Eli lifted the coffee cup before him.
He took a gentle sip.
His movements were elegant and unhurried.
The white porcelain cup was printed with the coffee shop's golden logo.
He set the cup down.
He looked at Lin Gui.
"Actually, the North Wind caravan's return route didn't originally pass through Coppergate City."
"Captain Freya requested a change in the route, taking a detour through Coppergate City."
Lin Gui was startled.
Why had the topic shifted again?
Eli continued.
"She said it was because her magic had hit a bottleneck."
"She needed a month to rest and reorganize in Coppergate City."
"So she led us straight to Coppergate City, passing through several city-states along the way where we could rest."
He paused.
"Then she told us not to look for her or disturb her for a month while she breaks through during her bitter cultivation..."
Lin Gui listened, feeling completely bewildered.
So what did this have to do with him wanting to hire Freya to list her name for him?
Eli looked at Lin Gui’s face, which was filled with confusion.
He smiled.
"Hiring a Legend who has no initial desire to become a member of a transport team..."
"The fee required would be astronomical."
"At the very least, it might cost tens of millions of gold coins."
He asked with a smile.
"Are you prepared?"
Lin Gui nodded.
Eli smiled again.
"But you're still a bit short on money, right?"
Lin Gui froze for a moment.
Having said that, Eli.
He pulled a commission form from his breast pocket.
He handed it over.
Lin Gui took it.
He looked down.
It was an exquisitely printed commission form.
The paper was thick, with faint golden patterns stamped along the edges.
At the very top was a striking title in large print.
【Levitation Private Training Course: Recruitment Notice】
Below it was a dense block of explanatory text.
【As the 37th Transport Team Selection Conference is being held in Coppergate City, a Levitation private training course is hereby established.】
【Geared towards the vast number of mages interested in improving their mastery of Levitation, providing one-on-one or one-to-many professional guidance.】
【We are currently recruiting instructors; applicants only need to possess a certain level of mastery over Levitation.】
【Session fee: Starting at 500,000 gold coins per session, with no upper limit.】
【Teaching location: Coppergate City Mage Guild, Wind Magic Study Room.】
【Interested parties please bring this commission form to the Coppergate City Mage Guild for qualification screening.】
At the bottom were the combined seals of the Transport Guild and the Mage Guild.
The red ink gleamed dully under the lights.
Levitation courses were extremely rare.
They only appeared in the Magic City or in a city hosting a selection meeting.
And only during the duration of the event.
Lin Gui stared at the commission form.
He read it once.
Then he read it again.
A one-month breakthrough?
Specially detouring to Coppergate City.
Don't go looking for her?
These pieces of information collided repeatedly in his mind.
Suddenly.
He realized something.
He looked up.
He looked at Eli.
Eli still wore that same smiling expression.
Behind his monocle, his eyes were curved into two crescents.
Lin Gui’s mouth twitched slightly.
He looked at Eli.
He said wordlessly.
"Is... is it really necessary to be this indirect?"
Eli lifted his coffee cup and took another sip.
His smile deepened.
"Please do not underestimate the pride of a former Wind Tower Master candidate."
"The champion of the 24th Magic Conference."
"Top three in basic wind element control."
"The pride of the once youngest Legendary mage..."
He set the cup down.
The bottom of the cup met the porcelain saucer with a clear, soft clink.
"...That pride, you see."
...
On the other side.
The Mage Guild.
Underneath the massive magic tower.
In a relatively secluded corner.
A freestanding two-story building stood quietly.
The building was made of grayish-white stone, not much different from the surrounding structures.
But only upon closer inspection could one see the differences.
The walls were carved with extremely fine runes.
They weren't for defense; they were for soundproofing.
They were so faint they were almost invisible, only gleaming slightly when viewed from a specific angle.
The windows were made of double-layered crystal glass.
The transparency was extremely high, yet nothing could be seen of the interior from the outside.
A dark-colored carpet was laid at the entrance.
The material was soft, and stepping on it made almost no sound.
A ring of silver patterns was embroidered along the edge of the carpet.
It was low-key.
But someone who knew their goods would recognize it at a glance.
That was northern snow cashmere.
One square meter was worth tens of thousands of gold coins.
The door was made of solid wood, painted a deep brown.
A small magic crystal was embedded in the handle.
It was pale blue and of extremely high purity.
This building did not show off or reveal its depths.
But every detail silently spoke of luxury.
The door opened.
A mage dressed as a witch walked out happily.
She wore emerald-green mage robes with a Mage Guild badge pinned to her chest.
She held a staff in her hand, with a wind magic crystal embedded at its tip.
Her face was full of smiles, and her steps were light.
She straddled her staff.
The staff floated up, half a meter off the ground.
She turned and waved at the two people seeing her off at the door.
The staff glided away, flying toward the distance.
It soon disappeared around a street corner.
Two people stood at the doorway.
One was a middle-aged man in deep-colored robes.
He wore a Mage Guild badge on his chest.
The stars on his badge had an extra golden border compared to others.
He was the manager of this training facility.
The other person.
They wore a voluminous gray cloak.
The hood was pulled down very low, obscuring most of their face.
They also wore a plain white mask over their face.
The mask had no patterns, only two eyeholes.
Their form was completely hidden by the cloak, making it impossible to distinguish any features.
Only a pair of azure-blue eyes peered out from behind the mask's eyeholes.
The manager turned around.
He faced the masked woman.
He bowed slightly, his tone very polite.
"My Lady."
"Are you satisfied with this training session?"
The woman did not speak.
She was silent for several seconds.
Then.
She spoke.
Her voice was cold and detached.
"Find me another one."
The manager's smile froze on his face.
He opened his mouth.
"But... that was already the last..."
The woman let out a soft "Hmm?"
The final syllable rose slightly.
It was just a single sound.
Yet the hairs on the back of the manager's neck stood up instantly.
He hurriedly lowered his head.
"I will go recruit someone at once."
"Please wait a moment."
Having finished speaking, he turned around.
His steps were hurried as he practically fled the area.
The woman stood where she was.
She watched his silhouette disappear around the street corner.
Then.
She turned around.
She pushed open the door.
She walked inside.
The door closed behind her.
Click.
It was locked.
She lifted her hand.
She took off the plain white mask.
She also threw back the large hood.
A head of ice-blue long hair cascaded down like a waterfall.
The strands of hair shimmered with a faint cold light under the illumination of the magic glowstones.
Her features were as exquisite as if carved from ice and snow.
Her skin was so white it was almost transparent, revealing the thin blue veins beneath her temples.
Her azure eyes were deep, as if they harbored a glacial tempest.
Her brow bone was high, and her nose was straight.
Her lips were very thin, carrying a distancing chill when she pursed them.
She appeared to be about twenty years old.
But the expression that occasionally flickered through those eyes.
Seemed like it had seen too many years.
This person was indeed Freya.
The leader of the North Wind caravan.
A Mid-tier Legendary ice and wind dual-element Mage.
Rate on N.U.
