Chapter 411: The Abandoned Crown District [ 1 ]

"Everything?"

Pax nodded as though that were the simplest description available. Mina, who had been half asleep in the chair beside the window, opened one eye at the word while Sage pushed the rejected property documents aside and gave Pax his full attention.

After six days of searching, he had learned not to dismiss anything before hearing the details, especially when Pax had gone far enough outside the normal property market to investigate land that wasn’t even officially listed for sale.

"Start with where it is," Sage said.

Pax came over to the desk and unfolded another map of the western Capital, this one more detailed than the general map they had been using.

His finger moved away from the Central Trade District, crossed several major roads and stopped over a huge irregular section closer to the western side of the city.

Sage immediately noticed its size. Unlike the tightly divided properties surrounding it, the entire area appeared under one designation.

"The Old Western Garrison," Pax explained. "It used to be one of the Capital’s main military districts. Not just barracks. Training grounds, warehouses, workshops, administrative buildings, supply depots, stables, the entire western military operation was based there. That was decades ago, before the Capital expanded this far."

Sage leaned closer. The property was enormous. "And now?"

"Now nobody wants it."

That was enough to make Mina sit up properly. "If nobody wants it, then Uncle Sage definitely will."

Sage ignored her. "Why?"

Pax pulled a chair over and sat opposite him. The Royal Capital had expanded several times over the previous century, he explained, swallowing settlements outside its original walls and extending its defenses as the population increased.

The Old Western Garrison had once occupied an important position near the western defenses, but after one of the largest expansions, the military constructed a newer complex closer to the relocated walls.

Units moved gradually rather than all at once. First the cavalry facilities, then supply warehouses, then several barracks and training grounds.

By the time the final command offices relocated, the old district had already become unnecessary for military purposes.

The Crown retained ownership because nobody saw an urgent reason to dispose of strategically useful land, and portions of the old buildings continued serving as storage for several years.

"That still doesn’t explain why it’s abandoned," Sage said. "Land that large should have been redeveloped the moment the military left."

"It probably would have been." Pax tapped the northern section of the district. "Then there was an accident."

"What kind?"

"Magical."

Boren chose that moment to return carrying a plate of roasted meat and bread he’d apparently convinced the hotel kitchen to prepare.

He stopped halfway through closing the door. "I heard magical accident. Why are we discussing magical accidents while looking at property?"

Pax waited for him to sit before continuing. Nearly thirty years earlier, one of the military workshops had been used to store and maintain enchanted siege equipment.

Nobody seemed to agree on exactly what happened. The official report blamed improper storage of unstable mana crystals. Other accounts claimed an experimental siege artifact failed during testing.

Whatever the cause, the resulting mana explosion destroyed the workshop and damaged several neighboring structures. Fire spread through two warehouses before the garrison contained it, and parts of the district were evacuated.

Nobody died in enormous numbers, the area was already mostly unused, but the damage accelerated its abandonment. The Crown repaired what was necessary to prevent further danger, removed valuable military equipment and sealed several damaged sections, but comprehensive redevelopment never happened.

Boren slowly lowered his food. "And you want us to visit this place?"

"I didn’t say we should buy it," Pax replied.

Sage was already studying the roads surrounding the district.

The more he looked, the less he cared about the story of an accident from thirty years ago. "This road here."

"Western Crownway," Pax said. "One of the main routes connecting the western gate to the central districts."

"It runs directly beside the property."

"Yes." Pax nodded.

"And this?" Sage pointed at another road on the map.

"Old Military Avenue. Still maintained because it connects several districts even though the garrison isn’t active anymore." Pax answered.

Sage looked up. "So it has two major-road connections."

"Three, technically. The southern road is smaller but can handle commercial wagons." Pax answered a smile.

Boren stopped eating completely.

Sage pointed toward the map again. "How far from the Warrior District?"

"By carriage? Maybe twenty minutes without heavy traffic. Central Trade District is slightly farther depending on which road you use. The western gate is closer."

Sage’s interest sharpened. Six days of searching had taught him what combinations were almost impossible to find in the Capital. Large properties had terrible access.

Well-connected properties were too small. Independent properties were buried behind restrictions. Yet Pax was describing an enormous piece of contiguous land connected directly to major roads and positioned close enough to the districts Sage cared about.

"Who owns it?"

"The Crown."

That was the moment Sage stopped looking at the property as another possibility and started looking at Pax.

"Directly?" Sage asked while looking at him.

Pax thought for a moment and then answered. "According to every record I’ve found. The land was military property, so ownership never passed through a noble House. The Royal Property Administration manages it now, although parts of the old underground infrastructure may still fall under military authority. I’d need the official records to confirm the exact boundaries."

No Great House. No hereditary landlord.

No church.No merchant family waiting to triple the price. No noble development rights written into an eighty-year-old contract.

Crown ownership presented its own complications, but those complications would at least be dealt with through a legal purchase from the Kingdom itself.

If Sage could obtain permanent title, a noble couldn’t suddenly appear years later and claim that his grandfather had retained construction rights over half the Guild’s Headquarters.

Sage stood up and said. "We’re going tomorrow."

Pax shook his head. "We can go now. There’s still enough daylight, and I already know the entrance."

Boren looked at the food he’d just purchased, then at Sage. "Can I finish eating before we inspect the magical explosion district?"

Sage was already collecting his coat.

Boren sighed and wrapped the remaining bread.