Train (3)

That night, he dreamed that he had turned into a grassland rabbit, eating tender grass covered with dew at dawn, jumping and running on the vast grassland, rushing up the hill in one breath, and seeing the first ray of light at dawn—

Then the slowly rising sun turned into a shining golden head, which looked like...

"Alex!"

Inger was startled awake.

Alex rolled down from the seat opposite him to the ground, rubbing his eyes and waking up: "Ying? You called me?"

Inger wiped the cold sweat off his forehead, folded up the quilt, and watched the day dawning outside.

The nobles in the carriages also slept in all directions, and quite a few slept on the floor, but there were fewer people.

As expected, some nobles could not stand the fatigue of the long journey and got off the bus halfway.

But if they wanted to return from other territories, they would still have to take a carriage and travel long distances slowly. However, at least this way they could control the journey and stay in an inn every night.

On nights when the train was not staying in town, the people in the rear carriage would come out to have bonfire parties every night. For them, using the sky as a tent and the ground as a mat was just a daily routine.

Alex often mingled with the crowd, singing and dancing with them, and occasionally playing the guitar.

Inger was often pulled over, but he could only applaud them and refused to dance.

It was the first time he knew Alex could play the guitar.

But that thing is just like a guitar, a plucked string instrument unique to a certain ethnic group.

Not all people board the train at the starting station. There are also people who board at intermediate stations. The number of people increases and decreases, and for those who enjoy the journey, every night is as lively as ever.

When passing through a city on the way, I would get off and buy some food and local specialties before running back.

The scenery along the route is fresh every day as the topography, landforms and weather change.

When you get tired of looking at the scenery, you can play chess, read books or chat to pass the time.

Occasionally buy a glass of wine and get a little drunk.

Before we knew it, the long drive had come to an end.

This is the last night, and we will reach the Dukedom of Mond in the west tomorrow.

The whole car was full of people still asleep, and Inger couldn't fall asleep after he woke up.

Alex went outside to light a fire and made him a cup of tea.

"Are you cold?"

Inger pinched the collar pin that controlled the temperature at his collar. "I have this."

Alex rested his chin on his knees and stared into the fire.

"The Duke of Mond will not rebel, that is for sure... but they will not stand on any side either... and they will not leave the territory they are defending."

Inger took a sip of tea and asked, "You want them to go east?"

"If possible, with more fighting power and more hope, fewer people will die... But it is already very difficult for them to defend their land..."

"When the nest is overturned, no egg can remain intact."

"Ah, your analogy is very easy to understand!"

"Well...if the east is lost, they will sooner or later attack the west. Even in the inland areas, no matter how strong they are, it will be difficult to resist the demon army. In fact, although they survived, the land and people suffered extremely heavy damage...The problem is whether they will believe this."

"I have dealt with Duke Mond on the battlefield many times. He is a strong and upright man, and his knights are also very powerful. But precisely because they are so strong, they rely on their own strength and never believe in rumors, miracles, and myths."

"Sure enough, we have to start with the Duchess..." Inger muttered to himself.

"Um?"

Inger leaned over and asked, "How much do you know about the current Duchess?"

"Duchess? You mean the second wife of the former Duke of Mond?"

"Yes, the Duchess of Danshu Mond, who is currently known as the tamer of the Red Lion, seems to be the center of the Duke's family, so using her as a breakthrough point is the best strategy."

Alex frowned deeply, his expression changing several times, "Ying, where did you get this information? Is it a prophecy?"

"No? I learned it from the Duke's family history book... What do you mean?" Inger noticed something strange from Alex's odd expression and asked hurriedly.

Alex said with a serious expression, which was rare in the past few days: "…As far as I know, Duke Mond had two wives. The first wife died of illness after giving birth to three daughters. The second wife took control of the family power and handed it over to the eldest son. Then, on the day of the eldest son's engagement, she was attacked and killed. It is said that her death was horrible. When Duke Leon went to the battlefield, I heard his guards mention that the relationship between the four mothers and sons was very bad. Duke Leon never allowed others to mention her in front of him… Are you saying that she is still alive now?"

“………”

A chill rushed from Inger's feet to Tianlinggai.

There are few plots in comics that are unrelated to the main storyline.

So he didn’t know this part.

But he never expected that history did not start to change when his soul entered this body, nor when Alex returned with his memories.

History had changed before they came!

Alex stared at Inger, not missing any details of his emotions.

[I really don’t know…]

He originally thought that the history Inger knew was exactly the same as what he had experienced, and based on previous conversations, it was quite consistent, and he had never doubted this.

However, it now seems that what he saw was not all of the "prophecy".

"You mean, you read it in history books? Right now?"

