Chapter 57: A New World, An Old Problem

After flying for quite some time, Clyde, Celes, Craig, Casca, and Corie finally spotted a city in the distance on the horizon, displayed on their cockpit screen. A holographic display then materialized, showing an enlarged view of the city and its location, it turned out that the city named Utopia was situated at the tip of a cape that projected far out into the ocean.

The only way in was a roadway along the cape serving as a two-way bridge, alongside a railway line located on the same cape but on a separate bridge. The massive city was a circular metropolis enclosed by an energy wall that encircled its boundaries, part of which appeared to sit directly in the ocean atop an artificial island.

Along the coast and surrounding mainland, smaller towns used for agriculture, farming, livestock, shipping ports, and fisheries could be seen, making Utopia function essentially like a nation with a vast network of towns unified under a single name, all bounded by the energy wall that appeared to serve as a detection grid.

Yet what left Clyde, Celes, Craig, Casca, and Corie stunned was not the city’s geographical layout, but rather that the sprawling metropolis ahead of them looked genuinely like a modern city, complete with a concrete jungle of skyscrapers, wheel-less cars that seemed to utilize anti-gravity technology or magic, and a social atmosphere closely resembling what they had experienced inside the simulation, with the exception of Celes.

"Turns out... there really is a city like the one in the simulation in this world," Clyde murmured.

"What’s life like inside, I wonder? Is it just like our everyday routine?" Casca asked.

"Who knows... we’ll find out once we get there, won’t we?" Craig replied.

"The real question is... how do we get in? Do we stop in one of the small surrounding towns? It’s not like we can land right in the middle of the city using Chimaera Z-X, right?" Celes asked.

"Hmm... you’re right. We should stop first, keep our distance for now, and survey the situation," Clyde said.

"Okay... let’s stop... Brother Craig, please bring us to a stop," Corie said, reaching a hand forward.

"Got it... stopping now," Craig replied.

Chimaera Z-X came to a halt, hovering upright in mid-air, still positioned very far from the network of cities making up Utopia ahead. The five of them deliberated as they studied the geographical terrain covering the entire region. Celes spread her hands to enlarge the holographic display showing satellite imagery of the landscape, making it easy to examine what lay around the city.

Meanwhile, Corie zoomed in on the monitor showing the city’s interior to see what was going on inside, but as the screen expanded,

"Huh... wow... I can’t believe it," Corie blurted out suddenly.

Clyde, Celes, Craig, and Casca turned to look at the screen Corie had enlarged. They froze in instant shock, just like Corie. The reason was that the inhabitants living in the metropolis and its surrounding smaller towns were astonishingly diverse, there were tall individuals with blue skin, others with four angelic wings who stood slightly taller than humans, and beings with animal faces like wolves, tigers, and bears set upon fur-covered bodies.

There were normal humans, individuals with antennae and ant-like eyes, fairy-like beings with butterfly wings, short green-skinned creatures with pointed ears slanting upward, and others with snake-like lower bodies or horse torsos. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Yet despite their diversity, they appeared to socialize seamlessly without barriers or discrimination at a glance, dressed in modern attire such as suits, collared shirts, ties, blazers, skirts, jeans, and the like. Farmers wore farming clothes and fishermen wore high rubber boots with overalls, while numerous large ships and fishing boats could be seen sailing back and forth in the ocean.

Meanwhile in the city, many were working in offices, holding meetings, typing on laptops, and talking on smartphones, a completely mundane existence just like the one they had known inside the simulation.

"So that’s what demi-humans look like?" Casca asked.

"Wow... this is seriously wow... weird, but cool... just, wow," Craig said without blinking.

"This is my first time seeing humans who aren’t human... there are even beasts standing on two legs, and insects... or ants... absolutely mind-blowing," Clyde muttered, dazed.

"Is life in the simulation just like that city? When I went in to rescue Craig, everything inside was already apocalyptic," Celes asked Clyde behind her.

"Yeah... a boring, everyday life, but... peaceful," Clyde answered.

"Oh... I see. I’ve never experienced that," Celes replied, looking down.

"Now you get to," Clyde replied with a smile, reaching forward to gently cup Celes’s cheek.

"Yeah... you’re right. Thank you, Clyde," Celes replied, resting her hand over Clyde’s on her cheek with a smile.

