Chapter 86: Chester City
As Charles walked near the city, he saw some greenery from time to time and soon realized that they were farmlands.
Charles knew that it would be impossible for an aquifer to appear in the earth's outer layer in such a dry area. On Earth, farmers would use bore well drilling machines and take water for irrigation propose while drying the underground water in return.
But he was well aware of the technology gap in this world and became surprised when he saw wells in such dry areas. Unlike bore wells, digging a well was a challenging task even on Earth.
In curious, Charles went near a well and soon widened his eyes as he saw that the well was deeper than the normal ones he had seen in his previous life.
Not only that, he even saw a magic motor pump system attached to it!
After his transmigration, he never went to farm fields and knew nothing about these mechanisms.
Out of curiosity, he took a closer look at those pumps and got startled deeply.
'They are using some liquid to run the motor… No, it's not a motor, but it looks more like an artifact filled with weird letters.' While he was in muse, the Holem's Crown started to speak.
'Artisan class mystics are indeed good at producing complicated mechanical artifacts. Hmm, they are using condensed mana liquid as fuel.'
'Oh? They can even do that?' Charles was indeed impressed by these magical engineers.
'Yes. But it is a very costly procedure. Moreover, the owner of this seemed to have invested so much money to dig this well.' The Holem's Crown stopped for a moment and soon added.
'The Moon Kingdom citizens must be wealthy when comparing with others.'
Charles also nodded his head in approval. Then, he didn't stay any longer near the farmland and started walking towards Chester City.
Around 5 P.M, Charles finally managed to arrive in front of Chester City's entrance gate and waited in the queue to get in.
Unlike Riverdale City, the outer walls of Chester City appeared to be made of shining rocks and gave off the feeling of ancient and old.
It was 7 meters tall, and the entrance gate itself looked more majestic and appeared to be made of pure silver!
Not even the four Empires would dare to build something like this, but this Moon Kingdom did it grandly. Charles's gaze swept past the tall stone walls and soon landed on a single tower that appeared at the center of the city.
Even though the stone wall was blocking his vision, he saw the tower's top very clearly and became stunned by the height.
'Damn, this tower should be higher than Burj Khalifa. What is that tower? Why would these guys build something like that at the center of the city? Moreover, how did they construct this?' Charles raised his eyebrows and asked those questions in confusion.
'That one? It must be the Tower of Elements, a magic tower. Although the building looks grand, it is nothing when comparing it with real ones.' The Holem's Crown said in a cold tone.
'Magic Tower?' Charles suddenly thought of those towers from fantasy novels and became more curious.
"Next." While he was in muse, a cold voice came from the front in Laka Language and woke him up.
Charles raised his head a little and saw a man in silver armor was waiting for him to show his Id.
Charles nodded his head, took out the Withering Shadow department's Life-symbol sealed batch, and showed it to the blonde-haired man.
Although he could vaguely understand the Laka Language, he felt that it was necessary to learn more if he plans on settling in this kingdom for a year or two.
'Mr. Runeth, you know this language, right? I only know a little so If I made some mistakes when conversing, correct me.' He said in his mind and then stared at the guard.
Meanwhile, the blonde-haired man caught the badge, checked it using an artifact to see where it was original or duplicate, and gave it back to him.
Thankfully, the blonde-haired man didn't ask his name or other information and simply let him in.
Even Charles became surprised by the guard's behavior and silently walked in.
'This badge sure is useful.' Charles curled his lips and soon walked on the main road.
Even the entrance area appeared crowded, and hundreds of peoples roamed here and there like bees. Some wore regular linen cloths and ornaments embroidered silk cloths, while the remaining ones wore leather armor-type dresses. But he also saw some people in different colored robes and got curious.
Charles's eyes flickered as he analyzed them one by one and soon narrowed his eyes.
'All of them are mystics. Hmm? Almost 90 percent of the robed ones are mages, but why have the mages have some question marks in their status?'
