Sword of Dawn

Page 367

At the junction of the plain and the end of the mountain range, on a natural high ground, a huge stone monument stands next to the railway line. There seems to be a wall around the stone monument to cover it, and there seems to be a maintenance and monitoring site for the railway line nearby.

Matilda had just noticed the unusual building, and was about to wonder why there was such an eye-catching thing in the wilderness, when she suddenly heard a loud and high-pitched flute sound from the top of the carriage, echoing on the vast plain.

This made her suddenly stunned: Why did the whistle suddenly sound?Is there a stop here or a staggered train?

Just as confusion welled up in her heart, she and the surrounding Typhon envoys were surprised to see the Cecilians in the carriage standing up at the same time, even including the young army commander, these noble knights and generals They turned out of the car window at the same time, staring at the huge stone monument standing at the end of the mountain range, solemn and solemn, as if paying homage.

The Typhon envoys were taken aback when the surrounding Cecilians stood up at the same time, and even became nervous for a while, but at the moment they were only left dazed. Those solemn faces made them wonder whether they should ask aloud, and could only remain confused After waiting for more than ten seconds, after Philip and the others sat down, Matilda couldn't help asking: "General Philip, may I ask if this is..."

"Have you noticed the stele?" Philip asked calmly, looking at Matilda.

"Yes, I noticed—and was just about to ask."

"The railway line under your feet was urgently extended and built on the basis of the original Baisha mining railway line after the crystal cluster war," Philip said slowly, "in order to send food and security forces to the east in time To prevent the subsequent impact of the crystal cluster war from causing large-scale famine and chaos in the eastern border, the construction period of this line must be compressed until the end of winter.

"In order to quickly pass through the most complex terrain of the Baissel Mountains, the Third Construction Corps used large-scale geological shaping spells, including a group of mages dispatched urgently from the old capital, as well as large-scale construction machinery that can release fossils into mud.

"When breaking through Kalin Pass, a hidden mana focus caused the spell to go out of control, and the mountain wall collapsed.

"37 people were buried below, including seven mages and thirty workers."

Matilda opened her eyes slightly, and Earl Durer subconsciously said, "So it's to commemorate the sacrificed mages..."

"It is to commemorate all those who died," Philip looked into Earl Dürer's eyes, "The collapsed rock wall swallowed the victims, and the aftermath of the spell caused the human flesh and stone to fuse together, making them indistinguishable. Boulders of flesh and blood had been carried out of the pass, and a monument had been erected at the end of the Kalin Pass they had tried and failed to break through—with their backs against the Bythel Mountains, and their eyes on the plains to the east.

"It is customary on this line for trains to sound their horns after passing the Karin Pass and for soldiers to salute when they pass the monument."

Matilda listened quietly and seriously, her expression didn't seem to change much.

The emissaries from Typhon listened quietly, some seemed confused, some seemed to be thinking.

A big investment aristocrat from Aldernan, the black-haired and black-bearded Earl Dürer couldn't help looking out the window, looking at the direction where the monument had gone, and couldn't help muttering amidst the sound of car whistles still lingering in his ears. stand up:

"Such a huge monument... Even if the mage takes action, it will not be easy to build."

Maybe, enough to build another textile factory.

Matilda listened to Earl Durer talking to himself, and watched Cecil's plain receding rapidly outside the train.

A foreign country...

……

The wind from the extreme northern sea blows over the towering mountains, rolling the snow between the mountains, and the dragonborn's flag flutters high on the thick spire of Dragon's Landing Castle, with the end of the flag facing south, fluttering endlessly.

"The candidates for the envoys have been decided, and they will depart in the near future," Grand Duke Baloger of Dragon's Blood stood on the wide stone terrace of Dragon's Reach Castle, overlooking the snow-capped country, and said to the courtiers beside him, "Golo Sir Shi, it must be foolproof if you lead the team."

"The mission must be accomplished, Your Majesty." Sir Golosh said in a low voice.

