Chapter 13: The Teleric Station
"Name?"
"Moz Nathan," replied a gruff man with a full beard and an eyepatch covering his left eye.
"Location?" the attendant asked once more.
"Eastern Moriarty," he answered, and the woman nodded before stamping a ticket and placing it on the counter.
"That will be a total of five Imperial Gold coins."
"Five?!" The man’s eyes widened in disbelief.
"I’m sorry, sir, but recently, conflicts have broken out between the Crownston Dukedom and that of Mostiflia. Because of this, the border connecting both regions has been blocked off." She gestured apologetically as she continued. "Transporting mana cores has become significantly more difficult since everything now has to be rerouted through Carizon. Due to this, the price of mana cores in this area has skyrocketed, and since the Teleric system relies on those cores to function, we’ve had no choice but to increase the fare." She offered an apologetic bow.
"But Eastern Moriarty is just one dukedom away!" the man argued, his expression souring.
"I truly am sorry," she said, not offering any further justification.
"Tsk." He clicked his tongue in frustration before pulling out his pouch and placing five gold coins on the counter. Spatial rings were ridiculously expensive—only the wealthiest of the wealthy could afford such a luxury, so he had to make do with carrying his coin pouch like everyone else.
"Thank you for your patronage," the woman said as he took his ticket and walked off toward the boarding zone.
"Next."
A figure clad in a black cloak stepped forward.
"Name?"
"Eliot," the man answered. From his voice, she could tell he was young.
"Eliot...?" She waited for a last name, but the figure remained silent.
Slightly unsettled, she moved on. "Location?"
"Karendel," he replied.
The woman frowned. Karendel was currently one of the most dangerous places in the region. There had been recent sightings of a Mystic World about to manifest, which had forced the entire territory into evacuation. No sane person would willingly travel there under such circumstances.
"Sir? I don’t think I heard that correctly," she said, hoping he had misspoken.
The man leaned in slightly. "I said, Karendel."
She sighed. "Can I see some ID? All transport companies have been sanctioned to deny passage to Karendel unless the traveler has explicit authorization from higher authorities. The only exception is if you hold an official A-S Rank Hunter ID."
The young man slowly leaned back, allowing her to catch a glimpse of the white mask he wore.
"That, I don’t have..." he began, but she immediately cut him off.
"I figured as much."
"Wait... but I do have something that might change your mind," he said.
Her eyes widened as she caught sight of the spatial ring on his finger—an artifact worth thousands of Imperial Gold coins. But that wasn’t what made her breath hitch. No, it was the golden seal he now held out that made her freeze completely.
"Estellia..." she whispered in shock.
The man in the black cloak tilted his head slightly. "I presume we no longer have a problem."
She swallowed hard before nodding rather nervously. "B-But..." She hesitated, struggling to find her words, afraid of angering him.
"What?" the young man prompted.
"I will still need to see your face—just for documentation," she murmured, though he remained silent.
"Um, i-if that would be an issue, we can just—" she began hesitantly, but he interjected.
"No, it’s fine." He halted her babbling, raising a hand to his mask before slowly removing it. "Is this acceptable?"
The moment she laid eyes on him, her breath caught. Her eyes widened so much it seemed they might fall from their sockets.
"What?!" she blurted out, her voice breaking.
And then...
...she fainted.
✽✽✽
"Damn it," I groaned as I walked toward the boarding zone.
"I think I might have lost my looks for good," I sighed. It was the result of the potion I made Anna buy. It was the same potion I had used to fix her face. But back then, she only had a single dose, which was why I had to keep a mask on until she got another. With all the time I wasted, the damage to my face had worsened to the point of near permanence. But after applying the potion before leaving the hotel room, my burnt skin regenerated and my distorted features started to realign.
I have no idea what I look like now, but judging by her reaction, it’s probably not good.
Haah. I sighed again, my gaze settling on the Teleric boarding zone. The crowd was thick—it was going to take a while.
Wait.
I still have that seal.