Chapter 30: Ratana City

  An Eight-winged giant bird descended smoothly from the sky. Its colossal form landed in a large field at the edge of a massive wall that stretched far into the distance.

  Nitaan looked out from the back of the giant bird as it landed. What he saw was a colossal city. Just from his rough estimate, it was hundreds of times larger than Silalai town. Its population must have been many times denser.

  Ratana City was situated on a plain. The surrounding area was also unusually flat. From his experience living in the forest, Nitaan expected such a landscape to have mountains or steep hills. Instead, Ratana City was a single, vast plain.

  It was so flat to the point of strange, as if someone had carved away the mountains and hills.

  Looking further out, Nitaan could still see a large lake, forests, and mountains. However, this type of plain seemed very unfamiliar to him.

  And at the heart of this plain was the enormous Ratana City, the gigantic capital of the Firegan Kingdom.

  The architecture of the capital city wasn't much different from that of Silalai town. It still featured high-pitched roofs, with many houses elevated above ground level. The front of the roof was adorned with wing-like wooden decorations. However, it exuded a sense of greater stability, strength, and magnificence, as if constructed with more details and stronger materials.

  Many buildings had roofs made of materials that beautifully reflected golden light, further emphasizing the city's wealth.

  Many horse and cart paths were paved with high-quality polished stone, smooth and seamless. Numerous carriages and carts traveled back and forth densely.

  Many shops and stalls lined the streets, offering a wide variety of goods, from small snacks to large dishes that seemed unbelievable for street stalls.

  The temperature in Ratana City was noticeably higher than in Silalai town. Even Nitaan, who wasn't usually prone to heat, felt a bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

  Gotta find some cooling Enchanted object, Kiita Nitaan thought, glancing at Kiita's thick, soft fur.

  "We have now arrived at our destination, Ratana City, the capital of the Firegan Kingdom. It is now 1:30 PM. Qianbao Trading Group hopes that all passengers had a pleasant and comfortable journey. Thank you for choosing Qianbao Trading Group. We hope we can provide services again in the future."

  The announcement echoed again in a calm and plain voice, like these sentences had been said thousands of times.

  Nitaan, Kiita, and Fang Ming disembarked from the Eight-winged giant bird. Before them was a massive crowd of people lined up in an orderly fashion to enter the city.

  "Then we'll have to part ways here. If you need any assistance, you can always find me at the Fang Trading Group branch," Fang Ming handed Nitaan a business card.

  The card was a pale yellow color. The back was engraved with the Fang Trading Group's symbol. The front had only two letters engraved: Fang Ming.

  Nitaan glanced at the card briefly before putting it in his pocket. "Thank you again for the ticket. If I have the opportunity, I will definitely visit you."

  Fang Ming nodded and smiled before leaving. A massive line stretched out to a small side gate for document verification before being released through the main gate.

  Nitaan noticed that Fang Ming didn't join the long line at all, not even the shorter line of those with documents on the side. She simply boarded a large, luxuriously decorated carriage.

  The luxurious carriage drove directly through the front gate, cutting right through the long line on the side.

  Rich people…

  Nitaan sighed and led Kiita to join the orderly line for those without permits entering the city.

  After about half an hour, it was Nitaan's turn.

  "Are you tourists?" the officer asked, following standard procedure.

  "No, we are moving in," Nitaan replied.

  "How many people?"

  "Two, me and my animal companion."

  "Purpose of moving in?"

  "Working with the army."

  "Do you have any identification documents?"

  Nitaan rummaged through his pocket for a moment, then pulled out a small card and a badge of rank from the patrol unit.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  The officer took the documents for a moment to inspect them.

  “Nitaan Wongjantra and his animal companion, Kiita Wongjantra, correct?” the officer asked without looking up from the papers.

  “Yes,” Nitaan replied. He suddenly felt a cool breeze brush against the back of his neck. Instinctively, he glanced left and right, then looked at Kiita.

  Kiita met Nitaan's gaze briefly.

  Lie detector? Maybe for a criminal record

  “Is there a contact person?” the officer, still silently writing on the paper, asked.

  “Colonel Lalanta,” Nitaan replied.

  The officer raised an eyebrow slightly before looking up and meeting Nitaan's gaze. After a moment, he issued a small card.

  “Immigration pass, thank you very much.”

  Nitaan accepted the card and thanked him. Having passed the checkpoint, Nitaan and Kiita finally entered Ratana City.

  A spectacular landscape unfolded before Nitaan and Kiita's eyes. Thousands of people walked around, horse-drawn carriages and wagons bustled about, stalls were selling their food, numerous devil beast companions walked alongside their masters, Engravers and Learners, and many other races coexisted peacefully.

  The sheer number of Engravers and Learners shocked Nitaan. Apart from wandering adventurers, there were only a few Engravers in his hometown. Only occasionally would strong Fate Scripters from other cities arrive. But in this Ratana City, Engravers roamed every nook and cranny. Even those who suspiciously showed no apparent power, seemingly powerless, were present.

  Nitaan had never before seen so many different races. There were some other races among the adventurers in Silalai town, but they were only a minority.

  Nitaan saw Half-beast races, with bodies of both humans and parts of beasts, living peacefully, no different from humans.

  The other two intelligent races, Tsubas race and Rubius race, were noticeably fewer in number. This was normal, as both races had their own major cities no less impressive than Ratana City.

  Tsubas race looked almost exactly like humans but lacked human ears. All their features were human-like with white and pink skin. The easiest way to distinguish them was the numerous wings on their backs.

  Every Tsubas had wings extending from their backs at the waist, lower than the wings that connect to the shoulders of typical birds. As they aged, more wings appeared. With wings and delicate facial features since birth, they are one of the most beautiful races on the Grand Continent.

