As the caravan creaked closer, the details of the city began to reveal themselves, and Kaiser found himself looking straight forward, unable to look away.

  City walls stood tall, constructed from spotless white stone, which reflected sunlight like a mirror. When examined closer, Kaiser noticed that the surface wasn’t smooth—each block of stone was carved with countless names each. Some were carved deeply, proud and strong and some were fainter, as if the years had attempted to erase them. He frowned, narrowing his eyes to make out a few of the names.

  Glunko, seated at the reins, saw his curiosity "They’re the names of merchants who’ve passed through Arkhold," he said, a smile growing on his face. “All certified traders who sell in this city have their name carved into the walls, that is the tradition, you could say.”

  "Every single merchant?" Kaiser asked, his eyes furrowing, trying even harder to see what was written on the walls "There are… thousands of them."

  Glunko grinned. "Hundreds of thousands Kaiser, maybe even millions. Arkhold isn’t just any city, it’s THE city for us merchants. If you’re a trader worth your salt, you were here at some point in your life. Those names are a mark of passage for us."

  Hanging from the walls were thousands of flags of all shapes and colors, waving in the light wind. Some bore intricate crests and symbols, while others displayed bold, vibrant patterns. "What about those?" Kaiser asked, gesturing to the banners.

  "Merchant flags," Glunko replied. "Or their sponsors. Each one tells a story—alliances, rivalries that were built and broken. If you know what each one represents, you can basically see the history of this place just by them alone.”

  Kaiser looked at the flags, their bright colors contrasting with the white walls. The sheer number was staggering, and they seemed to stretch on forever. But his attention was soon drawn upward, to something even more astonishing.

  There, in the sky, hung a giant bubble, colorful but color-changing, reflecting the sunlight in hues of blue, green, and gold. It was bigger than any building he had ever seen, its surface flipping like an immoveable liquid glass. Smaller bubbles orbited the larger one, like moons around a planet, drifting lazily in the air.

  As they got closer to the gates of the city, one of the smaller bubbles popped with a very quiet but audible sound, and thousands of small papers cascaded out of it, showering the city like leaves in autumn. The papers floated down over the city, carried by the breeze, and one particularly rogue piece of paper drifted outside the walls, carried by a gust of wind. It pirouetted through the air as if it had its own consciousness before gently falling next to Kaiser in the caravan.

  Kaiser instantly picked it up, frowning as he inspected it. It was a colorful advertisement, depicting a cheerful figure with impossibly perfect hair. “Erya’s Elite Hair Salon! Where your locks become legendary! Special discounts for first-timers!," the text declared in bold, sparkling typography.

  “What in the—" Kaiser began, but the second his fingers made contact with the sheet, an unexpected jolt went through him.

  The world around him blurred, as though he were being pulled through a tunnel of light. The sound of Glunko and Aria’s voices faded, replaced by a strange, hollow silence.

  "Did he just…?" she asked, turning to Glunko, her mouth basically so wide open that it hit the floor.

  Glunko sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. "And that, Aria, is why you don’t touch anything that comes out of Arkhold without knowing what it is."

  Aria saw the space where Kaiser had been and the paper. "Should we… do something? He just disappeared!"

  Glunko dismissed with a wave of the hand, however there was a hint of anxiety in his eyes. "He’ll figure it out. People get zapped to strange places all the time here. Happens more often than you’d think. Just hope he does not end up in the wrong kind of place.

  "The wrong kind?" Aria repeated.

  "Let’s just say Arkhold has… variety," Glunko said cryptically, adjusting his mustache. He flicked the reins, urging the horses forward. "Don’t worry, he’s tough. He’ll be fine."

  "W-We need to hurry up," Aria blurted, anxiously jumping up and down in her seat. "We have to skip the line. Kaiser could be anywhere, and who knows what might’ve happened to him!"

  Glunko raised an eyebrow, and his lips curved into a playful smirk. "Skip the line, eh? Sure, I’ll just magically teleport in front of everyone here".

