“It’s a pretty exclusive club, up there, and unless you’re part of it, it’ll be hard to see either hide or hair of anyone from that club. Only those who are part of the club could easily meet others from it on short notice.” - Jarl Inge Aesfrost of Verustria, commenting on Nobility.

“We’ll do our shopping later. Will be easier to find out the best places after we had a chat with the local nobles anyway,” said Aideen while the group was having breakfast the next morning. The group had stayed in a luxurious inn just next to the foot of the tallest mountain, where they enjoyed a decidedly comfortable stay.

Unlike most cities, Knallgant proved to be far more organized in its layout, which reminded the group a lot of Tohrmutgent, which they were far more familiar with. The outermost area of the city, closest to the city walls, which were typically where the slums were located in other cities, were instead full of barracks and other military facilities.

They were where the garrison force stationed in the city lived and trained, right where they would be needed the most in case of an attack. Most cities had their barracks in a more central position since they typically needed to defend from many directions, but with how Knallzog was situated at the foot of a mountain range, the only feasible direction any large force could approach from was the main roads in the south.

Other than that, the city was further split into the overcity, which was where Aideen’s group had stayed, the undercity, which was built several layers deep below the overcity, and where most of the dwarven population of the city stayed at, and the mountain city, which was still in construction and where the more important dwarves lived.

Most of the city’s vaunted smithies were also located below, as was evidenced by the many stone chimneys that rose up all over the city, often between the buildings of the overcity. Smoke constantly spewed out from those chimneys, a sure sign of constant activity from the forges below. It might have been difficult to create such stone chimneys for others, but for the dwarven kingdom, it was merely an everyday thing.

The dwellings and businesses in the overcity were tailored more to the non-dwarven residents and visitors. Similarly, most of the businesses there were owned by merchants that dealt with international import and export of goods. The dwarven nobility owned mansions on the overcity, where they usually welcomed foreign guests, but their real residences were actually in the mountain city.

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Several entrances to the undercity were spread all over the overcity, with most of them being smaller entrances capable of accommodating up to two wagons abreast each. There were two larger entrances, however, each with gentler slopes and capable of accommodating up to six wagons abreast, situated near the foot of the mountain, respectively on the north-west and north-east of the city.

This time, Aideen went directly to the guards who stood by the path between the overcity and the mountain city, which also led to the Royal Palace. She greeted them and handed the letter that she got from Graf McBaine of Meergant. Upon seeing the seal on the letter, the guards immediately called for a runner to pass the letter to someone above them, while simultaneously leading Aideen to a comfortably furnished waiting room by the guardhouse.

It looked like the dwarves were prepared to welcome dignitaries who looked for audiences, given the level of comfortable opulence they prepared in the room. Various snacks and refreshments were also offered, from strong liquor to fragrant teas, with finger foods to match each. Clearly someone who had a refined palate had set things up to welcome their guests, regardless of where they came from.

Aideen was enjoying a cup of fragrant tea that tasted as if it was sweetened with honey – it was not, as she saw the tea leaves, the same sort of bug-bitten leaves she enjoyed in a village a while ago, brewed plainly before her – along with some bittersweet confections that matched the taste wonderfully when one of the guards informed her that the King would see her.

Her group was escorted by a team of dwarven Royal Guards, the best of the best of Knallzog’s warriors whose task was to defend the royal family in times of need, up the mountain path. The guards were vigilant, but that vigilance was turned outwards rather than towards the group. Each of them were also armed and armored in items that would probably be considered national treasures in most non-dwarven countries.

Just a show of the dwarves’ skill in smithing, arguably.

They were led not towards the Royal Palace, but instead towards an entrance to the mountain city high up on the mountain, near the mountaintop where the palace was situated, even. Aideen knew naturally that only people of very high rank in the kingdom’s hierarchy would be allowed to live in that area, likely limited to high nobles and the monarchs themselves.

Sure enough, her group was ushered to a massive cavern that was clearly dug into the mountain – yet cleverly shaped with many supporting pillars to help bear the load so that the mountaintop would not collapse upon them – and housed several large mansion-like residences within. Like most of the buildings in the city, the mansions in question had stark lines and were made of stones that seemed to have been polished to a shine, but otherwise looked much the same as the other buildings other than their larger sizes.

The guards led the group towards the largest of the mansions, which was built along the northern end of the cavern, and was tall enough that the cavern’s ceiling served as its roof. Aideen wagered that the mansion in question was likely the Royal Family’s private mansion, and likely contained a path that led directly to the inner regions of the Royal Palace above them as well.