5 The capital 3.1
The human empire of the east, the Demetrius Republic, is the home country of the human religion, the Temple. They worship the great goddess of light, Ura, and her twin brother, Uros, the demigod of fertility and lust.
It took two days of horse riding to arrive at the capital gate. On the way, Andro hunted rabbits for food. His son didn't eat since he was born and was still alive, and as it was since then, he didn't eat anything on the trip. He couldn't anyway.
The outskirts of the capital are heavily guarded. The west elven forest had the most incidence of monsters besides the Devil's Plain, in the south. When Andro got close to the bridge, a gate guard immediately stopped him.
With armor and wielding a long lance, he gestured for Andro to get off the horse. "I'm Andro from the Elchon elven village. My documents are in my pouch." He has gone through this process countless times.
"And this baby?" The guard was a little suspicious. An elf that wants to enter the capital is odd enough, one with a baby was a first. "It's my son. I'm here to go to the Temple." The guard chuckled. "The Temple? An elf like you... May I ask why?" Andro just stared the guard in the eyes. The guard coughed dryly. "You can go."
The capital walls are made of stone, and as for the height, as tall as the oldest tree in the elven forest. The gate was crowded with carriages from merchants and nobles. As for the people on foot, a large variety of races. Human races at least. Black hair with dark skin, blond hair and white skin, red hair, and tanned skin.
Aside from Andro, just one elf, with dark skin and black hair, could be seen. A dark elf, from the southern forest.
He got on the line, with the baby in his arms. Some of the humans glanced at him, particularly the women. Andro was handsome, even among elfs. Some women even waved at him. As for the men, they would grin and whisper. (Slave traders... I need to be careful...)
Four hours later, Andro's turn finally came. The gatekeeper was wearing noble clothes, died in red and black. "Andro from the Elchon village, what an elf want on our holy ground?" His voice was just like his fatness, lazy. "I'm here to visit the Temple." The gatekeeper raised his eyebrow. "The Temple you say. Is it because of this thing?" He pointed at the baby in Andro's arms. "Mister gatekeeper have sharp eyes. You're indeed correct."
His eyebrow raised even more. "An elf that knows its place! You may go in, elf Andro and...?" Pulling his horse forward, Andro halted to answer. "He doesn't have a name yet." He did not even turn his head to look back. As for the gatekeeper, he scratched his chin in wonder. "Next in the line!"
