“…Disband your team?”

  “That’s right,” Alnea said, with the Star Seekers nodding alongside him. “Please, disband our team, Wanderer Tivya.”

  “…You can think about it again.”

  “We have already thought about it,” Alnea said, glancing at his teammates. “The reason we formed our team was to help each other in entering the inner city. And now that we have fulfilled our goal, there is no reason for this team to exist.”

  “How can you be so sure that you do not need a team anymore?” Tivya said, scrunching her brows a little. “You seem to be interested in entering the core city. What if that requires you to be in a team? What would you do then?”

  “Does it?”

  “…What?”

  “Does entering the core city requires a team?”

  “…That is not the point I am trying to make,” Tivya said, scrunching her brows even further. “There are many places in the city, where having a team would make things convenient for you. Like renting a mansion. Or creating Arcanas and Glyph Arrays. Not to mention that most missions in the Black Desert are often those that can be completed only in groups.”

  “And that is the problem. Some of us plan to leave the city soon, while the rest plan to stay for a few more weeks. And though the former might not be affected by keeping the team as it is, the rest would have to face many inconveniences. Especially when they return to their clans.”

  “You are leaving the city already?”

  “Is that really something to be so surprised about? Charming as the Lost City might be, it is not our home. We came here just to train ourselves. And now that we have finally achieved some result, should we not return back to our homes to show off?”

  “But you have just come to the inner city!”

  “And?”

  “You—

  “Leave it, Tivya,” Nubia said, shaking her head. “You have already said enough. Anymore, and you will be walking on the edge of rules.”

  “…But they are wasting such a good opportunity! Especially him! Ten thousand Contribution Points! Do you know how much—

  “Enough,” Nanya said, glaring at Tivya. “Do not forget your duties. And your limits. Unlike that Thunderbird, you do not have anyone to wipe your ass for you.”

  “Hey!”

  “And you… I will not stop you from disbanding your team. But she was not wrong. Having the help of some reliable teammates can prove to be very convenient in the initial stages of your development in the inner city. Especially if you have enemies. And considering the rumours about you… In any case, you better let her explain all the rules of the inner city first. It will not be too late to disband your team after you have understood how things work here.”

  The Star Seekers glanced at each other, before turning back towards the Wanderer.

  “Then we will listen to your advice, Wanderer Nanya.”

  “…I will leave the rest up to you Tivya. And do not mess up again.”

  “…I know,” Tivya said with a nod, before turning back to the Star Seekers. “My apologies for my outburst earlier.”

  “It is alright, Wanderer Tivya. You were thinking for our own good.”

  “If you know—

  “Tivya.”

  “…As I was saying, there are quite a few places where having a team can—

  “That is not what you were saying, Tivya.”

  “…Huh? What was I talking about then? The advantages of staying in the inner city? Like the Field of Myst—

  “Tivya.”

  “…I was just joking,” Tivya said, laughing awkwardly, as she glanced at the frowning faces of Nubia and Nanya. Maybe she had gone a bit too far… Just in case, she decided not to test their limits anymore, and withdrew her smile, as she turned back towards the Star Seekers.

  “Coming back to the relationship between privileges and Contribution points, like I said before, the highest level of privilege you can gain in the inner city is that of a Blood Lord. If you want to have an even higher level of privilege, you must go to the core city. Because the privilege level of a Blood Lord is already equivalent to the basic privileges of a Mystic Wanderer. And Mystic Wanderers would not gain any benefits by staying in the inner city.”

  “Then what about the Blood Masters and Blood Progenitors?” Alnea said, and almost instantaneously, the entire Blood Hall fell into silence. It did not matter if anyone was in midst of a conversation, or if they were completing some important procedure. The moment they heard the faint whispers reaching their ears, they turned still. Even those standing at the other end of the Blood Hall. And they all turned towards him, staring at him with wide eyes.

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  “…Are you insane!” Tivya hissed after a few moments, trying to keep her voice as low as she could. Yet, in the silence of the Blood Hall, it still rang out like an Eternal Fire’s explosion, bringing everyone back to their senses. Along with a chaos, that none of the Star Seekers had ever seen descend in a Blood Hall. Not even when Alnea was attacked within its walls.

  Near the gates, the Wanderers who were just about to enter the hall, turned around and left the same way they had come, while those who were in queue, or had already finished what they had come to do, quickly chased after them. Only those who were still in midst of their work were forced to stay. But they too quickly finished whatever they were doing, and left in a hurry, leaving the Blood Hall empty, with only a few Wanderers behind their counters. And the Star Seekers looking at the chaos unfolding around them in confusion.

  “…What just happened?” Alnea said, glancing around the empty Blood Hall, before turning back to the Wanderers around him. All staring at him with pale faces.

  “You. You happened.”

  “…Did I say something wrong?”

