Emerging from the shadows of Snow Forest, the trail descending to the foot of the mountain opened onto an entirely different scene.
Dawn broke over Karsan—the largest magical-industrial city in the lower reaches of the Far North.
Towering beneath the mountain range of Wolf Territory, Karsan operated to the frantic rhythm of a modern metropolis: skyscrapers sheathed in reinforced glass resistant to icy air, magical neon signs blinking in every color, and an elevated magical railway whose bullet-shaped maglev trains shrieked through the wind, tearing apart the early-morning mist.
In this era, the kingdom of Elantra no longer operated under an antiquated absolute monarchy. The country was governed by the Supreme Council of Magic under the leadership of the Council Chairman, with national policies passed by votes from the Magic Commissioners. The royal family and ancient great houses like Dermott still held powerful commissioner seats and countless unofficial privileges, but under administrative law, the citizen identification system applied equally throughout the realm.
Being struck from the Wolf Castle family tree had stripped Bailey only of his inheritance rights and noble stipend. Legally, he still possessed a perfectly valid Arcane ID Card identifying him as a free fifteen-year-old citizen.
He had the right to travel, the right to shop, and the right to enroll in any open academy within Elantra.
However, with caution ingrained in his very bones, Bailey understood that a lone teenager carrying a large fortune in gold bars and raw magical gemstones—with no documents proving their mining origins—would immediately trigger an asset-verification procedure if he walked straight into the central banks. That could easily alert Dermott family agents at Karsan's checkpoints.
He needed to discreetly exchange part of his fortune for circulating Elen cash before boarding the train.
Karsan's lower-level commercial district was packed with private magical jewelry shops.
Bailey pulled up the hood of his athletic hoodie and pushed open the door of a precious-metals exchange shop bearing the sign “Gemstone & Arcane Treasures.”
Behind the bulletproof reinforced-glass counter, a skinny, middle-aged shopkeeper with narrow eyes named Goren was using a magical microscope to examine an elemental stone. At the sound of the doorbell, he looked up. When he saw a slender teenager dressed neatly in athletic clothes and traveling alone, the corner of Goren's eye twitched.
Some runaway kid wandering around with a few scraps of property.
“Looking for an appraisal or a straight sale, kid?” Goren planted both hands on the counter and flashed his usual salesman’s smile.
Bailey didn’t answer. He calmly pulled a raw gold bar and a thumb-sized sapphire from his jacket pocket—just a small portion of Sia’s treasure hoard. He placed them on the velvet transaction tray.
“Convert them to standard-denomination Elen cash.” Bailey’s voice was flat.
Goren’s eyes lit up when he saw the gold bar’s purity and the dense concentration of deep-blue mana inside the sapphire. These were clearly top-grade minerals extracted from deep within a forbidden wilderness. He immediately placed them on the digital magical scale on the counter.
BEEP.
The electronic display flickered to life, but showed a laughably low figure: 3,200 Elen.
“Lots of lead impurities in the gold, and the sapphire’s internal mana structure is cracked,” Goren clicked his tongue and pretended to sigh. “You’re still young, so I’ll offer you the absolute maximum purchase price: 3,000 Elen in cash. No invoice-processing fee deducted. Here you go.”
The true market value of these valuables was no less than 25,000 Elen through legitimate channels. Goren was shamelessly exploiting Bailey’s youthful appearance to force down the price, while the hand he had hidden beneath the counter had quietly reached for the magical electromagnetic pulse control, intending to lock the scale’s sensor valve.
He thought a fifteen-year-old child would be dazzled by a few thousand Elen in cash.
But he didn’t know that from the moment he entered the room, Bailey had already prepared a fallback and placed the entire surrounding space under his absolute control.
Perceive—Conceive—Establish.
Bailey’s spatial awareness enveloped the entire electronic scale and Goren’s scheming hand beneath the counter. He felt every artificial mana pulse choking the device’s weight-sensor core with perfect clarity.
The corner of Bailey’s mouth lifted slightly.
Control—Break.
A thread of spatial magic slipped through the gap in the transaction glass and drove straight into the scale’s microcontroller, forcibly shattering Goren’s fraudulent signal.
TICK... TICK... TICK!
The digital display on the counter suddenly flashed violently, then stopped at the actual figure: 26,800 Elen.
At the same time, the temperature around the transaction counter plummeted. A thin layer of icy mist crystallized across Goren’s collar, accompanied by a razor-sharp chill pressed against his carotid artery—a transparent shard of space-compressed ice hovering beside his throat.
Goren’s entire body went rigid, cold sweat soaking through the back of his shirt. He was a Beginner Tier 2 Mage, but the invisible pressure crushing his throat was so precise and frigid that the slightest movement would slice cleanly through his blood vessel.
“Your scale just corrected its own accuracy,” Bailey said lightly. “Hand over the full 25,000 Elen in standard-denomination cash. If a single cent is missing, or that hand under the counter presses one more button... something unfortunate will happen to this shop.”
Goren gulped, his face drained of color. He immediately understood: the person standing before him was a dangerous predator hiding its claws.
“I... I understand! Just a technical misunderstanding, brother!”
Goren shakily opened the safe, counted out twenty-five bank-sealed bundles of Elen cash, and carefully placed them on the transaction tray without daring to try another trick.
Bailey put the money in his backpack and strolled out of the shop.
He didn’t head straight to the central station. Even though he had cash and legitimate documents, he maintained his safety principle: take one step back to control the whole board.
He turned into a sports fashion store by the roadside, bought a thin ash-gray windbreaker, changed his hairstyle to a neat side part, and put on a pair of black-rimmed glasses with no prescription. In just five minutes, his outward appearance had completely blended in with the thousands of school and university students moving through Karsan’s streets.
Bailey entered the concourse of Karsan Central Station, scanned his Arcane ID Card at an automated ticket counter, and received a business-class ticket for a high-speed train heading south.
DING-DING——
An announcement rang out over the station speakers:
“Continental-Crossing Magical Express Line #07, departing from Karsan Station for Barcelia Port City Central Station, will close its doors in five minutes.”
Bailey passed through the automated security gate and entered the quiet business-class carriage. He chose a window seat and gently rested his head against the thick soundproof reinforced glass.
The train doors closed with a smooth hiss.
The maglev train began to accelerate, gliding along the magical tracks at hundreds of kilometers per hour and leaving behind the industrial city of Karsan and the snow-covered mountain ranges of Wolf Territory.
Outside the window, the white snow began to melt away, giving way to the lush green plains of the south.
Ahead of Bailey, the port city of Barcelia—the place where the March entrance examinations would begin—awaited.