'Oh? That's must be servitude marks. That's because Churches and Royals were the ones who run this Tower of Elements, and these guys are just workers. Each Kingdom's Capital City must have one or two Magic Towers, and these mages' job is to protect the Royals when an invasion occurs.' The Holem's Crown said in a solemn tone.
'Invasion?' Charles knew very little about neighboring kingdom invasions and became curious.
'Although Gods signed an agreement not to cause a large-scale war in the name of religion, that doesn't mean mortal kingdoms can't start a war on their own. Wars between kingdoms would often happen due to grudges and greed, but the Gods and the Churches wouldn't interfere due to agreement.' The Holem's Crown paused for a moment and soon added,
'In this world, these mages are used as tools by Royals and Churches, lad. That's why you need to be careful when signing agreements with them. If you entered their circle, they will find a loophole and restrict you in many ways.'
A heavy sigh leaked out of Charles's mouth as he rubbed his wrinkled old face and soon moved towards the Slum Borough.
Unlike Riverdale City, Chester City was divided into four districts. They were Nobles' Borough, South Borough, Slum Borough, and Mystic Borough. And each section was maintained by a different group of security guards.
'I heard that this city has a population of 2 million, so it's not a surprising thing.' Charles quickly found a signboard and read out loud in Laka Language.
"Hmm, Slum is in the west."
'That is east, lad. See the first character; there are two strokes instead of one.' The Holem's Crown corrected him and then added.
'Slum is not a safe place.'
A smile appeared on Charles's face as he turned around in the nearby junction and started walking towards the east.
'Nowhere is safer for a foreigner in any kingdom, Mr. Runeth. If you made one single mistake, they will trap you, rob you, and even kill you brutally in the name of law and order.' Charles shook his head and continued to walk.
After a few minutes, he entered the Slum Borough and became surprised once again.
'As expected of a wealthy kingdom, even the Slum Borough looks a little cleaner and these people appear a little bit healthier than Riverdale City's slum people.' He nodded his head and started searching for Inns. In Slum streets, Inns were always a little cheaper.
'But the problem is food, water, and safety. Well, I have to adjust with these for now.' He hurriedly chose an Inn called Wheat Inn in 50A Harpy Street and rented a small room for a month. Although it cost him five gold coins, he felt that it was worth it.
'I need to find a way and remove this Amber Curse; otherwise, I really might end up in huge trouble.' He recalled the suspicious look on the Inn owner's face when he gave the Life gold coins and soon arrived in front of the newly rented room on the ground floor. He then placed the iron key in the keyhole, turned it towards the left, and opened the wooden door with a click.
It was a 10ft x 13ft room, and one foldable cot was placed at the center.
Charles walked in, turned around, closed the door, went near the cot, and sat on it.
Even though he was less weight, the cot still made a screeching noise and caused him to cover his ears subconsciously.
'The Inn owner said that they would provide meals, but I wonder if they provide enough to fulfill my stomach.' He mumbled inwardly and soon took out a Black gem from his space ring.
'I should sell this Rank-3 [Phantom Stringer] class gem in this city. But selling it to the merchants will definitely attract attention. Not only that, but I also need to exchange this gem for other churches' gold coins instead of Amber Church's ones.' A frown appeared on his face.
He pondered for a moment and soon found a way to solve the problem.
'I need some loyal pawns, but Slum Street peoples are not trustworthy. Next are the middle-class people. No, most of them would go on their own. Hmm, my only option is the people from the outside.'
He played with the black gem and asked,
'Mr. Runeth, how much can this gem worth?'
The Holem's Crown didn't reply for ten seconds and then said in a solemn tone,
'It should be around 1500 Gold coins. But if you ask the dealer to give you in other Churches' currency, they would reduce 100 to 200 gold coins.'
'It doesn't matter.' Charles waved his hand, lay on the cot, and soon closed his amber eyes.