"So where are we landing?" Corie asked.

They looked back at the screen Celes had enlarged, and Clyde’s eyes caught sight of a small town tucked further away at the foot of a mountain, with a road connecting it directly to the access highway of the ocean metropolis. The terrain at the base of the mountain was forested and appeared quiet, a perfect spot to hide Chimaera Z-X and disguise it as a cliff or mountain face.

"We’re going there," Clyde said, pointing to the small town that appeared to be filled with farmland.

"Got it... heading there now," Craig said.

"Agreed... but don’t we need to check out the big city too?" Casca asked.

"I want to hang out in the city too! I want to see what’s over there," Corie added.

"Sigh... we’ll drop by the city later. The main priority right now is landing first," Clyde replied.

"That’s right, I want to see those cities too, I’ve never seen a city like that before. But we have to secure Chimaera Z-X first, and besides... it’s already late afternoon, almost night," Celes added.

"Alright... Craig, please head for the mountains on the right," Clyde said.

"Roger that... moving out," Craig replied enthusiastically.

Chimaera Z-X shot toward the mountains on the right, heading for the small town situated there. That night, a pickup truck coming from the mountains pulled into the town. Once inside, the vehicle stopped briefly on the side of the road. "Thud!" Clyde, Celes, Craig, Casca, and Corie jumped down from the truck bed. The driver opened the left door and stepped out, a somewhat chubby, blue-skinned man wearing a white t-shirt, jeans, and a towel draped around his neck.

"So where are you kids headed?" the driver asked.

"We’ll get off here, Mister. We’ll look for an inn. Thanks again," Clyde answered politely.

"Alright. Be careful next time, don’t go into the forest alone, and don’t cross the wall boundary. There are plenty of wild beasts out there that make people vanish without a trace. And don’t you dare go near that mansion out there, it’s haunted and dangerous," the driver advised them.

"Yes, Mister, we understand. We’re from Neo Ark and wanted to sightsee, but ended up getting lost here," Clyde lied smoothly.

"This is why I don’t really like tourists. You come into someone else’s town and act like it’s just like back home... ah well, there’s an inn up ahead. Just be careful next time, alright?" the driver grumbled.

"Yes, Mister. Thank you for your help," Clyde said.

"I’m heading off now, it’s late. Don’t worry, this town is safe, no crooks like in the big city, but still, watch yourselves," the driver replied, turning back.

"Alright, Mister. Get home safely," Clyde said.

The driver raised his hand, climbed back into the truck, and drove off, leaving behind the five teenagers dressed in Neo Ark military uniforms with their hoods up by the roadside. Once the truck had driven far ahead, Celes, Casca, Craig, and Corie turned to stare at Clyde,

"What?" Clyde asked.

"His skin was blue, his body was huge and chubby, totally unlike a human... how could you act so casual, Big Brother?" Casca asked, bewildered.

"Yeah... I couldn’t even bring myself to say anything," Craig added.

"How could you interact so normally like that, Big Brother? What’s your secret?" Corie asked, puzzled.

"You really are reliable, Clyde, hehe," Celes added, nudging Clyde’s side with her elbow.

"You guys are focusing way too much on differences. That mister found us near that mansion, didn’t he? If not for him, we wouldn’t have been able to make it to town on foot," Clyde replied.

"But what was he doing at that mansion where we left Chimaera Z-X anyway? Didn’t he say it was haunted?" Craig asked.

"Ah... he was just trying to scare us since we looked like tourists," Clyde answered casually.

"There were rifles, camera gear, climbing equipment, and traps back there with us in the truck... it seems he was a hunter or a climber," Celes analyzed, lost in thought.

"Maybe he was investigating a mystery or something? He was streaming right before he ran into us watching him because he looked strange, wasn’t he?" Corie asked.

"Seems like it. Ah... it feels so good to be back in normal life. Even if it’s strange... it’s still normal," Casca added.

"Enough of that, let’s walk... we’re heading to the inn... but there’s one problem," Clyde said.

"What problem?" Celes asked.

"Does anyone have money? Because I don’t," Clyde asked.

Upon hearing Clyde’s words, the expressions on the faces of Celes, Craig, Casca, and Corie instantly shifted, staring back at Clyde as if asking, "Why are you only telling us now that we don’t have money? That’s a huge problem."