WCBD CH135

Chapter 135: Unexpected Connection

Knight Commander Bunyan had just woken up from his nap, sitting upright and quietly watching the passing scenery outside the window.

For this trip to Middleton, he also carried quite a few tasks, including the matter of Dr. Chester Fitzroy. The doctor’s mother had been missing for many years, but the appearance of the apostate Hamlin unexpectedly drew their attention to her son.

Dr. Chester was already thirty years old this year, so if calculated by the general age people married and had children, his mother would now be in her fifties. That was an age stepping into her twilight years.

For Bunyan himself, he actually found it hard to imagine why this rumored lady would cross such a vast distance to personally come to the Duchy of Konst, and then leave alone without anyone knowing.

It seemed utterly pointless. Her appearance, her child, and her departure had never caught the attention of the Church of the Past. So, why did she leave Middleton and come to the Duchy of Konst?

Did she come to convey some message? Then why, in the end, did she fail to say it?

Bunyan was deep in thought when suddenly there was a knock on the compartment door. Snapping back to reality, he let the people outside in, only to surprisingly discover it was Siles and Chester.

Siles and Bunyan exchanged a glance. Knight Commander Bunyan looked as though he understood the purpose of their visit.

Bunyan was the only one in the compartment. The train from Biedel City to Kingsley offered luxurious single compartments in its best carriage. Since the journey was long, Professor Bella had simply purchased a single compartment ticket for everyone. However, this also made their current conversation much more convenient.

Chester sat opposite Bunyan first, while Siles sat beside him. Knight Commander Bunyan said gently, “Dr. Chester… then, I suppose you know what we are about to discuss.”

Chester nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then asked, “She… I mean, my mother. Who is she…?”

“I can slowly explain this to you,” Bunyan said. “However, I also hope you can stay calm and composed. One piece of information I must tell you in advance is that we also don’t know where your mother is right now.”

Chester stiffened for a moment, but then slowly relaxed again. He almost subconsciously let out a sigh, though he couldn’t even articulate exactly what it was for. “I understand. Anyway… knowing a little is a good thing.”

Bunyan nodded. “Your mother… her name is Josephine Hosier. She has a younger sister named Elizabeth Hosier.”

“Josephine Hosier…” Chester murmured his mother’s name.

Sitting to the side, Siles froze slightly and subconsciously raised his eyes to look at Bunyan. However, he quickly concealed his shock and merely lowered his eyes thoughtfully.

Elizabeth Hosier. The female bishop from a foreign country.

…The final character card of the tabletop role-playing game. The character that Siles had yet to encounter even to this day.

He never would have thought he would hear this name here, or that it would be someone related to the doctor. In that case, these two characters obviously had a hidden connection, even though Chester appeared in the early stages of the RPG plot, while Elizabeth appeared in the later stages.

It was just that this was the part not written in the RPG plot; it belonged to this real world. The RPG plot never mentioned Elizabeth’s older sister, let alone that the older sister’s son was Chester Fitzroy.

Wait, from this perspective, did Elizabeth herself also not know of Chester’s relation to her? Did she not know what her older sister had done? Siles couldn’t help but think.

If Elizabeth knew, then she should have had a very strong reaction to the “doctor’s death” in the plot. But when Elizabeth appeared, she seemed as though she truly was just a foreign bishop with no knowledge of local affairs.

…A potential apostate.

Siles listened somewhat absentmindedly as Bunyan elaborated on the sisters. They were both born into the Hosier family, a rising family in Middleton, unlike those other ancient fishing families. Perhaps because of this, the family worshipped Antinam.

Josephine was the older sibling, at least ten years senior to her younger sister Elizabeth. Such an age gap meant the sisters didn’t have much in common. They both worshipped Antinam, but Josephine was an ascetic, devout, and silent believer, whereas Elizabeth was proactive, active, and harbored more potential for fanaticism.

