The vehicle was probably approaching Rock Junction Station; sitting in the recliner, one could feel the obvious deceleration, but it would still take a while to enter the station and come to a complete stop.

A delicate tablecloth covered the small table between them, set with gilded porcelain and sparkling cutlery, along with several bottles of Milford Manor's vintage fruit wine. Under the table was a small ice magic wine cabinet containing various drinks and pastries.

Their luggage had already been checked in and would be transferred directly to the next train, eventually delivered to the Protos Royal Academy by Herloom Central Station's special delivery service. When they got off the train, they only needed to carry small personal items like their identification.

"If you treat Imperial City Herloom as a tourist destination, it's actually a pretty good city. After all, in Herloom, there are many attractions around the school, such as the Herloom Zoo, the Endless Library, and the Starry Sky Theater, as well as the psychedelic natural magic flow moat. It would be perfect if it weren't for the oppressive coursework at the Protos Royal Magic Academy."

Mishulla looked at the scenery outside the glass window, where the images and scenes were gradually slowing down, and sighed.

Hyperion nodded.

Although Lanqi had told her at the beginning that after finishing her project in the Northern Continent, she must relax and enjoy herself, she now bore a huge mission on her shoulders and could not accompany Lanqi to realize this plan. Or rather, the environment no longer allowed them to relax and treat the Protos Empire as a place for travel.

As for the original idea of observing the [Primordial Tablet - Seal], the current imperial situation was too dangerous, and it was no longer possible to realize it.

However, no matter how much the topic and expectations deviated from this trip to the Northern Continent, granted by Loren with an extra two months of vacation, if everything went smoothly, at least Lanqi could return with her to the Kingdom of Aitherthallan to observe her teacher's [Primordial Tablet - Healing]. At the very least, she could hand it in when she returned to the Ithryte Academy.

She rested her cheek thoughtfully on her hand, quietly watching out the window, her smooth hair falling diagonally on her shoulder.

"Sister, are you thinking about that man named Loki again?"

Mishulla's sudden voice interrupted Hyperion's thoughts.

"Is it that obvious?"

Hyperion was stunned for a moment, then lowered her hand holding her head and looked at Mishulla.

Previously, in the Temple of the Kingdom of Aitherthallan, the Ice Witch could see through her every time. Now that she was in the Protos Empire, even Mishulla said so after seeing her spacing out.

"Not very obvious, but it's easy to guess."

Mishulla replied.

She was increasingly curious about what kind of person this man was who could make her sister, who was so excellent, always think about him.

"I hope he's doing well."

Hyperion sighed and said.

"What kind of person is he?"

Mishulla asked curiously.

"I just hope he can live a stable life."

Hyperion thought for a while, not really knowing how to evaluate Lanqi, so she could only sigh like that.

"..."

Mishulla wondered, were her sister's requirements that low?

Could this guy named Loki be someone who was always messing around outside and still wanted to freeload off her sister?

Judging from her sister's appearance, she also wanted to keep him and not let him go out to work.

No, there was something a little wrong with this kind of man; he might have already completely deceived her sister.

"When we find him, I'm going to take a look at this man for you."

Mishulla clenched her fist and said with a very serious expression.

"Mishulla, are you misunderstanding something? He's actually a very good person, always taking care of me. It's just that his appearances are sometimes too ghastly, making my cardiovascular system unable to handle it, and once he seriously does something... there's a feeling of being very afraid of his talent."

Hyperion stared into Mishulla's eyes, trying to explain what kind of person the real Lanqi was. As she spoke, she couldn't help but shake her head bitterly. No matter how much merit she earned, it wasn't as fast as Lanqi spent it.

Mishulla frowned in confusion.

She didn't know if what her sister was saying was true, or if she was just a deceived girl who was blinded by love.

"Then I'll have to see what this guy is capable of, to be so amazing in your eyes."

Mishulla felt that her sister's love-struck filter was too severe.

As the train steadily passed over the final deceleration zone, Mishulla and Hyperion in the carriage both realized that they had arrived at Rock Junction Station. The sound of the magic energy operation weakened, and the train gradually came to a stop.

The magnificent appearance of Rock Junction Station slowly entered their vision. What caught their eyes was a megastructure where history and the future intertwined. The platform was grand and bright, its dome pieced together from crystalline transparent glass, allowing weak light to penetrate, like scattered stardust lightly sprinkled in the hall.

The closer she got to Imperial City Herloom, the more Hyperion felt that she was getting closer to Lanqi.

Because when she was in the Kingdom of Aitherthallan, she always imagined that Lanqi would be on the southern coast of the Empire or had come to Imperial City Herloom.

However, as the train came to a stop, Hyperion also understood that if she wanted to go to Herloom, she would have to first pass the heavily guarded Boxberg Province. And here, having left the Kingdom of Aitherthallan and Milford Manor, she would have to rely on herself for everything; no one would help her anymore.

Hyperion and Mishulla stood up from their recliners, picked up their handbags, walked out of the aisle of their carriage, and slowly stepped into the station's main area.

Giant stone pillars supported the sky of each platform. These stone pillars had witnessed countless trains coming and going to the north and south, stitching together the edges and center of the Empire. Now, the arrival of trains had become much rarer than before, adding a desolate veil to this once bustling giant station.

On the station platform, imperial soldiers holding weapons stood motionless like dark statues, appearing particularly stern.

Many imperial residents and travelers on the platform looked apprehensive, as if they could feel the tense string in the air.

The passengers cautiously left the platform step by step and walked towards the station hall, trying to avoid any direct eye contact with those figures as rigid as rocks.

