Chapter 134: What the Hell Did I Hear?!

About that piece of Eternal Stone Slate, Gawain had yet to think of how to start studying it for now. However, with regard to that heretic cult believer wearing a Mithril Ring, Gawain felt that there was a need to find out more from the agent from Mithril Vault.

After all, she’d promised back then that as a major client of Mithril Vault, he could approach her anytime to ask questions — why not make use of it?

Besides, the territory needs to develop, and Mithril Vault coming in might be a boost to his region. Gawain would not let anything that could generate help for him slip.

He gently stroked his own Mithril Ring and infused magical power into it according to how Melita had told him to back then. Following the rocking of spiritual power, he felt a delicate magic in the ring getting activated. The metal began to feel warm, and an unusual magic fluctuation was released from it.

Looking at the ring that was shimmering, he couldn’t help but ponder in his mind — what was the theory behind this thing again?

He still could not confirm whether this world was able to use electromagnetic waves for communication purposes (it was most likely a no), but the telecommunication using magic already existed. This was an ancient yet mysterious skill; it could let the originally sealed up magic circles achieve information exchange with the outside. Despite being single function and due to the loss of native spell molds resulting in a black box[1], the grade of this spell went as high as grade four. Even Heidi could not use it. If she had to, she would have to do so with the support of magic circles and the like.

Magical communication was limited by many factors: the ability of the spellcaster, the quality of the spell materials, interference from the magic environment; even the difference in day and night would affect the range and results. The most powerful magical communication device was the ‘Eye of the Stars’ artifact atop the Sacred Stars Temple. It allowed that floating city to transmit information to the entire Silver Empire. However, as for what was the specific principle behind it, even those silver elves could not figure it out.

Gawain had always felt that such magic that could transmit information over a long range perhaps had something to do with the nature of this world’s ‘magical environment’. Yet the spell mold and magic-circle mold of the communication spell were a kind of ‘black box’. It was something passed down from the ancient times; people knew the hows but not the whys of it. All these years, they had yet to succeed in optimizing it, nor could they figure out the effect mechanism of those runes. In addition, as they had copied the drawings blindly for so many years, probably no one knew how the original looked like anymore.

Yet this small Mithril Ring actually possessed the ability to communicate using magic. The technological strength of Mithril Vault seemed to be very exceptional…

All these random thoughts spun in Gawain’s mind. All of a sudden, he felt the ring vibrate for a moment. Following that, a slightly distorted voice of a young lady came from it. “This is Melita Ponia. Duke Gawain Cecil, I am very pleased to hear from you. It seems like you have a use for Mithril Vault.”

This thingamajig even came with a vibration alert? Gawain faltered for a moment and raised the ring to his lips. “I would like to inquire about a matter.”

“Ah, as a VIP customer of the Mithril Vault, all advisory services are free. What would you like to ask?”

“When the Mithril Vault selects its major customers… are there filtering criteria?”

“Filtering criteria?” The person on the other end of the ring seemed to be stumped for a moment before she replied, “Of course there are filtering criteria. It isn’t that easy to become a VIP client. However, this involves a very complicated review process. To explain it—”

Gawain cut off Melita. “No need to explain in detail. I just want to know. Can a heretic cult believer become a VIP customer?”

“Heretic cult believer? That depends on what kind of heretic it is.” Melita’s voice was very calm. “Sometimes, heretic cult believers are even more generous than kings in their payments. As businessmen, we always welcome such generous clients—”

“Heretic cult believer from the Oblivion Association.”

Melita’s voice instantly jammed. After dazing for a second, she asserted curtly, “The Oblivion Association is not included! We do not do business with them!”

Gawain was slightly surprised and pressed on, “Why?”

“The Oblivion Association is the craziest bunch amongst all heretic cult believers. Their ideology results in a zero possibility of them cooperating with any other organization — everything will die. In their eyes, everything is to be destroyed, including other heretic sects. — In fact, there are only two or three dark organizations in the whole world as insane as the Oblivion Association and would have dealings with them. They include the Sons of the Storm, who soak in the sea all day announcing that there would ultimately come a day when the world is engulfed by boundless distortion, and those Eternal Sleepers who put everything in their dreams. Only their philosophies are close to that of the Oblivion Association and have similarly intense self-destructive inclinations. That’s why they were able to come together. Which of the remaining normal people would associate with those lunatics?”

