BXBX NOVEL Chapter 270 Home (2)
The Mana Train station was not located within the city of Heles, but rather two kilometers from the city\'s main gate. There were various reasons for this, but the most important one was the significance of the train station to the human alliance.
By situating the station outside of Heles, it would remain functional even if the city were to be captured by the enemy. The enemy would also be unable to use the railway lines to move towards other important cities.
As a result, Mana Train passengers had to hire horse-drawn carriages to reach the city of Heles. Several carriages were neatly lined up at the train\'s exit, waiting for passengers who wanted to go to Heles.
Artur stepped out of the Mana Train with swollen and blackened eyes. He couldn\'t close his eyes throughout the journey, and his body felt incredibly heavy, especially around his hips, as a mischievous cat kept playing with objects between his thighs.
Some passengers, who happened to be their cabin neighbors, passed by Artur with sideways glances. Frustration was evident on their faces, restrained only by the military academy uniform that Artur wore. Without it, Artur was certain that his cabin neighbors would gang up on him, perhaps taking his life or at least causing severe harm.
"Ah... the air here is much fresher than in my city," Rini remarked, stretching her body.
Artur didn\'t comment, only looking at Rini with one eye. She was the cause of all his troubles and the annoyance of their cabin neighbors. Artur felt the urge to grab Rini by her hair and scream, "Look at what you\'ve done!"
But he knew it would only lead to an argument because there was no hint of guilt on Rini\'s face. In the end, Artur could only sigh heavily and praise himself for being able to control his emotions.
"Why do you look so down?" Rini asked, tilting her head.
Once again, Artur commended himself for successfully suppressing his emotions. If he weren\'t a gentleman, he would have already punched Rini in the face as hard as he could.
Seeing no response from her sour-faced lover, Rini changed the subject. "Have we arrived in Heles? Why don\'t I see any houses around here?" she asked, looking around.
Artur took a deep breath and replied, "We have to ride a carriage for two hours before reaching the city of Heles."
"Ah? Isn\'t this the Heles station? Why do we have to take a carriage before reaching the city of Heles?" Rini was confused and read the station\'s name sign hanging above again.
"I don\'t know. Don\'t ask too many questions. If you have a problem with it, why don\'t you just go back home?" Artur grumbled before walking away, leaving Rini behind.
"Hey! I\'m not complaining, I\'m just asking! What\'s wrong with asking? Artur, wait for me!" Rini retorted before chasing after Artur, who was getting farther away.
Rini hugged Artur\'s arm, and they walked side by side. Artur ignored her and remained focused on what was ahead. They didn\'t speak to each other until they were out of the station.
Without discussing it with his partner beforehand, Artur chose a horse-drawn carriage and got in. Rini didn\'t say anything and followed Artur into the carriage.
The coachman looked at the couple as they boarded his carriage and asked, "Are you heading to Heles? If so, you\'ll have to pay in advance."
Without saying a word, Artur took out a silver coin from his pocket and tossed it to the coachman. Artur didn\'t care about the actual price, as he believed one silver coin was more than enough to hire a horse-drawn carriage to Heles.
Swiftly, the coachman caught the silver coin that Artur threw and placed it into his pocket. He had recognized it as a silver coin and had no intention of giving any change back to Artur.
Encountering wealthy customers like this was not uncommon for him, and it was one of the reasons why he continued to be a horse-drawn carriage driver.
Rini watched the brief interaction between Artur and the coachman, with a frown on her face. She then commented, "Just one silver coin? That\'s so cheap. Artur, why did you use your military academy uniform to try and force this poor carriage driver to give you a discount?"
Both Artur and the coachman turned to look at Rini, unable to believe what she had just said. Artur secretly hoped that Rini was just joking, but his hopes were quickly dashed.
"Forgive my boyfriend, Coachman. He didn\'t mean to pressure you into giving us a cheap ride. Here, I\'ll add to your fare," Rini said, pulling out ten silver coins from her pocket.
