“Seeking the one the that belongs to us…” Vestia mumbled, pondering upon the words in a daze. Even Cecilia and Yuri turned to look at him in shock.

“You actually came up with a good name?”

“…What do you mean? I have always come up with good names.”

“…Spirit Piercing Needle.”

“That’s a good name.”

“Three Turns Spirit Forging Art.”

“…Master agreed with it.”

“Only because she dotes on you too much,” Yuri said, before smiling at him. “But this time, I like the name that you came up with.”

“I love it too.”

“What about you, Vestia? Do you have any problems with ‘Star Seekers’?”

“No,” Vestia said, shaking her head, while still appearing to be in a daze. “The name… It just reminded me of something.”

“Do you agree with the name then?”

“Of course, what’s there to disagree about it?”

“Good,” Yuri said, nodding with satisfaction. “Then from now on, we will be known as ‘Star Seekers’. Wanderers who chase after the ‘Stars’, ‘Seeking’ the one that belongs to us.”

…Looking at Cecilia’s and Yuri’s eyes, filled with pride, and Vestia’s eyes, brimming with admiration, Alnea decided to never tell them that he had just borrowed the name. After all, with no ‘Star Transformation Art’ available in the world of Wanderers, they would never be able to catch his plagiarism. In the end, what would be left behind would be the legends of Alnea Oathkeeper, the man who came up with the name ‘Star Seekers’…

“Since we are done naming our team, let’s get back to what we were talking about earlier,” Yuri said, intent on squeezing everything out of Vestia that she could. “Tell us what you know about the Lost City.”

“If I start telling you everything that I know about the city, then I would not be done even after Enn sinks and rises twice in the sky. Still, you do need to know a few important things about the city, or else you would not even notice when you enter the traps of other Wanderers. For example, if someone attacks you within the city, then you can retaliate against them, but only with appropriate force.

“With how you three have been fighting in the Arena though, you clearly do not understand the meaning of appropriate force. So, this might be one of the ways that other clans might try to find trouble with you. They might even time their attacks to allow for the guards of the city to catch you red handed. But once you are caught by the guards, things will become a little troublesome, so make sure to not fall for such blatant traps.”

“She is talking about you, Cecilia,” Alnea said, glancing at the irritant cat prowling around her. It was beginning to get hungry. And once it became hungry enough to become feral…

“Like you are one to talk about,” Cecilia said. “At least my opponents are just a little maimed. Your opponents are almost always left on the verge of death.”

“…That’s because I wanted to create a shock effect. If I wish, I can easily control my strength… probably.”

“Save your flirting for later,” Yuri said. “Let’s get this over with first.”

“We are not flirting!”

“Definitely not flirting!”

“…I would not mind, you know,” Vestia said, covering her mouth, as she chuckled at him and Cecilia.

“…Let’s continue with what you were saying.”

“If you say so,” Vestia said, shrugging her shoulders. “As I was saying, there are countless ways for other Wanderers to lure you into their traps, and they are always coming up with new ways, so telling you about these things would not really make much of a difference. What you need to do is to remain vigilant at all times. This is one of the reasons why Wanderers in the city are always so distrustful of each other.

“Only within the bounds of the Blood Hall or the Blood Arena do Wanderers allow themselves to relax. Because no one is crazy enough to play tricks in these places. Of course, there are always some people who do not care about any rules, but they are in a minority. And their end is always of the worst kind.”

“So, even when we are in the Blood Hall and Blood Arena, we should still remain vigilant, and not let our guards down?”

“We should always prepare for the worst, right?”

“…I cannot argue with that.”

“This brings us to the second point, your arrogance. I know that the three of you are geniuses in your own rights. In fact, you three are some of the most talented Wanderers I have ever met. And I have met many Wanderers. Even those from Supreme clans. Still, you should restrain your arrogance a little. Offending one or two clans is nothing, but if you offend all the Wanderers in the city, then you can give up the ‘Star’ of inner city.”

“…If we are strong enough—

“Even if you are strong enough, can you fight hundreds of Wanderers at the same time? Or have you forgotten what I said earlier about the process of entering the inner city?”

“…We will try to restrain ourselves.”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“…Though, I guess, it is not entirely your fault either. From how the three of you often enter into a world of your own, I can see that you must have trained in a closed environment for a long time, with barely any contact with other Wanderers. Maybe that is also the reason why you have such strength at such a young age. But everything comes at a price. And the price for your strength is your ignorance in matters pertaining to other Wanderers. Maybe you yourself do not know how you have offended so many Wanderers…”

“…We will try to be a bit more conscious.”

“It’s fine. As long as you are aware of your shortcomings, we can work on them together.”

“So, being vigilant at all times, restraining our arrogance, and paying more attention to the Wanderers around us… Anything else?”

“…For now, that’s enough about you. Next, let us come to the city itself. As you know, the city is divided into four districts, Northern, Eastern, Southern, and Western. These districts, with a closed system of their own, are like the different Regions of the Tes Domain. There is nothing stopping the Wanderers from crossing their borders, but rarely do we see Wanderers stepping into districts that is not their own.