After the hurried and lengthy explanation, Melita added, “Of course, peripheral members of the Oblivion Association having business dealings with the Mithril Vault with their identities concealed remains a possibility. After all, as a living organization, they do need to develop and operate, but they absolutely wouldn’t be able to become big clients of Mithril Vault — they won’t pass those strict assessments at all. They would definitely be exposed.”

“But I have a Mithril Ring representing the identity of an important client here. I got it from a heretic cult believer of the Oblivion Association.”

“This isn’t…” Melita probably wanted to say that this wasn’t possible. However, midway through, she realized that whether this was possible or not, it was probably true. Hence, she corrected, “Have you confirmed the authenticity of the ring? The model of the Mithril Ring isn’t special. Perhaps someone made a counterfeit…”

“The material quality is the same as the real one. It’s a bit too high to be a counterfeit. As for whether the interior is real… This thing has identity recognition. I have no way of inspecting it.” Gawain fiddled with the ring from the heretic cult believer with his other hand and casually suggested, “Could it be stolen by the heretic cult believer from someone else?”

“If that ring is real, then it’s impossible that it was stolen.” Melita’s tone became somber. “From the beginning, the design of the Mithril Ring took into consideration the risk of it being stolen by people with evil designs. Thus, it has the function of identity recognition. When it leaves the original owner, its functions would immediately be locked and can no longer be used. If the stealer takes the ring to a Mithril Vault branch to swindle, the agent of the vault will immediately distinguish the state of the ring using a secret magic… In short, stealing and snatching it renders it useless. And for a magic article that automatically becomes ineffective after it is stolen, it is impossible that the inherently guarded heretic cult believer would boldly and assuredly carry it on him.”

Gawain rubbed the ring in his hands. “In other words, a heretic cult believer of the Oblivion Association has really become one of your major clients.”

“Or, the reverse is valid too… A certain big figure has fallen to become a heretic cult believer.” Melita’s voice became very solemn. “Duke Cecil, I will personally come to you to confirm this matter. I will pay a visit within the next few days.”

Although he knew that the Mithril Vault was infinitely resourceful, Gawain still asked offhandedly, “You know how to come to me?”

Melita’s voice seemed to contain a hint of a smile. “Of course — as your exclusive agent, I’ve been paying attention to your movements all this time.”

Gawain got goosebumps all over upon hearing that. — Why does this sound so awkward…?

After establishing that Miss My Little Pony would personally come over to examine the situation, Gawain did not plan on discussing much else through the magic communication. He casually continued with a few words of courtesy before deciding to end the communication. “We’ll talk about the details when you arrive. If there’s nothing else, I’m going to be hanging up first.”

Melita’s exclamation instantly sounded from the ring. “You’re passing away again?![2]”

“…I mean, to end the call!”

The bulging veins on Gawain’s temples only eased after cutting off the magic communication. Following that, he let out a breath and hid the heretic cult believer’s Mithril Ring away before his eyes landed on the Eternal Stone Slate fragment on the desk.

Till now, he had not risked building any spiritual connection with this ‘stone slate’. Although he knew that this thingamajig would not cause any real damage to his body (after all, so many believers in this world were alive and kicking), but it was really too hard to tell if his mind would be affected after engaging with the Eternal Stone Slate.

After Veronica’s visit, Gawain was now more guarded against the gods of this world, especially when he saw ‘Priest Sandy’ who looked absolutely normal to others but was like a special effect shadow in his eyes. It added an ounce of doubt to the guardedness that he was normally inclined to.

He knew that he was a transmigrator from an alternate world. Although his body was an original from this side, his soul wasn’t. Perhaps it was the deviation in his soul that caused the female priest to completely become a holographic projection in his eyes. Did this mean that his ‘visual field’ could see some things that the laymen of this world could not?

