People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

These three dukes almost represented three standard answers, but Duke Godottin did not choose any of them.

He chose to let go.

Of course, it doesn't mean completely letting go and turning yourself into a mere decorative object. It means letting go to a limited extent.

He allowed the counties under his rule to establish autonomous municipal councils, rarely interfered with the independent decisions of major cities, adopted a tolerant policy towards people of all races and ethnicities within his territory, and even broke with the Duke of Victoria's rigid policy of "expelling infected people" based on the actual needs of economic development, promoting the establishment of "infected communities" in many industrial towns.

The city of Caraton, where Ernst is now, is a city that, like Columbia, has established communities for infected individuals and adopted a policy of tolerance towards infected people.

Of course, this isn't to say that the Duke of Godottin was particularly progressive. Where is the facade of parliament? Essentially, it merely transformed the traditional Castilian noble model—where one great noble ruled over many lesser nobles—into a model where many lesser nobles argued and voted for order. Nobles are still nobles; it's far from being a democracy.

One should always view a person dialectically.

At least, the relaxed atmosphere in Caraton is undeniable.

Taking a sip of her fruit juice, Daphne nervously darted around, then lowered her voice and said to Ernst:

"Are we really going to rest here?"

"Huh? What happened here?"

Ernst asked.

"This is an infected community!" Daphne couldn't understand how Ernst could be so nonchalant. "It's dangerous here!"

The infected community, as the name suggests, is inhabited by either vicious infected individuals or lazy, low-level thugs. Normally, Dai Feien would avoid even approaching this place.

As she spoke, as if seeking supporters, she turned to look at Vina beside her:

“Vina thinks so too, right? You used to be in Londinium, don’t you know how dangerous the infected are?”

Vina's eyelids twitched slightly. She glanced cautiously at Ernst, and only after confirming that his expression hadn't changed did she answer:

"I don't think so."

“Defiance, not all infected people are bad. Ernst’s sister is also infected, but Miss Encia is very friendly to everyone.”

Daphne paused, realizing she had misspoke, and quickly turned to apologize. But Ernst simply shook his head, sighed softly, and said:

“What Defiance said isn’t entirely without merit.”

“People living in communities with infected individuals generally don’t have a high level of education. They do the hardest and dirtiest jobs, have no right to education, and are limited by their harsh living conditions. For them, petty theft can even be considered a normal part of life.”

"They are a bunch of straws, they fall down with the wind, and sometimes, even without the wind, they fall down on their own."

"For this, they may have to thank the Duke of Godottin, who granted the city independent legislative power, which enabled the Caraton City Council to pass the Infected Tolerance Act last year, providing a gathering place for homeless people like them."

Ernst's voice stopped abruptly. He picked up the glass on the table, the bubbling beer making a gurgling sound. Judging from its color and taste, this beer, while not high-end, shouldn't be worth only this price.

But what could he do when the bartender at this bar was infected? Ernst looked towards the well-dressed, elegant, and skilled bartender behind the bar.

He may have had a distinguished past, perhaps even serving as the head bartender at a banquet of a high-ranking nobleman, making a name for himself and accumulating considerable wealth. But all of that was completely severed from him the moment he became infected.

This is not an isolated case. Even for Ernst, as Defenne stated, it was very dangerous for him to come down to the infected community to drink without any precautions. If he were to contract the disease, the Sherag people might not care about this "stone disease," but his future diplomatic work would undoubtedly be more than ten times more difficult.

Both Daphne and Vina looked puzzled. They vaguely felt that Ernst had something he hadn't said, but seeing Ernst's somewhat wistful expression, they didn't dare to ask directly.

After finishing the last sip of the golden liquor, Ernst stood up, beckoned to Defiance and Vina, and signaled that they could leave.

The idea of ​​staying here overnight was indeed a luxury. Although he didn't care much about the "infected discrimination" created by Terra, the low quality of the infected was an objective fact.

He might not care, but he couldn't let Defiance and Vina take risks with him. Adults have to be responsible for the people around them.

"Are you leaving?"

A slightly nervous voice came from inside the store. Ernst turned around, looked at the lovely pink-haired waitress, and nodded.

The waiter, looking somewhat timid, hesitated for a moment before approaching and asking:

"Are you noble lords?"

Ernst blinked, pointed to little Deafine beside him, and said, "She is."

The waiter, somewhat surprised, shifted his gaze to the little girl in front of him, who was about the same age as him, or perhaps even a few years younger. After a moment, he remembered why he had called Ernst and his group.

She snapped out of her daze, gave a small bow to Defiance, and thanked her:

"Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?" Daphne frowned, somewhat puzzled.

“Didn’t the noble lords pass the Infected Tolerance Act?” She pursed her lips. “You’ve given everyone a home in Karaton, so I want to thank you…”

“I’m sorry, I’m not a nobleman here.” Defiance interrupted the waiter, who was momentarily at a loss for words.

