Chapter Twelve

As my foot stepped out of the Rivendell station, I already noticed a unique difference. The pathway itself was made of stones, hard gray block-like stones, unlike Lizon, which was just regular earth. The whole city was covered by a protective mana dome. The dome was translucent enough that it let sunlight pass through; I wasn't sure about rain or snow though.

At the front was a huge gate made of metal, like thirty feet tall, surrounded by even higher walls. The walls must have been covering the entire city. I could see guards armed with crossbows making rounds on the wall. The wall had four towers, each of them had two ballistae, which were basically just huge crossbows that required huge bolts. Also, on top of the huge gate was a big metal pot.

According to the book "Siege Warfare and Defense," those pots were used to pour boiling oil on invaders who were cooped up at the gate. At the right side of the gate was a smaller ten-foot gate with two guards stationed at the outside and also at the inside of the gate, all standing at the sides. The guards at the outside searched people and caravans, while the ones on the inside would ask for paperwork and stuff, which I had none.

I joined the queue of people as we slowly moved forward. The line was really long, but the guards were fast enough. No one stayed in one spot for more than four seconds. In front of me was an elderly man, and judging by his body, he didn't have a mana core. People with mana core age slowly, like Henry was 140 years old, but he didn't look a day over thirty-five, and if he cleaned up, he would probably look 28.

The old man's back was hunched over, and he had a walking stick which helped him to move. When it reached his turn, the guards treated him with respect; they just asked for the bag that was swung over his shoulder. After searching it, they returned it to him, and the guard on the left helped him on his way. I was searched too; they also searched the pouch of gold on my neck and the leather bag. After confirming it was safe for me to pass, they gave it back to me.

"Name?" the bearded guard asked me.

"Um, Raiden."

"Raiden what?"

"Oh, Raiden Ragnar."

"Is this your first time visiting Rivendell?"

"Yes, sir."

"Business or pleasure?"

"Excuse me," I didn't really understand what he meant.

"Are you here for business or recreation?" the man asked as he saw my bewildered expression. He rephrased the question, "State your business here?"

"Oh, I heard of an academy here, and I would like to enroll," I said.

"Longhorn Academy?"

"Yes, sir."

"Hmm, the admission test is hard. Are you sure about it?" the man asked.

"But I would have at least tried instead of living with regret."

The man had a small smile as he handed me a small medallion. As soon as my finger touched the medallion, it broke into many tiny pieces of light and rushed into my neck, just slightly below my right ear. A slight chill could be felt at the spot the light touched. I was about to ask, but he pulled his sword and angled it in a way that it acted like a mirror (damn whoever polished that sword deserves a raise).

On my neck, there was a tattoo of a black dragon curled up.

"Next time you pass here, you won't be questioned like today," the man said as he sheathed his sword.

I realized that the tattoo served as an identification or a pass. As I walked off, I couldn't help but rub that spot. It felt normal, which made it strange. Speaking of strange, the interior of Rivendell was a sight to behold: tall buildings, countless shops, stores, and stalls. The people walking on the street were countless. On the far left end was a magic circle which teleported elves in and out of the city, and on the far south end was a similar magic circle that teleported dwarves.

I've never ever seen an elf or a dwarf before. The elves had smooth milky skin; their ears were slightly pointed. Their hair was long and wavy; some had tied them into ponytails, while others just let their hair flow over their shoulders. Most of their hair was either white or wheat blonde. Their height was exceptional. I'm tall, but next to them, I would seem average. Their clothes were also unique; the material they were made of was something like silk but also not silk.

The dwarves were really short, like four feet max. They had long shaggy beards and equally long shaggy hair. They resembled humans in both the outfits and looks, except for the height difference. As I was observing the strangeness of this place, I didn't notice that there was someone in front of me whom I accidentally bumped into.

"Oh, sorry," I said as the man turned around with his hand on his head.

"Hmm, apology accepted," the man said as he held his hand out for me, "You don't seem from around here."

"Guess it's that obvious, huh?" I said as I took his hand.

"Need any help?" the man asked.

"Yeah, I'm trying to find Longhorn Academy, but I don't know my way around here," I said.

