The Wizard Tower’s sphere of influence was quite broad, encompassing more than a dozen cities.
An Luo and his group needed to visit three cities this time.
Though called cities, they weren’t large at all—not even as big as a town in Flower Country, barely comparable to a larger village.
They didn’t bring the seven qualified new recruits with them. Instead, they left them in Solson City first and planned to take them back to the Wizard Tower together on the return trip.
The Solson City Lord arranged a carriage for them, complete with a coachman, but Meieruita refused: “No need.”
He raised his hand, and a humanoid form condensed from ice appeared. It floated lightly to the coachman’s seat, its crystalline hand grasping the reins.
Meieruita’s display made everyone’s eyes widen among those who had come to see them off, especially the City Lord’s son, who hadn’t qualified.
His eyes bulged so much they were almost like ping-pong balls, on the verge of popping out of their sockets and rolling onto the ground.
The seven recruits felt a surge of longing. The one with the highest aptitude even wore a proud expression, as if he believed he could become as powerful as Meieruita in the future.
An Luo gave him a pitying glance, thinking, Don’t dream, kid. The one standing before you is this world’s protagonist, the nailed-on future Ninth-Tier Great Wizard, the Endless World Traveler who will master the laws of time and space.
Better not to compare yourself to him. Be realistic.
Meieruita opened the carriage door, helped An Luo up first, then followed him inside.
The door closed, and the ice elemental humanoid lightly flicked the reins. The horses obediently stepped forward, the carriage wheels rumbling as it gradually moved away.
An Luo looked out through the carriage window. The scenery outside was monotonous, nothing worth seeing.
But he wasn’t looking at the scenery anyway—he wanted to memorize the route.
Having more cities as backups was always a good idea.
Meieruita sat on one side reading a book, occasionally jotting notes in the margins with a pen. Even the jolting carriage didn’t affect him.
The writing that fell onto the paper remained elegant and precise.
He glanced up at An Luo, who was peering out the window, and a wave of suspicion rose in his heart once more. But soon, he suppressed the doubt.
His relationship with An Luo had improved greatly. There was no need to part ways now, and where could An Luo go anyway?
To the places where ordinary people lived?
Impossible.
Why would he want to mingle with the lowliest groups?
Even so, Meieruita remained vigilant.
An Luo watched for a while but soon gave up. The road was uneven, the carriage rocked and swayed as it moved, making it uncomfortable even to sit, let alone navigate by.
At noon, they stopped in a forest for lunch.
Meieruita dismissed the ice elemental humanoid. He looked at An Luo and asked casually, “Do you need me to draw a map for you?”
An Luo: “Sure, sure!”
He didn’t hesitate at all, handing over the notebook with an expectant look on his face.
Meieruita seemingly casually tapped the paper a few times, then picked up the pen and accurately sketched the map.
Suddenly, a rustling sound came from a nearby tree. Meieruita’s gaze sharpened, and he quickly looked toward the source, his muscles tensing.
He had already checked the area earlier, ensuring no creatures were lurking. But now…
However, a fluffy little head soon poked out from behind the trunk.
It wasn’t some beast or snake that Meieruita had been wary of—it was a little squirrel.
It clutched a pinecone in its paws, looking utterly adorable!
“Squirrel!”
An Luo was a bit delighted.
It reminded him of his school—his university had wild squirrels too, though the ones there were skittish and would vanish with a “whoosh” as soon as they spotted people.
This squirrel seemed bold.
“Maybe it’s out foraging?” An Luo speculated. “I remember squirrels store food for winter in advance.”
Meieruita said flatly, “It’s already winter now.”
“The area is still within the Wizard Tower’s energy radiation range, so the temperature hasn’t changed much. A bit farther out, and it will drop.”
Meieruita glanced at the squirrel peeking from the branch. “Within the Wizard Tower’s energy radiation, the climate is stable year-round. There’s no such thing as winter, and they don’t need to store food.”
An Luo: “No wonder there’s no snow.”
He looked up at the little squirrel. The fluffy cutie seemed hesitant, torn between approaching and holding back.
Finally, as if it had made up its mind, the squirrel leaped over in a few bounds and landed beside An Luo. It chirped a few times and placed the pinecone it held next to his hand.
It even nudged An Luo’s hand with its little head.
Too cute!
An Luo was flattered.
“Thanks, little squirrel.” He took a piece of dried fruit from his spatial wizard artifact. “How about I treat you to some dried fruit~?”
The squirrel eagerly took the dried fruit and started nibbling.
An Luo sat there, mesmerized, watching.
Meieruita, who had been midway through drawing the map: “…”
With a few swift strokes, he finished the rest, closed the book, and said, “Let’s go. We need to reach the next city before sunset.”
