A loud whistle was heard, warning that the train had arrived.
The rattling ceased, and the vehicle came to a stop, leaving large clouds of steam in its wake.
It was hard to contain the excitement, Lloyd was amazed by that vehicle. It wasn't like a conventional old locomotive; while it worked on steam, its shape resembled modern trains more, with the peculiarity that it was golden in color.
It was like being in a movie, or having traveled to another era, after all this wasn't his world.
"Do you like trains, son?" Baltazar asked, seeing how attentive Lloyd was.
The boy nodded.
"Yes, I have to admit it's a fascinating means of transport," the young man replied while crossing his arms.
"Right? Technology is in full advancement after all. But you'll see, soon these models will become outdated," Barbara added with pride.
"Really?" the boy asked curiously.
"That's right, though if you want to know more about it you'll have to talk to your uncle, he's the one who knows about these things."
The Regulus family wasn't just merchants; they'd also dedicated themselves to investing in technology development.
It was normal for Alioth to be aware of future technological revolutions.
"I'll do that."
Lloyd thought that in the future he'd have to do business with his uncle. In fact, he already had many ideas in mind.
The young man was then led inside the train.
As expected, they would travel first class.
The smell of incense enveloped the car, which was lined with luxurious red velvet upholstery, decorated with golden motifs.
The place was segmented with various individual compartments, each being a small room with two armchairs to sit on, a table, and a window.
Lloyd sat next to the window while his parents sat in the seat in front.
"Well, I think the journey will only last five hours, I hope you don't get too bored," Baltazar commented.
The boy nodded.
"It's a shame Joan or Calypso didn't want to come," he said.
Joan didn't want to skip his training, which was understandable.
But the Calypso's case was more stranger.
She'd acted distant again, so much so that she even preferred to stay at the mansion than travel with him.
"Well, I think I understand Calypso, sometimes men's are so stupid," Barbara commented quietly.
The woman loved her son very much, but couldn't deny that in some aspects he was just like his father.
Lloyd had talked carelessly about his engagement with Penelope to Calypso, it was clear it wouldn't be pleasant for her to attend the birthday party of a possible love rival.
In that world polygamy was common. As such, they didn't have a taboo about being with multiple people.
However, it was clear Calypso felt very insecure about herself. She served Lloyd practically out of necessity, it's not that she had romantic interest in him, he was simply an emotional pillar.
But the idea of Lloyd being with another woman scared her, made her consider things she wouldn't have before, and the lack of sensitivity with which she learned the news that Lloyd was engaged only aggravated the matter.
That series of emotions made Calypso block herself, and decide to stay at the mansion.
"Well, I suppose I can advance a bit with that topic," the boy said while taking out a notebook while saying.
A notebook he always carried with him, where he noted his objectives or jotted down details he remembered from the novel.
But there were also his notes on the new magical language he was developing.
Lloyd had studied computer science in his past life. Adding to this body's great memorization capacity, the boy decided he would first develop a magical code.
Magical codes were a series of symbols and formulas used to create magical circuits, whether in engineering or other things like barriers, magical artifacts, and traps.
Unlike spoken magic, this type of magic focuses on programming magical power to achieve a permanent effect.
The most archaic use of this art is weapon enchantment using runes.
And that was exactly what Lloyd wanted to achieve, a much more complex and advanced form of enchantment, to reprogram and rewrite matter.
Of course, that task wasn't simple, so knowing that, the boy decided to spend the entire journey advancing with that "project."