Chapter 192: Generic Corruption…?

The buildings were at least three stories tall, with pipes running along every floor, carrying energy, water, and air to the people living inside. If I compared it to the Academy, to Eryndor… heck, even to the slums—

This place felt ancient.

So outdated that even a slum could outclass it.

The streets were empty too. Completely empty, so much so that I ended up walking right down the middle of the road.

“Wait… huh?”

I squinted into the distance. Something moved. Something fast. Something loud. Something you absolutely wouldn’t expect to see in a place like this.

“Is that…?”

[Dark Step]

I teleported to the shadow of the nearest light pole, barely avoiding the speeding vehicle as it shot past where I’d been standing.

“The hell?”

I let out a disbelieving laugh.

What was wrong with this place? How could a car like that be worth more than almost every building I’d seen here combined?

The engine roared as it sped past, kicking up dust and loose gravel in its wake. Sleek, polished, and completely out of place.

My eyes narrowed.

That wasn’t just some random civilian vehicle.

That was money, real money.

And in a place like this?

That only meant one thing.

I turned, watching as the car didn’t slow down, not for the broken roads, not for the empty streets, not for anything. It drove like it owned the place.

Or like it had nothing to fear.

“…Interesting.”

I stepped out from the shadows, brushing dust off my sleeve.

A town where people hid behind doors, where curtains barely shifted, and footsteps died the moment you listened for them…

But something like that could just drive through the center without a care in the world?

Yeah.

Something was very wrong here.

[Dark Step]

I vanished again, reappearing on the rooftop of a nearby building, my eyes locking onto the vehicle as it weaved through the streets below.

It wasn’t heading out. It was heading deeper in, toward the city’s center.

Of course it was.

I followed.

Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, keeping pace with ease, I let the wind brush against my face. It carried with it something faint—not just dust, not just decay, but… luxury? Extravagant, loud, and obviously familiar.

The deeper I went, the more intense it became, whether that was good or bad depended on how you looked at it.

The silent buildings gave way to a loud, bustling center packed with merchants, caravans, and traders. It was obvious that no one here was a local or an ordinary citizen.

These people were wealthy, the kind of wealthy that wore tailored suits and carried spotless firearms.

“…So that’s how it is.”

The car finally slowed as it approached a large structure at the heart of the district.

Unlike everything else, this one stood tall, intact, reinforced, and very much alive. Fresh paint on concrete. Steel frames. Glass that hadn’t been shattered or scavenged.

Lights on.

Guards posted.

Weapons visible.

Ah.

There it is.

I landed silently on the edge of a rooftop across from the building, crouching low as I observed the scene.

The vehicle rolled to a stop.

The door opened.

Out stepped a man dressed far too well for a place like this, even compared to the other wealthy men here; he was obvious—clean coat, polished shoes, tailored fit, not a speck of dust on him despite the road.

Behind him, armed escorts followed. Their movements were sharp, practiced.

Organized. Disciplined.

Not thugs. Not civilians.

Private military?

Or worse…

“Found you.”

A slow smile crept onto my lips.

So this town wasn’t abandoned.

It was being squeezed. Bled dry from the center out.

I glanced back the way I came, toward the rows of silent houses and shuttered windows, then back at the building that pulsed with guarded life.

“Survive, stabilize, dominate… huh?”

Yeah.

Now that sounded a lot more interesting.

Before I just jumped in and announced my presence, I needed to look around. Merchant stalls, guns, and even some slave trading.

A bit of everything, really.

But what worried me more was a sign, just discarded in an alley near the massive structure. It read “City Hall.”

[Dark Step]

I teleported over to it and checked it more closely. It seemed to match the few faint scratches left on the huge structure.

Like it had been torn off… no, not like. It had definitely been torn off.

“So that entire thing used to be the city hall?”

I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. This far from the capital or any major territory? Of course something like this would happen. Frontiers are the perfect place to topple a government and set up your own illegal capital.

Now the question was: were these people opportunistic raiders and criminals, or just corrupt nobles and officials who took over the place?

Plenty of questions, not many answers.

Azrael and the academy really couldn’t have picked a better mess, huh?

[Dark Step]

I teleported back to the mansion bedroom and sat beside Evelina, who was still asleep.

I couldn’t just dive into fights and try to fix everything myself. This was just as much Evelina’s territory as it was mine.

I needed to wait for her to wake up before I completely ruined everything this city had going for it. Besides, she was the expert.

I’d need to read a hundred more books before I even knew what the hell I was doing.

“Succubus.”

“Yeah?” She suddenly appeared from under the bed, grabbing my feet to try and spook me.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“I’m bored. My mistress is asleep, and this mansion has nothing to offer.”

She teleported again, this time appearing beside Evelina and lying down next to her. “Anyway, what do you need?”

“When will she wake up?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Guess that works for me.”

“You’re not going to ask how to wake her up faster?”

“No. After everything she did back in the Cold Iron District, she needs her beauty sleep to be in top shape.” I stood up, stretched my back, and looked around the messy room again. “As for me, I’ll make this place worthy of her.”

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