The Night Canyons was a network of canyons that stretched for thousands of kilometres, radiating out from the Labyrinth of Night at its centre like the branches of an immeasurable tree, stretching out its tendrils of darkness to more than a thousand kilometres in all directions. Even to the country of Numein in the north. Wherever these canyons lay though, the countless opportunities hiding within their darkness never failed in luring Wanderers to their depths.
The Fortune Springs… Alnea looked at the canyons passing below his feet with all kinds of emotions leaking through the complicated expressions on his face. There was so much he had learned within these canyons. So much that he had experienced. Even though the darkness was a bit unnerving at first, after more than half a year, the darkness had become like his constant companion. Leaving it behind…
“Missing the canyons already?”
Alnea shook his head as he turned towards Yuri, standing right next to him. Or rather, flying next to him. Wrapped in the Spirit Power of his master though, there was not really too much of a difference between the two. They may be speeding past the lands below at an almost unbelievable speed, but they did not feel so much as even a small gust of wind blowing at their robes.
“It is not the canyons that I am missing,” Alnea said, just as the last of canyons—large cracks on the surface of the land— faded away into the distance. “… Forget it. There is no use thinking about the past. Let’s focus on what we are going to face next. What do you think the Lost City is like?”
“We will know soon enough,” Yuri said, as she shifted her gaze towards the speeding lands below their feet. “Why don’t we enjoy the view for now?”
The view… All he could see was a blur passing below his feet. What was there to enjoy about? Except for the thrill of flying too fast, of course. Or fixing his eyes on a certain spot, trying to see how long he could focus on that spot. The ever changing scenery… Green colour mixed in with a tinge of brown and red… Due to obvious reasons, his master was avoiding flying over cities, forcing her to change her route every now and then, but that only made their trip so much more interesting. And colourful.
Forests, plains, hills, mountains, and even some cultivation fields, all rolling over each other… There were so many things that Alnea saw. Some of those things, he had seen before. After all, it was not the first time that his master had taken him flying. A few things though, he saw for the first time. Like the black land that they had just flown over. Without any signs of a living presence, the black lands looked like a massive piece of scorched earth that stretched endlessly below their feet.
“Is this the Black Desert?” Alnea said, shifting his gaze to Cecilia, who nodded in response to his question.
“This is my first time seeing the desert too, but there can be no mistake. Barren black lands that look as if they had been scorched by Enn’s wrath… This is the Black Desert.”
“Already? Isn’t the Black Desert in the Southeast region of Rian? Have we crossed the entire Rian province already?”
“What do you mean already? We have been flying for quite a while. With big sis Nyssa’s strength, it is not too much of surprise that she can cross such distance in a quarter of an hour, right?”
“…Have we been flying for so long? Time surely does fly fast.”
“…Watch carefully. We should soon be arriving at the Lost City.”
Alnea nodded, and returned his attention back to the ground below them. Or at least tried to. The black land below their feet had a strange charm to it though. The more he looked at it, the more it entranced his mind… What was the black mist rising from the black dunes? Some sort of miasma? And the undulating lands… It was as if the desert itself was breathing… and moving. Shifting its position to match the eyes of the beholders… And—
“…You are flying too fast, big sis Nyssa,” Yuri complained, as they left behind the wonders on the ground before they could understand what they were seeing.
“You will get your chance to explore the mysteries of the Black Desert later,” his master said without turning back to look at them. “Get ready. We are almost at the Lost City.”
“Where?” Alnea said, looking around to find traces of the city. All he saw was black lands, stretching endlessly in all directions—and a small red dot on the horizon. A dot, which soon turned into a giant mammoth, at least ten times as large as any city Alnea had ever seen. Both in size of the city, and in the size of the buildings that made the city. From just his first impression, the city was at least fifty times larger than Anneve. And it looked as if it was made entirely from a single piece of blood red metal. However, to create a city of such scale…
“…Is this the Lost City of Rianra?”
“The city is indeed impressive, but there are even stranger things in the world,” his master said, as she brought them towards the entrance of the city. “However, nothing in the world can compare to your future. Do not let the city blind you with its awe.”
“…I understand, master.”
His master was right. He was going to become the—
The city may have looked stunning from high up in the air, but it was only when they began their descent, and reached closer to the ground, that Alnea was able to truly understand how majestic the city was. The giant walls of the city, towering around fifty metres above the ground, were around five times higher than any structure he had seen. However, there were even grander buildings within the city. And it was not as if the structures smaller than the walls were not as grand.
The gates of the city for one, were only half as tall as the walls. And yet, their grandeur could not be hidden by the majesty of the walls. Alnea was not able to recognise any of the figures and text carved on the gates, but that did not stop him from recognising their beauty. Or their sense of sacredness. The arch at the top of the gates—
“Halt!” said one of the two guards at the gates, as he saw them approaching. “Flying is forbidden within the walls of the city. If you wish to enter, then do so on your feet.”
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…Was the guard dumb? Did he not see them descending to the ground? If they had any intention of flying into the city, they would have done so by flying over the walls. Who in their right mind would fly through the gates? Of course, Alnea did not voice out his thoughts. He had to learn how to listen first. Besides, his master did not seem to mind the actions of the guards. She landed in front of the gates, and withdrew her Spirit Power back into her body.
“What are your Ranks?”
“Three False Wanderers, one Adolescent Stage Oren Beast, and one Grand Wanderer.”
The faces of the guards changed the moment they heard his master mention her Rank. Putting on a solemn face, they hurriedly changed their voices to a much gentler tone, trying their best to hide their fear and regrets. Still, at least they maintained their dignity.
