Regarding Vasilina and his own mindset, Palmer thought about it all morning and came to a preliminary conclusion.

In short, the whole responsibility still lies with that damned engagement banquet.

In Palmer's view, he and Vasilina merely had a long period of interaction, initially establishing a relationship, then he went off to work, and only returned today.

From a social and emotional relationship perspective, Palmer felt that his and Vasilina's status was that of boyfriend and girlfriend.

But Vasilina didn't think so; in her view, they had already skipped over all the ambiguous, mutual adjustment, and other bothersome stages, directly leaping to engagement.

From a social and emotional relationship perspective, Vasilina felt they were already considered a couple, only Palmer was always nervous and jumpy.

The cognitive gap between the two led to different behaviors, Vasilina could face Palmer with great composure, while Palmer was in a state of shock as if he had been abducted.

"It's clearly something to be happy about, so why can't I feel happy?"

Palmer sat in the endless wilderness, with towering castles behind him casting shadows that concealed his figure.

Regarding his instinctive panic in the face of Vasilina, Palmer still couldn't understand. When he scrambled out of the room early this morning, disheveled and embarrassed, he was almost executed on the spot by the passing guards.

Goodness, a strange man running out of Vasilina's room, the future mistress of the Clarks!

Out of loyalty to the Clarks and a love for gossip, the guards really didn't hold back at first, and only when they recognized Palmer did they fall into confusion.

This is your own home, and yet you're running away like this.

Palmer didn't bother to explain much, leaving without looking back. He knew Vasilina wouldn't be angry; sometimes she understood him better than he understood himself. She probably already knew the answers to these issues troubling him, but she liked teasing him, enjoying his flustered state.

As he dashed out, Vasilina was still mocking him, "Are you shy or something, Palmer?"

Palmer slowly hugged his head, curling up into a ball.

"Too damned…" he muttered.

"What's 'too damned'?"

Hearing a man's voice, Palmer was startled like a carp leaping out of water, standing up directly, and only relaxed when he recognized the visitor.

"Bologue—couldn't you make some noise when you come over?"

Palmer clutched his chest, taking deep breaths.

Bologue said, "I called you from far away, but you were so dazed you didn't hear it."

Behind Bologue stood Church and Aimou, all looking at Palmer with concern.

Last night, when Vasilina took Palmer away, Bologue and Church were checking the "Dawn Oath," leaving Aimou to wander alone inside the Fortress of the Morning Wind.

Now the light in Aimou's alchemy puppet eyes was several degrees brighter than usual, indicating her excitement.

From her creation until now, Aimou had never left Oath City, Opus. Now being a thousand miles away in the Wind Source Highlands, every moment was an incredibly novel experience for her.

"What are you dazing out for?"

Bologue lifted Palmer up with one hand, "Did you forget the purpose of our return?"

"What purpose?"

Palmer's mind was like mush; he was about to give up thinking.

Bologue shook Palmer vigorously, hoping it would clear his head somewhat, "Vacation! Tourism! As a local, you wouldn't want us just wandering around randomly, right?"

Palmer felt a severe headache, very painful.

…

The ensuing itinerary was much simpler, as Palmer tried hard to cast aside his chaotic thoughts, leading the group in strolling and pausing within the Wind Source Highlands, witnessing nature's miraculous craftsmanship.

"The location of the Fortress of the Morning Wind is quite nice."

Standing on the high walls, Palmer pointed a finger at the endless wilderness ahead, and the group nodded in agreement. Compared to Oath City, Opus, this place was as beautiful as the Celestial Kingdom.

The Wind Source Highlands maintained an ancient mystique, with the power of industry merely serving as embellishments here. Along the way, Bologue saw many elegantly dressed Condensers and Knights in Iron Armor, as if they had traveled a hundred years back in time.

On the other side of the high walls lay the vast sea. Due to its proximity to the Angry Sea and its location within the Clarks' dominion, hardly any ships, except for the Clarks' supply vessels, approached here, preserving the natural environment exceptionally well.

Sea water stretched to the horizon, seemingly blending with the sky, making it hard to distinguish where one ended and the other began.

Palmer said, "On a clear day, you can even see the lightning and thunder of the Angry Sea from here."

He then directed the group's attention towards the direction of the border mountains.

"Similarly, you can also see the border mountains."

The border mountains lie further north from the Wind Source Highlands, their distances vastly wide apart, yet due to their towering, continuous presence, even from here, one could barely glimpse a vague corner.

The border mountains are considered a life-forbidden zone, perennially snow-covered, with an extremely harsh natural environment. At the same time, they are also an extraordinarily splendid earthly place, the Rhine River that flows through many countries originates from within these border mountains.

Curiosity drove some to wonder what's beyond the border mountains. After negotiation with the Philrads, they provided an answer.

Beyond the mountains, it's still just mountains. At the end of these endless mountain ranges lies a colossal cliff cut out like a giant axe, separating mountains from the sea, representing the end of the land.

The mountains are merely earthly borders; thus, people refer to them as the border mountains. Apart from adventurers battling nature, virtually no one ventures here.

"Many years ago, people believed there was an ideal place beyond the mountains and tried to cross them, but later we discovered there was nothing beyond," Palmer lamented, "It's somewhat disappointing, yet understandable."

Church spoke up, "The world is big, but not infinite, like a mine; it will eventually be exhausted one day."

"Alright, then... if you're lucky, perhaps at night you'll see the Ethereal Radiance shrouded over the Wind Source Highlands."

Bologue corrected, "Shouldn't it be the aurora?"

There's also a peculiar phenomenon within the Wind Source Highlands — the frequent appearance of the aurora. Auroras are not unfamiliar to humans, but what puzzles geographers is why auroras appear given the Wind Source Highlands' geographic position.

"That's just the Wind Source Highlands' outward facade information. Those 'auroras' are the Ethereal Radiance emitted after high ether concentration aggregation. As I mentioned, we are near the Angry Sea, which is an Ethereal Vortex Point. A large amount of ether accumulates there, influencing the surrounding region."

Palmer explained, "This is also why there are always fierce winds crossing the Wind Source Highlands. It can be considered an anomaly of ether."

Bologue suddenly remembered something, and his gaze flickered over Aimou's face. He pursued Palmer with the question, "In the Clarks' records, has the anomaly intensity of the Angry Sea always been like this, or is it increasing year by year?"

Bologue caught Palmer in a tough spot, making him look troubled. After carefully pondering for a while, he gave a hazy answer.

"Maybe..."

Palmer remembered the elders who resembled mummies; some of them had joined in recent years. They watched Palmer grow and even recounted past stories to him.

It was from the elders' mouths that young Palmer first learned about the existence of the Dawn War and also touched the fierce, terrible scars on their withered bodies.

"When I was a child, the elders once said this," Palmer stated, "In their youth, the winds of the Wind Source Highlands weren't so terrifying, but now increasingly violent storms frequently appear."

"Fortunately, as the storms grew formidable, human alchemy matrix technology also advanced year by year, even catching up with the storm changes. Once, we could only hide inside the Fortress of the Morning Wind, awaiting the storm's departure, but now, if we want, we can easily overcome it."

Palmer's words didn't cheer up Bologue much; he kept recalling Teda's research. If Teda's idea proves right, with time the ether concentration of the entire world increases steadily.

Leaving aside human progress in alchemy matrix, supernatural phenomena like those of the Angry Sea would also grow increasingly terrifying and frequent annually.

What kind of world would that be by then?

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