Chapter 33 ...

The inside of the fortress was much different than the outside. The buildings weren't like in the fortress city or port city, they were almost made out of pure sandstone which looked neat, but the problem was the infrastructure of the city.

Due to its location, it didn't have a sewer or drainage system which meant it was a filthy city like former days. The horrendous smell of shit hit their noses as their faces crunched into horror. They felt nausea, even Agam who was the local, leaning on the wall with the purple face.

" Shit! I should have remembered this city."

He pinched his nose with a green face, trying to forget the terrible smell, but he couldn't block his other senses as he saw filth-filled streets and sick people.

" What is wrong with this place?"

Yelena the elf complained with disgust, not knowing what to do in this situation as she couldn't move or stay in this place since she had to wait for Licht.

The beast siblings hit the worst as they were rolling on the carriage with foam in their mouths. Their noses were as strong as the animals and they couldn't block this filthy smell which made them almost pass out.

" Shit, do we have to wait here for them? I rather wait outside the city than stay here."

Mikael who doesn't complain usually felt overwhelmed by the sudden situation. His words were indeed true as even Regina who was the captain couldn't bear it.

" City center doesn't have this filthy smell. We can stay there but it is expensive. Since merchants don't stay here long, the expense of the city had to be high."

It was a good choice to go there, but it was indeed expensive. It was even more expensive than the capital of the Holy Kingdom which was illogical and outrageous. However, it was the order of the city, so they didn't have any authority to stop this.

They walked through the stain-filled streets with heavy faces because they saw the situation in the city was worse than they thought. The people were either sick or hungry due to the strict policy of the city and it was terrible to watch them as they cough with sad faces.

No matter how hard they tried to ignore them, it was bound to fail since they weren't cold-hearted people. Regina tore out a piece of bread for the child who was sitting in the corner. The girl's face was dirty but her will to live was much stronger than others as she was learning to write through the garbage of high-class people.

" Take this quickly. Don't let others see it, little one."

Regina knew people were greedy and selfish when they needed something. They would probably rob this poor girl or even them if they needed to.

" Thank you, ma'am. I will not forget this."

The girl smiled brightly, hiding her bread in her pocket while chumming down the rest of it into her tiny mouth.

This look softened Regina as she threw a coin at her with her name on the paper. Perhaps, they would meet one day again if they were fated.

" Why did you help her, Regina?"

Agam who was watching her, asked with curiosity. He sneakily gave away some food to the kids but he never thought this strict woman was soft to the children.

" Because they remind me of my childhood. My family was a knight family and they desired a son even my parents loved me. My grandparents didn't like me, and so did my other family members. They hated me because I was an oddball."

Regina smiled with a sad look, reminiscent of her past. Leah took her hand with a smile on her face as they looked at her warmly because they were her second family.

" Captain, we will find vice-captain and others."

Mikael spoke calmly, looking at her with a gentle face. Regina chuckled at his words, calming down her turbulent mind.

1 hour later.

They finally lodged into a good inn where they provided free cleaning service. They washed their carriage and other stuff while providing them a free meal. Although the cost was high, it was a good place to wait.