Through the morning light, you can see the majestic outline of the 'Mobius' Mobile Fortress, with countless pipelines supporting this monster-like city. Because there is an industrial area separated from the old city and the craftsman district, with many chimneys, it is far away.
It looked foggy.
Two sparrows stayed outside the window, and they built a nest among the magic pipelines that ran across the attic. Those pipelines had been transformed by craftsmen into other uses over the years, and passed through the huge magic furnace of the mobile fortress.
The core provides energy for the entire city.
Laila wiped the mist on the glass with her hand, looked at them, and tapped the window lightly with her fingers. The two birds turned back and looked at the former with their little heads tilted, as if they were not too afraid of the attic.
the hostess.
A smile bloomed on the girl's pale face, and she chuckled.
She didn't have many friends in this strange city, but seeing this scene could make her lonely heart feel a little comfort. Laila thought of something and jumped out of bed - the bed was just a wooden board with a layer of
Quilt, covered with a sheet - with some thick books underneath.
She walked barefoot on the attic floor and came to the bookshelf on the side. The tall bookshelf took up most of the space in the attic and was densely packed with all kinds of books - and some cardboard boxes.
It was obvious that some books had been read frequently, and the covers were worn and curled, but the owner seemed to cherish these books very much, and carefully put another layer of tape on them.
Other books have not been touched for a long time and are as new as ever. They have long titles written in strange characters. Some of them can be seen as biographies and histories, and some are not in the common writing of the Oshurs.
Laila stood on tiptoes and took down a glass jar from the top of the bookshelf - like the kind of jar that holds candy, but now it was filled with coins, about half a jar, mostly yellow copper coins, one of which was
Face value of three or five Rieseels.
There were a few silver coins scattered among them.
Laila carefully placed the jar on the desk aside, opened the lid, and carefully counted the few silver coins. There were eleven in total. After she confirmed that they were correct, she breathed a sigh of relief and then counted the eleven silver coins.
Pick them up one by one and wrap them in your hands.
She took out another silver coin from her pocket, put it together with the other coins, lay down with her hands and looked at it carefully. After looking at it for a while, the girl poured them back into the jar together, making a ding-ding-dong-dong sound.
A pleasant sound.
Finally, I closed the lid with satisfaction.
"If we keep going like this, maybe we can raise enough money before the exam," Laila thought to herself. "I still need a set of robes for admission, but Britta promised to give me her old set."
She looked at the glass jar carefully, as if looking at the entire world that belonged to her, and her heart was filled with happiness. It was her own dream that she had saved bit by bit.
In her eyes, these coins are like a pair of wings, carrying her path to the future.
Laila looked at it for a long time before placing the jar back on the top of the shelf and covering it with a few books.
On the desk next to it, there is a magic glow lamp. The base is polished and polished. It has been used in the hands of the owner for an unknown number of years. The magic crystal on it is almost transparent and can only emit dim light.
There are many papers scattered on the table, both sides are covered with dense formulas, a quill pen is inserted in the ink bottle, and the thick book spread out is also filled with various notes and marks.
The girl closed the book and put it together with the notes. Then she picked up the half-eaten hard bread covered with a cloth on the plate beside her, took a small bite, and drank the cold water in the cup.
Swallow the dry bread.
She ate a small piece of bread for a while, squinting her eyes slightly as if savoring some delicacy.
After breakfast, Laila went to the cubicle to wash up, turned on the faucet, took a small basin of water, picked up a handful of water with her hands, poured it on her face, and then wiped it dry with a towel.
She raised her head and looked at her face through the mirror.
She has the face of a girl who is no more than fifteen or sixteen years old. She has a pointed face, but is somewhat unhealthy and pale. The hair hanging down from her forehead is loose, but dark and beautiful. Below her eyebrows are as thin as willow leaves.
There is always a lingering sense of pity in her brown-green eyes. The tip of her nose is very beautiful, and there are some light freckles scattered on both sides, which makes the girl feel a little shy.
Laila picked up the glasses on the washstand and placed them on the bridge of her nose.
There was a crack in the middle of the glasses frame, but it was carefully glued back together, and a circle of cloth was carefully wrapped around it. The thick lenses reflected the light, and together with the hanging hair, covered the timidity in the girl's eyes.
She breathed a sigh of relief and went back to the outside room to change into a robe. One of the only two robes was much shorter last year, but she cleverly used fabric of the same color to lengthen it and wear it out.
