Darius almost wanted to laugh. This was a great deception, one that had likely even fooled True Lords. Gravitas had pulled the wool over everyone's eyes, and Darius now understood why, or at least, he had an idea why.
The accumulation of military power!
Why did he think so?
Well, apart from it being usually the most obvious reason why a faction would hide their affairs, it was also because the power gap between a magitech civilization and a modern Earth one was huge.
Bullets were not omnipotent, they could be spotted by a myriad of means, even more so in a world filled with magic and elements. No matter the tanks, the rockets, and all those things, they could be stopped as long as the person receiving them had a certain level of power to resist it.
In essence, it was dangerous, but not catastrophic. Even nukes, which were something Miranda had used to destroy Elysium, were only deterrents based on their atomic reaction.
What had made Miranda's nukes all the more dangerous was how far they were developed compared to the modern equivalent and the fact that they were powered directly by Source Energy, allowing their payoff to be powerful enough to even kill False Gods.
It was different from typical nukes which even the average Demi-God could tank with ease. Heck, even Grandmasters worth their salt could resist them sufficiently.
This was why Gravitas was isolated but not feared. They had enough power to cause a bit of trouble, but only once and not very potently. Rather than bother with those strange freaks, the rest of the world would rather deal with other problems first then come down upon them later.
Like this, Gravitas bought the most precious resource for a developing civilization based on technology: Time.
With time, they developed to what they were now. Now, they were arguably powerful enough to be a threat on the scale of Miranda's forces.
Why did Darius say so?
Because to become a true magitech civilization was not just about the aesthetic, the clothes, the lifestyle, and the designs, but rather the complete and total domestication of Ethereal Energy, i.e mana!
This was not just terrible because of the powerful nature of mana and the worth of what it could do for technology based on it, but also because of the fact that mana possessed a part of the three traits a machine/tech empire needed to become an apocalypse, infinite energy.
Mana was a pseudo infinite energy source, always present, free to harvest without ever truly running out. It was like sunlight. It could be harvested and converted into the type of power needed as long as one had the tech to do so.
So why was it called pseudo-infinite energy and not infinite energy?
There were two main reasons.
The first was the density of mana or presence of mana and the second was the efficiency of harvesting.
Mana was anywhere and everywhere, but it varied in quality from place to place. Not to mention that when it was drained heavily, it would enter a result in a deficiency and would need to recover over time.
That endless nature and ability to recover without cost was why it was infinite energy at its base, but its inability to maintain its output or density at all times regardless of harvesting/suction, creating 'downtime' periods where it could not be accessed, was why it was labeled with 'pseudo'.
As for the efficiency, it had more to do with the artificial aspect. The technology and machines you used to harvest mana from the atmosphere were very important in the sustainability of energy production.
Just like with sunlight, solar panels were used in the modern era. Solar panels were not nearly as efficient a method of harvesting compared to a Dyson Sphere for example.
A Dyson Sphere was sustainable for major uses and could work independently once made, not requiring extra input, whereas solar panels used batteries to store absorbed power after conversion, which were volatile and needed constant changing.
Such a thing was not conducive to the operation of infinite energy, so this artificial limitation could turn an actual infinite energy source into a pseudo one until it was fixed.
For example, if your civilization needed, say, 10 trillion watts of power per hour to break even on all forms of consumption, and you could only harvest 2 trillion watts per hour, you would be in a deficit.
Well, Darius could not tell their level of advancement from just looking, Miranda would have more for him when she stole all of their information. Right now, he needed to deal with the magitech piloted mechs that had landed before him and began firing without even asking.
Gravitas REALLY did not want anyone alive who had seen through their farce.
Darius waved a hand and used his Psychomancy to grip all the mechs in the air, crushing them like tin cans as the drivers within screamed in agony as the sharp bits of their metal exteriors tore them to shreds.
What shocked Darius were the civilians. Rather than flee like hapless chickens, they all roared with bloodshot eyes and charged at him, even children. With a single swipe, he crushed all their heads in, leaving only a single child alive who rushed over and bit his leg like a feral dog.
"Die intruder, die! You will bring disaster to my home and my Mummy!" She snarled as she truly bit at Darius in the hopes of ripping him to shreds.
Darius lifted her up using his hand and dangled her in the air with an amused smile. "Such intense mental programming. They have been made to fear the effect of someone leaking their secrets more than their lives. Truly brutal."
Darius smiled at the struggling lass who was kicking and punching furiously to try and escape.
"Before I came to Faust, I would not have been able to lay a finger on you. But unfortunately for you, my delicate sensibilities have changed quite badly over time."
Darius crushed her head and let her body dangle uselessly before tossing her to the side.
"Now, to continue my investigation."
