People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

One is Terra as seen through Kal'tsit's eyes.

One is a pre-civilization—human civilization—that shouts, "Even if everything is destroyed, the glory of mankind will live on forever," and entrusts the choice of the end times to an unknown compatriot.

One is Ernst's hometown, which he can never return to.

Terra's pre-civilization did indeed call themselves "human," but to Ernst, they remained a somewhat ambiguous existence.

When the affairs of the world are entrusted to an ordinary person, Ernst, who is not "human," truly understands the weight of that responsibility.

The weight of civilization can be as light as a breath of "No," or as heavy as a mountain in its "answer."

Ernst recalled the words that were not listed as options. That simple word of comfort.

Do not blame yourself, my compatriot. The decision you made standing here will be respected by all of humanity.

They have been waiting for this answer, whatever it may be or by whom, the previous civilization has been waiting for this requiem.

It's definitely not "Don't answer, human!"

Instead, it says, "Please answer, human."

Chapter 343 Let's wait and see

Shelag, Tukarim, Shelag Grand Hotel.

The Duke of Caesar strolled in the hotel's garden.

The natural environment of Shelag prevents the creation of a spectacle like the Central Garden of San Marso, as seen in Lateran. But the snowy landscape has its own flowers, a flower known locally as "Yela."

It is said that this flower is the favorite plant of the goddess Yeragand. Because Yeragand often appears in the traditional texts of Sherag as a woman, the Manjushri Temple decorates the statue of Yeragand with this flower during the annual harvest festival and sacred hunting ceremony, which is equivalent to giving the goddess a makeover.

After the completion of the Sheraton Grand Hotel, many 'Yera' flowers were transplanted into the attached garden. The small, plain-colored flowers emit a light and simple fragrance, which is not strong and gives people a sense of purity.

It must be said that the Duke of Caesar quite liked this flower.

People are always interested in things that are very different from themselves.

However, her enjoyment of the garden was destined to last long; she hadn't come to the garden simply to relax.

When the grey-hatted, heavy leather boots stepped into this area, the Duke of Caesar knew that his short rest for the day was over.

She turned around, waved, and said to Rita Scamanderos, who was about to leave:

"Rita, stay and listen together."

The blonde daughter of the white wolf paused, then gently shook her head at Duke Castle:

“Your Grace, this is not something I, a soldier, should be asking about.”

"Don't say that. Your father and I are old friends. Why should we be so distant?"

The Duke of Caesar said again:

"Stay."

While her words weren't definitive, Rita also had her reservations.

The Duke of Caesar just mentioned her father, the Earl of the White Wolf, who was also a staunch supporter of the Lion King. However, compared to the Duke of Cumberland, who fought alongside the Lion King to the very end, her father chose to retire gracefully at the critical moment.

This is a rather euphemistic way of putting it. From the perspective of the Aslans, Earl White Wolf is undoubtedly a deserter.

Rita understood her father's dilemma; faced with the choice between family and the one he served, he chose family. So he relinquished power, retired from the army, relinquished all honors, and returned to his fiefdom almost alone. All of this was to protect his family. At that juncture, when the outcome was still uncertain, such a choice undoubtedly required immense courage and political wisdom.

But sometimes, it's not that you can always back out just because you want to.

Earl White Wolf's family has served in the military for generations, and his ancestor once tore apart a Sarkaz Blood Demon Prince, giving him considerable influence within the army. And influence cannot be erased simply by saying he's "retired from the game."

To this day, many nobles are still keeping a close eye on the Scamanders' movements. Among these nobles are people from Wellington, people from Windermere, and naturally, people from the Duke of Caesar.

She was unsure whether the Duke of Custer's use of the word "old friend" was merely a polite remark or a deliberate hint.

Even enemies can be considered old friends, right?

The fact that the Duke of Caesars would send his daughter, the Earl of the White Wolf, to serve as her bodyguard as the captain of the Stormtroopers, using an order from the Londinium City Council, was already a great irony. Who knows what other tricks she might have up her sleeve?

