Move 8: The Port Capital

"Sighed…"

Oli took a deep breath as he looked at the clear night sky. The stars were glittering.

These kinds of views were more suitable and appreciable if Oli were taking a vacation somewhere on Earth and with a beautiful woman on his side.

But sadly, that was not the case.

Currently, Oli, Michael, and the grandchildren of Elder Zion are resting at the clearing.

They were on the way to the port capital of the Kingdom of Baijan, Kuku.

It's been two days since they left Leefside and started their journey.

As they were traveling on foot, initially, it would take seven to eight days from Leefside to Kuku if they followed the main road, but since they took the alternative route, it would now take ten days before arriving.

They do this for safety purposes. Because according to Michael, bandits took some part of the main road waiting for someone they could rob.

"Still awake, My Lord?"

Oli looked at the one who spoke to him. It was Zack, the eldest grandchild of Elder Zion. Zack was holding two wooden cups and gave one to Oli.

Oli took it before answering.

"Yeah. It's been two days since we started this journey and somehow, I am still not accustomed to sleeping outside."

Oli said, then he looked at the camping tents set up around the bonfire.

"We still have eight days before we arrive at our destination. You still have a lot of time to get accustomed to this kind of setup, My Lord."

Zack said while chuckling a little.

"Hahahaha! You're right."

Oli said as he sipped at the wooden cup.

Yes, this setup was somehow challenging for Oli, but he's enjoying it. This is a new experience for him.

"It seems that the food was ready. Come on now, let's eat."

Oli said as he stood up.

***

Originally, Oli planned to rebuild the walls first.

Oli thinks that building the wall was an easy task to do, and he and the villagers could finish it because it's just a wooden wall, not a concrete one.

They succeeded in making it, but when a weak wind blew, the walls collapsed.

Oli didn't know what they did wrong. He followed the steps he read on the internet, but somehow it was not as strong as it was supposed to be.

They rebuilt it a couple of times, but the outcome was always the same.

That's why Oli gave up, and Oli burned all his brain cells to think some ways, but he couldn't.

That's when Michael suggested something.

"Why not buy a builder slave. There's a slave house in the Baijan Kingdom, and I'm sure we could find a builder slave there. A slave would surely cost a lot, and we don't have any money."

When Oli heard this, he agreed with what Michael said and prepared for their long journey.

***

Slave.

An individual who has no right to decide for themselves.

They tend to do hard labor without being paid.

They exist to please and follow what their master wants.

If their master ordered them to cut their arm, they needed to follow that command whether they liked it or not.

If a slave did not obey their masters, only death awaited them.

That's why no matter how ridiculous and life-threatening the command is, they followed it because living with one arm is much better than being dead.

In short, slaves were not treated as humans but as similar to animals.

When Oli first heard this from Michael, he was having a hard time accepting and digesting it.

But it did not take long before Oli fully understood it.

But it doesn't mean that Oli supported and wanted this kind of treatment for others.

But Oli was not the kind of idiot who's going to overreact on this.

Slavery has a long history on Chronos. A practice that couldn't be changed or removed no matter how much Oli wanted to question it. For now.

People would look at him as a mad man if he started to preach about how wrong slavery was.

For the time being, Oli could only follow this practice.

***

"My Lord! I see it! We are almost there!"

Michael said while at the distance.

It's been ten days since Oli's group left Leefside and they were now in the Baijan Kingdom and in the distance, the Kingdom's capital was now on sight.

Oli also looked at the distance, and from here, he saw mighty walls standing tall. Showing its greatness to everyone.

"Is that…"

"The port capital of Baijan Kingdom."

"Kuku."

The five brothers said while also looking at the magnificent walls surrounding the vicinity of Kuku.

"Let's increase our pace."

Oli said excitedly. This is his first journey. The Kuku was the first capital Oli was going to see ever since he came here on Chronos.

And he couldn't wait to see what it looked like inside those walls.

There's a long queue outside the walls.

The guards were checking the identity and inspecting all the belongings of every individual on the line. They also asked what they were going to do at Kuku.

The guards looked at Oli's group when it was their turn.

"Identity?"

One of the guards asked.

Like what Michael told him, Oli put his right hand up and showed the ring on his index finger.

"He's Baron Oli Von Alexander, from the Vedrain KIngdom."

Michael introduces Oli.

The guards looked at the ring on Oli's index finger. They immediately proceed to the next step after they verify that it was Noble's ring.

"Vedrain Kingdom, huh? It was a surprise to see one Noble from that weakest and cowardly Kingdom. How is your trash King and Nobles? Are you getting bored hiding at your capital's castle walls?

Anyway, it's not my problem. What are you going to do here?"

The guard rudely asked.

Oli disregarded what the guard first said and the tone and simply answered the last question.

"We're here to buy some livestock and seeds that we could use."

The guard looked at Oli once again.

"Passed!"

The guard shouted, and the portcullis slowly went up enough for people to pass through.