Winter Festival (Part 2)
Around noon, Galan had lunch with the shop the boss before preparing to leave.
On the one hand, Fitz couldn't find a suitable box to wrap his medicine bottles, and it took him a long time to finally get himself a decent one.
On the other hand, Lia has been spending the last two days with Amber.
These two just wander around the city, eating and exploring. The advantage is that I don't have to worry about Lia's meals anymore, and I don't need to rush back early.
After greeting the boss, Galan carried his spoils back to the Inn. He carefully placed the items in a corner of the room, making sure no one would find them before leaving.
In truth, he didn't know what he was going to do when he went out, since there didn't seem to be any good places for him to go in the city right now.
Frog and Lancelot got a pretty good job a couple of days ago, so they quickly said goodbye and set off, not knowing how long it would be before they returned.
I've already spent the whole morning in the shop, so there's no point in going back.
Go out of the city to cultivate?
He glanced at the lanterns and ribbons that were already being prepared on the street, and immediately lost all desire to strive.
On days like these, it's best to relax a bit.
"Then we'll have to go shopping..."
He shook his head and decided to walk around the unfamiliar streets.
Even after living here for some time, he still hadn't finished exploring the city.
[Äußerst], as the second largest city in the North, is quite impressive in terms of city size alone.
Galan walked out of the Inn and down the street, wanting to see what would be arranged on Central Avenue. The boss had told him that, according to tradition, a grand bonfire party would be held there every year, but due to the impact of the war in recent years, the atmosphere had been deliberately toned down.
Although it's not like I've never seen a bonfire party before, Galan still decided to go and see one.
After all, joining in the fun is a skill ingrained in human nature.
After passing several familiar shops, Galan suddenly felt that there were far fewer people around, and even the atmosphere in the air seemed different.
"What's going on? Someone actually managed to set up Barrier within the city?"
He quickly realized what was happening.
This road is the only way to the Central Square, and it shouldn't be so deserted on a day like today; in fact, I'm the only person left on the street.
The only way to achieve this is through Barrier.
But...[Äußerst] is protected by the Anti-Demon Barrier left by Flamme, so it couldn't have been invaded without warning. That means the Barrier was created by someone within the city?
As Galan pondered the matter, it seemed he had found the answer in his heart.
Without further hesitation, he continued along the planned route until he reached the end of the street and arrived at an open square.
This is the center of [Äußerst]. In the square, there is only a solitary statue of the great Mage Flamme. Apart from some festival equipment, there is nothing else on the ground.
Only one statue is worshipped in each square, which reflects the local people's respect and love for Flamme.
Beneath the statue, one can always see fresh bouquets, just placed there, while the statue of Flamme gazes silently into the distance, as if this great Mage has never left, always protecting the city and its people.
Right now, a golden-haired Elf is crouching beneath the statue, fiddling with the flowers that have been placed there.
"Serie, that's quite unusual. You actually released Barrier in the city. Doesn't that make the people the Empire sent to monitor you uneasy?"
Galan walked over without any hesitation. Since he was allowed to be inside this Barrier, it meant that Serie wanted to see him, so there was no need to hide.
"You knew everything?" Serie asked calmly without turning around.
"Amber would often come to visit us and tell us those things..."
"What difficulties did the establishment of the [Continental Magic Association] encounter?"
Galan was well aware that a group of highly skilled warriors had recently come to assassinate Serie. Although it was still a time of war, he had clearly underestimated the Empire's desire to control the Mage community. It seemed they were very reluctant to see Serie establish the association, since once the [Continental Magic Association] was successfully established, the Empire's authority would be greatly impacted.
This is not something those corrupt high-ranking officials are happy to see.
After hearing this, Serie didn't react immediately, and continued to fiddle with the colorful bouquets.
Such a rich variety of flowers shouldn't be appearing this season; clearly, these were all cultivated in a greenhouse and carefully nurtured before being placed beneath the statue.
This alone is enough to demonstrate Flamme's standing in the hearts of the people of [Äußerst].
"Changing this world has never been a simple matter. Your human minds are far too complex, sometimes even more difficult for me to understand than some ancient legends and magic."
"You possess a richness of emotion that Elves cannot comprehend, and desires more cruel than those of Demons, which makes me even more interested in you..."
Galan stood aside, simply listening quietly to Serie's narration.
He didn't know why his master would suddenly say these things today, but regardless, being a good listener would never be a mistake.
Hundreds of years ago, when I took in Flamme, it was simply because I saw enough potential in this human girl, even the possibility of surpassing me, that I did so.
"But she devoted her entire life to helping humanity establish a magical system, spreading magic everywhere, and dedicating almost all her energy to the development of magic for humanity."
"I think that's completely irrational. She has extremely rare magical talent. If she had spent all her time on cultivation, it's not impossible for her to surpass me. But she gave everything so that all humans could learn magic."
She said her dream was to change the world and create an era where everyone could use magic... Now, perhaps my thinking has changed... I'm even considering trying this absurd dream myself...