Two distinct channels guided everyone's journey—one leading to a transfer extension, and the other leading directly to the exit.

Most travelers undoubtedly chose the latter, heading to Boxberg Province.

If a train from the northwestern border of the Empire transferred, it would either go north, towards Snowfield Province, or south, leaving the northern blockade zone.

There were often very few people going to Snowfield Province. Further ahead was the Northern Border Province, close to the front lines. And if one wanted to go south, they would be subject to strict inspections.

These days, the wind didn't feel right.

The Annihilation Branch had stopped most of the people who wanted to leave the northern blockade zone, and the whereabouts of a small number of those selected were now unknown.

They claimed to have taken "people suspected of endangering the Empire" to the Annihilation Knights' Temple for further observation and investigation, but no one knew what the Annihilation Priests would do to the detained people in that place, and whether there was any hope of ever getting out again.

Of course, this successfully deterred many imperial residents who wanted to leave the Northern Border, and at the same time greatly reduced the screening workload of the Annihilation minions.

In the transfer passage, the footsteps of Hyperion and Mishulla echoed on the stone-paved road.

As they approached the checkpoint, the imperial soldiers and Annihilation Priests along the way were staring at the two of them.

Standing at the checkpoint responsible for the inspection were no longer imperial army units, but the Annihilation Branch's Archpriest and a group of Annihilation Branch's heavily armed elites.

The Archpriest standing in front of the inspection table exuded a powerful magic aura, and the purple holy seal on his left chest shimmered under the light, as if revealing the glory of power. His gaze was like the scales of a judge, precise and sharp, weighing every passerby.

Hyperion and Mishulla maintained calm expressions, their steps unhurried. They walked to the inspection checkpoint and lined up.

Although there were not many people in front of them, it was clear that each person's screening took a long time.

More than ten minutes passed before the two of them finally reached the front.

The Archpriest's owl-like sharp eyes stared at the two of them.

The two stepped forward and presented all the documents required to pass through the checkpoint.

After noticing the identities of the two, the Archpriest's expression softened a lot, but he still did not relax his vigilance. While flipping through the documents and materials, he raised his eyes to observe the two.

"So it's the daughters of the Earl of Milford."

The two young ladies of Milford Manor were not ordinary imperial residents and could influence the Earl of Milford's episcopal vote in late April. There was no need to make things difficult for them.

It was not until the Archpriest saw Hyperion's Protos Royal Magic Academy admission letter that he finally frowned.

Then he decisively handed Mishulla's documents back to her and turned to look at Hyperion.

"Miss Mishulla can go. Miss Miriam Milford, you need to accept our investigation."

The Archpriest's words were like the wind in the winter night, sharp and full of power.

At the same time, the elite priests behind him all entered a state of combat readiness.

The air in front of the checkpoint instantly solidified, turning from a calm, chatty atmosphere to one of tension.

Hyperion's gentle and refined face also tightened at this moment, and a trace of surprise and deep doubt flashed in her eyes.

Despite putting on her usual acting skills and putting on the most normal reaction, the beating of her heart still couldn't help but accelerate.

The Archpriest's gaze was like a sharp arrow, projected onto her, sharp and unquestionable, not caring at all about her expression or whether she was innocent.

Behind him, a row of heavily armored Annihilation Knights gripped the weapons in their hands, and muffled sounds came from between the plate armor. Everyone's movements seemed extremely cautious, as if they had touched the most sensitive nerves, waiting for an order to unleash amazing power.

The passengers waiting at the back of the line also felt this tense atmosphere, and many people subconsciously retreated, not daring to make a sound.

In the brief silence, an unspeakable current permeated the air, and even the smallest sound could become a spark that ignited the entire scene.

"Can I ask why?"

Hyperion asked with a confused and worried expression.

She couldn't figure it out for a moment.

She hadn't done anything suspicious, and there shouldn't be any omissions on the admission letter.

Being stopped for no reason, this mysterious sense of the unknown made her feel extremely dangerous.

"Sorry, I can't disclose it. I hope you can come with us yourself, and don't make us do it by force."

The Archpriest responded politely, but his expression was unusually cold.

In the past, their job in the Northwest Province was to search for remnants of the Church of the Goddess of Fate.

But now they had a more important task.

Compared to the task at hand, the previous search work was just a small matter.

Their biggest responsibility in coming to this city-state was to intercept and capture two enemies. According to the information disclosed by the Annihilation Holy Son, one of them must be a woman, and the other's identity was unknown. Any target whose true form was female was particularly suspicious.

The danger level of this mission was so high that they would rather kill by mistake than let go. Once there was any negligence, the consequences for any related personnel would be unimaginable.

The Protos Royal Magic Academy admission materials showed that this Miss Miriam Milford was at the fifth rank.

Female, tall, and the highest strength she could currently use was probably around the fifth rank.

Everything fit the characteristics of the woman the Annihilation Holy Son was tracking.

Although no disguise magic had been detected on her body by the Empire, thieving and artistic functions could still be used to a certain extent to disguise, which could not be detected by the magic detection station.

The only difference was that no obvious sealing magic power could be felt on this woman.

Was she the person the Bishop was looking for?

Perhaps only the Annihilation Holy Son could tell.

However, the Archpriest turned to look at the clock in the checkpoint hall.

Looking at the time, Angelo should be coming back soon.

This week, on average, I've been updating more than 6,000 words a day! Xi is exhausted! Please, fathers, give me your monthly votes at the beginning of the month! I'm begging you!

(End of chapter)