Chapter 493 - 492: The Journey Home

Colin chanted the spell for Flaming Arrow, watching the flame ignite between his fingers.

Once the flame took shape, he waved his arm lightly.

WHOOSH!

A small fireball flew into the air. The swirling snowflakes melted in the flame, turning to mist that landed on Colin's face.

"Are you sure this is a good way to practice your magic?" Dorn asked doubtfully. "This doesn't seem to be how Donkexes did it."

"This is just a makeshift method. It's a very inefficient way to learn. You definitely can't do it like this if you're trying to study seriously," Colin said, then tossed another fireball into the air.

Dorn asked, "Then why are you in such a hurry to practice your magic?"

"I feel like I'm on the verge of being able to cast a Tier Four spell twice. I just need a little more practice," Colin said honestly.

"A Tier Four spell twice? Didn't you just learn your first Tier Four spell a few months ago? How can you almost cast it twice already?"

"Yep. Have you already forgotten the story about the magical Elf soul in my head?"

"That's such bullshit. How is something like that even possible?" Dorn said, pointing at Kase. "He's an Ancestral Guardian. Why hasn't the Orc soul in his head made Kase get stronger this quickly?"

"Mages are a strange bunch, Dorn," Kase said superstitiously. "I feel like the price for that kind of talent is that our friend Colin here is going to become very unlucky."

"I'd have to agree," Dorn said. "If Edwin hadn't already confirmed you were safe, I'd be suspecting you'd signed some kind of pact with a Demon."

"See? Classic Dwarven paranoia," Colin teased.

"I prefer to call it being cautious," Dorn said.

Colin couldn't be bothered to argue about such metaphysical matters and went back to practicing his magic.

His Casting Ability was increasing so quickly in part because of his Skill Level; after all, he had recently poured a full six hundred points into his Casting Skills all at once.

Mog had parted ways with them over ten days ago.

The Ogre had gone to the village he and his master once helped. The village wasn't small, so it should be able to take in the Ogre for a while. Besides, the Northern Lands were considered Albert's territory, so Mog would certainly be safe there.

With that, the party was back to its original size.

After walking for another half-hour or so, the group followed the main road around a small hill.

Just as they rounded the hill, Kase spoke up. "Look ahead. I think we're here."

Colin looked closer and saw that, sure enough, a bustling trade city had appeared in the distance along the road.

Stopitz was located on the upper North River. It straddled the waterway, with massive ports built on both banks.

Judging by its size, the small city's population must have exceeded a thousand households. For this region, that was enough to be considered a key trade hub of almost unimaginable proportions.

This was also the core of Count Weston's Domain, considered the wealthiest region in the entire Northern Lands. It was both the heartland of the Weston Clan and their cash cow.

The party arrived at the city gate.

A Guard at the city gate shouted, "Halt! You're Adventurers, right? What's your party's name?"

"The Foreigners," Colin said, giving the name he had come up with on the spot.

To avoid trouble, he had, as before, used Elf Dance to keep himself completely concealed.

"No offense, but that's a terrible name for a party," Dorn said. "Why don't we pick something else? Like, 'The Great Dorn and His Seven Teammates,' for instance."

The Guard held out a hand toward Colin and said in a low voice, "Alright, you lot look like you're going to cause trouble in the city. I think you should pay a deposit, and once..."

Colin pretended not to understand what the Guard meant. He took an envelope from his bag, showed the insignia on it, and said, "I'm here to find the Mystery Study Association. A friend of mine said they would cast the Teleportation Array for me, free of charge. We won't be staying in this city long."

The moment the Guard saw the insignia on the envelope, he cleared his throat a couple of times.

He said hurriedly, "Alright, you can go in. By the way, the Mystery Study Association is near the city square. Have a safe journey."

Colin didn't say anything more. He led the others through the city gate and down the main road, heading straight for the city center.

Kase and the others were quite interested in the topic Dorn had raised. They all started chattering about new party names, arguing heatedly over suggestions like "The Mighty! The Great! The Strong!", "The Hundred Flower Knight Order," and "The Cross of Justice," which earned them frequent odd looks from passersby.

The names were all far too intimidating; Colin, at any rate, had no desire to choose one of them.

As they passed the docks, Colin glanced over at the cargo.

Most of it was non-perishable food and warm clothing. It looked like they were the supplies Albert had procured. For the people here, this year might be a little better than the last.

Once they reached the square, Colin immediately spotted the headquarters of the Mystery Study Association.

It was a building composed of three towers. The main tower stood over ten meters tall, with the two auxiliary towers being slightly shorter. Stone bridges connected the towers, and the main building was engraved with the Divine Emblem of Lady Rime and the insignia of the Mystery Study Association itself.

It was worth noting that the Mystery Study Association was, in essence, a kind of magical academy for the North.

However, this type of academy lacked the resources to build a formal school or set up professional areas for magical experimentation, so these Mages could only establish this rather loose assembly to help each other improve.

Of course, the first members of the Mystery Study Association weren't exactly savory characters.

Most were Mages exiled from the southern kingdoms, largely a bunch of eccentrics who had managed to gain a foothold here only because of the great expansion into the North during its early days.

Although some Mages from the Mystery Study Association became honored guests of the nobility, to this day, other members have settled in Mokevic, where they serve Pirates.

Of course, there were also rumors that it was actually the members of the Mystery Study Association who controlled the Pirates. Whether that was true or not, only those Mages knew for sure.

Colin walked to the front of the tower and knocked on the main door.

An instant later, the thick oak door was opened from the inside.

Inside the door was a hall paved with smooth marble. It held a large oak table piled with books, and the walls of the hall were lined with tall bookshelves, also filled with books.

Kase looked behind the door, baffled—there was no one there. It was as if it had opened by itself.

An apprentice sitting behind the oak table asked in a loud voice, without raising his head, "Is there something I can help you with, guests?"

"We're here to use the Teleportation Array," Colin said, taking out the envelope as he walked forward.

"I'm sorry, sir, but to cope with the recent winter disaster, teleportation services have been temporarily suspend—"

Before the apprentice could finish, Colin reached the desk, handed him the envelope, and said, "That policy wasn't in place when I received this letter."

The apprentice glanced at the wax seal on the envelope and immediately said, "Then perhaps I was mistaken. My apologies, sir. Please go to the hall on the second floor and wait a moment. I'll be right there."

After saying this, he tugged on his companion, who was reading a book nearby.

The other Magic Apprentice immediately rose and led the group up a spiral staircase to the hall on the second floor.ℯ