The Elowen Kingdom, one of the three major powers on Silver Flower Island, stood alongside the Bloodstone Kingdom and the Silver Kingdom as rulers of the land. Each kingdom was led by a Legendary Knight, but among them, Elowen was the strongest, boasting not one but two Legendary Knights.

For generations, all three kingdoms had worked tirelessly to construct a nationwide defensive magic formation for themselves, meant to deter foreign invaders, enhance mana circulation, and improve long-range communication. However, despite centuries of effort, their attempts had ended in failure.

The reason was painfully simple.

A formation of such immense scale would need to be at least Legendary-tier, if not Mythic, a rank no mage on Silver Flower Island could achieve.

Hiring a Legendary Mage from the Flicker Empire was an option, but the cost was astronomical—so high that it could bankrupt an entire kingdom.

The sheer difference in power between knights and mages at the Legendary rank was staggering. In a direct battle, even if all of Silver Flower Island’s Legendary Knights joined forces, they would likely fail to kill a single Legendary Mage. Mages possessed unparalleled flexibility, devastating offensive and defensive capabilities, and, most importantly, unmatched escape techniques; as long as mages had mana, knights could not rival them; once they ran out of mana, knights could kill them like chickens.

Still, the lack of a nationwide formation didn’t mean their borders were unguarded. To protect their lands, the kingdoms had set up Golden-tier detection arrays along their frontiers. These formations weren’t as powerful as a Legendary-tier spell, but they were more than enough to detect unauthorized intrusions.

Even for Golden Knights, sneaking past these detection arrays without being found out was nearly impossible. Only Legendary Knights could bypass the formations undetected, but such figures were too rare, and an unauthorized border crossing by a Legendary-rank knight would be seen as an act of war.

Because of the detection arrays, no one has ever dared to cross the borders without permission. At least, not yet.

...

Standing at the border between Elowen and Bloodstone, Edric, a Golden Mage able to see mana, gazed at the golden-hued magic barrier stretching as far as the eye could see, his mind deep in thought.

"Once I cross this, I won’t have to worry about King Rodric Bloodstone anymore."

That alone was reason enough to leave, but first—he had to get through.

The border detection arrays were Golden-rank formations, designed primarily to prevent people from sneaking in unnoticed, not defense. Even a Silver Knight can go past them, but even a Golden Knight couldn’t bypass them unnoticed.

But Edric wasn’t just anyone.

He had a Legendary skill.

He first discovered its true potential when he was moving in and out of Windwalker City’s Silver-grade barrier. His skill, Energy Absorption, was absurdly powerful. It could neutralize any magic spell beneath Legendary rank and even weaken Legendary-tier spells. Against pure energy-based attacks—such as explosions, heat, etc, it was practically absolute defense.

Only solid objects, like swords and arrows, could truly harm him.

That wasn’t all.

"How exactly do detection formations work?" he thought.

Edric wasn’t a scholar, nor did he have access to advanced magic tomes—his average talent made learning complex theories a struggle. But from experience, he knew something crucial:

Whenever he kept Energy Absorption active, the Windwalker City formation couldn’t detect him—even if he made no attempt to hide.

Normally, even as a Golden Knight and a Mage, he would have to suppress his internal energy and mana when passing through a detection barrier. But with Energy Absorption running, he could do whatever he wanted, and the formation wouldn’t register his presence.

Back then, to test his thoughts, he cast a curse spell on himself, only to watch as his energy absorption skill dismantled the curse effortlessly.

"A curse is just another form of energy… maybe detection formations work the same way? Are they, in essence, just a type of curse?"

His head ached at the thought. Magic theory was far beyond him, and the deeper mechanics of these formations were a mystery.

And that was the problem.

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He couldn’t be completely confident that his Energy Absorption would allow him to slip past the Golden-rank detection array.

That uncertainty was the only thing keeping him from moving forward.

Edric sighed.

He had come this far. Was he really going to let hesitation stop him now?

Still, Edric was reasonably confident in his plan.

To avoid unnecessary suspicion, he dyed his long steel-strand hair black and blended into a trading caravan headed for the Elowen Kingdom.

Despite the tense relationship between Bloodstone and Elowen, trade between the two kingdoms was still permitted, albeit with strict regulations.

No one above Knight rank was allowed to cross the border.

The detection formation was designed to scan and identify anyone stronger than a Knight. If someone violated this rule, the Elowen authorities would be alerted instantly. Naturally, no one dared to attempt it.

Edric was 90% sure his Energy Absorption skill would prevent the formation from detecting him. That confidence was the only reason he was bold enough to try.

With the barrier ineffective against him, the risk of being exposed was minimal.

After all, Knights could only gauge each other’s strength by either fighting or sensing each other's internal energy, something that required direct observation.

And Mages?

They could only see the mana flow of those weaker than themselves.

Edric was already a Golden-rank Mage, meaning only a Legendary Mage would be capable of detecting his mana. But such a person did not exist anywhere in Silver Flower Island.

Without the detection formation, he would appear to everyone else as nothing more than an ordinary mortal.

Casting aside all hesitation, he stepped forward, blending into a trading group to cross the border into the Elowen Kingdom.

...

The Woodland Trade Group was one of the top 100 registered trade organizations operating on both sides of the Bloodstone-Elowen border.

However, their trade was strictly regulated. They were only allowed to deal in food and luxury goods, as anything that could be used for military or magical purposes was strictly prohibited.

The trade group was a large operation with over 500 personnel, including two Silver-rank Knights and numerous Knights and lower-ranked guards. However, these higher-ranking Knights weren’t allowed to cross the border.

This was where having established bases on both sides became a major advantage.

Thanks to this setup, once the caravan passed the border, the Silver-rank guards from the trade group's other base on Elowen's side would take over its protection.

This restriction—banning Great Knights, Silver Knights, and anyone stronger from crossing the border—made cross-border business extremely difficult for many trade groups.

Why?

Because it required substantial funds, resources, and, more importantly, powerful connections to maintain operations on both sides of the border.

Smaller trade groups that couldn’t afford to hire Silver-rank guards on both sides of the border had only one option—they would transport their goods to the border and hand them over to a partner company on the other side.

However, such arrangements were far less profitable, since the partner company would handle the actual selling, taking a significant cut of the profits.

As for those attempting to trade without Silver-rank guards?

That was suicide.

Regardless of which side of the border they were on, security was never absolute. Bandits roamed the countryside, particularly in rural areas.

Even though the Elowen Kingdom boasted two Legendary Knights, they simply did not care enough to completely eliminate the bandit problem.

There were even rumors that some of these bandits secretly worked for the Elowen royal family.

Of course, nothing had ever been proven, and such claims seemed illogical. It was mostly just frustrated merchants and traders venting their grievances about the Elowen royal family's mismanagement.

Unlike the Bloodstone Kingdom, where nobles held significant influence, the Elowen royal family wielded absolute power.

There were no noble families in Elowen.

Only officials appointed and approved by the royal family governed the kingdom.

This system had both advantages and drawbacks:

The Good: Laws were consistent throughout the kingdom.

The Bad: If the rulers made poor decisions, the entire kingdom suffered as a result.

Despite its flaws, Elowen remained the strongest of the three major kingdoms.

It was the most populous and vast kingdom within the silver flower island.

With two Legendary Knights, the Elowen Kingdom was the dominant force.

...

Lucas, the leader of the Woodland Trade Group, studied the man standing before him.

He had black hair and green pupils and wore the standard uniform of the trade group's manual laborers.

Lucas’s expression was slightly dazed as he handed over a small badge.

"Here you go! This is your badge. Don’t lose it again!"

The black-haired man—Edric—flashed a casual smile.

"Sure, boss! Thanks!" he replied before turning and walking away.

Typically, a position with the Woodland Trade Group was highly sought after, and getting hired was incredibly difficult.

However, Edric had no trouble at all.

After all, he had a Silver-rank spell called "Persuasion."

With just a simple spell, he had convinced Lucas to hand over a badge—without asking too many questions.

The trade group was massive, with over 500 personnel and more than 400 wagons loaded with goods.

Among so many people, one extra worker wouldn’t raise any suspicion.

Lucas, despite being the leader, was just a Knight—completely incapable of resisting a Silver-rank spell.

While there were magical artifacts that could protect against mind-affecting magic, fortunately for Edric, Lucas didn’t have one.

With a smirk, Edric blended seamlessly into the crowd, slipping past the border undetected.

His plan was working perfectly.

He blended in with the rest of the manual laborers, moving calmly.

He fed the horses, hauled supplies, and helped push the heavy wagons along the dirt road.

To anyone watching, he was just another nameless worker.

Minutes passed, and the border gateway came into view.

Lucas, the leader of the Woodland Trade Group, rode ahead, handing over his documents to the stationed border officers.

A moment later, the officers nodded in approval.

"You're cleared. Proceed!" one of them said.

The Great Knight and Silver Knight guards, who had escorted the caravan this far, stepped aside.

As per the strict border regulations, they weren’t allowed to cross.

Edric took a deep breath.

Now was the moment of truth.

He silently activated his Legendary-ranked Energy Absorption Skill.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward.

Would the formation detect him?

Would alarms go off?

He didn’t know.

But there was no turning back now.