BXBX NOVEL Chapter 984 983: Similarities (1)
Chapter 984 Chapter 983: Similarities (1)
As for me, I was of a mind that both sides were right; there were moments where it had seemed rather thuggish to me, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense that this harsh land would have harsh rules.
To live and thrive here, you needed to work together, and if someone began to pull less and less weight, they were a liability and a threat to the collective; even though this country seemed to praise and idolize the individual, they understood that being an important individual meant being a greater part of the collective.
It was complicated and simple at the same time, and although it was somewhat barbaric in its execution, considering the sheer amount of Worm attacks that had happened and the fact that the desert was chock full of harsh Fire Mana, this wasn't a peaceful place like the Empire was.
There was little you could do to find water - even as a Water Mage, providing a large quantity of water was near impossible, and considering this land was attuned to Fire primarily, then Earth and Wind secondarily, there was no room for Water to thrive since it was burnt out by the Fire - and there was many monsters waiting below the sand hoping to catch you off guard.
I understood the mentality, and honestly... this idea of strong equals right was just as flawed as the oligarchical society that the Empire foster, since here those strong people could run the country into the ground, just like the people in power who don't actually deserve it, but have the position thanks to their parents could also run the Empire into the ground.
It was an imperfectly perfect system that worked here thanks to the powerhouse that stood at the pinnacle - the Sultana could rule these harsh sands with an iron fist because, simply put, she offered stability to an otherwise unstable land, and she also left no option for someone who wanted to live on her land.
You play by her rules or you die, and the choice... should be a simple one; play by her rules and live a happy life.
She was fair, albeit with a heavy hand and a sharp blade, but fair nonetheless, so not accepting her rules meant you either stayed and died, or fled and lived elsewhere.
That was what I got from it, and it was a thought process that took me minutes to wrap my head around completely; during those minutes, I was looking out onto the city and watching as the sandstone buildings and colorful, beautiful cloth canopies that provided shade from the scorching sun.
People walked from shaded area to shaded area, their bronze skin and long black hair on full display no matter where you looked; the men wore loose vests and puffy pants or robes, whilst the women wore revealing tops that hugged their breasts with long skirts, or they wore robes as well, depending on their desires.
Some of the women were clearly futanari, their more reserved style of dress pairing with the hard muscles and swagger that seemed to be found on all warriors here marking them as futanari in my mind, whilst some were very clearly just women.
Perhaps here that difference in role depending on your gender was more stark than other places, or perhaps it was just my own mind tricking me into thinking that the women flaunting chiseled abs and strutting about with swords and daggers just had to be futanari, despite me sitting near a futanari who was not muscular nor overflowing with that same swagger.
Stalls were lining the areas beneath the canopies, various goods being peddled to passerby's with shouts and over exaggerated pitches; clothing, weaponry, food and jewelry dominated the area, each one clearly denoted by a white, black, red and blue flag respectively to show what they were selling.
Dozens upon dozens of people walked the streets, and each building seemed to hold a dozen more as the windows opened to reveal the inhabitants; getting a breeze into the house, allowing them to drape their clothing out to dry, simply watching the street below... almost everyone was busy and bustling around, doing something.
The amount of Caninekin was drastically above any other race, though I did spot more Orcs and Ifrits walking around than in the Empire, and there were a fair amount of Human's as well, though they walked more cautiously and reservedly then the others did.
"Welcome to the Sultanate~! Not as colorful as the Empire, but I dare say it's got similar quality architecture~!"
The first words spoken since the gatehouse were filled once more with pride and happiness as the Jackalkin gestured to the window, showing off her home and looking at us each pointedly as she waited for a reaction.
Each building was made from sandstone bricks that gave them a unique texture, whilst the windows were slightly angled into the building, allowing the winds that might blow into the town to slip into the buildings; around the area, the canopies provided shade over the various alleyways and some of the streets, ensuring that there wasn't too much sun to bake the area.
"It's certainly different, but... I have to admit it is a gorgeous city. Well thought out too; the roads are large, the alleys connect to multiple different ones, the buildings are diverse enough to keep things fresh despite likely serving the same purpose..."
Jahi leaned closer to the window before turning her attention towards the palace that loomed in the distance, its marble towers and golden accents causing her to whistle as she added "That palace though... that is a work of art. Certainly something that stands out compared to everything else."
"Yes, whereas the Palace back home has a darker palette and is more focused on matching the mountain it was built from, this palace is meant to be a monument of opulence, albeit one that isn't gaudy or out of place. The use of spheres too makes it all the more marvelous too..."
"I... can't tell if you're trying to continue arguing with me about the palace being an unwarranted use of resources or if your praise is genuine."
I chuckled softly as I stroked Anput's arm, soothing my mate somewhat as I answered for Leone, saying "It is genuine. The palace is gorgeous; the marble is clean and brilliant, while the gold is used sparingly in ideal areas. It looks wonderful, and from what you said, there are giant gardens and a large plaza reserved entirely for the Sultana and her family?"
She quickly went from frowning and staring at Leone with wariness to grinning and tilting her head upwards slightly as she proudly said "That's right! There's a wonderful garden filled with citrus trees, cinnamon and nutmeg, and the plaza is ours, yes, but Mom uses it to train all of the soldiers, so it's been mostly converted into a training grounds! There's so much space for you to run and have mock battles, or practice your magic. Mom even brought in some Flame Dune Scorpions to battle one time! That was fun..."
"Oh, so just like how our Palace has a giant training area for the Knights, yours does as well? Is it outfitted with anything, or..?"
"Just left alone. We spar together, or run individual drills. Going through the movements to ingrain the idea into your muscles before engaging in a real spar. Practice dummies are excellent, but a sparring partner is better."
That made Jahi nod in approval, before she peeked back outside and asked "So we are to stay inside the palace, correct? But we are allowed to leave whenever, and go wherever we want? Though I assume we'll be tailed by some of these Death Jackals..."
"Most likely, yes. We can do what we want, when we want, but don't be surprised if we have one or three of these Death Jackals following us around. Oh, speaking of! There's this excellent place that sells the fluffiest, tastiest saffron cakes nearby! Sometimes they drizzle the cake with this amazing raspberry syrup that adds some tartness to the sweet cake! Or a classic citrusy syrup that just tastes sublime!"
I raised a brow at how excited she seemed about this saffron cake shop, the Jackalkin almost drooling at the thought of it and making me ask "When did you develop the sweet tooth? I thought you were a carnivore through and through?"
Anput just beamed at me as she said "I always had a sweet tooth! Always have and always will~! I just think you never noticed it because Leone here is the one demanding more cakes and treats then I ever have~! Besides..."
Winking at the blushing Vampire and ignoring the indignant glare sent her way, Anput smirked and licked her lips sensually, looking Jahi up and down before pointedly staring at one single spot as she whispered "I think we all~ have quite the sweet tooth, don't we~? Someone~ here got us all~ addicted to sweets..."
My brow arched further before I rolled my eyes when Anput smirked back at me, the Jackalkin rubbing my thigh and stroking my belly as she said "You and your excellent~ cooking and baking is going to make us all gain a few pounds if we ever stop this active lifestyle of ours~!"