She clearly hadn't expected that Defien was a noble from somewhere else, and assumed that Defien was the daughter of a noble councilor from Caraton.

But that didn't matter, and Defiance didn't care about this little misunderstanding. She asked:

"What's your name?"

The waiter hesitated for a moment, then answered somewhat fearfully, "Susie."

"You should be in school at your age."

"I am infected..."

Defien was speechless.

At that moment, she suddenly realized what Vina meant by saying, "Not all infected people are bad; some infected people are very friendly to everyone."

Hearing a hundred道理 (principles/truths) is not as good as experiencing them firsthand.

She glanced at Ernst with a guilty look, then took out a business card from her pocket and said, "I understand, Susie. If you need help, you can call this number..."

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly realized that the infected person also didn't have a phone. Her hand, holding the business card, hung awkwardly in mid-air.

Ernst finally spoke. He took a piece of paper from his pocket, then pulled a pen from his breast pocket, wrote down the address of the Kjeraghiva Ash family mansion, and handed it to Susie, saying:

"If you encounter any difficulties, you can come to me."

Susie, somewhat bewildered, accepted Ernst's address, hesitated for a moment, then took Daphne's business card. She quickly bowed to the two inexplicably easy-going noblemen, then turned and ran away as if fleeing.

Ernst turned around, looked at the somewhat dazed Daphne, gently patted her head, and said softly:

"Do not be sad."

"I'm not sad, I'm just a little confused."

There was something she couldn't understand, and even she couldn't quite explain it herself.

Perhaps it's wondering why such a polite young girl as Miss Susie would be infected, or why Ernst, knowing that there are good and evil among the infected, didn't argue with her in the bar, or even why he didn't learn about these things sooner, or why he didn't discuss it with his mother and implement such a law in the Duchy of Windermere.

Ernst didn't disturb her thoughts. He simply exchanged a glance with Vina and led her away from there to the core city.

Before leaving, Ernst turned back and glanced at the sign of the small bar.

"Green sparks".

Chapter 217 Welcome to Laterano!

In Ernst's previous life, there was a famous German playwright and poet—Bertolt Brecht. His achievements were remarkable; he founded one of the three major performance systems of world theater, the "epic drama," and is hailed as one of the most influential drama theorists of the 20th century.

But for Ernst, his first encounter with this famous figure was through a poem—"A Worker's Questions on History".

Who built Thebes with its seven gates? Books list the names of some kings. Did the kings move the stones and bricks? And Babylon, repeatedly destroyed, who repeatedly rebuilt it? Where did the construction workers of the glittering Lima live? Where did the bricklayers of the Great Wall spend the night after a day of building walls? Majestic Rome has triumphal arches everywhere. Who built them? And who did those Roman emperors defeat?

These questions were brief and simple, seemingly uttered by a curious worker. Yet, it was precisely these words that left many self-proclaimed noble kings and generals speechless.

With slight modifications, this poem can also be used in Terra.

Who built the magnificent Londinium? The books list Drak and Aslan's names; were the kings the ones who moved the stones and bricks? And Kazdel, repeatedly destroyed, who repeatedly rebuilt it? The builders of Lingons, hailed as the world's capital—did they all live in the palace? The Great Yan's war against the gods, repeatedly mentioned—only the name of the true dragon remains; did he alone defeat the gods? The Battle of the Four Emperors was earth-shattering; the Gallic emperor died, and the queen wept for him—was she the only one who wept?

Ernst wrote down the poem and placed it by Defen's bedside.

He didn't expect his words, poems, or speeches to have a significant impact on this land. After all, individual power has its limits. Sargon's King of Kings and Nightmare Khan fought to the very edge of the universe, battling until the heavens and earth were darkened. Now, if Ernst were to criticize them, would they have any objections? They wouldn't utter a single word.

Ernst could only do what he could, such as educating Defiance.

The Duke of Windermere kept her by his side, placing the utmost trust in Ernst, and Ernst naturally reciprocated. He was never stingy with his treatment of Daphne.

As long as she's willing to think, learn, and explore things she's never encountered before, Ernst wouldn't mind being her guide. Although his own level isn't particularly high, due to the difference in their environments and experiences, he can teach Defiance quite a lot.

If it could offer the future Duke of Windermere a little inspiration, that would be wonderful.

And Daphne did not disappoint him. Although the incident in Caraton was just a small episode in this Lateran trip, it allowed Ernst to see the changes in Daphne.

If this change continues, then when Daphne grows up, even if he can't become the next Ernst, he can at least become a more benevolent Duke Windermere to ordinary people.

For Victoria, who was always inhuman in some way, and for the Victorians who lived in that Victoria, whose lives consisted of nothing but great wealth and high status, and great debt and servitude, this was already a great thing, wasn't it?

