Above The Sky
Chapter 489 - 489 458 Traveling by Train 23

489: Chapter 458: Traveling by Train (2/3) 489: Chapter 458: Traveling by Train (2/3) No matter the various tales of love and hate between the Black King and the Alchemy Train, one thing was certain: South Ridge truly was a rural place outside the core civilization circle of the Terra Confederation.

Although Nauman City indeed had huge ironclad warships, and Harrison Port was not lacking in precise alchemy products, Ian found it hard to find much of the brilliant civilization’s aura in the pastoral scenes of South Ridge.

“No wonder Yisen Gard, such a gentle and polite person, couldn’t help but blurt out the word ‘countryside’ upon arriving at Harrison Port—it’s not some disdainful derogation by someone from the Imperial Capital, but a candid declarative sentence.”

“Yeah, in a place without even a train, where you have to rely on Camel Beast Caravans for long travels, and in tougher times even walk…

haha, it really is quite rural.”

With this thought, Ian couldn’t help but let out a muffled laugh behind his helmet as he now stood in a hall.

In the hall of Bart’s Grand Station, there were quite a few people, and the number was continually rising.

The horseshoe-shaped main body of the station had a total of eight exits and one entrance—there were even landing spots provided for flying Sublimators or tamed flying Magical Beasts like the Gryphon.

The majority of the passengers were merchants; there were also some well-dressed individuals who looked either rich or noble, and of course, a portion was like Ian, clad in armored clothing, evidently Knights or Adventurers who were Sublimators.

People were currently looking up, watching the semi-transparent board in the center of the hall, observing the various carriage numbers and time digits that floated up on it.

“Three tickets to the Imperial Capital cost ten Tara, and it should have been twelve Tara for Hua’an, Frost Butterfly, and me together—but they gave me a discount after seeing that I am an active-duty Knight.”

Having already bought the tickets through the Sublimator channel, Ian thought about the ticket prices and couldn’t help but slightly shake his head.

A regular worker could earn fifty to sixty Tara a year, of course, with some allowances and bonuses, perhaps a bit more, but certainly no more than eighty Tara.

And a decent clerical job would pay about ninety to a hundred Tara a year…

even though it doesn’t sound like much of a difference, the clerk’s bonuses, various allowances, and the company’s benefits were also considerable, not to mention many hidden perks, so one could live quite comfortably around the Imperial Capital in the Central Province.

Yet one ticket required about a month’s salary for a worker, or a ten-day’s salary for a decent person.

Of course, these were long-distance ticket prices…From Bart’s Grand Station to the Imperial Capital was this expensive, and if it were somewhere closer like the Ingot Mountain Fortress, it would only cost one and a half Tara.

But there was no doubt, the Alchemy Train was not mainly for ordinary people; it was largely used as a tool for the transport of goods, and even when it came to passenger trains, the customers were businessmen, scholars, Nobles, Sublimators, and various wealthy relatives.

After all, ordinary people didn’t need to travel long distances in a short time.

On the Terra Continent today, it was normal for someone not to leave their hometown in their entire life.

“With Magical Beasts rampaging across the land, the maintenance of the railways must be troublesome, too.”

Thinking this, Ian entered the waiting room with the two Little Fairy Misses, awaiting the train’s arrival.

He had already gone to the ‘Boleyn Workshop’ branch located at Bart’s Grand Station, informing Yisen Gard that he was about to board the train to the Imperial Capital and then instructed the local staff to take good care of his Camel Beast that had followed him all the way, as he might want to continue riding it when he returned to South Ridge.

“There’s really no need for the Gryphon, or for you to specially arrange for someone to pick me up.

I just want to experience the train…”

“A few days’ delay won’t make a big difference, and my mission to the Imperial Capital isn’t time-sensitive…

Yes, alright, you take care of yourself too, see you in the Imperial Capital.”

After ending the call with Yisen Gard, Ian instructed the local employees, “If you get a chance, let my Camel Beast return with the caravan to Harrison Port too.”

“Understood, my lord!”

But seeing the expressions of these staff members, the young man understood that his Camel Beast was definitely going to be well-cared for right where it was.

After all, if Ian, who somehow could have a direct conversation with his top boss, suddenly remembered his mount in the future, only to find out that it had died on the way back to South Ridge—that was not an unlikely event—if he got angry, did they still want to keep their jobs?

