Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 633 The Named Person and the Named Person

After a few prayers, having nothing else to do, the group wished each other well and then left the link.

This was almost the quietest it had been since the connection was established.

The uncertainty surrounding Gwen and Beatrice's fate left the remaining members deeply saddened.

After disconnecting, Hughes sighed and chose to return as well.

Soon, the worker Hughes's head drooped, and everything fell silent.

After a while, the calm mist suddenly surged, and the area around Hughes, who had been enveloped in white mist, was suddenly cleared.

Like a breached dam, the mist swirled and surged toward one spot, and upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a human figure.

White hair, white eyes—it's little Gwen.

She floated in mid-air without any support, glanced at Hughes, and slowly descended in front of him, her bare toes lightly touching the ground.

With a curious expression, she walked around Hughes a few times with her hands behind her back, then reached out and gently touched the forehead of the worker Hughes.

Hughes tilted his head to the side, like a lifeless doll, without any reaction.

Gwen reached into the large hole in Hughes's chest again, as if inspecting a magic prop, to see if it was truly hollow.

"Amazing, amazing!"

Gwen sighed and examined the area carefully before her body gradually rose again and disappeared back into the mist.

Sunlight streamed down from the sky, and Gwen's small body floated in the air, while the shadow she cast was that of a ferocious, enormous beast.

Something seemed to be wrapped around the sharp horn on the giant beast's head; upon closer inspection, it turned out to be several threads, the other end of which was wrapped around Hughes's hand.

If Hughes were here, he would suddenly realize why the connection was so slow today—it turned out there was an extra intermediary.

Little Gwen hovered in the air, then suddenly frowned and looked to the side. Her figure blurred and disappeared a moment later.

And far, far away, in the Canary Mountains of the North, the fog forms a towering wall, like an insurmountable barrier.

A young girl stood there, quietly watching the mist ahead, her face expressionless.

Soon, the fog parted to the sides, and Gwen's figure gradually solidified.

"You must be Lina?"

Lena didn't even look at Gwen; she stared intently at a spot in the mist: "He has descended once more, and this time it's more intense than ever before."

"Who is this 'He' you're talking about? And what does 'descend' mean?"

Lena's eyes flickered, her gaze falling on little Gwen, a mocking smile playing on her lips: "You and I are both [Named Ones], how could we not know who 'He' is?"

Little Gwen was silent for a moment.

"I've only recently become a [named person], so I don't know much."

"Ha, no need to tell such ridiculous lies anymore. There are many ways to become a [Named Person] in the world, but they are all false." Lina seemed to have lost interest in Gwen and looked straight into the depths of the white mist. "A [Named Person] cannot be 'become'. There were as many [Named Persons] a thousand years ago as there are now, perhaps fewer, but definitely not more."

Gwen fell silent again. After a long while, she turned her head and followed Lina's gaze into the depths of the white mist.

"You want to go in?"

"I want to, I want to do it so badly, but once I'm inside, I'm afraid I'll just be at your mercy." Lina's tone suddenly shifted, tinged with anger. "You've been doing so well staying in this Temple of the Forgotten, I don't even remember you. The gods have fallen, twilight is approaching, I don't blame you for wanting to save your life, but why didn't you help Lord Bruno when he died!" Meeting the girl's seemingly fiery gaze, little Gwen scratched her head in confusion: "Um... I really don't know what you're talking about, could you explain it to me in more detail?"

Lina snorted coldly, glanced at the white mist one last time, and turned to leave.

Little Gwen was left alone in the same spot.

She sighed and muttered softly, "Now I can't leave anymore, and I have to watch over this body for him."

The fog churned, and Gwen's figure disappeared. Although she didn't know what Lina was saying, she at least knew that Lina was spying on something.

Even through the thick fog, Lina's gaze fell upon the body of the worker Hughes.

Hughes slowly raised his head from the armchair and rubbed his slightly sore neck.

"This descent didn't yield any results, except for the inexplicable ability to listen to people's prayers—but the problem is, I can only listen, I can't help people fulfill their wishes!"

"Never mind, let's get back to what we're doing. Ash! Has anyone been visiting lately?"

"Yes, Gaia."

"Let her in."

The next second, the door was pushed open, and Gaia walked straight in.

"I heard you're going to make contact with the Mechanical Sanctuary?"

Hughes blinked. Gaia, who was usually very steady and meticulous, was clearly excited and anxious at this moment, and even buttoned one of her collar buttons wrong.

Hughes tapped the table lightly with his fingers, squinted in thought for a moment, and sighed: "You want to go? Is it for Chloe?"

“Who would do this for her!” Gaia retorted instinctively, but her voice softened as she met Hughes’ clear eyes. “You’ve put me in charge of the research and development, haven’t you? I think the Mechanical Sanctuary’s technology has some merit, so I’d like to go and exchange ideas.”

After saying that, she seemed a little worried that Hughes would disagree, so she quickly added, "I am already a superhuman, and I am also a Moth of Flame. More importantly, I have managed Castel's military production line. I know all the technologies we need. I am the most suitable candidate to go there!"

Actually, Richard was the better choice, Hughes wanted to say, but looking at Gaia's pleading eyes, he couldn't bring himself to speak.

In the end, he simply sighed inwardly and nodded in agreement, saying, "The specific personnel haven't been finalized yet, but since you want to go, we'll reserve a place for you in this delegation."

Gaia's eyes lit up noticeably: "That's wonderful, my lord! I will certainly live up to your expectations! Oh, by the way, I still have some projects that need approval."

Gaia handed over a large stack of documents, seemingly to prove she hadn't been slacking off. Hughes glanced through them briefly and found they were all research projects, so he didn't look at them closely and just signed them off.

"Make a few preparations, we'll be leaving in the next few days. I'll let you know once I've selected the travel companions."

"Yes! Thank you, my lord!"

Gaia ran off happily, while Hughes shook his head and sighed.

She had been depressed ever since Chloe's death, and Hughes hadn't seen her so happy in a long time.

I hope her journey to the Mechanical Sanctuary goes smoothly.

He yawned and was about to close the door when someone suddenly burst into the room. Hughes looked closely and saw that it was Zoe, who was panting heavily from running.

"My lord! Something has happened!"

(End of this chapter)