Rita clenched her fist somewhat unwillingly, but in the end, she silently walked back to her seat and stood to the side and behind the Duke of Caesar.

The Duke of Caesar nodded in satisfaction, saying as he walked away:

"Tell me, how's the investigation going? Any new developments?"

"On the day of Operation Star-Picking, an experiment was indeed conducted in the Matterhorn's dome laboratory. At that time, a cordon was set up around the area, and guards from the Perroch and Shivaesh families patrolled to prevent anyone from getting close. It is said that this was because they were worried that something might go wrong during the experiment and affect the surrounding area."

The Duke of Caesar bowed slightly.

That's a perfectly reasonable move.

Breaking through the isolation layer is a feat many have attempted, but none have ever succeeded. What lies beyond the isolation layer, and whether piercing the "star pod" will cause countless stars to fall to earth—no one can say for sure. Evacuating the surrounding population in advance is a perfectly normal safety measure.

That's not what she cares about:

"Now that the experiment was conducted, what were the results?"

“You came to report to me yesterday that the group of scientists from Colombia had hurriedly returned to their country.”

"But Ernst said that the experimental results needed to be sorted out and analyzed before they could be released to the public."

"Who is doing the analysis?"

The Duke of Cactus smiled and made a joke.

"That smartest pack animal that Ensiodis marketed as the most intelligent beast in Sherag?"

The man in the grey top hat smiled knowingly. Rita's lips curled up for a moment, but she quickly suppressed it again.

They certainly knew the story of Ensiodis and the smartest pack animal. The Sherag people had somehow learned a trick from the Kazimirs and were going to hold a pack animal competition in Sherag. The most talked-about thing in the past month was this "smartest pack animal." It was said that "he" could also do arithmetic and could calculate addition and subtraction within 100 in ten seconds.

That's incredible! Many Victorians can't do that!

Of course, most people think this is just a joke. Can a beast carrying a pack animal really pretend to be a learned sage just by hanging small glasses on its nose? Do you think it can even tell how many teeth it has when it bares its teeth?

Laughter aside, the question still needed to be answered, said the man in the grey top hat:

"Your Grace, the analysis of the experimental results may just be a smokescreen."

“We all know that the Sherag people certainly don’t have that kind of analytical ability, and the Colombians left in a hurry. Seven days is probably just a blink of an eye for a scientific experiment. But it’s more than enough time for the Colombians to return to Colombia.”

Kester raised an eyebrow:

"Are you saying that those scientists took away the real [results]?"

"Not at all."

Grey hat path,

"Ernst will definitely release something, such as some data from outside the isolation layer. Although these things are difficult to verify or disprove at this stage, they should be true. Otherwise, the lie will be exposed with a single touch."

"But the real gains will probably only be announced to their partners."

The Duke of Caesar nodded thoughtfully, as if in a sigh:

"Why don't you tell me?"

The man in the grey top hat, whose mouth was hidden by a scarf, curled his lip in disdain.

Why? Why do you think I should? Look at yourself, you old man.

Putting everything else aside, even if Ernst really did come to you first, would you invest in a project like the Star-Picking Project, which has no visible returns and might even lose money?

It's obvious that the gray top hat is impossible to achieve even with a simple thought.

Exploring the stars is indeed romantic, but the duke is clearly more interested in exploring human nature. Only in this exploration is she leading by example, taking the lead and soaring down nine thousand miles.

Ahem, Grey Hat could only mutter these disparaging remarks about his own boss in his heart.

Instead of answering the Duke of Caesar's question, which had no right answer, he went straight to the point:

"Ernst's cooperation with the Colombians may be much deeper than we thought. I believe you have also received the news that Colombian Vice President Wilson gave a speech that morning that was almost identical to Ernst's speech."

"They used the same manuscript."

"President Wilson's approval ratings soared after this speech, which the media called a 'landmark speech,' surpassing his rivals. Like Ernst, he also needed to produce results to show for his efforts."

The Duke of Caesar understood: "This is the result that those scientists brought back."

