"People in the South and the North do look different, but there shouldn't be that much difference between cities, right? Or are you the kind of detective described in Hamilton's Detective Stories who can tell a person's origins based on the wetness of the mud on his shoes and the marks on his palms?"
Xia De joked, and the man who took the initiative to talk to him shook his head:
"No, no, I'm not a detective. I'm Professor of Geology and Folklore at the Royal Mining School of Carsonrick, from Willendel. I'm Jon Boulanger, and I'm conducting geological surveys with my students in the local area. As for inferring your origins, it's because the people in Green Lake City don't have your temperament."
"I am John Watson, a writer who traveled to the Old World. What is my temperament?"
Shade raised his eyebrows and asked, and Professor Boulanger said:
"You have the temperament of an adventurer. This is an unstable temperament that seeks risks and challenges. But if you look closely, you seem like a scholar. In short, a lifeless city like Green Lake City would not have people like you."
“That’s a really great inference.”
Xia De praised, and the other four people in the carriage were indeed not interested in the conversation between the two:
"Because of the sources, I also know quite a few folklore professors, but I've never met a professor of both folklore and geology like you."
"Geology is my job, and folklore was my hobby when I was studying, so I just got the degree."
Professor Boulanger introduced him, and Shade expressed his admiration again and asked curiously:
"You brought students here. Is it because gold mines were discovered here, just like in the Randall River Valley in Carson Creek some time ago?"
The four people in the same group all looked over at once, and Professor Boulanger hurriedly shook his head:
"Of course not. How can there be gold mines everywhere? I am here with my students to investigate Green Lake. You must know that the water in that lake turns green at some point every year. In the past, people believed that this phenomenon was related to algae growth caused by groundwater pollution, but I think it may also be related to the rare metal veins underground."
“Could there be a vein of minerals beneath Green Lake?”
Xia De took note of this and continued to introduce himself:
"I came to the Green Lake area to collect materials because the two cities so close to each other have completely different development conditions. One is in decline, and the other is thriving. This is really a perfect subject for a novel."
"Yes, I am also considering writing a report on the different interpretations of similar legends in these two cities. It is indeed very interesting."
Professor Boulanger was very talkative. He and Shad talked about the purpose of their respective visits to the local area, the border checkpoint, the differences between De La Rioja and Kasenrik, the differences in language, and the negotiations between the two countries on the Pantanal region. They also expressed their respective views on the negotiations.
The carriage would not enter the city, but would drop the group off at the edge of the city, where people could take a proper four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage. When getting off the carriage, Mr. Boulanger invited Shade to wait with him for his carriage, which would take Shade to the city center, and the two could continue to talk about the Pantanal region on the way.
Just now, Shad talked about the environment of the Great Everglades, which aroused the interest of the professor who had never been there.
"Please don't be polite to me. This is the carriage of Paradise Island Pharmaceutical Company. They also sponsored this expedition for me and my students."
"oh?"
Shade was a little curious. "Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals" was what Miss Carina had mentioned. It was the business of the great witch Audrey Edwards.
“Why would a pharmaceutical company sponsor a geological expedition?”
This was not a very secret matter, and Professor Boulanger did not mind talking about it with his unexpected travel companion:
"In fact, few people know that Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals was originally established in the Green Lake area. In addition to producing common medicines such as quinine water for treating malaria and earthworm oil for treating injuries, the company is also committed to researching more medicines that are beneficial to the human body. They seem to believe that the strange water of Green Lake has the effect of prolonging the life of ordinary people, so they have been sponsoring scholars in geology, mineralogy and environmental science for many years."
This was information that Shade didn't know either. It sounded like it was related to the Edwards family's original research on "immortality". The witch didn't seem to have given up the Edwards family's previous research. Shade wasn't sure if the other witches knew about this, but even if they did, they probably wouldn't care. After all, researching "immortality" wasn't illegal, and it was also a very popular topic.
The carriage sent by Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals was very ordinary, but much better than the previous carriage. On the way back to the city, Shade talked to Professor Boulanger about more information about the Pantanal. When the two separated, the professor even told Shade the hotel where he was staying temporarily and invited Shade to visit him again when he had time.
“What a passionate person.”
Standing on the corner of "Glass Avenue" in the center of Michaela Blast Furnace City, Shad muttered as he watched the departing carriage.
Looking up, you can see the bustling streets of a big city. There are rows of new white buildings and almost all of them have chimneys emitting smoke in the background. Although this city cannot be compared with the stranger's hometown due to the productivity level of the steam age, except for Tobesk, this is the most developed industrial city the stranger has ever seen in this world.
Although it is shrouded in the air of heavy industrial pollution like the nearby Green Lake City, everything here looks so vigorous and energetic. The sound of horse-drawn carriages rolling on the road and the sound of leather shoes and boots stepping on the ground form a cheerful movement, and the noisy background sound of people talking and hawking on the street is also so lively.
