Number Nine Floating City

There's not much to say about the journey to the Floating City, as Fran saw almost nothing.

Iris led Fran into a device that resembled a carriage, without wheels, and was completely suspended in the air.

The interior of the carriage is very spacious, unlike its cramped appearance from the outside; it seems to have utilized space extension technology.

Fran and Iris sat down facing each other, and then Iris immediately started the vehicle they were riding in.

The scene outside the window quickly changed to the sky. Strangely, Fran didn't feel any increase in pressure; she just felt as if something in her mind was pressing on her nerves.

The train carriage began to accelerate eastward, and Fran did not feel the acceleration from the carriage beneath her, but she did feel the oppressive feeling intensify.

After the train carriage stabilized, the feeling of oppression became even more pronounced, without diminishing in the slightest.

Only then did Fran finally understand that this was probably some kind of compensatory mechanism; they wouldn't experience the jolts, but instead, they would feel dizzy.

"Bear with it, we'll be there in two hours."

Iris's eyebrows were slightly raised, and although there was no visible discomfort on her face, she didn't smile either, as if the carriage itself was affecting her somewhat.

Fran was actually able to hold it in, but she was feeling a little unwell. She subconsciously tapped on the side window. Outside the window was the unchanging blue sky, with clouds already below the carriage.

So Fran saw almost nothing. Judging from Iris's expression, the other woman didn't seem to want to chat with her either, so she could only wait bored.

Two hours later, the carriage suddenly slowed down, and the discomfort lessened slightly. Fran realized that they had arrived at the Floating City.

When she turned to look in the direction they were traveling, she was taken aback; she had seen this Floating City before.

That was what the Floating City looked like when she used her Star Gazing Art to observe the appearance of the Sky Dragon.

Whether it was the towering, silver-white Mage Tower in the very center, or the uneven but low-lying cluster of buildings in comparison, they were almost identical; in Fran's memory, there was no difference.

Fran knew that when these mages built the Floating City, they certainly wouldn't have built each one exactly the same, nor would they have bothered to specially replicate one; it would have been pointless.

So, this Floating City had its alarm sounded once before because Sky Dragon was passing by?

Fran recalled, but then her pupils contracted and a bead of cold sweat appeared on her forehead, because she realized a possibility.

What if she saw the future instead of the past?

Fran's lips tightened instinctively, her teeth clenched, and she remained silent.

"The Star Gazing Art has always wanted to show me the future," Fran thought to herself.

Next, perhaps she should search for relevant records in the city.

The entire Floating City sounded the alarm. With so many people up there, she must know. She only needs to confirm a few things to know if her guess is correct.

"When I see the scene using Star Gazing Art, that scene will definitely happen."

Fran continued to think that she had experienced before that when she actually experienced the visions seen through Star Gazing Art, compliance would bring assistance.

Going against the flow is something Fran doesn't dare to try yet.

Now that she has seen it, the Sky Dragon will definitely pass by, and the Floating City will definitely sound the alarm.

But is it really as she saw it—that the Sky Dragon 'accidentally' passed by the Floating City, causing the Alliance's Floating City to sound an alarm?

The third prophecy she received in the ' Ancient ' realm was:

"The Gods will do everything in their power to prevent living beings from discovering something."

Could it be that the Sky Dragon wanted to come and probe the Alliance's movements in order to formulate a response?

Will the Sky Dragon Sky Dragon come once? Or will the other Deity remain inactive?

And wouldn't the Alliance be prepared? A Deity with a physical body in the Material Realm occupies a floating domain just like the Alliance's Floating City; wouldn't the Alliance be prepared?

Fran bit her lip, feeling slightly uneasy. At this moment, the carriage slowly slowed down and was circling behind the Floating City. Instead of flying onto a visible road, it flew into a group of buildings with floating decorations.

It was a huge hourglass, and half of the golden sand at the top had already flowed down. Fran estimated, based on the hourglass's speed, that the sand in this hourglass would probably run out in about an hour.

Once the sand has run out, the hourglass will invert and restart the timer.

Fran thought it was quite possible; after all, if the hourglass could levitate, then it would be perfectly normal for it to automatically invert on time.

"This is Number Nine Floating City, Floating City that is half-owned by the Alchemy School..."

At this point, Iris's expression relaxed considerably, and she began to explain to Fran where they were going next.

"That's the headquarters of the Alchemy School; that small room is where the Gold Alchemy Award is presented."

Instead of pointing to the largest three-story building in her field of vision, Iris pointed to a small detached building opposite it.

