"Arcane Academy. And I would also like to apply the ninety percent discount of the Black Card."

The man at the desk stared back and forth between Chloe’s face and her identity card in shock, his eyes nearly bulging from their sockets.

"A-an S+ Rank," he gasped in disbelief. "Pl-please give me a moment to verify the authenticity of the card."

He retrieved a small mechanical box from beneath the reception desk. It was brown in color, wrought from metal, and coated in a thin layer of dust and rust. He cleared the dust with a short breath before sliding the card into a narrow vertical slit along its side.

As the card disappeared inside, the sound of shifting gears echoed from the device, and a small projector on its top began to flicker.

After a few flicks, a small hologram window materialized above the device, Chloe’s details inscribed across it.

[Name: Chloe

Age: 16

Rank: S+ (Knight)

Attribute: Anemo

Grade: Unassigned

Card ID: BR-00-0001]

’This screen looks somewhat similar to the holographic screen of the Legacy System,’ Vlad thought, his eyes narrowing.

"I-it’s really true," the man behind the desk gasped.

Taking a few seconds to regain his composure, he pressed a metallic button on the device. The screen vanished, the sound of spinning gears echoed once more, and the card slid back out.

"Thank you for your patience, esteemed travelers," he said, returning the card with both hands, his tone turning noticeably deferential.

Vlad nodded, slipping the card into the inner pocket of his jacket before asking, "Do you know who created this device?"

"The Card Ledger? It was invented by one of the five heroes of the War of Dragons, Master Bram," the man revealed.

’The Master Craftsman from the Land of Dwarves, whose every invention has become a priceless treasure,’ Vlad murmured, recalling the legend of Bram. ’Could he also be connected to the Legacy System?’

Vlad put the thought on hold for now, since he had no way to confirm it.

"How much do we need to pay?" he asked.

"The Arcane Academy is far from here, so it normally costs ten gold coins per head. By applying the Black Card discount, it comes to two gold coins in total. B-but since Miss Chloe is enrolling at the Arcane Academy, I will give you an extra fifty percent discount. Only one gold coin, please."

Although the price had been reduced by an astonishing amount, one gold coin was not something Vlad, a lumberjack from a countryside village, could easily afford. One gold coin was enough to feed his family for an entire year.

Vlad drew a pouch from the deepest part of his backpack, hidden behind his clothes.

Inside were two gold coins, given to him by his mother, Elaria, for the Academy fees.

"There goes the fees for my second semester," Vlad mumbled, placing one gold coin on the counter before tucking the pouch away again.

"Please stand on the platform," the man behind the counter said, slipping the coin into his desk drawer.

Once Vlad and Chloe stepped onto the platform, a short man clad in a long blue robe raised his hands over a head-sized sphere mounted atop a pole beside it. A wave of luminous energy poured from his palms and into the sphere.

It began to glow.

A map of the continent surfaced slowly across its curved face, like ink bleeding through wet paper, until the sphere resembled a globe of the world entire. Then it began to spin, driven by the steady current of mana flowing into it.

After a few seconds, it stopped.

The mana settled on a single small point marked across the land, where the words Arcane Academy were written in bold black letters. Then the energy moved. It drained downward from the sphere into the pole below, flowing like liquid through a pipe, and as it traveled, it lit the intricate engravings carved along the pole’s surface one by one. The illumination crept lower until it reached the platform itself. The engravings on the circular floor flickered once, then held, casting a steady glow beneath their feet.

"Vlad, what’s happening?" Chloe asked. She had been in shock, absent-minded since the sight of the severed heads. It was only now, when the platform beneath them began glowing brightly, that she came out of her daze.

"Prepare yourself, Chloe," Vlad said with a faint smirk. "You might feel nauseous enough to puke."

"Huh—"

Her word stopped mid-sentence as a sudden burst of energy engulfed the entire platform and their bodies along with it.

Vlad lost all control over his body. Countless lines of different colors streaked past him in a blinding blur of speed. All of his senses ceased functioning. He felt as though he was being helplessly shoved forward by an invisible force.

After a few seconds, the blurred lines slowed, coalescing into a proper vision as his senses returned.

"Oh, it really gave me a mild headache," Chloe murmured. "Vlad, how are y—"

Vlad immediately bolted off the platform and began retching on the ground.

"There, there," Chloe said, gently tapping his back. Though her expression remained unreadable, Vlad could tell she was thoroughly enjoying the sight of him miserable, after he had warned her about getting nauseous.

On that day, Vlad made a decision. He would never use a Teleportation Portal again unless it was a matter of life or death.

Once his head stopped spinning, he turned his focus to his surroundings.

Unlike in Barton City, where the teleportation portal had been built inside a mansion and thoroughly protected, the platform here stood on open ground outside a towering stone wall that stretched outward in both directions.

Similar to the platform from which Vlad and Chloe had arrived, several other platforms were arranged in a series alongside it, each continuously releasing bursts of mana as people arrived upon them.

After confirming their identities and purpose of visit to the guards, Vlad and Chloe passed through the iron gate set into the towering wall.

On the other side of the wall, several stone buildings of varying heights lined the wide path ahead. Each was an architectural landmark in its own right, their rooftops structured in a classic gable style.

With just a glance, Vlad, who had only ever seen Barton City, understood for the first time what a truly advanced city looked like.

There were no street vendors, no merchants shouting to draw attention. The path was so clean that he doubted he would catch a speck of dust even walking barefoot. Every building looked newly constructed, and proper shopfronts with glass windows faced the street, their hanging signs illuminated with glowing letters. The men wore formal attire of long or short coats, while the women moved through the crowds dressed in elegant robes. Some carried umbrellas or wide-brimmed hats to shield themselves from the sunlight.

"S-so this is Velarum, the city of knowledge, where the continent’s most influential academy is located," Vlad murmured, completely enchanted by the beauty of the city.