Whittaker's curious nature could only be satisfied after he memories the shape of this metal and learn how much an Arc is "Worth". So, he started surfing the mana net for the information while thinking, 'Who knows, maybe one day, I will be lucky enough to get my hands on this stuff!'
Soon after, due to his innate memorization skills, he learned all that there was to about the Arcs, flying object, and the metal called "Common".
Although Shadow didn't have the guidance of a map, he was still on the correct route to their destination. He had visited the Silver Moon forest three times to hunt wolf's pack all alone, so he knew his way around this place. The Arc continued on its intended path until they reached very close to the Silver Soul Forest, then the Arc descended from the clouded skies.
The Forest was a hunting ground from which the nobles of the Swadehash City earned a passive income every month. Entering the forest without undergoing inspection was considered illegal, and any person caught illegally entering the forest will have to pay a certain amount of fine or spend a certain amount of time in prison.
After the Arc landed on the ground, Shadow and Whittaker stepped away from it, then he stored it into his Spatial ring. Yesterday, it had snowed here. The remains of the snow decorated the ground so much that the two boys could be seen walking on Snow.
At the edge of the forest, Whittaker saw large houses, each with a different name. Looking closely, he realized that all of the houses are shops selling a wide variety of items ranging from potions to beast weapons. He could see and hear a group of people trying to form a party.
"Looking for an E-ranked Battle-mage to hunt black panther. Total Profit will be split equally between the members. Must have an explosion and defensive spells."
"Looking for a D ranked Assassin to steal lightning python egg. Total Profit will be split 40/60."
Similar shouts could be heard by both the boys. This place was bustling with people and polluted with noise, making Whittaker's head hurt which caused him to frown. He thought, 'Was this a forest or a marketplace?'
Understanding that everything is his first time, Shadow said to Whittaker, "Do you wanna know why a forest's edge can be this bustling?"
"Yeah, why is that?" Whittaker asked, his gaze roaming about.
Shadow explained while leading him to the forest entrance gate, "It's easy to understand, where there are magical beasts, there is profit. This is the marketplace set up by nobles to make a lot of easy profit. Never buy anything from places like this because it is a massive scam. The prices of all the items being sold here are sold for double or triple their actual price. It's always better for us students to buy hunting supplies from the Academy marketplace."
Pointing his finger at the group of peoples buying the overpriced items, Whittaker asked, "But why are they purchasing the overpriced items?"
"Most adventures only have access to marketplaces like this. Do you remember what I told you about buyers?" Shadow said.
Whittaker nodded and replied,
"The price of an item depends on the desperation of the buyer."
"Yes, adventurers are a wealthy group of people as hunting even a single magical beast is worth more than what a normal civilian earns while working for a week. Some of the Awakened don't really care about how much they spend or waste while buying the items they are desperate for. That's why these people are buying them. Come on, follow me."
Saying that Shadow hastened his footsteps, and like a hamster, Whittaker chased his back.
Just as they moved away from the disturbing chaos of a market, Whittaker could not help but be shocked by the majesty in front.
There were a lot of tall and large trees, older than fifty years, at the forest periphery, encircled by immense steel fences that faced the forest. The fence height exceeded 20 meters, looking very robust.
Hundred of law enforces patrolled the area, each wearing full body armor, grasping high ranked beast spear in their hands. All the guards here are above D-rank and have bathed in the blood of many. They gave a dangerous feeling to Whittaker.
There were two entrances to the Silver Moon forest. One was vacant while many people stood in line in front of the other entrance.
The vacant entrance could only be used by VIPs. The second gate was for commoners.
One by one, the commoners underwent inspection. They handed over some platinum bars to the guard, and he allowed them entry.
"Do everyone have to pay an entrance fee to enter the Silver Moon forest?" Whittaker asked.
Shadow said to Whittaker while heading directly towards the VIP entrance, "Well, we don't have to."
Whittaker eyes blinked and he asked, "Why?"
"Hmm.. how to explain it... As you can see, not anyone can enter the Silver Moon forest to hunt as the entrance is guarded by soldiers. To hunt, a person must have a hunting warrant given by the Awakened Hall or has to possess a student ID that identifies them as a part of a Royal Academy. Only then will the guards allow them to enter the forest to hunt. We are students from a Royal Academy, that's why we don't have to pay a fee."
"Then, what about students from normal academies?" Whittaker asked. He was curious about normal academies because his sister studied in one.
Shadow replied, "Students from normal academies can not legally hunt magical beast until they graduate. While entering magical beasts forest illegally is possible but those who enter illegally usually fare a bad ending. Do you understand?"
Whittaker nodded.
Thanks to Shadow explanation, he also realized that his sister has probably never hunted a magical beast as she was studying in a normal Academy and she needed to graduate before she can start hunting. That's why she never sent home any money.
The VIP entrance was covered by some guards that stood before a steel fence.
"Kids, stop right there. Who are you?" They shouted when they saw Shadow and Whittaker moving closer to the Vip gate.
In reply, he simply handed over his and Whittaker Student ID card to one of them. The guard casually glanced at the IDs to fulfill basic formalities but his eyes widened in surprise.
'Students from a Royal Academy!'
On his face immediately appeared a respectful look, and he hurriedly shooed away the other guards. He returned the IDs to Shadow and Whittaker. Then he let them enter the forest by opening the vacant VIP iron gate.
Just like that, Whittaker and Shadow entered the Silver Moon Forest under the envious glare of the other adventures. They thought, 'Che, it's really good to be born with a silver spoon!''