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Chapter 297: Trade City Zeronoa

<Good evening!>

<Evening〜>

<Hello there>

<Been looking forward to this>

<Woohoo!>

<It’s already evening, huh?>

After an uneventful afternoon spent mostly sleeping, Rin-chan and I, as promised, resumed streaming around 6 PM.

Well, I guess Rin-chan probably just took a nap before this.

“First up, let’s talk about Zeronoa.”

As usual, I didn’t know much about the city until the last minute, but I did a bit of research on Zeronoa’s main features.

The biggest characteristic of Zeronoa is its central role in trade between the “Empire” and the “Kingdom.”

The Melshtiv Empire, with its capital in Fias, and the Kingdom across the sea… I forgot its name, but it’s called the “Kingdom.”

Normally, Zeronoa would be squarely within the Empire’s territory, but due to its nature, it also serves as a buffer zone in politics and commerce for both countries.

<I see>

<Sounds like you got this straight from Wiki>

<Kingdom, huh>

<There’s a sea in this world>

<Being a trade center means lots of NPC shops, right?>

<That’s why there are checkpoints>

“What’s intriguing is why Zeronoa, an inland city and the 6th town, is the trade center, instead of the 7th to 10th towns on this side of the continent.”

<True>

<Only goes up to the 10th town>

<If it’s across the sea, you’d expect ports to be the hubs>

<If the 10th is by the sea, isn’t this really inland?>

“Yeah, that’s the thing… Rin-chan, do you know?”

“The 7th city, Sefira, is a holy city. It belongs to the Creator God Iris, so it’s a neutral area where neither the Empire nor the Kingdom can interfere. The 8th city is in a large forest. It’s a place where various subhuman species divide their territories, so it’s fine for travel, but humans can’t claim commercial rights there.”

“What about the other cities?”

“The 9th city, according to stories, was destroyed long ago. It used to be an underground city, but now it’s a den of the undead.”

“Oh… Maybe it was destroyed in the Apostles’ Extermination War?”

“We don’t know the details, but based on what we know, that’s the most likely.”

<Is there really a destroyed city in the main storyline?>

<The 8th city is a haven for people with animal ears…!?>

<↑Don’t get your hopes up (seriously)>

<Really want to see the holy city>

<It feels so transient>

<With monsters like that attacking, some cities just can’t be saved>

<The thought of an underground city with no escape is sad>

The fact that the 9th city had already been destroyed was quite a shock.

And the elements of an underground city and the undead are intriguing.

Regarding the 10th town, it’s a port city at the edge of the continent, right? Just like everyone says, a key place for trade, I guess?

“Yeah, it seems to be a port town. But first off, not many people can reach the 10th town. Beyond Sephira, it’s a world where encountering monsters with guaranteed levels over 100 is the norm.”

“Ah… right, if there are no customers, it’s not much use, huh?”

“That’s the thing. Griffiths is a mining city, not very pretty, and they can’t just let a bunch of foreigners into the imperial capital either. Zeronoa ended up being the best for trade, being a town with a decent number of strong NPCs, not too far from the imperial capital. By the way, the goods are magically transported from the 10th town.”

“So there’s a reason for it.”

“And then there’s the holy city, which seems to be more of a city than we thought, so maybe it’s catering to the needs of Sephira’s general populace too.”

“Hmm?”

<I kind of figured it out.>

<Religion, huh?>

<Speaking of which, what’s the religion in this world called?>

<↑There’s no specific name. If anything, it’s like a unified religion or Iris religion.>

<Sad current state of Griffiths, getting dissed without any particular reason.>

<Given it’s a mining district, dust and ash are inevitable.>

“Well, whatever. The procedures are all done, so we can enter anytime, right?”

“Yes. I did the paperwork when I first came, and Nana got it just before we started.”

“Alright, let’s first go see what Zeronoa is like.”

☆

Most of the towns in WLO, when viewed from above, are roughly circular.

