Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 860 - 124: From this beginning, to this end

Chapter 860: Chapter 124: From this beginning, to this end

Dark clouds enveloped the skies over Third Flame City, and though it was only the afternoon, the sky darkened as if evening had arrived. From the ink-black clouds, the constant rumble of thunder sounded, and green and white lightning intermittently streaked through, momentarily illuminating the cityscape before plunging it back into darkness. Every resident could feel the rain amassed within the clouds, yet not a single drop fell, creating a mix of irritability and anticipation.

Pannis walked the nearly deserted streets with his hands clasped behind his back, appearing completely at ease and in no hurry. It had been half an hour since he and the girls had left the City Hall. Now, they, along with Muir, were somewhere else, destroying the deadly Arrays that had been set up. Before leaving, Catherine seemed to have a premonition and watched Pannis with concern, but in the end, she did not try to dissuade him, only embracing him gently and whispering in his ear, "Come back safely, we’re all waiting for you, don’t disappoint us."

After seeing off the girls, Pannis began to wander around the city. The only difference from before was that he had changed into his favorite outfit, a loosely fitting black overcoat now replaced by a tight-fitting swordsman’s attire, with tightened cuffs and pant legs snugly wrapped around his wrists and ankles, allowing unhindered movement. The various weapons that usually adorned him were wrapped in his overcoat and backpack, which he had handed over to Catherine, so now he only had a one-handed sword slung diagonally on his back, positioned for easy drawing.

Pannis walked leisurely, curiously surveying the surroundings as if he had never visited this city before, showing interest in every building. When something intrigued him, he would stop to appreciate it. Occasionally, residents peeking out from their windows would eye this odd figure roaming the streets, potentially just before a downpour. But in a large city with hundreds of thousands of inhabitants, the occurrence of odd visitors wasn’t so rare, allowing Pannis to avoid any spectacle.

However, he didn’t care about the stares and continued to stroll the streets as a true tourist, with no intent to hurry and meet with Philarx. At one point, he even walked up to just a few hundred meters away from the City Hall but didn’t enter, instead turning into a small alley to continue his leisurely wandering. As he strolled through the city, Pannis’s expression gradually relaxed from the odd look he had upon leaving City Hall, becoming more serene until finally, he looked as casual as usual, his face lazy and smiling.

It was then that Pannis suddenly turned around, squinting toward the tall spire of the City Hall and chuckled, then started walking toward it. With one step, he abruptly disappeared from the spot and reappeared several meters away, having bypassed several walls that blocked his path using his Inherent Psychic Domain, thus rapidly closing the distance to the City Hall. In less than ten minutes, he was standing in the deserted hall of the City Hall.

The City Hall was still empty, not even the guards who were usually stationed there year-round could be seen; Felic must have sent them somewhere. The vast hall remained immersed in a deadly silence, occasionally broken by thunder from outside, roaring through the eerie quiet space.

Pannis, still with hands clasped behind, stood in the hall for a few minutes until he heard a distant clock chiming the hour. He nodded thoughtfully and followed the route previously taken by Felic, entering the teleportation room that connected the Floating Island with the ground. The teleportation chamber was unchanged, with the Teleportation Array still lying there flickering with magical light. He looked down at the Array, seemed to make a final decision, and stepped into the center of the Array.

The light of the Teleportation Magic flickered, and when Pannis’s vision cleared, he found himself above the Floating Island. Enclosed in dark clouds, the entire island was prevented from being affected internally by the lightning that shuttled through the clouds, thanks to the shield surrounding it. Standing here, blocked by the dark clouds, he could neither see the sky above nor the ground below, as if in a different realm. However, unlike the city below, the Floating Island was bustling with people. Mages and scholars continued their usual routines in various workshops and labs as if nothing had happened, possibly oblivious to the deadly Array waiting beneath them, ready to consume countless lives, potentially including their family and friends.

