We took longer than expected due to the incident with the Stealth spider, but Ardelar, the Imperial Capital, was finally in sight!

  “Come on, Arda, the place where we’ll be staying is this way,” Baryon led the way, with me and Lelya following as my parents exchanged their greetings with some old friends and wandered off with them.

  Far too many stories described capitals as chaotic and far from peaceful places, where a frantic life was the standard.

  Ardelar, however, looked nothing like that.

  Wide streets, immaculately clean, led up to the imposing fortress that towered over the large park at the heart of the city. Even passing citizens didn’t give off the impression of living a rushed life at all. They strolled calmly down these long avenues, stopping every now and then in front of shops capturing their attention.

  It doesn’t look too bad, I mused, feeling a twinge of envy for this unexpectedly chill and standard life.

  As if reading my mind, Baryon nudged me lightly in the shoulder. “You can go ahead if you want,” he said.

  “As long as you don’t stray too far,” he quickly added. “I’d rather not think about what your father would do to me if something happened to you. If anything goes wrong, look for the Gentlemen’s Hut inn.”

  “Lelya, you coming?” I asked, stopping mid-step.

  She seemed to be as captivated by the city as I was, but she tried to hide it with her usual composed demeanor.

  She glanced at Baryon, as if seeking his approval. He gave her a nod of approval. “Be careful, both of you.”

  Before he could change his mind, I grabbed Lelya’s hand and together we dashed off, blending with the many tourists and citizens.

  There were way more shops than I could have imagined.

  “A hundred thousand people live here? How can a place like this even house all those people?” She cried out in disbelief when I told her. Lelya still couldn’t wrap her head around how large this city actually was.

  Her awe was relatable.

  Like me, she’d never been to Ardelar before.

  Having visited only relatively small cities with populations in the tens of thousands, at best, it made sense that a place like Ardelar, which had about a hundred thousand residents, was such a sight to behold.

  It was hard to even imagine how that many people looked like.

  It’s no wonder then there are so many shops. I thought as we strolled around the wide, paved roads. Keeping all these people satisfied must be no easy feat.

  Before our eyes, hundreds, maybe thousands, of people were entering and exiting stores, some shopping, while others were just browsing, us included.

  “Lelya, have you seen this? So cool!” I beamed, pointing at so many things at once that she didn’t know where to look.

  Many shops even had display windows, allowing potential customers to have a peek inside the shop comfortably from the street.

  Lelya’s attention was caught by every single artisan or florist in the area, who displayed very elaborate and refined compositions.

  As for me, I stopped in front of every sword or adventurer’s equipment shop. I even found a few that sold magical weapons.

  “Flame-launching sword at a great price! Only one left! Don’t miss out!”

  “Ring holder and creepy masks! Get them while they’re on sale. Only ’til the end of the week!”

  There were shops of all kinds, from the more serious ones to the less serious, but all of them with extremely imaginative or evocative names.

  In one of these shops, a wonderful sword was displayed. Very simple, nothing flashy about it.

  It was so shiny that it reflected the light perfectly. Its scabbard was made of plain brown leather.

  Since it was displayed alongside other weapons explicitly marked as magical swords, I guessed that one was magical too.

  Many of the swords on display even cost several thousand gold coins. In comparison, considering that an average family can live comfortably with just a few silver coins a month, a magical sword would allow someone to live in luxury for years.

  Maybe it’ll be less expensive since it isn’t decorated like the others, I tried to convince myself.

  The one that had caught my attention was the only one without a price tag.

  “Hey, kid! Can’t you read? It says not to lean on the windows!”

  I don’t know you, buddy, but I feel for you. It’s never fun to get scolded by someone, I empathized.

  “Are you deaf? Get your hands off the glass! It doesn't clean by itself, you know!” The voice became louder and more insistent.

  I saw a man approaching, reflected in the blade of the sword in the window.

  “Master Arda…” Lelya called out to me, and then a hand grabbed my shoulder and pulled back, making me lose my balance.

  The man next to Lelya didn’t look too amused.

  The smiling face I saw, falling clumsily to the ground, clashed with the angered words coming from his mouth.

  “You finished playing the fool? Not only are you leaning on the glass, but you’re also ignoring me? Are you looking for trouble, kid?” he sputtered, his hands on his hips.

  “I-I apologize!” I stammered, getting back on my feet with a sudden surge of adrenaline rushing in my veins. “I didn’t realize I was leaning on the window.”

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  “Are you a foreigner?” He asked as he studied me carefully, narrowing his eyes. “Is this your first time in the city, boy?” His yelling slightly subsided.

  I nodded, awkwardly straightening my shirt to hide my embarrassment. “I’ve never been to such a big city before, and I’m still rather disoriented. That sword had caught my attention.”

  The man–the shopkeeper, I guessed–looked in the direction I had pointed, softening his gaze imperceptibly.

  “Nice, isn’t it? Well, I can’t blame you. Even in a prestigious magical weapons shop, that would still stand out. It’s a rare piece, you know?”

  Despite the unusual way we met, he looked like a kind man.

  “Did you make it?” I asked.

  “Wish I had, kid, wish I had,” he chuckled with a puff.

  “No, forging a weapon like that is way beyond my current abilities. I was recently entrusted with it by a merchant from the East, an old friend of mine.”

  “So… I guess it’s not for sale, right?”

  He shook his head. “Yeah, it’s just for display. Sorry, kid.”

  I nodded silently, apologizing once again for the misunderstanding. “That’s alright, I should’ve seen that coming. I hope you can forgive me for the whole…” I pointed vaguely at the window before blurting, “incident.”

