Taking the Mafia to the Magic World

Chapter 941  The Value of a Newcomer

After reading for a while, Vicente learned more about the place he was in. Although Primrose had told him earlier that the Light Cay was the island he was on, it was not just an island; it was a continent!

Considering its size, the Light Cay alone could cover 40% of Polaris Realm. However, the residents of this domain, led by Stonewall, considered this and other domains of similar size to be mere islands, given the number of such enclaves in Anicane.

According to the books available in the house that would become Vicente's residence, all of Anicane's islands were as large as large parts of the Polaris Realm. But the population was not as small as that of Vicente's birthplace.

The population of the Polaris Realm, whether it consisted only of humans or magical beings, was not large. The largest states, regardless of race, should have a total population in the tens of millions, while smaller states had a few million at most.

Anicane had over 10,000 "islands" and each of them had a population of a few hundred million!

Last but not least, the city Vicente was in was huge, easily outpacing 3 million inhabitants, something you would rarely see in the Polaris Realm.

Another difference between Anicane and Polaris Realm was the percentage of inhabitants who were sensitive to magic. While in Vicente's home, half or more of the population didn't even have the ability to manipulate mana, in Anicane, 99% of the living beings were sensitive to magic.

However, despite the differences in power ranking, the cultivation method in Anicane was similar to that of the Polaris Realm.

Some races didn't need to hunt for pentagrams to become stronger, and they were usually the ones who supplied pentagrams to other races, while others needed to add pentagrams to their Magic Gems.

Upon arrival in Anicane, anyone who wasn't compatible with the local magic system would undergo a delayed Awakening Ceremony, which was basically the method Prisiche had mentioned when talking about those beings who weren't used to mana and had to start their cultivations from scratch.

Unlike the Polaris Realm, where Awakening was a rigorous and difficult process, in Anicane it was something simple that could even be done more than once on the same being.

This part caught Vicente's attention, and since he had no more books on the subject, he couldn't help but ask Prisiche about it.

She told him what she knew, that the second Awakening didn't give magicians new powers, but qualitatively improved the powers they had already gained in the first Awakening. But the second Awakening was not something that could be controlled. It was a natural event that could happen to magicians who met certain requirements.

Besides, the other things were just curiosities to him. The Light Cay was technologically advanced, but that shouldn't be something common to all 'islands'. The Light Cay was specialized in its forge and advanced technologies, while other islands might be specialized in different ways, so they might have very different characteristics.

But from what he discovered, it wasn't easy to get to and from the 'islands' of Anicane, so he shouldn't worry too much about the reality of other 'islands', at least in the short term.

Separated by the grandiose Thousand Seas Ocean, a journey between 'islands' could cost greater riches than anything Vicente had ever seen in the Polaris Realm. The journey, even the shortest travel from the Light Cay, could be so dangerous and long that it was only accessible to those at least at the 8th stage of cultivation.

For someone like him, an Archmage, traveling to any other "island" would be as dangerous as traveling out of the Seidel Kingdom when he was just an Acolyte!

With this information, Vicente could understand that he should focus on the Light Cay, especially Stonewall, for the time being.

As he had already read, the Light Cay was huge, with an immense population. Only in this small part of Anicane should he have enough problems and opportunities to concentrate on for a long time.

The Light Cay was led by Stonewall, the sect Vicente now belonged to. But it was not the only power on the 'island', and it was not comfortable enough in its position that there were no disputes or concerns from the sect about maintaining its position.

While Vicente was learning about his new home, at least two major forces of the Light Cay, with similar strengths to Stonewall, should be looking for loopholes to take the sect's place!

In this part of the reading, a full day after his arrival in this world, Vicente understood why Primrose and the others had welcomed him so well earlier!

...

"So that's it... It makes sense." Vicente closed a red book in his hands, understanding what had happened hours ago when he arrived in the sect.

"Master?" Prisiche asked in a curious tone.

Over the last few hours, she had heard her master muttering to himself, sometimes pausing for several minutes while staring into space, and then making expressions of concern or relief. Sometimes he explained himself to her while trying to get the opinion of this artificial intelligence. Other times, he simply ignored her.

This time Vicente did not ignore Prisiche. He said to her, "Now I understand why you all treat me with respect and some value instead of just a nobody."

"Where you come from, is it customary to treat newcomers like dirt or like slaves, master?" She asked curiously, understanding what he had read and what he had in mind.

"No, but where I come from, someone like me would be imprisoned, perhaps even prevented from cultivating, until the whole truth about them was revealed. If they were a danger to the organization they had joined, they could be tortured or even killed." Vicente didn't hide the reality from Prisiche.

"A terrible, barbaric place," she said, sounding civilized despite the barbaric side her civilization also had.

"More or less. Things are more direct there. That can be bad sometimes, but it also has its advantages," he muttered to himself before speaking in a stronger tone. "But now I understand my position. Obviously, your society holds newly promoted people from lower planes in high esteem."

"Certainly." She shook her head in agreement. "Even though Anicane far surpasses any lower plane associated with us, and there is no shortage of geniuses anywhere in Anicane, it takes more than just talent to reach the top. Determination and experience play important roles in the cultivation process. But not every super talent has what it takes.

However, for hundreds of thousands of years, every newcomer to Anicane from the lower planes has performed important feats and reached amazing heights that are difficult to reach."

In short, geniuses like Vicente, capable of becoming the strongest of their planes and reaching Anicane, came to this world as "weaklings," but with a lot of potential, potential superior even to the native geniuses of Anicane.

Each person in Vicente's circumstances was highly valued by each power they belonged to and were often considered factors capable of upsetting the balance of power of the world.

In short, those who had more specialists who had ascended from lower planes were often considered more promising because of the advantages of first cultivating in Anicane at already higher levels and with great experience and determination.

Usually, people like Vicente went through wars, millennia of experience, and many more terrible experiences in their planes to reach Anicane.

But that wasn't all; cultivating at a high level in weak places was also an added advantage for these beings. When they arrived at a high-level place, it was easier for them to cultivate because they were more sensitive to everything in that reality.

In short, while a young local Archmage was fully accustomed to Anicane, a newcomer like Vicente could achieve breakthroughs just by breathing the air outside of special places like the one he was in.

Someone with his identity could grow up quickly and had the potential to become great figures for the future of sects like Stonewall or even entire 'islands' like the Light Cay!

Because of all this, people like Vicente were treated very well on every island in Anicane, given a chance to prove themselves before being treated according to their own merits. If they were enemies disguised as allies, they would eventually be exposed. If they were allies, they would eventually receive even more benefits than when they arrived in their respective forces.

Despite the negative implications behind this—being a target of their sect's enemy forces—there were definitely some very positive points that Vicente was happy with.

'If what they say about foreigners is true, then I'll be able to become a Grand Magus in less time than it took me to become an Archmage... If that stuff about time distortion isn't true, then maybe I can find out the truth before the worst happens in the Polaris Realm.'

Vicente clenched his fists as he considered the many implications of what he had discovered, especially the one that was most urgent to him.

"Prisiche, I've finished reading the books we had here. Are there any other books in this house?"

"No, master." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Then tell me about the city we're in, how far I can go, and how to get to the Central Library." He ordered her, eager to continue his adaptation and learn more about this place.