After that, we followed the city wall until we reached a deserted alley. After confirming there was no one else around, we canceled the invisibility.
The moment I pulled back my hood, I saw that Alice had already taken hers off. She was sweating heavily and fanning herself with her hand.
"So hot..."
The fabric wasn't very breathable, and we had been wrapped from head to toe. Of course it was hot. I'd improve it later.
"Mr. Jacob, you're drenched in sweat. I'll dry it for you."
"T-Thank you..."
Grace used wind magic to blow-dry Jacob's hair. The sudden gesture made him a little flustered.
"Ms. Grace, me too."
Alice moved closer to enjoy the breeze.
I took off my coat as well. At the same time, something about Grace felt a little strange.
It seemed like she was trying to increase Jacob's affection toward her. Did she like him?
Otherwise, why would Grace notice that Jacob was sweating so much and want to dry him off? Normally people wouldn't pay attention to something like that. If she were simply being kind, wouldn't she check on Alice first since they were both female?
Besides, Grace sometimes acted a little ambiguous around Jacob.
Well, although I wanted to ask Grace what she really thought, it would probably be better if another female asked her instead.
After taking off the coats, we headed toward the place the bearded man had told us about. In the western district of the capital, there were tall buildings arranged in a triangle, and inside that triangle was a tavern called "Tiger."
We were already in the western district. The moment we entered, a strong stench hit us, forcing us to pinch our noses.
The buildings here were crude, crowded, and dark. Trash was scattered everywhere.
We soon saw a malnourished man slumped on the ground, flies buzzing around his hair. It was obvious he hadn't bathed in a long time.
A little farther ahead, we saw someone with a skin disease taking drugs. Nearby, several children in ragged clothes were playing ball—barefoot.
Everything here was practically the dark side of this country. They had focused heavily on developing transportation, but it had caused the people's living standards to decline.
However, the capital of my own country didn't have this problem.
I wasn't insulting another country just to make mine look better. Lina and I used to wander around cities during our breaks from exploring dungeons because we often didn't know where else to go. Although we hadn't visited every corner, we had never seen a place like this.
There was no slum in our capital, nor in the nearby cities. Some towns had poor areas, but they weren't very obvious.
After all, the king couldn't manage places that were too far away. Those areas were governed by local noble lords.
At that moment, a child ran past and bumped into Jacob. The kid ran off without apologizing.
Without hesitation, I asked Jacob,
"Jacob, is your wallet still with you?"
"I didn't keep it on me. Why?"
Good thing his wallet was in the storage hole. I sighed in relief.
"As long as it wasn't stolen."
"Karen, what do you mean by stolen?"
"I don't know if that kid was a pickpocket, but in a place like this, you have to watch out for that."
Getting bumped into here was normal. It was a way to distract their target so they could steal a wallet without being noticed.
"A pickpocket? Mr. Karen, how could a child do something like that?"
"Yeah, he probably just bumped into Mr. Jacob by accident because he was in a hurry."
Our capital must have been too peaceful. That was why Grace and Alice had such innocent ideas.
Looks like it was time for a little lesson.
"Do you know what kind of place this is?"
"A smelly and dirty place."
"The place where dangerous organizations gather."
Their answers were so simple that I shook my head.
"No. This is a slum."
"A slum?"
"So this is what a slum is like?"
Grace had probably read about slums in books before. She looked around with curiosity.
"Our capital doesn't have slums, so it's normal that you don't know. Let me explain."
"The people living here are those who can't maintain a normal life. They're extremely poor. Some of them can't even eat a full meal every day. To survive, they have to rely on stealing, robbing, and other illegal activities."
After hearing that, Jacob, Grace, and Alice showed expressions of sympathy. Ethefelis, as usual, remained expressionless.
I continued.
"People here grow up surrounded by this environment. So it's not strange for children to become pickpockets. They may even do things much worse."
Children raised in slums grow up in harsh conditions without education. The reason they commit crimes is because they believe it's the only way to survive.
"Also, slums are basically outside the reach of law enforcement. Drug trades usually happen here. Since no one wants to come to a filthy place like this, the government doesn't manage it very strictly."
