Xingtie, started with a guitar, and made a living by singing

In the center of the square, a pair of automated robots were engaged in combat, surrounded by a crowd of people, with the children cheering the loudest.

Although the mechanical settlement is in a wartime state, people cannot work 24 hours a day, and their tense spirits need something to relieve them.

And it just so happens that there are at least a hundred "retired" automatic robots like this in the entire mechanical settlement, if not eighty.

There are even some amateur mechanics who bring their own "mechanical babies" to participate in the competition.

It's a bit like cyber cricket fighting.

Although it is not very interesting, after all, most of the participating automatic robots are low-level beetle models.

To use the Pokémon next door to describe the battle situation, two Metapods use Harden and collide with each other.

But compared to the black boxing gym in Panyan Town that actually caused deaths, it is much better.

Even though the latter is much more enjoyable to watch than the former, Wendy has always been very disgusted with such places where evil is accumulated.

After walking through the crowd and greeting several settlement residents who recognized him, Wendy also met Swarovski under the guidance of Beetle T800.

He was standing in front of a large building that could be called a military command center. Many traces of mechanical modifications could be seen on the top of the building, and diagonally above it was an energy core that continuously emitted heat, causing the surrounding air to evaporate.

It is precisely because of these energy centers scattered throughout the mechanical settlement that the temperature here is much warmer than outside, even to the point of being stuffy.

Fortunately, the only people here are robots like Swarovski, so it's probably unaffected. And maybe this is one of the reasons why Clara likes to walk barefoot?

At this moment, Swarovski was connecting several data pipeline interfaces and controlling the automatic robot information terminal. Materialized data streams kept flashing through the single eye on his head, which was emitting a rose-red glow.

The purple helmet with an alloy texture and the sturdy body make people subconsciously want to shout—

"Hey, Mr. Swarovski!"

Wendy didn't care whether he was busy or not, she just walked up to him and greeted him casually.

The title of "big boss" is not given for nothing.

First of all, Swarovski has indeed done a lot for the survival of the lower area, which is why everyone in the Earth Fire has never given up hope and wants to cooperate with him.

Secondly, Swarovski is Clara's guardian in a sense. After being brought into the team, he is the shield guard responsible for resisting injuries. It is okay to call him Lao Deng.

"—Biological heat source information detected, biometric data identification in progress. Result identified as "The Bard" Wendy. Hostility Level: None. Routine calculations completed."

The scan results will be included in this log. █████████████████████████."

The data stream in Swarovski's single eye shattered and dissipated, then turned to look at him with an extremely oppressive look.

Although he is a robot and not a living creature, and it is not clear whether his electronic eyes can be described as having "vision", Wendy can indeed feel a kind of brilliance from him that is a mixture of extreme rationality and humanity.

"Boss Swarovski called me here this time. Is there anything else besides a show of authority? Why don't we just talk openly and honestly?"

Wendy tried to move closer, but was firmly blocked outside the iron palm.

"Please maintain appropriate social distance."

Swarovski didn't fall for his advances. The rational male voice synthesized by the program was as reliable and steady as his appearance.

"Next, I will begin the discussion. Given Clara's trust in the poet, I will give her a second chance."

"What if I say I'm here for the future underground?"

Wendy asked with interest.

"Your words are worthless. You are not from the underground, so you have no right to represent the people of the lower regions. Let's get straight to the point, and don't waste the world's precious remaining time."

Swarovski shot back the words with a cold and ruthless attitude.

What to do next?

Chapter 9 Legal Claims

"Ah, as expected, it's going to unfold like this. I thought I had some impressive skills, but it turns out robots aren't included... I feel so frustrated!"

Wendy sighed in mock disappointment, but he had expected Swarovski to answer like this.

Perhaps because of Clara, Swarovski did not take advantage of the situation, but just analyzed calmly.

"Our chat was not established with the intention of making each other happy, poet. I have a mission I must follow, and you have your ability to please others. There is no conflict between the two."

