Chapter 624: Waiting

Within a week, Duke Thales had settled down in Star Lake Castle. However, the kingdom heir's lessons could not be neglected. Thales sighed deeply.

"Language itself is a competent historian. It records the history of the past."

Grand Scholar Bonar was dutiful and responsible. Although advanced in age, he still insisted on coming to Star Lake Castle once a week to teach Thales grammar. This made His Grace feel very guilty, especially since he knew that at this moment, the greatest resistance and obstacle between Eternal Star City and Star Lake Castle was far more than the distance between city and countryside.

"In the age when ancient Imperial was popular, the empire enjoyed peace and prosperity, the five grains were abundant, and agricultural production occupied a great portion of the language's formation. Look, even this small weaving house, from loom to winding thread, gave rise to many words commonly used in later generations. For some of them, at first glance, we would never imagine they had anything to do with agriculture, herding, or weaving..."

Fortunately, after leaving the city, the old scholar seemed more energetic instead. Often, when inspiration struck, he would lead Thales into nearby fields or farmhouses, and with a casual point, find ready-made teaching material.

"Trace them, Duke. Trace the origins and history behind words and writing. It will let you grasp the trick to using them more quickly," Scholar Bonar said emotionally. "Believe me, this is very interesting. It lets you see through the truth of so-called expression."

After Scholar Bonar first set an example that scholarship would not be shaken by politics, the other teachers were also deeply encouraged and gradually returned to normal, coming to the castle to teach. Many of them were excited to visit Star Lake Castle, and some even took the initiative to stay overnight.

"Production and life are the sources of mathematics! At Star Lake Castle, we can focus single-mindedly, without distraction, on studying the mysteries of mathematics!"

During mathematics class, Scholar Julio looked out at the clear blue Star Lake beyond the window, his eyes almost blooming with joy.

But Thales knew that what the scholar had truly been unable to adapt to was the formal, solemn atmosphere of Mindis Hall. In rural Star Lake Castle, he was far more comfortable and at ease.

The one who suffered was Thales.

"It just so happens that last time we discussed how, in navigation, captains often require a great number of complicated multiplication and division calculations to determine the relationship between direction, position, and time. This involves one question: how do we simplify endless complicated multiplication and division into convenient and understandable addition and subtraction? In ancient times, a wise man left behind a genius idea. If we can separately derive the exponents of powers as the objects of calculation..."

The prince could endure it no longer and slapped the table.

"Perfect timing, Scholar Julio! I have a very, very, very big mathematical question!"

Julio's expression changed. He put away the charcoal pencil and sat upright.

"Yes?"

Thales crooked a finger. Ralf immediately came over holding a stack of booklets.

"These account books were given to me by Baron Quentin. They record the current population, land, output, and taxes of Star Lake Castle. The numbers are complicated. Over these days, they have left me frantic and unable to eat or sleep." Thales took the hand of the stunned Julio and sincerely placed one estate map into it. "And I urgently need a talented person to inspect, summarize, compile, and answer them for me..."

Julio widened his eyes.

"No, Your Highness. I am your teacher. I came here to teach you..."

But Thales was incomparably sincere.

"No, Julio. You are not merely my teacher. At this moment, you are also the person in my castle who understands numbers and calculations best, the one closest to the mysteries and tricks of numbers. I believe you can help the people of Star Lake Castle."

Julio was somewhat moved.

"Uh, thank you for your appreciation. Perhaps I can help a little, but I cannot reduce the time spent teaching you. After all, this concerns the kingdom heir's studies and the cultivation of your abilities..."

"These account records concern the happiness and well-being of the people under me. They are likewise my proper duty," Thales sighed. "Look at this beautiful land. Can you bear to let the people on it suffer hunger? Do you think that, as the Duke of Star Lake, I should first consider my own abilities and qualities, or the happiness and well-being of the kingdom's people?"

"What you say is reasonable, and I admire Your Highness' selfless ambition, but it still will not do..."

