“Good morning, Wanderer,” Alnea said, bowing slightly towards the red robed woman standing behind the counter.

  “What a polite kid,” the woman said with an amused smile. “Not many Wanderers retain their manners these days… What’s more, there are three of you. Let me guess, you are the infamous trio that have been in the limelight these days for continuously breaking the records of the Warrior and Scholar Hall. Are you here to break the records of the Arcanist Hall too?”

  “We just want to challenge the Trials of the Arcanist Hall, and test how far we have walked on our path,” Alnea said, not in the least surprised by the fact that the Wanderer could recognise him. “As for breaking the records… We will leave that up to fate.”

  “Humility is a good virtue,” the woman said. “But only if you are truly humble. Although you may sound humble, I can feel the arrogance in your eyes. It looks like you are quite confident of yourselves.”

  “…I meant no disrespect, Wanderer. I—

  “Relax. I am not trying to find fault in your words. And neither am I saying that you did anything wrong,” the woman said, shaking her head. “It is true that humility is a good virtue, but as Wanderers, we must always have a certain arrogance in our Hearts. Only then, will our beliefs be strong enough to support our convictions. If one day, you lose the arrogance in your Heart, then you might not be far from coming to the end of your path.”

  “…Thank you for your guidance, Wanderer.”

  “It is not as much a guidance as an advice… Forget it. Take it as however you like it.” The woman paused, showing a tangled expression on her face, as if struggling about something in her Heart, before letting out a sigh, and continuing with her words.

  “From what I know, you have been coming to the Blood Hall to challenge its Trials every day for the past two weeks, have you not?”

  “Sixteen days, to be exact. This would be the seventeenth day.”

  “As I thought,” the woman said. “You… probably have not understood what the Trials truly stand for.”

  “…Are the Trials not there just to test how far we have walked on our paths?”

  “…That is just a part of the Trials. A very small part. You can even say that it is just a consequence of the Trials.”

  “…I am sorry, Wanderer…”

  “Nubia,” the woman said. “I am Nubia, the main receptionist of the Arcanist Hall, and the coordinator of the Arcanist Trials.”

  “…I am sorry, Wanderer Nubia. I do not understand what you are trying to say…”

  “Let me put it in another way. Assuming that you know nothing about finding directions, and are not familiar with the roads, how would walk from city A to city B?”

  “…Walk in a straight line between the two cities.”

  “And what if the path between the two cities is not straight? What if the path goes through mountains and forests, rivers and desert… What if there is no set path at all? How would you travel from one city to another then?”

  “…I probably would get lost.”

  “And what if there are sign posts between the two cities, pointing you to the right direction? Would you still get lost?”

  “…Not as long as I follow the directions.”

  “Do you understand what the Trials stand for now?”

  “…Signposts?”

  “Almost,” Nubia said, nodding with a smile. “The Trials of the Lost City are designed very meticulously, targeting the very essence of the three paths of Wanderers. From how to control and exert your strength to how to forge your own path ahead, as long as the Trialists can understand the true essence of the Trials, what they would gain may not be worse than what they would have achieved under the direct guidance of Grand Wanderers.”

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  “…Now that you mention it, it did feel as if the Trials were trying to guide us. But then, why have we never heard of others say anything about the Trials guiding us on our paths?”

  “Because everyone is looking forward to quick success. How can those people calm down, and think about the meaning behind the existence of the Trials?”

  “…What about the Wanderers working for the city? They did not say anything either…”

  “Because they—we are the most eager ones than anyone else in the city,” the woman said with a sigh. “They do not mean any harm. Just like most of the Wanderers, they probably do not understand the essence of the Trials either. Or they would not have ended up working for the Lost City.”

  “Then why…”

  “Why do I know about the essence of Trials?” the woman said, with a hint of desolating in her smile. “Because of the mistakes I made… It was a long time ago… In short, just know that when I was in your place, I did not understand the true meaning of the Trials either, striving instead for quick success, leading to me finally working for the city. It is only after I let go of the things in my Heart, and settled down, that I finally understood what the Trials of the city stood for.”

  “…My apologies, for making you remember something unpleasant, Wanderer Nubia.”

  “It’s alright. Everything is in the past. Anyways, do you finally understand what the Trials stand for?”

  “…We do.”

  “…And yet, you are still going to challenge the Trials anyway…”

  “…Although I would have liked to have the guidance of the city, our circumstances do not permit us to settle down and think about our paths. If we do not challenge the Trials now, we might not get the chance to challenge them in the future. Still, we are grateful for your guidance, Wanderer Nubia.”

  “…As you wish,” the woman said, sighing with a hint of disappointment. “Which Trial are you going to challenge today?”

  “…The Mystery Trials.”

  “Go to Ryan,” Nubia said, pointing to the young man next to her. Unlike the other Wanderers working for the city, Ryan seemed to be closer to their age. He even had the distinct air of vigorous youth about him, making it obvious that the man had just recently become a worker of the city. “He will tell you what to do next. Ryan, I will leave these kids to you.”

  “Geez, there is no need for you to shout, sister Nubia. I am standing right next to you.”

  “Huh? Are you learning how to talk back to me now?”

  “Uh… I meant that you should not waste your beautiful voice on me, sister Nubia.”

  “Do not think about crooked things all day long. Just do as you are told.”

  “Right, right…”

  Alnea stared the duo in front of him, marvelling at the sudden change in Nubia’s temperament. How could one be so warm and gentle at one moment, and become—

  “Hey, kid, what are you doing standing there in a daze? Do you want to challenge the Mystery Trials or not? Come on, give me your Blood Cards.”

  “…Thank you, Wanderer Nubia,” Alnea said, bowling slightly towards the woman, before quickly walking up to Ryan, and giving him their Blood Cards. “Thank you for your help, Wanderer Ryan.”

  “Keep your thanks to yourself, ungrateful brat. It is your great fortune, that sister Nubia decided to advise you. Do you know how many people would kill for such a chance? And you dare to ignore her advice? If it was not because of the rules of the city—

  “Huh?”

  “…I meant that I am just doing what I am supposed to do. There is no need to thank me specially.”

  “That’s better,” Nubia said, nodding to herself, before turning back to deal with the next Wanderer in line.

  “Tsk. Lucky brat. I do not understand what sister Nubia sees in you. Here. Take your Blood Cards and get out of my sight.”

  “…Just to be sure, the Trials are on the Eighth floor, right?”

  “…Are you trying to be funny?”

  “…Ryan.”

  “…They are on the eighth floor.”

  “…Thank you, Wanderer Ryan,” Alnea said, and walked away with the girls. It was not until they had begun climbing the stairs, that he turned back towards them.

  “What do you think of what Wanderer Nubia said?”

  “…She did sound reasonable,” Yuri said. “The Trials can indeed be taken as signposts on the path of Wanderers. However, there is no need to take them too seriously. Everyone walks on their own path. These signposts, on the other hand, are too universal. They cannot be used to serve as markers on our paths. At best, they can only serve as a measure for our foundations.”

  “Do you think it was deliberate, or…”

  “Her advice should be heartfelt. She probably did not know the dangers of following a set path too strictly either. Even if she did know about it, following a path that others have already paved is indeed a good choice for many Wanderers. It is just that this path is not suitable for us..."

  "What are you two talking about?” Cecilia said, tilting her head in confusion. “Was that woman trying to misguide us?”

  “Don’t think too much,” Alnea said, shaking his head. “Let’s focus on the Mystery Trials.”