Steampunk Era: Mad Abield
Chapter 1121: Section 697: Oath (Part 1)_2

Chapter 1121: Section 697: Oath (Part 1)_2

"The greatest enemy of our generation is Chaos. If it is truly as that lady said, and our Lord Malin can achieve that point, then the future will no longer be a future we can recognize at a glance. City Guardian Zhang, as a Sage, I am willing to sacrifice my life, just so that the battle flag of Thainan Union will never fall. Every nation of us will unite under this banner... But I am afraid, afraid that one day treacherous ministers will stir up trouble, afraid that one day the petty villains who forget history will attempt to destroy all this. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain the bloodline of that Lord. Sage Yu thinks this way, and I think this way too, and it seems those from the Meng family think the same way... We must protect our Union."

At this point, Sage Qian looked at the City Guardian with pointed ears in front of him: "Please convey my exact words to the elders, tell them that I help them so that one day they will understand. Only when our pointed ears stand under the battle flag of Union to fight for our own freedom, will we not end up like our compatriots in Westland, who have become slaves, laborers, and playthings over a long period."

"Yes, City Sage, the elders are not foolish."

"Whether they are foolish or not, they themselves do not know, you do not know, and I do not know..." At this point, Sage Qian squinted and sighed.

We all do not know whether everything I am doing at this moment is right or wrong... but history will know.

May the battle flag of the Union be hoisted high, may the will of the Union endure, may all races unite, and may the guns in our hands... never point at our comrades.

......

"Sage Duanmu, ever since yesterday’s meeting started, your mind seems to be wandering. What is the matter?" Standing at the assembly line of firearms manufacturing, the old gnome craftsman uneasily looked at his peer.

Sage Duanmu was already very old, old enough... to be entered into the database.

But her Apprentice was not ready yet, over these years, her apprentices had always accidentally encountered mishaps; some were caught in machinery on the production line, some were taken by stray arrows on the battlefield, leading to a situation where her current Apprentice is only a fifteen-year-old boy.

You must not get into trouble, Sage Duanmu.

With such thoughts, the old gnome craftsman finally saw the luster return to this old woman’s eyes.

She smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "I thought about our future again."

"Why are you thinking about those things again? Haven’t we said to let the Elder Council contemplate them?" The old gnome craftsman said, taking another glance at his peer: "Lord Malin has no offspring suitable for alliance with us, but as long as we follow Sage Qian, Sage Yu, and Sage Zhao, they will certainly accept us. We sub-humans have always battled under the battle flag of Thainan Union, there is no need to worry, madam."

"Yes, I shouldn’t worry, but I fear that in the future, someone in our race may forget that we sub-humans once fought under the banner of Thainan Union, they might be abducted by ignorance and foolishness, wanting to establish a so-called Gnome Kingdom... Old friend, I am afraid, because we have seen all of that, haven’t we."

"...Yes, seen it, but my old Duanmu, our generation has already done everything we can for the battle flag on the square behind us, why can’t the future be left to the future? If our descendants are willing to follow that battle flag, then let them follow, if they do not wish to, then let them wash away this shame with their blood, for by that time, those descendants are no longer our descendants, these fools possessed by demons can only atone with death."

"Old Yan, you are still so straightforward." The sage beside him laughed: "May the battle flag of the Union be hoisted high, may the will of the Union endure, may all races unite, may our descendants not err."

"No, my old Duanmu, maybe one day, the rockets made by us gnomes will be able to carry Thainan astronauts to once again soar beyond the planet beneath our feet."

At this point, the old gnome craftsman sighed.

"What’s the matter?" asked the old woman beside him.

"Do you remember our childhood promise?" he asked, "the promise to go to the Moon."

"... Yes, I remember, although the memory is very vague now, I do remember, we said, when we grow up, we must go to the Moon... Sorry, it seems we have broken our promise." The old woman in his eyes frowned at this: "It’s strange, why can’t I remember why we promised to go to the Moon, do you remember?"

"...I also forgot." The old gnome craftsman responded with a smile.

He walked to the assembly line, not wanting her behind him to see the tears at the corner of his eye.

His Duanmu, at the moment when Sage Duanmu and four disciples died in battle, took on her responsibility, and this responsibility was for a lifetime. Compared to this, Chao Sage’s child was too small, while Duanmu was already an adult, she made her choice between him and the sage duties.

She accepted the surgery, forgot their promise, and became a Sage to maintain the Union.

If everything that lady said is true, that would really be wonderful, Duanmu, the sufferings our generation endured would not need to be borne by our descendants, and lovers would not be separated because of it, nor would anyone forget a promise made with their lover.

We once swore, to go to the Moon, to see if there truly is Chang’e, to see if there... really are osmanthus trees.