Chapter 1338 - 573: Laine, the Hot Commodity

Chapter 1338: Chapter 573: Laine, the Hot Commodity

The night of Imperial Capital Brunswick is solemn. Under the dim lights, the entire city is in a state of curfew. Patrol teams, Witch Hunters, Ascetic Monks, Combat Priests, and Paladins almost never cease their back-and-forth through the streets, loudly reciting various announcements and notices.

Brunswick’s night is also quiet, so quiet that apart from the sound of the Rick River flowing, almost nothing else can be heard. The extreme prosperity and bustling noise of the day seem to transform into a different world.

This is due to the strict curfew of Emperor Karl Franz. Because beneath the night of this city, nobody knows what lurks. This city, the greatest in human history, has long grown overcrowded beyond its capacity. Humans have been accumulating here for two thousand years, starting to build tribes amidst countless external enemies to protect themselves.

In fact, Brunswick always opens its doors to all citizens of the Empire. As long as they complete identification by the gate guards, anyone, whether an Empire citizen or even from Brittania, Tiriel, Estalia, or the Border Prince’s Domain, can enter the heart of the Empire. This city, like when Charlemagne rose in the Old World two thousand years ago, welcomes everyone with the most open attitude.

Thus, when the Hilvanian Prince-Elector (controversial), first Vampire Count Vlad von Castain attacked Brunswick, the refugee queue once stretched several hundred kilometers long, with all refugees eager to enter Brunswick for shelter.

However, if one thinks Brunswick is a paradise for opportunists, dream-filled youths, and those fleeing troubles, they are gravely mistaken.

Indeed, Brunswick opens its doors to all humans, but guilds and schools within the city control the best jobs and salaries, making it difficult for those who are not nobles to gain entry. Survivors in Brunswick’s citizen registry, who spend half their lives striving for the city, can tell you about the hardships of life. The vast majority often rely on their hands to find a subsistence job, live in crowded apartments with eight people or even in dormitory basements, under a 996 working system.

(On Sundays, there is no work but half the day is spent in worship. Generally speaking, those without faith are easily mistaken as Chaos Cultists, so everyone at least claims to believe in some officially recognized deity, whether pseudo-believers or general believers is another matter.)

The lowest-tier workers often have to toil for over ten years, with a small portion of lucky ones able to become skilled workers, artisans, or foremen, then continue striving for marriage, childbirth, and new life goals.

It is precisely because of this that various guilds emerged. Empire laws grant citizens the freedom to associate, leading to the birth of numerous guilds in the city. With the guilds’ existence, those helpless refugees and opportunity-seeking youths find life goals and identities. The guilds’ emergence replaced the old family system, giving workers a sense of belonging. Yet, this also exponentially increased the difficulty for Demon Hunters, Paladins, and Combat Priests to clear Chaos Cults. As Brunswick’s guilds are far too numerous and varied, distinguishing good from bad becomes difficult. Additionally, due to the Chaos Cult’s particularity, even cultists of the same Evil God constantly fight each other. Under such circumstances, the difficulty of identifying Chaos Cults is extremely high.

Luckily, due to the Archbishop kidnapping incident two years ago, Justice Archbishop Vikma the Resolute purged the entire slum in anger, following the clues to discover many traces of Chaos Sects, which were then cleansed. Now the activities of evil cults have at least subsided or hidden into the shadows.

In these two years, the Empire enjoys a precious era of peace.

Inside the private banquet hall of the Imperial Palace, Emperor Karl Franz hosts the Empire’s core and most powerful individuals to jointly discuss the series of political changes in the Knight Kingdom.

In the brilliantly illuminated palace banquet hall, the long table is filled with various dishes. Under the royal chef’s careful cooking, the dishes appear particularly delicious, embodying the rich characteristics of Rick Territory.

What are Rick Territory characteristics?

Rick cuisine has a heavy taste, preferring pork, beef, liver, spices, fish, poultry, and vegetables. Condiments use large amounts of mustard, white wine, and butter, while cooking mostly involves boiling, stewing, or braising, especially famous are "Sour Beef", "Rick Sauerkraut", "Tartar Steak", "Pig’s Hoof Hotpot".

Yet most famous are Rick Territory’s various hams, red sausages, and sausages. Today’s dining table features the most known "Black Forest Ham" and "Brunswick Sausage", with several types of sausages paired with royal supply malt beer "Koben’s Finest" and soft, delicious wheat bread. This makes up the highest-level palace banquet.

Sitting in the main seat, Emperor Karl Franz lifts his beer cup, taking a full drink of dark beer. Currently just over forty, the Emperor is at the peak beginning of a Legendary Powerhouse. He always wears a cheerful smile on his face, a smile easily makes one feel close.

Whether facing Prince-Electors, facing subordinate bureaucrats, facing the Empire’s soldiers, or those lowly commoners in Brunswick’s slum, the Emperor always wears a smile, neither humble nor arrogant: "So, Laine Macado succeeded. He has recaptured Musillon. He is about to become the King across the mountains."