For a kingdom as vast as Ferris, infrastructure was vital to ensure timely travel anywhere. Massive roads extended across the continent, reinforced with magic, and made wide enough for a half dozen carts to ride aside each other. The intricate network linked every major settlement in Ferris, from the coastline to the edge of its borders. For our trip to the wildlands outside of Ferris, we would be using the easternmost path, the Sunrise Way.

Despite its wide span, the Sunrise Way was the only major road to or from the eastern edge of the kingdom, and hundreds of other travelers restricted our speed to a quick trot. As we rode, something I had wondered about before came to my mind, and after a moment of debate, I pulled up a few steps closer to Leon and cleared my throat to draw his attention.

"Sir, I had a question that I was hoping you can answer. Our journey should last a month, but I estimate that it should take nearly twice that to reach the border with horses. Even if we rode our horses into the ground and changed mounts at stops, it would still likely take a month. Is there something I am missing?" I asked.

Leon chuckled for a moment, replying, "Yes, I can see your confusion. Have you ever heard of the silta? It's a species remarkably similar to horses, which legends tell the gods themselves crafted to act as their mounts. They use mana to reinforce their bodies, and as a result, are incredibly strong, fast, and can gallop for days without rest. The oldest can even use their mana to levitate through the air or run along the ocean."

"I see. Are our mounts silta?" I said, looking down at the horse's neck and pushing my senses into her flesh. Her flesh and bones were strange, infused with mana that I assumed must reinforce and strengthen them, but I had no idea how.

After a second, I looked back to Leon, who shook his head at my question.

"By the Founders, no. Silta are both intelligent and incredibly proud, to the point where they are essentially untameable. A mage years back had the idea of cross-breeding horses and silta together to remove their rebellious nature. The resultant offspring possess a more even temperament, while remaining physically superior and notably more intelligent than any common horse. When combined with a few choices pieces of enchanted riding equipment, and feed to keep them at full strength, over a month's journey is shortened to less than a week."

While it must cost a small fortune, I suspected the cost of using magic to fly or teleport such distances was much higher. I had studied Cortos' arrays to an extent, and researched if other mages had crafted similar inventions. What I found was that teleportation arrays were extraordinarily complex and cost exponentially increasing amounts of energy. A spell to link locations several miles apart would be difficult to cast. Teleporting from cities separated by a hundred miles takes so much mana that only an Archmagi would possess the strength.

After an hour of travel, the crowds had thinned out, and most of the road became clear. Turning towards the apprentices, one of the masters in our group's lead gestured to move into a gallop. Before I could signal my mare, she burst forward, moving into an easy gallop as I pushed down a decidedly undignified scream of surprise.

Looking at my surroundings as they passed in a blur, I guessed we were traveling at least twice as fast as a regular horse. But more interesting to me was not the speed of my mount, but her grace and efficiency.

On my best days, I was a poor rider, and usually, I struggled to stay upright in the saddle. Yet despite moving at such incredible speeds, the ride was remarkably smooth, and my horse seemed to find level ground effortlessly. I could barely even feel hooves impacting the stone road through my saddle, and I let the tension slowly ease from my body as I became used to riding again.

To pass the time, I focused my mind on blocking out as many sensations as possible, turning my thoughts inward. Telepathy was a unique form of magic in that the mind drove its effects rather than mana. The limiting factor on telepathic skill was instead intelligence and willpower, rather than sheer strength.

If I wanted to become a skilled psionic, the broad term for both a telekinetic and telepathic specialist, I needed to sharpen my mind even further. And luckily for me, I had hours of riding where I had nothing to do but perform mental exercises. If nothing else, it would occupy the time until we reached our destination.

Colkirk was the largest city east of Volaris, built surrounding a massive lake, and unlike nearly every other major settlement in the kingdom, it lacked any strategic importance. There were no nearby mines or rivers, and it had no military significance, or magical resources. But Colkirk was a popular vacation spot for nobles to escape the winter, due to its reputation as "The City without Seasons."

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Several centuries ago, back when still just a small village, Archmagi Elvor was born the son of a reclusive nobleman, himself the youngest son of a baron. Growing up, he fell in love with the tranquil lake Colkirk lay next to, and the quiet beauty of a life of solitude. He dedicated most of his to the study of magic, notably becoming a skilled master of magic designed to manipulate weather.

