Chapter 2 - I am definitely not a good person

“Is this the place?”

It took Kaelis over an hour to barely reach the location she had investigated long ago.

This was a stone-paved street much cleaner than the marketplace, with aged stone shops lining both sides. At the road's end stood an elegant and respectable academy gate, where various carriages had already gathered and waited in line.

This place was actually where Kaelis had first started her street vending...

Because whether it was the marketplace or here, the main consumers were those noble students from the academy.

Compared to the marketplace, crowded, inconsistent, visited only by a small number of students, this location was closer and had a better environment...

The only problem...was the patrol squads.

After all, this area belongs to the noble academy district, and street vending was theorized forbidden here.

But there were exceptions.

While patrol squads could drive away ordinary vendors, what about those who already owned shops here?

They could simply place their stalls right in front of their storefronts. Even if the patrol officers demanded they pack up, they could just move everything back inside their shops, the patrols couldn't do much about it.

Over time, the patrols stopped caring about this loophole. But if they found out you weren't actually a shop owner...then you might end up detained at a designated dragon arena for a few days.

Several times ago, Kaelis hadn't even finished setting up her stall before she was caught.

The most infuriating part? They didn't even provide meals!

Kaelis's goal this time was to find a shop near the academy gate that hadn't set up a stall yet and whose owner was kind enough to let her use their storefront space to sell her goods.

Luckily, she didn't have to search hard. She quickly found a shop near the academy gate with signs of recent renovation, seemingly opened only a few days ago, not yet fully operational.

After calling out a few times and confirming no one was around, Kaelis moved left and right to make sure the patrol wasn't nearby. Then, quickly, she set up her stall and laid her casually drawn artworks on the ground.

To be fair, Kaelis's artistic skill was still there.

Students hadn't been dismissed yet, but nearby shop owners who were already vending began turning their attention toward her.

Coarse paper, limited pigments, minimal brushstrokes, not even framed.

Despite these obvious disadvantages, Kaelis's works radiated a powerful vitality, her animals vivid and lifelike: eagles spreading wings, tigers and leopards glaring fiercely.

Such exquisite technique, combined with Kaelis's unfamiliar face, left the others astonished, and they began whispering among themselves.

Kaelis noticed their attention, but as long as they weren't buying, she didn't care.

Her focus was now fixed on something else entirely.

...

Although she had complained bitterly about the meditation method she'd painstakingly unlocked upon waking, now that things had calmed down, Kaelis began seriously pondering what it all meant.

Ancient-style meditation, modern meditation... spiritual accumulation...

These unfamiliar terms, when pieced together, made her realize almost instantly that supernatural power did exist in this world.

And meditation methods... seemed to be the key that unlocked this supernatural realm.

“But I've never seen or heard anyone mention it before... Could it be that supernatural individuals in this world are hidden?”

Pondering, Kaelis silently summoned the so-called ancient-style meditation in her mind.

Thanks to years of painting practice, she suddenly entered a state of complete tranquility, her soul seemed detached from her body, and with her eyes closed, the world contained only the slow, rhythmic hum of her own body.

After a brief pause, her thoughts shifted.

She summoned the meditation method.

Soon, in this dark world, a single glowing speck floated before her like a firefly.

It remained fixed in the distance, flickering like a distant star.

“Huh?”

Kaelis paused in confusion, then concentrated harder, trying to see it clearly.

But the moment her attention surged forward, the speck seemed startled, suddenly exploding!

Countless stray rays began spreading in orderly lines through the darkness, and in an instant, they appeared to form a towering, one thousand feet high mural!

In that moment, Kaelis felt as if her spirit had been swept clean of dust, suddenly crystal clear!

Her mind raced!

But the exhilarating sensation came and went quickly. In the blink of an eye, the light faded, the world returned to darkness, and she felt the mental haze slowly creeping back...

“It's... over?”

Feeling the pitch-black void, Kaelis was utterly baffled.

Wait...