Of course, Elizabeth’s qualities were only discovered after she grew up; by then, Josephine had already disappeared.

Elizabeth was the Archbishop of the Church of the Past in Middleton. And her position was inherited from her sister. With her outstanding strength, devout faith, and calm, powerful disposition, Josephine had become the Archbishop of Middleton in her twenties.

Chester was taken aback, never having expected his mother to have been such a prominent figure. He couldn’t help but ask, “Then, why did she disappear?”

“Nobody knows.” Bunyan shook his head. “More than thirty years ago, she just suddenly vanished. To this day, we don’t know what exactly happened. The investigation was stalled for a long time, but your appearance has given us new hope.

“We investigated the city, as well as the entire Duchy of Konst, for families bearing the surname Fitzroy, hoping to find your father among them. But we didn’t gain any useful information.

“Finally, we found your birth certificate. The note in the father’s column was ‘Deceased’. That phrasing doesn’t prove your father is truly dead, but he was probably not from the Duchy of Konst either.”

Dr. Chester opened his mouth blankly. A moment later, he smiled bitterly. “This really is…”

“I hope you won’t feel too much psychological pressure,” Bunyan said gently. “Regardless, the reason I’m telling you this, and asked Professor Noel to disclose some details to you in advance, is because they are your parents. But, in the end, that is a matter of the previous generation. Your mother left Middleton over thirty years ago, and at that time, I wasn’t even born yet.”

His joke improved the atmosphere in the compartment. Chester nodded, though he was filled with mixed feelings, not knowing what to say for a moment. Finally, he asked, “So, for our trip to Middleton this time…?”

“We will meet Bishop Elizabeth. However, if you don’t want to meet her, we will keep your existence a secret. The choice is in your hands,” Bunyan offered.

Chester fell silent. In this quiet, Bunyan and Siles both remained still, while Siles was similarly lost in his own thoughts.

…Elizabeth Hosier.

In the RPG script, after the apostate Hamlin appeared, the entire church plunged into turmoil, and this turbulent sentiment also implicated the foreign dioceses. After Hamlin escaped from Lamifa City, the chaotic, vast world outside became his stage. He would use that list of clergy to throw the whole world into disarray, dividing the groups within the church alongside his helpers.

Elizabeth Hosier’s existence determined the outcome of the RPG to a certain extent. She had three choices: choose to betray the church and become a follower of the evil god; still worship Antinam but fall out with the other bishops and clergy, becoming a heretic and walking a similarly lonely and paranoid path; or maintain a unified stance with the rest of the church against external threats, jointly fighting the evil god. Setting aside the possibility of a critical failure on the dice roll at a crucial moment, the chances of getting a good ending on the third path were the highest.

However, the same issue remained: Siles actually wasn’t sure what the “evil god” in the RPG script referred to in the real world. Perhaps it was the shadows? But this question would probably be hard to verify unless he asked the dice or Antinam.

In short, at this moment, the final character of the RPG had finally arrived, appearing at exactly the right time.

In the real world, Elizabeth Hosier’s ultimate choice was probably not that simple, constrained by more factors—for example, if she learned of Chester’s existence, would her thoughts change?

Of course, the answer to this question might ultimately rest in Chester’s hands.

Siles shifted his gaze to Chester, who maintained his silence. After a while, Chester suddenly closed his eyes tightly. “I will meet with her.”

Siles and Bunyan both breathed an invisible sigh of relief.

“Seven years ago, I made a wrong choice… or perhaps it wasn’t that wrong, but that choice has indeed tormented me for so long,” Chester admitted. “And now, I don’t want to miss another choice due to terror, fear, or hesitation. She is a relative of mine who exists in this world, and I have never met my parents or any other relatives. I should… regardless of everything… I should meet her. Whether the outcome is good or bad. If I miss this opportunity, I might regret it for the rest of my life.”

He muttered to himself. He was a doctor. Now, he had to face his own wounds with the same calm and composure he used when facing a patient’s wounds. His background, his bloodline, his family. His inescapable family past.

