Sword of Dawnbreaker

Chapter 1075: Chapter 1074: Secrets

In the garden of Oak Hall, unidentified flowers bloom quietly. Powerful nature magic maintains the vitality here, allowing various plants that can only grow in southern regions to thrive on this northern land. A breeze barrier envelops the entire courtyard, significantly reducing the noise from other parts of the town, leaving only faint sounds here - not noisy, but rather increasingly peaceful.

Gawain sat by the round table, a delicate gold-rimmed cup giving off the refreshing aroma of tea. Some elf snacks rarely seen in the human world and fruits from the tropics adorned the silver plates, looking pleasing to the eye.

Silver Empress Belsetia sat opposite him, the ruler of the Elven Empire with a faint smile on her face. She had been closely observing Gawain for a long time before breaking the silence, "When I first heard about your ’resurrection’, it caused quite a stir in the Elven Royal Court... Many elves familiar with you are still alive, and they were shocked by this news. Of course, that includes me—It’s a pity that the Silver Empire was too far from Anzu back then, and the northern situation was too chaotic. We could only grasp limited information until the Magic Web connected with the sentinel towers, making the communication channels smooth... The northern situation then became clear."

"...A lot has happened," Gawain reminisced about the events he witnessed after his "resurrection" and sighed sincerely, "You cannot imagine the scene I saw when I woke up... The kingdom bore a completely different face, order was in chaos, and I had to fight the things I battled seven hundred years ago all over again... Moreover, the most crucial thing is that after a whole seven hundred years, not only did humans make no progress in advancing against the wasteland, but they actually retreated."

He spoke with the tone of Gawain Cecil, the words coming from shared memories and personal experience, causing the Silver Empress to involuntarily sigh too, "I understand... Over seven hundred years, I have personally witnessed how this world has transformed into this state. The four pioneering legions that once broke out from Gondor wasteland have completely changed over these hundreds of years. Good or bad, the common point is that almost everyone gradually forgot the threat of the wasteland—The situation is better in Highmountain Kingdom, bordering the Silver Empire. The presence of many mixed-blood elves makes it difficult for them to ’forget’ history, and then there’s Typhon, where, except for a few foolish ones, they always have relatively wise and strong rulers, while Anzu and Augari..."

The Silver Empress sighed, shaking her head, "If Anzu hadn’t faced that civil war, it wouldn’t have declined so much, and Augari - it’s a tribal kingdom in itself. The descendants of Gondor occupy only a part of the power, and the memory of the disaster among the majority native races of the tribal country isn’t so profound. Not to mention, they have mountains as natural barriers, with races living in a comfortable environment being very slow to react to crises outside their world."

Gawain couldn’t help but let his gaze linger on Belsetia for two more seconds—in this moment, he more intensely felt the significant disconnect between the memory of "young Silver Empress" from Gawain Cecil’s memories and the lady before him.

It’s a peculiar feeling, yet familiar to him—since rising from the grave, he’s encountered more than one "old acquaintance" from Gawain Cecil’s memories, from Selena to Beltira, from Megal III to Belsetia before him. These people have undergone transformations over seven hundred years, environments and people both altered, no longer the figures from memory. Though... this Silver Empress’s change might be the most substantial.

Gawain’s thoughts unconsciously expanded: among the "old acquaintances" he contacted, Soldrin seemed to have changed the least, although the High-Ranked Ranger experienced many trials, compared to others, his changes were only about becoming more mature. Gawain pondered the reason for this, gradually understanding—

Among all the friends who have endured seven hundred years, Soldrin is the only one whose pursuit has never changed—indeed, bald people tend to be stubborn about one thing.

The sudden wandering thought made Gawain unconsciously smile, which Belsetia keenly captured, showing a hint of curiosity, "Uncle Gawain, what are you smiling about?"

"Nothing, just suddenly thought of something amusing," Gawain shook his head, steering the conversation away, "Moreover, I’m somewhat emotional—after all these years, when I woke up, not only have many acquaintances already passed away, but even those still alive have changed so much, nearly unrecognizable."

"Including me?"

"You have changed the most."

"You haven’t changed much—you’re almost identical to my last memory," Belsetia earnestly looked into Gawain’s eyes, a serene gaze that made Gawain slightly uneasy, yet soon the Silver Empress shifted her focus, very naturally changing the topic, "Uncle Gawain, besides reminiscing, let’s discuss some business. What do you think about this meeting?"

"What do I think?" Gawain was initially puzzled by her sudden question, but it wasn’t difficult to answer. He quickly responded, "I’m the primary motivator and caller of this meeting, so if you ask my opinion, I definitely believe it’s necessary and important. The reasons are like I mentioned in the previous correspondences, our world isn’t safe, and greater crises and challenges await everyone as time progresses. Whether to face these challenges or for our own peace and development, unity is essential."

"I know all this, I’m just curious... Is your establishment of this alliance truly solely for the safety of this world and the future of mortal civilization?" Belsetia asked calmly, though her perpetual use of honorifics for Gawain, her naturally dignified manner as the Silver Empress lent an unyielding pressure to each utterance—fortunately, for Gawain, such pressure was negligible.

He once faced the Dragon Gods, witnessed great changes in the world, and perhaps nothing left in this world could genuinely use mere "pressure" to affect him.

"From a broader perspective, my sole aim is indeed the safety of this world and the future of mortal civilization," Gawain candidly faced Belsetia’s gaze, speaking naturally, "But if you absolutely must talk about personal ambition... yes, I have personal ambition. My ambition is to realize all this through my own vision. This world has many remarkable individuals who may have their interpretations of this world’s future, but now, I wish for certain changes in this world, changes that may not align with everyone’s expectations, but I believe these actions are correct... this is my greatest ambition."

