"Where do you even get this from?"

Alice was bewildered by the presentation of such refined technology. Never in her wildest dream would she ever think of witnessing this.

How can this work? What is that strange light which crystallizes in thin air? Where is this energy coming from?

Her thoughts wandered from one question to another.

As an expert herself, she had read about Evana City and their deep rooted technological advancement.

They even mentioned that, in Evans City they have flying ships, and even mechanical life forms.

Alice always believed such a thing could never exist, and still believed that.

Ethan scratched his head, as he let the prism in his hand close. He put the prism on the table for both Leon and Alice to get a closer look.

"Hey, answer me!" Alice demanded.

Ethan let out a small sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.

"I bought it," he said. "From a merchant."

There's no way in hell he could tell her about the quest and that he got this map as a reward.

Alice stared at him.

"…You're kidding."

"I'm not," Ethan replied quickly. "You know Black market trader? The one who passed through the border regions a few months ago. Well… He was selling weird stuff. Most of it looked like junk except this one didn't."

Leon tilted his head slightly.

'Heh. This won't work on Alice.' Leon decided to tease his excuse out of fun.

"This one?" Leon repeated. "Meaning you knew it was special?"

Ethan hesitated for a fraction of a second.

"Ah, yes. I mean just look at it. Doesn't this look strange to you? As if it wants you to have it."

"..."

"..."

Leon and ALice looked at the prism, which looked like a paperweight before exchanging glances.

"Nope." They both said in unison.

"…Wow," Ethan muttered. "Okay, that hurt."

Leon folded his arms, leaning back slightly.

"Alright," he said. "Let's just say it was the map of Evana City. What do you want to do?"

Alice nodded her head agreeing to Leon.

Ethan stiffened.

Leon took note of his reaction, and answered in his place.

"You want to go there? By using this map…?"

Ethan scratched his cheeks and simply agreed. "Exactly."

"Exactly my ass!" Alice glared at him, "do you even know if that thing is authentic?! What are the chances of its leading us all to a different place which was not even Evana?"

Ethan signed and looked at Leon.

Leon flatly told him, raising both his hands, "don't look at me. I agree with her."

Unless Ethan could convince Alice on his own, he wouldn't say another word.

And that was exactly what Leon wanted.

There was no way in hell Alice would agree to something this vague. Not without any solid proof. Not without a reason she could accept these absurd claims.

And unlike Leon, she didn't know about Ethan's system. If Ethan failed to make her believe, then she simply wouldn't join this quest.

Which solved Leon's problem neatly.

Cyan Miller had been a different case altogether.

Unlike her, Cyan didn't need convincing. He was curious about Ethan, about his abnormal growth, and his strength. He wanted to see for himself what this so-called Rank-1 first year truly had in store.

That curiosity was what had pulled him into Evana City in the first place.

And from that point on, that single decision had changed both of their lives.

Evana City had given them something. To Cyan, it had given meaning. And to Ethan, it had given direction.

Leon exhaled quietly.

This was the one point he still didn't wish to interfere with.

Evana City was a turning point, one he understood all too well. And while he could manipulate the path leading there, what came after was never something he had full control over either.

At the same time…

He was curious to see what Evana City would give him instead.

What it would give Leon Valentine.

As Ethan and Alice went back and forth, Leon just kept his mouth shut. He only spoke up when Alice seemed to have looked a least bit convincing.

It's been fifteen minutes since Ethan was trying to convince Alice first to join this quest with him. To him, she would always end up replying something like:

"Last time I'm saying this. Tell me where it came from, or I'm out."

"But you are curious right?" Ethan still tried his best.

To which Alice answered. "True, I am curious, but not suicidal. That technology seems interesting, but I am not trusting the guy who didn't even tell me what he wants to do there."

Any sane person would say that.

If Ethan wants her trust, then he needs a better excuse.

All of his excuses were smart, no doubt. But when his opponent was someone like Alice, he didn't have a chane of winning.

"Here's you order~"

Soon, the waitress came, holding two large trays, three drinks, two plates of steamed dumplings, and a tray full of bean cake.

She dressed the dishes in front of the ones who ordered them in an elegant manner.

Alice picked up the fork, and stabbed his cake, before taking a bite.

"Mhhmmm~" She enjoyed the flavour, "this is seriously sweet. You guys should try some."

"..."

Ethan's eyes twitched at her words.

She was not even taking Ethan seriously anymore.

Leon noticed it immediately.

The way Alice leaned back in her chair, happily stabbing her cake as if the conversation had already ended. The way she chewed slowly, like Ethan's words were nothing more than background noise.

Leon smiled faintly.

'Yeah. There was no way she was joining this quest now.'

Ethan saw it too.

He let out a long sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "Haaah…"

"How am I supposed to make you believe me?"

He meant it.

He was dead set on bringing her along.

Why wouldn't he be?

Just a few hours ago, he would have lost his head to her scythe if his light had not reacted on its own and saved him.

Alice was dangerous, skilled. And more importantly, she was smart.

A well known name in the field of Magitech with multiple research papers under her name. Recognized even by people outside the academy.

Anyone would want someone like her on their team.

Even if she was rough around the edges. Even if she swore too much. Even if she acted like she didn't care.

Ethan didn't mind any of that.

He wasn't looking for someone polite, but was looking for someone useful.

And he knew it damn well that Alice would be invaluable in Evana City.

Which was exactly why this was frustrating.

Alice, meanwhile, had already finished half her cake.

"Mhhmmm~" she hummed again, clearly enjoying herself. "Yeah, no, this is good. Like, dangerously good."

Leon watched as she casually pushed the plate a little closer to Ethan. "You sure you don't want some? Might be the last decent dessert before you get yourself killed."

"…You're not even listening anymore, are you?" Ethan muttered.

"Nope," she replied instantly, without even looking at him. "You lost me at 'trust me' thing."

Her gaze shifted to Leon, "you want some?"

Leon didn't reject it. "Sure."

She finished the rest of the cake in a few bites after Leon took some, wiped her mouth with a napkin, and leaned back.

"Look," she said, finally meeting his eyes. "I like weird tech. I like forbidden cities. I even like bad ideas."

"Buuuut…." Then her gaze hardened just a little.

"I don't like walking blind into something you won't explain."

.

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[A/N: 100 Powerstone in 24 hours to get 2 extra chapters!]

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