Chapter 20: Tower of Steel and Stone
If I thought the outer gates of Torak were impressive, they had nothing on the city itself.
The place was a damned metropolis.
I mean, I'd seen medieval castles in documentaries and fantasy games, hell, I'd even visited Neuschwanstein once when I studied in Germany for a year but this? This was something else.
The smell was a cocktail of street food, sewage, horse shit, and something sweet I couldn't place. Not awful. Not great either.
The streets were mostly cobbled, some dirt, but weirdly clean. Not like sterile, modern clean—but kept. Maintained. Maybe magic again. Maybe just a crap ton of street cleaners.
Children darted between legs, laughing and tossing a wooden ball. Vendors hawked everything from glowing fruits to suspicious-looking animal parts. I passed a bard plucking a stringed instrument that looked suspiciously like a lute and singing something about a "dragon with a dozen heads and no patience."
And then I saw them.
Demi-humans. Beastkin. Whatever you wanna call them.
Most were in chains.
Dragged by merchants or noble-looking bastards on horseback or in open carriages. Cat ears, rabbit ears, scales, tails, fur-covered arms. One had feathers. It was a parade of misery. I slowed as a group of chained demi-human children shuffled by, eyes dull, limbs thin. A burly man whipped one of them for slowing down, muttering something in a language I didn't understand but the tone made it clear enough.
I looked away.
I'd seen slavery in movies. Read about it in textbooks. But this? This was real. Disgusting. And worse, it was normal here. No one batted an eye. People kept walking. Talking. Buying bread or swords while a tiger-eared woman was dragged across cobbles by the neck.
Still, I had a goal.
"Excuse me," I asked a man selling some kind of red-glowing mushrooms from a cart. "Which way to the Adventurer's Guild?"
He looked me up and down, judging the rough clothes, the dirt on my boots, the tired gleam in my eye. Then pointed with a greasy thumb. "Big stone tower, seven stories. You'll see it. Hard to miss."
He wasn't kidding.
As I turned the corner, I felt my jaw loosen on its hinges.
The Adventurer's Guild of Torak was less a building and more a fortress. No, scratch that. It was a cathedral of madness. Seven towering stories of gray enchanted stone, its exterior etched with glowing glyphs that shifted when I tried to look directly at them. Stained-glass windows the size of buses shimmered with scenes of monsters and warriors locked in epic combat. A colossal emblem of a sword and quill crossed hung above the triple archways that formed the main entrance.
People streamed in and out. Adventurers, merchants, scribes, blacksmiths, potion sellers, beast tamers, you name it. Some rode mounts. Some carried crates. A couple were bleeding and still laughing like psychos.
I took a deep breath and made my way forward.
This was it. The first real step into whatever the hell this world wanted from me. No more goblin caves. No more chiefs. This was civilization.
Hopefully.
Probably.
Maybe.
…God help me.
The massive enchanted doors of the Adventurer's Guild opened with a deep groan, heavy and regal like the gates of a palace. Inside, the world hit me like a freight train of color, sound, and smell.
Spices. Meat. Beer. Sweat. Perfume. Blood. Magic.
And people. Gods, the people.
The main hall was colossal, like a cathedral and a military base had a very messy baby. The ceiling was so high it seemed to disappear into shadow, and the floor beneath my boots was polished obsidian tile inlaid with golden patterns that glowed faintly. The light came from glowing orbs floating in the air, hundreds of them. No flames, no torches. Just enchanted luminescence.
To my left, a massive tavern space bustled with activity. Adventurers, men and women, demi-humans and humans alike, sat at long, carved tables filled with mugs and food and laughter. Some played cards, some argued, some flirted, some just stared off into space like they'd seen one too many goblins crawl out of someone's chest.
To my right, a wall of wooden boards stretched two stories high and at least twenty meters long. Notes, posters, and mission parchments were pinned in every available inch. Adventurers stood around it in small clusters, pointing, reading, murmuring to one another like gossiping warriors. It didn't take a genius to realize these were quests.
Straight ahead, just under a massive chandelier made entirely of what looked like floating crystals, stood six marble counters. Behind each, an impeccably dressed woman handled a line of adventurers. They were all striking in different ways, elegant, fierce, statuesque, cute but one stood alone at the far end, her station unoccupied.
And damn, she was gorgeous.
