Airola once again dreamed of Ceylon that day.
There was steam and flames all around. The metal was deformed under the high temperature. Pieces of floor slabs fell down and hit the ground, turning into scattered fragments.
The girl was buried in a narrow space under the ruins. The hot wind brought up thick smoke and dust, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.
She kicked the hot and cracked walls in vain, trying to find a way out before the oxygen in this enclosed space ran out, but the narrow terrain made it impossible for her to exert any strength, let alone she was just an underage girl.
I'm going to die.
Just as this thought emerged in Airola's mind, she heard the faint whimpering of a little animal mixed in the wind.
The walls collapsed, and the blizzard hit Aurora's face and the furry tail of the snow marten.
"Char."
Airola looked at the boy's blurred outline in the black smoke and murmured softly.
...
...
She recognized the owner of the snow marten named "Silver"... This was a playmate she had known for a long time and also a very good friend. Airola had always regarded it as her biggest secret and kept it in her heart, without telling her family.
Sometimes he would take Airola to the snowfield to watch the migrating reindeer herds. Other times he would dig a small hole in the frozen lake, take the snow marten to fish in the ice hole, and then make a fire with Airola to grill the fish and share them.
But, after all, they were just childhood playmates.
We are just passers-by in a certain period of life... The playmates who played side by side at that time, as time goes by, will sooner or later embark on completely different life trajectories that will never intersect again due to differences in background, talents, etc.
During the time she was buried under the rubble, Aurora called out many people's names in her heart.
Unexpectedly, the person who came to rescue her was a boy about her age.
"Xiao Ai, wake up."
"That was just the first wave of beasts. The second wave may come at any time."
"We have to leave Ceylon quickly. Fortunately, I know a shortcut."
The boy in the dark smoke said so.
"But I can't walk."
Airola turned her head to look at her legs. The dirty blood and snow melted and merged into blood. Bones could be vaguely seen between the blurred flesh and blood.
This was the wound she had been hit by a heavy object, and the injury was further aggravated by the violent action of kicking the wall.
"Fortunately, if I find a healing beastmaster to treat me in time, I won't be disabled for life..."
She saw the boy walking through the dark smoke and leaning over to check his injuries.
"There's no other way. Hold my neck tight."
Then Airola felt her body lighten, and she was carried up from the ruins without any explanation.
The girl was carried away from the ruins and moved further and further away from the burning city behind her.
The cold wind from the north swept in, and the blizzard mixed with ice chips melted on the girl's delicate skin, taking away her already low body temperature.
“It’s so warm.”
The blood loss from the wounds on her legs drained away all her strength. Waves of fatigue came over her and she leaned on Char's shoulder, her voice becoming softer and softer.
"Hey, hey! You have hypothermia, that's why you feel warm in the ice and snow."
"Is that so..." The girl's consciousness became blurred.
Char shook Airola vigorously: "Don't fall asleep! Don't fall asleep! There are too many travelers in the ice field who fell asleep and could never open their eyes again."
"Hold on a little longer. Over the hill you'll find a hunter's hut. Inside is a lantern made of seal fat, a warm stove, and dry firewood."
"And I remember that there are spare sled dogs and sleds there. Then we can cross this ice field and go to the Red Frost Lord City on the other side of the ice field."
Arora hugged Xia's neck and replied softly, "Is that so?"
"Keep your mind clear and think about other things. The disaster in Ceylon this time was definitely man-made..."
"The induction of those beast tides was totally unnatural, and the high-level beast masters who were supposed to be on duty did not give any advance warning... Don't you want to find out the real culprit who destroyed Ceylon?"
"Yes." Airola nodded, but the voice became weaker and weaker.
She felt her legs and feet gradually becoming numb in the snowstorm, and then she lost consciousness, and then her hands...
Airola leaned over to Xia's ear and whispered, "Leave me alone. I won't live to see the Red Frost Territory."
But then she felt the thin body beneath her suddenly become angry.
"You are not allowed to die."
"If you die, wouldn't I be a clown for going to so much trouble to save you and carrying you on my back across the northern ice sheet for so long?"
The boy suddenly stopped.
He unbuttoned his fur coat, then picked up Aurora and hugged her into his coat.
