Yili Kingdom, Anzokeka Port.
Colin and his companions had arrived here in the morning.
Looking around, the sky was clear with blue skies and white clouds.
"Lord Colin, thank you for taking care of us this past month."
On the dock, Mod, carrying a black backpack, bowed to Colin with his right hand on his left chest.
Then he stood up straight, looked at him, hesitated, and asked,
"I wonder where you will be heading after completing your tasks... My final destination is Merredith City under the Wizard Alliance."
"Mod, you have already asked me this," Colin said with a smile, slowly.
"I was presumptuous," Mod replied with an abashed smile.
Colin turned his head to look at the small dock and shook his head, "I indeed have not yet decided on my specific itinerary... If fate allows, we will meet again in the future."
"Alright, Lord Colin," Mod responded slowly, then looked up and said,
"Then I will take my leave first."
"Mhm," Colin nodded.
Mod paused, bowed with his hand on his chest again, his face showing a hint of melancholy.
The Sea Swallow was not a large ship; besides him and Colin, only the sisters Renee and Demi were passengers. They typically never interacted with him, merely greeting when they saw each other.
Thus, over the past month, the person he most often interacted with was Colin.
After all, he often paid to seek guidance from Colin regarding issues with his training.
Colin's demeanor, which he had never experienced before as one of equality, had left a deep impression on him...
It would have been more reassuring to stay by the side of such a person.
Sadly, he had more important goals to pursue.
Mod turned and left, intending to board another ship to a larger port.
Such an arrangement would significantly shorten the time needed to reach Merredith City compared to starting by land from this location.
And a simple coastal voyage could be managed by ordinary people and ships.
Colin watched Mod walking away and gradually withdrew his gaze.
The Yili Kingdom was just a small country, and Anzokeka Port was only slightly larger than the port on Blackstone Island.
But to reach the Holy Flame Kingdom located in the interior of the Siya Continent, this port was the nearest according to the map.
He looked around.
The dock at Anzokeka Port was not busy... perhaps because it was winter.
Although he was still wearing a thin Wizard Robe, most people on the dock were dressed in cotton and linen coats, even the sisters Renee and Demi had put on an extra coat.
Only the working fishermen and laborers wore slightly thinner clothes.
"Wizard sir, are you looking for a guide?"
At that moment, a young man finally approached cautiously and asked.
In his mind, the recent scene of Colin sailing into the port and then magically stowing the ship flashed...
This young man before him was undoubtedly a mysterious wizard!
Colin glanced at him and nodded.
"Find a place to sit, and I'll ask you in detail."
"Yes, sir!" The young man, suppressing his excitement, led the way.
Colin followed the young man.
The three of them traveled light, with only Renee carrying a small handbag containing their most commonly used items.
The rest had already been stored in the Storage Ring.
He was not surprised by the young guide's reaction.
Typically, wizards, for the sake of their training, resided in places rich in Magic Power.
And the Magic Power at Anzokeka Port was very scarce... he felt it as soon as he disembarked.
He even speculated—the Yili Kingdom might also be a desert in terms of Magic Power.
This illustrated that at least in Anzokeka Port, wizards were not common.
Two hours later.
Outside the central train station in Anzokeka.
Sigh~
A black carriage slowed to a stop, and Colin alighted with the sisters Renee and Demi.
After inquiring carefully from the young guide, he had planned their route.
Since the Holy Flame Kingdom was a smaller country, there was no direct transportation available.
However, there surprisingly was a train in Anzokeka City.
Therefore, the best route was to take a steam train from Anzokeka City to the northernmost capital of Yili Kingdom, then find a way to the Holy Flame Kingdom.
Tap tap tap—
Suddenly.
A troop clad in triple-buttoned black uniforms, brown epaulets, and black wide-brimmed hats ran towards from the left.
The pot-bellied middle-aged man leading them approached Colin with a beaming face, removed his wide-brimmed hat, and respectfully greeted,
"Respected Wizard Sir, good morning."
As he took off his wide-brimmed hat, revealing the few remaining strands of hair fluttering in the winter wind on his balding head.
Colin glanced at the middle-aged man, paused slightly on his shiny bald head, and asked,
"Is there something you need from me?"
The balding middle-aged man pressed his wide-brimmed hat back onto his head and, after adjusting its position, continued to speak with a smile:
"It's like this, Mayor Doyle knows of your arrival and wishes to invite you to join him for lunch."
