The final day on the train passed quietly.

After breakfast, the three of them moved to the lounge and Lukas spent the morning teaching Melody and Akira Deadly Draw, explaining the mechanics, the card selection, and the sanctioned cheating.

They quickly picked up on the art of reading an opponent’s strategy from how they held their cards, and had fun playing.

They soon began to compete on trying to deceive each other by varying their strategies and putting different types of expressions on their faces to mislead each other.

And so the afternoon slowly disappeared as they played.

As for Lukas, he kept his eyes on the other passengers, watching for anything that matched the quest’s description.

Of course, he was also on guard in case anyone figured out his identity and tried to attack him for the Fate Key, but as the conductor had promised, nothing happened.

But he also didn’t find anyone suspicious who could be the person the quest was talking about.

He sighed. This quest would definitely be a failure.

By evening, the sky outside the lounge windows had begun to lighten into faint patches of orange, the light from the sun softening as it began to pull towards the horizon.

They returned to the bunk room, checked everywhere to make sure they were not leaving anything behind.

Lukas discarded Trent’s spatial ring somewhere on the train, and they spent their remaining time by the window, watching the landscape as they passed.

And then Salaria appeared.

The first thing they saw was the walls. They rose from the horizon line like a separate sky, standing tall enough to seem like they’d always been there instead of raised by human hands.

Lukas’ eyes widened as he saw it.

The walls spanned from one edge of the horizon to the other. It had been built at a scale that made Havenhart’s walls look like a garden fence.

Akira blinked rapidly, trying to make sure her eyes were not playing tricks on her. "If this is a Tier 4 city," she said, her voice carrying genuine disbelief, "I genuinely cannot imagine what a Tier 1 city looks like."

Melody said nothing, but she was also staring in shock.

The train passed through a gate that had clearly been built for trains, entering into a tunnel.

They sat in the darkness for a few seconds before emerging into a large station, with the platform extending far longer than the one at Havenhart had.

The train slowed to a stop, then a voice filled the carriages from the sound system.

"Salaria. This is Salaria. Passengers whose journey ends here, please prepare to disembark. We thank you for traveling with us."

Lukas looked at his wives, and they looked back at him, an excited smile on their faces.

They quickly stood and made their way to the exit, stepping down from the train and onto the platform.

The station around them was busy, with another train on the other side of the platform and a large crowd as people waited for their trains.

The ceiling was high, and there were large light fixtures above them, sending light through the hall.

Lukas stood on the platform, looking around.

They’d finally arrived.

Lukas turned to his wives. "Let’s go."

A notification appeared in front of his face before he’d taken three steps from the train.

[Condolences, you have failed the quest.]

He stared at it for a moment, then let it dissolve.

He sighed. Two hundred Gacha Points gone, and the person who shouldn’t have been on the train was still unidentified.

Whether they had disembarked here, or never existed in the way he’d imagined, he would likely never know.

He looked up and found the station signs, reading them until he located what he needed.

He pointed and they followed the directional markers through the platform crowd until they arrived at a checkpoint.

It consisted of a wide desk staffed by officers in matching uniforms, and a queue of arriving passengers already forming in front of it.

They joined the line.

"Security?" Melody wondered aloud, reading the setup.

"Has to be," Akira said. "With a city this size, and with this much traffic, they’d take entry seriously. Everyone coming in gets processed. After all, they’d be a better target for the Brotherhood if they’re too lax with their security."

As Lukas drew nearer, he realized that the officers behind the desk were all Adepts. Their auras were controlled, but present enough that anyone paying attention would notice.

When their turn came, the questions were direct and courteous. They were asked for their names, then their point of origin, and the purpose of their visit.

"We’re here to advance to Adept," Lukas said, "and establish ourselves in the city afterwards."

The officers exchanged smiles at that. The response was apparently not an unusual one for Salaria’s checkpoint.

"Documentation?" one of them asked.

Lukas produced the papers that had come with their train tickets, a travel record issued at Havenhart’s station, stamped and dated, with their names and departure point clearly listed.

The officer reviewed them, made notes in a ledger, and handed them back.

"You’ll need to register for city identification before you do anything else," the officer said, gesturing towards a door leading to a separate area of the station.

"Without it, you’re classified as unregistered occupants of the city, which creates problems you don’t want." He looked at all three of them. "Head to that office, get your documents sorted, and you’ll be cleared to move through the city freely."

"How long does it take?" Melody asked.

"An hour at most. Usually less."

They thanked him.

"Good luck with the advancement," the second officer said, giving them a smile.

They stepped out of the checkpoint and followed the direction the officer had indicated.

They opened the door to see a long corridor with plain walls and no windows, just another door at the far end.

They started walking, their footsteps echoing around the corridor.

Then, without any warning, a figure appeared directly in front of Lukas, already stabbing a knife towards his throat.

***

A/N: I know I’m owing you guys a few bonus Chapters. I’ll definitely deliver.