Chapter 350: The Seven Sages and the Nation of Truth

The Kingdom of Aithelin is a backwater, or rather, a remote place of exile.

This is an unavoidable reality, and there's no need to emphasize its backwardness—but what truly distinguishes it from the prosperous heartlands of the continent?

Aren't the transcendent still transcendent? Yet reality is cruel toward "backwater folk."

"Due to recent difficulties in colonizing the New Continent, the Steam Division has submitted a new funding request—they plan to build more prototype steam ships, aiming for long-distance voyages within half a year. Additionally, they've inquired about the previously proposed project for steam aerial vessels."

"Rejected. The previous massive investment in steam fleets performed no better than ordinary sailing ships against cloud whales—high expenditure yielded zero returns. As for aerial vessels: also rejected. We have no interest in diverting resources capable of developing an 11th-Ring spell toward floating discs."

In Li En's city of Radiance, the gnomes and dwarves had installed a primitive steam locomotive as a facade, but in reality, this technology had already advanced by at least a dozen generations.

Having developed for centuries, even achieving a level of technological progress comparable to a modern industrial revolution, yet unlike another world, this technology remained confined to low-magic vehicles due to the overwhelming dominance of "superior disciplines," seemingly destined to remain merely a "Steam Division."

The point of contention was a vast chamber divided into concentric rings.

At this moment, the one requesting budget allocation was merely a middle-aged mage from the middle ring.

From his position, he appeared to be a mid-level official.

But in truth, as the head of the Steam Power Division under the Gear and Machinery Division (Dwarves and Gnomes), he was already of considerable status—so high that in many small nations, such as the Kingdom of Aithelin, their king or queen would personally receive him.

Yet within this ring, he was merely an ordinary member of the fourth ring, surrounded by at least several hundred, nearly a thousand others in his row.

This was the Stu Federation, the Nation of Books and Magic—the true core of the world's "civilization," though in territorial size it was smaller than most medium-sized nations, merely a federation of dozens of cities.

Yet no fool had dared attack this permanently neutral nation without an army for at least a thousand years.

"But Director Dierlo—" the head of the Steam Division began his defense, but was cut off mid-sentence.

"Produce results. Deliver outcomes. Prove you still have value."

The one who rejected him was the president of the Gear and Machinery Division, his direct superior, who angrily shut down the subordinate's bypassed report.

His anger was justified—budget requests at this level should have been resolved within the branch.

Instead, these underfunded fools had exploited the special meeting on New Continent colonization to push their proposal onto the grand assembly.

This was outright bypassing protocol; as a member of the inner ring, he naturally had to reject it.

Director Dierlo glanced at the inner ring and exhaled in relief—the core black ring was empty, and the second ring's red ring held few people; otherwise, he would have lost face completely.

The Seven Sages and Thirty-Three Kings form the core decision-making body of the Truth Sage Council, but the positions of the Seven Sages have been vacant for centuries—not because no one holds them, but because they are always filled and rotated; the Seven Sages simply never intervene.

Each of the Thirty-Three Kings oversees one "Division," specializing in research within a specific branch of Truth.

They are all extremely busy, and today, due to the major agenda of New Continent colonization, nine of them had actually attended.

"Dierlo, don't be so harsh—I think the Steam Division has real potential. Perhaps one day it will become an independent division. After all, our own division was born from classical magic." The Gear and Machinery Division's minister, Filandor Shininggold, halted his subordinate's farce.

If one were a local, the name alone would reveal him as a standard gnome—this seemingly childlike Magic King, wearing glasses, stood atop a chair giving orders.

Time always progresses; the backward need not be idle—they need only remain ignorant and close their eyes.