Siles remained silent. He realized that the events from seven years ago, and what happened in the Ashless Lands half a year ago, fundamentally made Chester realize that evasion and silence were absolutely not the way to solve problems. It elicited a sigh, but ultimately, it was a good thing.

Bunyan smiled and nodded. “Of course we can! Doctor, we will notify Bishop Elizabeth in advance.”

Chester nodded, actually feeling relieved after making the decision. He thought for a moment and revealed a slight smile. “I’m starting to look forward to meeting this Ms. Elizabeth.”

“I have never met this bishop either,” Bunyan said. “However, I’ve heard Grosvenor… that is, the Archbishop here in the Duchy of Konst, mention this lady. I heard she is a very extroverted, cheerful, and talkative woman.” Bunyan subconsciously sized up Chester. “She shares some similarities with you, Doctor.”

Chester froze for a moment, and then laughed.

Siles sincerely congratulated Chester—not just for finding a family member, but for completely stepping out of the gloom of his past. Finding his mother would be even better, though that would likely be a massive challenge.

Chester soon asked about his mother as well.

“We can’t find Ms. Josephine’s whereabouts,” Bunyan admitted frankly, speaking with quite a headache. “She didn’t stay in Konst for long. We only realized you were the child Ms. Josephine left behind after seeing this name on your household registration information. But other than that, she hasn’t left this name anywhere else. She might have used a pseudonym, but that’s even more of a headache. It’s really hard to investigate clearly. We are already trying to use some Revelator methods, hoping to make some progress by then.”

Chester nodded.

Siles then asked, “Regarding why Ms. Josephine would leave Middleton and come to Konst, are there no clues at all? Did something happen at that time?”

Bunyan shook his head. “This is also one of the reasons we need to head to Middleton. The distance between Middleton and Konst is vast, communication is inconvenient, and moreover, we belong to different dioceses. Therefore, even though we knew of Bishop Josephine’s disappearance at the time, we aren’t clear on the inside story. Now that we’ve found Ms. Josephine’s descendant, it’s also time to head to Middleton and learn about the relevant information.”

He spoke with great sincerity. Such a thing could inherently be called a coincidence: Lamifa University was conducting scholarly visits during the spring break, chose Middleton, and simultaneously had Dr. Chester accompany them. Moreover, they had sought out the Church of the Past, asking them to tag along and protect the professors. Therefore, the Church of the Past naturally wanted to take this opportunity to conduct an investigation.

“If we can investigate it clearly, then that would be perfect,” Chester said, nodding in understanding.

They all agreed. Afterward, they casually chatted about the trip, but Chester seemed absentminded, so Bunyan considerately told him to go back and get some rest. Siles left Bunyan’s compartment together with Chester.

“…Truly incredible, Professor,” Chester sighed after returning to his own compartment. “I probably never could have imagined that things would turn out like this one day.”

“Fate is always quite marvelous,” Siles said almost gently.

“This trip to Middleton carries a different kind of meaning for me,” Chester said, looking out the window. “…That is my mother’s homeland.”

Siles felt a heavy emotion spreading in his heart, but overall, he was happy for Chester. The doctor had at least escaped his tragic RPG script ending, while also shaking off the psychological trauma from his archaeological experience seven years ago. Now, he was embarking on a journey to discover his origins.

Siles bid farewell, letting the doctor have some quiet time to properly think this over, and returned to his own compartment. The afternoon was more than half over, and it was time he considered how to spend it. His books and documents had already been taken by Chendo, but Siles had kept one for himself.

It wasn’t a heavy academic text; it was a short story collection by a novelist from the Age of Mist. Siles quite liked utilizing these fragmented moments to quickly read a brief story or two. On such a long journey, they brought him some amusement, while also allowing him to glimpse the brand of a specific era. Because this world was fundamentally different from Earth, its literary works were obviously distinct in style.

