“Adion, Sell! You’re back!” Rufus's loud yell managed to reach Adion across the crowded tavern as he and Sell stepped inside after their night of thievery.

“Looks like they are quite a few drinks in,” Sell said to Adion as they started making their way over.

“We have a lot of catching up to do,” Adion said with a small grin.

“Mm,” Sell nodded with a smile, “We have much to celebrate after all. It feels like people’s aura is much more apparent than earlier. Is it the same for you?”

“A little,” Adion said, “I focused on hiding my aura, though, so I feel like I have a much firmer grasp on my own aura than earlier.”

“That’s good,” Sell said, “You have a lot to hide after all. Seriously, how did you get so strong?”

Adion turned to look at Sell, surprised she had managed to feel it.

“I might have immediately focused on trying to sense your aura as soon as I ate the fruit,” Sell looked away, a little embarrassed, “Sorry, I couldn’t hold myself back.”

“It’s fine,” Adion said, “But let’s not talk about it here.”

“Of course,” Sell agreed. They made it to their teammates. They were sitting along a table next to Mashi’s and another team that Adion didn’t know.

“Sell!” Sahra yelled out, “I’m glad you made it back. Come sit here next to me.”

Sahra made some space beside her on the bench, and Sell went to sit down. Benji looked apologetically at Adion and made some space for him on the opposite side of the table next to him for Adion to sit.

“How did it go?” Benji asked in a low voice when Adion was seated.

“It was a success,” Adion answered, “We’ll talk more about it tomorrow.”

Benji nodded and turned his attention to the conversations around the table.

“It’s true. They have naked men and women on every street corner,” A man Adion didn’t know said.

“Who is that?” Adion whispered to Benji.

“That’s Frank and his teammates, Lara, Jidden, and Marva. We just met them tonight. They know Mashi’s group.” Benji answered.

“Have you actually been there, Frank?” Mashi asked.

“No, but I’ve met plenty who have, and they all agree,” Frank answered.

“Well, I’ve been there myself, and while it is a city of debauchery, it is far from as bad as you say,” Mashi said.

“What place are you talking about?” Adion asked.

“Oh? Curious, Adion?” Sahra asked and started laughing.

“Come on, you shouldn’t ask about stuff like that when you have such a pretty girlfriend already,” Mashi jokingly scolded.

“I-” Adion was stumped. Everyone started laughing at seeing Adion’s unusual expression. Adion sneaked a peak at Sell to see her reaction, thankfully she was laughing along with everyone.

Is she blushing? I must be imagining.

“We’re talking about Terallow. Ever heard about it?” Benji kindly explained after the laughter calmed down.

“Oh…yeah. Mom used to say that it was the prime example of what was wrong with the Velorians, a place to stay away from at all costs,” Adion said.

“Sounds like a wise woman,” Frank said, “But I bet it is a lot of fun, too. I’m definitely visiting one of these days.”

“Pervert,” The woman pointed out as Lara by Benji said.

“For the gambling! For the food! For the entertainment!” Frank clarified, “You know I have no interest in that other stuff.”

“Sure,” Lara scoffed.

“I would advise that you stay away from there,” Mashi said, “I’ve been to a lot of places, and nothing comes close to as vile a place as Veloria. Unless you’re a Noble, that is. It’s probably paradise for Nobles.”

“Oh, how so?” Frank asked.

“It’s like non-mages aren’t even people to them. Mages are people, but unless you’re a Noble, your only purpose is to serve them. I just kept my head down and made my way out of there as fast as I could. Duts is a much nicer place. I recommend it.” Mashi said.

“You sure you’re not biased as a Kuwamin?” Frank questioned.

“A little, perhaps. They do make a sport of hunting our people and enslaving them, so I might not look at them all too kindly. But even as a Silver mage, your experience there can be anything but pleasant if you run into the wrong people,” Mashi said.

“Alright, alright,” Frank admitted defeat, “I’ll head somewhere else then. I heard Dormia is nice.”

“You think you can afford to do anything in Dormia?” Lara questioned, “We got a lot of money from the expedition, but nowhere near enough to have any kind of experience in Dormia.”

“Just where should we go then?” Frank asked.

“I don’t know, I’m fine staying in the Empire,” Lara answered.

