Chapter Three: Lost Child Wanders Into Government Building

"Large walls, those are." Corvac muttered as he gazed at the distant circular walls and many massive turrets presenting themselves to him. Those walls were intimidating things, standing at least sixty, maybe even a hundred meters in the air. They were grand things, massive in scale, although nothing compared to the literal cloud piercer that loomed over Orario as a whole.

"Babel, huh." Corvac hummed at the very abrahamic name for the tower, and idly wondered if God was doing his Thunder Warrior shtick with these pagans. Corvac was never really a devout or even really any kind of Christian. God was just a word that he used when cursing for the most part, but he was baptized and had a somewhat religious family. He'd personally state he was Agnostic, not really thinking it the duty of mortals to speculate and claim what nature and rules the creator of the feckin' universe thought about them. Claim all the prophets one wanted, but Corvac was firmly of the belief Jesus was eating some fine shrooms and smoking some dank grasses. The mediterranean was home to many a psychedelic plant used by the Oracles of Delphi, after all.

'Father, Son, Holy Spirit indeed.' Corvac thought, amused as he walked towards the gates. He frowned as he dipped his hand into the satchel and pulled out a few coins. 'Shouldn't be more than this. Wish I could have bugged that old man about denominations of coins.'

He fell into a line of people and carts all waiting for entry, being patient as he waited in line. Hadn't really anything to do when he got in, so waiting wasn't that much of a chore.

Soon he was with the guards, "You a mage, Traveler?" The guard asked as he brought him to a booth by the gate.

"I guess? Read two of those Grimoires, no blessing though."

The guard gave him an impressed glance, inspecting his clothing a bit. "A noble then?"

"Nah, wandering vagrant." That got a strange look from the guard, but he moved along.

"It's a hundred Valis to enter the city. Before you enter, you must answer a few questions before this magical device." The man pointed towards an orb.

"What is your name?"

"Corvac Forwitch."

The man nodded.

"Are you wanted in any province?"

"Nope."

No reaction.

"Are you a part of any sort of organization, if so, which one?"

"Nope."

The guard turned to see the orb's non-reaction.

"Have you committed any form of crime?"

"I looted a village that got raided by goblins, if that counts. Mainly for food stuff, but it wasn't like the dead were using it. Was kind of desperate, cause y'know, goblin raid."

The man didn't react much to that statement, only becoming concerned, "A village being raided, which one?" He pressed.

"Orevil. Due to what I assume to be north, within the mountains."

The guard nodded, jotting that down on a scroll, "Any other 'crime'?"

"Not that I can think of right now?" Corvac thought. He was a good boy.

The guard nodded, "Very well, if you can pay, I'll let you through."

Corvac picked through the coins, setting them down one by one until he spotted the guard's face becoming satisfied. "Thank you, please enjoy Orario." The man then handed him a strip of metal. "This is a visitor's permit, please keep it with you during your time within Orario. To apply for citizenship, please head to the Guild for the necessary actions."

Corvac nodded and exited the booth. He then passed the gate and was met with a central road, leading towards that massive tower at the center.

'Well then. What now?' He wondered. He tapped his chin a few times with his index finger, before shrugging and deciding to head to the guild. He stopped what looked like a local and asked for directions and was soon pointed on his way.

Being in a medieval city, Corvac kept his hands over his satchel and was hyper aware of his backpack being touched or messed with in any way. He'd traveled around quite a bit and pickpockets were rampant in cities like this, and he didn't want to be losing any of his magical gear by some quick fingers or street-rat.

Thus, Corvac avoided dark corners and crowded areas, keeping his distance from any possible location that might be too crowded with people. He was in a way, hyper aware of his surroundings.

Soon he arrived at a rather quaint looking building, one with large doors, but otherwise didn't fit the title of being 'The Pantheon.' There was a steady stream of armored men and women entering and leaving, Corvac entering with a small party and glancing around as they went to a clerk.

Corvac spotted a shorter line that didn't seem to be exchanging wealth for purple rocks he remembered being magic stones, items carved from dead monsters if the light novels were to be believed; the anime having monsters just 'poof' when slain.

Corvac stood in line for a bit, before being greeted with a rather dower looking beast woman. He stared up at her ears for a moment, his jaw unhinging a bit as butterflies raged in his stomach. He wasn't a furry, but damn if those weren't cute.

There was a cough and Corvac blushed a bit, "Ah, sorry, your ears are cute."

The woman stared at him and Corvac's ears caught up with what he said. "..." He sucked on his teeth and closed his eyes, dying on the inside. He cleared his throat, "Sorry." He said quickly, "I'm effectively a country bumpkin who hasn't a clue how any of this blessing and dungeon stuff works. Um, or any racial customs." He gave her an apologetic look. "I'd like to be directed to any books that can give me a grasp on Orario, Familias, the Dungeon, and Adventurer Work." He thought further, and cringed when he realized he hadn't a clue about cultural customs, any holidays, what calendar and time measurement system they used, the denominations for currency…

'Fuck am I doing at city hall? I need to find a damned library.' Corvac thought.

"Actually, can you just tell me where the library is? I need to get caught up on a lot of things." He scratched the back of his head through his hood.

