In the place where the wind and snow drifted, Vladimir wore a thick fur coat.
He bit down on a cigar, stepped across layers of snow, and arrived in front of the Pale Magus Order's gate.
Erica pulled down her hood, revealing her head of long golden hair, which kept whipping in the air along with the wind and snow.
The many days of long-distance travel were also a test for Erica.
Her face had thinned a lot, her body seemed to have shrunk by a size, and her eyes looked slightly sunken.
But her eyes still shone with light.
Every day, they had to walk hundreds of kilometers.
To save time, the team didn't even have any spare time to rest.
From departing the capital, for five consecutive days, Erica had been on horseback the entire time, enduring the erosion of wind and rain.
After this baptism, she seemed to have become much tougher.
Seeing the old man who came out, Erica swung her leg over and came down from the back of the white horse, respectfully bowing to him.
"Uncle Vladimir."
She recognized the person before her.
Vladimir Lebedev, president of the Pale Magus Order, and a very close friend of her father.
By rights, Erica should indeed call this man uncle.
Since Vladimir could be friends with the duke, his identity naturally wasn't ordinary.
He was a general stationed in the northern border of the Empire.
The old man looked very relaxed. Holding his cigar, he took a fierce puff and blew smoke rings into the air.
He looked at Erica, sized her up from head to toe, and let out a snorting laugh.
"The girl from the Levi family, not bad."
"You actually managed to get here just by relying on riding."
Seeing Vladimir laugh heartily and nod, Erica knew she had already passed the entrance trial of the Magus Order.
"Mm! Delk, take them back first."
"Have them all get some good rest. Tonight, we'll hold a welcoming banquet!"
The adjutant nodded, took Erica's white horse, and led away the group of Magi who had escorted her.
Vladimir patted Erica on the shoulder, put away the cigar, turned his head and blew a puff of smoke upward before turning back to say to her, "Want to take a look around?"
Although Erica was a bit tired, she really couldn't refuse the elder's invitation, so she nodded.
Besides, she wanted to see what kind of appearance this place, known as one of the North's two great forces, had under its territory.
Very soon, Erica followed behind Vladimir, curiously observing her surroundings.
This was scenery absolutely impossible to see in the capital.
Many buildings were made from natural materials that combined pure white marble with ice fragments, extremely hard yet shimmering brilliantly under sunlight.
Looking at the gigantic structures, Erica's initial exhaustion disappeared instantly.
Everything here made one feel amazed.
It was like a perfect palace upon the snowfields, appearing mysterious and sacred among the wind and snow.
"How is it? Quite pretty, right?"
Vladimir said with a squinted smile, as if Erica's reaction was well within his expectations.
"But this is still the Empire's border, after all. It can't compare to the capital in prosperity."
"Those new fancy things that show up over there, you won't find any here."
Erica shook her head, smiling as she said, "I know, Uncle."
She naturally understood that she came here to train, not to enjoy life.
While talking, the two of them walked up to a huge wooden cabin.
Here, under this palace of ice and snow, it looked extremely out of place.
At a glance, Erica saw a wooden sign hanging under the eaves, painted with a huge wine cup.
"We've more or less finished strolling around. I'll arrange a room for you later, rest well for tonight."
Vladimir smiled cheerfully at the small cabin, though one couldn't tell whether it was because he liked taverns too much, or because Erica had just called him uncle.
He pushed open the door, and a wave of heat rushed out.
The tavern's inside and outside seemed like two completely different worlds. Inside, the lighting was warm, many people crowded around tables, clinking cups and playing games, lively and bustling.
Erica had never been to a tavern, nor would she ever have imagined that the scene here would be like this.
Seeing Vladimir enter, many people unconsciously stopped what they were doing.
They simultaneously raised their cups, greeting the old general.
"General, want to have a drink together?"
"Put that little trinket down! If the General drinks, it's got to be by the barrel!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Erica still felt a bit nervous, but Vladimir burst into hearty laughter beside her.
"Don't scare this junior."
Those Magi noticed Erica behind him and became quite puzzled.
"Hss, when did we get such a delicate girl here?"
