Chapter 57 - Chapter 57: Chapter 56 'Black River City” (Please Continue Reading)

Chapter 57: Chapter 56 “Black River City” (Please Continue Reading)

Translator: 549690339

“So it really is related to the Black Serpent Clan?”

Milton Cheney initially thought that this man was ostensibly linking himself to the clan to save his life, but it turned out to be genuinely connected to the Black Serpent Clan.

Milton’s hands toyed with a shiny black badge bearing the emblem of two intertwined snakes.

This emblem was familiar to him; it was the family crest of the Black Serpent

Clan.

“Does the Black Serpent Clan also indulge in banditry and robbery?”

Milton muttered to himself, however, he did not feel any strong emotions about it.

He just hadn’t expected the Black Serpent Clan to rear such a gang of useless bandits who made their living through road robberies.

Milton looted a fair amount of wealth from these men, concluding without a doubt that this wasn’t their first time committing such an act, considering the fluency of their pleas for mercy.

Though he didn’t believe the Black Serpent Clan would retaliate, even if he killed them, since they didn’t have any official knights.

Milton didn’t think the Black Serpent Clan could trace him here, considering his location in the wastelands and the vast distance he was from the clan’s core territory.

He managed to dispose of the dead bodies in a casual manner, then remounted the Yellow Fiery Horse.

The silhouette of Black River City began to appear before Milton’s eyes, the stupendous city walls appeared grand from afar.

“Finally, Black River City!”

His memory of the Kingdom Map confirmed that this was indeed Black River City.

“Such a multitude of people!”

Milton rode the Yellow Fiery Horse closer to the city gate along the main path.

At first glance, there were at least hundreds of people lined up to enter the city.

“Dismount, routine inspection.”

Hearing the guard’s words, Milton dismounted the horse.

Then, he found out why so many people were lining up and why it took so long for him to enter the city – the inspection for entering the city was extremely tedious.

The expressions of the Town Guard in front of him became grim.

The guard was frustrated, he had been hinting for a while, but the boy before him didn’t have the faintest clue.

Did the boy not notice, or had he not seen how the people before him acted while entering the city?

Frustrated, he pointed to the Lionheart Sword hanging from Milton’s belt. “You can’t bring this into the city, leave it with me temporarily!”

As he finished speaking, he reached for the knight sword hung at Milton’s waist.

However, the next moment, his wrist was gripped by Milton’s hand, causing him to feel intense pain.

“I haven’t heard of a rule in Black River City that forbids carrying weapons.” Milton frowned as he spoke.

The Town Guard quickly realized what was happening. As a guard of Black River City, his insight was not weak.

He was a Knight Apprentice Level, and the fact that he couldn’t resist while his wrist was seized indicated that Milton was not someone he could mess with.

He was just a common town guard; there were too many people he couldn’t afford to offend.

Moreover, Milton wasn’t a citizen of Blackwater Territory, who knows what kind of noble identity he possessed. Arguing with him would not benefit the guard at all.

“Apologies, sir, please enter the city. But there’s a city entrance fee of a silver coin for outsiders.”

The Town Guard said while forcing a smile, taking care not to mention the weapon matter again.

Milton casually took out a silver coin from his purse and handed it over to the guard. He led the Yellow Fiery Horse into Black River City.

Watching Milton’s retreating figure, the guard’s smile disappeared from his face, replaced once again by his usual grim look.

He turned his head to the next person and said:

“Dismount, routine inspection!”

As he entered the city, the sight of Black River City unfolded before Milton’s eyes.

His first impression of the city was that it was dirty and disorderly.

The surroundings of the street were littered with garbage and it smelled terrible due to some puddles.

The townsfolk seemed to ignore the disorder as if they were used to it.

Right after Milton had entered the city, he observed an individual’s package being slit open without them realizing it.

Comparing it to Far East City would be a stretch, even Four Seasons City seemed several times cleaner than here.

“Why would a border city, which represents the facade of a territory and is as disgraceful and disorderly as this, be left unattended by the Black Serpent

Clan?”

Milton wondered to himself.

He well knew that a territory’s border city holds vital strategic and geographical importance.

The rulers often gave due importance to these border cities.

But Black River City did not seem to reflect that at all.

The whole city simply resembled an enlarged slum.

No wonder there were so many people entering the city and even more leaving it.

“Sir, you must be visiting Black River City for the first time. For three silver coins, I can serve as your guide here for the next few days.”

As Milton was surveying his surroundings, a skinny, dark-skinned boy approached him and offered his services.

Milton’s gaze shifted to the boy in front of him.

“How do you know I’m only staying in Black River City for a few days?”

“Sir, please, it’s evident you’re a nobleman. Surely you won’t be staying long in a place like Black River City. If you intend to settle in Blackwater Territory, I recommend Serpent Head City. It’s one of the biggest cities in the territory and is more suitable for living.”

Arthur responded, not attempting to hide the longing in his voice when he mentioned Serpent Head City.

Milton casually pulled out three silver coins and handed them to Arthur. Seeing the silver coins, Arthur’s eyes lit up, and he hastily pocketed the coins.

“Give me a brief introduction to Black River City.”

Milton spoke softly while Arthur eagerly nodded.

“As you can see, sir, Black River City is dirty and disorderly. It’s rumored that the Earl of Blackwater, Earl Black Serpent, has given up on this city.”

“Sir, I noticed that you had a dispute with the Town Guard at the city gates earlier?”

Upon reaching this point, Arthur instinctively lowered his voice.

Before Milton responded, he continued, “Sir, I know you must be of significant status, but in Black River City, the last people you’d want to cross are the Town Guards. They are the biggest tyrants in the city, some even say…”

At this point, Arthur suddenly clammed up, as though he realized he had said too much.

“The biggest tyrants? So, there are smaller ones?”

Milton became interested and asked.

“There are. The Vine Tavern in the eastern part of the city and the Hunters Club in the west are places to be wary of, especially the Hunters Club. It’s said to be a branch of the Royal City Hunting Mansion.”

When his employer showed interest, Arthur didn’t hesitate to reveal everything he knew to Milton.

Arthur’s brief explanation gave Milton a rough idea about the power distribution in Black River City.

“First, help me find a place to keep my horse, then take me to a place to stay. The place should be the best available, the rest about Black River City, we can talk about it on the way.”

Milton softly commanded. Arthur hastily nodded and led the way.

All the while, ensuring to share everything he knew or could tell about Black River City with Milton.

“Sir, Black River City is the remotest city in Blackwater Territory, there’s…”

Listening to Arthur’s words, Milton slowly formed an image of Black River City in his mind.

If he had to describe Black River City in one word.

It would have been ‘chaos’!

The situation of a place far from the Emperor’s reach was extremely evident in Black River City, located on the edge of Blackwater Territory..