Chapter 597 - 593 – THE NEW CITY AT THE CLIFF’S EDGE, WARES NO ONE UNDERSTANDS, AND THE QUEEN WHO IS BORED

Four days had passed since the Quiet Bay gate opened, and the once-silent rock cliffs were almost unrecognizable.

From the top of the cliff, Sylvia sat cross-legged on a slab of flat rock, chewing on spicy monster skewers still warm from the grill. The sea wind blew through her black hair, and below her spread a view that made every trace of her passing boredom evaporate from her face.

A small city had risen along the shore of the bay. Not a magnificent city like Nocture, but clearly a living one. Simple buildings with smooth cement walls and grayish-brown stone blocks stood in neat rows on terraces carved in tiers into the cliff face. The blocks had not been dug from a quarry. Nocture’s dwarves and earth mages molded them from magical clay, compacted it, then fired it with magic. The result was hard, uniform, and could be built within hours. A long pier jutted out over the water, where three Nocture cargo ships lay moored with magic cranes working without pause. Between the warehouses and shops, the stone streets were crowded with people of every race coming and going.

A thick-bearded dwarf was arguing over the price of ore. A pointy-eared elf haggled over spices at a stall. A rabbit beastkin ran by delivering packages on a small cart. And in the corner of an open-air tavern, two neatly uniformed zombies sat eating bowls of porridge, chatting with a Tianhua human merchant who didn’t seem to mind at all.

"A week ago this place was just an empty cliff," Sylvia murmured as she bit into a piece of skewered meat. "Now there’s already a tavern."

The shadow beside her moved. Noir emerged half-bodied from Sylvia’s shadow, only his head and two black ears poking out, like a cat peeking from under a blanket.

’That tavern opened yesterday, run by a dwarf named Brom,’ Noir reported flatly. ’He sells spicy-broth hotpot and asked permission to use your name as a brand. I already approved it.’

"You gave permission without asking me?"

’You were napping on this rock. I didn’t want to disturb you.’

Sylvia laughed softly. "You’re getting more and more like a secretary."

’I just don’t want the trouble,’ Noir replied, sinking back into the shadow. ’It’s more comfortable in here. I don’t have to walk.’

That was something Sylvia had noticed lately. Noir had found the most efficient way to be lazy: hiding in his master’s shadow, going wherever Sylvia went, and only surfacing when there was something to comment on. No black cat riding on Sol’s back. No feet that had to take a step. He floated along with the shadow, sleeping inside it, anytime.

Meanwhile, the other dragon...

"Sol, are you still alive?" Sylvia called through telepathy.

In a corner of the cliff, right under the shade of a cloth umbrella someone had set up for him, a tiny golden cat lay sprawled on his back on a silk cushion with a round belly. An empty plate with the leftover bones of salted fish lay beside him. A little elf child was scratching his chin with great affection.

’Alive,’ Sol answered lazily without opening his eyes. ’But busy resting. Don’t disturb me.’

"It’s been four days, and you’ve done nothing but eat and sleep."

’That’s not doing nothing. That’s honor guard duty.’

"Who are you guarding?"

’This elf kid.’

"What’s her name?"

’I don’t know. But she gives me salted fish.’

Sylvia shook her head slowly and sighed. Once, Sol had been a sacred Golden Dragon who hardly tolerated being treated like a pet, who grumbled every time he was called a cat, and who looked down on every creature that wasn’t a dragon. Now he let himself be petted by an elf kid and slept under a cloth umbrella.

"Maybe that’s just how it works," Sylvia mused, looking up at the sky. "Subordinates take after their master’s nature."

A small voice came from her shadow. ’Are you calling yourself lazy?’

"I didn’t say that."

’You just did.’

"I just... realized something." Sylvia finished the last skewer. "Sol is lazy. You’re fairly lazy. Lately I just sit and eat. Somehow we all gathered together and became lazy together."

’And Qilin,’ Noir added quietly.

Sylvia fell silent for a moment, then chuckled. "Qilin is different. He’s actually diligent."

