(Nex's POV)
I looked around for a weapon since I believe if he really is loaded, then he must have a weapon forged for him.
The table shimmered slightly due to the moonlight, and there it was, gleaming silently under the night with an obsidian hilt and its scabbard reflecting the night sky as if it had its own story. The katana glowed almost ethereally, as if it reigned supreme in the night sky.
I quickly grabbed the katana and stored it in my storage pocket, then picked up the aether pad that was just beside the katana.
Just as I touched the surface of the pad, it glowed.....
User identified!
22 missed calls from Sis.
1 unchecked message
I quickly tapped on the message notification.
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๐๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ: ๐ด๐ช๐ด
๐๐ฉ๐บ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฑ๐ช๐ค๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ถ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ, ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฃ๐ณ๐ข๐ต? ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐๐ฅ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ๐จ๐ฆ๐ต ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ช๐ด๐ด๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฆ๐ด๐ต ๐ข๐ต ๐๐ฆ๐น๐ถ๐ด? ๐๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐จ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ 10 ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ๐ด. ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ข๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ข๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ณ๐ข๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐บ ๐ข๐ง๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ด๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฆ๐ด๐ต. ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ถ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฆ๐ด๐ต ๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ด๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ด๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ต๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ท๐ฆ.
____________________________________
Reading this text, my body involuntarily shuddered. Wasn't I supposed to be the sole inheritor of my parents' wealth?
Well, this made me smile; at least there is someone to nag me in this world.
Well, now I gotta go.
Just as I left my building, I was greeted by the neon lights and tall skyscrapers. Fuck, it's cool!
Quickly, I made my way towards the subway.
(Third person)
The platform shimmered faintly underfootโmana veins pulsing like heartbeat lines across the obsidian tiles. A low hum filled the air, rhythmic and alive. The train stood at the edge of the station, sleek as a blade, carved from alloyed mana-steel that glowed faintly with runic etchings. It floated slightly above the tracks, anchored by invisible currents.
He hesitated before the open hatch.
"Just step in," he muttered, adjusting the strap of his utility bag, he bought in case of any emergency, across his back.
Inside, it was both grand and eerily silent. No wheels, no smoke, no rattling iron. Just the faint whisper of runes glowing along the walls, casting pale azure light on the seats. The carriage didn't sway or creakโit simplyโฆ hovered.
He took a seat near the window.
The door sealed behind him with a soft sigh. The train pulsed onceโand then launched.
A flash of light stretched across the horizon as they moved, faster than wind, faster than thought. The outside blurred into streaks of color, like riding through a living painting. The train was not just moving through space but warping itโbending the ley lines like silk threads to pull itself forward.
The pressure hit his chestโsubtle, but unnatural. Like the world was folding, and he was being folded with it.
"Mana stream stable," a soft artificial voice chimed.
He looked at his hand, watching the faint flicker of his own aura responding to the train's mana stream. It was like his own energy was syncing with the flowโreluctant, curious.
He'd never traveled this fast. Never felt so small in a system so vast.
Around him, people sat as if it were routine. A student in uniform dozed off. A woman in a mage's cloak calmly flipped through a rune slate. But he couldn't relax. Not yet.
Because this wasn't just travel; this was a reminderโ
The world he thought he knew was far bigger, faster, and far more arcane than he ever imagined.
And he had a long journey ahead of him.
Then came the view; it was nothing like he had ever seen.
Vulkren stretched before him, vast and untamed. Jagged mountains rose like ancient titans, their stone bodies veined with glowing mana crystals that pulsed faintly beneath the mist. Below, the forest spread endlessly, thick with towering trees whose crowns formed a woven canopy of deep green and silver light.
Sunlight pierced through the leaves in narrow beams, catching motes of mana drifting lazily in the air, as if the whole landscape was exhaling magic. It didn't feel like a destinationโit felt like a presence, watching, waiting.
He didn't speak.
Didn't blink.
Just sat there, still, as the weight of the wild pressed gently against the glass.
So thisโฆ is Vulkren.
(Nex's POV)
The doors opened, and the fresh air mingled in my lungs.
Just as I was leaving the compartment, a cold mechanical voice entered my ear.
"Please scan your aether pad on the scanner."
Dumbstruck, I followed the instruction, and boom, without the need for any pins or passwords, the transaction happened.
"Please have a comfortable journey ahead, dear customer."
Yeah! Yeah! I will.
I quickly walked near the association outpost, and bless my luck, there was no one there.
Then snatching the moment, I ran towards "Feyrath Mount," the tallest mountain in the proximity.
I quickly began searching for a "sigil," as the novel had mentioned a secret pathway to the heart of the mountain.
๐๐๐๐๐๐!...๐๐๐๐๐๐!... ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ .