Inside a secluded little fortune-telling shop, a gaunt old man on the verge of death sat in a reclining chair. When he heard footsteps, he opened his cloudy eyes, and an elusive flicker passed through them.
"Please, sit."
Upon hearing the old man's voice, Velin felt an unprecedented sense of tranquility and sat down in an old wooden chair.
"What would you like to divine?"
"My fate."
"Your fate cannot be fathomed. This old man with one foot in the grave doesn't dare divine it. Pick something else." The gaunt old man shook his head in refusal.
"Then divine whether this journey of mine will go smoothly." Velin did not press the matter and changed his question.
Hearing this request, the gaunt old man did not refuse again. He took out three utterly ordinary crystal balls, removed the black hood from his head, and revealed his face.
An exceedingly aged face appeared before him, and the man's distinctive pointed ears revealed his race.
It was difficult to imagine just how long this elf-like elder had lived.
Under the gaze of his profound eyes, the three crystal balls glimmered with an inscrutable light.
No one besides him could understand the meaning contained within that light. It was like gazing into the starry sky and being unable to comprehend its boundless depth and vastness.
"Your journey will be mostly smooth, but you will still encounter some trials." The gaunt old man raised his head and looked at Velin with cloudy eyes as he answered slowly.
"Which part of the journey will run into trouble?" Velin asked the old man directly. He was certain that this elder already knew his itinerary.
The gaunt old man shook his head, retrieved a leaf from a drawer, and handed it to Velin.
"When you pass through