"I actually think they wouldn’t care even if they knew," Pannis shrugged and spoke to himself as he leisurely walked to the base of the Mage Tower and pushed open the main door to enter. Last time he visited, although Philarx’s Mage Tower was quiet, there were still mages coming and going, but this time he encountered no one. This strange phenomenon didn’t surprise Pannis at all; instead, he just casually smiled and followed the route of his last visit, teleporting straight to the top of the Mage Tower.

"Excuse me, are you Master Kyle?" Right as he stepped out from the last Teleportation Array, a timid female voice reached Pannis’s ears. Turning his head, he saw one of the maids who had been in Philarx’s close care, blinking her large eyes nervously at him.

"It’s me," Pannis nodded in confusion and asked, "Why are you still waiting here?"

"Master Philarx asked me to inform you he is waiting for you at the old spot," the maid said softly, her head bowed. "Also, he, he asked you to help him by teleporting me down. I don’t know what happened to Master; he sent several sisters home on leave early this morning. I’ve been waiting here for you all morning."

"Oh, it’s nothing; he just has some issues to handle, no need to worry," Pannis chuckled, comforting her, "As for you, shall I send you back to the ground?"

"No, no, I have no relatives on the ground; my current home is on the island." The maid, reassured by Pannis’s words, cracked a slight smile and explained, "So, could I trouble you to take me to the Teleportation Array at the base of the tower?"

"As you wish, I am pleased to serve you." Pannis, seemingly reverting to his old habits from his days as Kyle, seriously bowed with a hand over his chest and, like a gentleman, gestured towards the Array he had just ascended from, "Please, beautiful lady, I will personally escort you to the bottom."

"Thank you, Master Kyle." The maid’s timidity finally vanished as she quickly stepped into the center of the Array, then cocked her head, muttering to herself, "Strange, why does the name of the master feel so familiar?"

"Ah, some people just have similar names," Pannis said lightly. "But they are not the same person, just similar; one lived in the past, the other lives in the present."

"I don’t quite understand," the maid, evidently accustomed to numerous teleportations, showed no sign of panic during the process and didn’t react to suddenly appearing in another place. Instead, she blinked blankly and continued their conversation, "But it feels like some of the things you said, Master, are familiar. Lately, you’ve often been muttering strange things about the past, the present, human hearts, and such—things we maids don’t understand at all. Ah, Master Kyle, you really must be a good friend of the master, even speaking in such a profound way."

"Hahaha, you are right; we are indeed good friends," Pannis’s eyes narrowed as he laughed heartily. "For many, many years now, we have been very close friends and know each other very well, which is why we sound so similar. Alright, beautiful lady, here we are, but I have a meeting with Fila, so I won’t escort you to your doorstep."

"Thank you, Master Kyle," the maid gratefully expressed her thanks, then suddenly remembered something, "Ah, right, the master told me to give you... no, almost forgot the master’s instructions; never mind, thank you for bringing me down."

"Serving you is my honor," Pannis thoughtfully nodded, watching the maid walk out of the Magic Tower’s main door, and thoughtfully closed the door after her.

"The old place?" Pannis murmured to himself with a slight smile, "It really feels like a reversal of time."

With a smile, Pannis teleported back to the top of the tower. This time no one waited beside the Magic Array, but he still stood in the center of the Array for a few seconds, familiarly navigating the corridors of the top level, reaching the doors of Fila’s private laboratory minutes later.

"This is where we first met, isn’t it? Almost every time I came to see you, it was here," Pannis said softly, his hand on the door, "It starts here, it ends here, like a reversal of time. Indeed, immersed in Time Magic for half your life, it’s a pity, though, that although the place hasn’t changed, the you and I standing on each end of time are no longer the you and I of the past, right, my old friend?"

Speaking thus, Pannis gently pushed open the laboratory door. As soon as the door opened, he saw Fila in a black robe, his back to Pannis, bending over busy at his own experimental table. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, and your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)