Chapter 6: [CORE] C006 – Ready to be ready.

Reaching the capital city of this area Kilport, I inspect the high walls, made out of stone with some metal reinforcements, worn away with time and disrepair. Many houses stand along the outer edges, many falling apart by the edges, as if the outside of the walls has some kind of slums but is well maintained closer to the main roads.

Reaching the gatehouse, I am greeted by a couple guards who look over my outfit and weapons before nodding at me to enter. I nod back, entering the city proper. It is massive compared to the previous towns I passed through. Houses dot the sides of the roads, shops and people walking around in numbers. Market stalls with all their smells flooding the road. The visual noise and the constant drone of talking and sounds remind me of my past when I visited a major city and the cars would be driving all throughout the night.

There are numerous branching paths, with curved roads all leading uphill to the center of the town, it wouldn't surprise me if the place was designed to roll large rocks down and have the city buildings guide the rubble downhill in the event of a breached wall. Glancing through some windows I can see supporting pillars confirming the idea that the fronts of the buildings are designed to be a bit expendable.

Passing through one of the central market squares, I take a moment to study the layout. This appears to be similar to a lot of cities I've seen, though this one is larger than any others I had experienced so far. Even more carts, tables and goods in boxes, bags and other containers. Spending a few copper on a fruit from a nearby stall I continue wandering, gathering data. Different types of clothing, their most basic armour and swords that can be sold in some of the shops bordering the market, the fruits and vegetables being bought quite quickly over time, some of the larger stalls keep pulling new crates out of some wagons before restocking.

I spend a few minutes observing the various people passing by, noting their appearance and mannerisms. Most of them seem to be merchants or shopkeepers themselves selling things they picked up elsewhere rather than producing them locally. As I walk around the edge of the square, I see two men arguing over a sale of a sword, the man trying to sell the blade claiming it belonged to him, while the buyer claimed otherwise. After listening to the arguments, it seemed obvious the seller wasn't telling the truth.

Turning onto another street I start following it upwards again, noticing a large group of people gathered around a single cart. Peeking in I see a merchant offering a selection of his wares to passers-by, mostly foodstuffs and cooking equipment. Some of the people were buying while others looked to be bargaining prices down.

Leaving the crowd behind, I follow the path upward until I reach the highest level of the town's centre, arriving at what could only be described as a castle. Not exactly sure what the function of such a thing is yet but given the number of soldiers stationed around it, it must serve some purpose. Walking around the large castle with its own walls and guards, I notice there's 8 ways to get in and out, similar to compass directions.

After scouting out the most major places in the town, I set my sights on the guilds. There are three large ones, located in the same general area, each with multiple entrances. Checking around I see people dressed differently depending on their profession and status, ranging from simple labourers to those in fancy clothes working as clerks or other jobs. People belonging to the guilds however have their own emblems on their gear, either designed to be on the metal or burned into a part of the leather they have chosen to wear.

Following my plan I approach the nearest building, taking care to avoid any attention. I use my mana perception to scan for anyone paying too much attention to me but find nothing. My presence isn't noticed and nobody comes running to stop me. I peer through the front door window, seeing a receptionist desk with several counters around it for customers waiting their turns. Two women sitting there focused on the paperwork in front of them while there only seems to be 2 people at other desks doing whatever they do. One of the female staff members notices me peeping inside and waves me in.

Stepping forwards I near the counter, taking extreme note of all her expressions and habits while keeping some level of awareness at my surroundings.

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"Hi, how can I help you today?" she smiles politely as she keeps her gaze even on me. Her hair is tied back tightly, giving off a sense of professionalism.

"I was advised to come to a larger guild to take some tests, the guild where I lived was too small for me they said." I bluff using some of the information I gathered about the size of guilds and their ranks. The fact the small guilds in the previous towns seemed to have a rusted iron emblem but this guild has a golden border to theirs, as does the other two nearby. Either a signifier of power or prestige; either can be beneficial.

"Oh! That makes perfect sense, we are known for our testing facilities here. Would you mind signing your name please? We'll need proof of identification!" She says pointing to a piece of paper.

I sign down a shorthand of my name 'Meidu Alou' and examine the sheet for a moment, reading a few of the tests on the page and the empty boxes for ratings and marks before returning the form to her. "Thank you," she replies, taking the papers and standing up. "If I could have you follow me into one of the arenas, we have some people today who should be able to help test you properly."

She leads me towards one of the doors on the side of the building, opening it with a key card of some sort and gesturing me to step inside. Stepping forward I pass under the archway and into the arena itself, passing through a short corridor before stepping into the room beyond.

It's fairly large with a raised floor surrounded by padded mats. In the middle of the space is a table covered with various items laid out on top, with four seats arranged around it. Two of the chairs already occupied by women wearing short white robes with some light leather armour underneath, both are currently speaking to each other.

One of these women stands up as soon as we enter, coming forwards with a smile on her face. "Welcome both, Is this woman being tested today Ena?"

The receptionist named Ena nods before handing off the paperwork. "I'll leave you in their care then, if anything happens feel free to let us know." Turning around she walks away, leaving me alone with the two women.

Looking between them I try to figure out which of them is likely to be in charge but neither give any indication that they're superior, instead the one who was handed the paperwork starts to check some of the basic notes while gesturing for me to follow over to the chairs on the side.

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