  "I’m serious, Glunko!" Aria snapped, her voice rising. "What if he’s in trouble? What if—"

  But her words faltered as the gates came into view. The massive stone archway loomed ahead, flanked by two towers carved with intricate designs of merchant crests and trade symbols. Beyond it stretched an enormous entrance… and not a single soul stood waiting.

  Aria blinked, confusion flashing across her face. "Wait… where’s the line?" she asked, sitting back and looking around. "There’s… there’s no one here."

  "Sure isn’t," Glunko said casually, pulling the caravan to a slow roll.

  “But… every big city always has a long line, doesn't it? I mean, we didn’t see anyone on the road either, which was weird enough, but now this?". Her voice trailed off on its own as she tried to connect the dots.

  Glunko chuckled softly, flicking the reins to keep the horses moving. "That’s because you’re thinking like someone from a secluded part of the world," he said, his tone half-teasing. “Arkhold really is the city at the edge of the world, northeast as far as people can go without falling into the sea. Roads are for places where people still walk, and no one travels to Arkhold by road if they can help it.".

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Aria frowned but didn’t look entirely convinced. “Then how do they get here?” she asked, though it was clear she already had some guesses.

  Glunko began naming the options on his fingers. "Teleportation is the most common. Reliable, quick, expensive if you don’t know the right source. Some use private airships, though only the richest merchants can afford that. Then there’s the drillex," he added with a grin. "That’s an underground system built to take you anywhere in the world in less than a day. A real marvel of engineering if I say so myself."

  Aria tilted her head, staring at him incredulously. "The drillex? I’ve never even heard of that."

  "Exactly," Glunko said with a hearty laugh. "Bet there’s a lot you haven’t heard of, lass. The world's vast, and you've seen only a small part of it.

  Aria’s face reddened, and she huffed, crossing her arms. "Well, excuse me for not knowing about an underground world-traveling system."

  “Nothing to be ashamed of kid," Glunko replied, shrugging. "It’s not exactly advertised everywhere. But trust me, there’s a whole lot of things out there you’ve yet to learn.".

  Aria stayed quiet for a moment, frowning as the caravan rolled closer and closer to the city gates. "Speaking of things I don’t get," she said suddenly, "why didn’t we see anyone back there? The Forest of Glass… it must be worth a fortune to harvest some of that, right?"

  Glunko slumped back, his smile dissipating as he adopted a more serious expression. "Ah, that’s a seasonal thing," he said. “The harvesting season does not arrive for another 3 months. It’s heavily regulated and no one’s allowed to take even a single shard out of the forest before then."

  Aria raised an eyebrow. "Why not? Wouldn't merchants be keen to stock up before the season begins?" she asked.

  "Sure, they would," Glunko said. "But the punishment’s enough to make even the greediest trader think twice. You gather outside of the season and you’ll be hanged on the spot. No trial, no plea, no mercy."

  Aria’s mouth fell open, and she stared at him in disbelief. "Hanged?! Just for picking up some glass?"

  Glunko nodded solemnly. "That forest is older than the city itself. The glass is not only stunning, but magical, exclusive, and deadly if not handled with care. The city exercises strict control over which individuals are allowed to harvest it and when.”

  Aria shivered and glanced back at the glittering forest, suddenly glad she didn’t pluck a flower from that place. "That’s… terrifying."

  “That's Arkhold," Glunko chuckled, and rubbed the corner of his nose. "Beautiful, profitable, and deadly.”

  Aria stayed silent, staring at the towering white walls ahead as the caravan rolled closer. But her hands gripped the edge of her seat a little tighter.

  When the caravan rumbled closer to the towering white stone gates of Arkhold, a guard stepped out from the shadow of a watchtower, his halberd resting casually on his shoulder. Unlike the traditional armor one might expect, he was dressed in a sharp green suit, the fabric tailored to perfection and adorned with subtle gold accents. It made him look more like a wealthy administrator than a soldier, but the hard line of his jaw and the confident way he carried the weapon made it clear he was not to be trifled with.

  “Hold there!” the guard barked, his voice carrying authority. His blue eyes darted back and forth between Glunko and Aria, assessing them. “State your business.”