It's... over?

That's it for ancient-style meditation?

One brief moment of clarity and then it stopped?

No way!

Kaelis found it hard to accept.

“No... this can't be right!”

Within moments, she regained her composure, her mind intensely focused.

This couldn't possibly be so simple.

As she concentrated, soft rays of light slowly reappeared in the darkness.

While Kaelis attempted to reconstruct the image from memory, the light began corresponding tracing lines.

The feeling of clarity returned once more.

“So... the meditation method is just continuously visualizing this pattern in my mind?”

Looking at the towering mural before her, Kaelis blinked.

In just ten minutes, she had completely reconstructed the entire image from memory!

And judged by the glowing lines, her reconstruction was flawless!

“It's not that really hard."

Looking at the mural, the lines numbered in the tens of thousands, ordinary people might spend half a year just recovering its uniqueness, let alone replicating it.

But for Kaelis... this was as natural as eating or drinking.

After completing it, she once again felt that mental clarity, her small face slightly flushed with excitement.

This time, the light lasted half a minute before fading.

With prior experience, Kaelis reconstructed it even faster, this time, only seven minutes.

Thus, meditating back and forth for over an hour, repeating the process more than ten times, she finally opened her eyes as the street began to grow lively.

Her bright black eyes now seemed even deeper and more luminous, and her body felt as if she'd just soaked in a hot bath, unprecedentedly relaxed.

Although her hunger had become noticeably stronger.

But before she could fully savor the feeling, she realized people had already gathered around her.

Kaelis's expression instantly stiffened.

Looking up again, she saw a white-haired, blue-eyed woman, roughly her own age, staring at her with a serious expression.

On her indigo uniform was pinned a badge depicting a shield and a hunting hound.

Kaelis inwardly cursed, but still forced a smile.

“Um...”

“You don't need to explain.”

The woman cut her off, with a stern voice.

“You are suspected of violating the Urban Management Law and the Ascender Management Law... Ma'am, you'll need to come to us.”

The woman appeared relatively polite, she had her subordinates surround Kaelis, but didn't move to seize her immediately. After stating the charges, she expected Kaelis to comply voluntarily.

Kaelis lowered her head and remained silent for a few moments, then clenched her fists tightly.

When she looked up again, her face was filled with determination.

The surrounding officers instantly grew wary.

Even the woman narrowed her eyes, hand moved to the hilt of her sword, posture resolute.

“You...” Kaelis gritted her teeth, took a deep breath.

“Do you... provide meals?”

“...Sorry, that would be at your own expense...”

Before the woman could finish speaking, Kaelis suddenly used both hands to flip over her painting stand.

The nearby guards instinctively stepped back, and the previously tight encirclement instantly developed a gap!

Kaelis grabbed a few completed artworks and turned to run!

Extra items would slow her down, she couldn't afford to keep them.

Even though Kaelis's reaction was fast and unexpected, the woman still managed to react, quickly turning to block Kaelis's path.

“Please don't resist. Surrender imme— ”

Before the woman could finish, Kaelis's steps suddenly shifted.

Having simulated joining the military several times, Kaelis wasn't just some disposable grunt.

She had some understanding of swordsmanship and footwork too!

In a flash, Kaelis snatched the woman's sword and dashed away!

Her speed was like a gust of wind!

Instantly, the street erupted into chaos.

But the woman reacted quickly, immediately shouted orders.

“Ram, Heim, calm the crowd. Dorothy, notify the patrol nearby. The rest of you, chase her... No, Heather, you come with me to block her off.”

The patrol members quickly scattered. The one left behind, a woman with a side ponytail, narrowed her eyes, a faint smile on her face as she watched the clearly displeased woman.

As a companion, half-sister, and caretaker to the other for nearly ten years, she easily guessed what the girl was thinking, and didn't hide it.

Instead, gazing in the direction Kaelis had fled, she spoke softly.

“That footwork... is indeed a habit of the Azalea Squad…”

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