Chapter 240: 240 First Steps Into The Capital

Once the caravan passed through the gates, the group arrived at a sprawling docking and warehousing district dedicated to loading and unloading caravans. Amidst the din of neighing and whinnying horses being directed to their stables, porters screaming to attract the attention of incoming caravans, merchants and caravan leaders yelling to direct their subordinates, and the general commotion of crates and boxes being dropped or dragged, Guy followed the escort group to a warehouse under Dune Caravan Management's sigil. The place was like a walled-off compound in a long line of similarly designed buildings, with two gates to facilitate entry and exit by carriage and a smaller entrance for foot traffic. Each of these entrances was guarded by a squadron of individuals sporting the company's attire, a few of whom Guy found out were actually mages in a realm above his own!

Guy used to wonder why even large companies with the capacity to train a retinue of guards with such high power levels would bother hiring escorts. After some analysis, the answer became clear. Training and raising individuals with such strength required a large investment of resources. A company's primary goal is to generate profits, raising a retinue is a side investment towards achieving this goal and is therefore something the generated profits are siphoned into. It would be a waste to lose this investment due to an ambush from rogue elements such as mages, magical beasts, or even natural disasters while out on the road. So, companies tend to hold their stronger cards closer to their chests and use their retinue solely for defence, opting for sects - who happen to be specialised in escorting and general mercenary work - for every other situation where the loss of assets is a certainty.

The escort group was guided into the compound's office building, to the manager's room, where they were handed their payments for services rendered. The amount was decided before departure, but a bonus was tacked for various factors such as arrival time, loss of assets during transit, and so on. All in all, the True World Sect earned just short of two thousand gold coins, while the Whispering Dusk Sect's group earned two-and-a-half thousand. True World Sect's original slice was much smaller, but considering Guy's contribution towards a smooth and hassle-free journey, a large portion of the bonus was relegated to his Sect over Whispering Dusk. There was no opposition to this decision from Korren's side since he felt it was fair. Furthermore, the True World Sect's name was properly advertised - Guy was certain that Dune Caravan Management would consider his Sect for their next venture without him having to approach them with another request.

Guy carried the sleepy Dora out of the compound with Jean and Markus; Josie had departed a little while earlier to prepare the Rasmus Clan's mansion in the Capital for their stay and to send out a voice transmission via a Communication Ritual Formation to inform Goran of Jean's safe arrival.

Most large clans in the Solar Empire owned and maintained a mansion in the Capital. In fact, most large clans maintained mansions in the major cities across the Empire as long as it fell within their financial capacities, but the Capital was a must. Decisions that could change the face of the nation as a whole would require the vote and go-ahead from the clans holding titles, thus necessitating immediate attendance from the clan leaders as representatives of their Clans. Sometimes, these meetings could go on for days on end, warranting a place to stay for the leaders within the Capital since teleporting back and forth becomes more expensive as the distance increases.

Guy also counted himself lucky that Jean happened to be a part of his Sect. Although in doing so she would be sacrificing her chance to contest for the Clan Leader position, she wouldn't be dissociated with the Rasmus Clan. This provided her with certain benefits, such as being able to host her guests in her Clan's mansions all across the Empire. Essentially, the True World Sect had just earned itself a free lodging service in all the famous cities in the Empire. This was a great boon since finding a place to stay was a monumental task in the Capital. As the largest city in the Empire, and by some estimates in the whole of Gaea, it was constantly in an overcrowded state as people flocked in from everywhere. Especially now that both the Sect Alliance and Co-operative of Teachers were holding events in the city, finding an unoccupied room at an inn would be impossible.

Dora released a loud yawn and fell into a deep slumber on Guy's shoulders. The journey had drained the little girl completely. Sleeping on a carriage was uncomfortable to begin with, doing so for days on end would be torturous for a child. Even with Guy's superior physique after his advancement, he was experiencing minor lower back aches. He couldn't even fathom how these caravaneers did it so regularly.