Around the year 300 of the Age of Mist, people’s lives tended towards stability, while they simultaneously grew more curious about the Ashless Lands and other regions that had once been covered by fog. During that period, people seemingly returned to the earliest age of great geographic discoveries, frantically pursuing the unknown and the treasures that might exist there.

Even the Church of the Past couldn’t avoid it. A large portion of the information in the documents Siles had previously read regarding the fall of the Old Gods was discovered during that time—for example, the Stardust belonging to Brancani situated in the far northeast of the Duchy of Konst.

This forged countless adventures and legendary tales. In truth, the people of the present day were still living in such an era; it was just that treacherous powers constantly stopped ordinary people from peering into these outer worlds.

Siles read one legendary tale with keen interest, about a brave captain leading a fleet to set sail after the fog dissipated over a certain ocean. The story mentioned strange creatures in the seawater, getting lost, bizarre illnesses, and the crew’s chaos. In Siles’s eyes, this fleet might not have encountered supernatural powers, but they had indeed embarked on an extremely dangerous journey. The story ended with the captain returning alone, while the lives of many young sailors were left in the perilous sea, traveling with the endless waves to the ends of the world.

When Siles suddenly raised his head from the story, it was already evening. He almost subconsciously looked across the compartment, but Chendo was currently not sitting opposite him. Pausing, he shook his head helplessly, pinched the bridge of his nose, and quietly watched the rapidly passing scenery out the window that reminded him he was heading to a foreign country.

He closed the book and left for the dining car.

There, Siles ran into Ms. Catherine Kinsey. She was wearing ordinary clothes rather than her earlier female knight attire. Siles hesitated for a moment, then went to greet her.

“Good afternoon, Professor Noel,” Catherine said calmly. “Do you want to sit here? Everywhere else is full.”

Siles gladly agreed. After ordering his meal, he looked at her. “Ms. Kinsey, I’ve been wanting to find a time to chat with you.”

“Just Catherine is fine,” she replied with a faint smile. “When I resolved those two out-of-control Time Traces before, I believe I said the same thing.”

Siles showed a similar hint of a smile. Thinking about it now, because of those strange Time Traces left in his office by Professor Cabel, he had secretly lived in fear for quite a long time. However, after gradually growing accustomed to certain aspects of this world, he had actually grown used to this kind of danger lurking in life at all times.

He pondered for a moment. “Regarding Professor Cabel… the person who left those Time Traces. Catherine, it’s exactly on this point that I have some things I want to ask you.”

Catherine noticeably paused. This lady did indeed possess the gentle temperament typical of the Church of the Past, but she was also silent and calm. Compared to Bunyan, Grosvenor, and Dominic, she actually exuded a very subtle sense of distance.

“What is it? I will do my best,” Catherine asked.

Siles mentioned Professor Cabel’s unpublished paper, as well as the people mentioned within it who dressed themselves as female knights and were highly likely to be followers of Lusmi.

Catherine listened thoughtfully.

“I noticed that you also wore a knight’s outfit before,” Siles said with some confusion. “I don’t know much about this, so I wanted to ask—is there anything special about female knights within the deities’ belief systems?”

Catherine thought for a moment, and finally shook her head. “No, Professor, just as you might think, female knights are just a type of knight. Female believers use knight attire to prove the firmness of their faith. Furthermore, it also carries the meaning of dedicating oneself to their faith, choosing to remain unmarried for life.”

Siles was suddenly enlightened.

Catherine also added, “However, this concept doesn’t apply to all belief systems. I should say, the tenets I uphold are like this, but as for the tenets pursued by other Old God followers… I couldn’t say.”

Siles greatly appreciated Catherine’s rigor, remarking, “So it seems highly likely that the female knight attire holds some specific internal meaning for that group of Old God followers?”

Catherine nodded in agreement.

Female knights worshipping Antinam, female knights worshipping Lusmi, and those Old God followers dressing themselves as female knights—the differences among the three could be vast.

