Velvet was busy cleaning the bathtub.

She had completed the ‘emergency purification’, cleaning her body of miasma.

Unfortunately, that didn’t mean she could just jump to her dream again and say that name.

Being so close to losing control brought more problems than miasma. Some of them affected the mind; after all, she had listened to Her voice.

Were she to repeat the dream scenario right now, becoming corrupted was the only available ending.

So she kept on scrubbing the rot smelling thing.

…

A whole day had passed after the conflict.

Velvet had given her clothes to the cleaning staff yesterday, and now they were back.

Dressing up, she went to the buffet again, picking food. Gertine was already awake, and so was Nereus.

“Huh, you’re still grounded?”

“I guess so.”

Velvet saw a blue rat on his arms. “Wait, wasn’t this one poisoned?”

“It’s recovering, they told me it wasn’t deadly poison.”

Gertine’s mouth twitched. “And you threw that tantrum when the rat was not dead?”

“I didn’t know she was going to survive…”

Navros laid his head on Velvet’s lap, who had just sat. She scratched the wolf's head with her free hand, ignoring the fact that he was staring at her bacon.

“Doesn’t Nereus feed you?”

“He already ate.” The guy defended himself.

“Don’t lie to me, look at his eyes, these are the eyes of a hungry, unfed beast.”

Nereus leaned over a bit, staring at the eyes of his wolf, unblinking. Then he looked deeply at Velvet’s eyes. “No, he is fed.”

“A-alright.” Velvet patted the wolf’s head. “Oh, right, did those two come here?”

“I didn’t see them.” Gertine said. “But that Igern guy has been glancing at us.”

Nereus flinched, looking at the table.

Velvet turned around, matching gazes with Igern. Then, she winked at him, making a heart with her fingers.

Igern grimaced, but stopped glaring at them, going back to talk with a blue haired girl.

“Oh, who is the blue girl? She has a snake, right?”

“The snake is called Whistle.” Nereus said.

“And the girl?”

Nereus shrugged.

“You don’t know her?”

“No, I do, I just don't remember her name.”

Come on now, man. She is from your group, I saw her with Igern yesterday… Velvet thought.

She saw Gertine giving a piece of cheese to the rat.

“Have any of you ever been to the Mergifari?”

Nereus moved his head side to side, denying. But Gertine nodded.

“Every few years, to get materials on the market. There are clandestine and private markets that magicians can use to get common materials, but the Mergifari’s are the most varied.”

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“This month, for example, is going to have things that you won’t be able to get otherwise. Unless you wait another three years.”

Are you telling me to spend a lot of money? I don’t know what things are rare on the Mergifari and what not…

“What’s the difference between official Mergifari shops and temporary ones?”

“Official ones are closer to the entrance. They also have the Mergifari’s seal in a visible place. So if you see something that you like in those shops, and it’s not a strange artifact or something already uncommon, you should wait before buying it.”

“What’s the possibility of a scam?”

“On the Mergifari, zero. In markets, shops or dealers outside it, depends. At most, some shops may have things a bit more expensive than they really are, so you should haggle a bit.”

“I don’t know what’s the ‘normal’ price for magical things…”

“Me neither…”

Nereus and Velvet stared at Gertine in silence, with pleading eyes.

Gertine looked to the side, taking a sip from her vase. “We… we can go together, and if there’s something you like I’ll tell you if the price is fair.”

“But don’t get distracted and get lost, or the next time we see each other will be past the entrance.”

“Why?”

“The Mergifari was at first a secret organization, and, to protect themselves, the founding mages used a concealment spell, so that not even their peers could recognize them in case they were found. Instead of removing the spell once things were over, the Director moved it to the market.”

“I understand. That way one doesn’t risk buying something someone else wants and getting attacked, unless they talk about it first.”

It was a good way to shop. Especially for novice mages, who were the ones with more risk of getting mugged. But it made moving in groups kind of hard, truth be told.

“Still. Even if you get lost, do watch all the temporary shops, don’t just give up and go wait until the selection day.”

“We know that!”

“Just making sure.”

They passed the remaining time talking, until the wait was over and they almost arrived at the Mergifari.

…

Velvet was looking through the window, suitcase in hand, waiting for the airship to land, Gertine and Nereus next to her.

“Are you still grounded? Man, that guy is petty.”

“I no longer care, he has no power to really do anything.”

Velvet didn’t tell him about political strength; she had come to the realization that Nereus didn’t really care about society.

Good for him, actually.

She looked towards the Mergifari. The island, not the tower.

It was big; from the air it couldn’t be seen whole. That was also the mist’s fault, which made the sea route very difficult to navigate.

The Mergifari had three parts (that Velvet knew of).

The market, where one could sell and buy materials, artifacts and spells. Gertine also talked about an Arena where one could get money fast by fighting. Nereus seemed interested in that.

The actual Mergifari, the tower where magic knowledge was stored and shared. It included more things apart from the tower, actually. A place for enrolled mages to live, and a few buildings to adapt to the increasing number of mages that entered there.

And the Unnamed Forest. Velvet didn’t have information about it, actually. Gertine had said that she’d been told, making emphasis on the fact that it wasn’t first hand information, that it was a magic forest outside the authority of anyone. That included the Director and any god. It had a magical barrier separating it from the rest of the Mergifari, and sometimes official (Gertine also did make emphasis on the official part. Even more than the ‘second hand information’ part) mages entered to hunt or gather strange and dangerous creatures, plants, minerals…

There was a piece of forest inside the Mergifari zone, but it was safe, since it had been cleared before putting the barrier.

Velvet didn’t ‘see’ any barrier from up there, but she hoped the delimitation was at least marked.

“Attention please. Attention please.” An owl entered through the walls, perching himself on a black, curly staff that wasn’t there before.

“You’re now about to enter the Mergifari. For first time visitors, this information is of your interest.”

“Just upon descending, a concealment spell will take place. You’ll leave one after another, alone or in groups, with twenty seconds of difference. If someone brought children, please do not let go of their hands.”

“If any children get lost, please say the name Udulluay, or search for the closest Udulluay, and we’ll go get you.”

“I am Udulluay. Every owl in the Mergifari is also Udulluay.”

A hivemind familiar?

“Familiars without pocket dimension will be put inside a temporary container. Bringing them out in the market is forbidden.”

“The use of tracking spells before entering the market is forbidden.”

“The use of magic in the market, outside of dueling in the Arena, is forbidden.”

“The shopkeeper has the decision to choose the punishment if you’re caught stealing and cannot pay the price.”

“We are currently in the Selection Month, therefore your shopping options have increased. Please do not spend more than what you are carrying. The calling of fae won’t work once the concealment spell takes effect.”

“If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. If you have any more questions when you’re out in the Mergifari, please search for Udulluay.”

“I am Udulluay. Every owl in the Mergifari is also Udulluay.”