As expected, it takes several minutes of tearful farewells before I manage to escape the carriage. Even then, Seraph follows me out of the carriage and won't let me leave until I hug her. Of course, as soon as I hug her, she starts crying into my chest and won't stop.

Finally I am able to calm her down somewhat and get her back into the carriage. Only once the carriage has entered the city am I able to relax and start moving. Grimgar and I walk up to the gate a few minutes after the carriage has passed through.

The cost to enter the city ends up being five gold per person, they probably raised it for the auction. However, it doesn't bother me at all, I still have plenty of gold to spend. What concerns me more is the layers and layers of magical protections on the city's walls.

The walls are tall and made of a pure white stone, but even in the sunlight there is a glow to them. I can feel the magic in the walls even without using my mana to scan. The city gates are even worse, they are double gates with a killing ground between.

As we walk under them the concentration of magic on the gates makes my skin crawl. If I were in my normal form all my fur would be standing on end, and this is only the city gates! In just the thirty feet between the two gates I can feel scanning spells passing over me a dozen times.

Once we step through the second set of gates we are finally able to see part of the city. What we can see of the city is mostly tall towers, some even reach ten or more stories. Of course, they are built and maintained with magic, including the sky bridges between them.

Even without using my mana to scan, I can tell this entire city relies completely on magic. If the spells were to be dispelled, the entire city would instantly crumble. As soon as I realize that, I am tempted for a moment, it would be an amazing sight.

However, I don't actually want to do that, it would kill far too many innocents. It is just a momentary temptation, mainly because building with only magic is so arrogant. This world doesn't have the knowledge to properly build such buildings.

The mages here built them strictly using magic, but they did so to show off their power. Each one of these towers is a symbol to show others that the Magic Kingdom is superior to everyone else. Although, I have to admit that it does make for a very impressive sight.

Thanks to cleaning enchantments the entire city is pristine and glows in multiple colors. I'm sure that come nightfall it will be an even more amazing sight. For now I take out the city map I was given and start heading towards the merchant group's manor.

The streets have been laid out in a grid pattern and normally would be plenty wide. However, currently every street I see is lined on both sides with merchant stalls. The streets are crammed with people going about looking for deals or bargains.

The only thing that keeps this from looking like an epic fantasy city is the lack of other races. Other than Grimgar, every person within sight currently is a human. There are probably a couple of other non-humans around, but they are also slaves.

There are also mages in robes wandering around, but the crowds part for them. The way they are strutting around arrogantly makes me glad I didn't come here as a mage. If I had to act like that to fit in I would probably end up snapping before the auction.

As much as I would love to cure them of their arrogance, that would prevent me from going to the auction. The auction is more important than dealing with a few overly arrogant idiots. Ignoring them is by far the smarter move right now, especially since I don't know the laws here.

It is obvious that mages are higher class here, attacking one would probably be a huge issue. I also don't know what spells are currently active in the city, so I can't be reckless. So, for now, I ignore the mages and even move aside for them when necessary.

Due to the crowds, it takes us over an hour to go from the city gate to the merchant manor. It is a decently sized three story building, but it has no grounds around it. I am glad to see it isn't one of the towers, knowing how easily they could collapse would not let me rest easily.

This is probably considered a small residence in the city, yet it is still heavily enchanted. Even the Xui estate pales in comparison, enchantments are obviously extremely common here. When I knock on the door a servant answers and leads me to a beautiful lady.

Henrietta says "Welcome! You should be Lord Ash? My name is Henrietta and I am the merchant group's manager for the capital."

"Yes, I am Ash. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Henrietta says "A room has been prepared for you. Not counting today, you still have two days before the auction starts. If there is anything you need please inform me!"

"Alright, I will. For now I just plan to wander around the city. Are there any forbidden areas or anything like that?"

Henrietta says "Ah, there is one. This area of the city is where the upper ranked mages have their homes. It is also where the mage academy is located. Non-mages are not allowed in the area."

"Alright, I will make sure to avoid it. Thank you."

Henrietta says "If you have no other questions I will have someone show you to your room."

Despite her calling it a room, the maid takes me to a full suite, it even has an extra bedroom for Grimgar. The suite is on the third floor and even has a balcony, meaning I can leave unnoticed. Before I am even done looking around a maid knocks to inform us that dinner is ready.

We follow her to the dining room where Henrietta joins us for dinner and some conversation. We are the only guests to arrive as of yet, but others are expected before the auction. However, we will not have to interact with the other guests unless we want to.

While we are eating, Henrietta tells me about the city and the laws to watch out for. She also warns me that the mages in charge of investigating incidents have a special talent. Every squad of mages has at least one mage capable of casting a spell to see the recent past.