On the Seven Towers Alliance’s interplanar teleportation plaza.

Hundreds of Teleportation Star Gates, large and small, were arranged in a ring. Their lights flickered intermittently, each flash signifying an arrival or departure.

The Molten Iron Mountain Range was a remote plane that required a transfer to reach.

Allen followed the prominent signs, walking up to a Teleportation Star Gate leading to a major plane.

He first used his newly issued Magic Stone Card to pay the fee—a total of 1,000 Low-Level Magic Stones. The price was a bit steep.

VMMMM—

The Light Gate flared to life, and he stepped inside along with the others around him.

The teleportation experience was as awful as ever.

The physical discomfort was still there, but this time, Allen—with his Mechanical Mind modification—felt none of the strain.

’If only I’d had this kind of incredible resilience in my past life, I wouldn’t have spent all my time at work fuming in silence.’

When the teleportation ended, he found himself standing on a vast, open-air platform. Beyond it lay a spectacular view.

There was no sky, nor was there solid ground.

As far as the eye could see was a city built upon countless floating islands and steel girders. A myriad of light ribbons, suspension bridges, and pipelines connected these "districts" of varying sizes, forming a three-dimensional labyrinth so vast the eye could not take it all in at once.

Winged lizardmen flew past Wizards piloting personal flight devices.

A Cyclops towering over ten meters tall strained to step from one suspension bridge to another island, a massive crate on its back printed with an alien script Allen didn’t recognize.

Farther in the distance, a Biological Battleship over a kilometer long was slowly pulling into a massive dock encircled by a Rune Array. Its hull was still slick with fresh green blood, a clear sign it had just returned from battle.

[WARNING! AMBIENT MAGIC POWER DATA OVERLOAD! SAFETY THRESHOLD EXCEEDED! PLEASE REDUCE DATA ACQUISITION FREQUENCY!]

DSeek’s warnings blared in his mind.

Allen rubbed his throbbing temples, forcing his gaze away from the overwhelming scene to consider his next move.

A portal leading to a war front like the Molten Iron Mountain Range wasn’t going to be easy to find. Before leaving, he hadn’t asked his mentor how to make the transfer; he’d felt it was too foolish a question to ask.

Now, awkwardly, he had to find the way himself.

Allen carried his plain-looking Large-Space Handbag and followed the flow of people down from the platform.

He was dressed plainly in a standard-issue Wizard Robe, which didn’t draw any attention. In a place like this, Wizards were a dime a dozen.

He needed to find a place and figure out two things: how to get to the Molten Iron Mountain Range, and whether the food here was any good.

He had learned a little about this transit plane before arriving; it was called Hub City.

It was a neutral, interplanar trading hub.

Reportedly established and maintained by the Ten Thousand Nations Trade Alliance, the entire artificial demiplane consisted of nothing but this single, unimaginably vast city.

Merchants, Wizards, non-humans, and even demons from across the myriad planes all came here to trade, abiding by its rules.

It had trade zones where all forms of violence were prohibited, with order maintained by powerful contractual forces and guardians.

As long as you could pay the price, there was almost nothing that couldn’t be bought.

The Teleportation Platform led out onto a wide street, and the bustling scene strongly reminded him of a subway exit on a commercial street from his past life.

Allen’s gaze swept across the forest of signs. Many of them were accompanied by descriptive Magic Images.

He soon locked onto a target.

It was a Magic Image of a goblet and roasted meat, playing on a continuous loop.

"Ten Directions Tavern."

’The name is straightforward enough. Guess I’ll try the food here first.’

He pushed open the wooden door, and a wave of noise even more clamorous than the street outside washed over him.

The tavern was spacious inside, packed with all sorts of beings.

Behind the bar, a four-armed bartender was mixing drinks for several patrons simultaneously, his movements so fast they left afterimages.

Allen found a seat in a corner, and a halfling in a waiter’s uniform approached with a tray.

"What can I get for you, sir?"

"I’ll have your signature drink and a plate of your house specialty," Allen said.

"You got it!"

The halfling waiter soon returned with a bubbling drink and a large plate of aromatic, sizzling roasted meat.

Allen took a bite. The meat was tough, but the spices were uniquely flavorful.

While he ate slowly, he dedicated a mental thread to analyzing the conversations around him.

"...I can’t go any lower on that batch of Fire Lizard eggs! Do you have any idea how tense the fighting is on the Ring City Alliance front? They’re going through supplies at three times the normal rate!"

"Don’t even mention that gods-forsaken place. My brother’s trade fleet vanished in a War Plane last month. Lost everything, a complete write-off!"

"I hear they’re developing dozens of planes simultaneously over there."

Allen paused.

’The Ring City Alliance?’

’That military-industrial complex, formed from the twelve most powerful Floating Cities... It was one of the three major organizations I’d had the chance to join.’

’My mentor is an official member of the Ring City Alliance, a key military asset for Floating City Number Twelve.’

’Looks like my luck is holding out. I’ve already found a key piece of information without even trying.’

He didn’t rush to inquire further, instead continuing to listen to the other patrons shoot the breeze.

"Hey, did you hear? The Spiritual Thought Network released a new ’Experience Pack.’ This one’s called ’A Succubus’s First Love.’ I hear one session will make you feel ten years younger!"

"Get real. That stuff is a mental toxin; anyone who messes with it is asking for trouble. I prefer something more... tangible. That memory crystal from last time, ’A Night at the Eager Beaver Infirmary,’ now that was good..."

DSeek automatically pulled up an entry for the "Spiritual Thought Network" in his mind.

It was a secret society of Mind Mages that existed only in the Spiritual World, with no physical headquarters. Its members were a motley crew, including both White Wizards and Black Wizards.

They ran a black market on the spiritual plane, trafficking in memories, emotions, and intelligence. They could subtly influence the cultural zeitgeist of entire planes and even instigated the occasional coup, making them a partner many factions both feared and courted.

’So, Black Wizards can do business here too,’ Allen mused. ’Hub City’s security and defensive forces must be formidable; otherwise, they’d never be able to keep a lid on a place this chaotic.’

By the time he finished the plate of roasted meat, Allen had a rough understanding of the situation and knew where to find the way to the Molten Iron Mountain Range.

’There must be a Ring City Alliance branch here. Finding them is the surest bet.’

Allen set down his knife and fork, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and headed for the bar.

The four-armed bartender was having a moment of downtime, polishing a glass.

"Excuse me," Allen said, rapping his knuckles on the bar.

"A drink, or information?" the bartender asked without looking up.

"Information."

"Ten Low-Level Magic Stones." The bartender held out one of his hands.

Allen had stocked his Space Ring with some Magic Stones before setting out.

"I need to know how to get to the Ring City Alliance’s branch office."

He slid ten Magic Stones across the bar.

"New here?"

"Find the intra-planar Teleportation Platform. It’s nearby. Teleport directly to the main commercial thoroughfare, and you’ll see it."

The bartender pocketed the money and lowered his voice.

"That’s common knowledge, so I’ll give you another tip on the house."

"See that place over there?" He winked, gesturing toward a shop across the street.

"They’ve got some... very interesting entertainment there. You can listen to some fine music, too. For a newcomer to the plane, it’s well worth a visit."

Allen followed his gesture and saw a small, three-story building with a pink sign.

"Thanks."

After leaving the tavern, Allen didn’t give it a second thought and headed straight for it.

’No special reason,’ he thought. ’Just feel like spending some money in this commercial plane. Maybe listening to this ’music’ will raise my humanity stat a little.’