Esthelm was full of activity and four different species all trying to work together,
and as such it was a highly amusing sight for the watching fae.
which was a highly amusing sight for the watching fae.
This was a library,
and as of such the towering bookcases,
were imposing,
and the towering bookcaseswere imposing,
despite the rich wood that made up their frames.
“It’s been only a few days.
Two,
Okay…
maybe more,
Ivolethe.
It had been two days since the attack on Magnolia’s mansion.
Two days and Ryoka had not left yet for Invrisil.
It had been over a week since the attack on Magnolia’s mansion.
A week,
and Ryoka had not left yet for Invrisil.
Because she had had a thought.
Yes,
it’s been two days since she was attacked.
it’s been a week since she was attacked.
The assassins are all dead,
they can wait.
Two days of waiting for their delivery is still a lot faster than you could ask for,
especially since they’re coming all the way from Ocre.
A week of waiting for their delivery is still a lot faster than you could ask for,
especially since they’re coming all the way from Remendia and because no one else was doing the run.
Ivolethe has a point.
It’s been two days.
It’s been a week.
I’ve skimmed through over a hundred books at least,
or even small.
Forging a large empire that would put an end to wars by conquering everything in sight always fail due to a number of factors.
Forging a large empire that would put an end to wars by conquering everything in sight always fails due to a number of factors.
I’ve read countless books,
poured through them for useful details.
pored through them for useful details.
One of the things I learned?
And third?
Technology in this world is not the same as in mine.
In mine,
people build industry and create ideas and inventions that can be built upon,
permanent infrastructure like assembly lines and the technology to build steam engines.
In this world?
Magic rules.
But the problem with that is when an empire dependent on magical innovations loses all of its high-level mages,
everything goes right back to the start.
If they built huge factories and used machines perhaps the world would change.
But I see how easy magic is to use.
You can create a carriage that can outrun any vehicle from our world with magic.
Hell,
it could probably outrun anything but the Shinkansen bullet trains.
But you can’t create a hundred,
or a thousand.
And once the mage who made it dies,
so too does the means of creating it.
Stagnation.
The other things I’ve learned?
Ivolethe is right.
There’s no answers here.
There are no answers here.
Just more things to keep me up at night.
they tried to take over the world a few times,
although almost every species have done that over the course of the world.
They usually got to war with a bunch of mysterious foreigners—I never found a book about them,
although almost every species has done that over the course of the world.
They usually go to war with a bunch of mysterious foreigners—I never found a book about them,
but they might be like my world’s version of Japan,
There used to be Elves,
but every reference in the books I’ve read only talk about half-Elves.
but every reference in the books I’ve read only talks about half-Elves.
When did the Elves die out?
That was,
until he spotted the blue patch of indistinct light coming towards his face at speed.
until he spotted the blue patch of indistinct light coming towards his face at speed.
I will accompany you as long as is needed—within Invrisil.
I am not permitted to escort you anywhere outside of the city and my help is limited to a,
I am not permitted to escort you anywhere outside of the city and my help is limited to an,
ah,
“Not as of such.
“Not as such.
But Invrisil sees far more magical artifacts and potentially dangerous items entering and leaving the city than most locations.
where adventurers thrived,
there had to be a city of equal size and resource to support them.
there had to be a city of equal size and resources to support them.
Inns and food to feed countless mouths,
the rest was even more than Ryoka had seen in places like New York City.
For while that city could boast over a eight million souls,
For while that city could boast over eight million souls,
each one was Human.
The city had a street and sidewalk.
There were no wagons mixing with pedestrians here—there was a separate route for vehicles such that they could keep moving despite the flow of foot-traffic.
There were no wagons mixing with pedestrians here—there was a separate route for vehicles such that they could keep moving despite the flow of foot-traffic.
Ryoka saw a [Guardswoman] directing traffic and wondered if there were street lights too.
Ryoka fidgeted as she reached for her Runner’s Seal and bag of holding carrying all the deliveries from Ocre.
Ryoka fidgeted as she reached for her Runner’s Seal and bag of holding carrying all the deliveries from Remendia.
She still hated talking to new people,
Ryona blinked.
This receptionist was far more business-like than Ryoka was accostumed to.
Ryoka blinked.
This receptionist was far more business-like than Ryoka was accustomed to.
She hesitated a bit on her reply.
“I’m not transferring.
I—was in in Ocre and had the chance to come here.
I—was in Remendia and had the chance to come here.
I’ve got a bunch of deliveries from the guild there.”
Ryoka had to smile a bit;
she could see some of the other Runner’s staring jealously at her.
she could see some of the other Runners staring jealously at her.
The [Receptionist] nodded as she tallied up each delivery on a receipt and stamped it.
“Not bad.
But a Courier could have done it just as quickly.
But a Courier could have done it just as quickly,
or faster if they were heading here directly.
If you’re going to make a long-distance trip in the future,
And Ryoka had grown up in the urban sprawl.
There was places to get food on the sidewalk,
There were places to get food on the sidewalk,
and in no time she was eating her own hot skewer and quickly sliding off hot chunks of meat to cram into her belt pouch from another.
Either way,
the young man’s lack of sight didn’t stop him from being a target.
the young man’s lack of sight didn’t stop him from being a target.
The adventurer began mocking both him and the half-Troll girl,
As we say in my homeland,
geh zur Hölle,
du Drecksau.
fahr zur Hölle du Bullenschwein.
Ah entschuldigung,
SIE Bullenschwein.
Good day,
and then smiled at him as if what he’d said had been a compliment.
It clearly wasn’t,
It clearly wasn’t,
but no one knew what he’d said.
He turned his heads towards her and Ryoka saw him smile.
He turned his head towards her and Ryoka saw him smile.
She heard him clearly whisper to the half-Troll as she stepped closer.