Wasteland Echoer.

Chapter 619 The Dawn of Belogersk (Part 2)
"The lakes and ravines overflow, the gods flee, the mountains gather, and winter is coming." Nabrius stood in the pitch-black, boundless space, facing the unattainable starry sky, his back to Dark, and spoke in a heavy, steady, and hoarse voice:
"Captain Dark Tyreese, do you know about 'Epic of the Future'?"

“I know, but I haven’t studied it in depth. Captain Wolfya, the illegitimate son of Commander Vasily, who died in battle while carrying out a secret mission, told me some of it,” Dark replied, standing at the end of the metal-plated bridge, watching Nebrius’s retreating figure.

“Wolfia, I know him. When I first met this young man, I knew he was destined for great things. In him, I saw a confidence, tenacity, and a moderate cunning that the Crusaders lack.” Nebrius smiled kindly at Dark, his back to him, but quickly switched to a worried expression.

He sighed deeply and said:
"Those people in the Federal Council are either too selfish, too selfless, too stubborn, or too naive. I would dare to criticize his folly even to General Vasily's face. It's just a pity that he didn't listen and went his own way, which led to disaster."

"Perhaps Vasily has no way to turn back. From the moment he chose to be seduced by Ivan XXII, from the moment he activated the first [Wind-related Core], he could only walk down this path into darkness." Dark analyzed in his own words:

“I can see that, in reality, more than half of the people in the Federation do not agree with the ‘Universal Energy Evolution Platform’ plan. Some are restless, and some are openly rebellious. But none of this can stop Vasily’s dream of becoming a great man.”

"The establishment of these 'Five Great Cities'—Kanosk, Old North Forest, Davidsk, Puvikinsk, and Vasilysk—demonstrates his resolve. He attempted to break free from the constraints of existing resources and laws through absolute power and absolute conviction, truly becoming the 'Terminator' who would end the Wasteland Era. But in reality…" Nebrius coughed a few times, forcibly suppressing the itching and agitation in his throat, and continued:

"The steam age was an era of great industrial and economic prosperity. Vasily's insistence... in the words of the economist Putoa, is that in equity transactions, when you are on the opposite side of the entire market, you are in considerable danger."

“That’s the case with Vasily. His ‘Evolution Platform Plan’ wasn’t just opposed by more than half of the officers. In fact, apart from his secretary Kuka and the crazy and ambitious Losers of the Order, almost all the Crusad officers opposed it.”

"Since you oppose it, why haven't you launched a large-scale, open resistance? Commander Nebrius, given your position and the military strength you have in the east, if you had joined forces with Shaneva's Novayask Legion before the 'Gnady Line' was breached, you could have attracted Commander Vasily's attention. At least... you could have forced him to the negotiating table," Dak questioned angrily.

After a brief pause, Nabrius did not answer Dark directly. Instead, he extended his right hand, wrapped in blood-red bandages, and pointed to the universe and stars before him, saying:

"When you were at the Yudian shore, this must have been the same scene you saw, right?"

“How do you know I’ve been to the Yudian Port? No… that name, Yaroslav is dead, Wolfya is dead, I’ve never told anyone except Wright, how do you know that place?” Dark asked, staring intently at the back of Nebrius’s head, pondering something, while his right hand slowly pressed down on the “Imitation-Mad Bear” pistol at his waist.

Fortunately, Nebrius's answer was logical, temporarily depriving Dark of any reason to go to extremes:

"Our people have actually infiltrated every legion under the control of the Federal Council long ago. Indeed, you and that 'monster' Light Sogra are both Rank 3 powerhouses in the Extraordinary Realm. Even in terms of weaponry, that big guy Wolfia has taught you quite a bit. In terms of individual combat, there are actually few who can rival you in the entire Crusad. If you want, you can assassinate any Federal officer at will, including that foolish woman Shaneva."

“But what I want to tell you is that I need ambitious people, but I need wise people even more. The ‘Alienated Dark Eye’ that Hoshino Shota just gave you is a Ranked Monster that enlightens the wisdom of users of dark magic source power.”

"'Mutant Dark Eye', right, what exactly is this Ordered Monster? Why did I feel so energetic and mentally sharp the moment I got it, but also feel... a little... a little..." Dark took out the round toy ball that looked almost like an obsidian carving and asked, puzzled.

"A little lazy, a little reluctant to move, right?" Nebrius chuckled.

"That's right. Any major decision is the result of careful consideration. If you just do whatever comes to mind, you'll only succeed if you're lucky, and you'll usually fail. I've been watching you since you were a 'monster.' When you were a monster, you were always impulsive and ruthless, always wanting to devour your enemies and wipe them out completely."

"But after you became human, you went to the other extreme, Dark Tiris. You are the most conservative and morally steadfast Federation officer I have ever met, possessing absolute power. So, until now, you have been used by others, whether it be Vasily, Wolfya, the Order, or even me, the administrator of Nebusk. You have never thought about yourself."

“Before, I upheld human morality and adhered to the Federation’s bottom line as a ‘warrior,’ simply to prevent myself from returning to that period of madness,” Dark explained.

"This is a mistake. A mistake called fear!" Nebrius roared passionately.

"You fear becoming a monster again due to mental derangement, you fear that the 'Heartless Virus' and extraordinary power within you will devour you, turning you into a lost soul, and you fear even more... being identified as an enemy by the Federation Council. In fact, even if you summon tentacles to pierce through the head of that foolish old man Vasily, as long as you can still threaten the remaining members of the Federation Council with Crusaders, no one will dare to treat you as a monster."

