Chapter 154

Chapter 154

Episode 154: The Undying Rose Tritia was a large metropolis boasting a considerable scale in the northeastern region. Iron and silver mined from the mines of the kingdom’s northeast were refined and flowed through the Liber River into the cities of the northeastern lords, and from there, they spread throughout the Kilkard Kingdom via the ‘Wheel Road’ or canals. It was a natural progression for cities to develop where trade was concentrated. People with dreams flowed into the gradually growing city, becoming the nourishment that swelled the city’s size. Even if the dreams they held were illusory, veiled by the boasts of countless people. // Emily was walking down the street, wearing a red scarf. Seeing a red scarf outside of the Twilight Street was quite rare, so some of the people passing by who knew the meaning of the red scarf gave her quite noticeable glances. It wasn’t anything special. Even without the red scarf, Emily’s glossy red hair and fairly beautiful appearance often attracted attention. Having grown accustomed to such gazes for nearly a year, Emily was using her unique insensitivity to ignore their stares with practiced ease. Tap, tap. Emily was moving forward without hesitation, but she didn’t really have a specific destination in mind. After walking for a while, Emily raised her head and looked at the sky. In the sky, thin clouds were struggling to cover the fierce sun. It was an excessively early time for someone from Twilight Street to be active, but Emily didn’t feel particularly tired. Emily was a free person and owed nothing to the ‘Night Fairies’, and as a Night Fairy quite popular in the brothel, she had many benefits. Her ability to take time off work as she pleased was one of those benefits. Of course, there were some Night Fairies in similar situations to Emily, but due to the city ordinances of Tritia, they had to wear a red scarf when going out, so they didn’t leave the shop very often. After all, going out with the mark of a prostitute was bound to attract all sorts of sticky gazes. Tap. Tap. After basking in the sunlight for a while, Emily suddenly felt a familiar scenery and looked around. She had arrived at the black market near Twilight Street without even realizing it. “Ah….” In the end, she had ended up in a familiar place while enjoying a walk. Recalling the memory of bargaining with a merchant a few days ago, she unconsciously smiled. There was nothing special about the black market. It was formed through a bit of negotiation between guards who were moderately tainted by the world and the Night Fairies from Twilight Street, who were a necessary evil within the city. Although it was an area where fists were closer than the law, its appearance was not much different from a normal market. After contemplating the scenery of the black market for a moment, Emily decided to return to Twilight Street. It wasn’t the day of the slave auction, and there wasn’t anything she particularly wanted to buy. Besides, she knew that she wasn’t very strong against temptation, so she hadn’t brought enough money in the first place. ‘…But should I at least read the newspaper while I’m here?’ On the bulletin board in the center of the black market, writings that could be called ‘newspapers’ were posted. The writings, which described events within Tritia or major events in the kingdom along with simple illustrations, were an important element that allowed people to know the news of the kingdom, even if they were not as detailed as modern newspapers. Passing through the busy crowd, Emily walked towards the bulletin board. However, before long, someone passing by Emily grabbed her shoulder and spoke to her. “Hey, miss, which shop are you from?” Emily turned her head and looked at him. He had a thick beard under his chin, but his clothes looked quite neat. He probably knew the meaning of the red scarf she was wearing and asked that question. “Yes, yes?” Even if she was a prostitute who sold her body, she didn’t have to answer such questions. However, even if there was no obligation, answering was an individual’s freedom. And the man’s appearance was at least passable by Emily’s standards. Emily was momentarily flustered, but after thinking for a moment, she answered. “….’Night Fairies’.” Come to think of it, it wasn’t the first time she had experienced this. Of course, she hadn’t experienced it very often, so it was inevitable that she was flustered. The man nodded as if satisfied with Emily’s answer, and then left with a strange farewell. “Hmm, see you again later.” Of course, people’s minds change from time to time, so Emily couldn’t be sure if she would really see him again. // The bulletin board in the middle of the black market not only served to deliver news but also to convey the orders of the lord within Tritia. Even if the proportion of people who could read in the kingdom was not very high, news would eventually be spread by word of mouth. The bulletin board, which was about 5 meters wide and 2 meters high, had quite a few papers hanging on it. It had been quite a while since Emily had last been in front of the bulletin board, so its appearance was slightly different from her memory. “….” Emily stood in front of the bulletin board and slowly read through the papers. There was nothing particularly special. An article was posted in one corner stating that the Kilkard Kingdom’s Grand Canal project, which had been going on for 30 years, was proceeding successfully under the kingdom’s leadership, and that the canal connecting the northeast and Karzinium would soon be completed. Along with this, there was an article containing speculations that the use of the Wheel Road would decrease and that regulations on undead steeds would be largely lifted. Next to it, there was a small article (which was of no interest to Emily) stating that the ‘Knight Princess’s’ sixteenth birthday was approaching. As for news within Tritia, there was an official announcement that the eastern district would be expanded due to the continuous increase in population and that laborers would be recruited for this purpose. It stated that if one was mobilized for labor, one could obtain the official right to reside in the district later at a relatively low price, and encouraged many to participate. ‘Hee….’ Of course, Emily wasn’t very interested in such announcements. She just passed them by, thinking, “Oh, well.” And as she continued to scan the contents with her eyes, something familiar yet strange caught her eye. – Garpurr District. 4th Street. Aiden of ‘Norman General Store’. Scheduled to leave in the eighth month. Next destination -〉 Lakers. It was a sentence containing short content that was not special at all. It couldn’t be called a notice, just a short sentence scribbled in the corner of the paper. It was one of the doodles that brave (or reckless) people often left on the bulletin board, but the characters that made up the sentence were not ordinary at all. ‘Korean…?’ It was a script that only Emily and other transmigrators knew. Judging from the fact that the notice had not been replaced yet, not much time had passed. Emily was surprised that a friend from her previous life, whom she had not been able to find for the past year, had suddenly appeared like this, but she soon calmed herself and repeated the contents written in the sentence in her head. ‘Garpurr District, 4th Street. Norman General Store.’ If it’s August, there’s still time left. However, Emily moved with urgent movements. It was, after all, a matter of finding a friend from her previous life. It was only natural that her pace gradually quickened. Tritia was quite a large city. Even including only the districts surrounded by walls, it was large enough, but when combined with the districts that were not, the range increased considerably. Garpurr District, like Twilight Street, was an area outside the walls, but its location was quite far away. Because of this, even though there was still time left until twilight, Emily’s pace was urgent. She used her precious inner strength to use the Light Footwork, and fortunately, she was able to arrive in Garpurr District in time. Even though it was an area outside the walls, Garpurr District had a different atmosphere from Twilight Street. As Twilight Street was Tritia’s historic entertainment district, there was a deep shadow that could not be found in the newly created Garpurr District. Emily looked at the wooden buildings and mud houses that were still new and hastily built, and repeated to herself once again. ‘Garpurr District, 4th Street. Norman General Store.’ Garpurr District gave the feeling of being more like a refugee camp than a formal district of Tritia, but even in such places, people live. And it’s not particularly special for such stores to form in places where people live. ‘…Where is it?’ People’s eyes were fixed on her as she looked around. People who had not been in Tritia for long did not know the meaning of the red scarf well. The gazes fixed on Emily were mostly from those who were attracted by Emily’s outstanding appearance. Emily ignored their gazes, but the next moment she felt someone pulling her. Even though she had learned martial arts, Emily’s body, which was not very heavy in itself, was helplessly dragged away by the hand of ‘someone’. “Ah?” “Haha, miss, you seem to be looking for something, shall I teach you?” A low voice rang in her ear, and a thick hand covered her chest. One of the burly men who had been looking at her came out and pulled Emily’s arm. Emily felt absurd at the act of groping her chest so openly, not even subtly, but she didn’t openly shake him off. There was quite a bit of this kind of sexual harassment even in Twilight Street. Unlike Layla, Emily didn’t really like someone touching her without permission, but she had become accustomed to it after spending a year in Twilight Street. Such cases had become rare since the number of customers looking for her had increased quite a bit. ‘….Haa.’ Emily sighed inwardly and looked at the man who had pulled her. A large height of about 1.8m and a sturdy physique. His face was….below passing by her standards. Judging from the fact that the clothes he was wearing were just ordinary cloth, he didn’t seem to be a soldier, but the people around the street didn’t seem very surprised by the scene of her being caught. Among them, there were young people who looked regretful or seemed to be holding back their anger, but it didn’t seem like they would save her. Even Emily, who wasn’t very good at reasoning, knew from the scene that this man had some power here. Should I throw him away, or should I just let it go? After hesitating for a moment, Emily chose to resolve it amicably. As she was wearing a red scarf, she had many restrictions in places where security was not well established. Although this was not Twilight Street, Emily, who had heard a lot through gossip, knew that it was not desirable for a prostitute who sold her body to beat up a man in front of people. If this man was close to the guards, it would be her who would be framed. “….I’m looking for Norman General Store.” The smile on the man’s face deepened as Emily didn’t resist. Emily thought that the smile looked like a face carved into a pumpkin, but she didn’t say it out loud. “That old man’s place? This is unusual. I’ve never seen your face before, why are you looking for it?” The man’s touch became even bolder, and he reached into her clothes and between her bare breasts. As her soft breasts were distorted by the man’s grip, Emily’s lower abdomen throbbed slightly. “Ugh….” Emily tried to push the man’s arm away, but her body, which had been changed by the Succubus Art, wanted to continue tasting the man’s touch. The man, who seemed to be in a good mood after hearing Emily’s moan that seemed to be dyed with lust, grabbed her breasts and continued to speak in a seemingly hearty voice. “Well, it’s not difficult. Follow me. I’ll guide you.”