Chapter 78: Chapter 1172: Unexpected Events and Astonishment
The defied Court, shrouded in endless gloom and the depths of chaos, is as peaceful and serene as ever today. Amoen, the Giant Stag, lay motionless between the floating boulders and shattered ancient ruins, bathed in a faint holy glow. Today, the Goddess of Magic did not immerse herself in the neural network but silently circled beside Amoen.
This scene seemed as if an enormous ghost, as grand as a clock tower, was drifting beside the God of Nature.
After circling countless times, Amoen finally couldn’t help but break the silence, "Have you had enough of circling yet?"
"I’m just afraid that once I connect to the network, you’ll turn around and report me to the Administrator," the Goddess of Magic finally stopped, glaring fiercely at the God of Nature with eyes shrouded in mysterious mist, "I’ve realized, beneath your usually honest and simple demeanor, you’re the most unpredictable—after all I’ve helped you with, you’d report me?"
"...Weren’t you quite pleased playing cards last time..." Amoen muttered helplessly, "Even Duvalt surrendered, yet you wouldn’t leave that space..."
He was met with a sharp gaze from the Goddess of Magic, followed by a long period of silence in the defied Court.
After an unknown length of time, Amoen’s voice finally emerged in the dimensional chaos, "These days... time truly flies by."
The Goddess of Magic silently watched him for a few seconds, "Was it not fast before? Thousands, tens of thousands of years slipped by in the blink of an eye, and before we realized it, mortal dynasties had changed one after another... It was dizzyingly fast even for gods."
"It’s different now," Amoen said softly, "Back then, time for me felt like a series of endlessly repeating illusions. The world might have changed swiftly, but none of it concerned me. The thousands of years I experienced felt like living the same day repeatedly. It was... an exceedingly long day. Now, at least the time we experience belongs to us."
"Why are you suddenly reflecting on such things?" The Goddess of Magic paused for a moment, finally sitting down beside a nearby boulder, "Isn’t it quite enjoyable to immerse oneself in the neural network day in and day out without thinking of anything?"
"I was just wondering... how long can we continue living in this manner," Amoen’s voice was calm, so calm that it was impossible to discern his emotional state in that moment, except the constant glow surrounding him seemed slightly subdued, "You often ventured to the depths of the shadow realm, you should know how it is over there... The borders of the Deep Realm must be unstable recently, right?"
"I wasn’t expecting you to have not purely wasted your time lying here for three millennia." The Goddess of Magic looked at Amoen with a hint of surprise, then shook her head, "The Deep Realm... is still the Deep Realm, maintaining a tenuous overlap with the deep-sea, as you know. I wouldn’t dare approach its border—they might reconnect. But I can still sense the clear echoes of mortal thoughts resonating over there, outlining the borders of the Deep Realm. Overall, the borders remain relatively stable."
"That’s somewhat good news... You should know, when the small chaotic wave came 700 years ago, someone ignited the Well of Deep Blue. Though this mad action indeed prevented the wave from further spreading, it nearly disrupted the mapping between the Deep Realm and the upper-level domains. At that time, the border was blurred to the point of almost dissipating... I truly thought the end was nigh."
"Who wouldn’t have thought so? I was nearly scared to death—a Well of Deep Blue that massive, and just like that, it went boom. I happened to be observing the arcane purification experiments of human mages at the edge of the thought current when there was a ’bang,’ and all connections to the real world were severed. When I opened my eyes again, all of Gondor was gone..."
Amoen listened quietly to the Goddess of Magic’s somewhat exaggerated description, so unlike what one would expect from a "goddess," and after she fell silent, he suddenly asked, "Be honest—were you the one who ignited the Well of Deep Blue back then?"
"Why would you suspect me?" The Goddess of Magic immediately looked at Amoen as if he were an idiot, "A deity like me who usually avoids the prayers of mortals whenever possible—do you think I’d actively involve myself in such a complex task that could easily consume me? Especially when I was half a step slow in realizing something was amiss with the sun’s trajectory..."