Long crimson hair tied into a loose braid fell over one shoulder. Her eyes were green, bright, piercing, almost glowing in this light. Her uniform was sharp and tailored, hugging her body in just the right ways without looking lewd. She had a certain sharpness about her. Not cruel, not cold… just exact.
She noticed me staring and tilted her head slightly, the corner of her lips twitching. "You just going to gawk or do you need help?"
Shit.
I walked over, playing it cool or at least trying to.
"Hi. Uh, yeah, sorry. I want to register."
"Name?" she asked, already pulling out some kind of enchanted ledger.
"Kaizen," I said, clearing my throat.
"Mm-hmm." She nodded, scribbled something with a quill that had no ink pot, and tapped a small crystal orb beside her. It flashed white, then dimmed.
"I'm Gwen, by the way," she added, without looking up. "And welcome to the Adventurer's Guild of Torak. We'll need to record your basic information and conduct a verification before I can issue your guild card. Standard fee applies."
I blinked. "Verification?"
Gwen gestured toward a dark orb resting on a velvet cushion between us. "Truth orb. Place your hand on it and answer honestly. Any attempt to lie or deceive will turn it red. If you lie too much… well, the orb doesn't like that."
Great.
I sighed and placed my hand on the orb. It was warm. Like body-heat warm. Ew.
"State your full name?" she asked.
"Kaizen Vale."
The orb pulsed gently.
"Race?"
"Human. Mostly."
Another pulse.
"Place of birth?"
I swallowed. "Small village in the southern reaches. Wiped out by plague. I was the only survivor."
No pulse. The orb just dimmed softly in acceptance.
The questions went on, age, health, marital status (uh, single and not looking), magical affinity (I said none, which made the orb flicker a little weirdly but still not red, so pass), and combat experience. I kept everything vague but technically truthful. And the orb seemed to accept it. Gwen watched me the whole time, her sharp eyes studying me like a puzzle she couldn't quite solve.
After a few more checks, she nodded. "That concludes verification. One-time fee of 1,000 Pele for registration."
I winced. "Yeah, about that... can you explain Pele? I've got copper and some silver, and a few gold coins I think…" I need to see if what the guard at the gate said was true.
She raised an eyebrow. "You don't know the conversion rates?"
"Let's pretend I don't."
"Fine," Gwen said, rolling her eyes. "Hundred copper to one silver. Ten silver to one gold. One Pele is equivalent to one copper piece, but most places just use the term 'Pele' instead. Makes things easier, especially in cities."
I nodded slowly. "So... 1,000 Pele is basically ten silver or one gold."
"Exactly."
"Alright. I've got that," I muttered, digging into my pouch and counting the coins. I handed her ten silver coins. She took them, inspected each one with a glance, then nodded. Now I can assume it means the guard was telling me the truth. At least I hope he isn't in cahoots with the lovely Gwen.
She stepped away to the back room for a few minutes, and I turned to take in more of the chaos around me. The tavern was even livelier now, laughter, shouting, toasts being made. Men and women boasting about dragons, bandits, and one guy screaming something about a cursed potato. Armor clanked. Weapons gleamed. Magic crackled faintly in the air like static.
Everyone looked dangerous. Experienced. Confident.
And here I was. Level zero and barely able to lift my new sword.
Gwen returned with a small silver-and-black card. She held it up.
"Here's your guild card," she said. "Don't lose it. Replacements cost money and a lot of hassle. You're registered at Rank F. That's the lowest starting tier. You'll need to complete missions and gain guild points to rise through the ranks. The guild card also acts as an ID, can be used in most major guild halls across the continent, except within the Empire. Their guilds operate independently."
She slid the card across the counter.
I picked it up. It was warm. Again. What was it made with, magic and heat?
"Thanks," I said. "Also, uh, you wouldn't happen to know a good inn around here, would you? Preferably one with a hot bath."
Gwen arched an elegant brow. "Trying to impress someone?"
"Just the dirt and blood I guess."
She leaned slightly over the counter and lowered her voice conspiratorially. "Try the Mikaelson Inn and Tavern. Five blocks west, two left turns from the guild's main gate. Look for a copper lion on the door."
"Sounds fancy."
"It is. One hundred Pele a night. Private room, hot bath, food, and clean sheets. Pricey for a newbie, but worth it if you're not sleeping in a ditch."
"Noted. Thanks, Gwen."
She gave a small smile. "Don't die, Kaizen."
I turned, flipping the card in my hand and heading toward the exit.
Don't die, she said.
Yeah… easier said than done in this world.