Chapter 177: Asthotar City!

The bells rang again, louder this time, echoing through the carriages as spectral reins snapped taut and the pace quickened. The rhythmic rumble of wheels against uneven obsidian stone began to ease as the terrain changed, leveling into smoother ground.

There was a subtle shift in the mana pressure around the carriages, a sign that they were nearing a large mana nexus. In layman’s terms, they were closing in on a city.

Through the window, faint blue light began to glow on the horizon, scattering across the violet haze that coated the land. The shadows outside slowly peeled back, revealing the breathtaking sprawl of Asthotar City, the Demon Port City!

The first thing that struck all the non-Demon students as they looked out the carriage windows was the light.

While various other cities, like the Shadow Isles, were shrouded in endless twilight of storms and shadow, Asthotar shimmered with a unique brilliance, as hundreds of crystalline lanterns floated across the harbor.

All of these lanterns were suspended in mid air by magnetic mana fields, their soft crimson and azure hues bathing the docs below.

The city was built upon black volcanic cliffs that descended into the glowing expanse of the Demonic Sea, a massive, iridescent body of water that seemed to breathe with its own pulse of mana.

The waves shimmered between colors, from ghostly blue to deep violet, whispering with faint traces of soul energy.

When the carriages finally slowed, they entered through the main southern gate, a towering structure forged of reinforced obsidian lined with molten runes, guarded by armored sentinels whose armor thrummed with faint demonic resonance.

“Welcome to Asthotar,” Ysvara said as the group disembarked, her wings flicking slightly as she turned to face them. The faint sea breeze brushed past her silver hair, carrying with it the brine and warmth of the Demonic Sea. “Last stop before Vorago.”

Her tone was casual, but her eyes gleamed faintly with nostalgia, remembering the old days where she went her with her friends and explored all across Vorago, and now she was back, leading a group of students.

Around them, the students poured out of the carriages, stretching their limbs and blinking against the shifting lights.

Vendors were calling out their wares, shimmering mana crystals, sea-glass trinkets, bottles of bioluminescent ink, enchanted shells that whispered when held close to the ear.

Even the air buzzed with mana activity, a strange blend of natural energy and controlled magic, the heartbeat of a city that had learned to coexist with the volatile sea it bordered.

Miranda shaded her eyes and smiled faintly, “It’s beautiful. I’ve read about Asthotar in old travel journals from my Mother during her adventuring days. It’s known as the only Demon City that never sleeps.”

“Because it can’t,” came the smooth, knowing voice of Ysvara, “The tides of the Demonic Sea shift according to the phases of the Moons. Trade never stops here, and neither do the storms that sleep beneath the waves.”

At that, even the more relaxed students straightened slightly.

Orphelia was standing beside Albedo, her notebook still half-open, though her gaze was drawn toward the horizon.”That energy…” she whispered, pointing towards the location, “The sea itself has a mana density close to a natural ley line.”

Albedo’s gaze followed Orphelia’s finger toward the glowing horizon. The Demonic Sea stretched endlessly, a vast, breathing tapestry of violet and indigo waves that pulsed with mana so thick it almost hummed in his bones.

Each ripple shone with inner light, the currents seeming to twist with their own strange consciousness.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, feeling it too, the subtle pressure in the air, like the faint weight of a god’s breath resting on the world.

“You’re right,” Albedo murmured, his tone quiet but edged with curiosity. “It’s… alive.”

Orphelia nodded, eyes bright with that familiar gleam she always got when faced with something she couldn’t immediately explain.

“Exactly. That’s why I come here for vacation all the time, the mana concentration here rivals anything I’ve ever studied and it makes for a perfect study environment.

She said, snapping her notebook shut as if the quill alone couldn’t capture what she was seeing, “The Demonic Sea holds the second highest recorded density of aquatic-type mana beasts in the world, just behind the Atlantic, which is ruled by the Kingdom of Atlantis.”

“Atlantis?” Elara tilted her head, joining the conversation as she adjusted the strap of her satchel, “I haven’t seen an Atlantean ever, are they isolationists?” She asked.

