CHAPTER 66: SMUGGLERS (1)

Conversations and idle chatter accompanied their journey through the wilderness.

Where they were, there were no roads, no buildings just untouched, raw nature.

Once they crossed the border, they walked for hours without the slightest sign of civilization.

When night fell, they set up a temporary camp in an open area.

Around one of the campfires built by the candidates, Elizir, Lucy, Fidri Costa, and Gracia Snowtail had gathered to talk while eating their survival rations.

Gracia looked out at the sprawling camp, then declared,

"Starting tomorrow, I’ll scout ahead on my own."

There were several thousand of them participating in this diplomatic mission, which greatly slowed their pace. That’s why everyone nodded in agreement with her suggestion.

"Alright, give me your contact info," she added, raising her phone.

When Elizir moved to input his, Gracia pulled the phone away and handed it to Lucy instead.

Once Lucy entered her number, Gracia walked off to a quiet corner.

---

At sunrise, Gracia was nowhere to be found. She had left camp before dawn.

The candidates dismantled their tents, loading them on their backs along with rations and weapons.

After the group had walked several kilometers, Lucy received a text from Gracia, saying she had found the first signs of local inhabitants.

Lucy informed the others, and they made their way to the location Gracia had indicated.

Before their eyes stood a charred, abandoned village.

In Gracia’s absence, Fidri took the lead for the candidates in charge of internal affairs.

"Let’s try to find as much information as we can in the ruins."

At her orders, everyone began scouring every inch of the area.

Unfortunately, the village looked like it had been burned down years ago.

The only clues they found were old hoes, shovels, and other primitive tools once used for farming.

Eventually, after collecting everything they could, they concluded that the villagers had lived a medieval-style life.

"We shouldn’t be far from a town, according to Gracia. And remember, we must avoid causing trouble with the locals," Lucy reminded them once more before they left the village and resumed their march.

---

At sunset, as fatigue began to wear down the non-awakened,

Elizir ordered the group to form ranks to make a majestic entrance and impress the peasants.

"We should reach the city tonight. First impressions matter. If we show up looking pathetic, they won’t take us seriously. Make an impact. Show them our strength."

The candidates were already imagining themselves sleeping in proper beds and eating something other than military rations.

But Lucy warned them:

"If we enter like this, they might see us as enemies."

"What are you talking about? We’re coming as friends," Elizir reminded her.

"Even if that’s true, these people know nothing about our era. That’s what Gracia told me in a message.

Apparently, there’s something strange about this city. We shouldn’t barge in until she contacts us again."

"What does she mean by ’something strange’?" Elizir asked, puzzled.

Lucy shook her head.

"I don’t know. That’s all she said."

Elizir sulked for a moment, then reluctantly agreed to delay his glorious entrance.

"Fine. We’ll set up camp a little farther out, until she gives us the signal. But she better hurry we don’t have time to waste on a hunch."

Lucy almost laughed at his attitude.

("What kind of prince is this?") she thought.

---

That night, as promised, Gracia returned to share what she had learned about the city.

"Spit it out already. Don’t drag this out," grumbled Elizir, woken up against his will.

Gracia stared at him briefly before speaking.

"This country is called the Kingdom of Eternitì. As you probably guessed from the village ruins, the people here don’t know anything about modern technology. They live like it’s the Middle Ages."

Fidri nodded. That matched their findings.

"This city’s no exception. It’s the same throughout the kingdom: people live as if scientific progress never existed."

"If that’s all you had to say, why stop us? By now, they’d have welcomed us like nobles if we showed them something as simple as a phone or mayonnaise," Elizir complained again.

"I think you should let her finish," Fidri cut in, thinking to herself:

("Does he think he’s in an isekai or something?")

"What’s strange about this city," Gracia continued,

"is that there are no awakened people. Not a single one. And the townspeople seem completely unaware of the existence of ether."

"How is that even possible? The Order doesn’t provide serum to unaffiliated nations. So how did these peasants avoid awakening once they reached adulthood?"

For once, Rizel asked a relevant question.

But none of them had an answer. A heavy silence followed, until

"Smuggling," said Fidri Costa, taking off his top hat, as if remembering something painful.

"It’s possible that smugglers are delivering serum to this nation of Eternitì... And they’re definitely not amateurs."

No one missed the pain in his voice.

Lucy wanted to ask why it sounded so personal, but figured everyone has their secrets. She chose to respect his.

Gracia, out of tact, kept her questions to herself as well.

Unfortunately, not everyone had that kind of sensitivity.

"You talk like you’ve been in the same position as these peasants. Were you a victim of smugglers?" Elizir asked bluntly, without filter.

Both girls shot him a glare, cursing his lack of tact.

Fidri sighed, then began telling his story.

"A long time ago, I was indeed caught up in that kind of smuggling. In my case, it was because I was poor.

In my home country, the Republic of Flowers, those who fail to pay their taxes lose their citizenship. And without citizenship, you can’t buy anything from pharmacies.

In that situation, you had two options:

Try to awaken. If you survived, you’d join the army as an Enforcer and earn your keep...

Or get serum through shady channels.

I chose the second option.

And while I was receiving daily doses of serum, one day they knocked on my door... with a massive debt.

The serum I’d been taking cost ten times more than what pharmacies charged.

They gave me two choices: pay upfront, or work off the debt... for the rest of my life."

Fidri spoke with his head lowered, eyes distant, as if reliving the trauma.

"How did you escape? I mean... since you’re here today?" Elizir asked, visibly moved.

Fidri smiled.

"I gathered my courage. I couldn’t take the jobs they forced on me anymore.

I secretly stopped taking their serum and buried myself somewhere, to protect my body while I underwent awakening. Once I became an Enforcer..."

He lifted his hat like a magician.

"I took off, far from those crooks for good, swearing one day I’d make them pay.

Then came the Order’s examination this time without the exorbitant costs... and here I am."

He bowed like a performer, and paper butterflies flew out of his hat.