Freya led Lin Gui into the communication array of the Magic Tower.
Faint blue light runes flowed across the floor.
She raised her hand and injected mana into the core of the array.
A light screen unfurled before them.
The content of the communication was very simple.
Freya conveyed a message to the Mage Guild of the City of a Thousand Towers, asking them to pass along a recruitment notice to her old friends.
The entire process took just a few minutes.
However, when the communication ended, the cost displayed on the core of the array made Lin Gui's eye twitch.
A single call had cost as much as a piece of Stellar-tier equipment.
Just as he reached for his coin pouch, Freya readily handed a voucher over to the staff member.
"Consider it your payment for teaching me these past few days,"
she said, her tone casual, as if paying for a cup of coffee.
Then she turned her head and looked at Lin Gui.
"Besides, I hope you can continue teaching me for a while longer."
"Although I've learned Levitation, this spell relies heavily on Mastery Level."
"I don't want to master it only for it to end up as mere decoration due to stability issues."
Lin Gui was silent for a moment, then nodded.
Freya added, "Although the Magic Tower can instantly send messages to the City of a Thousand Towers, it will still take some time for the word to travel from the magic towers there to my friends."
The two walked out of the communication array.
In the corridor, Freya slowed her pace.
She turned her head to look at Lin Gui.
"There's one more thing I should tell you in advance."
"To hire a Legendary mage to travel thousands of miles to Coppergate City to join the selection meeting, the price will definitely be higher than you can imagine."
She smiled slightly.
"However—"
She stopped in her tracks and turned to face Lin Gui.
In her azure eyes, there was a confident smile.
"If you're willing, I can front the cost for you first."
"You only need to agree to one small condition."
She was confident Lin Gui would not refuse.
Because that price was so high it might empty even her own savings.
Yet she still made the offer.
The condition was actually very simple.
She had taken a month's leave from the North Wind caravan, so she had to make full use of it.
She wanted Lin Gui to keep teaching her until she left Coppergate City.
However, she looked into Lin Gui's eyes, which were framed by dark circles and carried a hint of urgency.
The young man before her was clearly extremely busy.
She was certain Lin Gui would not refuse.
Lin Gui calmly pulled a bank asset voucher from his pocket and handed it over.
"Is this enough?"
Freya took the voucher, her eyelids twitching violently.
She raised her head and looked intently at Lin Gui.
"Are you... really an illegitimate child of the Ashley family?"
Lin Gui said speechlessly, "I'm just an ordinary wandering mage."
Half-believing him, Freya looked down at the voucher.
It was an asset voucher issued by the Dawn City Alliance Bank.
The paper was thick, with pale-gold anti-counterfeiting patterns embossed along the edges.
In the center of the paper were a few lines written in standard printed script.
At the very bottom was the red seal of the Alliance Bank and a row of handwritten numbers.
One hundred million gold coins.
That number was followed by eight zeros.
Stroke by stroke, it was glaringly clear.
Freya stared at the number, her azure eyes widening slightly.
One hundred million gold coins.
This amount was enough to make anyone's heart race.
Not hundreds of thousands, not millions.
One hundred million.
Even as a Mid-tier Legendary caravan leader, her throat gulped slightly.
She raised her eyes and looked at Lin Gui's plain casual jacket.
She recalled the grey mage robe she had seen when she first met him, faded from washing with severe wear at the elbows.
That unadorned oak staff.
And those black eyes, calm as water, devoid of any desire to show off.
"Since you're so rich, why don't you change into a proper mage robe and clothes?"
Her voice carried a hint of confusion.
Lin Gui replied indifferently, "I'm simply sentimental."
Freya narrowed her eyes, sizing Lin Gui up.
Identification with being a wandering mage, plus sentimentality.
This was truly the first time she had seen such a thing.
She nodded and put the voucher away.
"It's enough."
She paused for a moment.
"A pity, though."
She looked at Lin Gui's eyes, which showed a trace of tiredness.
"Looking at you, it seems you have very important business to attend to."
"It seems expecting you to keep teaching me Levitation isn't very realistic."
Lin Gui replied indifferently.