"I will give you an extra raise. Double."

"Your Highness truly loves the people as your children. Shall we begin?"

"But it has to be on credit."

"What? Your Highness, wait. You are not doing this to reduce mathematics class time, or even skip class, are you?"

"How could that be? By the way, this is that book you recommended before, The Record of Foreign Stars. The part about Prince Hyman being sacrificed was very interesting..."

"No, when did I recommend... Wait, that is a forbidden book! Where did you find it?"

"The forbidden collection of the Sunset Temple. Right, I also found this: the complete Sermons of Archsea by Bishop Saint Lishe."

"What? The complete Sermons of Saint Lishe? Your Highness, may I look--wait, forbidden collection? No, how did you borrow it?"

"Strictly speaking, I did not borrow it. So, will you help me look at these field account books?"

"I cannot. It is class time! You did not borrow it? Then how did you get it?"

"A pity. The young nun guarding the forbidden books has to check the collection once a year. Counting the time, I have to return Sermons next month. Tsk, tsk. What a pity. Let us continue class, Scholar. Scholar? Scholar Julio? What is wrong?"

"Wuwu, Your Highness, wuwu, I understand. Give me the account books. I will look at them now..."

Compared with that, the theology class, which had likewise moved into the countryside and fields, revealed another side.

"It is all right. This is nothing. The sunset will not punish you for it. On the contrary, the sunset is tolerant and loving. She will pity your misfortune... Just do not place such firm faith in that name again. Rather than placing hope in external things, believe in your own hands, which can also provide food and clothing."

Priestess Megan gently comforted a farmer who had been tied up tightly and was trembling. He had been reported by the estate steward, who said the man had knelt in the fields in the middle of the night, waving a torch, cutting open the throat of a sheep, and muttering some mysterious name no one recognized while praying for favorable weather and abundant yields.

This left Wya rather indignant.

"You are letting him go just like that? Even though he believes in heresy and disrespects the sunset?"

The attendant officer looked angrily at the farmer, who was so frightened his soul seemed to have left him, as his wife and children supported him home.

"The temple has already investigated clearly," Megan said, making a prayer gesture without turning her head. "That was not heresy. It is only a certain folk belief that has existed for a very long time and is especially popular in the Cliffs. That poor farmer happened to have moved here from the Cliffs when he was young."

Wya glanced at Thales.

"So?"

Priestess Megan finished her prayer and turned back, her tone both instructive and reproachful.

"Our history is not severed, dear Attendant Officer Kaso."

"Even the Sunset Goddess must shine after the radiance of the Bright God and the Holy Sun. Perhaps Dawn had to share a portion too."

Megan looked at the farmers and craftsmen moving busily around the estate.

"Look at them. Generation after generation, they have been bound to this earth, farming, herding, plowing, and weaving. It has been so since the Age of the Bright God."

"So in the fields and countryside, ancient gods and old faiths, even superstition and heterodox worship, naturally pass down from generation to generation and are difficult to leave behind. But this is not their fault. Nor are they disrespectful. It is only habit, only ignorance, only muddled understanding, but absolutely not a crime."

Megan showed a smile.

"That is why we must hold charitable hearts and tolerant measure, tirelessly preach, and persist in teaching."

Behind her, Sister Nia's face was full of agreement and worship.

"All right. I am not trying to make things difficult for that farmer. It is just..."

Wya looked at Thales.

"A few days ago, His Highness merely questioned one line of scripture and was scolded by you, punished with copying and recitation, with no tolerance at all. Yet they perform rituals in the fields and believe in strange faiths, and you comfort them gently and open a way out."

"That does not seem very fair."

Megan lifted her head and looked toward the setting sun in the west.

"Fair."

"What is fairness, Attendant Officer Kaso?"

"Is it that when a prince and you break the law, I give you exactly the same attitude, punishment, and cost?"

"Even if the cost you and he can bear are entirely different in scale?"

