I flickered my eyes away from the window for only a moment, but the tense looks Leo and Asher gave me were enough to pry my attention away entirely.
"Rin, we need you to listen," Leo said, with an earnest look. I looked at him, concerned. He was sitting up straight with his hands together on his lap. "My father is a very serious man. During your conversation with him, do not joke or speak in half-truths. You need to be honest with him. He will most certainly ask you many serious questions. Answer them with integrity. You will not like what happens if he finds out you're lying."
"Leo! Do you wish the boy to drop dead from fear?!" Asher scolded him, before turning to me. "While what he said is true, I'm sure it'll be fine. You will be meeting with the Lord tomorrow. You have plenty of time to mull over yur conversation." He said as reassuringly as possible, putting a hand on my shoulder.
"Plenty of time? I thought I was seeing him today?"
"Today?!" Asher spurted out. "Rin, my boy. The District Gates are in the Northernmost part of the Upper District. It's practically the same size as the Lower District." He looked up, lost in thought, and continued "Well, actually, the Middle District is technically the smallest of the three… not counting the Service District, of course. A-anyway. Think of it as one big oval. We're at the top, and the Grimwald estate is at the bottom. It's goin' to take us longer than the rest of the day to get there. How long is your walk to work again?… No matter, you get the idea. We'll stop halfway." He said, rushing through his words.
That big? This place is that big?!
My eyes widened slightly as Asher said those words. I always assumed the Upper District was a small area specifically for the higher-ups of the Kingdom, with most of the space being taken up by the King's castle. Or… whatever he had?
"Wait. The Middle District is the smallest?" I asked Asher.
He looks at me, flashing a wide grin. "Rin! I could teach you so much!" Throwing up his arms in joy. "Yes, the Middle District is the smallest, excluding the Service District. While the Service District is mostly composed of factories, research facilities, business and construction schools, the Colosseum, and a few rural towns, think of the Middle District as the main District for rural homes, families, and schools; and the Upper District as a city with all sorts of things!"
"What in Monarch's name is a city?"
Asher simply pointed to the window behind me, his smile growing larger.
I shifted my sitting position to face the left window and peered out. Pushing my face against the glass, all my breath escaped me.
I couldn't believe my eyes. The 'city', was a massive town of tall buildings 20 meters high, large roads big enough for several carriages to pass side-by-side, and the number of people walking by was uncountable. When we reached an intersection, I could see the streets of buildings, streetlights, and roads continue for what looked like kilometers in a single direction.
The design of the buildings wasn't any different from the ones in the Middle District, just taller, and a bit more colourful. Most of the tall ones seemed to be specifically for housing. I guess people don't live in regular homes in the Upper District, just smaller one-floor partitions.
So, not that different from my home.
If passing from the Lower District to the Middle District was like the difference between night and day, the difference between the Middle District and the Upper District was like entering into a different world.
Are we sure this isn't a Domain?
The pure cacophony of sounds was hectic and disorienting. The sounds easily pierced the walls of the carriage, making it seem as if we were outside with all the rumbling.
"Leo." Asher said. I turned my head to see what was going on.
Leo responded unmoving with a grunt, instantly changing the atmosphere of the carriage. Enchanting it with some sort of spell, all exterior sounds suddenly ceased.
Impressive trick, Leo must have a Sound Will.
Bringing my attention back outside the window, I continued to admire the city. The sky was dark, but the streets were bright. Illuminated by many light artifacts of different colours. Each one was like a symbol of what the building was for, advertising its purpose and importance.
Not every street was like this, however. Most were composed of smaller buildings and homes, the markets looked relatively the same as the Middle District. Only a few were housed in outdoor tents, like in the Lower District.
There were parks of varying sizes, some several hundred meters long and wide, of flat land. We even passed by a few schools, or academies as they call them. They were many times larger than the schools in the Middle District, let alone the Lower District.
"We'll stay in an inn downtown for the night. We'll be there soon, Rin." Asher said.
