after this shocking word, Modiel Werde's obviously returned to normal handwriting:
"I woke up outside the tower.
"Some kind of terrible dizziness and headache bothered me for a few minutes, and I couldn't remember my experience in the tower at all, only some kind of lingering fear lingering in my heart.
"I found my notebook, and it was right next to my hand. It seemed that I threw it there after I staggered outside. I opened it and saw the … words that I had left behind. Instantly, cold sweat covered my back.
"Goddess of Magic! What happened?
"I have almost no memory of that experience. From the moment I entered the door, everything that happened after that seemed to be covered by a heavy curtain. I only remember that I was wandering in a strange place. Did I shout? Did I write anything? Why did I touch the mysterious and unknown ancient relic? This is completely illogical!
"The only thing I remember is a flash of light in my mind … A golden light, as if it woke me up. I remembered another scene: I was writing at full speed, and then suddenly I couldn't help but write the word 'leave' on the paper. I looked at the word in horror, as if it had magic. Then, I turned around and ran … I remembered more things, how I ran all the way out of the tower, like a stupid child who was scared out of his wits …
"When I was inspecting my body, I found something in the pocket of my robe. It was a snowflake-shaped amulet. I don't remember when I got this amulet, but it had the family's emblem engraved on it … It contained a powerful magic power, and that magic power was obviously injected by me. Moreover … it seemed to be made from the Eternal Stone Slab …
"This thing made me very uneasy. It seemed to confirm some of the crazy words I left in the previous notes. I instinctively wanted to throw it far away, but I was hesitant … This might be the only thing I got from this mysterious place, and it's also the only thing I can bring back. My memory of the tower has been erased for some reason, and I don't plan to go back again …" "That's why I'm here.
"I need to think about it.
"X Month X Day, this is a note to be added later. After tossing and turning all night, I still couldn't decide what to do with this amulet, and on this morning, someone … or a humanoid Giant Dragon suddenly appeared.
"It's a very elegant and beautiful lady with very long blonde hair …"
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