The airship was moving faster than expected, and by the evening of the third day, a magnificent city appeared before Lynn.
It was the Wizard City - Greenville. The city was nestled among the mountains, its circular shape resembling a massive gem encrusted in the mountain range. The towering city walls were lined with numerous high-level magic crystal cannons, and inexplicably, they turned to aim at the airship without any human control.
Lynn had witnessed the power of these cannons before and knew they could severely damage the mighty Eye of Death. However, Lynn had not come to invade. He had already reported his arrival through alchemical communication arrays, and with two great wizards on board the airship, he was not worried about an attack. He gazed directly at the central tower that soared high into the sky, illuminated by the setting sun's magic, making it quite conspicuous.
"Is that the Sun Crown Tower?" Lynn whispered to himself.
Raphael, who was beside him, nodded in response. "Indeed, that is the Sun Crown Tower, the symbol of the Wizard City."
"Master Raphael, may I ask why this tall tower is named that way?" Lynn inquired. After the incident at Iyeta Harbor, seeing such a towering spire gave him a bit of unease.
"In truth, it used to be called the Eclipse Tower or the Shadowless Tower, but those names had some negative connotations. That's why it was changed to the Sun Crown..." Raphael explained.
Every mid-July, at noon, under the sunlight, the tower's shadow would completely overlap with its base, creating a Shadowless Tower. Of course, all buildings in Greenville did the same on that day, but the Sun Crown Tower was exceptionally tall and thus more awe-inspiring.
The wizard's calendar, as well as the hours, were divided based on the length and angle of the Sun Crown Tower's shadow in the sun's rays. It was a perfectly arranged year of 360 days, divided into twelve months, each consisting of exactly thirty days.
"A brilliant design." Lynn remarked, raising an eyebrow.
This way, the entire tall tower served as a massive clock. As for the reason behind the Shadowless Tower, Lynn could guess that in mid-July, the tower was right under the sun's direct rays.
While they were talking, the airship had already entered Greenville and landed in the square in front of the Magic Research Association in the east. This attracted a large crowd of wizards, as they had all arrived by carriage, making the airship an unusual sight.
"Is this the Skyship? It's even more massive than what I saw in the newspapers."
"It's quite grand. If it's not too expensive, buying a Skyship for travel is a good idea."
Amidst the chatter, Lynn and his Skyship were already well-known thanks to the Magic Daily's extensive publicity. However, the drawings did not do justice to the real thing, and alchemists were now discussing the design principles of this alchemical device.
(TL/n - Magic Daily is similar to Daily Prophet from Harry Potter.)
It could fly and hover without wings; could it be using some kind of force field magic?
Lynn and his group could feel countless eyes watching them as they disembarked from the airship. They were clearly the center of attention.
Compared to Lynn's calm demeanor, Jonny and Elok, who was visiting Greenville for the first time, seemed a bit uneasy.
Philip adjusted his robe. Even when Master Herlram led their group in the past, the Iyeta Academy rarely had a chance to be in the limelight.
Just then, a tall and burly male wizard, meticulously groomed, emerged from the crowd. He smiled and bowed to Ogest and Raphael, then turned his attention to Lynn and his group.
"Mr. Philip, Mr. Lynn, welcome to Greenville. Please follow me."
"Then, Masters, we'll see you tomorrow." Lynn bid farewell to Ogest and Raphael and followed the tall wizard to the private rest area of the Iyeta School.
After settling the accommodation matter, Philip hurriedly took Lynn aside. "Have you thought about how to deal with the Divination School's wizards tomorrow?"
"Of course..." Lynn dragged out his response, "I haven't."
Philip was in complete disarray. He had thought Lynn was well-prepared, given his calm demeanor, but it turned out he had made no preparations at all.
However, before Philip could panic, Lynn spoke again. "If you can help me obtain detailed data on the star charts from the Divination School, then I'll be fully prepared."
"That's simple. You wait here; I'll be back soon..." Philip rushed out. The Divination School's wizards had published their research results in previous issues of the Magic Daily, and there should be corresponding records in the library, so it shouldn't be too hard to find.
Lynn took out a piece of parchment and wrote down Kepler's Third Law and the Law of Universal Gravitation. To understand the rules of celestial orbit, it would require decades, if not centuries, of continuous observation. He didn't have time for that now, but the Divination School's wizards had already done the most complicated work for him. He just needed to verify if their theories were correct.
***
Night fell in the Wizard City, Greenville.
Lynn arrived outside Harof's mansion alone, preparing to meet the renowned legendary wizard. However, when he reached the door, he was surprised to find a crowd of people waiting. Over a dozen wizards were anxiously standing there, each holding an envelope or a manuscript.
Before Lynn could ask, the mansion's gates opened, and a female wizard, who appeared to be in her thirties and possessed a three-ringed badge, stepped out.
Almost simultaneously, the crowd swarmed the gate.
"Theresa, this is ten years of research that I've put into it, hoping it can help Speaker Harof's research," a tall and slim male wizard begged as he handed over a stack of manuscripts.
The other wizards were not to be outdone and hurriedly presented their research findings, hoping to catch Theresa's attention and have their papers placed on top during the report, and some even included a few magic coins or an entire money pouch in their manuscripts.
Lynn finally realized that he wasn't the only one trying to get Harof's attention regarding gravity research. There were many others.