Orphelia’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile,”Not isolationists, but it takes something very special for them to leave their Kingdom. The Atlanteans are said to have built their entire kingdom beneath the mana currents of the Great Trench. Every creature there evolved in magic-saturated conditions, leviathans, abyssal serpents, things that feed on mana itself. The Demonic Sea here… it’s similar, but it’s more chaotic. It doesn’t nurture life, it challenges it.”

Her words hung heavy in the salt-sweet air. The others listened quietly, glancing out toward the horizon as faint streaks of luminescent fins broke the water’s surface before vanishing beneath the waves.

A massive, distant roar rolled across the sea—low, resonant, almost like the echo of thunder beneath the depths. The carriages trembled faintly in response.

Zeus gave a low whistle, crossing his arms with a grin. “Sounds like something I’d like to fight.”

Kayle rolled her eyes. “You’d last five seconds.”

“Five seconds longer than you,” Zeus shot back, but there was no venom in it, just their usual banter.

Ysvara, who had been watching the horizon with quiet nostalgia, finally turned back to them, her gaze sharp yet warm. The soft glow of the lanterns reflected in her black eyes as she spoke. “You’ll have time to admire the sea later. For now, you’re free to explore Asthotar. It’s a trade hub, and one of the safer cities within the Demon Kingdom, relatively speaking.”

“Relatively?” Dorian muttered, eyeing a distant group of armored demon guards walking past, their armor wreathed in faint smoke.

Ysvara smirked faintly. “This is the Demon Realm. ’Safe’ is a matter of perspective. There are the occasional sea monster attack, but Hunters usually rush to defend against these monsters, as their parts are quite valuable to sell as food,”

Her wings shifted slightly, catching the light before she continued, voice carrying easily over the bustle of the port. “Three hours. That’s how long you have before the teleportation circles open. Once they do, we’ll be departing straight for Vorago. Don’t be late.”

Miranda gave a small nod, her silver hair glimmering as she turned toward the city’s inner streets. “Three hours… not much time, but enough to see something beautiful.”

As the others split off into small groups, laughter and chatter spilling into the lively streets, Orphelia adjusted her glasses and quietly tugged on Albedo’s sleeve, who was heading to go shopping.

“Come on,” she said softly, voice barely rising over the hum of the market.

He blinked, tilting his head, “Where to?” he asked, wondering why she was still sticking to him so much even when he wasn’t using his weapons.

“You’ll see.”

Without waiting for a response, she slipped through the crowd, moving with surprising grace for someone usually buried in books.

Albedo followed, mostly curious since Orphelia was very unexplored in the Novel, his boots echoing faintly against the obsidian streets as they wound past merchants, harbor guards, and glowing runes etched into the pavement.

The smell of salt thickened as they neared the cliffs, until the noise of the city began to fade into the steady rhythm of the waves.

A few minutes later, they left the last of the floating lanterns behind, the world narrowing into a winding path that led toward a jagged peak on the outskirts of the city.

The road climbed steeply, carved into black volcanic stone that shimmered with faint threads of red. The mana in the air grew stronger with every step, cleaner, purer, the kind that resonated with both body and soul.

Finally, the two reached the summit.

The view took even Albedo by surprise. Below them stretched the entirety of Asthotar, lanterns drifting like constellations, the harbor glowing faintly with magical currents, and beyond that, the vast expanse of the Demonic Sea, rolling beneath the starlit sky.

The wind here was crisp and warm, heavy with mana, each breath tingling faintly against his skin.

Orphelia set down her satchel beside a weathered boulder and sighed with visible relief. “Finally,” she murmured. “Peace.”

Albedo crossed his arms, watching her curiously. “So this is your study place whenever you’re on vacation here?”

She nodded, smiling faintly. “Mhm. I found it a couple years ago when I came here for field research. The mana density is perfect, stable, but strong. You can feel the mana currents running beneath the stone.”

He nodded slightly, gazing out at the glowing waves. “You didn’t bring me up here just for the view, did you?”

That earned him a small, guilty laugh. “Partially,” she admitted, brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “But mostly…” She hesitated, glancing away toward the city below. “I needed a way to lose Lukas. You might not know how he get since you’re a first year, but he follows me around like a shadow all the time,”

Albedo’s lips quirked upward. “So you used me as a decoy.”

She grinned. “Exactly. You make a good distraction.”

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