"No worries, old Steve here will help you," he said as he released my hand and pointed at himself, "Follow me."

As we walked off, I couldn't help but notice that his back was wider than his other features. Also, his legs were thin (looks like someone forgot leg day). He had a medium build, short dirty blonde hair, a round nose, and black eyes.

As he led me, he kept on talking about the politics of Rivendell, how the guards made it hard for him and his friends to work. He also added that Rivendell was a good place for visitors.

"Unless they follow strangers into dark alleys like this," he said as he turned.

I hadn't noticed before, but he had led me into a small dark alleyway. As if on cue, three more men joined him. I couldn't see their faces since they had covered them, but from their builds, they seemed huge.

"Listen, kid, just give us your stuff, and you won't get hurt," Steve said as he pointed at the bag.

"Sure," I said as I slowly placed the bag down, "Please, I don't want any troubles."

Steve bent down to pick up my bag, and as soon as his hand gripped the strings, I quickly coursed mana through my limbs. I grabbed him by the collar as he was in his bent position. I pushed his face down with all my strength, and his face landed on the pavement with a large crunching sound (guess this is the problem with stone floors).

I didn't waste any time; I grabbed my bag quickly, swung it around my shoulder, and started hauling my butt as fast as I could. I heard the three men chase after me, but I was faster than them. I got out of the alleyway, hoping that they would leave me alone, but they didn't.

I kept on running, and suddenly I missed Lizon. Running in a crowd of people was hard; in Lizon, there were two, maybe four people blocking the way, but here it was a lot. I would knock myself into some of them. I managed to run into what I assumed was the marketplace of Rivendell.

In front of me were some boxes stacked on top of each other. I did a Kong vault over the boxes; one of the men wasn't as agile, so he ended up knocking into them. A large bull, which was pulling a carriage, moved right in the middle of the road. I slid under it and got up, continuing my run.

I speed vaulted over a cart of tomatoes, but the remaining two crashed into them, squishing each of the tomatoes.

"My tomatoes!" the vendor shouted.

I kept running and running, not looking back as most of the people dodged me. The reason I was running was that there was this nagging feeling that maybe they were still chasing me.

"Oof!" I said as I felt a strong pushing force in my gut that sent me to the ground, butt-first.

In front of me was a girl with bright red hair; her leg was extended, which meant she was the one who sidekicked me in my gut. Behind her was a really gorgeous man who seemed to be forty; he was dressed in a suit and was straightening the cufflinks.

"Sandra, what did I tell you about overreacting?" the man said as he moved past her. He held out his hand to me. At first, I didn't want to take it, but the pain in my gut said otherwise, so I took it, and he helped me up.

"Are you okay?" the man asked in his low, melodious timbre voice.

"Yes, I am," I said as my eyes landed on Sandra, "Hell of a kick, though."

Sandra rolled her eyes at me.

"Sorry about that. Sandra does excel in hand-to-hand combat. So, am sorry. I didn't catch your name," he said.

"Well, it's Raiden Ragnar,"

"Mr. Ragnar, my name is Vladimir Flasinksi," he said.

"Wait, what, the Vladimir Flasinksi," I said, or shouted.

"So, you've heard of me?"

"Yes, am a huge fan of your work, sir. Your thesis on the composition of cores was amazing, and your theory that there could be something that powers mana is beyond revolutionary," I said as I shook his hand.

"You read my thesis? I didn't think someone your age could possibly understand it,"

"Well, it was hard, but after the sixth time, it started to make sense. So, is it possible for someone to modify their core so instead of absorbing mana, it can instead produce it on its own?"

"Hmm, bold suggestions. It would be next to impossible, but who knows. But first, let go of my hand before Sandra breaks it off," Vladimir said, and Sandra was glaring at me.

"Wish we could discuss more, but I have classes to teach," he said, "But if you want to talk more, it's best that you visit Longhorn."

"Wait, that's where am trying to enroll, but I don't know where it is," I said.

"Too bad," Sandra said as she was about to walk away.

"Don't mind her, just follow me."

And that was how I found my way to Longhorn.