The places were also patched up from the inner layer using the same method.
In this way, no trace of the patch will be visible from the outside.
Laila felt proud of her ingenious ideas more than once.
Then she picked up the books, thought carefully about whether she had missed anything, then pushed the door open, lowered the stairs from the outside corridor, and climbed down from the attic.
There was no one in the hotel at this time, and it was quiet, but this made Laila breathe a sigh of relief. She was afraid that those people would point at her and focus on her, although most people in the hotel were not interested in her.
Quite friendly.
When passing by the concierge, Matri, who was looking after the boiler, turned around and saw the girl floating out like a ghost. He couldn't help shouting: "Laila, have you eaten well recently? Why do you look so expressionless?"
Is it getting worse?”
"Eat, Uncle Matri," Laila replied in a low voice, "...there is also a snack in the evening, half a loaf of bread... By the way, is Aunt Rosa feeling better recently?"
"She's much better," Matri looked at the little girl and taught earnestly, "You should also pay more attention to your health and don't be so anxious. If you have any trouble, you can ask everyone for help."
"oh."
The girl responded quickly and ran away.
Matri looked at the other party's back, couldn't help but shake his head, and shoveled a shovelful of coal into the furnace.
Although there are magic furnaces for heating nowadays, they are luxury items that only rich families can afford. Ayinbrok is located on the Clover Plain, and there are amazing coal resources stored underground nearby.
This is a famous steel city. The Oshu people have used coal to smelt steel here for centuries. The price of coal here is quite cheap, and both industry and residents use it to generate calorific value.
The abundant steel resources also wrote the legend of this magical city that continues to this day.
Laila came to the lobby of the hotel. She originally wanted to discuss the rent with Mr. Pusher, but unexpectedly found that there were many strangers in the lobby today-the leader was actually a young alchemist.
There were several men and women, and she couldn't help but look at one of the girls twice, and then hurriedly looked away before the other girl looked at her, thinking how could there be such a beautiful person in this world.
There was also a young man sitting quietly to the side holding a sword, which also attracted her attention. Because he was clearly wearing a wizard's robe and a pointed wizard hat, but he was actually a swordsman.
Magic swordsman?
She thought to herself that she had only heard of this profession in stories.
There was also a tall lion-man paladin, who had been sizing her up from the beginning, and when he saw her looking over, he gave her a kind smile.
Laila was so frightened that she quickly lowered her head.
She had heard of this race. They were born on the wild plains and used ancient precepts to establish a country. That was Lotao, the wild country, the guardian of the Pillars of Stars.
The ancient knights of Lotao and the Holy Guard of Mirran still abide by their oaths to this day and guard the great wilderness together with that ancient country, where the dragons were first born and where the stars fell.
Is there a new guest at the hotel?
When Laila saw the platinum morning star on the collar of the leading alchemist, she couldn't help being frightened. Her heart was pounding. How could someone with such a respected status live in the old city?
Are they the Chosen Ones?
Only the Holy Chosen One can have such a young high-level alchemist.
She didn't dare to look any further, and even felt a little ashamed in front of these people. She subconsciously covered the patched area on her robe with her hand, and then walked out of the hall with her head lowered.
…
The people in the hotel lobby were none other than the Nanami Brigade.
After leaving the Hart Principality, the Seven Seas Traveler sailed straight south, leaving the people who had died in the guild far behind, and passed through the Empire Gate Grand Canyon.
After enjoying the magnificent scenery in the Grand Canyon, we arrived at Laventure a few days later.
There, they were lucky enough to meet a delegation of craftsmen from Kaolin-Ithurian. To be precise, it was a delegation from the Ancient Pagoda Craftsmen Association. Fang Plover also met the man named Vikki who he had met before.
girl.
And the somewhat dull fighting craftsman boy with her.
The current relationship between the Guta people and the Kingdom of Kaolin is somewhat delicate. The mountain people launched an unrest in the north under the instigation of the Crow's Claw Temple, but the Chosen were only slightly affected. After all, both Stargate Port and the Chosen have their own
interests and positions.
The same is true for the Guta Craftsmen Association.
Although the ancient pagoda and Baozhang Coast have always been within the sphere of influence of the selectors from Northeast Asia, Japan and South Korea, and the ancient pagoda craftsmen association has closer ties with the interests of several countries, the craftsmen association and the mountain people are not of the same mind.
What's more, the Chosen of Ancient Towers and the Chosen of Kaolin-Ithurian are in a competitive relationship, but they are not hostile to each other.
