5 Chapter 5 - Melena’s Glory

"Yo, sorry for the wait guys!"

Motada entered our quarters around ten minutes after we were asked to leave. The entire group was ready to venture out into the plains and we were just waiting on him. However, one thing that piqued my interesting was the conversation he had with the queen.

"Motada, what were you and the queen talking about?"

"Oh, don't worry Nayasuki. Let's just say that it's...confidential. I guarantee, however, that it'll help the entire group out. You'll especially benefit from our little talk." Motada spoke with a giant grin on his face. Must've been a really eventful talk, huh?

"Well, I'll patiently await the fruits of your labour."

By the time Motada set himself up and was ready to go it was already nearly the afternoon. We decided to head out and explore the city for a short while before heading out to the plains. According to a map that was given to us there were three levels to Melena. The highest level was the wealthiest and was the level we were on right now. It featured stunning palaces made of white stone and gold with massive statues that depicted the ancient heroes of this world. This country, at least from the outset, truly seemed prosperous.

"I guess this is what we are really protecting, huh?"

"Seems like it. This city, at least on this level, seems like a marvel of human civilization. It really is like some of the cities from Endless War Online!" Otto responded gleefully.

We continued onwards and started to descend to the second level of Melena. This level had a more common look. While many foundations of the buildings were built with stone, wood and other materials were used for roofs or carts for passing trade.

This level, in particular, seemed like it held a heavy focus on trade and the market areas were massive. Each vendor had a buzzing crowd and the joyful noise of excited buyers and playful children echoed throughout the many pathways and buildings. However, as we started to get deeper into the second level, I spotted a cart with children carrying quite heavy boxes for a fruit vendor. It looked like they were...in chains?

"Hey, look over there. The cart selling fruit. What's happening to those kids?"

"I don't think they are even human. All of them have...cat ears...and tails? Looks like they are tied up in chains as well. Let's go investigate." Otto spoke up and was eager to put an end to this but Shirou quickly grabbed his shoulder and stopped him.

"From what I've heard from multiple people we passed by, these kids are called half-breeds. They are commonly sold and bought throughout this kingdom. Their rights are virtually non-existent. There's no point in trying to help them."

Slavery? And child slavery at that? In a civilised kingdom like this? We had to help those kids at the very least. We were heroes, we had to fight for justice. Not just for humanity, but for everyone who lives in this world. That was our goal, our purpose.

"That's all the more reason to stop this Shirou. This is wrong."

"It might be wrong but in this kingdom it is law. We cannot risk getting into trouble with the local authorities, let alone the royal family. Let's just ignore it and move on. We have more important things to be doing."

More important things? I didn't understand him. They were only kids, and they were downtrodden and being treated as objects. This wasn't justice. This wasn't good, and this certainly wasn't what I wanted to fight for. As we walked by those kids I continued to stare at them, and I promised myself that I would get stronger. To stop other kids from suffering the same fate as them.

But, for now, I was forced to accept the fact that Shirou was technically right. No matter how much I hated it we cannot change this kingdom's law, even if we were heroes. But one day I'll set things right for those kids, and for everyone else like them. I would defend them from this hatred, that's what I promised myself.

We made it out of the main walls and into the lowest level. This level of the city was located in the city outskirts. The infrastructure was poor compared to the other levels and most of the buildings were made of wood and mud. The only people who inhabited this level were the poor and the occasional half-breed. The streets were filled with soldiers of the Athenian Imperial Army keeping a close eye on the inhabitants.

"I wonder why there are so many soldiers. What could their purpose be?"

"They are here either to keep the population in check and to make sure the poor don't cause issues for the rest of the city, or the crime rate in this level is relatively high and these soldiers are here to sort that out" Shirou replied with his usual monotone voice.

That makes sense. With how poor this area is crime must be rampant. There's simply no other reason for this level of Melena to look like this. Either that, or corruption in the government is rampant. The country is wealthy enough to fix these issues but the government could be too incompetent to fix them. I was very much hoping that it was the former.

As we passed by we saw even more use of slave labour. The presence of half-breeds, while stronger than the second level, was still quite small compared to the number of humans residing here. It seemed that the lower the level of Melena, the more the glory and beauty of this city faded.

We finally made it out of the city's entrance gates. The nearby plains were massive and filled with a bright green, the sky was blue and the sun was up. The weather was perfect, and our spirits were raised by such a beautiful sight. Motada was quick to take the lead.

"Are we all good to go?

Myself and the entire the group responded with a resounding yes. We all made our way to the plains and we could feel each other's excitement. This was the beginning of our quest to gain power and save this world and, even if we were starting off with low-level trash, I had a good feeling that, with this group, we'll reach legendary status in no time.