Chapter 612: Chapter 393: The Past
Brilliant sunlight pierced through the square window, casting a scene inside the room.
This was a gigantic, rectangular stone house, the walls and ceiling formed as one piece, clearly bearing traces of witchcraft.
Inside, there was a huge metal contraption shining like silver, resembling a mechanical serpent stretching across the room, with gears and levers intermittently visible on its exposed surface.
Driven by the Magic Stone, the silver serpent hummed continuously as it rapidly produced rough prototypes of uniquely shaped farming tools.
Members of the Truth Society gathered around, marvelling and gasping in wonder from time to time.
"Lady Ice, this is indeed an extraordinary invention!"
"Yes, with these, we no longer need to hire so many workers, just provide Magic Stones and raw materials, and the products can be made incessantly!"
"Now that the costs have plummeted, even if we set the price at one-fifth of the original, we still stand to earn!"
Shelley stood at the central main seat, her tired face involuntarily revealing an excited expression.
The automated assembly line she had created without sleep over the past few days, based on Colin’s suggestion, indeed hadn’t disappointed her!
"What a great stroke of ingenuity," Silvester, with his hair white as snow, adjusted his glasses and couldn’t help but exclaim.
Breaking down the complex production process into different parts allowed each stage to focus solely on one segment of work, a model that could be used for more than just making farming tools.
And the use of machinery instead of manual labor... That kind of thing was unheard of, since witchcraft creations are much more expensive than ordinary people.
But now it seemed, this approach had its merits, especially in work efficiency where witchcraft creations excelled... Moreover, in the long run, the cost of witchcraft creations might not necessarily be more expensive than manual labor.
"Is this also an idea from your friend?" he turned his head and curiously whispered to Shelley.
"Yes," Shelley nodded lightly, "He said he saw it in some ancient book."
"He’s very cautious indeed," Silvester shook his head with a light laugh, musing to himself.
If such a thing had appeared before, it would not be unknown; yet now, whether it was he or any other wizard, they had never heard of anything similar.
This could only mean one thing—this entirely new model was researched and developed by that wizard himself!
Seeing Silvester shake his head, Shelley involuntarily looked over, her gaze somewhat worried.
"Don’t worry, the existence of your friend will only be known to you and me among all the members of the Truth Society."
Feeling her gaze, Silvester again emphasized with a smile through telepathy.
As the president of both the True Knowledge Society and the Truth Society, he was certainly not some young chatterbox.
Since Shelley’s friend did not wish to reveal his own identity or to be linked with their Truth Society, he would naturally do his best to cooperate with the other party.
In fact, he had never deliberately tried to uncover the mysterious wizard’s true identity until now.
However, because of Shelley’s conspicuously noticeable behavior, Silvester had a vague suspicion in his heart.
After all, the girl who always preferred solitude would excuse herself every evening to go home, quietly leaving for a while, no matter how busy she was. Only when the situation was totally unavoidable, such as in the last few days, would she reluctantly interrupt her routine.
’The little girl picked up from the Extreme North back in the day, always reclusive and cold, has actually made a friend now...’ Silvester couldn’t help but feel sentimental, but this was followed by some concern.
After all, Shelley’s identity was not simple... And, wasn’t she making her visits too frequently?
But looking at the icily aloof young girl, he suddenly shook his head inwardly with a somewhat amused self-mockery:
’I barely know anything, it’s just speculation... They are most likely just simple friends.’
"It’s about time," Shelley suddenly said.
Silvester turned to look towards the window, where the color of the sunlight had deepened, which made him think of freshly baked, fluffy bread.
It was evening already.
"I need to go home for a bit, I’ll be back in about two hours."
Silvester looked at Shelley, his feelings complex, and he almost wanted to ask in retort, "Are you really going home?"
But looking at the girl’s calm expression, he eventually just nodded gently and said:
"Go on."
"And, eh, the automated assembly line has been completed, so there’s no need to rush back."
"The path we’re taking is destined to be a long and arduous trek, with no sight of the future, so rest well."
"Mhm." Shelley nodded gently and turned to leave.
Silvester watched her leaving figure, still unable to suppress a sense of wistfulness.
’She has truly grown up after all...’
...
Shelley’s arrival surprised Colin, who sat on the couch across from her and said with a smile:
"Good evening, Shelley. I was just thinking of finding time to thank you for helping investigate Glen’s matter."
The copy of Glen’s Nameless Breathing Skill that Chasai Commerce sent today, although he had only skimmed it, had already greatly benefited him!
"No need to thank me," Shelley said with a smile, "I, and the Chasai Commerce, are also very thankful for your suggestion about the assembly line."
After saying this, the two fell into a brief silence.
Colin picked up his tea and took a sip, about to start a conversation with:
"Lately..."
"I’ve never told you about my past," Shelley spoke at the same time.
She looked into Colin’s eyes as the dying rays of the sun cast a brilliant glow on her lovely cheeks.
"If you’re willing to share, I’m all ears," Colin was a bit taken aback but then smiled.
"When I first met you in the Extreme North, didn’t you ever wonder who I really was?" Shelley teased with a question.
"A bit, but I’m not a very inquisitive person," Colin responded.
The mysterious glacier surrounded by the Blizzard Wall, the profound ice caves, and the Shelley with a mighty aura, almost otherworldly—his memory of it all was still vivid.