Baloger nodded, with a leisurely tone: "We have indeed been closed in this bitterly cold mountains for too long, and the world outside the mountains is also worth visiting.

"You should be the eyes of the Principality, and take a good look at the Cecil Empire to see what's extraordinary about them.

"As well as us 'exiles'... did not disappoint Tarrond's kindness."

"Talrond..." Sir Gorosh's eyes changed slightly, "How long do we have to wait..."

"From the very beginning, this has been a near-permanent wait," said Grand Duke Balogar unhurriedly. "If we maintain hope with a hopeless attitude, our patience will last."

"...Yes, Your Majesty."

Balogel was silent for a moment, looked away, looked at the trusted courtier beside him, and suddenly smiled slightly: "Speaking of which, you and your daughter haven't seen each other for a long time, right?"

"...I saw it from a distance five years ago," Sir Gorosh said with some helplessness and embarrassment, "A child who is messing around... She is really out of order in the human world."

"Young man, it's normal to be reckless or rebellious. Didn't you also jump over the Longyue Cliff when you were young?" Grand Duke Baloger shook his head with a smile, "Take it as a short tour in the human world, tour After decades or hundreds of years, I will probably come back after playing enough.”

Sir Gorosh was silent for a moment, then sighed: "...I hope so."

……

The cold wind was blowing, and Maggie, who was walking by the flight test field, couldn't help but sneezed suddenly, feeling a strange chill in her heart.

Rebecca, who was walking beside her, looked at her dragon-born friend curiously: "Hey? What's the matter? Have a cold?"

"No...probably not," Maggie rubbed her nose vigorously, feeling a little strange in her heart, "I just felt a little cold all of a sudden, and I couldn't help sneezing."

"Isn't it too cold to catch a cold?"

"Definitely not," Maggie shook her head with certainty, "Dragonborn's body is very strong, especially not afraid of the cold. I grew up in a colder place than here, and we even wear clothes during the coldest winter. It's a cold sport to play 'Ice Run' in one suit."

Rebecca's eyes lit up immediately, and she became very interested: "Flying on the ice road? What is that?"

"Ah, it's a small game popular among dragonborn children." Maggie couldn't help laughing, probably because she remembered the interesting things in her childhood. Roll down the pre-dug ice path from the top of the mountain, and go to the foot of the mountain to see who is the first to stand up—by the way, if you vomit, you will be disqualified directly, even if you are the first to stand up."

Rebecca: "...wow!"

Sonia, who was walking on the other side, stared at Maggie with a strange look: "You people from the Holy Dragon Principality...have been playing with this kind of thing since childhood?"

Maggie thought for a while, then shook her head: "Of course not all children play like this."

Sonia breathed a sigh of relief: "I'll just say..."

"Girls are the kind of play I'm talking about—boys don't use buckets."

Sonia: "?"

This is really a custom in a foreign country... It's hard to imagine.

Chapter 0789 Changes

The sunlight shone into the spacious study room, casting a thin layer of light on the oak desk and the Magic Net terminal next to the desk. The spirit-boosting incense drifted slowly in the air and penetrated Byron's nostrils, making Byron The imperial general who was a mercenary couldn't help sniffling, and almost sneezed impolitely.

"...the envoys from the Holy Dragon Principality will arrive at the northern border soon," Gao Wen sat behind the desk, and casually put a document on the table, "Go and meet them."

Byron scratched his hair, but just halfway through the scratch, he realized that it was already the "Era of Empire", and it seemed a little inappropriate for him to be so casual in front of the emperor, so he quickly put his hand down: "Understood—but I don't understand Diplomacy?"

Gao Wen smiled and glanced at the "mercenary general": "Aren't you always eloquent? Philip can be persuaded by you."

"Your Majesty, this is different. The main reason for my communication with Philip is not to be eloquent, but to stick to justice and the creed of chivalry..." Byron immediately began to chat habitually, but said As he spoke, he noticed Gao Wen's half-smile expression, and he had to add something cautiously and tactfully, "Of course there is some shameless element in it..."