"Strictly speaking, it should count as ambition... but ’personal ambition’ isn’t inaccurate either," Belsetia laughed, "I think I understand your thoughts... Indeed, having a face-to-face conversation is very necessary, you certainly wouldn’t express it so plainly in a letter. Well then, since I asked a question, it’s your turn to ask me something—as a trade."

"Earlier, you didn’t mention this exchange," Gawain couldn’t help commenting, but soon he nodded, "Of course, since you’re letting me ask, I won’t waste this chance. I do have something I want to inquire from you."

"Go ahead—of course, try to avoid too personal topics," Belsetia said, suddenly blinking, "After all, I’ve already grown up."

Sonia, who was standing by, suddenly caught her breath, nearly choking herself: Who would dare believe that the Silver Empress just said that?

The High-ranked Order Messenger felt a slight cold sweat on her forehead and even began to worry whether she could safely return to the Silver Empire after witnessing these scenes today—fortunately, she knew enough about Queen Belsetia and Gawain to realize this scene was not too bizarre. If it were someone more clueless and pessimistic in her place, they might have already decided where to bury themselves by now...

Gawain, however, seemed not to notice the movement of the messenger behind him, nor did he care about Queen Belsetia’s joke. He simply looked seriously at the Empress in front of him and asked the question he had prepared for a long time: "I would like to understand the current state of divine beliefs in the Silver Empire—especially concerning the God of Nature."

Queen Belsetia seemed slightly surprised, pausing for a moment before saying, "Just this?"

"Is there a problem?" Gawain said seriously, "This is indeed what concerns me the most at present."

"...Alright, that is just like you," Belsetia sighed as her expression turned serious, "But before I answer your question, I want to confirm something first—you mentioned in your previous letter that the gods would fall into chaos over time, eventually becoming a terrifying threat that mortals must face, and the War God, who went out of control during the Typhon-Cecil War, was the first... Is all this true?"

"Absolutely," Gawain said solemnly, "I know many will doubt this, but we have solid evidence. Thousands of soldiers witnessed it on the Winterhold Fort Battlefield, Typhon has detailed records of it, and we can also provide samples recovered from the War God’s remains."

"It’s indeed startling. I don’t think anyone would suddenly believe that the gods, who have always protected this world, would ultimately become the root of its destruction, even those unbelievers," Belsetia shook her head, "But regardless of reason or personal feelings, I have to believe in your words... though this is only my personal belief."

"I know it’s hard to believe, but this is determined by the operation laws of this world," Gawain looked into Belsetia’s eyes, "If you find it difficult to accept, perhaps a different explanation would make it easier for those who still revere and are close to gods—the tendency towards uncontrolled madness is actually not the gods’ intention, as I said earlier. It’s determined by the world’s operating rules, and those gods... are also victims of these rules."

"It seems you still have much knowledge to share with us on this matter," Belsetia said thoughtfully. Gawain initially thought her reaction would be more intense, but the Silver Empress maintained a calm and composed attitude throughout, as if even facing godly secrets couldn’t shake her reason, "I will learn all of this in detail from you later. As for now... since you are interested in the divine beliefs of the Silver Empire, let me briefly tell you—by title, the Silver Empress also serves as the Supreme Priestess of the Druid sect, so you should indeed inquire about this from me.

"As many people know, the former state religion of the Silver Empire was the Druid sect, and the god that the Druids worshiped was the God of Nature, Amoen, the Giant Stag. Until three thousand years ago, this belief was at the core of the silver elves and even supported the operation of the Elven Empire to some extent. But after the White Starfall three thousand years ago, everything changed. The feedback from the God of Nature disappeared, nature theurgy ceased, and the Druid sects fragmented into a dozen or so factions during an extremely chaotic and prolonged transformation. Except for the later darkened Holy Spirit School, the other Druid sects gradually became academic organizations researching magic and natural mysteries, though they still retained the title of ’sects,’ and I, as the Supreme Priestess, am one of the few remaining links to the belief in the God of Nature in the ancient Druid religion.

"I know a little bit about this aspect," Gawain nodded, "What I am curious about is that in the three thousand years following the White Starfall, the elves have been trying to rebuild their faith in the God of Nature from other symbolic targets, and there are even Druid organizations that worship powerful animal spirits or forest spirits as gods... Has any of these groups succeeded in establishing a connection with a deity and re-manifesting miraculous theurgy?"

Belsetia quietly looked at Gawain, not answering his question immediately. It seemed she was scrutinizing and weighing, until the atmosphere became increasingly tense, she suddenly lifted her gaze and looked at Sonia, who was standing by: "High-ranked Order Messenger, please excuse us."

Sonia showed a moment of surprise on her face, but the next second she reacted quickly. She immediately lowered her head and quietly left the garden, and as she left, the two high-ranking maids who were standing behind Belsetia also silently disappeared into the air, their presence quickly receding.

Gawain immediately realized something, his heart faintly guessing at it, and Belsetia did not keep him waiting long. Once only the two of them remained in the garden, the Silver Empress revealed a slight smile.

"Now it’s just us—returning to the previous question.

"Over the course of three thousand years, countless Druidic sects have emerged, and there have always been people trying to pray to nature in various ways, hoping to awaken the God of Nature in their hearts. You asked if any lucky sect truly succeeded in communicating with a deity? Yes, indeed.

"Some sects successfully communicated with a deity, recreating miracles similar to the ancient nature theurgy. Not just one, but more than one."

Gawain inhaled sharply—he had never known this! No one knew this!

What he had asked casually turned out to have an unexpected and shocking result!

"And then?" he immediately pursued, "What happened to those sects afterward?"

"They were treated as heretics and eradicated," Belsetia said lightly.