Fia was walking with Claire on the streets of Aurora City.
It was eight in the morning, and the streets were already bustling with people.
Although the scene wasn’t overwhelming for Fia, it was still quite lively.
However, as they moved forward, the number of pedestrians decreased, and the buildings became more dilapidated.
They even saw some makeshift homes made of sticks and tarps.
The streets grew narrower, and the air was filled with the stench of sewage.
“This is the slums…” Fia murmured softly as she walked beside Claire.
They were there because someone had asked Claire to treat a patient.
As for Anastasia, she wasn’t with Fia because she wanted to investigate the Unsinkable Moon.
Claire, carrying a bamboo basket, nodded gently.
“Yes, this is the slums of Aurora City.
There are two other places like this in the city, but this is the largest.
There are too many people living in Aurora City, and limited job opportunities.
Those who can’t find work end up living in places like this.
Because they live in the slums, they’re looked down upon, making it even harder to find work, trapping them in a cycle they can’t escape.”
“Of course, these unfortunate people are the minority.
Most of them have lived in the slums since birth.
Their parents are often escaped slaves or criminals with a record.”
“No wonder their gazes feel strange.”
Fia carefully watched her step to avoid stepping into puddles of black water while occasionally observing her surroundings.
By now, there were no sturdy stone buildings on either side of the road, replaced by makeshift tents made of tarps and wood.
Occasionally, people could be seen coming in and out of the dirty tents.
These people generally appeared malnourished and unkempt, and just looking at them, one could imagine the smell of sweat.
Almost everyone who saw Fia would follow her with their eyes, their gaze like a licking sensation that sent a shiver down her spine.
It was unsettling.
Fia, with her white side ponytail, reached into her dress pocket and infused magic into one of the magic crystals.
“Wind of Detection.” A gentle breeze blew by, and Fia’s ruby-like eyes turned blue.
Soon, a thermal imaging-like scene appeared before her eyes.
Non-living things were marked in blue, while people on the street were marked in a slightly bluish-purple.
According to Anastasia, who gave Fia this crystal, the first-tier “Wind of Detection” would show different colors for those being observed.
Divided by the colors of the rainbow, the closer someone was to red, the higher their magic reserves and strength.
The closer to purple, the lower their magic reserves, and the closer they were to ordinary people.
Everyone here was just ordinary people, not even reaching the first tier.
There were indeed very few people with magic.
Fia internally commented.
In this world, people’s magic reserves aren’t determined at birth but require continuous effort.
Killing monsters, using magic, practicing martial arts, or even inscribing magic circles and memorizing knowledge from magic books can all increase magic reserves, though the efficiency varies.
After thousands of years of exploration, killing monsters is generally recognized as the fastest way to increase magic reserves.
Additionally, because “Wind of Detection” is only a first-tier detection magic, it can’t detect people more than three tiers apart.
Last night, Anastasia used “Wind of Detection” on Fia, concluding that Anastasia couldn’t sense Fia’s presence at all, indicating a gap of more than three tiers between them—despite the fact that, with the seventh-tier strength of the elven princess, Anastasia shouldn’t be unable to detect her, but it was the truth.
Just like when using the “Wind Blade” magic crystal yesterday, Fia felt a moment of dizziness, followed by an AI-simulated scene in her mind.
Finally, when her vision returned to normal, she had mastered “Wind of Detection.”
“Super Calculation” is truly a terrifyingly convenient ability.
“Fia?” Claire stopped and looked at Fia in surprise.
“Are you using magic?”
“Yeah, I wanted to see if there’s anyone noteworthy here.”
“Don’t worry, although there are many gangs here, they’re just men slightly stronger than ordinary people.
They won’t mess with a magic caster.”
“Not even a first-tier magic caster?” In the knowledge Fia had learned, a first-tier magic caster was a beginner in magic, only able to cast low-level spells like fireballs or water bullets, with no combat power.
Claire laughed and waved her hand.
“Of course not.
Except in cases of ambush, in a normal fight, a magic caster’s fireball or ice spike is enough to incapacitate an ordinary person.
If they have the right mindset, a first-tier magic caster can even be a leader of a thirty-man squad in the army.”
“Wow.”
That was unexpected.
“Miss Noble… please give me some food…” Suddenly, a man with a gaunt body, sitting by the roadside, dragged himself into the street and shakily extended his hand towards Fia.
It was clear the man was in dire straits, with almost all his hair gone, his left arm twisted at an impossible angle, and his lower body seemingly boneless, dragging limply on the ground.
“I haven’t eaten in days…”
“Uh.”
Fia hesitated.
Normally, she would choose to give alms, but she had nothing to give except magic crystals—Fia had no money.
“Anything to eat will do, please…” The man stretched his neck, zombie-like, towards Fia, his murky eyes filled with longing.
However, just as Fia was considering whether to ask the man to wait while she exchanged a magic crystal for food and returned, Claire frowned, pulled Fia away, and stood in front of the man.
“Do you have a death wish? Do you know who she is?” Her voice was full of warning.
“Claire?” Claire wasn’t the type to ignore someone in need, so Fia was surprised.
Even more surprising was that the man, upon seeing Claire, immediately showed a look of fear.
His previously paralyzed lower body suddenly filled with energy, and he stood up in an instant.
“Monster!” With that, the man ran off without looking back.
The man was faking it.
Fia realized this immediately.
If Claire hadn’t stepped in, the man might have tried to steal her belongings.
Of course, with her current physical abilities, she could have subdued him before he succeeded, but the oversight still made Fia click her tongue.
“Did you understand?”
“Yeah, he was pretending to be pitiful to steal my things.
Does Claire see this often?” They resumed walking.
“This kind of thing is common in the slums. They deliberately injure themselves to gain sympathy from passersby, deceiving noble lords visiting the slums for the first time.
It used to be even more chaotic here until a wealthy and influential person came to show their benevolence by distributing money, only to disappear within half a day.
The Holy Nation had to send a knight order to search, and when they found him, he had been eaten by flies, leaving only bones.
The knight order then beheaded all the forces in the slums, bringing some order.
But the so-called order was just the slums having a unified leader who set the rules.”
“It’s amazing Claire can stay here.”
If it were her, she’d be thinking of ways to stay far away.
Claire smiled and shook her head.
“The curse that makes people fear me isn’t all bad.
At least beggars like that don’t dare approach me.
And even if someone does, the leader here will deal with them for me.
The Light of the Goddess of Life only shines on the wealthy.
No priest is willing to come to the slums, so I became the only one who can treat them.
The leader here gives me special treatment.”
Claire’s tone was light as she finished.
“Won’t that leader forget about Claire?”
“He will.
But the curse’s effect weakens over time.
That leader often comes to the clinic to ask me to treat people in the slums, so he remembers me somewhat, at least not forgetting every few days.
We’re here.”
With that, Claire stopped in front of a low tent that required bending over to enter.
Since the cloth at the entrance wasn’t lowered, Fia could clearly see inside.
A man covered in black markings was being held down on a bed by five or six other men, seemingly enduring intense pain.
The man on the bed was screaming loudly, his body struggling so much that the five or six men holding him down were having a hard time.
“Dr. Claire, you’re finally here.”
A burly man anxiously walked up to Claire.