  Glunko gently pulled on the reins bringing the caravan to a halt. “Just a trader passing through,” he added. “On my way to make deliveries in the city. Got one guest riding along. Nothing more, nothing less.”

  The guard’s eyes shifted to Aria, who sat stiffly beside Glunko, trying to look composed. Sadly, her awkward grin shoed her nervousness on full display.

  “She doesn’t look like a merchant,” he finally said, narrowing his eyes at her “Who is she? What’s her business here?”

  Aria opened her mouth, stumbling over the start of a response, but before she could get anything out, Glunko stepped in smoothly. “She's with me", he stated, his voice being both resolute but not unpleasant. “First time in Arkhold, so I figured I’d show her around, let her see the place. That’s all.”

  The guard didn’t seem convinced, his fingers tightening slightly on the shaft of his halberd. “Papers,” he said curtly, holding out his free hand.

  Glunko didn’t hesitate, reaching into his coat and pulling out a leather-bound packet. He passed it to him, reclining in his chair with the nonchalant pose of an experienced professional, his gaze never straying from the guard for even a moment.

  The guard scanned the documents, a blank look on his face for a moment. However, when his gaze moved over the pages, then, the guard’s expression shifted. His stern, suspicious demeanor melted away as his eyes widened in surprise. He blinked, then looked up at Glunko, then back at the paper, and then once again at Glunko with an almost disbelieving grin.

  “Wait… Glunko? THE Glunko?” The guard’s voice rose slightly, his tone tinged. “You’re serious? My father used to tell me stories about you!”

  Glunko gave a faint sigh, adjusting his mustache as if this wasn’t the first time he’d had this conversation. “Aye, that’s me.”

  The guard’s face lit up, his earlier suspicion melting away. “Well, I’ll be damned! My father used to drink ale with you! You’re a legend around these parts.”

  Aria blinked, her nervousness giving way to curiosity. “A legend?” she cooed, glancing at the guard, and then back at Glunko.

  Glunko’s face remained impassive, but there was a subtle flicker of irritation in his eyes. He raised a hand, his voice calm but firm. “Keep it down, lad. No need to announce it to the whole city.”

  The guard reddened and his eagerness faded a little as he nodded. “Right. Sorry, sir. It’s just… wow. To meet someone like you—it’s an honor. I never thought I’d see the day.”

  Glunko leaned forward slightly, his tone dropping into something softer, yet still commanding. “You didn’t see a day. You saw a trader with a caravan. That’s all.”

  The guard swallowed, nodding quickly. “Understood, sir. Of course.” He hesitated for a moment, then asked, “How’s the Lady of the Rising Sun? Is she well?”

  Aria tilted her head, the nickname catching her attention. “The Lady of the Rising Sun? Is that a nickname for… Lady Celestine?”

  Glunko glanced at her, giving a small nod. “Aye. That’s what some folk call her. She’s focusing on her Liberator career these days, though she’s still got some administrative duties keeping her busy.”

  Aria leaned back, her expression a mix of admiration and curiosity. “I bet, being one of the leaders of an entire Liberatorium must be exhausting.”

  Glunko chuckled softly, shaking his head. “Exhausting doesn’t even begin to cover it. She is carrying the weight of the world on her back, yet she continues to advance somehow. It makes all the rest of us seem like slackers by comparison.”

  The guard nodded in agreement, his earlier formality replaced with genuine awe. “She’s incredible… and so are you, sir. What you’ve both done—it’s the kind of thing people only dream about.”

  Glunko waved a hand dismissively. “Dreams always look prettier from the outside, lad. Remember that.”

  The guard seemed to take the words to heart, nodding solemnly before handing the papers back to Glunko. “Everything checks out. You’re free to enter. Safe travels, Master Glunko.”

  “Thank you,” Glunko said with a small nod, flicking the reins to get the caravan moving again.

  As they passed through the gates, Aria glanced at Glunko, a sly grin tugging at her lips. “So… a legend, huh?” she teased, her voice laced with playful curiosity.

  Glunko groaned softly, rubbing his temples. “Don’t start with me, lass. Let’s just focus on finding Kaiser before he does something stupid.”