Wya froze.

The old priestess looked at Thales and Wya, her expression stern.

"Remember, my Wya Kaso. In the name of god, forever remember."

"You should be strict with the strong and merciful to the weak."

"You should be stingy toward the rich and generous toward the poor."

"You should be cold toward merchants and kind toward farmers."

"Show no pleasant words to the powerful and speak gently to commoners."

"Be wary of those wearing armor and holding swords. Be lenient toward those who hold hoes and push plows."

Hearing this, Wya could not help stuffing the exposed sword back under the hem of his clothes.

"To keep the scales stable and balanced, one must move the weight toward the lighter end."

Megan stared at Wya.

"This is the highest teaching the Sunset Goddess gave the Revival King through the dying mouth of Prophet Mohasa."

After Thales heard this, he saluted solemnly.

"Thank you. I will remember this teaching."

Wya was silent for a while, then followed the duke in saluting.

Priestess Megan's stern gaze left Wya and turned to Thales.

"Very good. But more than remembering it, I hope you will do it."

The prince paused.

"Then what about believers and true heretics?"

Megan smiled.

"I have an answer. But I do not think you will like it."

Two weeks passed. Star Lake Castle became cleaner and tidier, relatively speaking. With food and warmth solved, everyone's lives gradually entered the right track.

Thales studied his lessons in an orderly fashion.

He began to master the reading, writing, recitation, and chanting of common Elvish. He could fluently memorize passages and allusions from the Sunset Scripture, and perhaps a few other forbidden books. Thanks to Scholar Julio, he clearly understood the different lands, populations, and outputs of this fief. He could accurately find Long Chant City in Dragon's Kiss, the three ancient capitals of the Thornlands, the Hall of Kings in Steel City, the eight major cities of the Three Kingdoms of the Lost Sea, the four major powers and sixteen city-states of Conmas, and the positions of the Seven Seas of the West Continent on a map. He could find, within the long and branching Jadestar genealogy, where each line intersected with different periods of the kingdom's history.

As for the newly appointed Duke of Star Lake, because of his mild governance, meaning hands-off neglect; no added taxes, meaning lack of ambition; and laissez-faire attitude, meaning zero presence, he soon gained a decent reputation among the fief and countryside.

But this made certain people rather critical.

"That is it?"

One day during martial arts class, Mallos had been temporarily summoned to the capital on business. The person responsible for sparring relaxed and complained to the prince in the "logging yard."

"I thought with your courage, wisdom, and knowledge, you would do something... different at Star Lake Castle?"

Thales held a wooden sword and exchanged moves with Wya while answering.

"Good, Wya. I like that move. Something different, such as?"

Doyle flicked his armor, bored.

"I do not know. Reform, improvement, innovation, progress? Like in some knightly poems, where a far-sighted knight obtains his own fief, grandly issues new policies to sweep away old ailments, accumulates land, troops, and grain, and ultimately builds a developed and advanced realm that sweeps across the world and creates history?"

Thales laughed.

"Reform, improvement, innovation, progress."

He turned his wrist and parried Wya's attack.

"Very good, Your Highness," the attendant officer said, unable to hide his surprise. "Compared with Dragon Clouds City, you have improved a lot. You have even trained the Power of Eradication."

"Practice makes perfect." Thales pressed his faintly aching left wrist and revealed a fake smile.

He threw the wooden sword to Wya, preparing to rest, while answering Doyle's question.

"It is not that I do not want to bring change. It is just..."

Thales was silent for a while.

"Do you know how many kinds of farmers and workers there are on this field? How their natures and classifications are distinguished? Where they come from and where their hometowns are? How many people are in their families? How many heads of livestock and how many farm tools they have? How many different plots of land and estates they belong to? What their daily routines are? What time they start work and finish work? How many labor tasks they have in a year? What differences exist between the work of the man of the house and the woman of the house? How they cooperate with each other, divide labor, yet in an orderly fashion produce how many kinds of crops and products? Which things among those are self-sufficient? Which products are taken to market for exchange? To whom they are responsible and to whom they report? By what ratios and rules they pay money or goods? What kinds of friends they interact with most? What they use for entertainment and leisure outside labor? What staple foods they use to fill their stomachs? What hobbies and topics they have when resting? How they pass holidays and festivals? How they handle family faith, marriage, social relations, illness, and funerals?"