He saw amusement in the red haired beast-kin, the woman sighing, "Just take a right and continue down the street. Thoth's Sacred Texts is open at all times of the day and holds the answer to any question you might have."

Corvac nodded, "I was told that the guild would have the answers in becoming a citizen of Orario…"

The woman smiled, as if enjoying the question. "You'll need to either register as an Adventurer and have a familia home within Orario's lands, or be a homeowner within Orario to register, that and investing fifty thousand Valis into a local business, the Guild included." She frowned and shook her head, "Real-Estate prices are rather…high."

Corvac frowned and nodded, "Shame. Anyway, I'll be back. Soon, hopefully. Thank you for your help, Miss." Corvac left and followed those directions, soon finding a large library.

The library was far more upscale and the building more ornate and befitting of its title as Thoth's Sacred Texts. Corvac entered the building, feeling what felt like air conditioning blasting his form.

'Magic Technology, or Magi-Tech was in the background of the setting, wasn't it?' Corvac thought as he meandered towards a desk where a woman was sitting, leaning back and reading a book.

He cleared his throat, drawing her eyes towards him. "Yes?"

"I'd like access to the library, do I need to pay?"

The woman shook her head, "No, no. You only need to pay if you damage a book, which depending on the book can get you steep in debt, so please do be careful. We do accept donations though."

Corvac nodded and dug out a higher denomination coin of his and placed it in a box the woman had pointed to, the English-like script written on its face denoting it as a donation box. He placed the coin inside, getting a smile from the woman.

"I may trouble you a few times about where certain books are located. For now, I think I'll settle with Valis denominations, if you would."

She blinked. "Um, what do you mean?"

Corvac sheepishly scratched his cheek, "How much did I put into the box?"

"Ten thousand valis, rather flagrant of a spender, are you?" She grinned.

Corvac blankly blinked at her. "How much is a meal?"

The librarian stared at him, "Oh. From far away, are you? Your accent isn't one I can really place. Certainly not Far Eastern, Empire, perhaps?"

Corvac shook his head, "Keep guessing. Still, I am in desperate need of some very basic local knowledge. I am from…far away." Corvac pursed his lips together and dropped his satchel, he rummaged around before pulling out the denominations of coins.

He presented them to the woman, asking for her assistance in educating him about the denominations of coins. Once he'd achieved his answer, Corvac thanked her and then found a library table he could set up at. He dropped his satchel in a seat and then started to count out his current wealth, eventually drawing up at six-hundred fifty seven thousand Valis. He then went back to the librarian.

"Excuse me."

She smiled up at him, "What do you need?" She asked kindly.

"Would you happen to know current market rates for houses? I'm interested in becoming an Orario citizen, and well, I'm working with a limited amount of money."

She nodded, tapping her chin. "Hmm, well, are you interested in becoming an Adventurer? Because if so, then you could try your hand at joining a familia and save your money."

Corvac pursed his lips, before nodding. "I guess. Is there a bank anywhere, I don't exactly feel safe running around with my wealth like this?"

She smiled, "The Guild functions as a bank for all citizenry, including foreign clients. Orario is something of a melting pot for the world with its central location and connection to the port city of Melen."

Corvac breathed a sigh of relief, "Alright, that's good." He rubbed his chin, feeling a bit burdened with all he needed to do.

"How would you recommend I join a familia. It can't be polite just showing up to the gate…"

The woman nodded, "For larger familias, that is indeed the best way. They often have the facilities and personnel that test prospective members. It's a pretty brutal process though. Otherwise, certain familias like the Loki and Freya familias hold Exhibitions, but they're rather limited in their ability to show a prospective member's potential. Honestly, it's just like going to get a job. Find a God, they'll glance at you, and if you look like you're worth anything, they'll bless you with the Falna." The librarian explained. "Some familias are more connected though, like the smithing and my own familia, you'll need to go through education and work your way into it. Smithing familias recruit from iron works, apprenticeships, or the City of Swords. My own recruits from the Academy."

Corvac listened intently, humming in thought. "How'd you think I'd do in one of these interviews?" Corvac gestured to himself. "I think I pull off the 'Mage' look rather well, no?" He grinned.

The librarian laughed behind her hand. "Yes, you do indeed look like a dashing mage."

Corvac smirked, "I prefer being called a Wizard, but hey, do as the roman's do."

She blinked, "Um."

Corvac realized he'd inserted an Earth idiom into a fantasy world. "Erm, an old saying from where I'm from. Its literal meaning is to 'follow the customs of the people in a particular place'. However, its real message is to 'adapt to the customs of a new or unfamiliar environment'."

The librarian smiled, "Huh, that's a good piece of wisdom."

Corvac shrugged, "Anyway. I have lots to do, and I'll likely be popping in." Corvac gave a lornful and wanting look towards the books, but he needed to get started on finding a place to eat, sleep, and generally operate out of. "Any recommendations for a local inn?"

The librarian smiled and directed him to one that was actually across the street. There he spent two thousand valis for two weeks. He didn't leave any of his magical bags there, instead booking it straight to the Guild.

There he opened up a bank account, one locked under his blood and was known as a 'family account' for those who shared his blood. None did, so it was a good security measure as it needed fresh blood and not any that was older than five minutes for verification.

Anyway, he dropped off a good majority of his Valis, before heading back to the inn, ready to start his life in Orario.