The Feudal Arch

chapter word count: 1277

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Stepping out of the district street and onto the main street, Airot could see the Roman palace on a hill a ways away to his right. It was slightly out of view since the main road curved as it circled around the city.

He turned left and began walking down the ‘freeway’ of Panceia.

Traveling leisurely, he took in the surrounding view. A large segment of the main road branched off into another direction, separating the buildings to his left. That marked the end of the district he had traveled with Lynn in.

‘I didn’t even learn if that district had a name.’

To his right, the same main road led directly to the library.

Continuing his stroll, Airot noticed people passing by him every so often. Some were in groups, some were running, and others rolled past on skateboards or scooters.

Despite the wide road, this confirmed to Airot that there were no vehicles in the city.

He walked on, observing the city’s activities around him.

Most of the buildings lining the streets connected to the main road appeared to be places of business, with people gathering there. Restaurants, diners, bars, and other eateries were undoubtedly the most common.

Folk passed by, minding their own business.

At one point, Airot saw a wagon being pulled by people.

It seemed like humans were the only living beings in the city. Just like outside the walls, there were no animals or bugs in sight, not even any flora. It made him wonder how exactly food was produced.

Wandering further Airot had a realization.

‘I don’t know which street Haruku abducted me from.’

He turned to look at the Library of Panceia.

‘It was close to the library… I’ll just head to it instead of using the freeway.’

Just as he was about to take a step towards the great tower, a ruckus erupted nearby.

Spinning around to the district behind him, Airot saw rubble thrown about.

All of a sudden, a speech bubble appeared hovering above the area of impact.

“Pow!”

It had flashy onomatopoeia written in bold text.

The speech bubble spiked in exclamation and crashed down.

Right after, a person appeared from above and dove down into the dust.

The impacts created a pseudo-smokescreen, making it difficult for Airot to follow what happened next, though it was clear a building on the left strip began collapsing.

“Lucky me, another yapper battle,” he muttered.

‘It’s definitely interesting but I think I’ll ignore this one. I need to fit into society first.’

But before Airot could turn away, a man ejected from a building on the right side.

The same person who had descended from the sky followed afterwards.

Airot blinked in confusion, as he was certain the fight was further down the road and that they were in the opposite side of the street.

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The chaser drop-kicked the ejected man into an alleyway, and almost instantly, they were launched out of another alley right in front of Airot.

The man was bloodied and injured, but it didn’t look like it was the end for him.

As he got up, a large strip of paper shot out of the alley behind him, quickly followed by a person wearing a pink fedora.

Seeing her up close, Airot could tell she was female.

The man suddenly dissipated upon retreating into a shaded area.

The woman then grabbed the air in front of her and motioned as if she was ripping something open, though there were no visual indicators of an effect.

Yet she walked through and disappeared herself.

Another explosion occurred far down the street.

“Sheesh, you’re quite lucky you didn’t get caught up in that.”

A voice came from behind Airot. Turning to see its source, he noticed it was the guy who entered the inn the previous night—the one that spoke to the library assistant. Still shrouded in a black coat, he stepped toward Airot.

“Say, I feel like I’ve seen you before…” he put his hand on his chin, as if deep in thought.

“Uh—yeah, we were at the same inn last night.”

“Ah, that was it. No wonder,” he snapped his fingers. “Well then, since we’re staying at the same inn we oughta know each other, no? I’m Darc,” he extended his hand.

“Okay...? I’m Airot,” he shook Darc’s hand.

“Why don’t we move somewhere else, ey?” Darc motioned to the ongoing fight far down the street.

Looking at the fight’s location, there was now a giant, floating page depicting cartoonish city scenery. However, what exactly was happening was hard to make out.

“I guess,” Airot said, trailing off as he lingered on the fight. “Yeah, it’s probably better to move.”

“Great! Say, are you hungry?”

“Mmm, no. I’ve already eaten,” Airot shrugged off Darc as he headed towards the library.

“I see, that’s a shame,” Darc followed after him. “So, where’re you headed?”

“The library.”

“Going to read?” he asked in a playfully curious tone.

“No, going to ask some questions,” Airot picked up his pace.

“Ah, so business,” Darc kept up.

“In a way, yes.”

“May I ask what about?”

“I’m going to ask about tuallets.”

“What?” Darc looked puzzled.

“Er—those tube-wallet thingies,” Airot clarified.

“Oh, those water-holders! Yeah I can see them being tube-wallets,” Darc perked up. “So you’re a newcomer—if you’re asking about that.”

“Yeah, I am. Got to the city yesterday.”

“I see, I see,” Darc smiled as he walked with Airot for a bit. “Since you’re still new, why not have some fun?”

Airot side-eyed Darc. “What do you mean?”

“Instead of doing some boring work, you should push that off for a bit and enjoy the novelty of being here,” Darc maneuvered in front of Airot and spread his arms, “in the city of Panceia!”

“I don’t know; getting a wallet seems rather important.”

“No worries, I’ll pay for whatever we get into today,” Darc offered his hand to Airot. Seeing him hesitate, he retracted his hand and added, “In fact, I’ll help you get a tube-wallet afterwards, and I’ll even give you some of my water,” he pulled out his gray tuallet.

“Well, if you put it like that… I guess,” Airot caved into his offer.

“Of course, I’m a man of my word, after all,” he wrapped his arm around Airot’s shoulders and began leading him. “Say, if you were to read at the library, what genre would you choose?”

“I don’t know. I think I’m fine with most genres,” Airot pondered. “Though maybe some sort of fantasy adventure would be my pick.”

“Huh, what a coincidence! I enjoy those kinds myself.”

“Really?” Airot raised an eyebrow.

“Yup! If you want I can show you one later.”

“Alright.”

Down the street towards the library, and away from the yapper fight, they took a turn and traveled across the district for a while.

Taking another turn, they entered a more crowded street.

Outside of the small crowd that gathered when Simon was defeated, this was the most people Airot had seen outside.

Some were leaving but most were headed to the same location; the same location Darc was bringing him to.

There was a gathering of over a dozen people outside, some of which were holding stuffed animals, toys of sorts, or child-like cosmetics.

Passing by them, there was a consistent flow of people entering and exiting the building of their destination.

Standing before it, Airot confirmed that it looked just like every other building on the street.

Yet, despite the exterior and design being the same, there was a notable sign board hanging over the front door.

“The Feudal Arch.”