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The next morning, Caelan woke up early. The noise from the street below was relentless; their hotel was situated right on a main thoroughfare.
He pulled back the curtains and pushed open the window.
Yesterday, they had arrived in the dark. Now, under the morning sun, Caelan could finally appreciate the city. The architecture of Earthforge City was predominantly earth-yellow stone, giving it a grounded, solid feel. Despite the monolithic color, it didn't feel desolate. Many of the walls were perfectly smooth—likely the result of frequent maintenance by Earth Element mages.
The street below was already bustling. Teams of porters moved crates, merchants haggled loudly with customers, and fully geared adventurer parties marched toward the gates.
Creeeeak.
The window to his left opened, and Cassius poked his head out. Seeing Caelan, he grinned.
"Morning, Caelan. What are you looking at so early?"
"Just admiring the scenery. Is Victor up?"
"That guy won't wake up before noon unless you physically drag him out of bed. Since we're both up, let's go disturb his peace."
After forcibly waking Victor, the three washed up, grabbed a quick breakfast, and headed straight for the city's largest auction house.
"I'm so sleepy," Victor complained, yawning so wide his jaw cracked. "Auction houses usually open in the afternoon. Why are we going so early?"
"We need to check the manifest first," Cassius explained patiently. "If there's nothing we like, we can head straight to the teleportation array for Imperial Dragonspire. That way, we won't waste the afternoon waiting in line and risk getting stuck here for another night."
Victor grumbled but conceded the point.
The auction house was a fair distance away, so they used the intra-city teleportation network. These local arrays were much faster than the inter-city ones. With few customers so early in the day, they zipped across the city in minutes.
The target was less than two kilometers from the arrival point.
"Stonefist Auction House..." Victor stared at the sign above the grand entrance. "That name sounds familiar. Why do I know it?"
"Aldric Stonefist, a Duke of the Dragonspire Empire and the Lord of Earthforge City," Caelan reminded him.
"Oh!" Victor slapped his forehead. "Right. No wonder it sounded familiar. It's his turf."
"Let me remind you again," Cassius added dryly. "Magnus Stonefist is his younger brother."
"Ohhhhh." Victor nodded sagely, then paused. "...Wait. Why does Magnus Stonefist also sound familiar?"
Cassius sighed and rubbed his temples. "That Crimson Blade you carry? He gave it to you."
Victor froze. "Oh! Him! He's Auntie's suitor, right? So this auction house is their family business? No wonder he could afford to gift me a Scarlet Plated Dragon cub."
The two cousins immediately began to evaluate the "youthful" seventy-seven-year-old gentleman named Magnus, debating his chances of successfully wooing their formidable aunt.
Caelan ignored the gossip and walked over to the front desk to request the day's auction catalog.
Since it was a regular daily auction, the list was short and the items were relatively common. The clerk informed him that the major monthly auction—held on the 1st—had just concluded a few days ago. They had missed the big ticket items unless they wanted to wait until next month.
Caelan scanned the list. No spatial items.
He felt a pang of disappointment. There was, however, a massive White Extraterrestrial Meteorite listed—weighing over eighty kilograms. But Caelan still didn't know what the white stones were used for, so there was no point in bidding. According to the records, it had gone unsold for two consecutive days.
To the locals, who lacked his specific needs, it was likely just an expensive paperweight.
Behind him, the debate continued.
"I think Thornwick of House Moonblade has a higher chance," Victor argued. "First, he's from our own Empire. Second, he's a Major General. If Auntie marries him, Uncle will definitely agree."
"Moonblade? He's out of the question," Cassius countered. "Auntie told me he's the suitor she dislikes the most. He's arrogant and makes decisions for her without asking. Remember her birthday? She wanted a quiet family dinner, and he invited half the military command to 'celebrate' her. Besides, the guy is over two hundred years old. Mom says if Auntie marries him, she'll be a widow before the honeymoon is over."
"Fair point," Victor shrugged. He turned to Caelan. "Any spatial items?"
"None," Caelan said, handing over the list. "See if there's anything else you guys want."
The cousins scanned the document, shook their heads, and handed it back.
They moved to the internal shop—a consignment store for items that failed to sell at auction or were placed directly for fixed-price sale.
After browsing for half an hour, Cassius and Victor bought a few trinkets. Caelan bought nothing.
It wasn't that he didn't see anything he liked. He saw plenty. Specifically, a Crimson Bulwark runestone engraved by a Ninth Circle expert caught his eye. It was a passive defense spell that triggered automatically—like Gaara's sand defense from Naruto. A perfect life-saving item.
But the price tag made him weep internally. Insufficient funds.
Stepping out of the auction house, Victor stretched. "Where to now? Teleportation array?"
"Is there anywhere else you want to see?" Cassius asked.
"Well... we came all this way. Shouldn't we check out Stoneforge Academy?"
Cassius scoffed. "Why? It's ranked at the bottom of the Advanced Academies. Even the Lord of Earthforge City sends his own son to Imperial Dragonspire instead of here. That tells you everything you need to know."
"Come on, let's just take a look," Victor wheedled.
"I'm not going."
"Caelan, back me up."
Caelan looked at Victor flatly. "Victor, are you just trying to ogle the girls at Stoneforge Academy?"
Victor gave him a silent thumbs-up.
In the end, Victor and Caelan dragged a reluctant Cassius to the academy district.
They found a small eatery directly across from the main gates of Stoneforge Academy. They took a table outside, ordered drinks, and settled in to wait for the school day to end.
Since it was still early, Caelan conjured up some entertainment.
He projected games for each of them. Cassius resumed his progress in Chronicle of the Fierce Tortoise Warriors. Victor switched to Tank Battle. Caelan himself booted up his custom, super-cute version of Squirrel War, happily smashing crates with the pixelated chipmunks.
There were no other customers, so the shop owner watched the holographic displays with great interest.
Time slipped away. Soon, the academy gates opened, and students began to pour out.
"Oh?! Chronicle of the Fierce Tortoise Warriors!!!"
A girl's voice rang out, loud and excited.
Caelan jumped. The sudden noise broke his concentration, causing him to miss a crucial crate throw during the bonus balloon-popping stage. Damn it. No extra life.
Annoyed, he glanced toward the source of the noise.
Standing there was a rather pretty girl with golden-blonde hair tied in a high ponytail. Her clothes were typical of Dragonspire nobility—simple cuts, but elegant patterns.
She didn't hesitate. Familiar as if she were an old friend, she sat down right next to Cassius and leaned in close to look at his projection.
"Which level is this? I haven't gotten this far yet."
"Level Six," Cassius replied curtly. He stared intently at the screen, not even glancing at the girl beside him.
PLZ THROW POWERSTONES.