A massive stone wall stretched across his field of vision, its greyish-white surface gilded with a warm yellow hue by the setting sun.
The wall was towering, even thicker than the outer wall of Bronze City. However, there were no inscriptions on its surface, none of that heavily patterned bronze texture. It was built of solid, physical stone.
Guards stood watch at the city gate. Seeing such a long convoy slowly approaching, several of them straightened up at the same time.
Lu Yuan's convoy was far too conspicuous. With over a dozen carriages, bookended by Nightwatchers troop carriages, and the middle filled with large wagons carrying residents, anyone looking from afar could tell at a glance that this was no ordinary merchant caravan.
A guard captain walked over quickly. He first glanced at the Nightwatchers emblem hanging from the front carriage, then looked at Lu Yuan's face on the driver's seat. With his black hair and black eyes, Lu Yuan was easily recognizable at a glance.
“Nightwatchers? From Bronze City?”
Lu Yuan retrieved his Nightwatchers badge from his coat and handed over the documents prepared by Kraus. The guard captain took them, flipped through a couple of pages, verified the seal and the headcount, and nodded.
“We received instructions from above. We've been waiting for you for a few days.”
The necessary procedures were followed as expected—registering, verifying the headcount of both the Nightwatchers and the residents, and checking each carriage one by one.
The guard then took a palm-sized, greyish-white stone from his waist and swept it over the convoy from a distance.
Lu Yuan recognized the object.
It was similar to the Holy Light Stone Margaret had given him, only cruder. Its surface wasn't polished as finely, and its stone patterns were more cluttered.
Such crude stones barely reacted from a distance; they had to be held right up against something to change color. The guard merely waved it from afar as a mere formality, unable to detect anything subtle.
The faint red patch on his left leg and the recovering Knowledge Worm in his left eye were completely outside the scope of such a crude screening.
Lu Yuan maintained a calm expression, standing naturally as he let the guard finish the procedures.
The process went smoother than he had expected. It was clear that Kraus had already given advance notice and made proper arrangements for their arrival. By this time, someone had already run into the city to report to the Lord's mansion.
The city administrator sent to meet them soon arrived at the gate. He was a middle-aged man who worked efficiently and spoke little.
He led the convoy through the city gate and down a wide stone-paved street. The houses on both sides were built of stone, far sturdier than the wooden shacks in the outer city of Bronze City.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, the administrator led the convoy to an open field. Next to the field stood several rows of newly built temporary houses. They had earthen walls and wooden roofs, looking simple, but they were fully furnished, with several bundles of unopened bedding stacked in the corners.
They had clearly been built in advance to wait for them.
As the residents got off the carriages, some looked at the rows of houses, their faces finally showing a sense of relief for the first time in days.
While Lu Yuan was organizing his fellow Nightwatchers to help the residents move their belongings, the administrator walked over and whispered to him.
“Captain, the City Lord wishes to meet you in person.”
Lu Yuan was somewhat surprised.
He had assumed that at most an administrator would handle the handover, but he hadn't expected the City Lord herself to make an appearance.
Following the administrator into the inner city, they stopped in front of a stone-walled courtyard. The courtyard wasn't large, but it was neat and tidy, with two lush and leafy locust trees growing in front of the gate.
A figure walked out from the courtyard gate.
She had blonde hair and looked about Lu Yuan's age, in her early twenties. She wore a neatly tailored dark green dress with a small copper-buckled leather pouch clipped to her waist. Her hair was pulled back into a simple bun, with no extra jewelry.
To think the Count would be so young?
The moment she saw Lu Yuan, her eyes lit up. She stepped forward quickly and extended her hand.
“You must be the Nightwatchers leader sent by Vice Director Kraus, correct?” Her voice was clear and crisp, carrying a hint of briskness. “I am Isabella, the City Lord here, and also the Count.”
Lu Yuan shook her hand and introduced himself.
Isabella released his hand, glanced at Bo Er behind him, then looked at the resident convoy moving their things in the distance, and nodded.
“I have been looking forward to your arrival. The Vice Director had already briefed me, so the rooms and lodgings are fully prepared, and I've also had the residents properly settled. You can make yourselves at home here.”
Having said that, she turned and waved toward the courtyard. “Come with me, let's talk as we walk.”
Lu Yuan tilted his head toward Bo Er, who quickly caught up, while the other Nightwatchers remained behind to help settle the residents, unable to leave.
Isabella led the two of them through several streets.
She didn't stop talking the entire way.
“We can't compare to your Bronze City; we're just a small place. However, we certainly don't lack food and medicinal herbs.” She chin-gestured toward the outskirts of the city. “You must have seen it on your way here—the tens of thousands of acres of fertile fields surrounding the outer city were all reclaimed over the years. With an abundant water network, it's the perfect place to grow medicinal herbs.”
When she mentioned the words “medicinal herbs,” a hint of irrepressible pride slipped into her tone.
Lu Yuan thought back to their journey; they had indeed seen it.
After cresting the hill, they had seen vast expanses of paddy fields stretching outside the city walls, interspersed with patches of darker fields where herbs were cultivated.