"The certification sent to Lateran has been approved, Ernst. The two Lateran officials we met in Colombia last time will be in charge of our reception."

Vina operated the tablet in her hand and reported to Ernst.

The tablet computer in her hand was a gift from Rhine Life to Ernst during her last trip to Columbia. It wasn't even really a gift; Seria just gave it to her because she found it inconvenient and discreet to have to call Ernst every time she contacted him in the city.

Ernst, having grown tired of tablets in his previous life, wasn't particularly interested in them. He only briefly tried them out to see what was special about Terra-made tablets before relegating them to the back of the closet. Vina, on the other hand, clearly loved the electronic device. Unfortunately, she didn't get to play with it for long either; after returning to Sherag with Ernst, it became nothing more than a brick.

Unfortunately, the tablets Rhine Life provided naturally didn't have any single-player games. And the network coverage in Kjerag was...

All I can say is that the future is promising.

The reason Vina is usable again is because their current location, although not yet officially entering Laterano City, is within Laterano's shipping lanes, and there are Originium signal base stations built in the wilderness for both Scourge messengers and regular messengers.

The cost of building and maintaining such signal base stations is very high, but no matter how much it costs, every mobile city will build such base stations on the air routes. Compared with the huge threat that natural disasters may bring, the cost of enabling disaster messengers to quickly transmit messages for the city to take refuge is simply insignificant.

Here we have to mention Sherag again. Since this thing is so important, why doesn't Sherag have it?

Because the merciful god Jeragand protected Sherag, Sherag was spared from natural disasters!

Once a day, with a little sincerity, repeat after me: Gangmen!

Having silently completed his task for the day, Ernst checked the divine stone inside the package and confirmed that it showed no signs of heating or glowing.

It seems Jeragand isn't paying attention to him right now?

They're probably dealing with something more important.

Ya'er, who was training the Flame Demon, exclaimed, "Achoo! Even giant beasts catch colds? No, wait, someone must be thinking of me! Who could it be?"

Ernst nodded to Vina, his gaze drifting out the car window. The majestic holy city of Lateran was already visible on the horizon. The towering bell tower, the magnificent dome of the Papal Palace, and the ever-growing, continuous stream of pilgrims along the way—the solemn atmosphere reminded Ernst of the Manjushri Academy in Kjerag.

Unfortunately, Manjushri doesn't have such a grand display. Jeragand's faith is limited to the Sherag region, making him a true "native god," while Lateran is a major religion with followers all over Terra. Iberia once had him as its state religion, and his followers are numbered in the hundreds of millions.

The final leg of the journey went smoothly, and Ernst's car soon arrived at the Lateran quarantine gate.

The city is mainly populated by Liboli and Sakorta. The guards at the quarantine gate are the Lateran Garrison, which was formed by the Lateran Liboli. In the passage, Ernst noticed the two acquaintances he had met once before.

"Miss Mostima."

Ernst stepped forward and greeted him, but Mostima put a finger to his lips and shushed him, signaling him to be quiet. Then, he pointed with interest to a spot not far away.

Ernst's gaze followed hers to a spot not far away, where Miss Fiameta, who claimed to be Mostima's guardian, was being harassed by another Miss Liberi.

Hmm... calling it entanglement wouldn't be quite right. Fiameta's face didn't show much annoyance or impatience; rather, it seemed more like she was caring for her junior. And the black-haired Liberian girl, judging from her attire, should be a member of the Lateran Guard.

"That child's name is Patia, a junior of Fiametta."

Mostima said with a smile in his eyes,

"He came from Iberia, joined the Lateran Guard, and admired Fiameta a lot. Every time he saw her, they would talk for a long time. There aren't many people who can make Fiameta show that expression, and she is one of them."

"And you?" Ernst asked.

Mostima turned his head, glanced at Ernst with some surprise, and then smiled calmly:

"I'll count myself in."

"Ah, it seems they've finished talking."

Vina, who also knew Fiametta, said, but there was a hint of doubt in her voice.

"Miss Fiameta seems a little unhappy?"

Mostima noticed this too, and she stroked her chin. "Hmm... this is the first time." She suddenly raised her voice and asked Fiameta, who was walking quickly towards her, "Did you two have a fight?"

“Patia said some strange things, and I’ve already reprimanded her.” Fiameta glanced at Ernst and his group, clearly not intending to reveal the specifics of the “strange things” directly.

As a direct subordinate of the Papal Court, she remained highly vigilant and discreet towards Ernst, an acquaintance with a foreign political identity who was not yet a friend.

After a light cough, Mostima resumed his business mode, revealing his signature half-smile, and said:

"Ladies and gentlemen, as is customary, we will hold a small ceremony before entering Lateran City."