"My first soul contract is the Snow Marten. It has the physical fitness feedback of the soul contract, so it is more resistant to cold."
"I'm the only one who can keep you warm in this damn place. Do you mind?"
Airola felt her cheek touching Char's skin, without any clothing getting in the way.
The boy's body helped shield himself from the cold wind, and his not-so-broad chest exuded warmth.
"I don't mind." She said softly.
"You still can't cheer up..." Xia sighed.
"That won't do. A person without the will to survive won't be able to walk out of this snowfield alive."
"Since you are not interested in what I say, let's talk about the topic that you are interested in."
"Girls of your age... let me think, is it a dress-up toy doll or a romance novel? Or a pet for viewing?"
"Why did you save me?" Ira asked.
"Do I need a reason to save someone? Aren't you my friend?"
Aurora shook her head slightly: "I have many people in my family who I thought were my friends, but when the beast tide came, they were all concerned with escaping, and no one thought of saving me."
Xia paused for a moment. "A little girl of your age shouldn't be focusing on chanting poems about flowers and butterflies and believe that the world is a big family full of truth, goodness and beauty, right?"
Airola did not respond, but simply looked up at the boy's profile with her sky-blue eyes.
"Okay, okay. I admit that I am a little selfish."
Char sighed, "For example, I envy the maids following behind the noble young masters, and I admire the sweet love stories of childhood sweethearts in novels. I also feel terrified when I see those ragtag girls pretending to be innocent and deceiving honest people."
"You should have died in Ceylon, but I saved you."
"In this case, your life belongs to me. No matter in the past, present, or future, you can only live for me."
"And I need a pretty girl who is loyal, knows me well, is capable, and preferably good at fighting, because having a pretty girl who is good at fighting as a follower is every man's vanity."
Xia Ya's words suddenly became serious: "Will you be my beautiful girl?"
"Okay..." Aurora's murmur disappeared in the wind and snow.
"Then you have to live well."
"Otherwise, if you die here, you will just be a small dried corpse buried in the ice and snow, which will not be beautiful."
Char picked up Airola again and pushed her hard onto his shoulder.
Then, he took quick steps and continued walking towards the depths of the frozen snowfield.
The two thin figures leaning against each other stretched out in the wind and snow, with only intermittent words floating in the air along with the howling blizzard.
"Don't die, Xiao Ai."
"You still have many wonderful things to experience. This world is not just about this snowfield and that small town in the icefield..."
"For example, the vast ocean, the forest at sunset... and kissing and hugging..."
“And that moment of falling in love.”
“So, live on, and witness with me the sights that have never happened.”
…
Red Frost Territory, main city.
The train station is crowded with people at this moment.
The tragic news of Ceylon's destruction has already arrived, and as a region adjacent to Ceylon, Chishuang Territory is now crowded with people fleeing from towns near Ceylon.
No one knew how long the beast tide would last. Even a city like Ceylon, which had high-level beastmasters, was destroyed. Who could guarantee that their hometown would not become the next target?
Airola, holding her luggage, sat on the steam train that was about to depart.
It took them a day and a night to find the hunter's hut, and Char used the medical kit in the hut to simply bandage her leg wound.
After a short rest, they reached the main city of the Red Frost Territory by dog sled, and then planned to go to the Knowledge City by steam magic train.
Xia said that it was a place completely different from the rough North, where everyone spoke in a gentle and elegant manner and it was full of bookish atmosphere, suitable for novice beastmasters like them to learn theory and lay a solid foundation.
"I'm going to the city library to look up some information."
"If I'm late then don't wait for me, I'll get the next bus."
Before the train departed, Char left these words and disappeared.
So Airola waited alone in the steam train carriage, guarding their luggage.
That was all their property, which consisted of some spare clothes and food, not worth a few Rhine gold coins.
When Char was fleeing from Ceylon, he took some valuable jewelry with him, but he spent it all on hiring a high-level healing beastmaster to treat her leg injury. The remaining money was exchanged for the two train tickets in Airola's hand.
Against the backdrop of the beast tide riots, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Everyone is eager to escape from the cold and barren north and go to the civilized world inland.