He had indeed been curious.
When he first saw Shelley at the True Knowledge Society, although he didn’t examine her closely, her abilities were at most that of a Second Rank Wizard.
However, the Shelley he later met in the Glacier Cave even gave him an oppressive feeling similar to that of Nois.
Now, the Shelley in front of him seemed to have become somewhat different in strength from before, perhaps a Third Rank?
"I am actually not human," Shelley said out of the blue.
Colin’s tea-sipping motion froze in place, his face showing astonishment.
He looked at Shelley’s uncommonly white hair and after a pause, he asked,
"You mean to say, you are a hybrid of an Alien Race?"
To Wizards, a hybrid Elf like Senior Sister Lillian isn’t really considered human either but is classified among the Alien Races.
Could it be the same case with Shelley?
However, Shelley gently shook her head again under his astonished gaze,
"No, I am an Alien Race."
"I am an Elf born in the Extreme North."
Colin was surprised, he had heard that certain parts of the world would give birth to unique Elves, but he had never expected to actually meet one!
After all, these Elves were not like the commonly mentioned High Level Elves or Tree Elves, but ones truly born between heaven and earth.
Their numbers cannot be said to be scarce, but are indeed a rarity as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
"However, I grew up in an ordinary village in the Extreme North," Shelley glanced at Colin and continued.
"It was a small village about ten kilometers from the glacier called Pani Village, and it wasn’t even as big as Ancient North Village."
"Pani Village worships the Blizzard Wall, and so, over twenty years ago on a certain day, I had just been born, a mere oblivious Energy form, also at its most vulnerable.
A woman, through remarkable perseverance, holding a dead baby girl, headed toward the Blizzard Wall, hoping for a Miracle. Then, she came to the glacier and due to some accident and curiosity, I merged with the dead girl."
"The woman thought the baby girl had come back to life, ecstatically holding me as she returned to Pani Village.
I didn’t mind, but later, as I moved away from the glacier, I gradually lost my strength and could no longer separate from the baby girl."
"I was not attached to the lost strength, but instead, I became more interested in the outside world.
In Pani Village, I stayed for twelve years, learning that the world had more than just ice and snow, there were also prairies, lakes, cities, and—Wizards."
"And then, when I was twelve, a terrifying blizzard destroyed the entire Pani Village, and I was the only survivor."
Colin fell silent, somewhat at a loss for what to say.
Shelley’s narrative was very calm, and it was hard to detect much emotion in it.
But he had been to Ancient North Village, understood the hardships of its people, and remembered the words Shelley had said to him.
This non-human Witch actually had a compassion that many people had lost.
"What happened afterward?" Colin asked after a moment of silence.
"Later, a Wizard found me, and so I came to Neustadt and embarked on the path of becoming a Wizard."
"...I didn’t expect you to tell me all this, Shelley."
Shelley smiled, wanting to take the opportunity to extend another invitation to Colin.
The reason she shared her past with Colin was to try inviting him to join the True Knowledge Society again.
"This journey is destined to be a long one, with no sight of the future..."
But for some reason, thinking of Silvester’s words, the invitation she was about to voice suddenly swallowed back.
"What’s the matter?" Colin asked, perplexed.
"Nothing," Shelley shook her head, then smiled again and asked, "Speaking of which, I still don’t know what your past was like?"
"My past is quite ordinary. I was born in a mortal Kingdom called Holy Flame. Later, a Wizard named Lap took me to the sea..."
The two chatted for a while, took a stroll in the garden, and then Shelley took her leave.
And Colin, awaiting the complete darkness of night, also quietly vanished, leaving the Golden Barley.
...
In the cave district to the south of Intuo City.
Swish!
With a burst of cold air, the cave creature resembling some kind of beetle instantly froze.
"I’ve collected nearly enough materials; it’s time to go to the Wilderness Laboratory."
Colin gestured to store it in his Storage Ring and checked the time; it was already past three in the morning.
He quickened his pace and turned to walk toward the exit of the cave.
Originally, Colin had planned to continue investigating information about Cumberland and the like at the Golden Barley.
But the unexpected documents delivered by the Chasai Commerce that morning directly changed his plans.
The Silver Stream Breathing Method was nothing to talk about, just an ordinary Breathing Skill that could be practiced up to Advanced Knight level.
And the information about Cumberland delivered by the Chasai Commerce wasn’t much different from what he had learned in the Document Tower.
But Glen’s life story and the Nameless Breathing Skill were particularly surprising!
Glen’s full name was simply Glen. As a slave, he had no surname, and even after becoming a Knight and freeing himself from slavery, he didn’t take a surname for himself, continuing to use the name Glen.
According to the Chasai Commerce’s description, Glen lived to be sixty-five years old, and for the first thirty years, he was just an ordinary slave.
But after turning thirty, he spent only a short three years to become an Intermediate Knight!
Such examples were not non-existent among the serfs of the Roon Kingdom, but they were extremely rare, and there was only one known as Glen.
Hence, the Chasai Commerce easily found his information.
All morning, Colin had been studying the materials about Glen collected by the Chasai Commerce, comparing them with the information about Cumberland.
Skipping over the details.
In short, Colin seemingly glimpsed a new discovery from the pile of documents and the Nameless Breathing Skill.
And this was what urged him to hurry to the Wilderness Laboratory!