"Whew..."
Xu Yi let out a gentle breath, which instantly condensed into a cloud of white mist.
This winter was colder than those of previous years.
At the start of each new year, most other countries on the Sains Continent would be gripped by bitter winter cold. In countries such as the Malo Empire, which lay in the continent's north, the northernmost regions were completely covered in snow and ice, with scarcely a person to be found.
But the Stantin Duchy lay in the continent's southwest and enjoyed a warm, humid climate all year round. Even its winters rarely grew very cold.
Not only was snow unheard of, but even weather like this, where a breath turned into cold mist, was almost unknown.
Xu Yi looked up at the vast Endless Sea in the distance and frowned slightly.
The northern Transport Fleet, whose final destination was the Malo Empire, had departed early last month. According to its planned schedule, it would stop in several coastal countries along the way and would not reach the Malo Empire until spring next year.
The main reason for such a long journey was to deepen ties with the countries along the route while further assessing whether they had the conditions needed to introduce the magic industry system. As such, the fleet would spend at least a month in each of several countries.
According to the plan, the fleet should currently have been staying in the Angelia Kingdom, north of the Sark Kingdom.
Past experience suggested that the waters around the Angelia Kingdom would not freeze at this time of year. But this winter was clearly colder than usual, so those waters might now be colder too. They might even freeze over, delaying the northern Transport Fleet's journey.
On second thought, however, the guild headquarters