Looking after the Camel Beast wouldn’t cost much anyway.

During the time waiting for the train, nothing happened.

It was around five in the afternoon when the train arrived.

Accompanied by the clanking sound of mechanical wheels turning, an oddly shaped, elliptical engine, glowing faintly with the operation of the alchemy furnace, approached incessantly from the distance.

It raced along the tracks laid upon the ground like a beast prowling the earth, resembling a shooting star in full flight.

The Sudden Rain Alchemy Furnace lived up to its name.

The Origin Quality it released was as vast and pervasive as a torrential downpour.

Yet it was mostly scattered and couldn’t converge into a high-pressure stream capable of wounding enemies.

These types of alchemy furnaces that were unusable on armor suits ultimately became the power sources for various large civil alchemical machines, and their relatively stable operation was a plus.

The Iron Behemoth came all the way from the southwest, eventually slowing down to a halt within Bart’s Grand Station.

The steel rails on either side of the station slowly lowered, a protective measure to prevent people from accidentally wandering onto the tracks and being crushed into a bloody pulp by the train.

But in reality, this was just a precaution.

For as the still-operating engine of the Sudden Rain approached, an invisible but clearly present ‘force’ pushed everyone backwards—exactly five meters away.

This was the spontaneous shield generated by the large alchemy furnace during operation.

Ordinary people could neither resist it nor approach it; they had to wait until the train had stopped at the station before they could get close.

If someone managed to get themselves killed under these circumstances, it could only mean they did it on purpose or they deserved it.

The train wouldn’t even bother cleaning it up, as the expanding shield upon starting would push all the blood and guts to one side.

Ian was ready to board.

He lifted his head, surveying his surroundings, and noticed that those boarding this train were a diverse lot.

There were merchants and scholars as well as Spiritual Tool Church members and nobles.

He even spotted a very neatly arranged group of military personnel in the rear carriages—perhaps a noble’s private army or a changing of the guard from the Imperial Capital garrison?

Besides that, there were also some individuals donning peculiar attire, special robes…

Ordinary people might not be able to tell, but Ian could see that these were people from the Spiritual Tool Church.

“Strange, people from the Spiritual Tool Church?

But not that strange, considering it’s a train going to the Imperial Capital.

It would be odd if they weren’t here,” he thought to himself.

Ian didn’t notice any Sublimators among the group from the Spiritual Tool Church, so he didn’t pay them any special attention.

Soon, he boarded the train with the Frost Butterfly and Hua’an, following the arrangement of the staff.

“Three…

two seats for the fairy misses and the knight…

Your seats are on the left side.

Ladies, do you need extra cushions for assistance?”

The service on the Alchemy Train was excellent.

The train staff even had special cushions prepared for fae so they wouldn’t float above their seats and be blocked by the table—of course, there were also chairs with cutouts for the tails of various demihumans, components that could be replaced at any time.

After years of operation, the preparations were very thorough.

Ian, too, took his seat he had missed for so long on the train’s spacious chairs, with the Frost Butterfly and Hua’an sitting next to the window.

Fairy Miss seemed accustomed to riding this kind of conveyance, looking quite at ease, even ordering a hot beverage from the train—a fairy certainly could drink and eat.

It was purely a sensory experience, not out of hunger.

Like Ian, Frost Butterfly was also turning her head to take in the scenery outside the transparent glass of the carriage.

Even though it was a route they had already traveled, a scene they were well acquainted with, the experience was completely different from traveling on foot.

“This feeling…

it’s quite magical,” remarked the Little Fairy, conveying a subtly thrilled emotion: “I feel so happy…

Riding on these huge trains, these iron behemoths…

It just makes me happy.”

“You like machines, the kind with an industrial strength and aesthetic?”

Hearing this, Ian also smiled, stretching out his hand to gently stroke Frost Butterfly’s hair: “Then it must be derived from my ‘aesthetic’.”

Frost Butterfly comfortably swayed her head, her wings rotating a few times behind her.

Hua’an, meanwhile, was blissfully sipping a cup of hot nutty cocoa—she was rather indifferent to these things.

To her, trains were no different from horse carriages, armor suits, or a particularly large but unattractive fairy carapace.

Such sluggishly moving conveyances were probably only valued by humans.

However, there was one thing that was the same.

That was, one human and two fae all enjoying the sensation of traveling by train.