“A million Orus for each of the False Wanderers and the Oren Beast, and ten thousand Mystic Oren Stones for Grand Wanderers.”
“…A million Orus,” Alnea mumbled in shock. His father’s life savings were only around a thousand Orus. And his mother earned only ten Orus a month. A million Orus…
“It is not too expensive,” Yuri said, after she noticed his shock. “Considering that we are entering a city that has been in existence since the Age of Gods, you can even say that the entrance fees are cheap.”
“…I think our sense of money is slightly different,” Alnea said. After some hesitation, he added, “How many Orus does a False Oren Stone costs?”
“Ten thousand, give or take.”
“…A hundred False Oren Stones for each one of us then?”
“Not too expensive, right?”
“…The only Oren Stone I have ever seen is the one in the eyes of Little Shiny. We did not find even a single Oren Stone in the Night Canyons. I may be ignorant, but I am not stupid.”
“Little Shiny’s eye was a True Oren Stone. It is roughly equivalent to a hundred False Oren Stone. And the Oren Stone was the least valuable part of Little Shiny. Being able to enter such a city for one tenth the price of a True Ranked Glyph Array… is it not worth it?”
Before Alnea could answer Yuri’s question, his master reached into her ‘Dimensional Pocket’ and took a purple crystal, the size of her fist, and handed it over to the guards.
“That should be enough to cover for all of us.”
“…Is it…”
“…But…”
The guards trailed off, staring at the crystal in shock.
“…Is that a Grand Oren Stone? Or a Supreme Oren Stone?”
“Supreme Oren Stones are too rare, and one of the strategic resources of the Union. Even Grand Oren Stones are strictly regulated. This is the reason why the Guards asked for Mystic Oren Stones, and not a Grand Oren Stone. But with big sis Nyssa’s status, she should have quite a few more Grand Oren Stones.”
“…A Grand Oren Stone is worth ten thousand Mystic Oren Stones?”
“Technically speaking, one can exchange a hundred False Oren Stones for a True Oren Stone, a thousand True Oren Stones for a Mystic Oren Stone, ten thousand Mystic Oren Stones for a Grand Oren Stone, a hundred thousand Grand Oren Stone for a Supreme Oren Stone, and a million Supreme Oren Stones for an Origin Oren Stone. But that is the most ideal exchange condition. In reality, rarely do people exchange a higher level Oren Stone for a lower level one. And even when they do, they ask for at least a ten percent premium.”
No wonder the guards were left flabbergasted by the Oren Stone that his master handed over to them. Though there was still one question that bothered him.
“How did they recognise the Oren Stone?”
“From its colour,” Yuri said. “False Oren Stones are Grey, True Oren Stones are black, Mystic Oren Stones are Red, Grand Oren Stones are Purple, and Supreme Oren Stones are Golden.”
“What about Origin Oren Stones?”
“Origin Oren Stones… I do not know for sure. The Union, and all the Origin clans have a stock of Origin Oren Stones, but I was not allowed to know their information when I left my home. I just heard some rumours that Origin Oren Stones are sentient, and can take any colour they wish.”
“…Sentient stones?” Alnea mumbled, shifting his attention back to the guards. In the time he was talking with the Cecilia, the guards had come back to their senses.
“Enough, enough. It will be more than enough,” one of the guards said, losing his solemn look for an ingratiating smile. He was dressed in the same blood red colour of the city, with a black symbol on his chest. Alnea did not recognise what the symbol was, but it looked something like a skull, and wings. Weird combination.
“Are you interested in joining the Lost City, your excellency?”
“I have my own arrangements.”
“There is no need to refuse right now. You can come take a look at our barracks. Our Captain—
“Tell your Captain that I will visit him when I have time. For now, just take my juniors into the city, and inform them of its rules.”
“Right away, your excellency,” the guards said in unison, before turning back towards the gates. From how they were urging their Aspects to boost themselves, it looked like the gates were quite heavy. But that was a given. How could such majestic gates to such a grand city be so easy to move?
Before the guards could push on the gates though, his master stopped them in their actions, saying, “Just use the side gates as you usually do.”
“But you are an honoured guest of the city, your excellency. Our orders—
“Right now, I am not really in the mood of enjoying a ruckus. And I do not wish for my juniors to gain any undue advantages. They must carve their own way in the city. Are you understanding what I am saying?”
“But—
“I will not repeat myself,” his master said, in the same apathetic tone she had been speaking in for a while. However, the same tone, in conjunction with the words she said, made the guards tremble in dread.
“…W—We understand, your excellency!”
“This way, your excellency,” the other guard said, pointing to a door in the right corner of the gates. It was still a large door, at least thrice as large as Alnea. And that was after the growth spurt that he had experienced in the past few months. He had almost caught up with the girls, and would soon surpass them in height.
“Please excuse the shabbiness of the door, your excellency. It is generally used by the Trialists, so it is not as well maintained as the main gates—
“I understand. You do not have to worry about such trivialities. Just open the door.”
“…Yes, your excellency,” the guards said, shivering from fear, as one of them fumbled into the folds of his robe to take out a palm sized object. It was red, and seemed to be rectangular… That was all that Alnea could see, before the guard placed the object on a small black box attached to the gates. Moments later, the gate seemed to come to life, swinging open into the city on its own. It was just that its speed seemed to be a bit slow.
Getting repeated warnings from his master had made the guards understand that flattering her, or trying to impress her with the city was not going to work. And they did not dare to bet their life that a Grand Wanderer would give the city face once she lost her patience. Especially since she had not entered the city yet. So, instead of waiting for the gate to open on its own, the guards quickly worked together to push it, opening the way to the Lost City of Rianra.