"No need," Colin declined indifferently, striding towards the train station with Renee.
"My lord, please wait..."
Colin slightly furrowed his brows and turned to look at the middle-aged balding sheriff.
The sheriff's heart skipped a beat, momentarily stuck for words. He quickly pulled a delicate gift box from his pocket and handed it to Colin while stumbling over his words:
"This...is a gift from Mayor Doyle, wishing you a pleasant journey."
He caught a glimpse of Colin's calm expression and felt slightly reassured, then added:
"Inside is a specialty trinket from Anzokeka City... Every wizard visiting Anzokeka City for the first time receives such a gift from Mayor Doyle."
Colin relaxed his brows and accepted the gift box.
"My lord, do you need us to arrange your train journey?" the sheriff asked again.
Colin raised his eyebrows.
His memories from childhood were vague, and since his arrival in this body, he had only stayed on Blackstone Island and Bananka Island.
His knowledge of the Siya Continent was limited to some documents he had acquired on Bananka Island...
Thus, his understanding of the entire Siya Continent's environment was hardly profound.
He had not expected such warmth towards wizards in Anzokeka City...
It was unclear if this was the attitude across the entire Siya Continent or just in Anzokeka...
But he saw no reason to decline such help, as the sheriff's assistance would undoubtedly save him a lot of effort.
"Yes," he nodded to the sheriff.
After communicating his destination to the sheriff, he was guided to a private compartment to quietly wait.
About half an hour later, he was led by another group of station staff towards the platform.
Walking through the corridor, they reached the platform.
A rugged black steam train appeared before him.
A rough comparison suggested it was larger than the trains from his previous world.
The length of each compartment was about the same.
Boarding the train, the staff led him to a luxurious compartment to sit down before turning to leave.
He waited again.
Whoo—!
The steam whistle blared.
The train clattered along, slowly moving away from the platform.
Colin sat on the luxurious yellow sofa by the window, staring out at the slowly receding scenery outside, somewhat preoccupied...
Walking the streets of Anzokeka City earlier hadn't elicited such a strong feeling.
The buildings and streets he saw were only slightly better than those on Blackstone Island and possibly on the same level as Bananka Island.
But they were far inferior to those from his previous world where buildings were just three or four stories tall and streets were mostly cobblestone or paved.
But this steam train really bewildered him.
It seemed the technological level of the Siya Continent had at least reached that of the first Industrial Revolution in his former life.
Why there was still no electricity or internal combustion engines, though, was a mystery—as for gunpowder.
When he had first arrived, he had thought of making gunpowder, but had never succeeded.
Later, when he researched on Bananka Island, he understood that in this world, magic power was needed as a catalyst for gunpowder to function.
But if magic was needed, it was better to use other forms of witchcraft since, compared to other bizarre types of witchcraft, gunpowder wasn't a competitive choice.
Shifting his gaze away, Colin turned to survey the spacious and luxurious compartment.
The spot he was in was part of the second carriage of the entire train.
From his observations, this compartment seemed to occupy half the length of the entire carriage… around fifteen meters long.
The interior was exquisitely and luxuriously furnished, even partitioned into a bedroom, bathroom, and a separate parlor.
If he wasn't mistaken, this should be designated for the significant figures of the Yili Kingdom.
After examining the compartment, Colin briefly wondered what to do.
The train journey would roughly take two days and a night, and he was expected to reach the northernmost capital of the Yili Kingdom by tomorrow evening.
After a moment of contemplation, he took out the exquisite gift box given by the sheriff, placed it on the table, and opened it.
A silver-white pocket watch caught his eye.
'Indeed a small trinket.'
Just as he was about to pick up the pocket watch to examine it closer, a clamorous noise suddenly came from the corridor outside the compartment.
"Princess, you're here... Wait! Are you looking for the wizard lord?"
"Please allow me to inform the wizard lord of Your Highness's arrival... Haven't you already agreed to give up the compartment?"
"Get out!"
A haughty female voice came through.
'Trouble…'
Colin slightly furrowed his brow, preparing to instruct Renee to handle the situation.
Knock, knock, knock.
But the next second, a polite and soft knocking sounded.
Accompanied by it was a sweet voice:
"Respected wizard lord, Princess Connie of the Yili Kingdom has come to visit."