Snow-white hills, red tiles and yellow walls, pale green countryside.

The horse-drawn carriage drove along the rolling country dirt road, the fields exuded the fresh sweetness of melting snow, and the sea of clouds embraced the stone fence of the town's houses.

Todd stuck his head out of the canopy, enjoying the spring breeze caressing his face. What you see in front of you is like a dreamy reverie in novels and movies, like a famous oil painting that has been passed down for thousands of years. All this is unimaginable for modern people living in the steel jungle.

The coachman, who had received a high salary, was in a particularly happy mood, and the agricultural anecdotes, festivals, and aristocratic household routines in the Silver Ring Kingdom had passed through his mouth and became vivid and full of jokes.

Karin listened attentively to the witty words of the chauffeur, and laughed back and forth from time to time, completely forgetting the unhappiness of the right talent.

As if to better let the guests appreciate the beauty of the road, the coachman deliberately lowered the speed of the horses. From the White Horse Station to the watchful town, it took forty minutes.

When he finally reached his destination, Todd got out of the carriage and reached out to catch Karin, looking out at the towering mountains and the fortified castle in the distance.

The "Watchtower" is located close to the Falling Star Mountain Range and was built in 366 A.D., even before the Silverring Kingdom.

Originally, there was no fortress here, only a military camp and a wooden fence enclosed by a camp, and it was still called the "watch post" at that time.

In the following hundreds of years, in order to defend against barbarians from the northern mountains and snowfields, successive kingdoms and the Church of the Father jointly built fortifications and stationed troops there. As the number of soldiers in the fortress increased, the families of the sergeants and the traveling merchants who saw the opportunity gradually gathered and settled on the side of the fortress, forming the current "Watch Town".

Todd got out of the carriage and walked out of the inn, stretched, and looked up at the front.

The whole town is built on a hilly area, which is staggered with the undulations of the mountains. If the Watchman Fort is a solemn and solemn example of architecture, then the Watchtown is an artistic masterpiece that combines commerce and culture. The town is well planned and exquisite, and although it can be done in half a day, it is no wonder that it has become the first choice for Karin to travel with noisy taverns, ancient churches, quiet gardens, lively markets, all the facilities and entertainment you can think of.

It was nearly 11 o'clock in the morning, and the hungry duo first had to find a place to eat.

Walking slowly down the street, Karin stood at the door of an upscale tavern with sophisticated decorations and ornate accessories called "Lydor", and with her right index finger against her lower lip, she watched the customers come and go in the bar. After tilting his head and thinking about it, he turned around and pointed to a mobile vendor in the middle of the street who sold "seafood biscuits" (seafood, minced fish, and vegetables baked in wheat cakes) and said, "Eat that." ”

Todd touched the bridge of his nose, laughed, took her hand, and entered the door of the Ridot Tavern.

Finding a well-lit and airy table near the window, Karin pulled out a chair and invited the girl to take a seat first.

The waiter quickly came to the table, looked at the clothes of both sides, raised his eyebrows and put down the wooden menu, put his finger at the bottom, and said, "Today's special service is 'Potato and Fish Steak'." ”

Quietly picking up the menu and handing it to Karin, Todd motioned for her to decide.

This abnormal behavior made the waiter look at the girl twice.

The flowery rhetoric of the dishes, and the high price marked on the back, dazzled Karin and made her face freeze.

Reluctantly handing the menu back to the opposite side, the girl made a gesture covertly, hoping to leave here immediately.

Picking up the wooden board and pretending not to see the other party's movements, Todd began to place an order: "The appetizing soup is fish and mushroom soup with sour sauce, the cold dish is pickled herring, the main dish is lamb with bay leaf lamb with mashed potatoes, and the dessert is baked apple pie, by the way, what brands of pre-dinner liqueurs do you have here?"

The waiter was stunned, maybe he didn't react, maybe he didn't keep up with the speed of the guest's speech, and hurriedly apologized in a low voice: "I'm sorry, sir, please say it again......"

After ordering the food, Karin looked across in amazement and asked in a low voice, "Have you ever been to a place like this?"

In his previous life, almost every week, Todd would accompany the representatives of the sponsors of the project to the western restaurant for dinner, report on the progress of the research, and compare the financial statements. Speaking of which, he prefers Chinese food with all the color and flavor to this kind of stereotyped place. Of course, there was no way to tell her this, so she could only smile and shake her head: "I just heard others say it." ”

The girl was suspicious, with a question mark on her face.

The dish was quickly served, and Todd picked up the knife and fork, and naturally used the fork to fork the meat from the left side, and then used the knife to cut the meat along the right side of the fork. When using a knife, the strength of the shoulder, the curvature of the wrist, and the height of the elbow are just right.

The guests who were originally sitting at a table next to him and dressed as vendors saw this perfect and impeccable dining etiquette, and they unconsciously imitated the use of knives and forks, and even slowed down the speed of eating.

Todd looked at the other side, Karin was a little overwhelmed, looked at the lamb chops in front of her, and gestured with a knife and fork, but didn't know how to start.

Moved the other party's plate closer to him, gave her a reassuring look, and then picked up the spare knife and fork, carefully helped her cut the food into small portions, and then handed it back.

The girl lowered her head, pursed her mouth, and gave him a grateful look.

After the meal, the girl came out of the tavern, breathed a sigh of relief, raised her arms high, twisted her waist, and said with satisfaction: "It's delicious!

Todd looked at her slender figure, felt the breath of the sun, closed his eyes, and sighed in his heart, he couldn't remember how long it had been since he had enjoyed such a comfortable and relaxing day......

Holding the hand of the person next to her, Karin happily pointed ahead: "I know there is a puppet stage in the square!

Todd looked at the little hand in his palm, nodded with a smile, and just as he was about to take a step, a familiar figure suddenly passed by him.

Gray monk's robe, old steps, and rickety body.

With a tight mind, he stopped, and looked behind him in astonishment, but there was no shadow in the crowd.

Sensing that his expression was wrong, Karin also turned to look behind her, turned her head sideways and asked, "What's wrong?"

Todd frowned, took a deep look at the street in the distance, shook his head and said, "It's nothing, maybe I read it wrong......"

Soon forgetting this episode, the two walked into the square talking and laughing.

Mountains in the distance, snow-covered peaks, dark clouds obscuring the sun, shadows spreading.