Chapter 14: The Manticore Grand Duke

After signing the contract with Elna, the Drow exile handed over an invitation. She indicated that the Manticore Beast Grand Duke, Laste, requested his presence. Looking at the exquisite gold-stamped invitation, Sakavi felt that this Grand Duke was likely not a simple character.

Since the other party had already extended an invitation, they wouldn't just capture him and turn him into a slave upon arrival. Sakavi felt it was still necessary to go; if he didn't give the local overlord face, it wouldn't be easy to get by in the future.

For this banquet, Sakavi specifically sought out Elna, asking her to explain in detail the various precautions for high-end banquets, as well as what gifts to bring. A banquet is also a social venue; one has to interact with more than just one person, so he had to be careful to avoid offending anyone.

In the end, Sakavi decided it was better to bring Elna along; professional matters should be left to professionals. Originally, Sakavi had wanted to bring Gopu, but Gopu was dead set against joining in the excitement.

According to Elna's introduction, this Grand Duke Laste was the master of the area within a thousand miles. Regardless of race, anyone could live and trade freely in his city; as long as they paid the head tax, they were legal residents.

Killing was prohibited for any race within his territory. Under his rule, even incidents like murder and robbery, which were very common elsewhere, did not exist. This made Sakavi very curious about what kind of person a Legendary Rank beast could be to be enfeoffed as a Grand Duke and possess such formidable means.

Sakavi was quite curious about how races that naturally loved to rob, such as Gnolls, lived under his rule.

He immediately had Elna take him to a nearby Gnoll tribe. It seemed they had seen too many races, as this small town didn't even spare a second glance at the combination of Dragonman, Drow, Toadman, and Gray Dwarf.

Unable to suppress his curiosity, Sakavi walked up to a small stall and asked, "Old sir, how much is this bagpipe, and what material is it made of?"

"Young man, this is your first time traveling far, isn't it!"

"Yes, I was bored at home, so I'm just walking around."

"Hahaha, you young people! You dare to come out as adventurers without knowing anything."

"Old sir, you're really joking. I've read quite a few books, so how could I not know anything?"

"Oh? Then tell me, what is this bagpipe used for? If you guess correctly, I'll give you one for free."

"This is for Gnolls to perform at celebrations, and it's unique to Gnolls."

"Hahaha, I told you that you didn't know! You at least guessed half right, so I'll just give this one to you! This isn't for any celebration; it's used when Gnolls hold funerals.

However, young people nowadays all believe in the God of War, and not many people know about Yeenoghu anymore. This bagpipe, which carries Gnoll culture, has also become a symbol of the Gnolls' once barbaric and evil past."

"Old sir, don't be sad. In the far west, there are still a large number of Gnolls who believe in this deity. Gnoll culture has never been severed."

"Sigh, a deity who leads in slaughter and betrayal is better left unbelieved, it's just a pity for this culture that has been passed down for who knows how many years. Young man, you must be careful of those with ulterior motives here. If someone asks you to kill, regardless of whether that person is good or bad, do not agree."

"Why? Shouldn't bad people be killed?"

"Who should be killed is decided by the Grand Duke's Judicial Office. We Gnolls are responsible for maintaining the security of this territory. It can be said that as long as our Gnoll security brigade is still here, no criminal can remain at large!"

Old sir, you must have been a security officer when you were young!

"Hahaha! Young man, you certainly have a sharp eye, but unfortunately, time spares no one!"

"Old sir, why aren't there any children here? It's all outsiders or elderly people."

"The young people have all become security officers, and as for the children, they are in school. If you follow this road forward, turn left after seeing the church, and walk a few more steps, you will see the school."

"Thank you, I wish you a prosperous business, I'll go walk around the school."

"Goodbye, young adventurer, this is your bagpipe."

"Thank you!"

"Take care."

The small town was not large, and in less than five minutes, they saw the God of War church the Gnoll old man had mentioned. This church was not like the temples Sakavi had seen in the Underworld; although two Gnolls holding swords and shields stood at the entrance, there was no sense of oppression at all, but rather a feeling that made one feel a sense of awe.

"These are the heroes of our town who sacrificed themselves in the war against demons, and their souls have entered Feron's Divine Kingdom. These two statues are the God of War's affirmation of them, and also a symbol of their eternal protection of justice."

"High Priest, I'm sorry, we offended the deity, I hope you can forgive us."

"It is of no matter. Feron treats everyone equally, regardless of race. As long as one holds awe for war, he treats them all the same. Why don't you all come in and sit for a while?"

"Then we shall not be polite."

"Please come in. Everyone, look, the Orc holding the giant axe standing in the very center is Lord Feron. It is said that when he still walked among mortals, he once said that there should be no distinction of high or low among the ten thousand races of the world.

He also often ate and lived with his soldiers until he participated in the formation of the Pantheon and served as the Grand Steward of the Pantheon, only then did he no longer have close contact with believers.

And the demon on the far left holding a letter is Lagosh. He was Feron's strategist and also a genius commander. It is said that he was defeated by Feron many times on the battlefield, and moved by the equality of all races proposed by Feron, he resolutely joined Feron's team.

