Chapter 380
Chapter 380
«I can’t believe that we got citizenship with three jars of pickles! I’m impressed, daddy!» – Leila praised her father arrogantly, slapping him on the ass as if she could have done everything a hundred times better, but she was pleased with the result anyway.
{If you slap me like this once again, I swear on my balls, I will spank you.} – Kyon thought, struggling to suppress the urge to hit her.
«What are we going to do?» – Eve asked.
«First, we will check into the hotel and drop by the library on the way, and then…»
«Do you mean we are homeless?» – Leila interrupted Zosimos in a hurt voice. – «Is twenty thousand not enough for a pretty mansion? What kind of father are you if you can’t get a decent house for your beautiful daughters?» – Leila felt on a subconscious level that she deserved better.
«Don’t give me that attitude!» – Kyon raised his voice.
Leila shut up, afraid that she had provoked Zosimos to forbid her from watching cartoons for a few more days. It was the only thing that really mattered to her.
«Your father has more money than…» – He stopped short. – «Anyway, we won’t live in a mansion not because we can’t afford it, but because we are going to move places due to my job.»
«What are you going to do?» – Eve asked quietly.
«Sorry, sweety pie, but daddy can’t tell you this. You are too young for such important information.» – He hid it for so many reasons.
The girls grunted suspiciously. The man who called himself their father wasn’t as simple as he seemed. He had received citizenship with three jars of pickles! He claimed to be rich! He concealed facts about his job!
The three of them turned from the crowded street into a relatively deserted alley where they found an attractive cafe. While the girls enjoyed baked fish and potatoes, Kyon went up to the roof and lay down with a sniper.
There were no wild birds in Dantes. They were all killed by hawks when crossing the barrier, and those that miraculously reproduced in the city were exterminated. It was done for two reasons: prevent any smuggling and keep the city clean from droppings. Any bird mail was under control, including flight routes, pick-up and drop points, bird training and feeding, bird numbers… Any attempt to evade taxes didn’t end well for merchants.
Meanwhile, a zombie falcon had overcome the city barrier, holding a bag of spatial rings. At the same moment, an ultra-fast hawk flew out of the tall walls, catching up with its target with incredible speed due to the strong cultivation.
~bang~
When the hawk almost reached its target, a bullet tore through its body. A few seconds later, five ever faster hawks flew out of the walls, but the falcon had already descended and got lost among the buildings.
{It worked.} – Kyon thought with relief when he received the package.
At least, he could keep his zombie birds in the ring or it would be difficult to find spies within the walls of the city. However, any unregistered birds would attract unnecessary attention, so his spying activities were severely curtailed.
The bag that Lovr had received contained powerful spatial rings of his own production that took him a couple of days to create. He could not bring them through the customs, so there were only two ways: by a bird mail or through an advanced teleportation trigram. However, the city barrier recorded any unauthorized movement and sent the coordinates to the base. An Emergency Response Unit would arrive before the teleportation was over (in a minute and a half). Dantes ran a tight ship and kept everything under control.
After dinner, Kyon invited the girls to the rooftop. A marvelous view opened up from there.
«It’s so beautiful…» – Eve muttered, her wondrous emerald eyes wide open. It was almost eight in the evening, and the city lights were really impressive.
Leila studied the city that stretched to the very horizon in silent delight.
Lovr pointed his finger: «Look, my sweet ones, that square golden building with four domes belongs to the Golden Pig, the world’s most prestigious trading guild. Most world transactions happen there, and the security there is the best. The huge rectangular structure that adjoins the wall and lets out puffs of steam is the dwarves’ factory. It’s under the Russells’ protection. The building with a silver statue on the roof is the temple of goddess Danna. I don’t think she exists, or your mom would have told me about her. And that building over there with a large white dome is the central library of Dantes. That’s where we’re going right now.»
Eve clapped her hands and hopped with joy: «Library!»
Leila rolled her eyes and grumbled: «I guess I know who’s daddy’s pet here…»
«I love you both, my little ones!» – Zosimos said tenderly, gently placing his calloused hands on the girls’ shoulders.
Eve shuddered with fear in her dark green eyes and pulled away from him while Leila looked defiantly at her father: «You are shameless, aren’t you! Pawing me on the horse, giving us shoulder massage… What’s next? Getting married to us?»
Zosimos ignored her, pointing to the city center: «By the way, there is an imperial palace over there. The tallest and most luxurious building in the empire! No ordinary people have ever been there. The Empress spends almost all of her time in the palace and woe to those who dare to bother her. Even someone as strong as you will be in trouble!»
The palace was an exquisite work of art made by the world’s best architects. It was so extraordinary that famous artists often portrayed it in their paintings. However, this unique place had an impeccable security system.
Eve’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
«That’s where I want to live! I am ready whenever you say we’re moving there! Yippee!» – Leila squealed dreamily.