"I saw it at home and at school. I wrote it all down. There's nothing wrong with it." Inger stroked the goose bumps on his arms. Even though the temperature control magic tool was working properly, he felt cold all over.

Alex said in a deep voice: "... Then who is this Danshu Mond now?"

***

After asking that question, both of them fell silent.

They have too many guesses that they cannot confirm and dare not speak out.

Inger finished his tea and walked up the hillside, and they greeted the sunrise together.

The train also departed on time.

Inger looked at the train outside for a while, then walked in but didn't sit down. After he wandered around for a while, Alex asked him:

"Do you still want to go to the bathroom?"

Inger punched him, gave up his hesitation, and walked straight to the train control room.

Alex followed him, holding his nose. "Oh! You want to see how the train works, why are you going now? I see you've been eager to go since the first day."

"I'm afraid of being caught and forced to do hard labor! Don't follow me!"

"No!"

The train control room was at the front of the train, with two people guarding the door. Even after I told them my purpose, they still looked hesitant.

Alex pointed at Inger and said, "My young master is a wizard at the Royal Military Academy of Nantes."

Inger glared at him.

The passengers looked at each other, went in and out again, and said respectfully, "Master Wizard, please come in."

But he regretted it the first second he entered.

The first thing he saw was five wizards with dark circles under their eyes turning their heads and staring at him, bloodshot in their eyes, as if they had grabbed a life-saving straw.

He had a bad feeling.

"Uh...why don't we just go out..."

"Dear junior! You came at the right time!"

Inger was frightened by the exaggerated dialogue that sounded like a stage actor's, and goosebumps appeared all over his body.

The last person to turn around was a wizard dressed in fancy clothes.

His long dark blond hair hung on his shoulders, his eyelashes were clearly brushed, and his eyes were emerald green. Logically, this man must have good facial features, but his makeup was exceptionally flamboyant, his eyeshadow was elongated and a deep silver, and his thin lips were painted bright red.

Coupled with the colorful patterns on his clothes, at first glance, he looks like a male peacock spreading its tail to court a mate.

He was very tall, with slender arms. He stretched out his hand and pulled Inger, who was standing at the door, into his arms.

The "male peacock" also had dark circles under his eyes, but compared with the other five wizards who were living a life worse than death, he seemed to have gone crazy from staying up all night partying.

[Each of them looks like they will suddenly die in the next second...]

There are serious concerns about the safety of this train.

"Come on! You are curious about this too!"

Inger glanced at the five wizards who were in a trance and suspected that they were all deceived into coming here for this reason.

"Hey, don't look at them! They are all my apprentices from the research institute! They are all useless!"

Inger saw that he was probably a wizard from the institute, so he asked politely, "May I ask who you are?"

"Ahhh! I'm so excited! I forgot to tell you my name! My name is Madimara Jackson, and I'm the chief designer of the Etro."

Inger's expression suddenly changed.

This is a big shot.

It’s not that this person occupies any position in the comics. This person has never appeared in the comics.

But when he inquired about the institute, the name sounded bad. This man was the most talented mechanical engineering wizard in the institute and the one who invented the train.

Anyone who invents epoch-making products in this era deserves admiration.

Inger replied respectfully: "Teacher, please call me Ying."

"Why call me teacher? Call me senior! Or even senior. Look, I'm still so young and beautiful! Teacher always feels like a title for those professors with white beards." Madimara gave him a wink, her voice strangely coquettish and lively.

Inger shuddered and dodged the electric eye attack.

[If I remember correctly, this person should be 39 years old this year... but he looks only about 30 years old... so scary]

Madimara put her arm around Inger's shoulders in a familiar manner: "Little fellow, I sensed you the moment you got on the bus. You have a lot of magic power."

Inger shuddered twice and forced a smile, "Senior, you are an 8th-level wizard, stop making fun of me."

"Oh?" Madimara's eyes lit up, and she tightened her hands on Inger's shoulders.

The disciples behind him stood up instantly.

"Teacher! You made a breakthrough?!"

A drop of cold sweat hung on Inger's face.

[Oh no…]

Madimara waved her hand and said, "Sit down and have a good rest! Or you can lie down. Don't be surprised! It's just a breakthrough to level 8!"

Inger secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "..."

However, Madimara whispered in his ear: "Little apprentice, I know you don't seem to want to expose your wizard ability, but you can use detection, can't I?"

Inger: “…………”

He is very regretful now.

"Every wizard has to check his level regularly and register. I don't know why you haven't registered yet. You are a wizard from the Royal Military Academy. The conductor told me that you are the second son of the Neka family, so you should not be a spy. I won't pursue it further..."