"Do you think being a 'monster' is so easy? You've never thought about yourself. You even went to the 'Crimson Ruins' to save the holder of the Red Magic Source, the real monster, Light Socrates, for a promise in the Gray Dream. Yet you've never sought personal gain, at least not a position within the Federal Council."

“I’m not interested in the position,” Dark retorted weakly. “Hahaha. Hahaha. Hahaha.” Nebrius turned around, staring into Dark’s still-foolish, clear eyes, and laughed wildly.
"You are just confused. You are just cowardly. You have never truly used your Dark Star rank officer status to win people's hearts, to build a team that is only loyal to you, to achieve any of your goals. Managing more troops, controlling more soldiers, and thus constantly rising in rank is the dream of almost every Crusad [Warrior]."

"But you've never thought of these things. Otherwise, given your abilities and the opportunities you've had, you could at least manage a city, a stronghold. However..."

Nabrius walked for a long time on the dark ground, finally coming to stand before Dark from "close at hand".

He reached out and pinched Dak's chin, lifting it slightly so that Dak faced the upright federal city administrator in a somewhat humiliating posture.

Then, with a subtle smile, he said:
"Since you've finally seen me, you must have come to your senses. You must be ambitious, but reality may not have given you many opportunities. I just want to tell you one thing: from now on, you can do what you truly believe in. In the 'Yaoguang' evolution platform, we found a report from 320 years ago that mentioned something related to you."

"What?" Darke was suddenly startled and asked curiously.
"I wasn't even born 320 years ago, so how could it be related to me?"

“To be precise, it’s related to ‘alien monsters’.” Nebrius released his hand from Dark’s chin, turned his back to Dark again, crossed his arms over his chest, and began to speak:

"Document K537-01 mainly describes the troublesome 'alien monsters' that have appeared throughout the Federation. These 'alien monsters' usually possess formidable strength, stronger than any mechanical force made by humans, and even traditional firearms other than 'Heavenly Punishment Fire' cannot completely defeat them."

"However, the then-Federal Council's chief scientist, Igori Constantina, conducted an experiment. She implanted memories of humans into the heads of several captured 'alien monsters' and used 'Federal 01 Psychotropic Agent' to reconstruct the 'alien monsters' brains, assisting in rebuilding their neurons."

“It sounds like a transformation,” Dark commented.

“That’s right, it’s modification.” Nabrius nodded and continued:

"Later, they recruited strong Federation soldiers and captured experimental personnel as volunteers, extracted their blood, and used some unknown energy bodies that were rumored to be left behind by gods to inject into the 'alien monster's' body to purify its blood, which contained a high concentration of scalding liquid."

"The results of the experiment were satisfactory. After a month, both 'alien monsters' shed their monster skin and shell, grew new, somewhat ugly limbs that resembled those of the alien beast race, and regained human consciousness and self-awareness. However, their intelligence was only at the level of a six-year-old child, and they lost all memories of their 'alien monster' period and before they became monsters."

"And then?" Dark pressed further, only now able to confirm that the documents Nabrius recounted might be related to his transformation back into a human from a "monster."

"Professor Igor discovered that although those 'alien monsters' who reverted to human form lost most of their power, they had an advantage over the Lost Ones in the use of extraordinary abilities and the application of magical energy," Nabrius recounted.
"Later, under the direction of Commander Vichy Romanuk, a project called 'Alien Resuscitation' was launched. However, after thirty-five years, Professor Igor mysteriously disappeared, and his team members, after experiencing a series of mental abnormalities, all chose to commit suicide. The only member who did not commit suicide also died in the hospital after more than ten days of hunger strike."

"However, the 'Alien Resurgence' project has an important research finding: no matter how the 'Alien Monsters' return to humanity, because the newly established neurons in their brains are very stable, they all possess formidable mental strength and are difficult to 'lure' or 'control'. Moreover, because the high concentration of scalding liquid is expelled, a considerable number of antibodies against the scalding liquid are produced in their bodies, making it impossible for them to revert to their 'Alien Monster' form."

"So, I... I won't become a 'monster' anymore, right?" Dark asked urgently, taking a few steps forward.

“According to Professor Igor, and the contents of ‘Document K537-01,’ it’s indeed not going to happen. Therefore, Dark Tirith, you are free to pursue your goals and act according to your own heart.” Nabrius instructed Dark as if teaching a subordinate:
"Kindness and morality are important, but those come after the establishment of [Order]. In the era of [Chaos], you need a certain amount of greed, arrogance, and plunder. In the wasteland, the more morality you possess, the more difficult things become, while the more resources you possess, the more opportunities you have to do things. Just like this universe created by the [Core of Chidanria]."

As Nebrius spoke, he took Dark's hand and led him across the path hidden beneath the darkness to the center of the space. Pointing to the starlight filling the dark world, he said:

"The Core of the Kingdom of Chidanria possesses an ability unknown to Vasily and Shaneva: the user can travel to the cosmos and attempt to communicate with the gods. This place was originally only the size of a football field, but the Core has expanded the space almost exponentially to protect itself."

"If we want to destroy the [Core of Khitanria], we need the power of the dragon race. After all, this [Core] was originally the painstaking work of a master craftsman from Khitanria invited by the Crusd Empire. On the other hand, to find its true form in the universe it created, we need a human with dark magic power."

"So, what is the reward, Commander Nebrius?" Dark looked at Nebrius, a hint of greed creeping into his gray eyes.