CHAPTER 218: CHAPTER 218: THE MOUNTAIN HOTEL

The forty students stood together, waiting outside the docks. Daemar watched in silence until the last of them had gathered.

"Follow me. First, we’ll head to the place where we’ll be staying during our time here."

Everyone began walking. Noel kept to the back, a few steps behind the group. Elyra, Elena, and Charlotte stayed together. Selene, as always, walked ahead alone. Clara and Marcus held hands. Garron was laughing at Laziel for still being single.

"Noir... go take a look around. Come back tonight. Learn where the important places are. If the Fifth Pillar is someone with influence, we’ll need every advantage."

Noir tilted her head, then darted off, vanishing between the crowds.

"You good, Noel?"

Roberto appeared beside him.

"Why are you walking back here? Shouldn’t you be with your girls?"

"Ah, I was tying my boots. Told them to go ahead."

Roberto glanced down at Noel’s boots and had no laces. But he didn’t say anything.

"...Right."

After crossing several main streets and passing through wide stone corridors, the group arrived at a massive building carved directly into the mountain wall.

The structure resembled a luxury hotel—tall, symmetrical, and glowing softly with embedded mana crystals. Polished blackstone columns held up wide archways, and golden engravings shimmered across the entrance. Glass-like panels reflected the light in shifting hues, and a gentle warmth flowed from hidden enchantments, keeping the cold mountain air at bay.

To Noel, it looked like something pulled straight out of a fantasy novel—no, better than anything from Earth.

’...A five-star hotel inside a mountain. I guess being reborn as a noble has its perks, even if the system keeps trying to kill me.’

"Each of you will check in at reception in the same order as on the ship. You already know your numbers."

Daemar’s voice cut clean through the group.

Several staff members approached, taking luggage from students. Many didn’t have dimensional pouches—just regular suitcases. Elyra carried a handbag, but hers was dimensional. She had once told Noel it held more than it looked.

When Noel’s turn came, he stepped up to the desk.

"Room nine."

The clerk handed him a slim metal key with a glowing rune and a small engraved number: 9.

Soon after, Daemar spoke again.

"You have five days to explore the city. Every night, by ten o’clock, you must be in your rooms. Raul will inspect each floor to ensure compliance. After that hour, no one is allowed to leave the hotel. We were more lenient at the academy—but here, the risks are different. Don’t go where you shouldn’t."

A murmur ran through the group.

"Daemar giving us freedom?"

Just as the students began to disperse, a calm voice rose from the middle of the group.

"How are we supposed to know the time if we’re inside a mountain?"

The words hung in the air for a moment.

Everyone turned—several students pausing mid-step.

Selene had spoken.

It was rare to hear her voice, especially in public. Even Daemar raised an eyebrow slightly before responding.

"Good question. Follow me."

He didn’t explain further. He simply turned and walked toward the main entrance.

The group followed him back outside, stepping into the plaza in front of the hotel. The stone under their feet was smooth and faintly warm, infused with low-level mana. The air was cooler now, and the ambient light from the ceiling gave everything a bluish hue.

Daemar stopped and pointed upward.

The cavern ceiling stretched high above—almost a full kilometer. The very top was shrouded in gentle mist, but at its center, a circular structure was barely visible, suspended by what looked like magic.

"Every hour, that ring up there displays the current time using light patterns visible from anywhere in the city. It was built by the dwarves centuries ago. If you don’t have a pocket watch, just look up."

A few students tilted their heads back, whispering among themselves.

’Just like the novel said. Still a lot of city left to explore... I wonder if it’ll keep surprising me.’

Daemar crossed his arms.

"That’s all. Return to your rooms. Inspection begins at ten sharp. Don’t be late."

With that, the group began to scatter—some toward the rooms others to the city.

Noel reached the ninth floor and walked down the hallway until he found the door marked with a glowing rune: 9.

He inserted the key. A soft click, and the door opened.

The room inside was spacious—more than he expected. Stone walls covered in smooth dark panels, a large bed with silver-accented sheets, a wardrobe, a small writing desk, and a wide window with a view of the inner city.

The dark she-wolf was sitting upright, tail curled around her legs, staring straight at him.

She dissolved into shadow.

A second later, she reappeared inside the room, emerging from the wall like liquid darkness.

Noel gave her a faint smile.

"Back already, little one? Did you find anything interesting?"

Noir let out a short, low howl—sharp but soft. Affirmative.

"We’ve still got time before the inspection. Want to show me what you found?"

Noir tilted her head and padded toward the door, ears perked.

Noel reached for his coat.

’Let’s see what you saw out there.’

He stepped out, the door clicking shut behind him.

The streets of Tharvaldur were quieter at this hour. The glowing signs of the shops had dimmed, and only a few people moved along the main paths—mostly guards and late-working dwarves.

Noel walked calmly beside Noir, hands in his pockets. The city still felt unfamiliar, but less overwhelming now. A glance upward reminded him of the glowing ring at the top of the cavern. It was nearing ten.

As he turned a corner, he almost bumped into someone coming from the opposite direction.

Selene.

She wore her academy uniform. Her steps were as steady as ever, her expression unreadable as always.

"Didn’t expect to see you out here."

She said nothing.

"I was just going for a quick walk with Noir. Want to come with us?"

She paused for a heartbeat.

"...Sure."

Her voice was cool, emotionless. The kind of yes that felt more like not no.

"Alright then."