"I thought this was a 'city'?" I confirmed, confused about what he meant.
Palming his face, he continued, "It just means we'll be in a busier part of the city. More people, taller buildings."
"O-okay."
Do buildings really need to be taller?
Another half-hour later, we arrived at the inn. We quickly got out of the carriage and headed inside, while the suited man stayed back to tend to the horses.
The interior was luxurious, featuring white painted walls accented with yellowish-gold inlays. There was a hanging web of metal from the ceiling with lights at the ends.
Asher spoke to the woman at the counter and got us a room for the night. Handing Leo and me each our keys, we headed up the stairs to the third floor. After opening the door to our room and making our way inside, I stood there frozen in the center of the room.
"Are you too broke to have gotten us separate rooms?"
Leo was the one who responded, in an argumentative, teasing tone. "Don't downplay the Grimwalds' wealth. Besides, we're all guys here, and we can't have you running off."
He closed the blinds, despite it being dark outside, before plopping himself on the left-most bed, with Asher taking the right.
Asher rested his head on his hand and spoke up, "You can take center mattress, Rin."
Exhaling loudly, I sat on the middle bed.
I feel cornered.
I bobbed on the mattress to test its quality, which was much better than the one back at home, before laying flat.
Resting my eyes for a silent minute, I was jolted out of my daze when Leo loudly exclaimed that he was going to look for a place to eat.
Lifting my head from the bed, I watched him leave the room.
After he exited the room, I turned to my left and saw Asher smirking at me. "We're finally alone…" He teased, making me shudder in disgust.
"Don't give me that." Sitting up from his lying position, he continued, "Tell me, boy. What's on your mind?"
I grudgingly sat up as well. "Do you think this is a good idea? I mean, what if he takes the Will? It would save me a lot of trouble, but… keeping it could also do my family a lot of good. Would he give me an opportunity to be better, to help my family? Whether it be money for the Will, or a chance to strengthen it. I want the best opportunity, but is this that?"
Asher stays quiet for a few seconds before breathing a sigh and speaking, "I don't know. I think it's great that you're objectively considering the best option. Many things will bring purpose to your life, be it a goal or a journey. But don't only think of it as 'this or that'. There are many paths one can take, even if it only looks like black and white, or Low and Lord. Don't forget to consider everything in between. For every opportunity that comes along, make sure to acknowledge it with an open mind. But that doesn't mean not to tread carefully. Life isn't only one course, Rin; you find purpose in many directions and at different times. You may change your mind, or you may be stubborn and stick to your path. Just make sure to consider every opportunity that comes your way. You never know what the Monarchs have planned for you."
"Sooo… what should I do?"
"For a start… just hear what my brother has to say."
Leo came back sometime later with a good recommendation to a meat place across the street.
After eating more meat than I ever have in my life, I crashed into a deep sleep on my bed as soon as my head hit the pillow.
…
We got up early in the morning as Leo forced us to leave the inn in a hurry. I felt truly disgusting, having not showered for over two weeks. I usually do it at the inn I stay at while working, but Leo refused my insistence despite my odor. It was a real shame, the bath here looked nice and fancy.
Climbing back into the carriage, the cart illuminated by a faint artifact, you could immediately smell the foul odor coming from three men.
Before the suited man closed the door, he attached a special ornament in the center of the carriage that helped ward off some of the smell.
"Tell me why we have to go in such a hurry?" I said to Leo, still a bit drowsy from the early morning.
"My father is very busy this time of year. The earliest chance he has for your meeting is this morning." He responded.
Resting the back of his head on the chair, he closed his eyes.
He's clearly tired too.
"So, how long will it take to get there?"
This time, Asher responded, sitting in the same position as Leo, mumbling through his words, "About an hour."
So, everyone's tired.
Not that it bothered me, although seemingly very improper for aristocrats, we all sat there with our eyes closed, trying to catch up on sleep.