Most nobles use a variation of his techniques to grow crops year-long, though the complexity and cost associated with it have slowed spread to the rest of the kingdom. King Lyos was a notable proponent of expanding this initiative to reduce food shortages during the long winters and eliminate starvation.

After completing his inventions and giving them over to the Academy, Elvor retired to his hometown as an ancient and wealthy man. Deciding that he would prefer to spend his final years in complete comfort, without the bitterly cold winters that plagued his home, Elvor set his prodigious mastery of magic to the task. He managed to weave a powerful spell that he bound to the ley lines, which turned the weather in Colkirk permanently pristine and beautiful, as if it was summer year-round.

Unfortunately, Archmagi Elvor never got to enjoy his creation. While powerful, the massive exertion of mana on his part was too much for his aging body to withstand, and he dropped dead on the spot. His death served well as a cautionary tale to always be mindful of the fragility of the body, and how magic was innately an energy not meant for mortal forms.

Of course, I only learned all of this due to Simon talking my ear off for the last hour of our trip. His uncle was interested in attempting to reverse engineer the spell, and they had visited Colkirk several times over the years, which Simon was more than happy to tell me. The Esttons likely had spent a winter there, but if they did, I had never come along.

His constant stream of talking distracted me from my telepathy training, but I was having limited success in that regard, so the break was welcome. Or it was at first, but I preferred quiet for the most part, and an hour of explanations was rapidly becoming annoying.

"My uncle is pretty confident he has figured out the spell's specifics, but he still needs to figure out if he can modify the boundaries of the effect after casting. Colkirk has a problem with the extent of the spell, and can't grow beyond a certain point which is a major problem in making it economically viable to-"

"Simon! Could we possibly ride in silence for a little while? No offense meant, but I have developed a headache from waking so early and riding this long." I said, rubbing my temples with one hand.

Simon smiled sheepishly and nodded, replying, "Sorry, Vayne. I sometimes get carried away when I get excited."

Several hours later, as the sun was beginning to creep behind the horizon, I saw the first signs of a city in the distance. At first, it was just indistinct shapes, but soon enough, they became apparent as a bustling city.

Colkirk was a beautiful city of broad streets and bright lights. Strings dangled above our heads as we moved our horse along the road, and I noticed that each had dozens of glass bulbs, each glowing a different color. Men and women walked along the cities, laughing and chatting loudly, despite the encroaching night. It did not take me long to remove my gloves and undo my cloak, sweat beginning to form on my forehead.

Finally, the masters came to a halt in front of one large inn, perched directly next to the lake.

"We will be spending the night in this town. I would suggest enjoying it and taking in the sights. Colkirk is a marvel of magic, and you all could use it as inspiration for what to aspire to as an adept. Just do not stay out too late. We leave at sunrise, and if you are late, you are left behind." said one of the masters, a man in his forties with a shaven head.

I glanced over to Leon and Sophia, who hopped off their horses before leading them toward the stables. I followed their lead and dismounting before walking after them.

The Esttons walked their mounts over to the inn, paying a stablehand nearby who took away their horses with a smile. As I approached, another young man walked over and took the reins from me silently.

Before I could say anything, Leon turned back to me and said, "We took care of it, Vayne. Let's head inside and get our rooms settled."

The inside was massive, and unlike any other inn that I had seen before. Rather than being an enclosed building, most of the first floor extended out above the lake, standing on thick, wooden pylons. The space did not have any walls, allowing anyone to look out over the quiet lake. Music softly played in the main room, and bright lights reflected off the mirror-like surface of the water.

If Volaris was tense and fast-paced, Colkirk seemed loose and relaxed, as if the entire city was half-asleep. It was unusual, but a welcome change of pace compared to what I had expected.

Leon paid for our rooms, requesting three single rooms. Leading us to our second-floor, the innkeeper handed me a small key before smiling and saying, "Enjoy your stay, and welcome to the Golden Sky!"

Entering my room, I noticed a balcony which led out to overlook the lake, the same as the main room below. Looking out over the waters, I could appreciate why Elvor would want to preserve this place, and spend his last few years here.

Removing most of my equipment, I slipped my dagger under the mattress, double-checking to make sure it did not look out of place. Striping off most of my clothes, including my armor, I took a deep breath, gently rustling my shirt and feeling the sweat on my skin beginning to dry.

Suddenly, I heard a knock on my door, and when I opened it, Leon was standing in the doorway with a smile.

"Let's go, Vayne. We have plenty of exploring to do, and only a few hours to do it in. Are you ready for the most fun night of your life?"