At this moment, within Colin's courtyard, there was no longer any trace of the lush scene that had been seen that morning.
The plants all seemed as if their life force had been drained, wilting and some even beginning to wither and decay.
Looking around, the courtyard was nothing but a picture of desolation.
Then looking at the white mansion in the middle, all the doors and windows were tightly shut, eerily still without the slightest noise.
Cold sweat suddenly broke out across Oliver's black forehead.
He then realized he had overlooked a very important point—
Although Colin said he was temporarily leaving Neustadt City to complete a School task that wasn't part of the original plan,
in reality, he didn't need to accept a task at all, he just needed to report to the School, and he could have left temporarily.
Oliver wiped the sweat from his forehead.
It wasn't that he was worried about what would happen to Colin... after all, Colin seemed to just want to preserve his own reputation.
What troubled him was not completing the task assigned by Lord Yasi.
Oliver gritted his teeth and hastened his steps downstairs.
Although he was frightened, he was not a foolish man.
This kind of news had to be reported to Lord Yasi immediately, otherwise, the consequences would be even more severe later on.
...
"Demi, come over here a bit," Renee whispered to her younger sister on the bustling streets of Merredith City.
Demi nodded vigorously and clutched Renee's hand tightly.
"Don't be nervous, you've been here before," Colin comforted them.
After talking with Marjorie, he tried using the Ancient Tree Spring to help her recover her limbs, but the results were not as good as he had imagined.
Marjorie's injuries were not merely simple flesh wounds.
However, the Ancient Tree Spring still helped her heal many hidden ailments, so it was not entirely in vain.
Later, he left some Magic Stones for Marjorie and went to find Atbolde to inform him of his departure for a while.
The reason was to visit friends in Merredith City.
Atbolde had no objections to his departure, but stubbornly refused to accept his offer to leave the Ancient Tree Spring behind.
"I'll just stay here, where I won't encounter any danger. Even Yasi Hidosh wouldn't dare come here at this time!"
Unable to persuade him, Colin had no choice but to leave for now, but he quietly left the Ancient Tree Spring Necklace at the villa's entrance.
His mentor, Nado, would pass the necklace on for him.
Having done this, he returned home, quickly packed his luggage, and with the Renee sisters, Nasi, and even Nado from the courtyard, traveled to Merredith City via the Transmission Array.
When he left, his mood was generally calm with a hint of anticipation.
Atbolde's words also dispersed the last bit of worry in his heart.
This time, he planned to wait until he had broken through the limits with the Yi Guang Breathing Method and advanced to a First Rank Advanced Wizard before returning to Neustadt City to acquire the knowledge necessary for advancing to a Second Rank Wizard.
According to his current pace, he should be able to achieve this goal within a month at the latest, or even as soon as half a month.
A month's time was neither long nor short.
The only concern he had was whether the Hidosh Family would make another move against the mentor during this time.
But now it seemed unlikely.
After all, Atbolde had been injured for over two months, and Yasi Hidosh had not made any further moves, just silently waiting on the sidelines.
But... he hadn't expected that after just a few days, he would be back in Merredith City.
Colin observed his surroundings and was filled with emotion.
But in fact, he didn't plan to stay here at all.
His destination lay beyond Merredith City... well, it should be said beyond the Meredith Kingdom itself in a remote minor country—Fabados Kingdom.
The distance there wouldn't be too far, and although the concentration of Magic Power wouldn't be as high as in the Wizard City, at least he wouldn't need to spend a large amount of Magic Stones to ensure his training.
As a temporary residence, it was quite suitable.
"We've arrived."
Colin stopped at a tall grey archway.
This was the airship transportation office in the center of Merredith City. There was one such transportation hub in each of the four cardinal directions of the city.
He didn't hesitate, leading Renee and others inside.
As for Eliel and others living in Merredith City, he didn't plan to visit them this time.
There would be plenty of time to catch up in the future; it was now essential to get to Fabados Kingdom as soon as possible.
A couple of hours later.
In the border city of Sadi of Meredith Kingdom.
A small grey-blue airship gracefully landed.
Then, Colin and his party, disguised in appearance, took the opportunity of the evening twilight to leave the city quietly.
Eventually, they arrived in Fabados Kingdom just as the last traces of the sunset's afterglow extinguished.
Meanwhile.
In Neustadt City.
Yasi stood by the window, his back to Oliver, quietly watching the sun sink.
The evening breeze lifted his emerald green hair, like the greenery climbing and sprawling against a white wall.
"You mean, he used the Transmission Array to head to Merredith City?"
After a long while, as night fell and the dim sky turned opaque black, Yasi finally spoke softly.
"Yes, Lord Yasi."
Oliver knelt on the ground, revealing fresh red scars on his exposed neck. He took a breath and answered, his voice shaking.
"Merredith City..." Yasi murmured indiscernibly.
He turned around, giving a light command, "For now, we don't need to concern ourselves with him anymore."
"Yes." Oliver nodded, then rose and slowly retreated.
His footsteps gradually faded, and the study regained its silence.
Yasi stood quietly by the window, half of his body merging with the darkness.
Moments later.
The dark shadows on the carpet of the study seemed to flow like water towards the center, and slowly formed a gaunt figure.
This figure was enshrouded in grey-black mist, its features indiscernible, and without any sound... even a heartbeat was completely undetectable.
"How are things with Atbolde?"
Yasi showed no sign of surprise, asking softly with his back to it.
The black shadow didn't speak... or rather, it was incapable of making a sound.
However, the gray-black mist that enveloped it began to pulsate rhythmically, accurately transmitting information to Yasi.
Yasi nodded slowly, leaning on the wooden frame of the window and sighed softly:
"Where on earth has that old man hidden it..."
He looked out at the increasingly bright moon, his heart filled with irritation...
'Time has already passed too long, I can't wait any longer...
Otherwise, when Atbolde dies, everything will be buried with him, and all our efforts wasted.'
Yasi thought silently, making a decision in his heart.
He turned around, looking at the black shadow, and commanded coldly:
"Continue the surveillance. Any changes from Atbolde must be transmitted to me immediately!"