Chapter 184: Magic Research Society
Before the words had even finished, a pale gray hand as smooth as silk reached toward Anse’s cheek.
Anse spun around abruptly, retreating a step at the same time, his gaze sweeping over to see a female Drow Elf standing beside him, though he didn’t know when she had arrived.
She had silver hair and black eyes, sharp features, and a tall figure. Her custom black leather outfit only covered key areas, leaving ninety percent of her skin exposed, with shiny metal chains adorning her neck, waist, wrists, and ankles.
“Why dodge? It’s absolutely safe here.” The Drow Elf spoke in Dragon Speech, her voice magnetic, her tone gentle, yet carrying a hint of superiority, as if she were accustomed to being in a high position.
“This cat… not for sale!” Anse kept a calm expression, but remained secretly vigilant.
Most Drow Elves worship the Spider Queen Lolth and her associated deities, with alignments mainly chaotic evil. There are Drow who worship the good goddess Eilistraee, but they are extremely rare.
“Fine if not for sale.” The female Drow giggled, “I’m Delilah. First time here, right? Sister will show you around, so you don’t get cheated by others.”
She didn’t ask Anse’s name or background, just beckoned with her hand, signaling him to follow.
Anse narrowed his eyes, unable to discern her intentions. After a brief moment of thought, he stepped forward to follow behind her, maintaining a distance of more than two steps.
The Trading Market was huge. Even if he refused her, he couldn’t stop others from following and observing him, so it was better to first understand her intentions.
Seeing Anse follow, Delilah’s lips curved up with a smile: “Traveler’s Respite only guarantees the safety of travelers, but doesn’t care about being cheated, especially in this Trading Market, where all sorts of people are around. Some specialize in scamming newcomers like you.”
“How do you know I’m a newcomer?” Anse asked doubtfully. He believed he had acted quite calmly and hadn’t done anything special.
“Giggle…” Delilah stopped, stepping closer to Anse, extending a slender finger to point at a Halfling ahead, “Test your eyesight. Take a good look at him.”
Anse focused his observation, noticing nothing special at first, only that the Halfling seemed overly relaxed, as if he were at home.
Then, he quickly perceived that the Halfling’s breathing and walking posture were unnatural, as if… unaccustomed.
“Breathing, gravity, and posture?” he ventured.
“Very clever.” Delilah praised, “Newcomers have two states: overly relaxed or overly vigilant. Calmness is just a facade.
Moreover, this is the Astral Sea, with no air. The floor is the Inn’s arranged gravity plane, quite different from the Material Plane. The body can’t adapt to this change in a short time; it’s impossible to fake.”
Anse suddenly understood. It wasn’t that he couldn’t think of it, but he had no experience with the Astral Sea. Earlier, his mind had been tense, constantly pondering the situation at Traveler’s Respite.
“Also, I stay here often. Someone as handsome as you, I’d definitely remember if I’d seen you.” Delilah teased.
Anse felt a bit helpless. Extraordinary Charisma not only drew attention but also attracted unwanted suitors.
At the same time, he caught the flaw in Delilah’s words and asked doubtfully, “You say you stay here often?”
“Teleportation Mediums come in many types. The most common is the Traveler’s Badge, which only allows a one-day stay.” Delilah explained, “The best mediums allow a three-day stay, but their functions are similar.”
Anse understood. Traveler’s Respite probably had these restrictions to avoid trouble. If someone used it as a refuge, it could attract unknown powerful enemies.
“Can Badges be bought and sold?” He wanted to buy another one for Illyas.
“Yes, but the total number is fixed. You can only buy from others.” Delilah waved her hand, “Don’t bother thinking about it; almost no one sells. But exchanges are possible.”
“Exchanges?” Anse instantly thought of a possibility, his expression changing slightly.
“Yeah, Teleportation Mediums don’t require Attunement. Knowing the passphrase lets you use them. After teleporting here, the medium internally anchors the departure coordinates. Exchanging mediums swaps positions in the Material Plane.” Delilah laughed.
Anse thought to himself, as expected. If he exchanged with a traveler from Gray Dome Sky, he could enter Gray Dome Sky, easily achieving Plane Travel.