The burnt smell in the air represents the highly developed level of the steam industry. The bells of the distant city and the whistles of steamships on the lower reaches of the Rhine make this spring afternoon scene more three-dimensional.
"Sir, can you give me a copper?"
As Shade was looking around, the little beggar by the wall raised his dirty brown hat to him. Shade looked down and saw that the boy was wearing a baggy white shirt that he had picked up from somewhere, with his sleeves tied up for warmth. His skinny appearance reminded Shade of the child who lived in a trash can in the back alley of the Green Lake Hotel that morning.
Seeing Shade looking at him with strange eyes, the boy closed his mouth in fear, but Shade still took out a 1-fennig coin and threw it into his hat. The boy, who was hiding in the corner, immediately thanked him. Shade then saw that he was a disabled person with only his right leg missing. So he hesitated for a moment, first gave him three more coins, and then took out two white sugar cubes from his pocket and threw them into his hat.
"Thank you, sir!"
The boy quickly stuffed the sugar cube into his mouth, as if he was afraid that someone would snatch it away. Just as Shade was about to ask him about the street, a patrolman in uniform walked over quickly. The policeman ignored Shade, who looked like a northerner, and instead scolded the boy:
"Didn't I tell you that you can't beg on this road for the next month? What would it look like if the Delarion delegation saw us? Get out of here!"
"Yes, sir, I understand."
The boy stood up tremblingly, holding on to the wall, and then leaning on a wooden stick, he hurriedly "walked" towards the alley beside him as if he was jumping and dancing. But before being driven into the alley, he did not forget to turn around and thank Xia De again.
The boy disappeared at the entrance of the alley. The gruff patrolman nodded politely to Xia De and continued patrolling along the street.
"I thought there was something different, but it turns out they are all the same."
The stranger muttered quietly, put his hands in his pockets, and looked up at this prosperous city in the steam age again.
The "Glass City" Mikaela Blast Furnace City is not a city suitable for travel and vacation like Midhill Fort and Randall Valley, but if you really come here, you must see the city wonder "Glass Blast Furnace".
This is not a blast furnace made of glass, but the city's original blast furnace for firing glass, which was turned into a viewing spot after it was decommissioned. The "Glass Blast Furnace" is located in the city center, and Xia De can see the 48-meter-high giant furnace at the corner of the street.
The glass blast furnace is cylindrical in shape, but the bottom, which occupies a large area, is a prism. The tall and magnificent industrial building and the eye-catching anti-rust red paint color give people a strong visual impact. Surrounding the blast furnace, scaffoldings are densely packed, and walkways are built on the scaffoldings. From a distance, there is a pure glass viewing platform on the top of the blast furnace. Only in the strange steam age can there be such an original and "industrial-style" wonder.
Although it cannot compare with the urban landscape of the stranger’s hometown, this blast furnace is enough for this era.
If you want to climb the "glass blast furnace", you have to buy a ticket, and smart businessmen have rented a place under the blast furnace and charge tourists to take photos.
Although Xia De was very interested in this place, he did not pay to go to the highest point to see the scenery of the city. He just stopped to look at the blast furnace, and considered it as a tour.
The area of Mikaela Blast Furnace City is about 1.5 times that of Green Lake City, and there are many places worth visiting in the city. Because the encounter with Captain Rades wasted some time, Shade quickened his pace during the afternoon tour.
Before returning home after losing his crystal shoes, he visited the Michaela Blast Furnace City Industrial Expo Hall, and saw various lifelike animals made of glass; with the help of a flower girl at the intersection, he found the "City Glass Art Exhibition Hall" in a remote corner, and saw the exquisite works of art made of glass by crazy artists.
Of course, Xia De did not forget to pick up a few small mirrors for the girls as souvenirs in the shops along the street. Although the production process of mirrors and glass is different, the local mirrors are also very famous.
At sunset, after a simple afternoon of sightseeing, Xia De was ready to go home. He was standing in front of the Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals factory in the Glass City under the afterglow of the setting sun.
Because the pharmaceutical factory has higher environmental requirements, it is not located in the industrial zone where the glass factory is located in the city, but is close to the Duin River, which makes it convenient to draw water directly from the water source. The factory covers a large area, but tourists are not allowed to enter. There is also a four-story building with a yard next to the factory, which is the local office of Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals.
"I wonder if the witch named Edwards is also in the Green Lake area."
He looked at the factory roof shining in the sunset and whispered in his heart. He put his hand on his chest and confirmed that the badge had no signs of heating. Then he went to the alley between the courtyard and the factory, took out and threw away the crystal shoes belonging to Leicia and went home.
Not long after Shade disappeared, a carriage drove from the east of the street into the sunset and went straight into the factory. A young girl with light brown hair and bored golden eyes looked out of the window:
"Boring day."
She spoke softly, curling the hair by her ear with her right index finger, thinking about the news about "Orichalcum" sent by Grandma Natalie.