“After all, most of the needs of the Wanderers can be met in their own districts. As for the things that they cannot find in their own districts, they will not find it in other districts either. Not to mention the fact that Wanderers cannot access Blood Hall and Arenas of other districts. With such a great disadvantage, and no advantages whatsoever, it is not a surprise that Wanderers rarely gander off into other districts.

“However, Orthodoxies generally tend to stick together with their kind. That, coupled with the closed system of the different districts, gave birth to an unwritten rule in the city. Members of an Orthodoxy will settle down in the districts where other members of their clans are. The Serpia clan in particular, has settled down in the Southern District. This is also one of the reasons why I was able to guess the intention of your elders. In any case—

“Wait,” Alnea said, interrupting Vestia. “If the Serpia clan has settled in the Southern District, then what about the Northern District? Which clan of Rianra has settled down in the Northern District?”

“That is what I was about to come to next,” Vestia said. “I know that a Wanderer from the Lotus clan issued a Blood Challenge against you on your first day in the city, but you should not have challenged the entire Lotus clan.”

“…Is it the Lotus clan?”

“…These rats. Are we never going to get rid of them?”

“…But it was master who brought us to the Northern District…”

“Big sis Nyssa probably wants you to get ready for the Rising Wanderer Trials…”

“…From the look on your faces, and what you are saying, I guess that you must have some kind of grudge against the Lotus clan?”

“It is those bastards! They—

“Cecilia,” Yuri said, glaring at Cecilia, while shaking her head, before turning back to Vestia. “I am sorry, but there are some things that we cannot tell you… even if you are part of our team.”

“…It’s fine. Everyone has a secret or two. Besides, we have just formed a team. It is understandable that you do not trust me completely. Yet. Sooner or later, I am sure that I will earn your trust.”

“We will see about that,” Yuri said. “Although there are things that we cannot tell you, since you have joined our team, you should at least know what kind of grudge the Lotus clan has with us.”

“You do not have to—

“You remember Reinhart Whitebud that you were talking about?”

“…The Whitebud patriarch who became Enthralled?”

“It was because of Alnea that he became Enthralled.”

“…I did not know that you could joke around as well, Yuri,” Vestia said, shaking her head, while chuckling to herself. No matter how talented her new teammates were, in the end, they were just—

“I am not joking.”

“…I guess, she is right.”

“There is nothing to guess here. Or do you want me to remind you how the Whitebud Patriarch got Enthralled?”

“…No need.”

“…Are you really not joking?”

“Of course not,” Cecilia said, with pride dripping from her face. “I was there too. And I also contributed a little to that old bastard’s Enthrallment.”

“…I guess you could say that.”

“She did scold him a lot.”

“Maybe his Heart would not have broken if Cecilia had not scolded him so.”

“So, it was not my fault—

“But in the end, you were the main reason why his Heart broke.”

“…I was just trying to help.”

“…Wait. Wait. Wait,” Vestia said, raising her hands in exasperation, as her breath quickened along with her heart. “So, the three of you caused the downfall of a True Wanderer?”

“Two of us, actually. Yuri was not there with us back then.”

“That’s even more exaggerated! Two Intermediate Stage—No, you should have only been at the Initial Stage back then. Two Initial Stage False Wanderers taking down a True Wanderer… How did the Lotus clan let you go?”

“…Well, they did not exactly let us go.”

“We cannot tell you—

“Wait a moment,” Vestia said, raising her hand, as she shifted her eyes downwards, while biting her lower lips, getting lost in her thoughts. “Reinhard Whitebud… Reinhart Whitebud… I remember it now.”

Vestia paused, and turned back towards Yuri, with a flash of solemnity in her eyes.

“It was not just the Whitebud patriarch who died that day.”

“…Your source of information sure is accurate.”

“You…” Vestia paused, and bit her lips once again, with anxiousness flooding her eyes. “Are the three of you Heterodox Wanderers?”

“What?” Alnea said, blinking at the frightened woman in confusion. “We are Heterodox Wanderers?”

“Poros’ skin! How can you think of us as Heterodox Wanderers?”

“…We are not so scary, are we?”

“But…”

“It looks like your source of information is not so accurate after all,” Yuri said, snickering at poor woman. “We cannot tell you the whole story but rest assured. We are not Heterodox Wanderers. On the contrary, we are their hunters.”

“…Hunters?”

“It is a long story.”

“…One that you cannot share?”

“…Maybe later, but not now.”

“…Then the Lotus clan…”

“Once again, all we can say is that they will not stop coming after us. Whether we provoke them or not.”

“…You have quite a lot of secrets.”

“Everyone has a secret or two… We just have a little more than others.”

“…You are refreshing my concept of what a little means.”

“…Now that you know what kind of grudge the Lotus clan has with us, are you still willing to be a part of our team?”

“…Maybe I have not taken down a True Wanderer, or hunted some Heterodox Wanderers, but I will let you know that I, Vestia Weina, am no coward. And I am not someone who goes back on my word either. So what if you have the Lotus clan coming against you? Even if it was the entire city that was your enemy, I would still be afraid. From the moment you accepted me, I was already a part of the team. And I also have a part in naming our team. I am just as much a Star Seeker as the three of you are.”

“…Although I hate vixens, but you are not too bad.”

“…I am beginning to like you too.”

…Three crazy girls, bonding with each other… Alnea just hoped that they would not drag him into too much trouble.