Nick had reached the Blue Tear City’s entrance. Many people were waiting in queues for their entries to be approved. Blue Tear City gates did not open for everyone. If the city were to not follow regulations, bandits and others with evil intentions would run the city rampant engaging in all kinds of illegal activities including transporting prohibited goods to the city.
Most of the people queueing up were ordinary humans including some small-time tradesmen. Nick noticed some nobles and tradesmen with many carriages entering through a different door. He slowly walked to the door of the nobles and headed towards the big entrance.
The guards at the entrance were clad in blue metal armor and had long spears. These were not ordinary guards. They were at the level of Imper or Student Level 1. In Nick’s eyes, they were nothing but for the commoners, these guards were people whom they had no chance against. These two guards could take down the 100-bandit army with ease. Given their armor and mastery, and the help they would receive from the noble family’s guards, it would not even be a long-drawn fight.
As they saw Nick coming towards the entrance, they exchanged a look. A young guard after that came in front of Nick and started talking.
“Only nobles, large tradesmen and mages can enter through the Wind Gate. Would you please show me some identification?”
The guard was neither arrogant nor soft. He was respectful enough and asked his questions clearly, without stepping over the line.
Nick nodded and he lit up a fire with his right hand. Something like this did not need a spell. Nick could do it with his imagination alone.
The guards looked at the fire and nodded as they opened the gate for Nick.
Entering the city, Nick felt many emotions. This was the very city that he once escaped very desperately. He was then nothing more than a powerless individual who was scared of the revenge of a mage clan and the mage school. Now, however, he was returning as a powerful mage. He had seen more than his share of battles already, armed with the knowledge that even many high-level mages were not aware of, and he possessed a set of many envy-inducing abilities.
As he entered the city, the crowd chatter sounded around him. In his heart, for just one second, Nick thought that he was back on earth. But he came back to his senses quickly. Without thinking too much, or delving into all these feelings further, he started walking in the city streets.
The buildings at the entrance of the Wind Gate were all made up of stone with quality design and material. It could be seen that these buildings were owned by nobles or powerful tradesmen. They exuded some richness from the first look itself.
While walking, Nick found a tavern for himself. Located in a crowded alley, the tavern was made from stone and had three storeys. The name of the tavern was Binding Lights Tavern. Nick stepped inside the tavern but he was immediately stopped by a young girl of around 20-21 years of age.
The girl was wearing official white clothes, and she looked at Nick with disgust. By now, Nick had taken off his mask and was wearing simple mage clothes.
“You cannot enter here, we do not serve beggars.”
Nick tilted his head and thought.
“She is a dumb one I guess.”
Nick then started talking.
“Who says I am a beggar? And what is wrong with being a beggar? If the person has the money to pay for what he or she buys, what is the problem?”
At Nick’s pointed questions, the girl’s breathing staggered as the anger rose in her heart. She was accustomed to young people and beggars wearing mage clothes to enter the Binding Lights Tavern but after her warning, they would always go leave, without creating any commotion.
This time, this beggar did not go away, and it made her very angry.
“I said go away; we do not serve beggars.”
This time her words were louder and it attracted the attention of the people outside. Nick was going to show his magical energy, but before that, a middle-aged man, wearing simple, black clothes came inside. He looked at the girl and spoke in an authoritative tone.
“What is the problem Aniva, why are you shouting?”
The girl named Aniva turned to the middle-aged man and said in a respectful tone.
“My lord, this beggar wants to enter the Binding Lights Tavern. I told him that we do not welcome beggars but he refuses to leave.”
The middle-aged man turned his head to look at Nick and then asked.
“Would you please tell me your name?”
Instead of his real name, Nick used his mage name. Mage names had the impact of radiating magical energy if the mage said his name himself.
“I am Epsilon.”
With Nick’s words, a strong gust of magical energy rushed towards the middle-aged man. The middle-aged man himself was a mage. As he felt Nick’s energy, his expression changed immediately and thought in his head.
“This amount of magic after calling out his mage name…. He is a Provec Level (Student Level 3) mage!”
The middle-aged man gulped and looked at Aniva. He was going to reprimand her for creating a problem with a Provec Level mage. But before he had a chance to course-correct, Aniva, who was an ordinary person, spat on Nick’s clothes. She once again addressed Nick, looking absolutely disgusted with him.
“I have never seen a beggar like you who dares to use a fake mage name…”
Nick looked at the middle-aged man and started talking.
“Calling me a beggar constantly and then spitting on my clothes. What is the punishment for her in ordinary cases?”
The middle-aged man in black clothes was now frantic. He spoke with a defeated expression.
“It is death, my lord…”
The man’s words, the last two words more specifically, turned Aniva’s world upside down.
The middle-aged man was Narkor, the manager of the Binding Lights Tavern. Aniva may be every bit the dumb person that Nick thought her to be but she knew at least this much that if her manager spoke in the way he just did, it was most likely that the man she insulted as a beggar would be a Provec Level mage.