There are some things that can't be changed by wearing the uniform of an imperial general—at least not so quickly.

But Gao Wen didn't care about it. Instead, he admired the various faults and habits of a group of "veteran founding ministers" including Byron.

He couldn't tell whether it was because of the memory of Gawain Cecil affecting him, or whether it was because he could see in Byron the shadow of Ansu's group of founding pigeons 700 years ago, but there was One thing he was sure of was that when dealing with people like Byron, Amber, and Wright who had followed him for several years, he was far more comfortable than dealing with those "professionals" who migrated from the old capital and were strict in everything they did. Much, much easier.

So he also relaxed his posture, leaned on the back of the chair, and said with a smile: "Say something that should not be said by me directly—among the many skills required for diplomacy, 'shameless' is precisely the main ingredient—— It is even equivalent to the role of 'speaking eloquently'.

"Of course, you don't really need to care about these things, because you are not the one who is really in charge of the negotiation—you are just going to pick up the ambassador at the border as an imperial general to show our sincerity and act as a 'face' of equal status. The person in charge of contacting and escorting the ambassador to the imperial capital is the Earl of Cromwell White Mountain."

"Cromwell White Mountain?" Byron recalled the somewhat familiar name, "Oh, that half-dwarf knight lord, I saw him in San Sunil."

"Although he is an aristocrat from the old capital, he is quite familiar with northern affairs." Gawain nodded, "You and he go to the northern border to meet the envoys of the Holy Dragon Principality, and you can leave the rest to him. As for you , you need to stay in the north for a while, and there is a new task for you."

"So... the task of responding to the ambassador is actually incidental," Byron nodded knowingly, and then showed a trace of curiosity, "What is my real task?"

"Construct the North Port and the supporting naval base," Gao Wen stood up, and walked slowly to the wall where the map of the whole territory was hung not far away, his eyes fell on the north of the empire, "for the preparation of the imperial navy and the restart of the northern circumnavigation route prepare for."

"North Port..." Byron followed Gawain's gaze to the map, and gradually focused on the mountains in the north, on the coastline between the Violet Kingdom and the Holy Dragon Principality, "...the St. The sea-going peninsula of the Dragon Principality has left a warm current for the northern continent, and there is a natural ice-free port beyond the mountains in the northern border...it is indeed the most suitable starting point for restarting the route around the northern continent."

Gawain looked at Byron quite unexpectedly, with a smile on his face: "It seems that you have already noticed it?"

"Your Majesty, I don't just spend time at home with my daughter when I'm on vacation." Byron smiled and spread his hands, "You said a long time ago that you should focus on the ocean, but the southern border used to be surrounded by continents. The mouth of the sea, but now that the north is under our control, that precious stretch of coastline has attracted my attention for a long time."

Gawain smiled.

Obviously, he and Byron reached a tacit understanding: the two of them were on the northern coastline when they were in the southern border...

"It seems that it is the right choice for you to lead the fleet," Gao Wen said with a smile, "After the completion of the North Port, we will have the opportunity to command the Sea Peninsula of the Holy Dragon Principality, the northern border of the Empire, the Ogulei Tribal Country and The west coast of the Dwarf Kingdom is connected. Even if the Ogulei Tribal Country is willing to cooperate with us and set up a safe haven on the sea cliff crack in the south of the mainland, this route can even extend to the border of the Gaoling Kingdom, connecting the entire north, west and south of the continent. Part of the area is included, and it will become a real 'Circum-Continental Route'...

"With the performance of the magical mechanical ship, this is completely achievable.

"Our fleet will also become a real 'Navy Fleet' at that time, instead of just playing around in the inland river... You have led the fleet for so long, you must have felt that those mechanical ships can be used in more Playing on a broad stage."