After arriving in the Empire, this relationship becomes even more obvious. After all, they are all players in the second division. The common enemies here are the Oshurs and the selectors of the Empire.
Therefore, the Ancient Pagoda Craftsmen Association, which was originally somewhat hostile to Fang Plover, also softened its attitude. Vikki and the boy had no grudge against him. It was said that Fang Plover had taught a group of people to learn ancient alchemy in the southern border.
Therefore, the two told Fang Yu that the people from the Southern Alchemist Alliance and the Kaolin-Ithurian Association had set off before them and had already gone to Ayinbrok. The Ancient Tower Craftsmen Association had some people in Lavendur.
Business processing, so I stayed temporarily.
In terms of time, the people of Guta really have nothing to worry about.
For unknown reasons, the Empire changed the start time of the Craftsman Competition this year. It was scheduled to start in March after the Blossom Festival and last until May or June.
Even if we wait until it snows before hitting the road, there will be more than enough time.
However, Fang Plover had no intention of staying and waiting for the Guta people. After all, although the relationship between the two parties had eased, it was still far from harmonious. Besides, the Seven Seas Brigade had its own sailboat, so there was no need to stay and wait for the Lavender-Ronald battle.
shuttle boat.
After bidding farewell to Vikki and others, the Seven Seas Brigade set off on the road again.
Passing through the hinterland of the empire via the 'Wind Gorge Route', passing through several cities, we also experienced the first snow since the beginning of winter - a light snowfall. The snowflakes disappeared without a trace even before they could accumulate.
.
After drifting on the empty sea for several weeks, the Nanami Traveler finally entered the Ronoll area.
Arrived at Ayinbrok.
It was already mid-January. According to Yayo, it should have snowed in the northern part of the Hart Principality at this time. However, in the warm south of the empire, the Clover Plain did not see snow all year round.
As soon as everyone left the airport, they immediately headed towards the old city.
After asking passers-by along the way, I finally found this hotel called ‘Gear and Magic Book’.
Fang Plover and Sylvide went to the Hart Principality to look for Sir Mawei's old friend. One of their purposes was to seek help for the empire trip. However, although Sir Ash is no longer alive, and the Lynn family has also disappeared, but that Lynn
The old servant of the family still provided them with some guidance within his ability——
The owner of this hotel called 'Gear and Magic Book' is a businessman named Pushe.
When he was young, the other party did business between Sinta'an and Corin-Ithurian. After his retirement, he bought the hotel from others and currently runs a hotel and several real estate businesses in Ayinbrok.
This hotel was actually originally owned by the Lynn family. After it was sold, it was transferred to the former again.
The old servant told them that the other party had met him several times when he was managing the Lin En family's property, and he was a man of reliable character. If they wanted to find a reliable place to stay in Ayinbrok, they could use
To find each other in his name.
Mr. Pusher is a warm-hearted person and will definitely provide help to them.
This is also the reason why Fang Pultru and his party appeared here——
"That's that?" Fang Yu saw Laila hurriedly passing through the hall with her head lowered and her figure disappeared outside the door. When he saw the amiable old businessman in front of him who seemed to know him, he couldn't help but ask:
"Are you a local college student?"
He noticed from the beginning that the robe on the girl was old-fashioned, but it could be seen that it was a gray-brown low-level mage robe. And there was no rank on it, so she might be a student of the academy.
"That's Miss Laila," Pushe shook his head, "She has some relationship with the original owner of this property... The little girl came to this city to study alone, with no relatives and financial constraints, which is really pitiful.
.
For the sake of the original owner, I let her stay temporarily, and the accommodation fee was only paid by her according to her own situation... But she is a good girl, but her face is too thin... Even if I live frugally, under normal circumstances, there will be no one.
I rarely work in hotels. Occasionally I can't get the money out, so I just keep it in my account and I've never been asked to deduct it.
I also tried to persuade her, but I didn’t want to change her mind. When I was young, I went to many places and saw many things, and I know that everyone has their own persistence."
The old businessman sighed a few more words, "It is said that she is still saving for her tuition. I just hope that the girl can have a good result. If she becomes an official magician, she can subsidize her life, and her life will be better in the future.
many."
"You are so kind." Sylvide smiled and praised, then asked, "Is she from the Linn family?"
