After night fell, Silas arrived at the head of Backlund Bridge.
This magnificent bridge spanned both ends of the Tussock River, connecting the two city districts of East and West Borough.
Throughout the entire Backlund city district, there were a total of fifteen bridges spanning the Tussock River.
This one had the largest scale and could accommodate four carriages passing side by side simultaneously.
Not only that, the bridge had undergone special design.
Through the action of steam devices, the bridge deck could be raised up, allowing even taller ferries to pass through.
Due to the bridge's convenient transportation, a large number of poor people who made their living from boats gathered around the bridge's periphery.
Corresponding illegal buildings also sprouted up chaotically, like proliferating human tissue, rapidly extending along the riverbank.
This area thus gradually came to be named "Backlund Bridge Borough," becoming a slum in circumstances similar to East Borough.
Under the blowing night wind, Silas met Sophia at the bridge pier. Her bright red hair was gleaming under the crimson moonlight.
"So slow!"
She said, displeased. "You made me wait forever!"
"Why all the nonsense?"
Silas glanced at her.
At this moment, he had already used the Rose Bishop's flesh and blood magic to alter his appearance, changing into the look Sophia had seen last night.
Although using the "Faceless" ability could do it better, since he didn't particularly need to impersonate a specific person, Silas was too lazy to consume spirituality to shepherd it.
"Let's hurry up and start. Stop wasting time."
He said.
"Watch your attitude!"
Sophia shouted.
Although she said this, her hands quickly began moving. She carefully took from her pocket a... pea?
Silas raised his eyebrows slightly.
Didn't she say we were going to a Beyonder gathering? What's with taking out a pea?
But soon, his question was answered.
The pea bathed in the moonlight and began growing rapidly.
It soon broke through its shell and extended tender green shoots. A strange voice came from inside the shoots, a clear child's voice.
"Walk along the yellow brick road, walk along the yellow brick road..."
The voice prompted them.
Yellow brick road?
Backlund's streets were all cement. Where would there be any yellow bricks...
Silas instinctively looked down and suddenly discovered that beneath Sophia's feet, there really was a road paved with yellow bricks.
The road extended forward, its end appearing somewhat blurred, leading to an unknown destination.
"Come over quickly!"
The red-haired girl shouted to him. Silas walked over and stood together with her.
"Don't look ahead. Keep your head down looking at the yellow bricks on the ground, and walk forward along the yellow bricks.
That'll get us to the gathering location."
Her voice carried several notes of tension.
The two stepped forward simultaneously.
To the pea's cheerful tones, they walked forward with heads down, stepping on the yellow bricks.
Silas's gaze fixed only on the yellow bricks, walking in the direction along Backlund Bridge.
But gradually, from the corner of his eye, he noticed that the scenery on both sides of the yellow brick road was beginning to blur, the cement bridge surface replaced by peculiar lights and shadows.
Within the lights and shadows, there seemed to be something.
Although he was somewhat curious about what was inside, remembering Sophia's earlier warning, he didn't rashly look.
He just kept walking until the yellow bricks disappeared.
Raising his head, a peculiar palace appeared before his eyes.
This was a building constructed entirely from pea vines. The vines wound and wove together to form walls, steps, and domes.
The palace style was magnificent and luxurious. Because it was composed of plants, the whole thing emanated an emerald green vitality, looking especially attractive.
Around the palace was a stretch of wilderness. He couldn't tell where it was, but it had definitely left the Backlund city district.
This is really impressive...
Silas looked up, sincerely sighing with emotion.
This counted as the most fantastical scene he'd witnessed since crossing over.
It was just that although the building looked good, it surprisingly had no designed entrance. How were they supposed to get in?
"Creak..."
As if responding to his doubt, on the palace's high wall, vines wriggled downward, extending in front of them and hanging down.
They rapidly wove together, forming a basket with seats. Silas saw Sophia sit in with practiced ease, so he followed her and sat in the basket.
The vines quickly rose up, bringing them inside the palace.
Inside the palace was a grand hall, conforming to his imagination of what such a building's internal structure should have: vast space, towering walls, and in the middle toward the rear, a throne on an elevated foundation with carpet extending downward, dividing the hall into left and right sections.
Needless to say, all of the above was also composed of vines.
At this moment inside the hall, there were already many similar baskets, each containing at least one person.
Everyone sat across from each other separated by the carpet, below the throne, like ministers of opposing factions paying respect to their king.
The vines at the top of each basket hung down like half-drawn door curtains, blocking the faces of the people inside the baskets and ensuring considerable privacy.
So powerful. With such extraordinary means, I'm starting to believe the person hosting this gathering really is an important figure.
Silas thought to himself.
He looked toward the seat at the head, but due to the obstruction to his view, he could only see a pair of slender legs wearing black leather boots.
To see the other party's true appearance, he would need to openly stick his head out of the basket to achieve it.
Silas wasn't that stupid. He only glanced up once, and after discovering he couldn't see, obediently sat back and waited for the gathering to begin.
Above the hall, baskets came and went continuously. After a period of time, gradually no more newcomers joined.
"The time is about right. Let's begin."
A woman's voice came from the throne, gentle, calm, without any emotion.
"Good evening, Your Majesty the Queen."
Everyone said respectfully at the same time, including Sophia.
Silas didn't know in advance and didn't have time to speak. He could only imitate them, nodding his head slightly toward the head position.
Queen?
Very imposing indeed.
He thought to himself.
Immediately after, the woman on the throne seemed to move, and so peculiar things generated on the carpet.
They had semi-transparent humanoid bodies and floated courteously between the various baskets, communicating with the people inside, as if they were servants belonging to the Queen.
Through the communication of the invisible servants, transactions were quickly completed one after another.
Occasionally when someone publicly sought items or help, the servants would record it.
Corresponding information would then automatically appear on the inner walls of the baskets, very conveniently.
"Ding ding."
Sophia rang the bell inside the basket. Soon an invisible servant floated before them, bowed to them, and waited for their instructions.
"Please tell the Queen we've obtained that thing she wanted."
Sophia said.
The invisible servant bowed for a moment, then straightened up.
It didn't say anything, but the basket where Silas and they were suddenly began moving, drifting toward the Queen's direction.
Under the surprised gazes of everyone, a wall of vines suddenly rose up, dividing the hall in two, isolating them and the Queen from Silas and the other two.
The basket slowly unwound, and they stood at the steps below the owner of those black leather boots.