A week passed in the blink of an eye.
As the gates of Fairy Academy swung open and the first class of prospective graduates filed out, Darwin's trio had already embarked on their journey to Guiltina.
Though the team consisted of only three people, no one in the academy dared to underestimate their power. Even the older generation of wizards in the guild held boundless expectations for this combination.
To make the journey more meaningful, the three chose not to have Darwin use "Imaginary Take Over" to rush by flight. Instead, they used more primitive means—carriages and ships—traveling slowly. After all, they had an entire year and felt no need to rush.
Half a month later, the group of three stepped onto the soil of Guiltina.
"Whew..."
"We're finally here!"
While Darwin was cheering for the start of their new adventure, Chris had already keenly noticed something unusual in the atmosphere.
"The concentration of magic particles in the atmosphere here is significantly different from Ishgar!"
Hearing this, Darwin was stunned and immediately closed his eyes to sense it carefully, wanting to verify Chris's words.
Half a minute later, he opened his eyes in disappointment: "Why can't I feel a difference? You aren't just making things up, are you?"
"Chris isn't making it up; there really is a difference!"
Erza stepped forward, raising a hand into the air to sense more subtle nuances through her skin. After a long moment, she said: "Though it's slight, the magic particles on this continent are indeed denser than in Ishgar. The difference is about 3 percent."
"This is just the border. Once we head deeper inland, the difference should become more obvious, and you'll be able to perceive it then."
Among the three, Chris possessed the most refined perception and control over magic. Even if two sources of magic were highly similar, she could immediately distinguish differences in quality, attribute, and concentration.
Erza's ability in this area was slightly secondary; she could only make such distinctions when focusing intensely. Under normal circumstances, she would at most feel an "anomaly."
For instance, right now, without Chris's prompt, she would have only felt that the air was fresher and that breathing felt more comfortable for her body.
As for Darwin, his perception of magic was the weakest.
However, his "weakness" was only relative; compared to other peers in the academy, he still far exceeded them.
Sure enough, after the group continued forward for ten minutes, Darwin also felt the difference.
The higher the concentration of magic particles in the atmosphere, the more comfortable it is for a wizard—much like humans living in a high-oxygen environment.
After taking several deep breaths, Darwin's mood instantly brightened.
"Which direction are we heading again?"
On the way over, the three had prepared a map of Guiltina, but they hadn't pre-determined a route, preferring to move according to their whims and see where they ended up.
At this moment, the one responsible for the map was Chris.
"Head east. We need to go to a specific place first."
"A specific place?"
Darwin looked blankly at Erza: "Did you guys arrange a destination before we came?"
"No." Erza was also confused.
Chris explained: "Before we set out, Dad instructed me that we should visit someone. He said if we want to find dragons, we can get information from them."
"Eh??"
"Dad actually has friends in Guiltina? And they have information on dragons?!!"
Darwin's eyes widened.
He originally thought that after arriving in Guiltina, he would need to spend at least a month or two traveling through four or five towns just to gather a few scraps of news related to dragons.
He hadn't expected his old man's social circle to be so vast that a casual introduction would provide dragon intel, saving him the trouble of searching.
This kind of setup...
It was great, but wouldn't that make him a "Second Gen" who relies on his dad to finish his field practice?
"Did Dad say who the person is?"
"No, he only said he still owes them a favor and told us to help fulfill it if possible."
Good grief!
Turns out it's a debt left over from Dad's younger days!
Darwin suddenly felt like he was being played by his "delinquent" father...
Half a day later.
The three stood before the gates of Magia Dragon.
The concentration of magic particles here was several times higher than what Darwin had felt before. The magic had even condensed into snow-like crystals, drifting slowly from the sky—a magnificent sight.
Magia Dragon was the earliest magic guild in Guiltina, and perhaps all of Earthland. Its master was the very man who had recognized talent years ago and acted as a cheat, the first to sponsor and provide magical guidance to Weston: "Law Dragon" Elefseria.
"Is anyone in?"
"We're coming in!"
With a soft creak, the doors pushed open. Sunlight streamed in, immediately illuminating the enclosed guild hall.
Stepping inside, their first impression was a desolation vastly different from Fairy Tail.
Not only was it deserted, but the dust buildup was severe. With every step, a prominent footprint was left on the floor; clearly, it hadn't been cleaned in a long time.
"Cough, cough... what an ancient place!"
"Does anyone actually live here?"
As the three wondered, a somewhat noisy voice drifted down from the second floor of the guild—
"Go, go!! Watch me hit the QWER ult combo!! Eat dirt, you stupid Five Dragon Gods!!"
What on earth was that sound??
The three looked at each other, their eyes full of confusion.
Following the stairs to the second floor, they traced the sound to a tightly closed wooden door.
Just as they hesitated between knocking or pushing the door open, the sound inside suddenly went silent.
A few seconds later, with a click, the wooden door suddenly opened from the inside.
Then, a bedraggled old man with a large beard and low energy appeared before them.
"..."
The four stood face-to-face, the air falling silent for several seconds.
"Am I seeing things?"
"Why would anyone come here?"
"I must have played games too late last night!"
The old man shook his head, closed the door from the inside, and reopened it two seconds later.
"..."
"No, no, no, my way of opening the door must be wrong!"
Click, click—!
"..."
Just as the old man was about to open the door for the third time, Erza hurriedly shouted to stop him: "Wait—"
Before her voice could fade, the three felt their bodies grow light. The surrounding scenery shifted instantly, and by the time they regained their senses, they were standing outside the guild again.
"It's Spatial Transfer Magic!"
Chris immediately recognized the technique. "It seems he isn't very welcoming toward us..."
Darwin: "..."
He's probably just embarrassed because someone saw him obsessed with games!