  Rubius race also resembled humans in appearance. The difference was their crimson eyes with no whites, only bright red color, and large horns or fangs protruding from their elbows.

  Their skin colors were mostly black and brown, with a wild and intimidating feature. Just from a glance, most people will feel like Tsubas race and Rubius race are the total opposite of each other.

  Not only in appearance that conflict with each other, their relationship is also hostile. Yet their territories is overlapped, become even more the reason to hostile to each others.

  Etherum, The floating city of the Tsubas race floats perfectly above Baratrum, the underground city of the Rubias race. Just this fact alone makes the two sides become their arch nemesis.

  However, in the Ratana City, which is not divided by race, they live together in peace.

  Kiita was amazed by the many strange and wonderful new things he saw. He looked left and right excitedly, his tail wagging.

  Nitaan! Nitaan! There's someone who looks like Nitaan but has a tail like Kiita's!

  Nitaan! Nitaan! That's a huge horse! It looks delicious!

  Nitaan! Nitaan! Why that big yellow cat has spots? Can Kiita bite it?

  Nitaan! Nitaan! Can Kiita go mark his territory?

  Nitaan smiled amusedly at Kiita's thoughts echoing in his mind, but only at the last sentence did Nitaan have to stop him.

  "Let's find a place to rest first. We'll go for a walk in the city later this evening. I want to try capital food." Nitaan smiled, stroking the head of the giant dog who was still looking around excitedly.

  Nitaan then set off along the main path. Observing the landscape and everything around him, after passing many shops and restaurants, he followed the signs all the way in search of a place to stay.

  After stopping to buy some boiled Iron Eagle eggs to eat as a snack, he asked a shop owner for directions. The owner recommended a place and gave him a rough guide.

  They followed the directions the shop owner gave them until they found a well-decorated building with a sign inviting guests.

  Nitaan went in to inquire about an overnight stay and was taken aback by the price: 300 Gaia per night. Nitaan's eyebrows twitched at the considerable cost. Fortunately, he had prepared himself for it to some extent and had already converted the ingredients from the Emerald-fur bear into money, so he could still breathe a sigh of relief.

  Nitaan decided to stay for three nights. He expected that within three days he should be able to rent a house and find work in the army. If things went badly, he would still have enough money to be an adventurer for a while longer.

  After checking in their luggage, Nitaan headed south to buy some simple food. He still had some business he wanted to take care of today.

  Nitaan led Kiita towards the outskirts of the city. The area was much less crowded. The number of shops and stalls along the road had dwindled. Most of those around him were dressed in the khaki army uniforms that Nitaan used to wear.

  After a little more walking, Nitaan noticed a large building surrounded by a sturdy iron fence and guarded on every corner.

  A quick glance revealed that the building was far larger than the building of the Silalai town Patrol unit.

  The massive building, constructed from solid stone, Word of Power and spiritual energy adorned every corner. Every section of the wall exuded an unbreakable strength, like a massive fortress situated on the edge of the city.

  Not only was the building itself superior in size and security, but its scale and overall presence were incomparably greater.

  Nitaan headed towards the main gate. Six guards stationed there noticed him and blocked his path. They all stood with their chests held high, their gazes steady, yet not lowering their vigilance.

  "Excuse me, sir, the City Guard Unit headquarters does not permit unauthorized persons to enter," a stern-faced guard said in a calm voice.

  "Please inform Colonel Lalanta that Nitaan Wongjantra wants to see her."

  The guards exchanged suspicious glances, then looked at the young man and the large dog in front of them.

  After a moment of silent signal, two guards departed.

  A short time later, the two returned with surprised expressions.

  "Colonel Lalanta says you can see her immediately. Mr. Nitaan, please follow me this way."

  Nitaan followed the two guards into the City Guard unit building. After passing through the main gate, Nitaan found himself in a large open area to the side. Hundreds of young soldiers were training diligently. From Nitaan's rough assessment through Kiita's senses, most were Newborn, with only a few reaching Learners.

  "These soldiers are a field unit," Noticing Nitaan's questioning gaze, the two guards explained, "It's like a kind of training before joining the army. Core officers don't have this much personnel."

  Seeing Nitaan could request to see the highest-ranking official of the City Guard unit so easily. It would be wiser to make a good impression on him.

  "Doesn't the City Guard unit function like a law enforcement unit in the capital?" Nitaan asked.

  "Overall, yes, but the City Guard is divided into two main parts: Core officers and field units."

  "The Core officers are responsible for patrolling and suppressing crime in the city. They are the core force of the City Guard unit. It’s not efficient to have thousands of people patrolling the city all day. That's why the City Guard unit selects only a few dozen highly skilled individuals for this role."

  "Field units are like support units, helping to secure areas, handling minor issues, and also patrolling and acting as eyes and ears in various locations. But still, the main force is the Core officers," the soldier leading Nitaan explained in a friendly tone.

  Nitaan nodded slightly. From his perspective, he agreed with this method of operation. A few highly skilled individuals were chosen for the main suppression and investigation roles. If a situation became too difficult for a small group to handle, the larger force would mobilize and tackle it. If they still couldn't clear the situation, it meant the danger of the situation wasn't something a few Learners and Engravers could control.

  If that kind of trouble appears, a stronger individual in the City Guard would be the one to take control.

  "And the field units are like training grounds for those aspiring to join the kingdom's main army. They can gain real fighting and real work experience while waiting for promotion when they reach the requirement," another soldier added politely.

  The two soldiers led Nitaan past the training ground. Entering the large, bustling building filled with numerous officers busy with documents, Nitaan ascended to the fourth floor and soon arrived in front of a luxuriously decorated room. The officer knocked twice on the door and shouted loudly,

  "Colonel, Nitaan Wongjantra has arrived!"

  "Come in," a voice replied.