Nonetheless, since the primary sightseer was out of commission, Guy decided to call it an early day since it was an hour past noon. He was certain that if they explored the Capital today without Dora in tow, the girl would throw another tantrum and force them to revisit all the places for her sake. Jean and his Disciple agreed, so they all followed Jean as she guided them to the Rasmus Mansion.

The building was in the most affluent sections of the Capital which was within the walled layer closest to the centre. To get there from the warehousing district, they had to take a path leading up the walls that contained the Capital - it was like a shortcut. Not just anyone could ascend the walls though. Due to the sheer size of the Capital, constant vigilance is required to keep the city from falling into chaos and bursting at its seams. To streamline the response of emergency services such as in the event of a crime, fire, or disaster, the responder services are relegated to the walls of the Capital. To get from one location to the other, the walls offer an unhindered pathway. To ensure that nothing inhibits this, no one apart from strictly authorised government and military personnel is allowed to roam the walls. High-born Clans and Royals are an exception to this rule. Once again, due to Jean's ancestry, Guy and the True World Sect were allowed uninhibited movement from the warehousing district to the Rasmus Mansion.

It was an icky feeling for Guy. In his previous life, his parents had drilled into him and his siblings that utilising personal connections to get ahead in business was fair play, but to do the same with governmental structures was wrong.

"To compete in the battleground known as capitalism, using every single advantage that one has is necessary for success. However, the public sector works under the assumption that everyone is treated equally and fairly. It would be too easy for us to bend that assumption, but doing so is wrong. It would be like stealing candy from a baby - there is no honour in it."

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However, his discomfort was sufficiently suppressed after his eyes landed on the absolute clusterfuck taking place in the neighbouring district. From his viewpoint up the wall, it was all too clear! It looked like a nasty horde of ants all moving around in a frenzy around, over and sometimes under each other. Guy was certain that if he dropped a pin into the area, it wouldn't hit the ground.

"This is the thirteenth Flea Market," Jean explained. "It contains goods that have been purchased and returned from the twelfth, which in turn is stocked with returned goods purchased from the eleventh, and so on."

"So you're saying these goods have been used by at least twelve previous owners?" Markus retorted instinctively.

"Thirteen," Guy corrected.

"Master?"

Guy chuckled and said, "You forgot to count the owners who returned the clothes to the first Flea Market."

Looking at the state of the products on the various stalls, as well as the general condition of the customers roaming the area, Guy could tell that this place was probably frequented by the poorest of the poor. It also confirmed Josie's earlier declarations that those living within the Capital may not be faring any better than those refugees settled outside. If anything, it was much worse. On one particular instance, an updraft of air carried with it an unbearably pungent smell that nearly woke Dora from her slumber. Guy had witnessed many scenes of horror in his past life, but none had assaulted him with such a ghastly smell.

Jean was observant of this and quickly guided her fellow sect members away from the region, and moved briskly towards the central walled sections. As they approached the centre, Guy felt an almost imperceptible rise in elevation - the centre was physically higher than the periphery. Considering that the Capital was built upon an impossibly flat plain, this indicated that the Capital was artificially raised during its construction. Guy didn't miss the symbolism of such a decision.

The group descended from the walls and entered the High-Residential District. Unlike the commotion and crowd in the Flea Market and subsequent slums where the density of people was inhumane, the houses in this district were enormous and thoroughly spaced out. Guy could not understand the criminal waste of space! Within the gap between the Rasmus Mansion and their neighbours, one could fit more than twenty smaller households each filled with a family of four.

Guy was pulled out of his thoughts by a familiar voice greeting him. "Welcome to the Rasmus Mansion of Sunspear," Josie said with a low bow. "This slave has prepared the premises for the Young Miss and her guests."

"Where can I lay Dora down? She's fallen asleep," Guy indicated while raising Dora's head on his shoulders.

"Please follow Reen here," Josie said while pointing at a primly dressed female maid behind her.

"Dinner will be ready in an hour, please get yourselves comfortable till then," Josie said before retreating behind a small army of servants prepared to care for the True World Sect's needs.

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