An Luo wanted to stay longer, but business came first. He boarded the carriage reluctantly, looking back every few steps.
However, the squirrel jumped onto the window, holding the pinecone An Luo had left behind, chirping softly.
An Luo’s heart melted. “Oh, sorry, I forgot to take it. Thanks!”
He pulled out a large piece of dried fruit for the squirrel. “Here, little one, how about this?”
The squirrel tilted its head, looking pleased, then hugged the fruit and hopped away.
Meieruita stared coldly at the pinecone the squirrel had brought.
He recalled the people in Sol City who had involuntarily shown affection toward An Luo, and his mood soured further.
Humans understood the balance of pros and cons, so a few icy glares from Meieruita would silence them, freezing them in place, too scared to approach.
But these brainless animals were different.
They were clearly afraid of him, yet still jumped over.
How absurd.
An Luo suddenly noticed the carriage speeding up. He glanced puzzled at Meieruita but didn’t ask, figuring it was to make better time.
He was still savoring his interaction with the squirrel, excited. “It was so cute! And it wasn’t afraid of people at all! It even gave me a pinecone!”
An Luo was happier than when a kitten had rubbed against him on the road.
Meieruita gave a perfunctory “Mm,” offering no comment.
An Luo realized belatedly, “Don’t be sad. Next time, I’ll share some dried fruit with it, and it’ll warm up to you too.”
Meieruita: “…”
He was silent for a moment. “I don’t need that.”
“Don’t casually approach wild animals next time,” Meieruita said coolly. “They’re easily startled and might attack humans. If you’re bitten or scratched, it can lead to accidental death or strange diseases.”
“I heard of a villager once scratched by a wild animal. He suddenly feared water and light, developed odd symptoms, and died within days.”
“The Church called it divine punishment, but I believe it was some unknown disease.”
An Luo: “…”
Holy crap, that sounded exactly like rabies!
How did this wizard world even have rabies?!
An Luo’s face went stiff. “…You’re right.”
Wild animals often carried viruses—not just unsafe to eat, but best avoided altogether.
This wasn’t the modern world; no hospital for rabies shots. One misstep could be fatal.
An Luo sighed, thinking how backward the era was, full of dangers everywhere.
Meieruita was the rational one.
In the modern world, he could pet animals freely without worry, even if bitten or scratched. But here, better to be cautious.
No rabies vaccine, after all.
But soon, he heard Meieruita say, “I didn’t mean for you to stay away entirely. If you want to interact with small animals, I need to be there. That way, if something happens, I can handle it promptly.”
“I didn’t stop you earlier because I could react instantly if the squirrel acted up.”
Meieruita handed the notebook back to An Luo. “But if you’re alone, don’t approach wild animals lightly.”
“Thanks, got it.”
An Luo leaned back against the seat. Meieruita shifted aside a bit. There was a narrow couch in the carriage. “Do you want to nap?”
An Luo had started napping in the Wizard Tower out of boredom, but now it was habit. Come nap time, drowsiness hit.
After transmigrating, his schedule had become healthier. No more dark circles, and his energy was much better overall.
An Luo: “Yeah, let’s sleep. Sigh.”
He took off his shoes and lay down. Meieruita pulled a blanket from his spatial wizard artifact and covered him.
When An Luo woke, the carriage felt unusually warm.
Sure enough, a burning fireball floated in the empty space of the carriage.
“We’ve left the Wizard Tower’s energy radiation range,” Meieruita said. “It’s snowing outside.”
“Mm…”
An Luo was still half-asleep.
Until he opened the carriage window, and cold wind mixed with snowflakes poured in. He shivered violently, fully awake.
An Luo: “…Can the wizard robe handle the cold well enough?”
“It’s sufficient for me,” Meieruita said calmly. “But maybe not for you.”
An Luo: “…”
He thought for a moment. “What if you layer two robes?”
Meieruita didn’t answer. “Come here.”
“What?”
An Luo scooted closer. Meieruita reached out, pressed his nape lightly, and said, “Lower your head.”
A warm pendant was fastened around An Luo’s neck. He looked down and was surprised—it felt familiar.
Wasn’t this the blue gem, about the size of a thumb joint, that Meieruita had been engraving runes on?
Now it was made into a pendant, hanging from his neck.
It emitted a steady warmth.
If he remembered right, Meieruita had been engraving runes on it right after the Wizard Apprentice Exam, before they became mid-tier apprentices.
Had Meieruita prepared it from back then?
Though… it made sense. Knowing Solson City had a wizard corpse that could help him claim the Wizard Tower, he’d want it as soon as possible.
And with his abilities, securing a recruitment mission wasn’t hard.
An Luo hesitated. “This… weren’t you saving it for yourself?”
