Enigma of Sin

As Kayn walked through the streets carrying Lara, he starting feeling like a country bumpkin as he hadn't been in a city this big since he was a child visiting the capital of Carnet. Both he and Lara's heads were turning this way and that, but Kayn maintained his Mana Sense in order to not run into anybody or get run over while walking.

After asking for directions, Kayn first had to walk for a few hours before he reached the Town Hall that was located in the outer ring. He paid his fees in order to update his own identification and purchase one for Lara.

Surprisingly, they asked for his race during the application process, so he just put down half-elf and half-demon. For some reason, the receptionist seemed relieved when she saw this.

Kayn then received his updated ID for the Mancean Empire and asked the receptionist about the process to become a citizen of the city and what all was required.

She gladly explained that he needed proof of employment either within the city or in close proximity and that he would need to pay 10 silver coins per person and a one-time tax depending on the job he had. If his job was something that would greatly benefit the city or its citizens, the tax was waved. Of course, this tax was also waved for children.

Kayn asked the receptionist for a map of the city and what the best way to get around was. After paying 20 copper coins for the map, she explained that it was best to travel by carriage if he was trying to go to further parts of the city, but walking wasn't bad as long as his destination was close.

After thanking the receptionist for all the help that she had given him with a big smile, it was only now that he noticed she seemed a little flushed and Kayn's smile became a bit more resigned.

His mother had warned him time and time again that as he became an adult, he would probably start receiving attention from people just because of his looks, both men and women apparently.

Fortunately, Kayn had the deterrent known as Lara. As much as he wanted to correct peoples' misunderstanding, he also felt that if they thought he was her father he might be left alone by some daring individuals.

Before the receptionist could open her mouth to continue their conversation, Kayn hastily thanked her again and turned around to leave. Once he was outside of the Town Hall building, he took a look at the map to find where his next destination was at.

Kayn discovered the White Hand Society's location, but upon estimating the time it would take him to walk there, he decided it would definitely be best to find a carriage since it would still probably be a few hours trip.

To Kayn's horror, the taxi trip would cost him 5 silver coins for the trip, 10 silver coins per person to enter the middle ring, and 25 more per person to enter the inner ring of Palatine. While Kayn wasn't short on money, he couldn't help but feel a bit of pain as he had always tried to save his money the best he could before his family was murdered and since he arrived at the capital, he was spending money everywhere he went.

During the taxi ride, Kayn continued to look around to view the city. The buildings all seemed fairly new, most being made out of stone or brick and only two or three stories high. However, the further one travelled into the city, the larger the buildings became.

They even passed through one of the market streets in the middle ring on their travel and the driver explained to Kayn that most shops here would have their residence located on the top floors of their shop while the bottom floors were used for both workshops and sales areas.

Kayn even saw a shop that had several customers going both in and out named Enchanter Emporium, causing him to think about Elder Rowen and Kinzie. He wondered if they were doing okay or what they were up to.

Kayn couldn't help but lament that he had forgotten to pack his communication crystals inside of his bag before everything exploded. Maybe Kinzie assumed he died and forgot about him?

As they traveled deeper into Palatine, there were less and less people walking around on the streets, as only those with enough money were able to pass into the middle and inner rings.

Kayn immediately assumed there was some kind of underlying caste system in place in Palatine, but with the money he found in the pouch his mother gave him and the treasury, he didn't think he would run into any trouble.

Once they reached the gates for the inner ring, the driver stated that he couldn't take his carriage inside and that this would be where he dropped them off. Kayn paid the man and even gave him a few copper coins as a thanks for the information he shared during their trip. 

Kayn was surprised to see that there was a line, albeit a small one, to enter the inner ring. They were even doing inspections of bags and patting people down. Kayn even watched as one man, who was decked out in fancy clothing, hand the guard a ring.

The guard appeared to be lost for a few minutes, but after he came out of his seeming reverie, he told the man that he had passed the inspection.

Using Mana Sense, Kayn was beginning to understand how to gauge people's core stage, and the guards at this post were all in the third stage. He watched as another man who seemed to be in the 5th stage ignored the line and guards completely as he just walked past them to enter the inner area. 

The guards didn't even seem to bother with him, most likely they recognized him or one's own strength had something to do with it. This brought up another question, did the guards have a way to determine one's strength without having the individual inject mana into an artifact like he had experienced?

Kayn only then realized that at Carnet's capital, his father would always just fly him to wherever they were going and no one ever bothered to stop him or ask him questions. So, there must be another unspoken rule regarding strength inside bigger cities as well.

After all, Talgonoth was definitely a world where the strong make the rules and the weak can only follow along.

Unbeknownst to Kayn, there was a guard behind the rest of them with a large device sitting in front of him that would activate when one stepped onto the plate where they were patted down. However, the device could only tell up to a 3rd stage core, anything above that would read as error and anyone who wasn't a mage would read as normal.

As it was finally Kayn's turn, he stepped forward and he could immediately tell that there was something interfering with the mana around his feet, as if it was trying to suck in a tiny portion of his mana through the soles of his feet.

Kayn raised one eyebrow while looking down as his feet with a slight frown on his face before noticing the suction force disappear.

"Our apologies Sir, we check everyone who comes through this way. Normally, those who are at or above the 4th stage we recognize and allow them to bypass the inspection and fee, but we didn't recognize you, so we were unaware. We weren't trying to offend you. Are you new here by chance?"

One of the guards had spoken up after he glanced at the one running the detection device, who quickly nodded his head, indicating that the device came up with an error reading.

"I am, and it's no problem, I just didn't expect to have my mana suddenly taken like that. A warning would be nice. Anyway, what do you need for me to enter?" Kayn spoke as if he was trying to ease their worries, since some mages were unreasonable.

"Since it's your first time to the inner ring, even as a mage at or above the 4th stage, we still require an inspection of your storage bags or dimensional ring.

"Also, weapons must be kept inside of them at all times and are not allowed to be displayed on your body unless you're in designated areas, such as the Astaro Academy where students carry around their weapons.

"The fee of 25 silver coins will be waved for you and your daughter accordingly to your strength. Please hand any storage bags or rings to me as well as both of your identifications." The guard spoke in a respectful tone.

Kayn passed over his storage pouch after removing the identification plates from it. He was glad that he stored everything inside the Wanderer's Villa treasury aside from money, including the Akikani.

He was quite positive that they wouldn't be able to tell that he had an item inside of his soul and he wasn't about to tell them.

The inspection went smoothly and quickly as there was only money inside of the pouch. While there was a lot of money inside, it wasn't anything the guard hadn't seen before.

Kayn looked too young to be as strong as he was or have as much money as he did, but he assumed the younger appearance had something to do with his race.

After receiving his money pouch back, the guard did a quick pat down of Kayn and Lara, before saying he could enter. "Ah, one more thing Sir. What is your destination? I can direct you towards it."

"I'm heading to the White Hand Society." Kayn said in response to the guard's question.

"In that case, head straight for about five major intersections then take a right at the one listed as Academy Way. After a few more, you'll see the White Hand Society building on your left, you can't miss it. Big white hand with an eye in the middle."

Kayn thanked the man for the directions before entering through the gates to the inner ring and following exactly what the man had said. Sure enough, after about an hour more of walking, he finally arrived at the White Hand Society.