However, Catherine then said, “The group of Old God followers you mentioned… if I remember correctly, there are records of them in some of the church’s internal documents. If you aren’t in a hurry, you can wait until we return to Lamifa City, and I’ll help you look them up.”

Siles thanked Catherine very sincerely.

Coincidentally, his meal arrived at that moment. He noted with surprise that the complimentary soup was actually seafood chowder. Realizing this train’s destination was the port city of Kingsley, he suddenly understood.

Even on a train approaching a city, they could already experience a certain aspect of its lifestyle. But seafood is also a major incentive for traveling to coastal cities, Siles thought. After all, considering transportation costs and the like during this era, eating seafood in inland Lamifa City was simply too expensive and not cost-effective.

After dinner, Siles and Catherine left together, bid each other farewell, and headed to their respective compartments. Catherine suddenly remembered something and stopped him. “You might be able to take those two Time Traces back in a while.”

Surprised by the news, Siles asked, “The woman’s head statue and that fountain pen?”

“Yes,” Catherine confirmed. “Once their activity is neutralized, they will be ordinary Time Traces and can be used for rituals.”

Siles considered this. “I am indeed quite interested in that fountain pen, but perhaps that statue could just…”

“That is indeed somewhat unsettling,” Catherine acknowledged reasonably. “In that case, having the Church of the Past continue keeping it for you is no problem at all.”

“Does the Church of the Past still do this kind of work?” Siles asked.

Catherine hesitated for a moment, then said meaningfully, “Professor, in this world, there are far more unowned Time Traces that are either out of control or on the verge of it than you might imagine.”

Therefore, the Church of the Past had to help store these items. Keeping the statue of the woman’s head for Siles was just a matter of convenience.

Siles fell silent for a moment, eventually letting out a soft sigh. He thanked Catherine and returned to his compartment.

Days passed. On the train, aside from reading and chatting with companions, Siles found another way to pass the time: chatting with the conductors.

Traveling back and forth across the Ashless Lands, Kansas, and Middleton, they actually understood the true situations of these countries and regions—and the people from them—better than anyone else.

From them, Siles learned that quite a few explorers headed to the Ashless Lands from Middleton. Their personalities were mostly rude and impolite, though you couldn’t say they were malicious or dangerous. Siles hadn’t interacted with this group much because they were mostly active in the north, close to the Feliou Sea. Biedel City and the House of Hales, where Siles had been, were in the central and southeastern parts of the Ashless Lands.

According to these conductors, Middleton people possessed an innate savage habit, always smelling faintly of fish and generally disliking interaction with outsiders. They always moved in groups, maintaining incredibly close ties with their companions. Boisterous and loud, they had their own unique entertainment activities and fixed schedules. Overall, they were a group of slightly troublesome, but not overly troublesome, passengers.

In contrast, passengers from Kansas always seemed exceptionally picky, aloof, and fastidious. People from there fell into two polar opposite extremes: either exceptionally wealthy, making a huge fuss while acting superior; or incredibly poor, acting stingy and hesitant. However, they all exuded a feeling that pushed people away. They didn’t like interacting much with outsiders, nor did they interact much with people from their own country. They seemed to naturally carry a sense of embarking on journeys alone.

Comparatively, passengers from Konst were more ordinary and diverse… or, as one conductor put it, “more human.”

Of course, these observations were generally broad generalizations; when it came to individuals, the situations varied. The conductors didn’t elaborate much to Siles, merely slapping stereotypical labels onto the people of each nation roughly.

Naturally, they also brought up merchants traveling for business. Merchants from different countries actually seemed quite similar—all profit-driven and calculating. If they had money, they might become stingier, or perhaps more generous.

On the train, Siles met a merchant doing business between Kansas and Middleton. He had married a lady from Konst and was therefore fluent in the language. He specialized in the seafood market and constantly wore a look of anxiety and unease.