Arora looked towards the entrance of the train station again and again, but the thin figure never appeared...
She suddenly felt an inexplicable panic in her heart, because Airola suddenly discovered that Xia had not left her any money to buy a new ticket.
All their property was at her feet, and Char had no money at all. If Char didn't come back, she would have to go to the so-called bookish city alone. Although Char said that city was much better than Ceylon, Airola was not familiar with it at all. She went there only because Char wanted to go.
“Very good talent.”
Just then an old man's voice sounded behind Aurora.
She was an old lady with silver hair, wearing a plain white robe, followed by several equally elegant female attendants.
That calm and indifferent expression was in stark contrast to the passengers in the surrounding train station who were busy fleeing.
The old man looked at Ailora with a gentle gaze: "You have a very good soul talent. You have the potential to break through to the master level or even become a title-level beastmaster in the future... Do you want to be my disciple?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole place was in an uproar, with passengers talking everywhere, and even the female attendants showed expressions of surprise and envy.
In the discussions, names such as "title level", "big shot", and "six rings" were mentioned one after another.
The old lady seemed to see Aurora's confusion, and gently introduced herself: "I am from the White Tower, a guest of the Princes' Alliance. I was invited by the Empire to come and study the beast tide riot in the north."
As soon as the old lady's words came out, the whole audience was in an uproar. Everyone knew what this invitation meant.
He was a beastmaster with a six-ring title. In the entire northern border of the empire, only the Northern Inspector was a six-ring master. For ordinary people, being able to become a disciple of such a great man was undoubtedly a step to heaven.
All of a sudden, countless envious eyes were cast on Airola, wishing they could replace this lucky little girl.
However, faced with this well-intentioned invitation, Airola did not feel the slightest bit of joy in her heart.
She just kept looking at the entrance of the station, and her anxiety and uneasiness became even worse.
The old man noticed Airola's uneasiness and looked around: "By the way, are your guardians here? I want to talk to them."
"I don't have any parents...but, I'm waiting for someone."
Upon hearing that Airola's parents had passed away, the old man's eyes softened a little.
"In that case, follow me to the City of Knowledge first. I will ask the mayor of this city to bring a message to the person you are waiting for..."
"Congratulations, little sister. This is the first time the teacher has accepted a disciple in five years."
Soon, a woman in a white robe came up and congratulated Airola.
As she spoke, she picked up the luggage and smiled at Aurora: “Let’s go, the environment here in the second-class seats is too bad, let’s go to the teacher’s special seats and talk in detail.”
Seeing this, the envious eyes looking at Airola from the surroundings couldn't help but become even more intense.
He has just been accepted into the sect and has received such attention. I can only say that he is worthy of being called the White Tower.
Different from other supernatural forces that value dedication and merit, and the principle of more work and more pay, the White Tower is more like an organization that purely teaches and educates people. It never competes for world domination. Therefore, the atmosphere inside the White Tower is more gentle, and it is far less cold and profit-oriented than other places.
If the White Tower did not require that its members must be female, there would be countless beastmasters vying to get in.
"Need not……"
Airola shook her head and wanted to refuse.
Just then, a bronze bell rang and the train issued a long whistle, indicating that the magic train was ready to depart.
The passengers on the train were all happy to be able to get away from this bitter and cold land, but Airola's fear became more and more intense.
She stood up suddenly, snatched the luggage from the smiling woman, then climbed out of the window and jumped off the moving train.
Everyone's eyes were stunned. No one could understand why this seemingly young girl would refuse the invitation to be accepted as a disciple by a title-level Beast Tamer.
But Airola simply landed on the platform of the train station amid countless astonished gazes, endured the pain from the impact on her injured leg that had not yet healed, and quickly ran out of the train station.
She ran, stopping and starting along the signs all the way towards the Municipal Library, but she stumbled before she got halfway and blood oozed out of the white gauze on her wound.
But before she fell, her swaying body was supported by a hand.
"Silly girl, how could you make yourself so embarrassed?"
The young man's words were filled with a hint of helplessness: "I specifically investigated the background of the Sixth Ring of the White Tower. He is a rare example among high-level beastmasters who is kind and gentle."
