And just like that, Zero got a free ride to the city thanks to the knights that had come to rescue Alex. They also insisted to take him to their base in the city to give him proper credit for what he did - rescuing Alex, a captain of the knights' company. He wanted to refuse, but Alex and Guro kept pestering him about it so he was left with no choice but to accept their 'kindness'.
And so, together with all the knights, they ride, and before he even knew it, they have already arrived at the gate of the city.
He looks at the tall gates in amazement. It was completely different from the entrance that was in Azir. Probably, it can fit four trucks all at the same time, and its height stood even taller than the guild in Azir itself, that's just how big it was - and they went over it, towards the inside of the city.
And as if the guards already knew they were coming, they did not inspect any of the knights and the wagons at all - only, they had surprised faces as they look at the last wagon that is carrying one huge wyvern.
They were immediately able to enter, and the view inside was revealed to Zero.
Of course, unlike Azir, the path in this city is paved and is properly laid out; the structures and houses are much more organized and sturdy-looking, and the population between the two can't even be compared - considering that Azir is just a town and Citrine is an entire city.
But one thing that had particularly caught Zero's attention were the people that are walking in the city that are not humans: people with ears of animals, tails, and horns. He knows that they exist in this world, but he was still became fascinated with them as he had never really seen any of them in Azir.
[ Zero-san, I know you've probably already heard of what this city is, but since this is your first time coming here, how about I explain further. ] Alex took his attention as he quietly stares outside the wagon and explains how the city works - and she explains...
First of all, this city - Citrine, is considered the city that is most visited by all magicians, knights, and adventurers, as basically, this city acts as the main base for every one of them. Here, in this city, built are the Knights' Academy, Knights' Company, Magicians' Corps, Mage Academy, and of course, the main Adventurers' Guild. It's built and spotted for those three groups and most people that are living here attend to one or two of them.
And just as Zero had seen earlier, there are also other species that are living in this city besides humans - particularly, demihumans, elves, dwarves, halflings, and many others - which Alex had explained even further.
The next thing that Alex had told him about was the dungeon. Gerald had already told him about it, but he never really gave any detailed explanation of what it supposedly was.
[ The dungeon here are often only being explored by adventurers as it is an easy way to earn materials to sell. It's not yet completely explored so it's very dangerous, especially to people who venture alone, that's why it's best to have a partner or two as you go inside it. ]
[ ... ] Zero remained quiet as he listens, but of course, he also has his thoughts -
( So it's not completely explored yet, huh? I wonder how many floors there is inside... ) he stares quietly towards Alex.
[ The dungeon... It's actually the very core and foundation of this city, almost everything centers around it, and someday I want to go inside it too. ]
[ You never went inside before? ]
[ Yes, I've actually trained my whole life as a knight, and I also served this whole time as one... I usually being assigned for outside missions such as subjugation, raids, and even war itself... So I never really have gotten the chance to go to the dungeon. ]
[ Really...? ]
The fact that she had never stepped put inside the dungeon wasn't really a shock to Zero. Unlike the adventurers and mages, knights won't really benefit that much conquering dungeons, as they cannot be registered as adventurers, the only thing that they can get from it is the experience, they can sell the materials to the guild, but they won't get as much as those who are registered 'adventurers'.
And opposite to Alex, Zero would gain the most from this dungeon, earning money, levels, and rank ups as he goes inside the dungeon.
[ How about you, Zero-san? You will probably try the dungeon, right? ]
[ Of course. ] he nodded.
[ I think I will mostly spend my time inside the dungeon. ]
[ Huh...? ] his words seem to have baffled Alex, and she asks another question -
[ If you spend most of your time inside the dungeon, you won't rank that much up... ]
[ Hmm...? ] it was Zero's time to make a confused expression.
He was sure that the guild will give tasks for the dungeon, but base on what Alex had said, that wasn't the case.
Seeing the change in his expression, Alex realizes what his thought is.
[ I guess since you're new here, you wouldn't know... Well, the adventurers' guild doesn't really put tasks for anything inside the dungeon, the dungeon is only mostly visited by adventurers to earn immediate money... So you probably won't be able to rank up from going inside the dungeon... ] she further explains.
[ Oh... Is that so? ]
( Does that mean I have to still go outside the city to complete tasks and rank-up...? That's... )
Zero had already decided that he will increase his rank up in this city, but he planned to do so by doing tasks regarding the dungeon, but now that he had realized that the guild will never actually put on any task for the dungeon, he's starting to reconsider.
In the game, ranks inside the guild never really existed so it was still a new concept to Zero. The guild then will only give tasks, most of which are for clearing floors, for players to fulfill and earn rewards such as experience and items. Other than that, it also serves as a place to sell items at; but now, in this world, some of these rules and cases are not appliable anymore.
The guild here serves as something bigger, something that is a large part of this world's norm and society, and of it, comes the concept of ranking up. It was completely different from the guild Zero knows of; he realized that when he registered as one in Azir, but now, he had learned even more differences and he now considers the two as different identities: the game's rules and the reality.
[ I really need to adapt to this new concept... ] he whispers to himself. And although he had intended for it to be only heard by his self, Alex was also able to hear it, so she tries to add -
[ It seems you've been working alone this whole time, Zero-san... You will actually need to get a partner or join a party if you want to become a successful adventurer. I think at your level, you would be able to find some easily. ]
Her words put Zero to a thought, and it took him a while to respond to her -
[ I guess I will need to think about it... ]
[ Please consider it; as no matter how strong you are, there's always the chance that the enemy will outnumber you. ]
And she leaves it at that as they continue to go towards their destination - the Knights' base.