  “Something? Of all the things you could say… If you were not brought by Nubia, and I did not have my duties, I would have already thrown you out of the Blood Hall!”

  “…But I only asked—

  “Remember, Alnea,” Nubia said, cutting Alnea off before he could finish his words. “There are some things that you just cannot say.”

  “…Is it because—

  “Stop,” Tia said in a solemn tone, matching the solemness on her face. “Do not say it. Do not even think about it. While you are still in the Lost City… No, even when you leave the Lost City. Do not say anything regarding what comes after the level of Blood Lord. Both for your sake, and ours.”

  “…This time, I agree with her,” Daes said, losing all her playfulness. And though she was not as pale and solemn as the other Wanderers, she was not faring much better. “Unless you want to spend the rest of your life serving the Lost City. And that is the lightest form of punishment you can get. If things get out of control… Just, listen to her. And keep your curiosity in check.”

  “…I… Is the Lost City so strict?”

  “Normally, no,” Nubia said. “But like I said, there are some things that you just cannot say. At least not while you are still within the Lost City.”

  “If you were back in your clans, your elders would not mind whatever you say. Unless your head went to wrestle with Earthen Bears, and you decided to offend them. In that case, no punishment would be undeserved. Otherwise, you would just get reprimanded at worst. But in the Lost City…”

  “Here, you do not only have the elders of your clan, but also those from other clans,” Daes said. “Including the clans that might be hostile to yours. And what do you think they will do, when they see a junior from a hostile clan being presumptuous?”

  “…What about the city’s rules?”

  “…It is because of the city’s rules that you are still alive. Besides, the city does not protect Wanderers from seeking their death.”

  “…That is enough, Tivya. I think he has understood what we were trying to say,” Nubia said, before glancing at Alnea. “Just be careful with your words. Alright?”

  “…I will,” Alnea said, nodding solemnly. And he meant it. Though he was sure that even if he did offend a Grand Wanderer, his master would not let anything happen to him, since he could avoid the trouble by just being a little careful with his words, then why create more trouble for his master?

  “And I apologise for the trouble I caused earlier.”

  “…At least you know how to repent,” Tivya said, finally regaining some colour to her face. “But I am not feeling well right now. How about I just disband your team first, and then you can ask Nubia and Tia about the inner city’s information?”

  “Tivya.”

  “…Or you can come back later. Say, in about three hours.”

  “When your shift is over?”

  “Whose side are you on?”

  “I am just reminding you of your duties.”

  “What good would be my duties if I am dead?”

  “…He has already said that he would not repeat the same mistake, Tivya,” Nubia said. “And you just need to give him a brief explanation.”

  “Just a brief explanation?”

  “Just a brief explanation. We can fill in the details for them later.”

  “…Well, since you insist,” Tivya said, as she turned back towards the Star Seekers. “I have already explained about the relationship between the privileges and Contribution Points. As for what exactly are privileges… As the name suggests, they are your rights. The higher your privileges, the more rights you have. And with more rights, you can access more resources of the inner city.”

  “What if we want to search for some information?”

  “As long as you have enough privileges, you can search for any information in the city.”

  “Even the legacy from the Age of the Gods?”

  “…Even the legacy from the Age of the Gods. But you should keep your goals more realistic. Just the fact no one has been able to find the legacy in millions of years should be enough to tell you what kind of privileges are required to gain such information.”

  “…I—We understand.”

  “In any cases, as I was saying, what resources you have access to depends on what your privileges are. The higher the privilege required, the better the resources. And with how high your privileges are, the resources that you can choose from would tempt even Tenth Stage True Wanderers. Of course, you would also need to have corresponding Contribution Points to redeem those resources…

  “On second thought, you can ignore those words. Your Privileges and Contribution Points are enough to redeem most of the inner city’s resources. Though I would recommend exchanging only those, which are useful at your current level, and can be found only within the Lost City. For more details, you can go to the relevant counters, or ask Nubia. They will tell you about the special resources of the city.

  “As for the rest, since you do not have any Contribution Points, if you want to redeem those special resources, then you can only work hard to earn them like everyone else. Or borrow it from your Captain. It would be much easier, and save decades of your efforts. Of course, I will still tell you how to earn them on your own. But you will have to wait for a while.”

  Tivya paused, and glanced at Daes and Tia.

  “Do you want to tell him in private—

  “There is no need to go through so much trouble,” Daes said, waving her hand to dismiss Tivya’s concern. “Since they are his teammates, they will know about it sooner or later.”

  “Besides, they have enough privileges, so what is the point in hiding?”

  “…If you say so,” Tivya said, shrugging her shoulders, as she turned back towards Alnea. “Before I tell you about Contribution Points, there is another thing that I need to explain.”

  “…Let me guess,” Alnea said, glancing at Daes and Tia. “Is it about Dependents?”