Jon hadn’t noticed when the yellow grass had turned to yellow stone. He was so absorbed in the conversation, he hadn’t even realized that they had entered into another land, not that he understood the borders of this land regardless.

He looked in awe of the city, which was wider than any of the other ones he had been to. Many of the structures here were two stories but they were all connected side by side. It reminded him of the small town they had been in earlier when they were escorting both Mercy and the twins. The buildings were similar, but he could tell that this one was much bigger.

This place definitely had a stronger sense of posh compared to that small town, though. Some of the buildings had elaborate designs, and though most of them were two stories, Jon still saw a lot of variations between very high buildings and low ones as well. The brown buildings here must have been the same material as in the other town.

Jon stared so much at the town in front of him, that he hadn’t realized that the wagon had started.

“So glad we were able to get here so quickly,” Mallory noted.

“Yeah, well, that’s because we can take the main roads now that Mercy isn’t here anymore…”

Jon heard the sourness in Hector’s tone, but he didn’t get the feeling that it was because of Mercy’s non-presence.

Hector sighed and turned to Jon. By his face, it was clear that he wasn’t in a great mood.

“This is the capital of Allura,” Hector explained, though it looked like he could care less. “This place acts as a checkpoint where-”

“Stop procrastinating, Hector!” Mallory said. “Just take us in!”

Hector looked pained. “I”m just… trying to tell him to be careful.”

“You’re trying to avoid Milo.”

“I’m not! Just… let me explain this stuff to Jon!”

Mallory huffed and crossed his arms, but he let Hector continue.

“Allura is the crossing point between the clans and the kingdoms,” Hector continued. “All of the Kings and some of the children have come and used the library to study, as well as many of the clans if they ever wish to come passed the border. The boundaries here are softened, but it acts as a cushion between all of the nations, even our own.”

Jon looked back towards the city. He knew better than to hope for Mercy to be here. If her father was that concerned about her safety, they probably wouldn’t come here so soon after having her delivered.

“Even me and Hector studied here at the Library of Mana,” Mallory added. “It’s a bit of a rite of passage, and everyone respects the land here equally. It’s great!”

Mallory turned to Hector. “Now take us inside so we can actually show Jon what it’s like!”

Hector groaned, but he flicked the reins. The horses walked casually into the town.

Passing through the large arch that acted as the entrance, the carriage turned onto the street and started following the direction of the people.

The first thing that Jon noticed was that all of the people were dressed in robes. They were all in different colors, mostly in dark hues, but Jon could make out, reds, blues, oranges, and some purples.

The second thing, which gradually grew onto Jon was that they were the only ones in the street with a wagon at all. At most, people carried wheelbarrows behind them to help carry all sorts of stuff, but for the most part, Jon and the others were the only ones elevated above the crowd.

More curiously, Jon noticed that the people didn’t pay much attention to them. There were some curious glances, but other than that, no real fanfare for being the only wagon in town.

“I don’t know why everyone has to dress like their mages,” Hector muttered. “It’s not like they all perform magic…”

“Really Hector?” Mallory asked. “The study of mana is super integral to the culture of the city.”

Mallory switched his attention to Jon. “The town here was built around the Library, you know?”

“That’s not proven…” Hector added.

“It’s obvious! In fact!” Mallory patted Jon on the shoulder excitedly. “It’s been theorized that many of the cultural practices here originate from the Vindhazi. That includes the structure of the buildings and the clothing and even the style of cooking.”

Jon saw it. Many of the robes were fashioned with capes or headwraps that matched the garb. He recognized the simpleness of Tallow’s white cape and clothing, especially now that he had this place as a baseline.

“That’s part of why the Library is important,” Mallory continued. “It’s a way to pay respect to the old ways of-”

“The old ways need to die.”

When Hector noticed that the talking had ceased, he turned to see that both Mallory and Jon were staring at him intently.

“Did I say that out loud…. Oh…” Hector’s face turned red from clear embarrassment. “I’m sorry, I was just listening and…”

“The world shall rue the day when Hector starts making a vested interest in politics.” Mallory clicked his teeth and shook his head.

The wagon was quiet for a while after that until it finally turned and stopped. Jon saw that there was a line of people waiting in front of an entrance to an open area behind them. Many of them wore matching purple robes with a light blue cape adorned to the side of them.

The only two differently dressed ones were two figures Jon had recognized from the Period of Power.

One was Milo, the young contestant who fought Hector and lost. His hair was still short and matted, and he still had his grey cape and his long staff that was taller than he was. He looked unchanged from the tournament and held what seemed to be a permanent scowl. Jon had never seen someone so young with a look like that. He expected that to be saved for someone at Graves’s age.

Next to Milo stood the old gentlemen that accompanied him to the tournament. Despite his age, Jon saw that the old man recognized Milo as his superior, and he wasn’t shy about it. He was tall and skinny, wearing a strong set of purple robes and a large pointy hat. He looked like the one who most wanted to be here.

“Lord Hector and dear Mallory!” The old man raised his hands up in the air. “How great is it that the King’s Guard has-”

“You don’t have to be like that, Callach!” Mallory cheered. He pushed himself out of the wagon and trotted over to Callach, grabbing him in an unexpected but welcomed hug.

Callach chuckled and patted Mallory carefully on the back. Mallory pulled away and Callach held out his hand, to which Mallory grabbed with both of his own hands and shook.

“I trust you’ve been learning a lot, Mallory?” Callach asked him. “Many things which you can bring back for us here at the Library.”

“Whatever you need, I'm yours for the next week!” Mallory exclaimed.

Jon was getting ready to push himself out when he noticed that Hector hadn’t moved from his seat. Instead, Hector was staring down at something in front of the wagon.

Jon followed Hector’s glare to see that it was directed at Milo, who was glaring back.

Jon was trying to decide if he should leave Hector when Milo finally broke from the line and approached the front of the wagon.

“Is that my horse?” Milo asked loudly, pointing to the black horse of the pair.

“Yeah!” Hector said, just a little louder.

“Why do you have it?” Milo raised his voice even louder.

“'Cause, it’s a good horse!” Hector was clearly in it to win. “Not that you had anything to do with that!”

Hector finally started his descent from the horse, but Milo was still yelling at him.

“You came a day late!” Milo added. “What’s up with that?”

“We told you in advance!”

“It’s still annoying!"

“That’s not my problem!”

“It is your problem when you’re trying to work for a client!”

The squabbling between Hector and Milo continued. The others in the line began to shift with discomfort.

"Same as it ever was," Callach noted calmly.

"Same as it ever was," Mallory agreed solemnly.

Callach put his finger to his chin. "Perhaps, this visit, we can find a way to get the two princes to-"

Both Milo and Hector turned to Callach, yelling at him at the same time.

“I’m not a prince!”

“He’s not a prince!”

Milo pointed at Hector while Hector pointed at himself.

“You're doing such a swell job already," Mallory added under his breath.

Hector broke his glare from Callach and turned back to Milo, this time with concern in both his expression and his voice. “How’s your back?”

“It’s fine, no thanks to you!” With that, Milo flicked his cape at Hector and turned away.

Jon was taken back a bit when Milo levitated into the air before he remembered that he had watched Milo fly during the tournament.

He flew back into the entryway as the line parted down the middle for him.

“He’s gotten good at that.” Mallory pointed at where Milo had headed and looked up at Milo.

“Please don’t tell me he does that all the time now,” Hector said.

Callach breathed a good sigh. “All the time…”