It looked like the size of a detached villa from Fran's previous life, with silver and gold interwoven throughout, and a touch of crimson covering the entire roof.

"Of course, I think that might not be important to you anymore. Whether your Paper will win the Gold Alchemy Award is still uncertain..."

Then Iris straightened her expression and continued.

"You're definitely going to win the Amber Law Award..."

"On the other half of the Floating City, there is a branch of the Law School. Almost every Floating City has one. The Amber Law Award will be presented there in three months."

Originally, the award ceremony was to be held in the Law Domain of the Spirit Realm, but at Iris's insistence, the Law School chose to compromise.

"There's one more crucial thing you need to do here..."

Iris abruptly changed the subject, and the carriage stopped its downward movement, slowly circling in the air.

"You need to use that ' Lai ' body again, not just change your appearance."

"You need to maintain your ' Lai ' persona, the one who's going to win the Gold Alchemy Award, until the Amber Law Award is presented."

"That's where you'll need to make a name for yourself in the Alchemy School."

Fran understood what Iris meant; she understood that the previous identity of ' Lai ' was fake, and now she needed to make it 'real'. At least for the next three months, she needed to maintain this identity.

This is why Iris is not letting anyone get off the train; she wants Fran to enter the Floating City using the identity of ' Lai '.

Moreover, according to Iris, using the ' Lai ' appearance isn't just a matter of using it; she also has to do something Fran has never done before—socialize.

Whether in the City of Apprentices or the Northern Lands Society, she never attended any banquets. Apart from the dinner hosted by the administrators in Gede Town, she didn't attend any of the other banquets.

This time, she had to go, and she had to reveal her identity: she was there to await the award ceremony for the Gold Alchemy Award.

"Is it really necessary to do this? Can I just stay in the lab as ' Lai '...?"

Fran felt uneasy at the thought of going to the banquet and chatting with many strangers, not because she was afraid of talking to strangers.

She just felt that this method was a bit awkward and a waste of time.

"Of course it has to be that way, Fran. Your name is rather unusual, and too many people are eyeing you, wanting to take advantage of this situation."

"The Felistin Family has contacted me. They've inquired and found that among all the third and fourth-tier mages, there's no one with the same name as you. So they want to arrange a marriage between you and them. You can choose anyone in their family, from a few years old to over a hundred years old..."

"The third seat of the Law School just wanted to personally travel to the Northern Lands Society to meet with you. As for the content of the meeting, it will most likely be about offering you substantial benefits to switch School. Besides, there's no one named Fran on their Law School roster..."

"The Elemental School are also connected, but their motives aren't entirely pure. They're probably mages who internally hate Harbos, and perhaps they think it would be better for you to get the Arcane Mage Award than for Harbos. I suggest you stay away from them..."

"Besides that, there are those groups of mages who had opinions about the Northern Lands Society. They don't have as many ideas, but what they want to do might be a bit more radical—they might even try to kill you, since you made achievements in the Northern Lands Society, a place considered rebellious..."

"The attempts by other societies to win you over, the opportunists from external forces, and other mages who want to get to know you—none of these matter as much as what's mentioned above."

Fran moved quickly, reaching inside her robes to transform herself into ' Lai '.

"Your Talent from the Spirit Realm is quite convenient..."

Iris raised an eyebrow and continued.

"I've also hidden the Alliance -occupied territory support you applied for using the ' Lai ' identity; very few people can see it."

"If anyone asks, just tell the truth. It's not surprising that you're helping a colleague apply for a promising experiment."

Iris paused, having essentially finished explaining everything she needed to, but then added a final reminder.

"Remember, I can only arrange a couple more social events for you at most; you'll have to find more opportunities yourself."

"Don't stay in the lab. The other mages will see you came with me, even though you're using someone else's name. Doing so will only make them more suspicious."

"Go ahead and demonstrate the knowledge from your Paper; that's easy for you."

As long as ' Lai ' can demonstrate the mathematical Talent shown in that Paper, no one will doubt Fran's true identity.

To the average person, it's perfectly normal that a mage cannot demonstrate Talent in two fields simultaneously, especially considering that these two representative Paper were published less than a year apart.

Iris knew that Fran's results were genuine, which would naturally allow her to conceal her true identity until three months later.

"We'll leave immediately after receiving the award in March."

Iris's goal was simple: she wanted Fran to receive the award—the kind where she actually goes on stage to accept it—and then they would immediately return to the Northern Lands Society.