The city of Araram was the first semblance of an advanced civilisation that Fen saw ever since leaving Akhaz. All the supply points beside the road could be considered to be more of a local trading place than real settlement, operating on an entirely different set of rules than a proper city like the one spanning before Fen's eyes right now.
Obviously, some of the marks of the region attached itself to the town itself. Instead of being completely enveloped by the walls like Akhaz to the south, only the castle district was protected by the fortifications, with the rest of the settlement left completely open.
But it wasn't anything unexpected. From what Fen learned by picking his eyes while travelling and hunting, this part of the empire could only be described as desolate. Outside of several dense spots of population and urbanisation, most of the central area of the country was relatively free from the human touch.
