"Hmm… I don't know about this place, so I'm not sure what I'd like to see…" After thinking about it for a bit, I continued. "I'll let you guys guide me around this place."
They nodded after my answer and began to lead me through the main streets that were full of life.
***
"What is this place?" I asked as we stopped in front of a large, multi-story building.
The imposing entrance was filled with rugged-looking men and women in impressive armor. There were also those wearing robes resembling those of a traveling wizard, and worn, dusty adventure clothing.
Looking at the large emblem hanging above the entrance which contains the emblem of each continent; the stinking atmosphere of sweat, swamp, and blood coming from the people; the battered clothes and armor but the smiling travelers while holding small bags of money... there is no doubt, this must be the Adventurer's Guild.
But does it need to be so unnecessarily large?
"This is the Northern Branch of the Atlas Kingdom Adventurer's Guild," Zaliph said proudly. "The Central Branch is located in the Black Pearl Capital."
There is an extension in the North that facilitates access to those arriving at the North Coast of the Aquatic Continent. In this way, interactions are faster at a national level.
Since Qars City is a coastal city located near the northern limits of the continent, that explains this level of human influence.
"Someday I will be a great adventurer… one famous throughout the world." Zaliph's eyes shone with a fierce determination unbecoming of an ordinary child. Those words held a great weight that reached deep within Zaliph.
His brothers joined him and the three of them looked with wide war grins at the massive adventurer guild in front of them with their arms crossed, and their chests held high.
These children could have a great future if they put their mind to it. Because when the three of them are together, they stand out visibly above the rest of the children of their generation.
It would be interesting to watch the growth and development of the three mischievous little Quaramis.
When we entered the northern branch of the guild, the interior was shocking: I must admit that everything I see is new to me. I wouldn't think that things like this actually existed while living in my time. But today here it changes a lot.
With a sublime introduction about those who are here, I will start with the women: whether martial or sword-style warriors, there are those who possess slender and voluptuous bodies, as well as delicate or perhaps muscular ones; with breasts of different sizes and curves of all sizes; and those who are veteran-looking magicians and expert travelers, with the exciting charm of seductive courtesans of fearful capacity. But it is not the same with the priestesses who lie here present, who maintain an innocent aura of kindness, but are still perfect for the fantasies of a wise man.
There are so many breeds and sizes to try, so many ages to choose from, and heady personalities to immerse yourself in for the dizzying fantasy of worldly pleasure.
This is not a branch of the adventurer's guild, it is a carnal paradise for the libertine man.
As for the men of this place... they are just stinking warriors.
I have nothing to say about them.
But back to the topic of women: they all have a bold and brave face, which is worthy of the role they play in order to survive.
All of these people are experienced warriors of thousands of battles.
The first floor of the adventurer's guild was very spacious with many reception areas. On the walls hung large posters with countless announcements and rewards that the adventurers studied carefully and discussed amongst themselves before deciding to take on a quest.
Those who completed a quest and came back with strange travel items would sell them at receptions: the guild staff would rigorously study the object with strange machinery to verify its authenticity or to extract some kind of material from inside. And after a while, they would bring the reward and the adventurers would leave satisfied.
"What do you think?" Zaliph asked with a smile.
"I am delighted, for some strange reason I adore this place" I won't deny it, I find a certain appeal in this place.
Maybe I'm not thinking clearly about the true meaning of things, but for a guy who finds himself surrounded by so many new things and in a different world, it's normal that I feel excited.
I want to venture into the unknown!
"Alright! We'll go up to the second floor!" As Zaliph said that, he led me to a place where there were many chambers made of thick glass covered with a bronze-like metal with elegant finishes. Those places were frequented by adventurers.
After entering one of the bedrooms, which is ideal for five people, inside there was a guide about each floor of the building. Next to it was another guide explaining how to use a crystal ball that was on a metal base in the right corner of the room. Zaliph didn't even bother to read the instructions.
It is evident that he is a frequent visitor.
When Zaliph touched the crystal ball, it glowed and magical power ran through the base where the crystal ball was and traveled to the bottom of the chamber.
The room immediately lit up: beneath us were crystals that formed the foundation of a large magic circle that filled with power and caused the chamber to rise from the ground and lift us into the air. Or rather, to the place where Zaliph was taking us.
"W-what is this!?" I asked, terrified by the feeling of levitating.
"Oh? You don't know? This is an ascension artifact. It helps us go faster to the upper floors instead of using stairs or wind magic." Zaliph replied.
In conclusion, this is an elevator....
When my gaze fell upon a small emblem that was carved into the metal covering the glass of the chamber, I knew whose idea this was.
This is the technology of the Divine Empire Realm.
We humans think of a more comfortable and optimal way of doing things... so this is our doing.
I still can't believe how advanced this era is. It makes me doubt our resources created ten thousand years in the future...
But part of this is due to spiritual power and the need for constant and urgent reform to survive in this fierce age of unexplainable powers.
Since there are no such things in the future, progress has been greatly reduced.
And we believed that we were progressing with the passing of the years, but it turns out that in reality we were useless compared to the true Human Warriors of this time.
The Kingdom of the Divine Empire, considered a technological power, is certainly praiseworthy. Even its goodwill serves the other continents of the world by providing its technology and discoveries for the noble revolutionary cause.
Zaliph stopped channeling spiritual power into the crystal ball when we had reached the entrance to the second floor. It had taken us only a few seconds during the course of the ascent.
He had moved quickly but modestly with smooth finishes before and after the climb.
It seems that each entrance and exit has dampers that activate when they sense the proximity of the chamber and the diminishing spiritual power of whoever controls it.
I'll be honest and critical from my experience with elevators: it's very well optimized and feels like a nice experience. Traveling by invisible forces makes it great.
I have many doubts and a great curiosity to distill every corner of how this works and its association with spiritual power... but it is not something I can do now...
The second floor of the adventurer's guild was a kind of tavern where men and women rested while enjoying good alcohol.
The smell of the food was appetizing and the big glasses of beer gave me a bad memory...
"This is where warriors relax after a hard battle and a deadly journey from distant lands." Zaliph seemed to enjoy it more than I did...
"This is all very considerate." When I looked closely at the maids, they were the main center of attraction for every man in the place.
Mermaids are also perfect for working as maids... they are the perfect bait to attract men.
All the men are drooling over the maids here!
Suddenly Zaliph interrupted my very objective observation by taking us to the third floor while we were still inside the elevator...
"I wanted to keep watching a little longer… brat," I said resentfully towards Zaliph.
He didn't answer me, but his face was red...
Oh? No way... I was inconsiderate to a growing man like Zaliph.
Who would say that the second son of Zaphyris becomes shy when he sees beautiful women... hehe, you're still very precocious, my friend.