Kelly watched people filing through the doors — most dressed like money walked beside them, their auras so thick you'd need to hold your breath near them.
She pulled her hood back and headed for the entrance. "Larden, huh," she muttered.
Inside, she froze for a second to take it all in. The hall was a maze of compartments and stalls, packed with people—angry, excited, bargaining, yelling at sellers who were trying to swindle them. The noise hit like a wave.
Kelly moved down a corridor lined with strange wares. Some items glowed; others hummed on their own. A soft "meow" made her turn.
A white, round-eyed creature perched on a post beside a stall, looking at her like it had all the time in the world.
"What the hell is a cat doing here?" Kelly muttered. "I always knew those furballs were sus—turns out they're aliens."
"Say what now?"
"Friz! Get over here!" the stall owner shouted, stepping out from a tiny shop stacked with potions. His face was draconian and severe, but when the creature—Friz—trotted over and began circling his legs, the man scolded through a smile. "We haven't finished the advanced dust-regeneration brew and you're slacking. In here, now, or I'll dock your pay."
Friz meowed and scampered around him, tail flicking. The man tried to stay stern, but he couldn't help laughing as he scooped the creature up and ruffled its fur. "This is the last time, got it? Won't work again. Ohohoho!"
Kelly coughed, making the man turn his attention to her begrudgingly, as if questioning why she hadn't gone away yet.
"Um… I'm looking for a map of the ancient ruins of Mount Kile. Do you know where I can get one?"
The man groaned like she'd just asked him something irritating. "Tch. Of all the annoying requests… Fine. Gurin — five stalls down from here — sells maps. Especially the ancient kind."
Kelly nodded. "Thanks—"
"But listen carefully," he cut in, pointing a finger at her like she'd personally offended him. "I hate Gurin. So you're gonna buy from him, then you're gonna walk right out of this Trade Center, and you're never coming back to my stall again. Not to look. Not to breathe. Not to exist near it."
He slammed his stall door shut.
"You're banned! Permanently!"
Kelly stared for a moment, still not sure how a simple question had earned her a lifetime ban, then shrugged and walked toward the stall the man had pointed out.
This one was neater — open shelves, stacks of maps, diagrams, and papers arranged like someone actually cared. Behind the counter leaned a skinny man with eyes that practically jingled like coins. The second he saw her, his smile spread like spilled oil.
"Welcome, welcome! You've arrived at the most brilliant, ostentatious, magical stall in the entire Trade Center. Only the chosen few ever find me. I sell everything — three-star Dust array diagrams, maps of the deadliest places on the planet, rune nodes that will—"
"Cut the crap," Kelly said flatly. If she let him keep talking, she knew she'd regret it. "I need a map of the ancient ruins on Mount Kile. Price?"
The man froze — then his grin stretched like elastic. He rubbed his palms together dramatically.
"Ahh, the ruins… A place of danger, mystery, and—money. Normally, fifty Rolds wouldn't even scratch the surface, but because I am a fair and generous—"
Kelly dropped the pouch of money on the counter.
That shut him up.
Jayden had handed her some Rolds to "go have fun," but Kelly was mentally filing it under loan — to be paid back as soon as she got the chance… preferably before she murdered him.
The Rolds were cube-shaped pieces of Feroy, a mineral that shimmered with shifting colors under light. Cool to look at, irritating to carry.
The stall owner stared at the pouch like it contained his future. Then he opened it, sniffed it, tossed it lightly in one hand as if weighing it — and the greed in his eyes doubled.
"Just a moment, Your Empress," he said, bowing so low his nose nearly scraped the counter. He dove into his stacks, tossed a few scrolls aside, then popped up with a triumphant yell. "Found it!"
He practically skipped over and handed her the map like it was a royal decree.
"Do come again, Your Radiance!"
Kelly ignored all of that and unfolded the paper. One look and her eyebrow shot up. The map looked like someone had sketched it mid-heart attack.
She did, and the lines lit up—Cosmic Dust tracing pathways, lifting into the air until a holographic image formed above the map: a shattered wasteland, ruined buildings, debris everywhere.
"This is the place, right?" she asked.
She rolled the map and slipped it into the pocket of her cloak. Just as she turned to leave, two figures blocked her path—one a red-haired boy with sharp, blue slit-pupiled eyes, the other an older man whose aura pressed against the air like a warning.
The boy bowed with practiced politeness, then lifted his head to meet her gaze.
"Miss, that map is of particular value to me. If you're willing to sell, the House of Tyran will pay triple whatever you bought it for. And if that's not enough, we can still negotiate higher."
Beside him, the older man released more pressure, clearly meant to intimidate her—though to Kelly, it felt like being shoved by a kitten. After the beings she had faced before, this was nothing but a joke. He wasn't scaring her. He was embarrassing himself.
Kelly glanced at the stall owner. He avoided her eyes, guilt written all over his face.
Damn traitor.
"I refuse," she said flatly, her expression unchanged. "So if you don't mind—move."
"You—!" the older man snapped, his voice rising.
Before he could continue, the boy stopped him with a hand on his arm. He smiled again, too calm, too calculating, eyes gleaming with a hint of threat.
"No problem, Miss. But allow me to give a little advice," he said softly. "When you carry something valuable, make sure you have the strength to protect it. The world outside…" His smile widened just a little. "…is a very, very dangerous place."
"And tongues can only do so much," Kelly said coldly. "Until they get ripped off."
The boy's smile stayed, but it never touched his eyes. He turned away, the older man following, still glaring at Kelly as if he expected her to drop dead from it.
Before she could move, a sudden uproar broke through the marketplace.
"Make way! Stop him— the Blitz Thief is escaping!"
Multiple voices shouted at once. People scattered.
"The Law Keepers!" someone whispered, and the crowd immediately pulled back, not wanting to get caught in whatever was happening.
Kelly raised an eyebrow, confused, and shifted to step aside—
—then felt it.
A sudden rush of wind at her back.
'Stellar Sight,' she commanded.
Time slowed.
She caught a glimpse—barely—a man in a black cloak identical to hers, sprinting toward her with wild excitement glittering in his eyes, half his face hidden behind a mask.
Every instinct screamed danger. Kelly reached for Cosmic Dust—
—but he was already in front of her.
"What a perfect—" he said, dropping something into her hands. A book. Glowing deep green. "—scapegoat."
It happened in less than a heartbeat.
He vanished.
And a squad of armored figures stormed into view, blue armor gleaming, their aura unmistakable: Dust Wielders. Their eyes locked on the glowing book in her hand—and that was all they needed.
"DIE!" they roared, dozens of attacks launched at once, the air exploding with power. Faces twisted with rage and murder.
Kelly stood alone, surrounded by a storm of death—mere seconds away from being obliterated.