CHAPTER 285: UNKNOWN CITY

Three of them exited the enclosed wall through the path the officer had indicated. Seraphine walked in silence, her thoughts turning over the evening’s events. Despite Loriel’s immature behavior—which sometimes made her want to smack the girl—she had to acknowledge that Loriel wasn’t entirely useless.

She did lead us to the middle domain, Seraphine admitted internally. Without her navigation, we would have taken longer to arrive.

Not that they couldn’t have managed it themselves. Seraphine was confident they would have reached the middle domain eventually—after all, no monster in that mist had posed a real challenge to either her or Leon. The fog creatures had been little more than training dummies, dispatched with casual ease.

But Loriel had saved them time. That was worth something.

And the confrontation at the gate—those guards with their strange stick-like weapons that weren’t even sharp, yet everyone treated them with deadly seriousness—that situation had been defused because of Loriel’s status and quick thinking. Well, panicked thinking, but it had worked.

I’ll give her credit for this, Seraphine decided. In my mind. Not outright.

As they emerged fully from the wall’s shadow, the landscape opened up before them. They stood atop a hill, and the view it offered made even Seraphine pause in genuine appreciation.

Below, in the distance, a sprawling city stretched across the valley. Despite the late hour—the moon hanging high and bright in the sky—the civilization glowed with countless lights. Buildings were illuminated from within, streets were alive with movement, and the entire scene pulsed with activity that spoke of a people who didn’t sleep when darkness fell.

It was beautiful. Vibrant. Alive in a way that transcended mere survival.

Just like Earth, Leon thought, a pang of nostalgia hitting him unexpectedly. The sight reminded him of cities from his previous life—metropolitan areas that never truly slept, where night was just another time for business and life to continue.

For Seraphine, the experience was entirely different. She had seen cities before, of course. The capital of her kingdom, various settlements across the lower domain. But nothing quite like this. The sheer scale, the concentration of light and activity—it was magnificent.

"Shouldn’t people be sleeping at such an hour?" Seraphine voiced her confusion, genuinely puzzled by the bustling activity below.

Loriel’s entire posture changed. Her chest puffed out with visible pride, clearly delighted to finally have knowledge that was useful. "This is completely normal! Awakeners at higher ranks need far less sleep than regular people. Some can go days without rest. That could be part of the reason for the activity."

She paused dramatically, as if delivering profound wisdom. "But the main reason is simply that this is how life works even in our domain. It’s been like this for as long as I can remember. People work, trade, and live at all hours." Then she added with a dismissive wave, "Though honestly, this city seems rather shabby compared to what we have in my domain."

Seraphine ignored the boastful look on Loriel’s face, unimpressed by the comparison. Everything is ’better in her domain’ apparently. But internally, curiosity stirred. Still, I would like to see what she’s talking about someday.

Leon found Loriel’s explanation quite reasonable. In a world where power determined so much, it made sense that sleep requirements would diminish with strength. And in a society where a significant portion of the population possessed such power, city rhythms would naturally adapt.

"Loriel," Leon said, his tone casual but expectant. "Where are we? You should know."

Loriel replied with complete nonchalance, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "We’re at the gate that leads to the lower domain."

Leon’s eye twitched slightly. "Yes. I’m aware of that. I was asking which specific place we’re in within the middle domain."

"Oh." Loriel blinked. "I don’t know."

The answer was so matter-of-fact that it took a moment to register. Leon stared at her for a long second, his expression carefully neutral. "How do you not know? You traveled from the higher domain through the middle domain to reach the lower domain. You must have passed through here."

"Well, yes," Loriel admitted, looking slightly embarrassed now. "But it was my first time ever coming to the middle domain. My master and I didn’t stay even for a day. We came directly to this gate and entered the lower domain immediately. She probably knows where we are, but I..." She trailed off with a helpless shrug. "I have no idea."

Both Leon and Seraphine shared a simultaneous thought, their mental voices overlapping perfectly: Loriel is rather useless now.

Leon decided to try one more angle. "Is there anything—anything at all—you know about the middle domain? Any information would be helpful."

Loriel’s face scrunched up with intense concentration. Her brow furrowed, her eyes narrowed, and she bit her lower lip as she searched her memories desperately for something, anything that might be useful.

Silence stretched out. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes.

Four full minutes of absolute quiet passed, broken only by the distant sounds of the city below and the night wind rustling through grass.

Finally, Loriel spoke with complete seriousness. "Nothing. I know nothing."

Leon sighed so heavily it seemed to deflate his entire chest. "Fine. Just stay alert from now on. We’re heading down to that city below."

Instead of looking for a conventional path—the switchback trails that probably wound down the hillside—Leon walked directly to the cliff’s edge. The drop was significant, at least a hundred meters of sheer rock face leading down to the valley floor.

Seraphine followed without hesitation or question. She knew exactly what was about to happen. She’d experienced Leon’s method of descent before, though this particular cliff was smaller than some they’d tackled together.

Loriel wanted to speak up. She could clearly see tracks off to the side that probably indicated a safe path down. But embarrassment kept her mouth shut. After proving how utterly useless she’d been with her lack of knowledge, she didn’t want to seem cowardly on top of everything else.

My luck and my lies are the only reasons I’m still with them, she thought miserably. I’ll take that secret to my grave.

At the cliff’s edge, Leon wrapped his arm around Seraphine’s waist with practiced ease. The gesture was intimate and casual at once, speaking of many previous occasions when they’d descended heights together.

"Ready?" Leon asked her, a small smile on his face.

Before Seraphine could respond, a panicked shriek cut through the night.

"WAIT!!!" Loriel’s voice cracked with genuine fear.

"How am I supposed to get down from here?! I can only use life element! I can’t jump from this height!"

Her mind raced through options. I could survive the fall with some light injuries. My healing should handle it. But I’d still get hurt! And pain is terrible! I hate pain! Jumping is absolutely not an option!

Leon paused, considering the problem for a moment. Then, almost casually, he extended his other arm and wrapped it around Loriel’s waist as well, pulling her close to his other side.

"Hold on tight," he instructed simply.

"This is undignified!" Loriel protested immediately, her face flushing bright red. "I can’t be held like—this is—you shouldn’t—"

But internally, her thoughts were completely different. Being held the same way as his woman... in his arms like this... this is so embarrassing but also...

Seraphine’s sharp eyes caught every micro-expression on Loriel’s face, reading the truth beneath the protests with ease. This girl is definitely interested in my Leon.