Chapter 1883: Part 1: Pebble City

Border

The horse carriage departed from the border. The carriage owner was operating it towards the nearest city, called Pebble City.

The passengers were discussing their mission. Their discussion included the missing tribespeople. They had not seen any on their journey.

In the Gregor Mansion, I heard everything. The Granite Crest Mountain Range was so vast; it’s possible that more than one group is living at the base.

Yet these people had not come across other groups. What’s going on? Has the wizard group which attacked Elder Barry’s tribe attacked other tribal groups as well?

So many doubts filled my mind. But I didn’t want to meddle. I wanted to use the teleportation facility in the capital.

I could also use it without fulfilling the promise to the old man, Barry.

As a Magic Lord, he can save his descendants without needing my help. Yet the old man made me do it.

I disliked the idea. Without him, I wouldn’t have known about the teleportation facility. So, I would try to find out the culprit who used the evil magic spell on the little girl.

After going to the nearest city, I should find a way to reach the capital city. I calmed my heart and continued to listen to their conversation.

...

Outside

The magic horses were flying fast. They were moving the carriages faster through the air. Without the owner’s direction, they moved on their own.

Because they were intelligent and used to visiting the location, they were going to reach the city quickly.

...

Pebble City

The monster horse carriage reached the city an hour later. The city looked greenish; the place was filled with lush green vegetation.

There were tall trees everywhere. There were no empty lands; instead, there were beautiful gardens everywhere.

One could see different colorful flowers in each street.

It appeared the city was located in the middle of the forest. In the Gregor Mansion, I could not see the city view, but I was hearing the conversation of others.

Since the nation is located near the mountain range, the place here must be beautiful.

I could already feel the rich mana in the environment. The carriage owner stopped the carriage at the platform.

There were other carriages parked here. Carriage travel is one of the old traditions here, despite the modern flying vehicles.

The people who follow the tradition mostly live in this Pebble City. When the carriage came to a halt, the passengers started leaving one by one.

They knew the carriage owner; he is one of the locals here. The carriage owner saw the customers leaving, then he turned towards the monster horses and started giving them food.

After attending to them, the owner found his friends.

They were having a discussion under a tree. He started walking up to them.

Inside the Gregor Mansion, I felt the owner had left. I appeared outside, inside the carriage.

Then, I used the system probe function and found out that the owner was not here. So, I exited and started walking towards the main street.

There were big shops on both sides of the streets. More than that, my gaze shifted towards the beautiful gardens in front of the shops.

For a second, I was taken aback. I paused my footsteps and looked around the place. All I could see was greenery.

Not many people were walking down the street. It showed that the city was not that populated; there is a lot of free space.

They have built gardens in every free space.

A bright smile appeared on my face. My mood is better than before. I should find some restaurant to have a drink.

I walked along the footpath. Then, I came to a cafeteria near the end of the footpath. My gaze fell on the shop.

I saw the cafeteria had an open rooftop. There were customers in the place, so I entered the shop without thinking much.

I walked upstairs and came to the rooftop. I saw there were tables and chairs; only a few of them were occupied. I saw one at the corner and walked up to it.

A cool wind brushed past my face. It’s a good location to rest. I sat on the chair and waited for the staff to come.

In the meantime, I observed the people and listened to their conversation. Because of the system’s power, I could understand their native language.

I can talk with a native accent as well, so no one would doubt me as an outsider.

"Hey, the capital city is bustling right now. The wizard families are preparing for the competition."

"I don’t know which family will take the prize."

"Unfortunately, not everyone can go to the capital. Only the invitees can go."

"I’m sure the winner is going to be popular in nearby countries. He would receive more offers."

A group of friends was discussing it.

On the other hand, I heard these people’s conversations. I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

I didn’t expect there to be such an interesting thing going on in the capital. What kind of tournament is it?

I continued to listen to their conversation.

"Who is the front runner?" a middle-aged woman asked.

"It must be young master Raymond. He uses rather dark magic. No one has a solution to the dark mana," a middle-aged man said.

"Dark mana is powerful because it’s hard to cleanse it once you are polluted," the woman replied.

"There are many people who died because of that magic. Some say it’s a poison. It can kill you faster or slower depending upon the type of spell attack," the man shed some light.

Gasp!

The group of friends gasped in surprise. No one wanted to talk about the dark mana.

"If it were other places, they would treat him as a villain. But here, the young master Raymond is treated as a celebrity," the man said.

"He has defeated so many enemies at the border. The dark magic gained him a reputation, so no one suspects him of being a villain," the woman replied.

The group of friends was casually divulging information. They didn’t know someone was listening to their every word.

On the other hand, my interest grew, especially in the person who uses dark magic. It could be my target.