He then added: “If your goal is to provide people in lower-class areas with more means of spiritual entertainment, you can reduce the speed at which collapse and despair spread.

According to my calculations, the probability of a poet completing this task is 98.76%.

In other words, if Wendy just does her job, even Boss Swarovski would be willing to give her recognition.

"That won't work. Poetry and performances can save people's hearts from temporary confusion, but they lack the power to actually lead others out of their predicament."

Wendy shook her head and looked up at the super robot known as "Swarovski Boss".

"At least, even if I devote all my time to this cause, I cannot change the dead end that this city is about to face."

The loss in his eyes, or perhaps some kind of freer emotion that only those from the outside world could possess, caused Swarovski's analysis system to pause for a moment.

He said bluntly, "You have a clear understanding of your own position, poet. Then you should understand that when you tell Clara about a vision that is doomed to fail to materialize, it will not only fail to bring her hope and motivation, but will instead cause her to fall into self-blame and despair over her own powerlessness."

This might be the reason why Swarovski came to talk to him.

Because of his familiarity with Clara, Wendy told her many exclusive stories, most of which were related to "Mond", which was a rare bit of selfishness on his part.

Now, it's time to retract the foreshadowing.

"Really? Then she must have told you about the story of the Free City called Mondstadt, right?"

He pretended to be surprised, but it was of no use to Swarlow. He could scan the slightest changes in Wendy's expression, and the analysis results showed that the other party was just trying to open the topic.

"...Clara did mention this to me, but I don't think it's valuable to learn from. Both the fragile governance system and the lack of resilience in emergency response measures reveal this.

More importantly, without the necessary assistance of "outsiders" and "gods," I believe their chances of survival on their own when faced with an unstoppable disaster are less than 0.2379%.

Conclusion: This item lacks the necessary context and cannot be accepted for approval."

"What a harsh and irrefutable statement."

When Wendy realized she had been seen through, she gave a helpless smile but still insisted.

"But don't you think their situation is somewhat similar to that of Beloberg right now?"

"Your argument lacks sufficient theoretical support. Please elaborate on this point."

Swarovski still had that serious, rational look. (Although he couldn't make any other expression.)

"Why do you think Mondstadt has been able to persist on the path of freedom for hundreds and thousands of years, given the lack of divine presence in the past?

Is this due to people's deep-seated belief in the Wind God, or is it due to interference from the ruling system, or is it a combination of both?"

Wendy asked lightheartedly.

"...Please continue to explain."

Shiwaro seemed to have thought of something, but was in no hurry to interrupt.

"Let's talk about this from another angle. What do you think of the current Beloberg people's faith in the Protector Star God? And what does the Great Guardian do?"

This problem caused Swarovski to crash. In the era when he was born, people sincerely and fervently believed in the star god of protection.

Because He truly gifted people with the miracle of survival, but now hundreds of years have passed, and the gaze of the Star God has never returned.

This faith has long since faded and become fragile.

Now, perhaps only the Silver Mane Iron Guards who are holding on to the front line dare to say that they are worthy of this belief.

"It seems you've thought of this, too. Although everyone here believes in Klipper, and even built a palace in his name, the first thing most people say when they come here isn't the greatness of the Star God, but rather their desire for those in power to fulfill their wishes, right?"

Wendy whispered softly, and Swarovski listened silently.

"Over time, people's trust in His might has been eroded, leaving only blind obedience to the City Builder's authority.

I also don't see any church that believes in Creep here, and the lack of religious piety is reflected in all aspects.

The Grand Guardian has not made any decision on this matter, and has even made many mistakes since taking office."

Of course, the fading of this faith cannot be blamed solely on people’s lack of piety.

In the absence of a miracle, Beloberg could not ensure that he would have enough to eat tomorrow or freeze to death on the streets no matter how much he believed in the guardian star god.

The Golden Opera House is always fully booked, and the most popular performance will always be "The Great Guardian" rather than "Crippler".

Rather than praising the greatness of the star gods, people prefer the heroic stories written in black and white in historical records.

