After an unknown period of time, the shady environment of the forest abruptly brightened up. Making them squint as they got used to the blinding light of the cloudless sky above.

The greenery plains of the south welcomed them with open arms.

Different expressions of amazement, awe and surprise emerged on most of the passengers’ faces as the seemingly endless expanses of emerald-green grass and wheat fields stretched all over the horizon. Only outclassed by the pitch-black mountain range at the back.

To Seth, however, neither the plains nor the relatively small peaks were a source of awe or surprise. Nothing strange knowing he had grown up there.

Instead, his eyes were entirely drawn to the single three-storey high building standing in the village ahead. Many feelings pounded in his heart; excitement, wonder, sorrow, regret…

He shook his head and pushed the thought away.

Plain, grey coloured structures of not more than one or two stories high filled the small village. The airboat slowly lowered its speed to let the passengers admire the landscape and before they noticed it, the entire vessel came to a stop in the only airport in Ashlen.

There weren’t as many permanent structures alongside the docks as Seth had grown used to seeing in Darkhold City’s ports—but then, with nearly no beast surges to worry about, why wouldn’t there be? Ashlen’s surges weren’t even that bad.

Most of the time.

After bidding his farewell to Jack and making his way outside the Moonless Ghost, a slender old man that looked to be in his late fifties walked in his direction.

His long, black-grey hair was tightly tied onto a ponytail that didn't quite match his inflexible demeanour and expressionless face. However, everything went unnoticed by Seth as his whole attention was drawn to the round, sparkling silver medallion hanging on the right side of the old man’s military attire—displaying his status as a peak Silver Core Stage powerhouse and captain of the vessel.

Before Seth managed to make heads or tails of what someone of his status could want from him, the old man’s sharp blue eyes narrowed.

“Seth Blakura?” he asked, voice hoarse.

Seth blinked. “Yeah, that’s me.”

Nodding, the old man pulled a pitch-black envelope from a pocket inside his jacket and handed it to him before Seth managed to voice out his thoughts. “I need you to deliver the envelope to Ivor, the Mayor of Ashlen. Jack told me you are somewhat his acquaintance, so this should speed things up.” The old man said in a single breath.

“I’m Owen Draker, by the way.”

“Sure, I was heading there anyway. But…” Seth glanced at the envelope in his hand, and then at Owen. Doubtful. “Wouldn’t it be more appropriate to have someone from your clan dealing with it? Don’t want to sound rude sir, but this seems to be a rather delicate subject to let on the hands of a stranger.”

While it wasn't strange to see more advanced practitioners ordering people around, at least within those of their own force or unaffiliated people. He wasn’t a fan of it… at least not when it was for free.

Owen’s lips twitched, getting the catch behind Seth’s words. “Shouldn't a silver core’s goodwill be more than enough reward for you, lad?”

Seth thought for a bit, and shook his head. It wouldn’t be bad for him to have a silver core powerhouse on his good side, it could come in handy in the future. But it wasn't something he was particularly in need of.

A thing came rushing in his direction, in pure instinct, Seth caught it.

“Deliver the envelope immediately and tell Ivor that I will be stopping here next week. I want the Ice Heart Wine he promised me last time… and I will not take a no as an answer.” Stating that, the captain turned around and headed back into the vessel. Taking for granted Seth would fulfil the job.

Watching the Moonless Ghost blurred in the distance, Seth wasn't sure what to think about the strange interaction. But decided to not give it much thought. Looking at his hand, his lips couldn't help but curl up.

The weight of ten coppery coins nearly packed in his pocket always put him in a good mood. Having said that, he headed into the heart of the village. The mouth-watering scent of grilled meat was driving him crazy, and his growling stomach was in much need of fuel.

Seth strolled leisurely through the main road of Ashlen, his lips and fingers coated in the glistening fat of grilled meat as he looked around with unusual interest.

More than two cycles had passed since he’d left his hometown to follow his dreams, now, his mind and eyes couldn't help but inspect and compare it to Darkhold City. And it was clear as the day that the village of Ashlen had not changed since he left.

If Seth was honest, from the beginning, he didn't hold many expectations. Nevertheless, it would have been great to see some progress.

He was bound to be disappointed.

The roads were of the same plain dirt soil and not many (if any) new structures could be seen on sight. One could only spot the same old, boring faces wandering along its streets.

Ashlen was just a small village with a population of around a few thousand whose primary products were wheat, rice and soy. So one couldn’t really expect much from it.

Seth walked on the main road with tents on both sides with various merchants and salesmen selling all sorts of things—from common, everyday necessities to things like weapons, armours, and some basic advancement resources. There wasn't a lot of variety, but it was enough for practitioners up to the early Yellow Core Stage. Which was the average even in the most isolated settlements.

Darkhold City wasn’t much different in this aspect, but its situation was still much better than in the surrounding villages. Agnes and Rax were a good example of that.

Both were at the middle Silver Core Stage, a lot considering that cultivation had never been a primary objective for them. But this wasn’t the norm, though. The common folk would stop at the peak of the Yellow Core Stage; either due to running out of their life span or because they were too old. Which was extremely common.

One has to understand that the older one gets, the more difficult and expensive it will be to advance. And you will avoid any risk of your body simply not being able to withstand another advancement, which was of major importance in the more advanced Ranks.

Or so was Seth told.

Anyway, after having his fill of grilled meat and a can of soda, Seth walked towards the only structure that had a few parts built of pure Black Lilac marble. It was the same construction material the wealthy people from Darkhold City used inside their houses due to its mana-insulated properties, especially for their cultivation rooms.

But from what Seth could see, these ones were of the lowest quality and probably weren’t of much use aside from decoration. But it worked to show the economical might of the village.

Inside, the first thing to come into his sight was a rather big lounge with a long wooden counter at the end. There were a handful of people coming and going from the different doors, with pointed ears, long pleated blonde hair and icy blue eyes being their more striking features. If not for the plentiful chests, Seth would’ve been having a hard time discerning males from females.

The rest of the lounge was rather plain design, and Seth wasn’t there to waste his time.

Cathe slowly cocked her head up, meeting his gaze with her pair of icy blue eyes that were only accentuated by her rectangular glasses. A flash of surprise flashed through them, though it quickly disappeared. In all the years he’d known her, she had never aged a day and smiled almost once. And that was almost a myth.

“Oh, Seth Blakura! Never thought I would see you back so soon.” A stream of surprise flashed deep inside her eyes. “And already being an orange core on top of that. It seems that the big city has done wonders to you.”

Seth wondered if all half-elves were like her.

Well, the rest of the staff at least is pretty much like that. He concluded it was something all the half-brethren female elves share. The few males were slightly better, but he wasn't interested in them.

“Yeah, I had been good…” he shook his head and pulled the envelope from his pack. “Anyway, the captain of the Moonless Ghost told me to give this to Ivor. It seems to be urgent.”