Amoen remained unmoved and calmly voiced his reasoning, "The Well of Deep Blue is a source of magic power, igniting it requires channeling immensely powerful primordial chaotic magic, hence you’re the most likely candidate for action. As for the motive... No matter how reluctant you are to bear your responsibility, you are a goddess born of mortal thoughts; protecting mortals is your highest instinct, unrelated to your personal will."
The Goddess of Magic gazed into Amoen’s eyes, which seemed to be cast of molten crystals, and after a couple of seconds of confrontation, she suddenly chuckled and shook her head, "...For a moment, I almost wished I had been that deity who took a brave step to protect mortal civilization back then—but no, regrettably, the one who ignited the Well of Deep Blue over 700 years ago wasn’t me."
"Really wasn’t you?" Amoen’s voice finally held some surprise, "Then who?"
"I don’t know, but many deities who once sheltered the Gondor Empire could have. You’re the primary deity of the elf series, and having ignored the human world for three millennia, you probably don’t have an accurate understanding of the Well of Deep Blue.
"It is indeed a potent energy source, but it should not be limitedly termed as a ’magic power source.’ Beneath the turbulent Magical Vein Flow of the Well of Deep Blue lies an extensive ’network’ that traverses the entire planet, even branching into multiple domains. It’s akin to a complex waterway network that includes both surface rivers and underground watercourses, wherein there not only exists primordial chaotic magic, but also the tides of the elemental world, echoes of the shadow realm, and the mortal thought. Even mortal thoughts can connect to its deeper tributaries—hence, more than just a ’Goddess of Magic’ could have interfered with the Well of Deep Blue.
"The Elemental Gods, Holy Light, Blood God, and even the straightforward War God—all could have acted to ignite the Well of Deep Blue, if they wished at the time."
Listening to her explanation, Amoen fell silent. He didn’t doubt the Goddess of Magic’s judgment concerning the Well of Deep Blue, but her answer only deepened his confusion. In his thoughts, he finally broke the silence, "No matter who acted back then, they couldn’t have escaped from that explosion unscathed..."
"You’re right," the Goddess of Magic nodded, "Though I couldn’t find clues, simple calculations show how massive the explosion’s impact was—not only obliterating a human empire in the real world, but the backlash could have shattered the defenses of any divine kingdom, severely injuring the deity responsible. Of course, that was 700 years ago, mortals have since thrived again, and apart from us who ran or the unfortunate War God, the followers of all deities have only increased... That brave deity who ignited the Well of Deep Blue should have recovered by now, right?"
Amoen didn’t speak immediately; after a moment, he softly mused, "...Whoever they were, I offer them my respect."
The Goddess of Magic nodded, seeming to want to say more, but before she spoke, she suddenly sensed a new presence in this chaotic and dim space. She looked toward the direction of the presence, her face hidden beneath the mysterious mist hinting at a smile, "It seems we have a visitor to our little courtyard."
Amoen also sensed the presence but was quick to retort the Goddess of Magic’s words, "This is my courtyard—you’re the one lingering uninvited!"
"Don’t worry about such matters, as if you’re really the master of this place," Milmina casually responded, her gaze quickly falling on the figure walking towards them through the protective barrier. It was only after the person came closer that she spoke again, "Gawain, how come you have time to visit today?"
It was Gawain who appeared in the defied Court, having just arrived from the city—he came alone without any followers to the deepest part of the defied Fortress. However, at this moment, behind him, at the Imperial Computing Center in Cecil Castle, numerous technicians had already taken their positions. The Anti-Divine Barrier and Non-directional Thought Trend were ready, various security teams, twelve Node Scholars, and Nariteer Duvalt were all monitoring the situation in the defied Court.
After crossing a virtual isolation wall formed by holographic projection, Gawain arrived at this "resting place of gods" made up of countless fragmented floating boulders and ancient ruins. He stopped in front of Milmina and Amoen, raising his head to gaze at the large lady wearing a black long dress, whose lower half seemed to be condensed like mist, with a puzzled expression.