«I repeat, my darling, they will kill even someone as strong as you.» – Kyon said sternly. This whole presentation served a single purpose: to warn the girls to steer clear from there. In the coming days, he was going to remind them how strong they were, and if they suddenly got out of hand, he could control them only with fear.
It was eight in the evening. A vast, bright image with text appeared high in the sky on the city barrier.
«What is this?» – Eve screamed in fear.
«Cartoons?» – Leila was so surprised that she fell on her butt.
«Every day at 8 p.m., the Russells activate the city screen to inform all the residents about breaking news in the empire. They broadcast one piece of news for a minute, and then the next starts. As a rule, there are no more than two announcements, but after the recent epoch-making events, they show three or four clips every day. Let’s have a look.»
The first image of the aurora borealis explained that the green night was a rare natural phenomenon caused by the approaching comet. The second image of an enormous crater made it clear that this very comet had fallen down, creating a massive explosion. The rest of its energy created the rainbow sun that flew into space due to its nature.
Kyon wasn’t surprised at this fake news. He who owns the information, owns the world. The one who rules the sources of information controls the country. Misinformation could calm down most uneducated residents, preventing public protests.
The third image of a palace told about the carefully prepared robbery of the Feruzs’ treasury.
Exclamations of surprise were heard from all sides: «The Feruzs’ treasury has been robbed! Oh goddess, what is happening to our world?» … «How could they let it happen? First, they embarrassed themselves at the forest tournament and now this!» … «The royal family is having a hard time. Maybe it’s time for them to change the king!»
As Kon expected, the imperial authorities didn’t wait too long before announcing this breaking news to increase the citizens’ confidence in the news screen.
«And we have just come from Milano…» – Eve said, glancing at Zosimos.
«Our father must be the thief!» – Leila laughed loudly, slapping his thigh as if she had recognized the villain. In fact, she considered it impossible. A pot-bellied, bald red-neck had robbed the Feruzs’ treasury? It’s pure madness!
«What do you have to say for yourself?» – Eve asked slyly as a joke or maybe not.
Kyon felt cold inside. He couldn’t believe that this brat was testing him! He should consider Eve’s extraordinary intelligence next time, or she might reveal his other plans! She may seem to be gentle and obedient, but in fact, Eve was even more dangerous than her wicked, noisy sister.
«I will say that I expected more!» – Zosimos replied jokingly and laughed loudly.
Leila laughed with her father. Her pleasant voice sounded like the murmur of a clear stream. Eve only smiled, carefully studying her father’s reaction.
Soon the three of them left the cafe and went to the central library of Dantes. The journey took more than half an hour, even by the high-speed road. The city was huger than any metropolis! Many tens of kilometers were covered with high-rise buildings, private mansions, and even factories. High, thick walls surrounded perfectly round private areas as spherical barriers were the most effective. Residential districts were rich, middle-class, and poor. The industrial areas where the government controlled air pollution were a striking contrast to the rest of the city.
They saw canals and bridges, parks, gardens, schools and colleges of martial arts, fight pavilions, stadiums for training and competition, shopping centers, stores, restaurants, markets, bazaars, fairs, circuses, museums, theaters, and cultural centres. There was everything and a little bit more.
The girls kept gasping and screaming with delight. This world was breathtakingly enormous and versatile. Thousands of people they met made up the incredibly huge social network of Dantes, unique and unrepeatable.
As they approached the city centre, the area was getting more and more sophisticated. The palace blocked the sight even if it was still about 10 kilometers away. Lovr was even a little anxious whether the Empress could feel the girls’ souls.
When the three of them tried to enter the library, they weren’t allowed inside. A monthly pass cost 10,000 spheres, which was unreasonably expensive! He could buy a mansion with this money! As it turned out, it was the golden token that was so expensive, not the pass to the library. Buying this status marker was considered worthy of respect and admiration in Dantes.
Then Lovr found out that the price for high-ranking families was much lower, and the 1st rank members, i.e., direct descendants, had free access to the elite section of the library that was located in the attic, just like in the Boston library (only, there the 2nd rank members were also allowed). However, the free entrance suggested buying a lifetime pass: a diamond token that cost 1,000,000 spheres.
Getting complete and reliable information was essential to create an effective action plan. If Kyon had not spent several days in the elite section of the Boston Library, he wouldn’t have found out that Kara and Vlada were demons, consequently, he would not have been able to get a letter of recommendation and become an investigator. The elite section of the Dantes library should contain even more unique and secret information available only to every millionth capital dweller.
{Will they let in a third-ranking investigator? Of course not. Will a second rank be enough?} – Lovr wondered. He knew that his 1st rank Stone formation would not work, because he had to belong to a family that lived within the city walls. Unfortunately, families like Bakers, who could sell their name, were rare. They might not exist in the capital. Anyway, it would take him too long to find them, not without connections like Vladimir, the head of the investigation department. Kyon planned to get the second rank of the imperial investigator and get into the library.