Witch Cesi, accompanied by her two students—Narlyd and Heidi—was unaware that the person they had helped was now in even worse shape than before they lent their assistance. They were currently walking toward the city center.
On a street in the central district, in front of an imposing Stone Building, Cesi halted her steps and reached out to knock on the door.
"Knock, knock, knock..."
With a creak, the door opened, and a tall woman in a yellow dress stepped out. She glanced at Cesi, about to ask a question, then blinked several times as if she recognized something, and exclaimed with delight, "Cesi, is it you?"
"It’s me, Ilev," Witch Cesi replied softly.
"This is such a surprise!" the woman in yellow called out, "I thought you would stay on the East Coast and never come back."
"The world is always changing," Cesi sighed, "When I first decided to stay on the East Coast, I thought it was more peaceful than the Main Continent. But as things unfolded, the East Coast seems unable to remain peaceful, so I had no choice but to return to the Main Continent."
"So, where are you planning to go now that you’re looking for me?"
"Perhaps north or west," Cesi said.
"There shouldn’t be any issue with going north; I can arrange that for you," the woman in yellow said, "But going west might be difficult."
"You’re not aware," the woman in yellow continued, "Not long ago, many caravans on their way west were attacked by a quite powerful Thief Group. Not to mention the massive loss of goods, there were also numerous casualties, and until now, the situation hasn’t completely calmed down. So, I advise you to head north. It’s probably better to not even consider the west, at least... not for the time being."
"Alright then," Cesi nodded, "We’ll go north, please make the arrangements."
"It’s no trouble at all; after all, I owed you a great deal of favors before," the woman in yellow smiled and said, "But it’s not possible to arrange things immediately, it will take a few days. You should stay here with me in the meantime, and meet some old friends."
"This..." An expression of hesitation appeared on Cesi’s face.
The woman in yellow, as if guessing Cesi’s thoughts, reassured her, "You’re worried about feeling uncomfortable, right? Don’t worry, I promise it’s only going to be a few of the closest people from before, just to catch up with each other. After all, we’re all very concerned about how you’ve been living on the East Coast."
"Well... alright then," Cesi hesitantly nodded in agreement.
"That’s settled then. Don’t just stand outside—come in," the woman in yellow beckoned, then noticing the two young girls behind Cesi, her eyes lit up, "Such beautiful girls, they couldn’t be your daughters, could they?"
"We’re the teacher’s students," Heidi quietly clarified, and then she added, "But the teacher treats us even better than her own daughters."
"Oh, I see, well, come in, come in..."
Heidi and Narlyd followed Cesi into the Stone Building belonging to the woman in yellow.
Around the same time, a beggar named Jia Lie hobbled out of Tuoke City, head bowed low. After walking several hundred meters, he looked back at Tuoke City and heaved a long sigh. He believed he would never forget the tragic experiences he had in that city, nor the even more distant dismal past.
He didn’t have a choice; his luck was just too poor. Whatever he did, he would face unbearable failure, as if Calamity itself was clung to him.
If he had another chance to do it all over again, he might be able to achieve a better outcome—might.
Of course, it was also possible that he would have met a grim death on the streets the moment the Mans Four-color Flower bloomed its third color.
After all, that witch was truly ruthless...
The third color of the Mans Four-color Flower was red.
When a large number of Mans Four-color Flowers burst into their third color, the fields outside Tuoke City were ablaze with crimson, as if set aflame.
A shaky carriage, passing through the crimson fields, sped into Tuoke City.
It was exactly noon, and the sounds of voices were boiling over, the streets of Tuoke City bustling as if boiling porridge.
Two thuds sounded as the carriage came to a slight halt, and two figures leaped from the cabin.
Looking over, one saw two shadows, one male and one female, both very young. The girl looked quite valiant, while the boy seemed somewhat timid, currently shrinking his neck and vigilantly scanning the surroundings, as if fearing an unknown assault.
After observing the boy’s behavior, the girl could not help but shake her head, speaking with some dissatisfaction, "Hey, Gro, can’t you stop being so scared all the time! We’ve come to the Main Continent, not some hell. We’ve been ashore for days now; haven’t you adjusted yet?"
"What are you talking about, Nancy!" The boy couldn’t help retorting, "This isn’t fear, it’s caution, do you understand! Lord Richard often told me before, when entering an unfamiliar and potentially dangerous new environment, the first thing to do is to be cautious, the second thing to do is also to be cautious, and the third thing to do is still to be cautious! So, what’s wrong with me being a little cautious?"
"Being a little cautious is naturally not wrong," Nancy rolled her eyes, "but the way you want to tuck your head into your clothes, that’s not right. Why do you keep sweeping your eyes around? Do you think someone dares to harbor ill intentions toward us?
I’ve seen that although this is the Main Continent, most are still ordinary people. I don’t believe they have the courage to offend me. You know, I am already an Official Wizard now and will keep getting stronger. Who should I be afraid of?"
"I..." Gro was left speechless.
Just then, Nancy suddenly uttered a "Huh," turned around swiftly, and grasped someone’s arm like an iron hoop.
Gro, puzzled, looked over and saw a man in his twenties with ragged clothes, looking as if he had been severely beaten, with his face severely swollen. At that moment, the man’s hand was reaching toward Nancy’s waist, attempting to pick her wallet, but the keen Nancy noticed and caught his wrist in one grab.
After seeing this, Gro couldn’t help but speak out to Nancy, "Hah, you just said no one would dare to have ulterior motives, and criticized me for being overly cautious. Look, here one comes now."
"Shut up!" Nancy gave him an irritated glare.
"I... okay, I’ll shut up." Seeing Nancy’s expression, Gro sincerely closed his mouth.
Nancy turned her head to look at the person who attempted to steal her wallet, speaking with a hint of anger, "Do you have a lot of courage, trying to steal my wallet?"
Indeed, the person had courage! After all, not just anyone would dare to steal a wizard’s wallet.
Of course, not knowing that the wallet belonged to a wizard was another matter.
At that moment, the man, biting his teeth and clearly panicked after being caught, shouted at Nancy, "You... let go of me! Let go... Uncle Jia Lie will not be kind to you if you don’t!"