For a moment, Valorant stared at the burly man standing across from him.
The man returned the gaze.
Neither of them blinked, as if they were engaged in a silent staring contest.
Looking around, Aster noticed the tension in the tavern rising. The people nearby were growing restless, their patience thinning.
The situation was bad—no, it was disastrous.
Without drawing attention, Aster slowly reached beneath his cloak, his fingers brushing against the hilt of his sword.
Then his master's voice cut through the air.
"We have a deal."
Valorant tossed a pouch of coins toward the man.
The burly man caught it and, in return, threw two keys onto the counter.
"Two doors on the upper floor, to the left," he said, quickly stuffing the pouch into his pocket.
"No noise."
Valorant led the girls forward, guiding them through a sea of hostile, unpleasant gazes.
They trembled like lambs walking through a pack of wolves.
The staircase to the second floor was located in the corner of the tavern.
The path leading to it was blocked by several men sitting around nearby tables.
Valorant stepped toward one of those tables.
At that moment, one of the men seated there glanced at Valorant. Then the tavern owner subtly tilted his head to the side.
Immediately, everyone around the table stood up, moving their chairs and belongings aside, clearing a path for those heading upstairs.
Aster placed a hand on Suna's shoulder and continued walking, making his act as a blind man look natural.
Valorant allowed Aster and the others to go up the stairs first, as if shielding them from a sudden knife strike from behind.
Only after they were safely ascending did he turn toward the men below and say in a deep voice,
"Thank you… for your cooperation."
With that, he followed them upstairs.
Aster looked at his master, unable to understand why he had said that.
Soon, they reached their rooms.
Suna and Anna were assigned one room.
Aster and Valorant took the room closest to the stairs.
When Aster entered their room, his mouth fell open in shock.
The interior was the complete opposite of the tavern below and the dilapidated exterior.
There wasn't a speck of dust or a single stain anywhere.
The two beds placed side by side were intact, and the sheets were spotless.
'So that's why it's expensive.'
Thinking that, Aster convinced himself the large amount of money hadn't been wasted.
He walked over, set his belongings on one of the beds, and stretched out.
"My whole body hurts…"
Valorant entered after him, setting his things down.
"Get up soon. We still need to take you to a doctor."
Aster tried to lift his head in surprise—but suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed into his chest.
He clutched it and barely managed to roll onto his side.
"The green flame's effect is wearing off," Valorant said.
"We need to hurry."
Aster pushed himself up slightly.
"Are we taking the girls with us?"
Valorant's answer surprised him.
"No. They'll stay here with our belongings."
Aster couldn't understand it.
To him, it felt like leaving two lambs behind in the middle of wolves—ready to be torn apart the moment something went wrong.
So he stared at his master for a few seconds.
"Have you been here before?"
"No."
"Then how can you sound so confident?"
Valorant stopped near the door.
"The money we paid wasn't for the room," he said calmly.
"It was for safety."
Aster still didn't quite understand.
How could you pay armed killers for safety?
But he soon found out.
***
Aster and Valorant left their room and went down to the first floor.
As they descended, the same men moved their tables aside again, clearing a path.
Valorant looked at the tavern owner and said sharply,
"Upstairs."
The owner nodded and glanced at the two men beside him.
Then Valorant left the tavern.
The two men walked over and positioned themselves at the foot of the stairs, blocking anyone from going up.
Even though he understood what was happening, Aster's unease didn't fade.
Unfamiliar people, an unfamiliar place—everything felt suspicious.
Still, he decided to trust his master and followed him out.
Because the streets were covered in snow—or perhaps because of the biting winter cold—there were hardly any people outside. Most stayed indoors, watching through their windows.
As they walked, Aster caught up to Valorant.
Valorant glanced at him and asked,
"Can you hold out for thirty minutes?"
Aster nodded lightly.
"First, we go to the magic gate. Then, the doctor."
They headed toward the city center. Finding it wasn't difficult—almost all major roads in Vorkalis led there.
According to Valorant's plan, they would enter the magic gate in Vorkalis and exit at Obilvor, the city closest to the Elven Forest.
Even then, Obilvor was still four days away from the elves' lands.
Before long, they reached the center of the city.
As Aster drew closer, he began to sense an enormous amount of mana—converging from a single location.
There stood a towering archway, radiating pure mana as visible light.
"That's the magic gate," Valorant said, pointing.
People moved in two orderly flows—those exiting the gate and those entering it.
No one interfered with the other.
'Not many people are coming in,' Aster noted, watching the few who emerged.
Indeed, very few people were traveling to Vorkalis.
Who would want to come to such a place?
An unpleasant city—one even stray dogs avoided.
Aster noticed something else.
The area around the arch was filled with soldiers, watching every movement. Beyond that, at roughly five-step intervals, more soldiers stood guard within a certain radius of the gate.
'They're all Elestars.'
He was right.
Every soldier there could manipulate mana at a basic level.
Even so, none of them were anywhere near Aster's level.
Valorant moved along the perimeter of the arch and joined the growing line with his disciple.
Everyone in the queue was heading toward a single man.
Off to the side was a table, where a man sat writing with a quill pen.
His chestnut-colored hair reached his shoulders, and a thick beard framed his jaw—marking him as no ordinary man.
The thick, fur-lined clothing he wore, along with the braziers burning around his table, suggested he was either a local noble or the child of an aristocratic family.
Each person stepped up, said something briefly, and placed the required coins on the table.
Soon, it was Aster and Valorant's turn.
Without even looking up, the man with the quill asked,
"Destination and number of people?"
"Obilvor. Four people," Valorant replied.
The man continued writing.
"Tomorrow morning, from 8:00 to 8:05. That's your window. Price—sixty silver coins."
Aster was startled.
Then Valorant asked,
"Why is the window so short?"
The man finally lifted his head.
"Few people go there. Or rather—none. If you make it, good. If not, find another way."
He dipped the quill into the inkwell beside him.
The ink had already frozen from the cold.
"Damn it, frozen again," he muttered, glancing aside.
"Hey—bring fresh ink. This one's frozen too."
A soldier nearby replied,
"Yes, Captain Deus."
Valorant stepped closer to the table and picked up the inkwell.
"…"
Captain Deus looked at him in confusion.
Inside the inkwell, the frozen ink began to melt—then boil.
Valorant gently set it back down.
"That's not enough."
Considering the speed at which people passed through the gate and the time needed to switch the destination to Obilvor, five minutes was nowhere near sufficient.
Valorant knew that well.
Captain Deus stood up.
At first glance, Aster had thought the man looked large only because of his heavy clothing.
He was wrong.
'Is he a giant…?'
Deus stood nearly two meters tall, his body built like a solid slab of stone from relentless training.
Leaning over the table, he glared at Valorant.
"Are you giving me order?" he asked coldly.
Valorant reached into his pocket, pulled out a gold coin, and placed it on the table.
"How much time does this buy?"
Deus's eyes flicked to the gold.
There was no greed in them—only irritation.
"One minute," he said flatly.
He wasn't joking.
And neither was Valorant.
Watching from the side, Aster grasped the sheathed sword at his belt.
'I know Master is strong, but… Deus looks terrifying.'
Calling him merely strong didn't do him justice.
His towering height and rock-hard muscles made it clear he wasn't an easy opponent.
Valorant met his gaze and said,
"We need to talk privately."
Deus frowned in confusion, then nodded.
The two of them stepped aside.
After some time passed, they returned.
Both wore the same serious expressions as before.
'Did they come to an agreement?' Aster wondered.
Soon after, the two of them left the area together.