“I’m bored of it,” Frank said, “I want to see more of the world. We have the money to travel, at least.”

“How about heading up to Iitha?” Mashi suggested, “Know of any nice places to visit Sell?”

“Um,” Sell hesitated after getting thrown into the conversation, “I haven’t spent much time out of Amyss. But Rethi is a really nice place, probably my favorite place to visit.”

“There you go,” Mashi turned to Frank again, “Rethi.”

“Rethi, huh,” Frank mused, “Why not? Rethi it is!”

“Are you not going to consult with your team?” Lara asked from beside him.

“You guys don’t want to?” Frank stopped himself from raising his glass in a cheer.

“Rethi sounds perfect, Frank,” Jidden said with a comforting smile. Marva nodded at him, too.

“Haha!” Frank laughed loudly, “Then we leave tomorrow!”

“I wish you luck on your journey, my friend,” Mashi said as he raised his glass.

“What about you guys, Benji? Planning on staying here in Lermen or heading somewhere else?” Tella asked.

“We’ll probably stay here for a while, right guys?” Benji said.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

“Yeah,” Rufus nodded, “I’m looking forward to just staying in one place for a while.”

“We’ll probably head north once it’s time for Adion to start at Cyalis Academy, though,” Benji said.

“Oh, right,” Tella said, “Are you also going to Cyalis, Sell?”

“That’s right,” Sell answered.

“How nice,” Tella smiled, “Then you will-”

Before Tella could finish, she was interrupted by a voice from behind her.

“Sellitha?” Adion looked up to see a man his own age looking at Sell.

“Astor? What are you doing here?” Sell asked.

“What am I…I’m looking for you, of course! You just disappeared. Most of the family has already left for Ellia,” The young man called Astor said.

“I didn’t disappear,” Sell scoffed, “I’m sure I told someone I was heading for the Outskirts to train.”

“The Outskirts is a big place,” Astor sighed, “Anyway, are you ready to leave?”

“Leave?” Sell asked.

“For Ellia,” Astor said.

“I’m obviously not going,” Sell tilted her head in confusion.

“But…your parents,” Astor hesitated.

“Are in Ellia. I’m sure they’ll understand,” Sell said.

“Who’s the guy? An admirer?” Sahra asked Sell. Adion thought he could see her smirking his way.

Is she trying to rile me up?

“I’m Astor Tyllen,” Astor introduced himself, “I’m supposed to go back with Sellitha. We are having a ceremony to introduce our family to the nobility in the capital.”

Adion noticed that the atmosphere died down and got a little colder. A Noble could always mean trouble. He also saw Mashi and the others throwing looks at Sell. Even if they had probably guessed she came from a Noble family because of her strength, hearing her full name clued them in that her background was even greater than they had thought.

So, he is from the Tyllen family? Only low Bronze despite being a few months older than me.

Adion scrutinized Astor a little more closely. He had blonde hair and brown eyes, dressed in fancy clothes, sticking out like a sore thumb from the Outskirters crowding the tavern.

Adion released some space mana from his core and pushed his sphere of space mana to its limits to get a better look at the surroundings. He always had some space mana under his control, but having it pushed to its limits tore at his Will a lot, and it didn’t give him any useful information if he didn’t consciously focus on it.

He soon realized that there were two Gold mages outside the tavern. From their posture and Astor’s presence, Adion guessed them to be members of the Tyllen family, here to guard Astor.

What a pleasant surprise. Thank you for introducing yourself to all these witnesses on the night of the theft from the Derolm family.

Adion couldn’t help but smile and let out a small laugh. It was just too perfect.

Why am I so happy? The Tyllen family are not enemies. In fact, they seem to be enemies of the Derolm family, so they could be considered be friends.

“Did I say something funny?” Astor asked and looked at Adion.

Everyone turned their attention to Adion, who looked up to meet Astor’s gaze.

“Hm? Why?” Adion asked.

“You just laughed, did you not? So I’m wondering if I said anything funny?” Astor said.

“I wasn’t really listening, but I’m sure it was hilarious,” Adion said in a comforting voice.

“Who is this guy, Sellitha?” Astor asked, still eyeing Adion.

