Snowing.
The sunny weather did not seem to last long at all, and another snowfall came to visit the Frost. Since the morning, gloomy clouds have been piling up over the city like lead blocks, and the disorderly cold wind has been blowing through the streets all the time. When it was almost noon, snowflakes began to fall down. From the upper city to the lower city, from every tall tower to every alley, the whole city was shrouded in hazy, falling snowflakes.
The sudden snowfall made the streets seem a lot quieter.
The sound of a steam train braking broke the tranquility of the snowy street. A dark gray car stopped in front of the gate of the city hall. The door opened and Agatha, dressed in black, got out of the car and walked towards the tall and solemn building in front of her, which was mainly light gray.
She raised her head and looked at the towering main building of the City Hall. This classical building inherited from the royal era still retained the majesty of the previous era. Its towering columns, arches and continuously undulating roof structure always looked imposing. Although its name changed from "Winter Court" to today's "City Hall", its status in the city-state has never changed.
It still symbolizes one of the "two poles of authority" in the city-state, and together with the silent cathedral facing it, it protects this boiling gold city - the building is a history book made of stones, and the power and figures that flow and change in the building are just lines of text records in the pages. Whether it is the Queen's era or the current archon system, it will eventually become a record that is turned over in the history book...
Agatha suddenly frowned and raised her hand to gently pinch her forehead.
She knew that she was distracted again, and like a sentimental poet, she had many emotions popping up in her mind - she had always been like this in the past two days. For some reason, she couldn't help but think about random things, or she felt uneasy for no reason.
This is not a good phenomenon. As the gatekeeper of the city-state, one's mental state must be kept highly controlled, and "distraction" should be avoided as much as possible.
The sound of footsteps coming from the direction of the door interrupted Agatha's thoughts. She looked up and saw a senior secretary in a dark blue coat walking towards her.
"Ms. Agatha," the young man who served as the Archon's assistant came to Agatha and bowed his head respectfully, "The Archon has been informed of your visit. He is waiting for you in the dome office."
"Let's forget about the formalities," Agatha nodded. "Lead the way."
On the top floor of the City Hall, in a large office with a round vaulted ceiling, Winston, the current governor of Frost City-State, was sitting behind a large curved desk.
He was a tall man with a slightly plump figure, wearing an imposing bright blue coat decorated with medals and ribbons. Perhaps because managing a declining city-state was too exhausting, his hair had become so thin that he had to wear a curly wig to cover his scalp. When Agatha entered the dome office, the archon was fiddling with an exquisite brass machine on his desk.
The complex mechanical device looked like some kind of miniature model. Its tightly meshed gears and connecting rods were as exquisite as a work of art, and it made crisp sounds from time to time when Archon Winston fiddled with it.
"I didn't expect that you would have time to tinker with the machine model besides being so busy with government affairs," Agatha's voice came from the desk, "I thought the situation in the city-state was enough to keep you busy recently."
"This is not a machine model. This is the next generation of mining cart traction mechanism. It can save 30% of power and is more reliable and durable than the previous generation." Archon Winston raised his head and said seriously, "The city-state has encountered troubles one after another, but we can't stop living and developing because of this."
Agatha remained noncommittal.
Archon Winston is fascinated by machinery and engineering technology. He has been an archon for twelve years, and has focused most of his energy on supporting and promoting engineering design institutes and machinery manufacturers. This archon has ambitious ideas. He seems to hope to solve the current predicament of the city-state through technological breakthroughs, including upgrading old facilities and seeking new economic drivers.
But how to say it...
All I can say is that the idea is good, the confidence is strong, and a lot of effort has been put in - but the reality is full of difficulties.
"Technological progress allows us to complete the transformation of mining facilities at an acceptable cost. More practical new machines can also be exported to other city-states. Frostbite can't always rely on selling boiling gold to survive." Winston noticed that the gatekeeper's reaction was mediocre, and couldn't help but say a few more words. "The boiling gold mine is the foundation of Frostbite's survival, but the pillar formed by a single industry is too weak..."
"I'm not an official in the economic or technical field." Agatha had to remind him tactfully.
"Oh, okay, I overlooked it," Winston raised his hand, put the machine model on the desk aside and looked up at Agatha, "Then let's talk business, Ms. Agatha, you seem to have something to say about the exploration of the second waterway?"
"The exploration team encountered trouble under the connecting shaft in the Central Second Area," Agatha said bluntly. "That passage is close to the bottom of the Boiling Gold Mine. Part of the pipeline branch has traces of modification, but the gate leading to the next connecting section is blocked. I ordered the exploration team to use violent means to destroy the obstacles in the second waterway, but my people reported that they saw the lead seal and nameplate left by the City Hall on the gate."
"… the seal and nameplate of the City Hall?" Winston was visibly stunned. His surprised expression did not seem fake. "Are you sure?"
Agatha observed the expression on the Archon's face for a long time before she said softly, "It seems you know nothing about this."
"That's the Second Waterway that has been abandoned for half a century. It was last used when the Frost Queen ruled the city-state!" Winston raised his hands, his expression a little exaggerated. "Even if there are seals and nameplates underneath, they must be left over from the Queen's time. How could there be things left over from the City Hall? Ms. Agatha, do you think I secretly sealed the gate there? What's the point of this? Storing treasure deep underground?"
"… You really have no reason to do this," Agatha nodded gently, "If you really want to store some treasure, any place in the city-state is more reliable than the out-of-control Second Waterway."
"I don't want to hear you seriously assume such things," Winston waved his hand, but his expression was serious. "Then there is no date and the name of the person in charge on the nameplate? Such things should be on the formal nameplate. You should be able to easily determine who locked the door based on this."
"Unfortunately, all the words are stained and difficult to read. The nameplates and seals have suffered quite serious corrosion. In fact, even the door is extremely fragile. We suspect that the acidic environment of the strata near the mine has caused the metal to age faster." Agatha shook her head. "We can only be sure that the door was indeed locked by the City Hall. There would not be seals of that standard in the Queen's era."
Winster stood up, his expression slightly irritated, and paced back and forth behind the large curved desk. After an unknown amount of time, he stopped and muttered, "If that was really left by the City Hall, it could only have been a long time ago—perhaps even the first or second city government after the end of the Queen's era..."
"It seems that your predecessors did not pass on all the information to their successors." Agatha said.
"It's also possible that some of the data was lost or damaged due to the early chaos," Winston waved his hand, "but no matter what, there is an area deep underground in the city center that was ordered to be blocked by the city hall, and this area is also part of the second waterway. This is all very abnormal... Ms. Agatha, this matter must be investigated thoroughly."
"Of course, this is my duty," Agatha nodded, her expression relaxed a little. "Although I didn't get the answer I wanted, I still appreciate your support. The exploration will continue, and I will find out what is behind the door as soon as possible. If there is any new progress, the church will communicate with the city hall in a timely manner."
"That's for the best." Winston nodded. The atmosphere in the dome office relaxed a little.
"Then I won't bother you any more."
Agatha said, "There are still many things in the Second Waterway that I need to supervise personally."
She said a polite goodbye to the Archon and then turned and left the dome office.
The gatekeeper's figure disappeared in the room, leaving only the sound of his cane and heels tapping on the ground gradually fading away. Winston breathed a sigh of relief after a long time, and then frowned in confusion.
"...Ms. Agatha didn't use 'Grey Wind' today, hurry up..." The middle-aged archon, who was a little fat, raised his head and looked at the direction where Agatha left, muttering softly, "So she can walk in and out of the door normally?"