Late afternoon—
Today was one of those clear days that just made people feel lighter! The sun shone down, the wind blew, and every step held a hidden sense of liberation.
The streets gradually widened as the group of three moved south.
Even before the main body of the City Guard jumped into action, things were already underway.
If one looked around, they would find that the patrol had increased on every block, extra guards stood near every corner, sneaky soldiers blended in as they moved between intersections, and plainclothed watchmen lingered near every stall, all of their eyes scouting for the person in question.
Although the news had only just been sent, the sweep of the city had already begun!
As they passed a roasted chestnut stall, Elena paused and bought a small paper cup.
Appal stared at her.
Even though they had only been together for a few hours, he found it hard to believe just how much of a foodie this famous hero actually was!
"Are we investigating…" he asked, sounding puzzled, "…or just sightseeing?" He was genuinely confused by her lack of urgency. Shouldn't she be in a hurry? What would happen if the target slipped away?
Elena placed one of the chestnuts into her mouth.
Her eyes turned, then she mumbled something while chewing.
"Both ways can be productive, but there's no rush." Nom-nom-nom! "The first thing that girl will do after getting out is find something to eat. By now, she's probably already found something, so that gives us a few hours before she gets hungry again…"
Elena licked her salty fingers before wiping them on the paper.
Appal laughed.
"That's right, isn't it? Why didn't I think of that? Hahaha!"
Remel shook her head from the side.
"It's because a big bear like you never stops eating! You don't think we can't hear what's in your pocket, do you!?"
Appal, this big guy, proceeded to awkwardly push the crumpled wrapper deeper down…
He sighed, changing the topic. "Thinking about her situation, it somehow makes it worse… I can finally understand why the Royal Family gave such a large amount of money to those families, but how did she end up in such dire straits?"
"Hm, who knows…" Remel shrugged. "That's not in the report, but my guess is that the money was either stolen or lost. With a background like hers, it's not strange that she would be targeted at a time like that, but it really is a shame, because the City Guard would have liked to recruit her if we only knew about her situation a little sooner!"
Neither Elena nor Appal responded.
Knowing her life's story, they both felt bad just thinking about it...
It really could be said to be a [Tragedy]!
* * *
They moved on...
After some time, the road opened into a broad square built around an old fountain that no longer worked. Moss climbed a pair of stone lions, and the dry basin had become a large bench for off-duty guards and lazy loafers. This was a much quieter, almost abandoned part of the southern city, but instead of decrepit and abandoned, it felt more aged and historical, keeping people away.
Here, the square had been completely cleared out, replaced by the patiently awaiting City Guard!
Looking ahead, there were already hundreds of people waiting.
Today, it belonged to the City Guard, and soon, Elena, Appal, and Remel joined the fun…
-
After finding their designated team—
More than two dozen officers were already gathered in their group.
Some wore the standard patrol armor with artifact shields and magic batons, while others had on the much lighter guard uniform, holding short blades, talismans, and rooftop hooks with rope. Two smaller teams led 'Scent Hounds' by long leashes, and three men stood beside rune-filled detection rods, which were two-meter-long flagpole-like tools, making them appear like some kind of crazy cultists that were ready to unhesitatingly stab you in the butt.
Elena saw a senior officer reviewing maps of the city that had been spread over a wagon.
Looking at everything before her, one would find it hard to believe that this was the useless City Guard!
The moment Elena, Appal, and Remel entered the square, several heads turned.
After they joined their team and settled in, another twenty minutes passed. After that, ten more minutes passed, then the man in charge began to speak…
He stepped forward and saluted.
"Now that all the assigned personnel are present…" he roared in an unnecessarily loud voice! "Each of your routes has been marked, and the information has been passed out! This time our target is quite tricky, so don't be deceived, and don't let your guard down! This is a team effort, and we have even called in help from a small handful of our retired elites!"
After saying this, murmurs passed through the crowd.
Clearly, the surrounding young guards recognised a few people after looking around.
Elena folded the information package she had been given and tucked it beneath one arm.
The breeze stirred her golden hair, and she smiled faintly.
"Good," she said to herself with a nod.
"Let's go find our missing prisoner, that little troublemaker…"
She narrowed her eyes, and a mischievous glint, not unlike Petras, flashed through her green eyes.
* * *
The Central Prison stood in the southern district of the capital, so the search began there...
After all the orders were given and everyone was assigned their tasks, several whistles sounded, then everyone dispersed, disappearing in every direction and spilling into the city. What had begun as a quiet simmer, or an unimportant investigation born from a small tip sent in by a Hero, had exploded throughout the city like wildfire!
-
Unlike the noble district of the capital, the southern district was much older, denser, and built layer upon layer upon generation after generation of expansion. The streets bent and bumped strangely, some buildings leaned over alleys, and small stores sat beside large warehouses, mansions beside slums, and markets were often matched with ruins that were forgotten in the long river of history.
To maintain order, the southern district had long been divided into seven subdistricts.
These seven were—
The Iron Wing — where the Central Prison, City Guard HQ, Record Hall, and Execution Platform all stood.