After chatting with him a bit, Siles learned that the recent fishing situation in Kingsley wasn’t optimistic—the volume couldn’t keep up, yet the market gap on this merchant’s end was growing larger. Seeing the opportunity to make money slip away, he couldn’t sit still and decided to take a train to Kingsley to see for himself.

“I don’t know what’s going on at the port!” the merchant complained. “Things were fine just a while ago, but lately, they’ve suddenly vanished, as if the fish have stopped swimming this way! It was never like this in previous years!”

Siles’s interest was piqued. He realized this merchant understood the port situation in Kingsley very well, and he just so happened to be extremely interested in these coastal ports.

The merchant before him was from Kansas and wore the long hair typical of Kansas men. His name was Ambrose. It seemed Kansas men didn’t often mention their surnames to outsiders.

In any case, Siles asked, “Mr. Ambrose, are you very familiar with the situation at the port?”

They were chatting in the dining car, surrounded by a few idle conductors. In this biting cold weather, there wasn’t much for them to do, especially since the passengers didn’t want to wander around either. Thus, some conductors came over to listen in on their conversation.

This scene seemed to satisfy Ambrose’s vanity. He chuckled, concealing the displeasure brought on by his business troubles. “Yes. What would you like to ask, Mr. Noel?”

Siles considered this for a moment. When reading Karacoc’s Diary, he had noticed what Karacoc witnessed as a port porter: sea creatures and antiques being bought up by mysterious figures. Some porters who couldn’t restrain their curiosity might peek at those items, only to plunge into inevitable madness.

Karacoc had worked at a small port in a small city, which couldn’t possibly be Kingsley. Moreover, Kingsley was Middleton territory, likely quite a distance from the Sardinian Empire of the Age of Silence.

Regardless, ports, the ocean, and cargo all piqued Siles’s interest somewhat.

So he asked, “I study the past history and literature of the Fisher World. The northern ocean seems to hide many unknown secrets of the past. I wonder if there are any such stories around the port?”

Ambrose looked surprised that Siles would bring this up, his gaze carrying a sort of speechlessness… as if watching someone do something foolish and not even bearing to correct them.

Siles remained silent. However, the surrounding conductors excitedly urged Ambrose on, likely hoping for some thrilling news to spice up the boring train life.

Under this atmosphere, Ambrose found it hard to maintain his dismissive attitude. He gave a dry laugh, thought for a moment, and adopted the tone of someone telling a story to children at home: “I have indeed heard some.”

The others urged him to hurry up and speak.

Ambrose began, “At the port, sailors always talk about what they’ve seen while out at sea. Sometimes it involves some… exaggerated tales. They dramatically mention shadows beneath the sea, as if some unknown creatures are chasing their ships. Sometimes, they also mention seeing the tip of an isolated island on the distant sea. However, the island is shrouded in fog, so they can only see a blurry outline, making it impossible to approach. They seem to regret this, saying there might be something on that island that could earn them enough money for a lifetime overnight. But, they still don’t dare try it.”

As Ambrose said this, the implication was clear: if he saw that distant island on the sea, he would definitely go investigate, unlike those “cowardly” sailors. However, he quickly adjusted his tone to avoid seeming too arrogant or unreasonable.

He shifted topics. “As for what these sailors talk about most, it’s naturally the treasures at the bottom of the sea.”

“Treasures at the bottom of the sea?”

“Yes, sir,” Ambrose sighed. “Did you know, in a more distant era, when the fog struck, some large ships unluckily happened to be sailing in those areas. So, those ships overturned completely into the sea, along with all the passengers aboard. And if there were any precious treasures on those ships—which isn’t rare, sir—wouldn’t that become good luck for us? It could make us a lifetime’s worth of money overnight!

“So, when those sailors and captains head out to sea, they always hope to stumble upon a good ship where they’re passing—that’s what they always call it, a ‘good ship’.”