"Follow her, you can get the best instruction, and there are also the best pet cubs and advanced materials for you to choose from. Your life will be better than in Ceylon."
But then Char heard the blonde girl whisper softly, "I want to be your...pretty girl."
Xia paused for a moment, "You believe this? I just made it up to arouse your desire to survive..."
"When you grow up, you will understand that verbal promises are the most unreliable things in the face of real benefits... I just saved your life, but I am not qualified to trade your life."
Airola did not answer, but simply followed Char.
And Xia's eyes could not help but show some helplessness: "Are you sure you don't want to follow the one in the White Tower?"
"That is a great opportunity to rise to the top. There are countless people in the entire Western Continent who want to become her disciples, some even willing to buy alchemical medicine to turn themselves into women."
Airola shook her head.
"You will suffer a lot if you follow me, and I like to commit suicide. You might even be in danger of your life."
"Follow her... If you want to repay her for saving your life, it won't be too late after you graduate from the White Tower."
Still shaking his head.
"The White Tower is full of women, and we are alone. You are a beauty, aren't you afraid that I might have some improper thoughts about you?"
"Although we are still young, we are not far from growth. When the time comes, I will do whatever I want..."
"No."
Char finally stopped talking. He looked at the blonde girl in front of him and spoke word by word.
"Then make a vow..."
"From now on, I will always keep you by my side, never abandon you, never leave you, even to the end of death. And I will help you find the truth about the incident in Ceylon."
"And you must live well and cherish your life... Always be someone who is useful to me."
"good."
Airola nodded slightly, then placed her pinky finger on Char's little finger.
This was the move that Xia taught her when she was a child.
It is said that a vow made in this way cannot be broken even after a hundred years, even if there is separation of life and death.
"Well, then follow me."
…
The sound of a simple and heavy bell came from afar, waking Airola from her deep meditation.
The time for the engagement dinner is coming soon.
She stood up silently, opened the door of the meditation room, and washed up in the bathroom.
Arora changed into a tight-fitting dress in front of the fitting mirror, then got up and went downstairs.
Downstairs, a young man with black hair and black eyes was leaning against the carriage, teasing the little ferret on his shoulder out of boredom, humming an out-of-tune melody.
"Would you like some milk tea?"
Char's voice rang out.
"It's so cold, let me warm your hands."
As he spoke, he handed over one of the two cups of milk tea in his hand and picked up the other one himself.
"Oh, and here are the roasted sweet potatoes I bought from a roadside stall."
Xia raised the bag in his hand and said, "You have been locking yourself in the meditation room these days. I guess you have been eating nutritional supplements. You should eat something warm."
"Although there will be a dinner party later, I don't think we will have the opportunity to eat at the party."
Airola took the cup of milk tea and the bag of roasted sweet potatoes, took a sip, and felt the warm warmth spreading in her heart little by little.
During these seven days, she thought about many things.
For example, faced with this engagement, what would Char do?
She had even prepared herself for the worst.
Because for Airola today, she cherishes the hard-earned stable life with Char more than the hatred in her childhood that has long faded.
However, when she saw Xia again.
With just one glance, Airola understood what Char was thinking.
Although he said that oaths were the most unreliable things, he clearly kept his promises better than anyone else.
Airola held the hot baked sweet potato in her hand and ate it in small bites. Halfway through, she handed the baked sweet potato to Char.
"You are worthy of being my sweet and caring little cotton-padded jacket. You even remembered to keep half for me."
Char took the roasted sweet potato, ate it in no time, and then let out a contented sigh.
Just then the carriage stopped and a magnificent palace came into view.
The Hall of the Oath.
The ownership of this palace does not belong to the royal family, but to the eight major families. However, it is not inferior to the royal palace.
In the early days of the founding of the country, the eight sworn families held a swearing-in meeting in this palace. The few decisions revealed therein were enough to cause an uproar in the entire empire and even the Western Continent.
Today, this place is used by the Borgia family as the venue for their engagement dinner.
At this moment, the palace was brightly lit, and thousands of magical lighting arrays were opened at the same time, followed by one powerful aura as steady as the abyss after another, and loud noises.
Char jumped off the carriage and extended his hand to the blonde girl behind him.
"let's go."
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