"Looks fair-skinned and tender, doesn't look like someone from the northern border."
Vladimir looked a bit proud as he introduced, "This is the daughter of a friend of mine from the capital."
"She's a true genius."
The other Magi began observing Erica with interest, somewhat unable to believe it.
In the eyes of these strong Magi, a delicate girl, how much of a genius could she really be?
But then Vladimir continued bragging.
"Seventeen years old, second-rank mage."
At once, the entire tavern erupted into a huge cry of shock, even the bottles on the racks trembled nonstop.
"Holy shit!?"
"Second-rank mage?"
Many people present were Magi and mages of different levels.
Most were already in their thirties or forties, and had been stuck at second rank for a long time.
Some had only recently managed to break through to second rank.
Yet the girl they couldn't even take seriously had already reached the same rank as them.
"Damn! She really is a genius."
"I suddenly feel inferior."
"No wonder she's the General's friend's daughter. Her talent is unbelievably outstanding."
Hearing the hearty exclamations and praise from the Magi, Erica couldn't help lowering her head, cheeks slightly red, looking a bit embarrassed.
Seeing this, Vladimir waved his hand at the group.
"All right, scram, scram, go drink."
"The girl is here to train, not to listen to you grown men brag."
Those burly men laughed loudly and continued their games.
"Amelia!"
Vladimir suddenly shouted loudly into the tavern. Erica quietly covered her ears.
From behind the bar counter walked out a woman.
Her skin was snow white, the standard look of a northerner. One eye was covered with a black eyepatch, and she seemed to be biting something in her mouth.
It wasn't a cigarette; Erica knew that clearly.
On the exposed part of her abdomen beneath her clothes, Erica could see several deep scars, shocking to look at.
"What are you yelling about? Don't you know how loud your voice is?"
Vladimir didn't mind, laughing heartily twice.
"Go arrange a good place for this girl. And don't forget to prepare a hot bath for her."
Amelia sighed and tossed Erica a glance.
"Follow me."
Erica glanced at Vladimir.
The old man returned her a reassuring look.
Only then did Erica follow behind the woman and enter a door in the back of the tavern.
After the two of them left, the group of men circled around Vladimir, asking all sorts of questions.
"General, who exactly is that girl?"
"Seventeen years old and already second rank? That's insane, I wouldn't even dare to imagine that."
"Damn it, if my son had that kind of ability, I'd go light incense for my ancestors right now."
Vladimir snorted and slapped a few of them on the necks.
"Stop poking your noses around. Her identity isn't ordinary."
The old man found a wooden stool and dragged it over to sit. A Magus saw the president sit down and immediately carried over a huge wooden barrel filled to the brim with wheat ale, placing it before him.
Vladimir lifted the barrel and poured several mouthfuls straight into his mouth.
After drinking a couple of gulps, his expression didn't change at all. He continued asking, "That Viktor on the wanted notice, you all know him?"
"Well, of course only you, General, don't know."
One man got excited and began speaking passionately.
"The girl you brought is pretty impressive, reaching second-rank mage at seventeen. But compared to that guy, she's far behind."
"A twenty-nine-year-old fourth-rank mage! In the whole Empire, even if you look back through the history books, you won't find someone younger who reached fourth rank!"
As he spoke, he seemed even more proud.
As if he were talking about himself.
Vladimir listened, and his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
'This kid seems impressive.'
His curiosity toward this Viktor he'd never met grew even stronger.
And most importantly, he also crippled that old bastard Angus.
Even if Vladimir personally made a move, he might not be able to beat Angus into that state.
"Good lad. I like him."
And how much did he like Viktor?
Vladimir was even thinking about whether he should introduce a wife to him, that level of appreciation.
If only he had a daughter.
But his friend did.
That child from the Levi family, he found her quite good.
Polite, and also a genius.
Age? Age wasn't a problem at all.
"Right, how did that old bastard Angus provoke him?"
While asking, the old man picked up the barrel and drank a few more gulps, watching the men glance at each other.
Then, they finally answered Vladimir's question.
"Angus is his father-in-law."
"…Huh?"