There are some irregularities on the edges or sections sticking out, but the layout with walls to prevent monster invasions and gates on all sides remains the same.

Even Est=Trillia, which sank to the bottom of a lake, followed this pattern, so I guess it’s the typical town structure in this world.

Naturally, Zeronoa also follows this basic shape, but its structure is a bit different from other towns.

Specifically, it has about three levels of varying height inside.

Lower, middle, and upper layers.

Each layer is about 10 meters high, with sections where the height changes significantly within the town.

It’s like, imagine extending a baton, that kind of feel.

The inner parts are higher and narrower, the outer parts lower and wider. So, from a distance, you can catch glimpses of the upper parts of the town.

“The lower layer mainly has warehouses and inns. The residential area starts from the middle layer, and the upper layer is the so-called ‘market’. Most residents live in the middle layer, so it’s not about class or status, just a division based on roles.”

“The middle layer being the widest feels kind of fresh. And there’s a wall between the lower and middle layers, huh?”

When you enter, there’s a landscape that you can’t see from the outside.

Setting aside what kind of buildings each layer has, there are walls not only in the lower layer but also in the middle layer.

However, compared to the outer walls in the lower layer, they’re about half as high and look quite worn. More weathered with age than physically destroyed.

“It seems the town originally only had the middle and upper layers. Basically, the lower layer was added later.”

“Added later?”

“Zeronoa is near a volcano, right? Apparently, it used to erupt regularly, and the lava flows reached here. After repeated eruptions and disasters, the landscape changed significantly, and now it’s not a problem anymore.”

“That explains why it looks so old. It’s a remnant of the past.”

What was the name of the volcano near Zeronoa that Haruru mentioned? Right, the <Dos Orca Active Volcano>, I think.

I don’t know much about that field rumored to be inhabited by black wolves, but it seems it used to be a major threat to the town of Zeronoa.

Leaving history aside, it’s really become a city of trade now, hasn’t it?

“Sure has. …But still, it’s a bit… you know.”

“Come on, I was trying to ignore it~”

<LOL>

<Yeah, it’s impossible not to notice.>

<It’s really creepy.>

While I was getting a casual tour from Rin-chan about the town of Zeronoa, trying to keep the mood light, it was no use. They’re here. Everywhere I look, there are two or three of them. Those girls affected by the anomaly are all over the place, hard to ignore.

“So this is the anomaly…”

“The fact that the townspeople aren’t reacting much probably means it’s not the first time something like this has happened.”

<This happening regularly would be too much.>

<Some people are surprised, others aren’t.>

<Has anyone found the real one yet?>

“From what I saw before I started, not yet.”

“I’ve told the maid at home (our girl) to send updates as they come, so it seems there’s nothing new for now.”

“Wait, you have her on standby for this?”

“Of course, I’m paying her overtime.”

<This is getting real.>

<Takajou family pays well, I heard.>

<I saw a leak once about an hourly wage of 10,000 yen.>

<Are there no maids for the night shift?>

“Night shift workers have their own night shift duties.”

“The main house is so big, there aren’t many spare hands~”

But leaving the Takajou family’s employment details aside.

“Let’s head to the market area for now. We can’t do much in a place like this anyway.”

“Yeah, higher ground is always better.”

Investigating the anomaly is certainly today’s main goal, but to do that, we first need to secure a proper location.

Might as well do some window shopping in the market before that.

<Are you planning something?>

<Suspicious…>

“Well, it’s nothing too big. The investigation seems to be stalled, so we’re just going to push ahead with a bit of brute force.”

<I see (but not really).>

<I got it.>

<I kind of get it, but please don’t push yourself too hard.>

<Don’t fall asleep on us again.>

“Haha, no worries, I slept all afternoon today.”

That’s why I ended the stream early this morning.

This time, I’m going to make full use of my “ears.”

I’ll simultaneously grasp the entirety of this Zeronoa town and smoke out the real one’s location.