Her face showed genuine remorse. She tightly held the coachman\'s hand while giving him the ten silver coins. The coachman could only stare at Rini, his mouth agape, unsure of what to do.
He wanted to accept the excessive payment, but Rini\'s innocent face made him feel guilty. The coachman then turned to look at Artur, but he found the same look of confusion on his face.
In the end, Artur remained silent, and the coachman accepted the unexpected blessing. He hoped to encounter innocent (foolish) customers like this more often. Perhaps his status would soon change from a commoner to a merchant.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Do you feel guilty and ashamed for being stingy towards someone in need? Hmm..." Rini snorted as she saw Artur staring at her in astonishment.
Artur simply shook his head, ignoring the innocence of the wealthy noble girl. He was too tired and needed rest. His body had been used for hours to satisfy Rini within the Mana Train.
The horse-drawn carriage moved, and the coachman drove it with enthusiasm. It seemed like they would arrive in the city of Heles faster than expected. The unfortunate horses pulling this carriage had to bear the consequences of their owner\'s newfound luck.
Not long after, they saw the gates of the City of Heles. Unlike usual, there were no adventurers queuing to enter the city. They had all been called to the frontlines to fight against the demon species.
The walls of the City of Heles stood tall that afternoon. The stone fortress could only be described as a wall if one didn\'t take into account its magnificence, elegance, and beauty. It was six meters high and three meters wide, allowing a person to stand behind it without touching either side.
The City Walls of Heles extended from the hillsides to the north and south, resembling a colossal pair of lips kissing the feet of the city. In the morning sunlight, they shimmered like white opals. They curved around the sea in a semicircle, providing protection from external threats.
Heles didn\'t have an inner wall, but there were twelve eight-meter towers that pierced the sky alongside the outer wall. These towers were positioned beside the wall and within the city, with a gap of 100 meters between each tower.
These inner city towers also served as markers for district boundaries.
They arrived at the gate, and the guards stopped the carriage. After conducting routine checks, they allowed the horse-drawn carriage to enter.
Artur didn\'t greet the guards, even though he should have recognized them. However, due to his three-year absence and his self-isolation after Anna\'s disappearance, his relationship with the guards of the Heles city walls had become awkward.
Nevertheless, the guards could still recognize the more mature Artur. They wanted to greet him, but seeing the military academy uniform he was wearing, they could only lower their heads.
Their statuses were now vastly different. Artur was a great Level 2 Constellation Mage, while they were just ordinary wall guards.
Artur disregarded the change in the guards\' attitude. He simply averted his gaze, trying not to appear awkward. However, in doing so, he ended up looking arrogant and forgetting his roots.
Rini sensed the awkwardness and asked, "Do you recognize those guards back there?"
The horse-drawn carriage had passed the gate, and their conversation could no longer be heard by the guards. Artur looked back before answering, "The one with a slightly crooked nose is named Rony, and the tall and thin one is Arjun. They used to teach me swordsmanship, and we had a fairly close relationship."
Rini was taken aback to learn that those guards were Artur\'s swordsmanship teachers. "Then why didn\'t you greet them? Isn\'t it impolite to ignore your swordsmanship teachers?"
Artur turned to Rini, gazing deeply into her eyes, and a smirk formed on his lips. "I didn\'t greet them because our statuses are vastly different now. What do you think would happen if I greeted them or if they greeted me first?"
Rini immediately answered, "You would have a conversation and reminisce about the past?"
Artur shook his head, his gaze fixed on the carriage\'s roof as he replied, "If I were to greet them first, it would seem like I\'m demeaning the dignity of a mage. They would get into trouble if other mages found out about it. On the other hand, if they were to greet me first, it would seem like they\'re groveling. They would also face problems if their boss learned about it."
Rini was shocked, her mouth agape. She couldn\'t believe things would be as severe as Artur described. But Artur remained silent, feeling a bit sorry for his incredibly innocent girlfriend.