These words drew the attention of many people. Glover, who was carrying clothing and towels over, and Paul, who was practicing swordsmanship nearby, both stopped.

After listening to this long string, Doyle stared at him foolishly and shook his head.

Thales smiled.

"Good. Because I do not know either."

The prince turned back and sighed.

"But these people were born here, live here, and die here. For hundreds or thousands of years, they have understood this land better than anyone. What right do I have to think that a so-called Duke of Star Lake, newly arrived from the sky and never having touched mud with his fingers, can possess more, deeper, more professional wisdom and knowledge than they do, knowledge better adapted to the local ecology, and then guide them on how to live better?"

"I am not Brother Mohasa. I am not a prophet descended from heaven. That profession exists only in the Sunset Scripture. And I am not so arrogant, arrogant enough to see through history and point out the direction of the 'future' for this muddy world."

Thales came back to himself and patted Doyle's shoulder.

"Let us go. We are going home. I remember Kusta's traps in the hunting forest caught two wild boars today, and the Logistics Wing has hired a new cook. Dinner should not be too monotonous."

Doyle nodded, only half understanding.

"But you also said that just because something has always been so does not mean it is right."

Wya's words made Thales stop.

"Like what you did in Dragon Clouds City," Wya said in a low voice. "Your astonishing feat broke the Northland's thousand-year shackles and brought new life. That was how you reversed the situation and witnessed history."

"Perhaps the people on this land have accumulated habits and wisdom through time and history. But if everything remains unchanged, they will inevitably cling to convention," the attendant officer said, looking at Thales' back. "Perhaps sometimes, what is needed is precisely a wise and decisive ruler like you to bring change and innovation, just like the countless reforms in the kingdom's history."

Thales had his back to him and said nothing for a long time.

Until he exhaled.

"Yes. Thank you for reminding me, Wya."

He turned around and faced everyone on the training ground.

"But if I learned anything in the six or seven years after the Night of Dragon Blood," Thales smiled, "perhaps it is humility."

Wya froze.

Thales took the towel from Glover and wiped his face, removing his protective gear piece by piece.

"The head of the One-Winged Raven family, Lord Del Kroma of Wing Fort, once told me a small story."

"Do you know when messenger ravens appeared?"

Everyone on the training ground looked at one another.

"The ancient empire."

The one who answered was Glover. He said seriously:

"Emperor Komora adopted messenger ravens on a large scale to transmit military information. They played an important role in war, allowing him to command armies and control the overall situation with incredible efficiency, far surpassing opponents of the same age and winning decisive opportunities."

"Even after the conquest was completed, messenger ravens played a great role," Paul continued. "No matter how far apart territories were, messages could be sent in the morning and arrive by evening. Only then could the emperor, seated in the imperial domain, firmly rule the great provinces with orders coming from one source. This improved governance, strengthened the empire's cohesion, and weakened the possibility of division. It was an important factor in the empire maintaining rule after the epic conquest."

Listening to their answers, Thales nodded one after another.

"Correct."

"But that was not the first appearance of messenger ravens. It was not their first time stepping onto the stage of history."

Thales searched his memories.

"Around the seven hundredth year of the Era of Kings, about two hundred years before the emperor was born, a mage... a wise man discovered that certain special birds reacted differently to specific magnets. This may have been why they could cross ten thousand li without getting lost. The technique of messenger ravens originated from there."

"Very soon, a king of the Western Waves Cliffs decided to put a carefully bred and trained group of messenger ravens into use. They would replace the communication channels between city-states, replacing all messengers, post riders, and beacon fires. 'I have seized civilization and the future,' he said, full of boldness and hope."