Pushe was very helpful and even became a lot friendlier to Fang Plover and his group, "I don't know this actually, but she came with a letter of introduction from an old friend of mine. The above is
Just say that Miss Laila has an old relationship with the Lin family and asked me to help take care of it."
He suddenly remembered something and asked: "By the way, everyone is also friends of the Lin En family. I haven't been back there since I heard that something happened in the Shilu Principality. Can you tell me what happened?"
Fang Plover and Sylvester looked at each other.
Then he told the old gentleman the story they had heard about the Stag Principality for more than ten years.
"I didn't expect that since I retired and stopped caring about things above Kukai, so many things have happened there," Pushe sighed repeatedly after hearing this. "When I returned to Ayinbrok, I wanted to bid farewell to the past and work on
It was a stable business. At that time, I found out that the Lin family was dealing with local property, so I bought the hotel from them.
At first, I thought they were just selling the real estate here normally. After all, this place was still the property that Mr. Ash-Lynn studied and bought when he was young. Times have changed, so it is understandable that he wants to sell it off. But then I found out about the Principality of Stag.
For those things that happened, I also considered helping out out of love, but the matters involving the magicians were really not something that I, a small businessman, could comment on.
Later, I helped the Lin En family deal with some of their local properties, and then handed over the money to the people they contacted. After that, I never heard any news about that place until you came.
Before."
After listening to the other party's story, Fang Yu couldn't help but feel disappointed.
They originally expected to get some information about the Lin En family from the other party. After all, apart from the old servants of the Lin En family, the other party was the last person they knew to be related to the Lin En family.
But this is to be expected. After all, if even the servants of the Lin En family don't understand things, it is reasonable for outsiders to be even less aware of them.
He only continued: "Actually, that's all we know. Since then, the Linn family has lost contact with Tagli. No one knows where they have gone."
Pusher thought for a moment and said: "If you are really concerned about Mr. Ash-Lynn's family affairs, you might as well ask Miss Leila.
I thought about it for a moment, and she should be the only one here who has the deepest relationship with the Lynn family. However, she rarely talks about this, and everyone respects her privacy and has never asked about her origins.
But since she has a letter from my old friend, she must have something to do with it. You are also friends of the Lynn family, and maybe you have something to do with Miss Laila. She has been having some difficulties in life recently, and you are all important people.
Maybe I can help her too."
Fang Yu thought about it carefully and felt that this was also a solution. If the girl named Laila was really related to the Linn family, maybe only the other party would know where the Linn family went after leaving Tagli.
But he had noticed before that the other party seemed to be a little afraid of strangers. If he and his group took the initiative to ask the other party about this, they were afraid that it would be self-defeating and scare the other party.
And since the Seven Seas Troupe is going to stay here for a while anyway, it might as well be done slowly.
After all, they actually have a lot of things to do -
The first step is to go to the Craftsmen's Guild at the 'Mobius' Mobile Fortress and ask about the Kaolin-Ithurian Craftsmen's Guild and the Southern Alchemist Alliance's arrival.
They had previously checked at the airport, but did not get any relevant information.
It stands to reason that the Kaolin-Ithurian Craftsmen Association and the Southern Alchemist Alliance set out from Lavender before them, and would not arrive at Ayinbrok after the Seven Sea Traveler. Even if the Seven Sea Traveler is very fast, it still cannot
It's not close to this point.
It's a pity that they are not familiar with the place in the empire, their eyesight is dark, and the airport can't give any more useful information.
Fortunately, there are finally local people who can be relied on, and Mr. Pushe is also very enthusiastic, just as the old servant said. After learning about their difficulties, the old businessman took the initiative to find someone from the hotel to take them there.
The person they found was Matri, who was guarding the boiler. The latter was also a very enthusiastic person. He led them to inquire about everything in the craftsmen's association, and finally found out where the two people from the craftsmen's association were.
Where.
It turned out that the people from the Corin-Ithurian Craftsmen Association and the Southern Alchemist Alliance did not go to Ayinbrok immediately after setting off from Lavender. Instead, they went to the Imperial Capital first.
After figuring out the whole story, Fang Yu was not in a hurry. Anyway, there was still more than a month until the craftsman competition, and the people from the craftsmen's association could always make it back before then.
But before that.
But another thing is on the agenda——
Purchase supplies for the constructs lost in previous battles and for the upcoming Craftsman Competition.
After finally arriving at this holy land of alchemy, this matter is naturally a top priority. In fact, he had this idea as early as Tagli and Lavender, but since they have arrived at Oshu, of course he has to go