  He waved me off dismissively. “Don’t worry, it’s fine.”

  Pausing for a moment, he frowned shortly before adding, “On a second thought, it’s not fine. But you’re not the first, and sadly you won’t be the last. Maybe I should stop displaying rare swords behind the window.”

  We both burst out laughing. Lelya had been staring at us the way one might look at a strange animal, with a mix of curiosity and confusion.

  Before the situation could become even more weird than it already was, or his mood could switch again, we excused ourselves with the old man and walked away.

  “Hey, kid!” He called out loudly. I turned around, nervously expecting trouble. I was pleasantly surprised.

  “If you ever need a sword, come back and see us! Qoro will find the right one for you!” He shouted back.

  I waved at him as he returned to his work.

  What a lively guy, I thought, shaking my head with a smile.

  “Are you alright, Arda?” Once the shock and surprise wore off, Lelya seemed to recall my graceful tumble to the ground.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” I reassured her. “I’m used to training with Father after all.”

  “I shall not tell Lady Ary about what happened, right?” Lelya said as we walked in the direction Baryon had pointed out.

  “Oh no, no. Definitely not. Please don’t tell my father, and Baryon either,” I replied in a rush.

  “You know what? Don’t tell anyone. I’d be grateful if this little mishap remained between us. Mom would make fun of me forever” I grumbled, feeling my cheeks turning red.

  She would be perfectly capable of that.

  Lelya let out a short giggle. I was sure she would’ve kept it to herself, just as she always had since we were kids.

  “We’d better go, Baryon will be waiting for us.”

  * * *

  The inn was even closer than I had expected.

  To our unbeknownst, Lelya and I had been wandering the main street of the capital, that went by the totally unpredictable name of Dragon street.

  Dragon street connected the main gate of the city directly to the imperial castle, sitting at the exact center of the capital.

  Our inn was located somewhere halfway through it, in the second half of the street, the one closer to the imperial park and palace.

  Baryon was waiting for us outside, comfortably seated by the entrance of the inn, a small glass of an amber liquor in hand and a book casually held in the other.

  “Master, you certainly seem at ease,” I teased.

  He took a sip and tucked away his book before replying, “Well, I had to kill time somehow.”

  Without putting his drink down, he led us inside.

  The Gentlemen’s Hut was an elegant place, immaculate and meticulously arranged, almost to the point of outright obsession.

  A soft music reverberated in the mostly empty hall, where only a handful of impeccably dressed waiters moved efficiently between the guests, balancing trays and drinks in their hands.

  The tables were positioned in perfect symmetry all around the hall, each table set with a simple, refined touch that made loud and clear that this was a first-class establishment.

  I wonder how Dad even finds places like this…

  “Baryon, sir,” an all-suited-up man reached out to my master. “Your rooms are ready. If you’d like, I can have your luggages sent upstairs right away.”

  “Thank you, Alfred,” he acknowledged him with a quick nod. “I’ll tell Johannes to look for you.”

  “As you wish,” he said, then bowed as he excused himself.

  “This way,” Baryon said, arranging a few things with Johannes and then motioning for us to follow him upstairs.

  “An acquaintance of yours?” I asked, waving to Johannes in farewell.

  “I met him while I was waiting for you,” he replied with a shrug as we climbed to a much quieter first floor. “He’s the owner of the place. A bit too... uh, meticulous for my liking, but he’s a nice guy.”

  “Yeah, I figured,” I let out a soft chuckle as I studied curiously the paintings accompanying our journey to the upper floor. They probably represented the most notable guests the inn had ever hosted.

  There were a few names I recognized, belonging to some famous noble houses of the Ardelar region.

  Our rooms, though not as grandiose as those in the palace we had stayed in Veldya, were impressive in their own right.

  They mirrored the same style from downstairs, morphing and adapting it in a way more suited for bedrooms.

  Everything was in soft, neutral tones, harmonizing perfectly with the walls and bed frames. My room had only one mirror, though Baryon swore he counted at least five in his.

  Naturally, they were positioned to reflect the light most optimally, ensuring every corner of the room was illuminated by natural light, rather than from lighting artifacts. It was clear that whoever designed this inn had a keen eye for details.

  “Aren’t Lady Ary and Lord Damyon back yet?” asked Lelya as we unpacked our luggage, which, just as the innkeeper had promised, had been carried upstairs from an attendant.

  Baryon shook his head. “They sent a message before you came back. They’re staying out for dinner as well.”

  I gave a loud and humorless snort. That wasn’t surprising. Some of my parents’ friends could talk for hours.

  “If we’re lucky, they’ll be back after midnight. Honestly, I wouldn’t be shocked if they even returned at dawn,” I muttered, placing my books on a nightstand.

  “Oh, don’t be so pessimistic,” Baryon chuckled. “I’m sure they’ll return as soon as they can.”

  He rested a hand on my shoulder, before moving towards the door. “Have some rest, won’t you?” He said, turning over his shoulder. “A long day awaits us tomorrow.”

  Lelya followed him a few steps out of the room, but paused at the door, turning to me.

  “If you need anything, I’m in the room next door.”

  I nodded and bade her goodnight.

  As I went through what I’d managed to infer from the Ars Incantandi, my mind couldn’t help but drift towards the still mysterious contents of tomorrow’s ceremony. No one had given me a straight answer.

  Could it be some sort of state secret? That would be frickin cool. My mind raced with possibilities.

  More likely, though, it’ll be just the inauguration ceremony of a new academy or a theater.

  I barely had time to close my eyes before sleep took over.

  After all, it had been a long journey.