Seventh Hundred and Seventy-Seventh Chapter: Questions and Answers

He had always been deeply interested in the Pivot Carrier mentioned in the previous meeting.

A fusion of numerous witches' souls, obtained at the cost of sacrificing their sanity to gain the ability to decipher the legacy left by the underground civilization, only capable of answering yes or no, and otherwise indistinguishable from an inanimate object... all of this shrouded it in an aura of mystery and tragedy.

However, when Roland personally saw the Pivot Carrier imprisoned in the underground chamber of the hall, he couldn't help but gasp.

He saw a fleshy mass much larger than Pasha and the others, entangled in layers of iron chains. Several thick tentacles were even stretched apart, with iron nails driven into the walls or ceiling. The damaged surface was covered in scars, and many tentacles showed signs of breakage, indicating that this was not the first time it had been treated this way.

If he remembered correctly, the Pivot Carrier, like the Original Carrier, was sentient.

It could feel cold, heat, sweet, bitter... and pain.

"Why?" Roland couldn't help but frown. "Aren't all the souls integrated into the Carrier witches? And one of your Three Seats, Eleanor..."

"Lady Eleanor, Your Majesty," Pasha sighed, "It was a necessary choice. The power possessed by the Carrier is not much lower than that of a God's Punishment Warrior. Our tentacles can penetrate the soil and dig skylights in the dome, and naturally they can also attack enemies and tear captured prey in half. If we didn't do this, an unconscious Carrier that can move freely would probably mix with the demonic beasts and cause even greater trouble."

So that's how it is... Roland immediately understood her helplessness. The tentacles and fleshy mass itself might be the basic combat unit of the underground civilization. Once a Carrier located within a base and devoid of sanity went out of control, it would pose a great threat to the God's relics and the magic core. The survivors of Taqila clearly couldn't accept such a risk, and they had no choice but to imprison it.

Unfortunately, knowing this didn't alleviate the sorrow in his heart.

After all, those witches who voluntarily integrated had dedicated everything to Taqila, but now they could only be trapped in this dark corner, unable to move.

Perhaps sensing his inner thoughts, Pasha's tone was somewhat grateful, yet mixed with a hint of bitterness. "We have tried to ask them how they feel, but we have never received an answer. The fused souls cannot be extracted through the magic core, so we can never know whether they feel external stimuli."

"To become one with Lady Eleanor is the ultimate fate of every Taqila witch, and we are no exception, so you don't need to mind it," Elxia, who had been silent, spoke again. But whether it was his imagination, Roland felt that her voice was no longer as cold as before.

Well... probably upgraded from ice cube level to ice water level.

"However, when we asked whether to imprison the Pivot Carrier, all three main tendrils answered in the affirmative," Celine added finally. "If that weren't the case, we wouldn't have fixed her so thoroughly."

Roland nodded. "There is a painter in the Witch Union named Soroya who can create extremely flexible fabrics, and there is also a young girl named Youyu who can make objects sticky. If the two abilities work together, they can produce a stronger binding force than iron chains. If we replace it with this method of binding, at least it won't leave her covered in wounds. If you have no objections..."

"No, if that's really the case, then that would be great," Pasha's main tendril on her head drooped slightly. "Please accept my gratitude."

"It's nothing, just a small favor." Roland waved his hand. "But... what does it mean that all three main tendrils give an affirmative answer? Could it be that one can express yes and another can express no? Then who should we listen to?"

"Let Celine explain this question to you."

"Yes," Celine seemed quite excited to help her fused companion alleviate the pain. She immediately continued, "The biggest difference between the Pivot Carrier and us is that she has three main tendrils, which can transmit more complex messages without conscious dialogue, like I am doing now."

As soon as she finished speaking, the main tendril on her head emitted a faint red light.

"Oh? This can also emit light?"

"Before we fully mastered conscious communication, we often used it to express feelings and emotions, but we haven't used it much since then." Celine moved to the center of the chamber and pointed to the three main tendrils of the Pivot Carrier that hung down from her head and were firmly nailed to the ground. "However, those who have lost their sanity cannot do this. They can only answer through red light—light means yes, no light means no."

"However, when deciphering the legacy of the underground civilization, we found that simply yes or no cannot quickly help everyone find the correct answer accurately." She continued to explain, "For example, if a sentence means 'I am a Taqila witch', if it is translated as 'I am a witch' or 'I am Taqila', it will show as no. In this case, even a simple sentence will take a lot of time to confirm."

"So you use three answers to indicate the degree of approximation?" Roland immediately understood their thinking.

"Your comprehension ability is indeed extraordinary," Celine praised. "That's right, the closer to the real answer, the more red lights that light up. Three main tendrils fully lit up means completely correct. Of course, it also has a special meaning of agreement."

Therefore, the soul fusion led by Eleanor does not reject her companions imprisoning herself underground? Roland couldn't help but feel a little moved in his heart. Although he was not sure whether they judged based on the safety of the base or made the answer based on their own feelings, this decision had to be admirable.

He took a deep breath. "Can I ask her some questions?"

"Of course," Celine moved aside. "Just say the question directly."

Roland walked to the Pivot Carrier and said slowly, "Suppose I have two baskets, each containing two apples. After pouring them out, there will be four apples on the ground, right?"

The three tendrils lit up instantly.

"Uh... is this what you wanted to ask?" Celine asked in surprise.

"Your Majesty," Wendy also felt a little embarrassed, "What are you thinking about again?"

"Just a test," Roland asked again without changing his expression, "Then I now have twelve thousand three hundred and forty-five baskets, each containing fifty-four thousand three hundred and twenty-one apples. If they are all poured out, how many apples will there be on the ground?" He took a small piece of paper from his pocket. "I guess the total is... , right?"

That was the answer he had prepared in advance, a nine-digit number, which was considered a complex calculation in this era. People who had not received Winterfell's mathematical education would probably find it difficult to get the result in a short time—this could be seen from the silence of the Taqila high-level witches.

However, when he announced the number, the three red lights lit up again—just like before, this answer still had no delay.