Even so, many mages still settled inside the Astralis City, just to be closer to the mage tower. As the presence of a mage tower alone brought immense benefits. Mage towers were built with countless mana-gathering formations woven into their very walls. These formations increased the ambient mana density around them, creating a perfect environment for cultivation. In addition to these, the outer walls of mage towers were lined with defensive and offensive formations, making them both fortresses and shrines of knowledge.
It was said that Duke Reynard's mage tower held a tier six mana-gathering formation. This made the mana density in the Central District far higher than in the outer districts or even most places in the kingdom. Even in his previous life, Kaito remembered someone discovering this fact, confirming that the tower itself was a core reason for the city's incredible environment.
But Duke Reynard's tower was not the only mage tower in Astralis City. Around the four corners of the city the north, south, east, and west stood four other mage towers. These towers belonged to Duke Reynard's direct disciples. Each of them had reached the level of a tier five powerhouse and was granted their own eight-floor mage tower.
These four towers not only added to Astralis City's prestige but also strengthened the mana density across the outer districts.
And in addition to that, In the four districts of Astralis City, other than the four eight-floor mage towers owned by Duke Reynard's students, there were also many other mage towers scattered across the outer districts. These were built according to the ranks of the mages who owned them. The lowest among them were six-floor mage towers, which meant that their owners were tier three mages.
This was not surprising as the Astralis City was considered the holy city of mages, and because of the presence of so many powerful mages, abundant mage resources circulated within the city. These resources were necessary for research, cultivation, and for increasing strength. That was why countless mages flocked to Astralis City. Some came with the hope of one day being accepted into Duke Reynard's mage tower, while many others came simply to enjoy the easy access to the city's mage resources. For a mage, such resources were life itself, and Astralis City had more of them than anywhere else in the Solaris Kingdom.
Just then, a system announcement appeared in front of Kaito.
[Solaris Kingdom Announcement]
Congratulations to player Raen for being the first player to reach a city in Glory. This deed will be recorded in the Hall of Fame. Rewards include: 100 Honor Points and +2 Reputation Level in Astralis City.
Another prompt followed right after.
[System Notification]
Astralis City Reputation: Neutral --> Friendly --> Honorary
Kaito blinked at the messages, pulling himself out of his thoughts. Only now did it fully register that he had become the very first player to reach the city stage in entire Glory.
A small, bitter smile crossed his face. He had thought that after wasting so much time in the early stages, he might only rank somewhere in the top ten overall, even if he was the first in the Solaris Kingdom. But reality proved otherwise, he had clearly overestimated the other players.
If anyone else heard Kaito's thoughts, they would surely call him shameless. In his previous life, it had taken players three to four full weeks just to reach level 20 in Glory, and even then, not a single one had transferred to a city so soon. At that time, everyone's priority was to clear the higher difficulty levels of team dungeons like the Misty Palace before transferring, so that their guilds could at least secure the method to clear them, and then they can using that method continue to clear it with the other lower level members of the guild.
If it had not been for Kaito's interference in this life, history would have repeated itself. But now, the flow of events had been completely altered when Kaito had provided them with guides to clear it.
He then looked again at the system rewards. The new 100 Honor Points were no small gift. Adding them to what he already had, he realized he only needed 150 more Honor Points to reach the rank of Earl. That was no small achievement.
Although the gain felt satisfying, Kaito knew the truth. After reaching Astralis City, quests that rewarded Honor Points would become much harder to find. In his past life, he had struggled to gain even a handful of Honor Points here. That was because he could not interact with the higher-level NPCs. The strongest NPC he had ever been able to receive quests from had only been a tier three NPC.
But this time, things were completely different.
His gaze drifted to the mission log in his interface. Only one line stood out clearly in it,
[Mission: Meet the Duke]
Seeing that, Kaito's lips curved into a wide smile.
Just then, he noticed the officer who managed the transportation array staring at him. The man's eyes were filled with disdain, clearly directed at Kaito, who had been smiling to himself like a fool.
Embarrassed, Kaito quickly apologized, stepped down from the array platform, and walked away as fast as possible.
This particular transportation array was one of the city's major hubs. It wasn't only connected to South Glade Town, but also to several other towns under Astralis City's domain. Countless travelers and residents passed through this array every day. The fact that Kaito had appeared in the middle of an empty square only emphasized how early he had arrived compared to everyone else.
As soon as he stepped out of the square and into the bustling streets, the sight before him left him amazed.
The streets of Astralis City were alive with activity, but not in the way he was used to. Here, in addition to the pedestrians, mechanical puppets ran back and forth, carrying out different tasks. Some were hauling loads, others were sweeping the streets, and many were assisting carriages and travelers. The entire city seemed to hum with life powered by magical machines.
One puppet in particular caught Kaito's eye. It was shaped like a massive bull, its body made of gleaming alloy and inscribed with runes. The mechanical bull was pulling an enormous carriage behind it. The carriage itself was decorated in noble style, its panels laid with gold and set with gemstones that glittered in the light.
Just one glance at that carriage was enough to tell him that someone of great power and influence was riding inside.
Kaito could only marvel at the sight. The magical creations of Astralis City were far beyond what he had seen in smaller towns.
But Kaito did not linger for long. He reminded himself that before he went to meet the Duke, he needed to complete something very important, his class change.
He knew well that with his current strength, the Duke might not even bother to look at him. Only by completing his class change and stepping into his true path would he be able to raise his strength to a level worthy of an audience. For now, that was the most important step.
Of course, Although being the first to enter Astralis City had already given him system rewards, but that was not the end. He knew, from the memories of his previous life, that there were many other hidden rewards waiting for him here in the city. These rewards would never appear for anyone else because no one else had the knowledge he carried. For Kaito, they were treasures he alone could claim.
….
At the same time that Kaito stepped into Astralis City, far away in Blue Sky Town near South Glade Town, a different scene was unfolding. A group of players had gathered in silence, carefully surrounding a level 20 Iron Leather Scorpion. The atmosphere was tense, but the players moved in unison, each one waiting for the command of their leader. At the front of the group stood none other than Grave Mind.
Not long ago, after the leaders of the Everhold Dominion had held the meeting regarding how to deal with Raen. It was agreed that continuing to treat him as an enemy would only cause them more losses. Instead, they would try to adopt a friendlier approach and put an end to their open hostility. At the same time, another agreement was reached. To avoid provoking Raen any further, they would shift their focus away from South Glade Town.
The chosen destination for this shift was Blue Sky Town. There were many reasons for this. Blue Sky Town had already been conquered by Grave Mind and was firmly under their control. On top of that, it was the same town whose team had once been deployed against Raen in the past. With this background, the leaders decided it was only natural to move their forces here.
As a result, the bulk of the Dominion members stationed in South Glade Town were recalled, leaving behind only a few token members to keep up appearances. The real strength of the Dominion was now gathering in Blue Sky Town, under the command of Grave Mind.