Thales paused.

"But matters were not that simple."

"Messenger ravens were indeed novel, swift, and convenient. But their technology was far from mature. The costs of breeding and training remained high. The expense required to raise one for a year was enough to let an ordinary family eat and dress warmly. The training cycle and results were also unsatisfactory."

Thales' tone grew lower and lower.

"But the king still firmly believed that messenger ravens were the future. For this, he spared no cost and counted no price. He ignored every opposing remonstration and insisted on using the ravens. The kingdom's taxes grew heavier because of it."

"Soon, messenger ravens became the new fashion. For a time, throughout the kingdom, everyone competed to search for bird breeds, build aviaries, plant bird feed, and mine magnetic ore. One story records that a poor family struggled to live. They preserved the raven feed and kept the messenger ravens alive, but starved their own children to death."

Hearing this, Wya sighed softly.

Ralf crossed his arms tighter and tighter.

"Second, the appearance of messenger ravens affected many people's lives: lords, nobles, priests, messengers, postmen, watchmen, even heralds and sentries. These were direct effects. Indirectly affected were scholars who wrote, scribes, poets accustomed to writing long pieces, stewards who collected rent. Some lost jobs, some changed professions, some protested, and some persisted in the old methods of communication..."

Paul looked thoughtful.

"And that was not all. Because messenger ravens existed, much information that had appeared an hour earlier could be known by lords an hour later. Thus the timing for farmers to pay rent, the deadlines for tax calculations, the pace of craftsmen's work, the fluctuation of market prices, the rhythm of everything was raised again and again. Everyone's life changed completely. Lost and bewildered, they all did their utmost to keep up with the pace of messenger ravens, or rather, the pace of the king, but could not. They suffered and were miserable."

Glover's brows locked tightly.

Thales removed the last piece of protective gear and faced the sunset over the western mountains with a light body.

"But the king was so devoted to progress and civilization. He believed the setbacks before him were only labor pains, that temporary sacrifice would surely be compensated, and that messenger raven technology would ultimately accelerate his production, make communication efficient, and finally make the country strong and wealthy, thereby solving every problem."

Thales gradually fell into thought.

"But he was right," Glover could not help saying. "Messenger ravens were essential in the emperor's conquest and rule."

Thales only smiled.

Doyle looked from one side to the other, full of confusion.

"In the end, under the influence of many, many factors, messenger ravens were hunted and killed, aviaries were destroyed, raven trainers were hanged, and that king who had 'seized the future' was driven from the throne by endless riots and uprisings."

Thales lifted his head.

"Before dying, he questioned the Bright God in the heavens with tears: 'Why? What I promised this world was clearly a technology that would change everything, an achievement destined to be passed down for all ages, the most beautiful civilization and future!'"

Thales ended the story in a low voice.

"The first application of messenger ravens in the world failed there."

"By the time the emperor raised his army and the empire conquered, and messenger ravens became known and accepted by more people, two hundred years had already passed."

When his voice fell, soft cries of birds returning to their nests came from the distant mountain forest.

Paul closed his eyes.

"A pity."

Everyone on the training ground was silent for a long while, until Wya asked tentatively:

"You mean to say that the king was too arrogant and not humble enough?"

Thales nodded, then shook his head.

"Historical records say that this Western Waves king, known as the Raven Lord, 'sought too greatly, was obsessed with heights, favored birds and abused the people, and lost sight of what was before him.'"

"Indeed."

Paul sighed.

"If this king had proceeded step by step, applying it on a small scale first instead of rushing for success and quick gains; if he had cared for the people, understood their conditions, and comprehended political affairs, slowly planning; if he had waited until the technology matured before..."

"If."

Thales interrupted Paul and looked blankly at the horizon.

"If?"

"Yes. We can always so confidently find reasons for history and so simply find explanations for the past."

