Alex's POV
"That'll be 8 silver coins, for a night." A dark haired middle aged lady said to me. I was currently in a four star inn in Wolfen.
I planned to spend the night here and head over to the teleportation gate tomorrow.
I would've gone tonight but for safety reasons, the teleportation gates were closed as from 7pm.
After all, the federation and the empire may be on peaceful terms right now, there was no telling what would happen in the near future.
So to at the very least counter measures to prevent any unfortunate circumstances were taken.
"This way sir." I heard the voice of a young man. Raising my head, I saw that he was one of the porters here.
I followed behind him as he lead me to my room.
Now you're probably wondering about the currency being used. The reason gold coins are being used instead of the regular currency of the old world.
Simple. Most of the old world technology is gone. When the aliens attacked and mana came to this world, earth had at least developed to the extent of phones, Ai, cars, mobile apps, electronics.
But due to the aliens wiping out 80% of humanity, a lot of it's knowledge as well as technology was lost.
And mana wiped out half of the remaining twenty and the mutated beast taking out another half of the remainder, it's easy to see why humanity hasn't been able to get back to where they were.
But another major reason has to do with mana itself. Apart from the fairies and mutated beasts, every single 'other race' originated from humans.
When mana came to earth, it affected everyone differently. Some grew an affinity with nature as well as long pointed ears, some became extraordinarily short.
Some grew horns and large body sizes. They wielded a different type of energy. While some became fish like people.
So with mana turning people into different races while some remained human.
At first it was all good, until a problem occurred. The issue of trying to rebuild the former earth.
A racial problem began. Elves had a deep connection with nature, so they wouldn't allow the proud and arrogant humans recreate their former civilization that mainly destroyed nature.
Dwarves and Beastmen had become distrustful of the humans who had begun hunting and enslaving them.
The demons and some humans didn't want Earth's former civilization to return as they feared they wouldn't be able to remain in power if they did that.
The mermaids didn't give an input, just warned against any activities that would harm the oceans.
And that was the beginning of how each race began splitting.
Humans took the south, the second largest continent, and the most fertile land for farming.
It was also one of the richest in mana ores.
Elves took the Eastern continent, the place with the largest forests. The current dwelling place of the world tree.
The dwarves and beastmen (originally slaves born from humans mating with beasts meant to serve in the human's military) took the western continent, with it's vast mountain ranges.
And lastly, the demons took the north. The coldest continent. It was decided that that would be their new home, as their bodies were made to withstand the harsh temperatures of the north.
Well not like they had a choice since they lost the first racial war.
Anyway as I was saying, the reason the world had not recovered it's original technology and surpassed in almost two thousand years is because humans were just being humans.
Well that was the core issue anyway. The other reason was the constant war with the demon race and the other races occasionally.
"We're here, sir". I heard the porter say. "Thank you". I said curtly with a polite smile and entered.
Also in case you're wondering how they didn't recognize me, it's simple. I'm currently in a disguise.
I tinted my hair black before leaving the estate and I wore a face mask.
Looking around the room, I could tell that it was definitely plain and ordinary looking compared to my room.
But it was sufficient, after all it was only a regular room.
I took off my clothes, laid on the bed. I had had a long day and now I was just going to rest.
*************
"Amazing". That was the only word I could muster.
Why? Because I was currently standing amidst the captivating streets of a metropolitan city.
With a curious gaze, I looked around and saw tall, shiny buildings stretched toward the sky, their mirrored surfaces reflecting sunlight in playful patterns.
Neon signs and bright billboards painted the scene with lively colors, turning the sidewalks into a vibrant canvas.
Beneath my foot, I saw roads paved with cement .
Yeah. Even though most of our technology was gone, humanity still had their artistic skills and knowledge in architecture.
So it didn't take too long for these buildings to come back.
I even perceived delicious aromas that permeated the air from various cuisines, tempting anyone passing by to stop and taste them.
Parks nestled between the tall skyscraper buildings, where children could play. It was also for people looking to relax and get some peace of mind.
The place was incredible. Is incredible. So this is Wolfen. Named after the founder of the city, and House Morningstar, Wolfen Morningstar.
After admiring the place for a while, I headed towards the teleportation gates.
Soon, or rather they're probably already aware, but they'll have to pursue me even if for Arnolds just to keep up appearances.
Thinking so, I headed towards the teleportation gate office.