Nathan raised his head as he, Sera, and Flora had arrived at Conwell City, where the Blacksmith Guild headquarters was located.
The first thing he saw was none other than the giant pavilion that seemed to reach at least twenty floors.
“Woah?” Nathan thought, ‘Skyscraper? Twenty floors, so about a hundred meters (328 feet) high?’
“That’s the engineering marvel. The Blacksmith Guild headquarters. It’s said that it’s built two hundred years ago and has undergone a lot of renovation to ensure the stability of the structure,” Flora explained.
“That’s our destination, huh?”
“Yep. We are going to the 19th floor, which is one floor below the top one. Do you want to put down our luggage first, or should we head to the Blacksmith Guild first? Since Noelle has vouched for your ability, I’m thinking about giving you the command for this mission.
“I’m curious about the ability that Noelle regards so highly. Of course, I will do the talking and take over the command if necessary. What do you think?” Flora asked.
“Let’s put down our luggage first. It’s going to be a hassle to go that high with our luggage.”
“Alright.”
All of them headed to the Axia Inn to check in. Since the mission wasn’t related to bandits or anything that revolved around the intelligence network, they boldly came through the main entrance.
Flora used the special privilege given to the student council to get the best suite in the inn, which provided several rooms.
Nathan didn’t bring a lot, so he just tossed the bag next to his bed and came out, wanting to see the city.
Considering the Blacksmith Guild headquarters were here, the city looked more advanced than any other cities he had seen before.
‘Although it’s not as advanced as the modern world…’ Nathan looked around. ‘The structure, the road, and other vehicles are quite advanced. Have they made a steam engine or something? But since I don’t see any machines, I guess they haven’t.’
“A tourist? Are you sightseeing?” A guy with long blue hair walked out of the inn while lighting up his cigarette.
“Yeah. Everyone would like to see the marvelous engineering of this city at least once in their lives. It’s amazing.” Nathan nodded.
“Is that so? I have gone to this place multiple times. It has transformed a lot in the past few years.” The man smiled. “There are a lot of things you should try. Should I give you some suggestions?”
“It’s fine. I don’t want to trouble you. Besides, exploring this city without knowing anything sounds much more fun.” Read exclusive content at freewebnovel
“Hahaha. That definitely sounds fun. Alright. You won’t get anything from me. Still, you shouldn’t really be here for too long. I have heard that recently, this city is being cursed. There have been several incidents happening in the last few months.
“The earth is angry, so it shakes violently. If you look around the town, you will see a lot of cracks in the buildings. They look fine, but some are already crumbling. If this continues, that huge tower might end up falling.”
“Woah? That sounds ominous.” Nathan looked shocked. “The earth is shaking, huh? Is it happening only recently?”
“Yep. I don’t know the details, but the inn staff has told me to calm down if the earth is shaking again because their building can withstand it. However, it will cause some mess, so just call the staff when that happens.”
“Fair enough.” Nathan looked down, falling into deep thought. ‘Why do I feel the explanation is rather similar to something I’ve read in the past?’
“Anyway, I need to get going.” He straightened his back while extending his hand. “My name is Iskar. If we ever meet again somewhere, I will buy you a meal.”
“I’m Nathan. Haha. I should be the one buying you a meal. Thanks for the information.”
Iskar waved his hand and walked away.
Nathan looked down, trying to recall the information. However, Sera and Flora had appeared before he could gather his thoughts.
“Nathan. We’re done.”
“Sorry for the wait.”
“Should we head to the tower then?” Nathan nodded.
“Alright. Let’s go.”
All three of them walked toward the Blacksmith Guild. As he expected, the building was quite advanced. Although it was not as advanced as he originally thought, the building had an elevator.
It was a simple cube, like a cage instead of the interior he had seen on the Internet. In fact, this looked like an elevator inside a mine but was more neat and clean.
The staff guided them to the room of their destination.
The elder they had to meet this time looked like he was in his fifties. He was wearing a plain white shirt and long brown pants.
His room was a bit messy, which slightly surprised everyone.
“Sorry to let you see this mess. I haven’t really cleaned my office lately.”
“It’s fine, Mr. Thompson.” Flora nodded. “We are here for the mission, not to judge you.”
“Well, it’s just something that happened recently. I don’t know if you’ve heard about it from the city.”
“Do you mean the earth is shaking?”
“Yeah. They’re exaggerating, but it’s truly happening recently. However, you don’t have to worry. People are already investigating the causes, but because of that, we’re lacking in manpower.”
“So that’s why you want us to solve this problem?”
“Yep. North of this city, there is a mine over there. The location is only 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the border. Due to the sudden shake, the area is basically flooded with the rampaging aliens.
“They seem to be disturbed by the shaking as well. Or there might be the potential of a mutant alien that causes all this shaking.
“Hence, I would like you to investigate the mine.”
“Is the mine empty?” Flora asked.
He shook his head while taking out a letter. “No. There are a lot of people over there. If you need anything, just show this to the supervisor, and he will assist you.”
“I understand.”
“Still, be careful inside the mine. It’s going to be a bit dangerous if you enter the mine and the ground starts shaking. The mine might end up collapsing.”
“We will keep that in mind.”
Nathan remained silent this whole time. After all, he was still trying to figure out what was going on with this area.
What shocked him the most was what Thompson said next.
“Still, I wonder if the earth is alive and gets angry by moving themselves…’
‘Earth is moving… Isn’t this… Earthquake?’ Nathan just remembered the terminology. At the same time, the building suddenly shook.
“!!!”