Paul was temporarily puzzled.

Thales continued, lost in thought.

"But from the Raven Lord to the emperor, the two hundred years in which messenger ravens were abandoned, were they the attitude and reaction of this world toward messenger ravens? Were they the inevitability of history itself 'proceeding step by step'? Or were they the consequence of mankind's own 'rushing for quick gains'?"

The Star Lake Guards exchanged glances, expressing double confusion toward both the topic and the duke.

But Thales remained absent-minded, speaking to himself.

"The Raven Lord's tragedy is lamentable, but was it inevitable and unavoidable? Is it something that cannot be solved no matter how we stand in later generations and loudly say, 'If only this or that had happened'?"

"Were those two hundred years necessary sacrifice and cost, or unnecessary waste and blindness?"

"And how should we maintain humility without losing passion?"

These words drew different reactions from many people. Some lowered their heads in deep thought; some were utterly confused.

"Your Highness?"

Wya approached worriedly.

"I do not know, Wya." Thales shook his head. "I truly do not know."

"The people on our land, lords, farmers, merchants, craftsmen, they exist in the same age as us, the same stretch of history, the same world."

"What right do I have to think I am qualified to be arrogant? What right do I have to think I can bring them anything? What right do I have to think that in their history and land, there is no wisdom and longing passed down through generations, that there are not seeds of change and improvement, that there are not buds of future and hope buried there, waiting one day to break through the soil?"

After a few seconds, Thales woke from his thoughts, smiled apologetically at everyone, indicated that martial arts class was over, and let the complicated-minded crowd pack up and prepare to return to the castle.

Only Wya stayed silent for quite a while.

He took a deep breath, gathered his courage, and came forward.

"Your Highness," Wya lowered his voice, "what troubles you is not Star Lake Castle, nor messenger ravens, but something else, is it not?"

Thales' movements paused, and he looked at Wya.

"Viscount Nyman once said," the attendant officer said, full of worry, "that when you are upset, you like to talk. You talk a great deal, and it is often full of emotion and sighs."

Putray Nyman.

The image of that old smoker flashed through Thales' mind, making the corners of his mouth lift unconsciously.

"You know, you do not have to bear everything alone. You can trust me, or anyone you think is worthy of trust," Wya said sincerely.

Thales gazed at Wya for a very, very long time.

He could not help remembering his first meeting with the other man, that stiff and rigid young fellow solemnly swearing loyalty to him.

The prince reached into his pocket and once again grasped the Covenant tightly.

"It is mealtime. Let us go back."

After a few seconds, Thales pulled his hand out of his pocket and showed Wya a warm smile.

"Whether we are hungry or not, we still have to eat."

Wya's expression dimmed.

Thales patted his shoulder and walked toward the castle on his own.

"But the Raven Lord is also worthy of respect, is he not?"

Wya's voice sounded behind him.

Thales' steps slowed.

"Regarding messenger ravens, he failed, but the world ultimately succeeded. After two hundred years of labor pains, it succeeded through the emperor."

Wya's voice was rather urgent.

"Whether it was inevitable or unnecessary, regardless of how the outside world judges him, the Raven Lord made the choice he believed in."

"For him, perhaps that was enough."

Thales was silent for a long time.

After that, he stepped forward and entered the castle.

That night, after Thales finished dinner, he went to the study in Jackal Tower as usual.

But this time, after he greeted Glover and Ralf, who were standing guard outside, and had them close the door, Thales' expression changed.

He turned around and looked at the figure standing behind the desk, who had appeared in the room at some unknown time.

"From your last letter until now, you have made me wait far too long."

The prince spoke coldly.

"Too long? Believe me, Thales, for existences like us, who live in eternity and sleep in an instant..."

Behind the desk, his most unusual teacher, the Air Mystic Asda Sakern, smiled without quite smiling. He twisted his slender fingers and elegantly set down a blue invitation.

"There is no waiting that can be called 'long.'"