“This is Adion, part of the team that I’ve joined since coming here,” Sell answered.

Astor got a confident smirk on his face and addressed Adion again, “You do realize that you’re talking to a Noble, right?”

What an asshole.

“You do realize you’re talking to someone stronger than you, right?” Adion fired back.

“You-” Astor made an ugly face, “We’re the same strength.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Adion shrugged, “Anyway, Sell doesn’t want to go back with you, so shoo.”

“Adion…” Adion turned to see Benji having his face planted in his hands.

“I can have you killed, you know,” Astor said in a calm voice. Adion noticed that the tavern had turned mostly quiet by this point.

“Astor, don’t cause any trouble,” Sell said with a serious expression.

“You can’t do shit,” Adion said, angry at the threat, “And neither can the two Golds you have waiting outside.”

That got a reaction from Astor.

“Alright, let’s stop this now,” Sell got up and interrupted, “Astor, thank your family for the hospitality, but I’ll stay here until my parents come to pick me up.”

Astor was quiet for a moment, shifting between looking at Sell and Adion.

“Fine,” Astor finally said, “Then I’ll stay here too.”

“What!?” Sell said, “You’re going to miss the ceremony?”

“I was tasked to go there with you, so if you’re staying here, then so will I,” Astor said.

What a nuisance.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Sellitha,” Astor said with a stiff face and turned around to leave.

I shouldn’t.

Halfway out of the tavern, Astor tripped and landed face-down on the wooden floor. He got up immediately and hurried out the door.

“Adion…” Sell turned to look at Adion with accusatory eyes, but she couldn’t hold back a smile from sprouting.

“Lots of clumsy guys around lately,” Adion shrugged and took a sip of his beer.

“Hahaha!” Sahra laughed loudly, soon followed by the rest of the table.

“Adion, well fought!” Sahra said.

“That was stupid, Adion,” Benji said, “You shouldn’t antagonize people like that. Especially not Nobles.”

“Oh, come on, Benji, Loosen up,” Sahra said, “Even Lomin is smirking.”

Everyone turned their attention to the faelin, who had a small smile dancing on his lips.

“I enjoyed it,” Lomin simply said.

“See!” Sahra said and laughed.

“I didn’t really antagonize him either,” Adion defended himself, “He was the one disturbing everyone.”

“That’s true,” Sell nodded as she took her seat again, “He was being unreasonable.”

“Mm,” Rufus nodded, “You did good, Adion.”

“I’m surrounded by kids and drunks. No one can think straight,” Benji sighed.

“Haha!” Mashi laughed, “It’s not always a thankful job being the team leader.”

“So…” Tella said, looking at Sell, “You’re…”

“Sellitha Amyss,” Sell said, “Princess of Iitha. Don’t think about it too much if you can.”

It got a little awkward again around the table as it was easier said than done to ignore such a status.

“Just ignore it,” Rufus said and waved his hand, “When you see Adion flirting all day, a little casual behavior is nothing in comparison.”

Adion and Sell made quick eye contact before looking away from each other immediately.

Do they always have to say something like that?

“What a shame, Rufus,” Adion said, “I just found some fruit that I thought would be enough for all of us. But now, thinking about it, there might not be one for you.”

“Adion,” Rufus’s face sobered up, “You know I’m only joking! Hehe,” Rufus chuckled nervously, “I’m the one who is always flirting. Isn’t that right, Lomin?”

Lomin looked at Rufus in surprise, “Wha-, Oh, yes. Yes.”

“There you have it. I’m sure there might be something for me if you look again, right?” Rufus said.

“We’ll see,” Adion said.

I should make use of these peaches while they’re still in my possession.

“I don’t like that look,” Sahra whispered to Sell.

“I think he just realized he can make you work for the fruit,” Sell said with a small smile.

“Ganta,” Sahra said, “I’ll have to be nice to him for the rest of the night, won’t I?”

After that, the conversation slowly eased up, Sell’s background losing its importance with the help of alcohol. And Adion had a great time being supported by Rufus and Sahra at every point and turn. It was fun initially but lost its charm after a while, and Adion had to promise he wouldn’t leave them out of their share to get them back to normal.

The sun had already risen when the team finally made their way back to the inn after a night full of banter, laughter, and celebration.