"I can still stay in Coppergate City for a week."
"During this week, I will help Lady Freya increase her Mastery Level as much as possible."
Freya looked at him and remained silent for a moment.
Then, the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.
Several days passed.
Lin Gui devoted almost all his energy to teaching Levitation.
With Freya pulling strings and the preparations he had made over this time,
the biggest hurdle for the selection meeting—having a Legendary join—was no longer an issue.
Just one day after the call, a Legendary mage responded to his invitation.
The mage indicated that he would come to register under their name when the selection meeting began.
He wasn't in the City of a Thousand Towers, but in a central city-state relatively close to Coppergate City.
Traveling wouldn't take too long, so he would manage to arrive in Coppergate City right as the selection meeting started.
Then there was the post office's letter delivery.
Elvia's speed was something Lin Gui hadn't anticipated.
It was only the second day after he left.
The System had already issued the notification that the Weekly Commission was completed.
Letter Retrieval was unlocked.
Although Coppergate City was large and the most prosperous city-state in the western region of the Central City-States,
boasting a population far surpassing that of the Carter Royal Capital,
the city-states along Lin Gui's route were all too far away from here.
Therefore, there weren't many letters sent to Coppergate City.
In the end, he only earned a reward of one hundred and four Magic Draws.
The vast majority was still contributed by Withered Wood Town.
Aside from adding Mastery Level to his existing spells, no new magic was pulled.
What he needed to do in Coppergate City was basically complete.
For now, he could only wait.
If that side commission still wasn't triggered by anyone over the coming week,
he would have no choice but to head back to Withered Wood Town
to see what was inside those four wooden crates.
Over the next few days,
Lin Gui threw almost all his mind and body into teaching.
From indoor theoretical explanations to outdoor practical training.
From making maple leaves float to sending her staff airborne.
Freya sat astride the staff, her long azure hair blowing in the wind.
She steered the staff, floating slowly over the training ground.
At first, she wobbled, like a child learning to walk.
Later, she grew steadier and steadier.
Faster and faster.
She even dared to fly freely at low altitude within the city on her staff.
Soaring above Central Avenue and skimming past tall buildings.
The wind whipped her long ice-blue hair and the hem of her mage robe.
Her face was filled with excitement and joy she could not hide.
Meanwhile, Lin Gui stood on the ground.
Watching her fly higher and higher.
Inside, however, he was quietly waiting.
Waiting for news that the side commission was complete.
Waiting for the recipients who should have tracked him down via magic back when he first stepped into Withered Wood Town.
However, as the days passed,
the preliminary trials of the preparatory transport team selection contest inside the towering arena came to an end.
Celebratory fireworks burst across the night sky.
Cheers echoed faintly from the distance.
Yet no notification came confirming the commission was finished.
On his fourteenth day in Coppergate City,
Lin Gui knew
he had to leave.
He bade farewell to Freya.
Freya stood at the edge of the training ground, her long ice-blue hair ruffled by the wind.
She didn't say much,
simply nodding.
"Take care on the road."
Lin Gui turned around.
Controlling his oak staff, he flew toward the outskirts of the city.
He didn't leave the city.
He didn't know where Elvia had set up the post office.
But he knew where Elvia was.
Eyes of the Netherworld quietly activated.
Deep within his grey pupils, a pale-red thread was reflected.
That thread extended from his chest,
passing through streets and through buildings,
stretching all the way into the depths of the city.
Lin Gui followed that Thread of Affection.
Twisting and turning through many bends,
instead of heading out of the city,
he made his way deeper into it.
His brow furrowed slightly.
That girl was probably out living it up again.
He didn't really blame her, though.
It had been fourteen days, and Elvia had already completed her task.
There was nothing wrong with taking time to relax.
He continued walking along the Thread of Affection.
He thought he would be led to some luxury store or high-end restaurant.
Instead, things turned out otherwise.
That thread led straight down,
passing through a narrow alley,
then through an inconspicuous iron door,
and down a dimly lit flight of stairs.
Finally, the thread came to an end.
It led him right to the underground arena.
Rate on N.U.