[However, apart from that little monster Bixi, this is the first time I have seen a wizard who has reached level 4 at the age of fifteen. His magic power even exceeds this category...]

He kept these words in his heart and didn't say them out loud.

Inger's mood was like riding a roller coaster, rising and falling rapidly.

He paused for a moment, finally having time to look at the structure inside the control room.

Unlike the sophisticated and complex machinery and instruments he knew of modern times, there was no coal-fired workshop.

There are only a few seats, a huge pull rod, and a glass storage box in the control room.

The ground beneath his feet was engraved with intricate spell arrays, and the magic circuit extended all the way to the pull rod.

Inger asked, "What are the main magic formulas for driving the train?"

Madimara smiled and recited a series of divine spells.

Inger automatically translated in his mind: "[Rotate] [Accelerate] [Constant Temperature] [Cure] [Repair]"

Inger asked hurriedly: "Why is it rotating?"

Madimara's face was also filled with enthusiasm. He took out the train design drawings from his arms. They looked a little yellowed and had obviously been worn many times, but it was obvious that they were not original manuscript paper, but had been copied onto hardcover parchment.

Inger thought about it carefully, and his eyes sparkled with a hint of something strange.

Steam locomotives rely on burning coal to evaporate water vapor to generate piston movement, which in turn rotates the wheels. The energy loss in converting heat energy into mechanical work is also very large, and harmful exhaust smoke is also produced.

But the energy storage magic stone is a pure energy ore.

Originally, he had envisioned suspending and accelerating the train, but suspending and accelerating a train of this size would consume too much magic power and manpower for continuous long-distance transportation, so it was naturally impossible.

But this train only uses the simplest rotating wheel design. By continuously applying the magic of rotation and acceleration to the main round pole at the front, the first pair of wheels drive the wheels behind to rotate, so as to achieve the highest efficiency.

Because long-term rotation causes high temperature and wear, constant temperature, curing and repair are applied to maintain mechanical operation.

The magic power of several wizards is naturally not enough to keep the train running for a long time, but the box of magic stones is the energy source. Through the transformation of magic circles and the use of the magic power in the magic stones, the train can maintain its uniform speed movement.

"Although it can be started, and the experiment and the first run were successful, the operation of the train requires wizards to take turns. The control levers need to be operated when turning, going uphill and downhill, and changing lanes, and the magic input needs to be controlled in advance to change the speed..."

Madimara talks nonstop, even with dark circles under her eyes.

Inger came over to see how he controlled it.

"There is a scale here, right? Push the lever forward and control the magic output at the same time. Activate the magic circle along the magic circuit. When the light in the glass column runs upward, the scale bar at the back will be illuminated by the light. The speed is engraved on it, from white to red, and the speed increases successively. The maximum speed of this train can reach 100 kilometers per hour."

"This requires very precise control of magic power."

Inger looked around in surprise.

This means that all the half-dead wizards present here are the best in this area.

Madimara raised her head proudly: "Of course, if the operation is not done properly, it will cost lives, I will not bring it here."

"Do you know how to change direction?"

"Cut track and change lanes."

"Oh! You actually knew that!"

"This is a storage box for mana ore, right?"

Inger saw a magic circle of energy conversion engraved below, but compared to this, the ore itself was very rough.

"Why not grind the ore into a regular shape, such as a cylinder or a cuboid? This way, the contact area with the magic circle will be larger, and the conversion efficiency will be higher. In fact, the area of ​​the magic circle can be smaller. If you make more, then a whole box... Oh, sorry, I'm a little too nosy..."

Inger was talking about something and then he suddenly realized and stopped talking.

Madimara listened in, frowned and thought for a while, then clapped her hands: "Goddess! Why didn't I think of this!"

He walked over in a hurry: "Originally I thought this was just an energy ore, so it didn't matter if I was a little bit casual... But the speed often changes slightly and it has something to do with the efficiency of the magic stone's energy conversion!"

Madimara happily hugged Inger and said, "Good junior! If you have any questions or suggestions, just tell me!"

Inger blushed in embarrassment.

Alex wanted to pull him out, but he didn't.

[His expression is similar to the one when he successfully performed those two wide-area spells...]

Inger came down, but couldn't help asking, "Where's the protective array to prevent derailment?"

"Engraved on the glass is a stop circle, which takes less than a second to activate."

"At such a high speed, a sudden stop will cause an inertial dive, which will put all passengers in danger. It is best to install a protective device on each seat, otherwise each car... should not stop immediately, but slow down in multiple layers..."

"Good idea! In order not to consume excess mana, we can create an emergency trigger mechanism."

…

The wizards at the back were all shocked as they watched their teacher and a young wizard discussing something they gradually couldn't understand.