It could be used to ask for help with troubles or to fight strong enemies. Thinking it through, there were many ways to play it, but not necessarily safe.
“It could also be a trap, right?”
“Heh, no need to say it.”
As they spoke, the two arrived at a counter with rows of Spellbooks, over a hundred in total.
Anse didn’t pay attention at first, then noticed something off.
The Magic Net was originally unique to Toril in the Kingdom of the Heavens. Abel didn’t have it, nor did other Void worlds originally, like Eberron relying on the Dragon Ring, and Gray Dome’s magic based on elemental forces and Primal Mana.
If the Magic Net was disrupted, it should only affect Toril; other Astral Systems shouldn’t be impacted.
“How are there so many Spellbooks?” he pretended not to know.
“Giggle, guess why?” Delilah crossed her arms, looking at him with a half-smile.
Anse wasn’t embarrassed and calmly said, “I mean, there seem to be… quite a few from the Kingdom of the Heavens.”
“Oh, you know quite a bit. Not many know about the Kingdom of the Heavens.” Delilah said, surprised.
Most Professionals have shallow knowledge, only knowing their country and continent, not even their Plane, let alone academic terms like “Kingdom of the Heavens.”
Many Professionals luckily obtain a Traveler’s Badge and remain confused, never fully understanding the Plane relationships.
“Taught by my Mentor.” Anse casually made up a backstory. He did have a mentor, who was just a bit dead.
Delilah didn’t suspect anything. For someone with Anse’s visibly astonishing Talent, it would be strange if he didn’t have a mentor.
“I’m from Toril.” Delilah leaned close to him, pointing at his nose, “You too.”
“You can tell that too?” Anse showed confusion.
“Because Traveler’s Respite was originally open only to the Kingdom of the Heavens. Later, Teleportation Mediums spread, allowing creatures from other Void worlds to come, but they remain a small proportion.” Delilah stopped teasing him.
“I see.” Anse recalled the Strange Bird’s instructions and suddenly understood its deeper meaning.
Creatures from other Void worlds couldn’t do much even knowing his location; cross-Void travel was too difficult. The core reason not to expose his identity was the many “fellow countrymen”—once exposed, he could really be tracked down.
At this moment, after spinning for a while, the Dice finally detected Delilah’s information:
【Delilah, Drow Elf, 17th-level Wizard（Sword Singer）】
‘Rare Class.’ He thought to himself.
Sword Singers master an arcane tradition combining swordsmanship and dance, originally created by Elves. In Combat, Sword Singers use a series of intricate and elegant martial techniques to deflect attacks and channel magic into deadly strikes and elusive defenses.
This was a typical hybrid Class, seeming mediocre but actually quite powerful.
“Come on, I’ll show you around. Speak less.” Delilah interrupted his thoughts.
“Mm.” Anse agreed, not refusing, but still staying vigilant.
Delilah revealing so much information upon first meeting—anyone would believe she had ulterior motives.
The two walked and browsed, mainly looking, buying nothing.
The Trading Market wasn’t crowded, at most a hundred or so people, but over two hundred Shop counters of all kinds, selling everything imaginable.
There were vast quantities of Magical Items, some directly labeled Legendary or Divine Artifact, with ever grander titles.
But after the Dice’s Detect, most were fakes. The uncertain ones weren’t necessarily real, just hard to Appraise.
Delilah kept walking, leading him via the central spiral staircase to the Second Floor.
It was very Quiet here, with three walls covered in black Crystal screens projecting streams of Mana shadows, each a task, uniquely styled like a fantasy cyberpunk.
One side of the Hall had windows, and opposite were many doors, their purpose unknown.
“Just Projection Crystals, nothing mysterious.” Delilah chuckled, pointing to the left, “This is the task Hall. Opposite, you can sell or buy Intelligence…”
Anse scanned around, his gaze suddenly locking on a task panel marked “Magic Research Society.” The top Bounty was deliberately bolded and highlighted.
“Seeking complete, stable Spell Models under Mana Casting status, minimum one thousand Pounds of Gold, granting membership qualification…”