The Giant on the right hand side holding a medicinal herb is Bruz, who was a great pharmacist who had followed Feron since he started his career. There are not many rumors about him, but every warrior never fails to pray to him to heal themselves or their family's illnesses.

The other statues are warriors who, because of their heroic fighting, were eventually gifted and became subordinate gods. Everyone, this bone carving carrying Feron's blessing is a gift for you. I wish you can always return safely in your upcoming adventure missions."

"High Priest, this gift is too precious, we cannot accept it."

"Haha, accept it, young people. There are still many wonderful stories in this world waiting for you to discover. Feron will guide every brave person."

Looking at the Gnoll High Priest in front of him who was missing a leg and blind in one eye, Sakavi could only reluctantly accept it and gifted back an exquisite dagger made by the Gray Dwarves.

Bidding farewell to the High Priest, Sakavi and his party arrived at the local school. Before they even reached it, they heard the sound of clear reading. For a moment, Sakavi felt a bit dazed; it had been eighteen years since he transmigrated, and this was the first time he had heard this familiar sound of reading.

Following the sound, in a row of not-so-large rooms, Gnoll children of different ages were reading the contents of their books with great effort. In the open space in front, many children were practicing skills such as archery and combat.

Elna introduced that they were reading the legal statutes of the Grand Duke's territory. Every Gnoll must serve as a security officer after graduation, and those whose grades are not up to standard are not allowed to graduate. Those with outstanding combat skills will be selected into the Scout Squad after serving in the security team for three years, becoming a soldier.

If a Gnoll town is like this, other places shouldn't be too bad. After having a basic understanding of the Grand Duke's rule, Sakavi decided not to delay any longer and traveled day and night to the Grand Duke's castle, Weilincheng.

Weilincheng looked less like a city and more like a gathering place. It did not have the iconic city walls of this world, nor did it have defensive installations like a moat. All it had were a few towering watchtowers, or perhaps observation towers would be more appropriate.

Arriving at the toll station at the edge of the city, a Gnoll riding a large hyena walked over. This Gnoll wearing a blue uniform was clearly dressed differently from the Gnolls responsible for collecting fees, and should be a security officer.

"Hey Dragon, look over here. Gnoll security officer Quike Bloodhand has been waiting for you for a long time, guest from afar. The Grand Duke asked me to be responsible for hosting you into the city. Do you want to visit the civilian area first or go straight to the inn?"

"I want to see what is different about the civilian area here."

"Then you've found the right person. I, Quike, am a famous gang leader here—ah, no, I'm the head of the security team. Let me briefly introduce this city to you first.

The area in the core position here is the area where the big shots live; we usually call that the 'Old Master District'. In front of us is the 'Outer District', which is the soil where various crimes and gang murders breed. This place mainly gathers those unemployed drifters, criminals, and various cultists."

"Why not clean these people up?"

"Shadows will hide in every corner, and Weilincheng is no exception. If anyone tells you that there is no crime here, please give him a punch directly—of course, be careful not to get caught by the security officers.

In fact, the Outer District is intentionally acquiesced to by the upper levels. No matter how you guard against them, devils from the Underworld and tentacles from the Abyss can never be completely cut off. Rather than letting them infiltrate among ordinary residents, it is better to let them stay in the garbage heap; this way, it is also convenient to monitor and control them.

Between the Outer District and the real residential area, there is actually a moat separating them, and the connecting passages are also guarded by security officers; they certainly won't allow these scums to go in.

The residential area is divided into four parts. The one you encounter as you go inside is called the 'Trade District', which can also be called the 'Outsider District'; it is mainly an area where traveling merchants from all over the world live.

Inside, there are gambling dens, brothels, and slave markets, everything you could want. In there, you might even be able to take a fancy to one or two beauties with exotic styles."

After saying this, he even winked at Sakavi with an 'I'm an insider' expression, but Sakavi didn't have much interest in such things. Besides, if there were really anyone with special talents, they would have been taken to big cities to be sold; would they still be left here for these poor ghosts to pick up scraps?

"Let's talk about that after finishing business. You continue the introduction."

"To the left of the Trade District is the 'Industrial District', which can also be called the 'Blacksmith District'. It mainly produces and sells various weapons, herbs, farm tools, etc., unique to the local area. Of course, some tables and chairs are also sold.

On the right is the 'Residential District', which can also be called the 'Landlord District'. Most of the houses here are only for rent and not for sale, provided for merchants who live here for the medium to long term, the families of Weilincheng's grassroots staff, and workers in the Blacksmith District.

Finally, there is the 'Handicraft District', also called the 'Draig District'. Most of the people living inside are Elves, and there is also a small portion of handicraft producers of various races.

From gemstone necklaces and boutique dresses down to coarse linen clothes and snacks and pastries, as long as it is related to handicrafts, they have it. My lord, where shall we start from?"

"Let's go to the Industrial District and take a look!" ===== CHAPTER 15 =====