How has no one told me about these? Seth thought in awe, the strong currents of air ruffling his inky hair as eyes sweep around.

Outside, through the semi-transparent layer of pure mana, he watched the airboat skim over the terrain like a bullet as the tree branches on the sides bent under the pressure of the wind. A cloud of debris and dust surged behind them, directly from the dirt trail below.

The insects weren’t spared, they were either torn by the rushing air on the sides or reduced to insect-paste as they clashed against the shield of pure mana protecting the occupants.

It was disgusting.

At his back, a pair of vertical metal rings could be seen sticking out of the rear of the airboat. Each of them dressed in a complex script that reached all over the bottom and sides of the airboat. It wasn’t evident, but Seth could faintly discern a slight distinction between the script on the airboat and the one on the rings.

And he was right.

From what the crew member had told him, the thicker script, the one stretching all over the sides and bottom of the airboat, was responsible for powering and gathering all the ambient mana that the artefact required. Or at least a part of it as a pair of peak yellow cores were still needed to feed it every hour.

The one on the rings was in charge of all the propulsion process. But even after understanding all the theory, or at least the summarised version, Seth found himself shocked by the force with which they sucked in the air and then released it to propel the entire vessel forward.

He’d heard a lot about these artefacts, especially regarding the mind-blowing speeds they could reach. However, one thing was to hear it from someone else's mouth, and another entire thing was to experience it in the flesh.

And Seth might admit he was enjoying every single moment.

The Late-mortal grade artefact, this one going by the name of Moonless Ghost, was a long airboat of about thirty meters long. Wide enough to accommodate a crew of a few dozen and a batch of passengers that could easily reach the hundred. Its aerodynamic design made the ride inside smooth and quite comfortable…

If it wasn’t for the loud, rushing sounds of air on the sides.

Lucas had told him that the superior models, the Peak-mortal grade ones, did come with better sound-insulating scripts and many other intriguing features. But the tickets were several times more expensive, and they didn’t include villages as small as Ashlen in their route. There was a good reason for that.

Those were meant for longer and more dangerous journeys. In this case, their route included Port Antry and Enbling, the other two other major cities in the area.

Seth hadn't visited any of them and hadn't had the time to investigate much, but from what he’d heard, they were independent cities. Meaning that they weren’t ruled by some factions like the Guild and the Sacred Church do in Darkhold City, but by a council that represented the most influential forces of the city.

He was eager to see how much they differed from Darkhold City. They weren't much larger in size or population, but he couldn't help but feel this bubbling excitement forming in the pitch of his stomach.

Now that I thought about it, I’d yet to take a step out of human territory… Seth had to stop the machinations of his head as the armoured fella walked in his direction.

“How’s the view, Seth?” The near-two-meters tall young man of brown eyes and hair said, his broad shoulders and thick beard towering over Seth’s skinny frame as he rested his back against the wall of the airboat. The trunk-thick-like arms crossed over his chest.

“Pretty good,” Seth said, unfazed by Jack’s rather imposing frame. "I thought you would never ask, especially seeing you were so engrossed with the ladies over there.”

Jack chuckled. “Jealous?”

Seth glanced in the direction of the small group of mature women sitting at the front.

“Not really.” They weren't in the same league as Olivia, far from it. But he’d to admit Jack’s tastes weren't that bad. “By the way, I thought you were still dating Samantha.”

Jack's face stiffened for a moment, he looked away. “Let's say we are not together for the moment.”

Seth raised an eyebrow but then realised something, he had to stop himself from showing a mischievous smile. “Well, If I'm not wrong, her village is two stops after Ashlen… don’t tell me you’r—

Jack immediately silenced him with his big hand, plastering a finger against his lips in the same motion. “Shhhhhhhhh I’m just going to discuss a few things with his father, she has nothing to do with it.”

Seth didn’t believe a single word. If he wasn't wrong, it was the seventh time they broke up, which already spoke about the type of couple they were. Not like he had a problem with that.

“Anyway, why are you heading to Ashlen? Agnes told me you are giving the tournament a shot, but going there will not help you. It will only hinder your advancement.” He said, clearly not understanding Seth’s line of thought.

“Just said that there is an unfinished task that I need to take care of.”

Jack immediately understood the meaning behind his words and changed the topic. “Anyway, try to pay a visit to the orphanage. Liz has been asking a lot about you lately, it would be good for her to see you’re still alive and kicking.”

Jack’s words made Seth tense up, different images swirled in his head, some he quickly suppressed. The place was soaked with bad memories that he wasn't in the mood to re-experience, but if anything could brighten him up. That was Liz.

He sighed inwardly.

Almost two cycles had passed since the last time we talked face to face. And, Seth felt a few shivers run down his spine. She will kill me if she finds out I went to Ashlen and didn’t visit her.

He nodded vigorously. “Don’t worry, after taking care of my business. I will pay them a visit.”

“Good.”

“Either way, what’re you doing here?” Seth asked, he knew Jack had been working under the Draker Family since a long time ago. But not on this route. “I thought your boss told you that until reaching the peak of the Yellow Core Stage you were not allowed to be part of the crew.”

Every single member of the crew was a peak yellow core, the captain being a peak Silver Core Stage powerhouse. With such a high-level crew, it was only natural that every new member was required to possess a good advancement level—aside from the basic skills every Artificer was expected to be proficient.

But from the aura he was emitting, the twenty-six cycles old dude was still a step or two away from it. His skills as an Artificer were top-notch, but that alone wasn’t enough. And from what Jack himself had told him, his boss wasn’t someone who would contradict himself without a reason.

Looking at Jack’s troubled expression, Seth seemed to be right on the spot.

“Have you ever heard of Odrick, the White Naja?” Jack asked, drawing Seth back from his thoughts.

“The old serpent guarding the beast territory at the south?”

Jack nodded, “The higher-ups of both the Guild and Sacred Church had been eyeing his territory for a long time already, and it seems he's already approaching the end of his life span. They are preparing for an assault after the competition.

“The boss thought I would do a great job as a scout, so I’m heading there for training.”

Seth remained silent. It wasn't a secret that the king of the Black-scaled Snake Kingdom was at the end of its rope. Again, it had been like that for the past few dozen cycles, but every time they made a move, their troops were welcomed by the enraged might of a Copper Ranker. But if Darkhold City was preparing an offence with so many months of anticipation, the old snake should already be dead or weak enough to not be a concerning matter...

But that wasn't his problem.

"Anyway, you seemed to have advanced by leaps and bounds since the last time I saw you, lad." Jack said, rapping his knuckles against Seth's chest. "Though the elixir had left your aura a bit unbalanced."

Seth sighed, "Yeah, it has greatly hindered my progress over the last few weeks. But I should be okay in a few days."

Jack seemed to nod nonchalantly, but the faint expression of worry that he quickly suppressed hadn't gone unnoticed. Seth didn’t point it out.

The duo traded a few more words before Jack was called out by the captain, leaving Seth with only his thoughts as they were slowly reaching the Moonless Ghost’s first stop;

His hometown, Ashlen.