"I’ve come to ask you some questions, Lady Milmina."
"Consult some questions?" Milmina’s tone rose slightly, meanwhile noticing the magical devices set up around suddenly changing. Many components that had been running at low power evidently increased output; some crystals that were stuck in slots floated to mid-air, some dim magic symbols became bright, and blue-white sparks leapt between metal brackets, accompanied by a growing hum from devices operating all around.
The massive, complex Defense system had been activated, and its presence was extraordinary—Milmina’s eyes, hidden in the mist, flickered visibly, and her voice came from above, "It seems your questions aren’t ordinary, Gawain."
"... Can’t you ask somewhere else?" Amoen’s voice followed promptly, also noticing those protective devices suddenly operating at high power, sensing something unsettling, "I just want a bit of peace and quiet..."
"There’s only so much protective equipment, can’t move them," Milmina glanced at Amoen lightly, "Why not you move yourself?"
"... Never mind, pretend I didn’t say anything," Amoen sighed, "I’ll just try to pretend I didn’t hear."
"No need to be so tense," Gawain couldn’t help but smile slightly, looking at the two retired deities whose "humanity was thriving" increasingly apparent. Their interactions, devoid of divine demeanor, were the greatest news to him, after all. The more their personalities resembled mortals’, the more it symbolized the shackles of divinity on them were diminishing, "It’s just a precaution, still uncertain whether what I’m consulting about involves the mortal-god bridge—could just be an ordinary conversation, and no one will get hurt..."
"Do you believe what you’re saying?" Milmina replied, "What about that Dragonkin called Melita Ponia?"
"... That was due to inexperience then," Gawain instinctively said and then quickly realized, "Wait, how do you know about her?"
"We heard from Lady Enya when playing cards..." Amoen promptly chimed in.
Gawain: "..."
So, what do these three retired deities do in their spare time?! Did these gods just get together for card games and ended up burning the Empire’s most advanced neural interfacing equipment?!
The sudden striking fact nearly disrupted Gawain’s train of thought, almost making him forget today’s purpose. But fortunately, after pausing, he still reacted, coughed lightly to break the awkwardness, regathered his thoughts, and refocused on Milmina.
"Lady, I wish to learn about the Violet Kingdom."
Milmina paused: "What Kingdom?"
"The Violet Kingdom."
"The Violet Kingdom?" Milmina’s voice carried genuine confusion; she seemed to process a bit before matching this name to her memories, slowly saying, "I remember now... There indeed is such a nation in the mortal world. But why are you suddenly inquiring about them?"
"The way this country operates is excessively mysterious, and recently we’ve noticed many suspicious actions in their behavior over the past six hundred years. I’m worried they might pose some potential threat to the new alliance," Gawain carefully chose his words as he explained, "Of course, without sufficient evidence, I cannot rashly make such judgments on any country, so for now, it’s merely in the suspicion stage, which is why I’ve come to confirm the situation with you..."
"I understand your meaning, but why ask me?" Milmina still seemed puzzled.
This time it was Gawain’s turn to be stunned, he looked up at the former deity: "That’s naturally because Violet is a mage realm, and you are the Goddess of Magic..."
"But those mages aren’t my followers," Milmina casually said.
The defied Court fell into silence, humans and gods were quiet, with only the hum of magical devices breaking the silence.
"... You’re saying the mages of the Violet Kingdom don’t worship you, the Goddess of Magic—not even one of them, none worship you?" After a long pause, Gawain finally reacted from his shock, looking in disbelief at the deity who once held the magic authority, feeling nothing but absurdity and amazement, "The entire Violet Kingdom has no followers?"
"Yes," Milmina responded naturally, "Violet mages and I have no connection, and since the day I became conscious, I haven’t established contact with any creatures on that land. I know it sounds quite strange..."