No one would come to a slum for no reason. The sanitation was terrible, which caused many diseases. Someone with an average immune system might get sick just from staying here too long.
That was why the death rate in slums was very high.
In a sense, sanitation was also a security issue. Since the state didn't strictly control it, it was practically letting them fend for themselves.
"And Grace, about what you said yesterday—reporting them to the police won't help. Organizations like this are born in places like the slums. Unless you eliminate the root cause—the slums themselves—another organization will simply appear under a different name. Understand?"
The existence of the slum was the perfect argument to stop Grace from reporting them.
"...I understand."
Grace answered quietly, looking disappointed.
But I only wanted to show her that a sense of justice couldn't solve every problem.
"They're so pitiful. Can't we help them?"
"Alice, don't think about helping them or giving them charity. That would only be temporary. The only one who can truly change this situation is the state. Improving the people's living conditions is the state's responsibility. Our help won't change anything."
Even if we helped them, they would only live a little longer.
If the situation itself couldn't be fundamentally solved, then helping them was just self-satisfaction.
Besides, helping people depended on the situation. If someone was injured, helping treat them was fine.
But when it involved larger systems and consequences, things had to be considered carefully.
"But..."
"Karen is right. Slums exist because of the way the country is governed. Solving it should be the state's responsibility."
Alice wanted to say something else, but Jacob interrupted her.
Nicely done. At least I had someone on my side.
"Mr. Jacob thinks so too?"
Grace asked him anxiously. It seemed she still struggled with the idea of simply ignoring the situation.
After all, Grace was an upright person.
When she saw people suffering in front of her, she wanted to help them.
Alice was the same.
Jacob then explained his perspective.
"Yes. Poverty appears when a country focuses too much on developing a certain sector and causes the overall economy to decline. When people's income decreases, some can no longer afford expensive living costs, so they move to areas where prices are lower. Slums are exactly those places."
"As for why prices are lower here even though it's still the capital—because the food is leftover from the markets, and the goods are second-hand, third-hand, or even fourth-hand."
"My head hurts..."
Alice held her head with a pained expression. The explanation was clearly too complicated for her.
"In short, only the state can eliminate slums. We can't."
"I see."
Grace finally seemed to accept it.
Now it was time to deal with business.
I looked at Jacob, Grace, and Alice.
"Jacob, Grace, Alice—you three go walk around somewhere else. Ethefelis and I will handle this."
"Why?"
"I originally planned to have you walk around nearby anyway. I just didn't expect this place to be a slum. Grace, didn't you want to buy a new sword? While I'm… chatting, go buy one."
"...Chatting."
Jacob looked speechless at my wording.
But I really was just going to chat. I wasn't planning to threaten anyone.
"B-But…Mr. Karen, I only brought some money with me. I'm not sure if it's enough..."
Grace spoke hesitantly. It seemed she was too embarrassed to ask to borrow money.
So I took out my wallet from the storage hole and handed it to her.
"Take it."
"Thank you."
Grace accepted it with both hands and thanked me.
Then I added,
"Pay me back later. And take Alice to buy some new clothes. You can buy skirts, but don't make them all skirts."
Alice hadn't bought any new clothes since she bought some in a town in Aimebisalon.
"Mr. Karen, I'm fine."
"I'm not. You only have three outfits for going out. After staying at inns for two days straight, today should be your last clean set. Are you planning to wear unwashed clothes tomorrow?"
I really hated wearing unwashed clothes again after bathing.
What was the point of showering and cleaning your body if you were just going to put sweaty clothes back on?
"...No."
Alice struggled for a while before answering, but at least the answer was correct.
"Then go buy some."
As I spoke, I took out my beloved sword.
"Grace, borrow my sword for now. Don't refuse. Without a sword, you're just someone who needs protection."
"But won't you need it, Mr. Karen?"
"I can just use a kitchen knife."
"That's impressive."
Honestly, my fists would be enough.
Besides, I wasn't going to fight.
I was just going to chat.
"So where should we meet afterward?"
I checked my pocket watch. It was 12:14 p.m. Shopping would take some time.
"Same as before. Under the big clock tower at three."
After making the arrangements with Jacob and the others, Ethefelis and I headed off to find the organization's location.