This statement actually made Siles a bit curious. Or rather, it was hard for people living in inland cities to imagine just how many ships were sailing the sea every single day.

And in the Fisher World, the spread of the fog was an unavoidable backdrop. Given this premise, every time a ship from the Age of Silence set sail, it was like a gamble with their lives—after all, they couldn’t be certain whether the fog would engulf them on that particular voyage.

Yet, their misfortune had become the luck of people today. It was quite lamentable.

“Some people have actually done it,” Ambrose sighed with some emotion. “As far as I know, over thirty years ago, a sailor in Kingsley dredged up something incredibly precious. He went straight to Bethune, the capital of Middleton, and lived a good life. I was just a fledgling lad back then. It was because of that incident that I started doing maritime business. To be honest with you all, I also harbored the desire to strike it rich overnight like that, but I’ve never been able to achieve it.”

The surrounding conductors all let out good-natured laughs. But Siles sat there stunned, unable to react for a moment.

He just thought, over thirty years ago?

Siles slowly furrowed his brow, wondering if this could be related to Chester’s mother disappearing from Middleton over thirty years ago.

It might be. After all, if something was dredged up from the ocean and the sailor then headed to the capital of Middleton, it could very well be connected. However, since the information regarding the time, location, and event was too vague, Siles couldn’t be certain.

He pressed on the topic for a while. His questioning didn’t arouse others’ suspicion; some even assumed he was merely blinded by the prospect of immense wealth.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t glean any more information from Ambrose. Ambrose had been a young man himself at the time and didn’t know much, only hearing snippets of news from adults.

Siles narrowed his eyes. In that case, he thought, this tale of ‘getting rich by dredging up underwater treasure’ is highly likely a garbled rumor.

However, over thirty years ago, someone likely did dredge something up from the Feliou Sea and consequently traveled to Bethune, the capital of Middleton. Whether the truth of the event actually involved “precious treasure” and a “lucky sailor” was another matter.

The others weren’t concerned with the truth, either. The conductors and Ambrose were joking around, fantasizing about their lives after earning enough money in the future.

One conductor who had grown somewhat familiar with Siles over the past few days asked curiously, “What about you, Mr. Noel?”

What would Siles want to do if he earned enough money?

Siles thought about it, then answered honestly, “Perhaps collect many books I love, and other things that interest me.”

If this were the internet age on Earth, Siles might have mentioned other desires. But in the Fisher World, books were his greatest source of joy.

Ambrose hesitated, seemingly wanting to speak but stopping himself. After all, the hobby Siles mentioned seemed entirely out of place with what they had just been discussing. But instead, the conductors all laughed.

The conductor who knew Siles better teased, “I knew you’d say that. You’ve practically borrowed every book on this train over the past few days.”

Siles smiled as well. It couldn’t be helped; after all, there was nothing else to do on a train.

Fortunately, they were about to arrive in Kingsley.

When the massive ship’s wheel symbol of Kingsley Port appeared in the corner of the window, Siles knew they were about to reach this prosperous northern city.

He opened the window, and the biting sea breeze rushing in made him feel a sense of novelty. The fishy smell in the wind also brought a peculiar experience, making him realize this was a place entirely different from the city he was familiar with.

The train gradually slowed down. Siles appreciated the city from up close. His first impression was how unexpectedly clean it was—a pristine, dust-free purity born of constant sea breezes and salt spray.

Though the architecture appeared rugged, the city’s temperament was surprisingly crisp. Blue and white were practically the city’s color palette; every cottage and building bore these wondrous, gentle hues. Further out, the churning, dirty-gray seawater appeared even murkier by contrast, utterly out of place with the city.

Professor Bella soon came to check on them, informing them they were about to disembark and telling them to pack their bags. From here on out, part of Professor Bella’s work would be taken over by their guide and translator.

This was a country they had never been to before.

It was March 3rd. Professor Siles Noel had arrived in Kingsley, Middleton.

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