Sharding at a deeper (non-protocol level) could also be done just by having relays that "internally" (without the outside world knowing it), cooperate by participating in a network of other relays who are sharing for example one `single distributed MongoDB DB where the "Sharding" is done at the DB level`. This is true Database Sharding, and not 'protocol level sharding'.

So, multiple relays can be 'cooperating' in this way too, but you'd *sill* need the kind of 'hash bucket' strategy (or other sharding strategy) mentioned in this doc (MMBQ) if you wanted to ensure each Nost Relay would send back a unique part of the result set.