Alone in his room, The Observer stood up and gazed out of the bedroom window. It was the afternoon, and the streets below were alive with the hustle and bustle of people immersed in their daily activities. Laughter, conversations, the rhythmic patter of footsteps, and a gentle breeze—all bathed in the golden glow of the midday sun. Objectively, the scene before him could be described as beautiful. Yet, he felt strangely detached from it all.
This sensation was not entirely unfamiliar to him. In the Immortal Realm, he had once conversed with his master. "There is a price to power," his master had stated. "And it is not what most think. The higher you go, the more you pay, and the more you are changed. Many of my peers believe they have paid that price—overcoming tribulations, breaking through bottlenecks, and attaining higher levels of comprehension. Ha, if only they knew that the true price was yet to come."
Recalling this conversation left The Observer with a peculiar feeling. Yes, his master had attempted to end his life, but simultaneously, he owed much of his current power and achievements to him. Despite the deception, he couldn't help but wonder if, without it, he might have seriously considered allowing his master to take his life.
Taking a deep breath, The Observer expelled those thoughts from his mind. Turning around, he exited his room. He had resolved to explore the city finally and discover what it had to offer. It was a better alternative than indulging in his downward-spiraling thoughts.
Exiting the hotel and stepping onto the streets, The Observer deliberately reined in his divine sense. He wanted to experience the city through his other senses, knowing that relying too much on divine sense could be overwhelming. Although it was a powerful tool, it tended to provide him with information too much information whenever used.
Spotting a newspaper stand, he approached it. The papers were displayed within a glass case, revealing only the headline: 'War on the Horizon?'
Instantly intrigued, he inquired, "How much is the newspaper?"
"Six correls, sir," the vendor replied.
"Is that more or less expensive than a deram?" The Observer asked, noting the vendor's somewhat puzzled expression. He realized how strange his question must have sounded but it was a genuine one. He currently only had derams on him, and he didn't understand the currency units in this world.
"Less," the vendor answered with a forced tone, suspecting a potential prank.
Nodding, The Observer pulled a deram from his pocket and handed it to the vendor. The man appeared surprised, but then shook his head. "I'm sorry, sir, but I don't have any change."
Given that The Observer lacked change as well and wasn't sure he could get some in a short period, he simply replied, "You can keep the change."
The vendor nodded, accepting the money. Opening the display case, he delicately pulled out a newspaper, handing it to The Observer. After expressing his gratitude, The Observer began to read as he strolled through the bustling streets.
As he read through the main article he began to better understand some of the current events in the world. He was in a country named Elgria, and it was one of the world's superpowers. The other big countries included Mirac, Undror, and Hirashi, and all of these countries had their sights on one location in particular. The Ocean.
Several years prior, some fishermen had unknowingly fished up artifacts from a long time ago. The artifacts were brought back to Elgria, where they were studied by academics to determine their origin. That's when the floodgates were opened. The artifacts were so old that they were theorized to be from the first humans on this planet.
Further explorations of the area where the artifacts were found were sponsored and after months of search, ancient ruins were found under the sea.
It was then that the country of Hirashi made their moves, proclaiming that the location of the ruins was within their territorial waters and that any country that dared to approach the ruins would face the wrath of their navy, they were instantly backed by their allies, the Undrorians.
Now Elgria and Hirashi had never been friendly to one another, mostly due to religious differences. While the Elgrians worshiped the five orthodox gods, the Hirashi instead venerated the mad gods, causing most of the civilized world to view them as savages, but they did not care. This matter has always caused the two countries to be at odds, but their moves concerning the ruins seemed to anger the Elgrian elites.
Over the following months, tensions between the two countries began to rise and now, many believed that there was war on the horizon.
As he read all this with interest, The Observer's mind began to turn. He had a hunch that the Paragon of Secrets refusal to help Aeliana probably had something to do with this. If there was truly a war on the horizon, then he probably didn't have the time or freedom to help them as he might want to.
After reading through the main article, The Observer glanced through the rest of the paper, but nothing else seemed to grab his attention.
Keeping the newspaper, he began to explore the city more readily. First, he found the cheapest theater nearby and then paid to watch one of their shows. He got what he expected, terrible acting which only served to make him chuckle and nothing else. After that, he bought some afternoon snacks from a nearby stall. A vegetable and meat pie that was packed full of seasoning which gave it a unique, yet delicious taste.
With that done, he decided to explore one of the districts. He ruled out the district with the mysterious bell that rang during the twilight hours, he had no intention of drawing that entity's attention again. He also ruled out the one with the Observatory, since he had been there earlier today and the opulent-looking district. In the end, he had only two choices, the district with the parks and river, or the slums. He chose to go with the slums.
While the natural beauty of the first was a truly wonderful thing, he felt that visiting the slums might prove to be a more memorable experience. And so, as afternoon turned to evening, he found himself walking through the slums of the city.