This is probably the future that most gods will inevitably face...

After giving each other some time to digest it.

Wendy spoke again, "Based on this premise, let's put aside the topic of faith and star gods for now and return to the original 'human'.

If Mondstadt's continuation depends on the loyalty of each Grand Master, then what do you think of Mondstadt's current acting Grand Master?

Swarlow quickly gave an answer to this question.

"To the people, Jean Grunhildr is a kind and sincere Knight Commander who is loyal to her duties. To her colleagues, she is a steady, reliable and trustworthy leader.

But she was not a suitable ruler. She cared too much about her people and had to do everything herself. This not only made her overwhelmed with trivial matters, but also made her too lax in forming her team.

Such a personality and governing system are not conducive to leading people to survive in a harsh environment..."

Halfway through his evaluation, Shiwaro added, "However, this is simply due to the target character's lack of necessary situational experience, and does not rule out the possibility of subsequent growth.

Therefore, if you want to compare her with the current Grand Guardian, I would say that the people would prefer the former, but that is meaningless."

In response to Wendy's gaze, Swarlow looked at the huge gear mechanism above his head. The rose-red halo in his one eye was not bright, but seemed to dim for a moment.

"For the Beloberg people, the current Grand Guardian, Kokolia, is the successor chosen by the city builders and is the legitimate ruler.

Therefore, no matter how absurd and radical her actions are, they are the result of people's own decisions.

In other words, this is a problem within humanity. What I need to do is not to rebel against her, but to ensure the survival of the lower zone as much as possible. Even if it only lasts a millisecond longer than the upper zone, I will strictly enforce it.

When this topic was brought up, the atmosphere around them became a little heavy.

"Even if her actions would inevitably lead to Beloberg's demise?"

"Even so, she is more convincing than a leader who only exists in stories."

Swarovski ended the topic somewhat coldly and continued.

"I understand that you have doubts about the current Grand Guardian's ability to govern. However, this is the best option the Belobergs currently have."

This is not wrong. Even if Wendy could summon Captain Qin now, she would not be able to handle these things.

As Swarovski said, it was just right for her to govern a city-state of moderate size, but it was not suitable for someone with her character to be in such a harsh situation where the fate of everyone was decided.

Especially since she was not a Yalilo and had no right to decide their future fate.

Even Dihuo, who are considered to be "our own people", need not be said much, as the members generally have varying educational backgrounds.

The highest one is Natasha, who served as the team doctor of the extraterritorial "expedition team" composed of the most elite members, and the lowest one is probably a purple-haired female passerby who has not even attended elementary school.

They may have convincing power in the lower zones, but not in the more complex upper zones.

After all, even someone like Natasha, whose resume is very transparent and can be clearly presented to the public with just a simple check, has the most basic social credibility.

For those in the upper class, she still lacked something decisive.

That is - the right to legal claim.

Legitimate claims can come from bloodline or legal principles, but there is a common rule: only those who meet these conditions are qualified to be "kings."

Even if other candidates are better than the qualified ones, it is impossible for them to directly deprive the former of their legal rights and interests.

Either you declare yourself king and be punished for treason, or you maneuver within the scope permitted by the rules and see who will come out victorious.

Throughout history, there have been countless struggles over this right.

And Cocolia is the final winner who follows this rule.

Even if she looks like an irredeemable "tyrant" now, she is still a "tyrant" chosen by the city builders.

To a certain extent, she represents not only the will of the people, but also the absolutely legal and reasonable ruling and decision-making power.

It would be easy if they just led the people from the Earth Fire and Mechanical Settlements to rush forward and shoot, killing Cocolia in the convertible.

But doing so will only cause social unrest, open Pandora's box, and reveal a large number of monsters and demons.

Because no Great Guardian had ever died in a public assassination, no matter how many wrong things she did before her death, people would no longer hold her accountable for her mistakes. Instead, they would regard those who killed Kokolia as terrorists who intended to subvert the existing social order.

This also means that if you want to defeat Cocolia, you can't just use simple and brutal physical killing.