(Julius Agenti POV)

The week passed quickly. Nothing out of ordinary happened and we took classes as usual. The day of the school trip was upon us, so we all got into the bus taking us to Ausburn.

It would take a couple of days of driving to get to our location, but we wouldn't be stopping at hotels. We would only leave the bus to stop and eat.

We were all expected to sleep on the bus. the bus also had a toilet so we could do our business anytime.

We only left the bus to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast was 2 hours, so we could also take a shower, change and brush our teeth at the facilities the school rented out.

This training gets us used to uncomfortable situations on the front lines. Though it was mild compared to sleeping in the trenches. Mild was probably an understatement.

This trip would last nearly 3 weeks so we had to pack a lot of clothes.

The bus ride was uneventful as I spent most of the time playing games on my laptop or sleeping. Occasionally I would play chess with Amina and lose badly.

I still didn't understand how I was losing every time. Even though she was better than me, she had to have made a mistake I could've taken advantage of in hundreds of games we've played.

I also challenged Violet and James to a game of chess and defeat them. It confirmed that I didn't lose just because I was terrible at chess.

Amina must be a chess genius. I would pay to see a match between Amina Moria and Magnus Carlsen.

After 4 days of sitting and doing nothing, we arrived at our destination. I wished planes existed in this world.

However, it wasn't possible to travel by air. It was home to many terrifying animals that could rip a regular plane to shreds.

An example was a Storm Falcon. On average it was a D rank beast that could become as strong as B rank. It could produce powerful wind blades that could easily cut through most metals.

The only way planes could exist was if it was made of a magical metal with a mage constantly reinforcing the materials. But doing so would just be a waste of resources and a mage. It wasn't worth the reduced travel time.

Ausburn was one of the oldest cities in the human domain. It was located south of Central High, in the state of Agni. I was surrounded by skyrises, the city was bustling.

Our hotel was located at the edge of the city, next to Ausburn Park. It was a massive forest, teeming with many different pieces of animals and plants. This park had two sections, the tourist section and the restricted section.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

We would be training in the restricted section dealing with the many powerful magical beasts living there. Though that won't start until tomorrow.

The last stretch of the journey was through the night, so we got there in the morning. We had the entire day to do whatever we wanted.

The first thing I did was unpack. We had to share a room with a partner, so me and James took a room. After unpacking, we ate a delicious breakfast and went to explore the city.

The city had many different places to visit as Violet and Amina had made a detailed travel guide. I enjoyed seeing different sights while James had no interest in them. But we dragged him along with us.

We first visited the Light Caverns. It was a massive natural cave formation. However, what made it so special was the luminescent moss that covered the entire cave. It was like I entered a fantasy wonderland, with changing colours all around us.

This was also paired with the glow moths, which made this a place that people had to see once in their lifetimes.

Afterwards, we visit the Hope Well. This well was created thousands of years ago. There was a myth that if you submerged yourself in the well, a goddess would appear in front of you.

She would give you a trial and if you passed it, she would give you immense power. But there were no reports of this coming true. It was also banned from entering the well, as in the past many have drowned searching for the goddess.

Finally, we visited the main attraction of this entire city. Practically everyone from Central High visited here and I noticed many of my classmates touring the place.

It was called the Flame Emperor's Palace. It was dedicated to the first Mage Emperor on this continent, Yugo Agni. The entire state was named after him.

He was an extremely powerful mage that existed thousands of years ago. Reports of his strengths vary widely from being compared to regular S rank nowadays to being so strong that the current Mage Emperor is just an ant to him.

He had many known feats and information about him was written down in detail by the ancient people.

However, one thing historians have failed to grasp was his later life and death. It was as if he disappeared one day. His body was never found and is something historians have been searching for to this day.

Despite that, he was a renowned figured and well respected to this day. His palace was humongous. It overlooked the entire city and was located on a mountain. To even get to the palace, one has to climb hundreds of steps.

The exterior of the palace was gorgeous. 20 majestic beams extended from the base of the palace extended outwards. They were placed in a semi-circular formation as if guarding the entire palace.

AN: Similar to Hammerlocke in Pokemon Sword and Shield

The palace itself was extremely intricate, similar to one seen in China. There were monuments dedicated to Yugo Agni. It was as if our ancestors worshipped him, seeing him as a god instead of a mortal.

The palace was made of extremely expensive magical metals which made the palace seem brand new. There was no weathering to be found.

The interior was practically empty but equally beautiful. Amazing artworks adorned the walls and roofs of the buildings. This Mage Emperor had many fanatic followers that built this for him.

It was a wonderful experience and something I would never forget. It was as if I could forget all my worries. Violet loved it and even James enjoyed his time there.

However, Amina seemed distracted the entire tour. She barely talked and at some almost looked like she was disgusted by the entire place. It was like she didn't want to be here. Though she didn't show it on her face, I had a faint feeling.

I questioned it, but she said that also cherished the entire tour. She was being sincere so I chalked up her behaviour as my imagination.