"I have already felt that the inland river is...not very spacious for our mechanical ship," Byron immediately replied, but he frowned a little, "But as far as I know, the environment of the ocean is far more complicated than that of the inland river. Much more, it is not possible to turn an inland river warship into a naval warship by driving it directly into the sea. Ms. Till also reminded me that the ships she has helped us design are only suitable for sailing in relatively stable inland rivers. To challenge the ocean ...needs some remodeling."

"Of course, so this is a long-term mission. Human beings have been far away from the sea for too long. We need a long time to re-collect the information of the sea and adjust our ship design. Fortunately, Tyr is willing to continue to be our consultant, and the northern border The Wilders have also made some observations of the ocean over the past few hundred years, and their records will come in handy.

"In addition, the construction of Beigang is not our only 'Ocean Plan'. After the establishment of diplomatic relations with the Principality of Shenglong, we will redevelop the Huanlong Fjord at the junction of the east border and the Principality of Shenglong. When the time comes, this task I'll give it to you too."

Gawain spoke unhurriedly, his gaze gradually fell on Byron, and there was some expectation in that gaze.

"At that time, you will truly be worthy of the name 'Imperial Navy Commander'."

"Ah, this sounds much more imposing than 'Admiral of the Navy'," Byron raised the corner of his mouth, "I'm looking forward to that day very much."

……

The giant sun gradually rises to the sky, and the bright sunshine pours down generously from the sky. The air is still cold, but the heat contained in the sun seems to be heralding that the warm season is coming——in the rushing light and heat, bye Standing on the garden square in front of Cecil Palace, Lun raised his head and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Commander of the Imperial Navy..." The mercenary knight couldn't help muttering to himself with a slight smile on his face, "Sounds really interesting."

As he spoke, he shook his head slightly, and walked unhurriedly towards the magic vehicle waiting for him at the edge of the square.

The vacation is over, I have to go back and talk to Pea.

A pleasant and crisp ringtone suddenly came from nearby, interrupting Byron's thoughts.

He raised his head curiously, looked in the direction of the sound, and saw that in the open space between the flower beds not far away, Rebecca, wearing a winter hunting suit that was easy to move, was riding some kind of weird two-wheeled " machine", walking towards this side staggeringly.

That weird "machine" is not like any kind of magical machinery I have seen before. It obviously does not use any magic mechanism as a power source, but is simply assembled with iron wheels, skeletons, chains, etc., and is driven by human pedals. It got up, and the crisp and pleasant bell sound came from a small device hanging beside its handle——

Rebecca was vigorously fiddled with the little device to make it jingle and jingle, her face was full of excitement, but Byron could see that the situation of Her Royal Highness was not very optimistic - she obviously couldn't control that The "car" with only two wheels wobbled violently when riding on it. Although it looked like it was riding towards the open road to the side, it became more and more crooked as it walked, and it seemed to be colliding with Byron.

"Ah, Byron!" Rebecca had already noticed the people on the road, and immediately shouted, "Don't move, don't move!"

Byron thought for a while, stood still, and then watched Rebecca fall off the two-wheeled car with a bang when she was more than ten meters away from him, lying on her back, in a panic.

But still smiling brightly.

Soon there was a guard running over, hurriedly helping the princess up from the ground, and Byron also walked over, looking at this girl who could be said to be the girl he had grown up with, helplessly. Smiling: "I thought you told me not to move because you were going to aim and hit me——I've activated my protective aura."

"Hey, I told you not to move and then I tried to avoid it myself, but what happened later seemed to be different from what I imagined...But anyway, I still didn't hit you in the end, isn't that good," Rebecca said Rubbing his head while chattering, he turned his head and glanced at the "two-wheeled cart" that had just been lifted up by the attendants, and couldn't help showing some distressed eyes on his face, "Oh, don't break it... the total Didn't send a few..."

Only now did Byron have the time to observe that strange "car", he found that the style of this thing was very different from Cecil's other mechanical creations, and he couldn't help being curious: "Your Highness, this thing...is it You just invented it again?"

In his mind, as long as there are any weird new gadgets in Cecil City, and it happens to be near Rebecca, it is most likely invented by this whimsical princess or the research team around her. - and the former even accounted for half of all new things.

