The Innkeeper

Chapter 1911 Sin City II

“Shall I quickly whip up a secret exit?” Harriot asked.

“Hmm, no, let it be,” Eclipse answered as she observed Lex. “For a human to attract my interest, there has to be something special about him, and if that’s the case, how will I ever discover his worth if we hold his hand?”

Harriot opened his mouth to argue, but then shut it again. What did he care if Lex was able to overcome the obstacle or not? As long as the mistress was happy…

“Also, get rid of all the ghosts near my dwelling. I can never look at them the same,” Eclipse continued.

Unbeknownst to Lex, his casual ramblings caused a major upset in the ghost population of the Primordial Garden, not that he had the time or energy to care about such things.

As he explored Sin City, he was actually astounded. What the hell was this place? Why was it called Sin City?

The rules and regulations were incredibly strict, thorough and meticulously enforced. For every five residents Lex saw, there was one officer of the law, patrolling, observing, taking down kittens from trees. Where was all the so-called sin?

“Hello sir, are you new here?” one of the residents, an earth elemental in the shape of a short golem asked. He reached about Lex’s waist, and had a youthful energy about him.

“Yeah, I just came in, in fact,” Lex said. “The place seems very different from how I imagined it based on its name.”

“Oh yes sir, that is to be expected! My name is Goloo-Goloo. For one earth affinity treasure at the Celestial level, I can act as your tour guide and share all the laws of the city with you. Trust me, if you break any laws, you’re going to have a bad time, so this is a really good deal.”

Lex looked at Goloo-Goloo with sorrow on his face, and he didn’t even need to pretend. A Celestial level earth affinity treasure? He did not have something like that.

“I would pay you, but the Ghost of Woe stole my main spatial treasure,” Lex lied without the slightest hint of remorse. “I have a few things, but they’re all around the Earth Immortal level or below.”

Goloo-Goloo shook his head, as if distraught by the news, and placed a hand on Lex’s shoulder.

“That’s really bad news man. I’ve heard of the Ghost of Woe. He specialises in taking his targets most valued possessions and items, hence the name. Who knew he would take your whole spatial treasure? That’s just too bad. Umm, I feel a little bad for you so I’ll help you out anyway. Don’t forget this favor in case we become neighbors.”

Goloo-Goloo burst into uproarious laughter once he was done speaking, patting Lex on the back as he did, while Lex struggled to understand which part was supposed to be funny.

With a small chuckle, Lex tried to move onto the next topic.

“Thank you a lot, Goloo-Goloo, but I’m not really planning on staying here long. Do you know how to exit this place? I have an important appointment.”

The elemental looked at him in shock.

“Oh, you don’t even know? Poor fellow. Oh, such a poor fellow. My friend, no one leaves after entering Sin City. Literally since the founding of this city, not a single soul has left its boundaries.”

Goloo-Goloo looked at Lex’s dumbfounded expression, and burst into laughter once more.

“Come, come, let me take you to the mayor’s office. He likes to meet each new resident himself as a way of keeping his popularity high. Sin City has democratic leadership so popularity is very important – after all, these are the people we have to live with for eternity. It would suck if they started to hate you.”

Goloo-Goloo started laughing again, his energetic voice resounding across the city suburbs, filling the air with a light, jovial mood. Of course, all the locals were already used to it, but even Lex couldn’t help but relax a little around the extraordinary joyous fellow.

“Alright, I’ll chat with the mayor,” said Lex as he accompanied the earth elemental. Someone of status would likely know the situation with the city better anyway. “Can you tell me a little about the city while we go? Why is it called Sin City if it’s so peaceful?”

“Hahahahahah that’s not how it started out,” Goloo-Goloo said with a smile. “It’s the greatest joke of the century. This place was originally made to be a place of indulgence. A heaven for the hedonistic, a red light distract for those who wanted, a gambling den for those with too much money. Hundreds, thousands of such souls entered the city to sate their cravings and give in to their indulgences. After all, what they did here didn’t matter, right? They could just go back to their lives and pretend it never happened right? No one would know, right? Hahhahahahaha turns out, they were wrong!”

Goloo-Goloo spent another couple minutes laughing before he could continue, his laughter itself so funny that even Lex cracked a smile.

“Oh man, it was so awkward. Everyone acted however they wanted, assuming they would never see each other again. Turns out, they were stuck together for eternity! The guy you fought with yesterday? Now he’s your neighbor. The lady who entertained you the night before? Neighbor. The random stranger who you randomly revealed embarrassing secrets to while drunk? Neighbor! They all became neighbors! HAHAHAHA!”

Cough, cough…

Goloo-Goloo started coughing because of how hard he laughed, causing a bewildered Lex to have to pat the elemental on his back.

“Anyway, ever since everyone realized that they’d be forced to live here forever,

and since the population was fairly low back in the day, they all decided to turn this into the opposite of a Sin City. Since everyone knows everyone, they all treat each other well, have built a strong community, and created a safe environment for everyone. As such, over the years, many people immigrated over, increasing the population.”