The Merchant Streets and Grand Bazaar — were broad and dilapidated streets packed with dozens of warehouses, rentable buildings, street stalls, and small guild halls.
The Ember Ear Square — was home to dozens of small smithies, free-to-use furnaces, and many different kinds of small businesses, all of which were focused on a single profession, such as Alchemy, Forging, Beast Taming, Medicine, etc…
The Pilgrim Steps — were a crowded cluster of shrines, bathhouses, inns, restaurants, and roadside temples where travelers constantly flowed in and out.
The Lower Streets — consisted of many cramped housing blocks, alley markets, hidden dens of dastardly dudes, illegal gangs, and narrow lanes that would trigger anyone's claustrophobia. In addition, the Lower Streets were also said to be one of the entrances to the Black Market, at least, once upon a time.
The Central Statue — is the heart of the southern district, where countless canals converged to meet up.
The Old Walls —are one of the oldest parts of the city and could almost be called the graveyard of the Old City. These walls are the remnants of the earliest walls ever to surround Llynun, making them as old as the migration itself. In addition, this is also where one can enter the 'old tunnels' that run through the city, as well as the entrance to the sewers and central waterway. They all converge here!
-
Each team was assigned a subdistrict to survey…
Some moved through the Merchant Streets, checking idle carriages, storage spaces, and concealed cages, while others entered the Lower Streets to search the dilapidated carcass of the Black Market and the tight and twisting alleyways.
If it were a place to hide, they would find it!
Some teams checked the roofs, while others swept through the canals and sewers.
By the time the afternoon was coming to an end, the southern district was swamped with people…
* * *
The Old Walls sat on the edge of the southern district, where the capital's oldest history could be found.
Once, long ago, this place had been part of the original city's defences…
As the city expanded, more districts were added, wealth moved inward, and the old wall was left behind as the city eventually exploded in size! New houses were built beyond the wall, then over it, through it, and soon, cracks became alleys, and the old storage became new homes!
The Old Wall was integrated into the city, completely losing its original purpose.
Now, 'the Old Walls', the 'entrance to the sewer', and the sealed gate to the 'Old Tunnels' were each spoken of as different places by different people, each with its own story, but they could all be found here, because in truth, they were all the same place!
-
Elena arrived with Remel just as the afternoon had passed.
They walked down the road.
To the right, the city stretched out as countless layers of wide rooftops, narrow streets, and towering chimneys all packed together, but to the left, a massive twenty-meter-tall wall rose into the sky like a mountain. The towering frame blocked out the sun, casting the road beneath it in a long shadow.
Looking up at the wall…
Time had not been kind to it!
Countless cracks ran through the stone like a dry riverbed, with thick patches of moss and climbing vines spread across its surface, weaving themselves into the gaps and broken seams of the stone until the wall and greenery had become one tangled structure.
At a glance, it looked like the ruined outer wall of an old castle.
In truth, this was 'The Old Wall', a vast stretch of the capital's 'former' city wall that had long become obsolete! The city had expanded far beyond it many generations ago, leaving the once-proud creation stranded inside the city as a forgotten structure. It was both a testament to its strength and a tragic outcome, leaving it to forever stand alone, never to face an enemy again!
After walking parallel to the wall for several more minutes, the duo reached a section that had partially collapsed and was later rebuilt.
Here, traffic actually passed through the wall!
Looking at it, a broad tunnel with an arched ceiling had been carved through the massive wall for convenient travel back and forth, which was clearly not part of the original design, but it did make this place much livelier. Several stalls gathered around both sides of the entrance, selling cheap food, old tools, and questionable goods.
In addition, several rough-looking men lazily lounged nearby, collecting passage fees…
Remel glanced at them, then cursed.
After paying the small fee without any trouble, the duo passed beneath the Old Wall.
The tunnel was cool and damp, and water dripped somewhere in the dark. Their footsteps echoed through the stone corridor until a bright ray of light opened up ahead. When they emerged on the far side of the Old Wall, the sunlight struck them with a sudden blinding force.
Remel raised a hand to shield her sensitive eyes, but Elena did not.
"Damn!" Remel cursed.
Elena blinked, letting her vision naturally adjust.
Both of them looked forward.
The ground ahead of the exit of the wall was a sharp drop, almost like an artificial cliff cut into the earth.
This was the emptied moat of the Old Wall, a six-meter-deep hollow stretching more than twenty meters across. It had once been filled with water and meant to stop the tide of beasts, but now it was dry earth, broken stone, weeds, and scattered debris. Looking even closer, paths had formed naturally where people climbed in and out over the years. There were makeshift ladders, worn-down wooden ramps, and carved footholds in the earth that marked the steep slope.
Looking even farther down still, they found dozens of people from the City Guard already searching below. Some examined the drainage openings that were built into the walls of the moat, while others probed the loose earth with strange poles, checked hidden culverts, and questioned the sparse loiterers who clearly wished to be somewhere else right now!
The investigation had already begun, and they were late!
Both girls exchanged a look, then jumped down…