Although recently due to the continuous improvement of various research facilities, more and more intellectuals are devoting themselves to technology development, and the proportion of Rebecca's "creation" in various new things is constantly decreasing, but due to long-term habit As a result, Byron would still subconsciously connect it with Rebecca after seeing something new.

However, Rebecca shook her head: "No, this was brought by the merchant when they imported textiles from Typhon recently. The gift from the Typhon people seems to be called 'two-wheeled cart'..."

"Typhon?" Byron was a little surprised, and couldn't help but look at the weird car again, "Well... no wonder the style is a bit weird, but it looks very delicate. But Typhon people are really strange , This kind of car with only two wheels... I'm afraid it's not easy to control."

"You're guessing wrong. In fact, this thing is very convenient after you learn it." Rebecca suddenly put her hands on her hips. Just proficient."

Hearing Rebecca's excited chatter, Byron looked at the "two-wheeled cart" from Typhon in front of him, but couldn't help showing a thoughtful look on his face.

The Typhons started very late in magic technology. They are indeed far behind Cecil in this field of technology that can almost symbolize a new era, but they have always been ahead in other aspects—— A very clear example is "mechanical clocks and watches", which were exclusively enjoyed by nobles and churches in the past. In the past two years, with the "punctual requirements" brought about by factory construction and railway operation, they have gradually been extended to all parts of the country. Timing machinery was first invented by Typhon craftsmen about half a century ago.

Like many technologies in the old age, it was originally used in theological ceremonies to allow the church to determine the time of the mass, and to call believers to come to the church to pray by ringing the mechanical bell. In castles and manors, but still has little to do with the daily life of civilians.

The world's best watchmakers are in Aldernan, and the world's best crystal glass technology is also in Aldernan.

Of course, the latter's key technology has been leaked to Cecil through some unspeakable channels, and the "floor windows" that are gradually becoming popular in the southern area of ​​Cecil is one of its "influence results".

Now, Typhon's smart people have invented this "two-wheeled vehicle", and there is a very obvious difference between this thing and the mechanical clocks and crystal glass at the beginning of its birth:

It's not elegant enough, and it's not luxurious enough.

This thing seems to be aimed at the common people at the beginning of its birth...

Byron frowned. He was not as good at analyzing changes in the situation from these intelligences as Gawain or Hetty. He just instinctively thought about it, instinctively felt...

Those who have mastered knowledge in Typhon seem to have some changes in their way of thinking.

Chapter 0790 Looming

On the fountain garden square in front of the main entrance, the crisp sound of jingle bells could be heard from time to time. Rebecca was riding on her "new toy" excitedly, circling around the flower bed, helplessly. The attendants can only stand not far away or try to follow nearby, ready to help the princess who fell to the ground at any time.

It's just that compared to the beginning, Rebecca is obviously much more proficient now, at least she won't plunge into the flower bed again.

Behind the floor-to-ceiling windows of the study, Gao Wen silently withdrew his gaze from looking at the square.

"Two-wheeled vehicles... the people of Typhon really made something interesting," Amber's voice came from behind him, "A scholar consultant from the Government Affairs Department has made an assessment, and this seemingly simple means of transportation has very great potential. Potential value, it is flexible, convenient, and low-cost. Any ordinary person with sound hands and feet can use it proficiently after a short period of learning. As long as the road is relatively flat, it can be used. The threshold for promotion is lower than that of magic devices... ...is a good thing."

Gao Wen didn't make a sound for a while.

What is going on in his mind is beyond the knowledge of outsiders.

Although the form does not look exactly the same as the "bicycle" in his memory, the principle and general structure of that thing are no different from the things he is familiar with, but...he hasn't had time to promote this thing in Cecil Come, the Typhons are already ahead.

Seeing that Gao Wen didn't speak for a while, Amber couldn't help but said, "What's the matter? Typhon people are ahead in 'technical innovation', and I don't feel comfortable?"