The dark green herb fields spread out under the setting sun, their area far larger than he had anticipated.
This female Count possessed both refinement and proper upbringing, clearly not the type of noble who lived solely for pleasure. She knew exactly what sustained Oakwood City, how the fields outside the outer city were cleared, and when the herbs were planted and harvested. She could talk about everything in detail, showing that she had truly dedicated herself to the city's affairs.
Stopping in front of an open courtyard, Isabella turned around and brought the conversation to the main point.
“As for the two hundred-plus people you brought with you, Oakwood City will cover their rations for the year. We will support them.”
She spoke cleanly and decisively, without the slightest hesitation.
“We'll allocate a batch of food first. You've already seen where they'll stay—it's a bit simple, but it has all the essentials. Once they're settled, they're welcome to offer their craftsmanship. Whatever skills they have are fine.”
She paused, a touch of genuine sincerity entering her tone.
“Oakwood City is currently in short supply of craftsmen.”
Hearing the word “craftsmen,” Lu Yuan suddenly realized Kraus's intention.
The last batch of residents Kraus had sent out of the city hadn't been chosen at random.
Carpenters, blacksmiths, masons... even when they were resting at the inn, some residents had crawled under the carriages to check the axles. They were clearly professionals.
Lu Yuan nodded to Isabella.
“Thank you, Lady Count.”
“Don't mention it,” Isabella waved her hand. “I must show respect to Vice Director Kraus. Besides, having more craftsmen is a good thing for us as well. It's hardly a loss.”
As she spoke, she led the two of them forward a few more steps.
Along the way, Lu Yuan's gaze drifted over several rooftops, landing on a building in the distance.
It was a massive circular tower.
The tower rose in a ring shape from the center of the inner city, its greyish-white stone walls appearing steady and imposing in the twilight.
The tower wasn't particularly tall, but the circle it enclosed was vast. Something seemed to be contained inside, though it couldn't be seen clearly from this angle.
Lu Yuan's gaze lingered on the tall tower for a couple of breaths, but he didn't ask about it.
Isabella seemed not to notice what he was looking at, continuing to lead them forward.
Bo Er, however, took a few extra looks at the tower, his mouth twitching, though he ultimately remained silent.
After a brief introduction to the city's situation and settling the general arrangements, Lu Yuan spoke up.
“Lady Isabella, there is something I would like to ask your help with.”
Isabella was in the middle of handing a cup of hot tea to Bo Er when she turned back at his words.
“Go ahead.”
“I would like to borrow a communication crystal to contact Bronze City.”
Lu Yuan's tone was very flat, as if he were speaking of an ordinary matter. Yet, the tight string in his heart hadn't relaxed for a single moment since the day they left the city.
He didn't have a communication crystal of his own, and the inscription array on the carriage was only meant for short-range communication between vehicles, unable to reach Bronze City.
Isabella agreed readily.
“Come with me.”
She led Lu Yuan into a small room next to the courtyard, took a thumb-sized crystal from a wooden box on the table, and handed it over. The surface of the crystal shimmered with a faint cyan light, its quality visibly superior to those used by the Nightwatchers.
“Oakwood City has a fixed connection with Bronze City. This crystal is already calibrated, so you can use it directly.”
Lu Yuan took it and gripped it in his palm.
He channeled his transcendent fluctuations into it. The fine threads inside the crystal lit up, and ripples spread outward, drifting in the direction of Bronze City.
There was no response.
Lu Yuan waited for a few breaths and tried again, intensifying his fluctuations.
The threads inside the crystal flickered twice, and the ripples radiated outward, only to vanish like a stone sinking into the ocean.
It was deathly silent, without a single sound.
Lu Yuan tried a different method, reorganizing his fluctuations before sending them out once more.
It was the same.
The light on the crystal's surface shone quietly, and the ripples drifted out ring by ring, but nothing rippled back.
Lu Yuan gripped the crystal, his fingers slowly tightening.
Watching his expression from the side, Isabella's brow furrowed slightly.
“No contact?”
Lu Yuan didn't answer immediately.
He was currently in Oakwood City. No matter how major the crisis back in Bronze City was, he was too far away to reach or help.
Lu Yuan placed the crystal back on the table and nodded to Isabella.
“No contact,” he said. “Thank you.”
Isabella glanced at him but didn't press further.
Lu Yuan stepped out of the small room.
Outside, the sky had turned pitch-black. The lights of Oakwood City flickered on one by one. Unlike the night in Bronze City, the lights here were a warm yellow, carrying a peaceful sense of domestic life.
In the distance, the silhouette of the circular tower stood heavy in the night, the area it enclosed pitch-black, making it impossible to see what lay inside.
Lu Yuan glanced at the tower, then turned his gaze toward the west.
Nothing could be seen in that direction. Bronze City was several days' journey away, and not even a sliver of light could filter through.
He stood there for a while, silent.
Bo Er walked up from behind and stood beside him.
“No contact?”
“No contact.”
Bo Er fell silent for a few breaths, also gazing toward the empty darkness of the western sky.
Lu Yuan withdrew his gaze and turned to walk toward his quarters.
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