As if summoned, her holographic bracelet vibrated gently. An incoming call, this time from Alicia. Her silver-haired older sister’s face appeared on the screen, smiling softly in the tranquil gardens of Nocture.

"Sylvia, what are you doing?"

"Sitting on a cliff eating skewers," Sylvia answered honestly.

Alicia laughed softly. "That sounds like you. But that’s not why I’m calling. Look who’s beside me."

The screen shifted. From behind the shade of the trees, a majestic creature stepped closer: its body resembled a deer with dragon scales, a single horn glittering like crystal, wrapped in a soft holy light. Qilin, the sacred beast who had long been Alicia’s companion, bowed respectfully toward the camera with clear, wise eyes.

"Qilin helped the farmers in Nocture’s Southern District today," Alicia reported proudly. "He cleansed fields contaminated by leftover miasma without anyone asking, then healed a group of children with fever. I didn’t even tell him to."

’Greetings, Your Majesty the Queen,’ Qilin’s calm voice echoed directly in Sylvia’s mind through the holographic screen. ’I hope your journey on the new continent is pleasant.’

"Thank you, Qilin," Sylvia said, smiling. "You’re so diligent. Unlike the two dragons I brought along."

’I don’t feel I’ve done anything special,’ Qilin replied gently. ’It’s just that, if there’s something I can help with, why not? Serving Alicia gives me peace.’

From afar, Sol opened one eye and snorted lazily. ’Show-off.’

"So you two are a master and servant who are both hardworking," Sylvia smiled in amusement at Alicia. "No wonder the people of Nocture love you."

"And you, Sylvia?" Alicia tilted her head. "Are you bored?"

Sylvia was silent for a moment. "How did you know, sis?"

"Your hand is tapping your knee. That’s been your habit forever when something is making you restless."

Sylvia looked down and only then noticed that her index finger was indeed tapping her knee. She took a deep breath. "I’m bored. The gate is running, this city functions on its own, Zhaoyue handles the rest. And Sofia has gone back to Nocture."

"Sofia is just being careful," Alicia explained gently. "She worries someone might try to attack Nocture while you’re away. Even though Zark and the entire army are guarding it, she feels calmer being in the palace."

"I know. I don’t blame her." Sylvia looked at the screen, then at Qilin. A thought crossed her mind. "Alicia, may I ask Qilin something?"

’Please, Your Majesty.’

"Are there other sacred beasts in this new world? Like you, or Sol. Creatures that aren’t mutant monsters, but something purer."

Qilin was silent for a moment, his crystal horn glowing dimly. ’In ancient times, sacred beasts were scattered across the four corners of the continent. Some fell asleep after the apocalypse. Some died. But I feel that some still endure. They can’t be seen, but their presence is felt like ripples of water in the distance. The region you occupy now... was once the ancestral land of one of them.’

"One of them?" Sylvia sat up a little straighter. "Who?"

’I don’t know for certain. My memory of it is hazy. But if there is a creature that has survived in Tianhua, it must be hiding itself extremely well.’

"You once said Sol was honorable in the old days." Sylvia turned to the corner of the cliff, where the Golden Dragon was being petted by the little elf girl, purring comfortably. "But it seems his status has now dropped to a living pillow."

’I heard that,’ Sol protested without opening his eyes.

"I know."

After the call ended, Sylvia sat quietly for a while. The idea now took root in her head. A sacred beast. Another one. Not just a Tier Seven monster that could be killed with True Sight, but a creature who could become a friend like Qilin, perhaps even one not as lazy as Sol.

"Maybe I need a new hobby," she murmured.

’Hobby?’ Noir raised his head slightly from the shadow. ’Collecting sacred beasts?’

"Not collecting. Just... looking for friends." She laughed softly. "And if I happen to find something strong, well, all the better."

Behind her came the sound of light footsteps climbing the cliff. Sylvia turned and found Zhaoyue making her way up the stone path with two guards, wearing a simple cream-colored traveling dress. Her face was fresh, and her eyes sparkled.

"Sylvia! So you’re here."

"Zhaoyue. How’s the city?"