And the powers of the Eternal Stone Slate were highly likely to be directly used on the soul. By then, would a major problem happen to him, the peculiar soul?

With these thoughts, he unwittingly turned this palm-sized metal piece here and there. Suddenly, his gaze landed on those crystals mounted irregularly on the back of the metal piece.

Those crystals formed a complicated pattern with the grooves on the metal piece. Initially, Gawain had thought that they were a certain type of magic circles, but after careful observation, he realized that those lines and the magic circles that he knew of were two completely different things. Now, his attention had shifted away from those lines that could not be analyzed and entirely to those crystals of unknown material.

Yet he found the material of those crystals a little familiar.

After observing for a good while, he was struck by a sudden thought and swiftly got up to bring several pieces of crystals over.

An intact one and a few other broken pieces — they were the mysterious crystals that he had brought out from the capital in the past, the ones that allowed him to rebuild a connection with the ‘satellite’.

After a comparison, he finally confirmed one thing: those little crystals set in the back of the Eternal Stone Slate… were completely identical in terms of material and outer appearance as those mysterious crystals that Gawain Cecil had left behind!

Immense surprise and doubt flooded him at the same time. — The Eternal Stone Slate was actually related to these crystals? And these crystals could help him rebuild his connection to the satellite in the sky… So did the Eternal Stone Slate have something to do with those satellites?

He pondered while unconsciously fiddling with those crystals and the Eternal Stone Slate fragment mounted with crystals. And as he wasn’t paying attention, those tiny crystals set in the ‘stone slate’ were slowly glowing.

Gawain finally noticed the lights. His first reaction was to quickly hold the crystals and Eternal Stone Slate fragment far away, but before he could do so in time, an unexpected dizziness froze all his movements.

The feeling in his four limbs became sluggish and numb; it felt as if his five senses were leaving him. Gawain felt that his thoughts seemed to have left his body. He could still see and hear his surroundings, yet it felt like those visions and sounds did not belong to him. He felt his consciousness first float upwards and then sink down boundlessly, immersing into a kind of strange ethereal state. And in this process, the indistinct auditory hallucinations became increasingly clear…

Finally, he ‘heard’ many odd ‘messages’ emerge in his mind:

“…Annihilation squad… rejoin… report battle results…”

“Confirmed that God of Flames has no signs of life. Annihilation bomb entered, over.”

“…Observed that… the dome of Holy Light collapsed. The God of Holy Light no longer has any signs of life… awaiting orders, over.”

“Observed that… the Sacred Temple of Mysteries is disintegrating… Goddess of Magic and Mysteries escaped. The Sixth Hunting Legion left port…”

“God of Storms no longer has signs of life… beginning to destroy the Storms Sanctuary, over.”

“The Eighth Heavy Bombing Fleet arrived at allocated coordinates… beginning to bomb the Kingdom of Shadows, over.”

“…Bombing fleet… currently dismantling the Temple of the Dead… Observed that the pale barrier is breaking down…”

“…Confirmed that the Reaper has no signs of life. Currently heading to the God of War’s territory, over…”

“…God of Nature no longer has signs of life, over.”

An extremely chaotic and spinning sensation appeared at the same time and jolted Gawain from his ‘immersed state’. He left such an odd state with his face bathed in perspiration. It was soon followed with a dumbstruck expression and with horror filling his mind——

Damn, what the hell did I just hear?!

What. The. Hell. Did. I. Hear?!

[1] black box – in science, computing, and engineering, a black box is a device, system, or object which can be viewed in terms of inputs and outputs without knowledge of its internal workings.

[2] In response to ‘hanging up’ (‘gua le’). ‘Gua’ means hang, while ‘le’ indicates that the action has been done. Extended in meaning now to also mean ‘failing’ or ‘end’, for example, hanging up calls, disconnecting, hanging in video games, or failing an exam. Originally, it referred to death by hanging or beheading. It came from Cantonese, sounding very similar to Cantonese pronunciation of ‘dead’, ‘doomed’

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