"Your Excellency is wise." The man in the grey top hat nodded.

The Duke of Caesar sat down at the tea table, smiling as he took a sip of tea. The man in the grey top hat bowed slightly and withdrew. At that moment, the silver-haired old man, Felin, turned his head to look at the silent Rita and asked:

"Rita, what do you think?"

Rita, whose name was called, pursed her lips and said:

“I don’t think it’s important.”

"What's not important?"

“What results we get is not important. In fact, whether we get results or not is not important,” Rita said. “The exploration itself is the greatest significance.”

Duke Caesar was slightly taken aback, then shook his head helplessly and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"What's so funny?"

Rita was somewhat dissatisfied.

"Your Grace, am I wrong?"

“We knew that the starry sky had no inherent patterns when astrology first developed thousands of years ago. Several hundred years later, we realized that the starry sky above us was actually a layer of ‘star pods.’ Yet, only today have people truly been able to get close to that sky. The Iberians explored the oceans, and the Colombians reclaimed wastelands; they all broadened our horizons. Isn’t exploration itself the meaning?”

“That’s…a very interesting idea,” the Duke of Caesar affirmed. “It reminds me of the adventure stories I read as a child.”

"The hero and his party endured countless hardships and sufferings before finally defeating the legendary dragon Drak and obtaining the treasure he guarded. They opened the treasure chest with great anticipation, only to find a single piece of paper inside."

"Your journey with your friends is the greatest treasure."

Seeing Rita's increasingly unpleasant expression as she gradually came to her senses, Duke Castle said:

"Child, you are still too young and too naive."

"The Iberians explored the ocean to dominate, and the Colombians reclaimed wasteland to avoid us (Victoria) in the inner circle. The exploration itself is meaningful, and that statement is correct."

She paused, then uttered the word that rendered everything before her meaningless.

"However, politics is not about right or wrong, but only about gains and losses."

"Let's wait and see what Ernst and those Colombians will pull out."

Chapter 344 Saria, We Love You So Much!

"Actually, space is not far from us. If I remember correctly, it is only about 100 kilometers away."

"If you have a car that goes uphill, it will only take a little over an hour to get to space."

On her way back to Columbia, Christensen recalled the knowledge about the universe that Ernst had revealed to her.

At that time, they were not yet ready for the Star-Reaching Project. Initial experiments had not yet begun, and a method to break through the isolation layer had not yet been found. Everything was still unknown. Whether the Dome Research Station, this hugely expensive project that almost made Justin Bieber cry, would yield any returns was anyone's guess.

But by then, Ernst had already revealed some information to her that shouldn't have been known to anyone else.

Whether it was fact or fabrication, Christensen couldn't wait to bombard Ernst with questions. At first, Ernst could manage to answer some of them, but when Christensen asked questions involving physics, celestial motion, what the universe is, where it came from, and why such things happen, he could only fall into an awkward silence.

Christensen was somewhat disappointed. She could tell that Ernst was not a professional in this field and that most of the information he knew was hearsay. The source of the information might be Levi or Yeragand, but asking him again would be pointless.

Therefore, Christensen uttered that exclamation:

“But it took us thousands or tens of thousands of years to travel just 100 kilometers.”

Humanity's exploration of space is no easy feat, especially in an environment like Terra. Intense struggles, frequent wars, escalating conflicts, and rulers who are hardly human beings—all these internal factors, coupled with a similarly opaque layer of isolation, are enough to confine Terra to this narrow land for millennia.

Admittedly, Kristen was not the first explorer, but there were only a handful of explorers before her, and compared to them, Kristen was perhaps the most promising.

Because she has supporters, supporters like Ernst, helpers like Nasti, and the advantage of location like the Matterhorn.

Aside from lacking the right timing, she already had perfect timing, location, and support.

She was grateful to these people, even though everyone had their own motives, because there is no such thing as kindness without a reason.

Therefore, she felt somewhat guilty for keeping this from Ernst.

Kristen bit her lip lightly as she examined the USB drive in her hand.