"Better than I imagined." Zhaoyue sat down beside her and gazed at the view of the new city with undisguised awe. "Tianhua merchants have been arriving for two days ago. Many don’t believe there’s a new port this big overnight. I’ve issued official trade permits and set up a light tax post. The whole territory agrees this is the best thing that’s ever happened to the Southern Star."

"And do the merchants understand what they’re buying?"

Zhaoyue laughed softly. "That’s the funniest part. They buy a huge amount of goods from Nocture, but most of them don’t know how to use them."

"For example?"

"Black Starsteel, for one." Zhaoyue held up three fingers. "The blacksmiths here only know it as ’strange black metal that can’t be melted in an ordinary furnace.’ Yet Nocture sells the leftover scraps at a low price, and they think it’s junk iron. Someone even bought it to use as anchor weights. Anchor weights, Sylvia! And that’s Tier Seven weapon material!"

Sylvia held back her laughter. "Let them be. They’ll figure it out on their own."

"Then the spices. The palace cooks bought out Nocture’s entire stock of chili powder and called it ’divine fire powder.’ They even use it to make spicy sauce in insane quantities. Now half the taverns in Fallen Star City sell spicy hotpot and set their customers’ stomachs on fire." Zhaoyue smiled in amusement. "But they’re addicted."

"Good. That’s a good sign."

"And the fertilizer crystals from Stacia," Zhaoyue continued, her tone now more serious. "The farmers scattered them on the barren land south of the city as a trial. In three days, the first sprouts had grown knee-high. They cried in the fields."

Sylvia nodded slowly, looking out over the city. "That’s Stacia’s work. She built her own laboratory on the east side of the dock. She says she’s testing something bigger."

"I’ve seen it," Zhaoyue shuddered slightly. "The walls shake, and colorful smoke comes out of the vents. One of the guards said he saw a giant toad leap out of a window."

"That must be an ecology experiment," Sylvia replied casually. "Don’t worry. Stacia never creates anything dangerous without supervision."

’That’s not true,’ Noir whispered from the shadow. ’But let me leave her feeling calm.’

The two sat for a while in comfortable silence. Zhaoyue rested her chin on her knees, looking at the port below them. "Sylvia, I still can’t believe all this is real. Two weeks ago, this city was a rotten place full of greedy officials. Now..."

"Now you have a port, a market, and another civilization at your back." Sylvia smiled. "And three days from now the Noble Council will come with five hundred mages. Don’t forget that."

"I haven’t forgotten," Zhaoyue nodded firmly. Though her face tensed for a moment, she now looked far calmer than before. "What should I do while waiting?"

"Enjoy hotpot," Sylvia answered lightly.

Zhaoyue blinked, then burst out laughing.

At that very moment, without warning, Sol’s body, sprawled lazily under the cloth umbrella, suddenly went rigid.

Sylvia caught the change instantly. The tiny golden cat opened both eyes wide, his pupils narrowing sharply like those of a true dragon. The little elf child who had been petting him started and pulled back her hand.

’...Sylvia,’ Sol’s voice through telepathy now sounded different. Not lazy, not sleepy. Serious and sharp like before. ’There’s something.’

Sylvia stood without a sound. "What?"

Sol rose and stared north, where the horizon beyond the distant mountains was hazy gray. His nose twitched softly, sniffing the air. His whiskers quivered. His gaze no longer showed laziness. There was only alertness, and something else, almost like longing.

’I smell a holy resonance,’ he said quietly. ’Faint, very faint, and very far. But I’m sure it’s the energy of a sacred beast. Not a dragon. Not Qilin. Something else, something older than my memory.’

In Sylvia’s shadow, Noir stirred. ’How far?’

’I don’t know. Maybe thousands of kilometers north. Maybe beyond the Deathcloud Mountains.’ Sol turned, his golden eyes looking straight at Sylvia. ’And Sylvia... it’s restless. As if something is disturbing it.’

Sylvia gazed north alongside Sol in a long silence, then a smile slowly spread across her face. A smile that hadn’t appeared in a long time, one that made Zhaoyue beside her instinctively swallow.

"What a coincidence," she murmured. "I happen to be bored."