Celestine led the group down a grand street, her pace graceful, each step imbued with confidence. The vivid lights of the screens reflected softly in her golden eyes, and though she remained composed, there was an unmistakable fondness in her expression.

Behind her, Ivan's gaze bounced around eagerly, drinking in the colorful sights. "It's just as amazing as they were yesterday." he whispered, his voice filled with an almost childish excitement.

Aria clung closely to Kaiser's side, her wide eyes soaking in the vibrant spectacle around her. "Kaiser, do you think we could get one of those big glowy screens in our rooms? Elsie would like it too, right?"

Elsie nodded enthusiastically, clapping her hands gently as if afraid the vision might shatter if she showed too much excitement. "Elsie thinks it would be great!"

Kaiser glanced at her briefly, giving only a slight nod. His eyes were distant, his expression guarded. He walked a few paces behind Celestine, maintaining his quiet authority despite the lively surroundings. Internally, however, his thoughts were elsewhere, working through questions and considerations far removed from the dazzling street.

The streets of the Southern Liberatorium were unlike anything Aria or Elsie had ever witnessed. The crowds moved steadily, chattering about their daily lives, tales, or quests they'd recently undertaken. Kaiser could hear snippets of conversation filtering through the noise.

"I just finished a Tale in the Eastern quarter," one man boasted proudly, adjusting the heavy sword strapped to his back.

Another voice, higher and younger, spoke with evident awe, "Did you see the recent Tale posted by the Sixth Hope? The reward is enough to buy half a district!"

But Kaiser's focus remained introspective, his eyes distant, fixed somewhere beyond the neon glow. The reaction of the two girls struck him as particularly amusing. Their excitement was palpable, yet curiously, the gigantic screens held only passing fascination for them.

Perhaps it was less a reflection on their ignorance, Kaiser mused, and more an indication of just how widespread these marvels had become. He pondered how even Aria, isolated as she had been at the edge of the known world, had at least some familiarity with these things. It spoke volumes about the reach of this world's technology and magic—far greater and more pervasive than he'd initially believed.

As they walked, Kaiser briefly recalled Mia's decision to stay behind at the mansion. She had seemed genuinely content there, preferring to remain comfortably secluded, insisting she would register herself at the guildhall later. Her gentle dismissal had prompted Kaiser to finally ask Celestine, plainly and without embarrassment, what exactly this "guildhall" was.

Celestine's explanation had been detailed yet clear. She'd spoken with pride, emphasizing that the guildhall was, without exaggeration, one of the most significant buildings within the Liberatorium. Every Liberatorium, massive as they were, was divided into multiple regions, each required by law and necessity to house no fewer than five guildhalls.

"The guildhall is the place," Celestine had told him with obvious affection, "Where people in need, the Crown, the Liberatorium itself, or even powerful Liberators, including the Hopes, post jobs, which we call Tales. These Tales can range from simple errands to world-changing missions. It's the backbone of how our entire society functions."

Kaiser had absorbed her words carefully, committing each detail to memory, as was his habit. He had grasped quickly that these "Tales" served as the primary currency by which Liberators earned their living, their prestige, and even their power. Moreover, anyone could post their own Tale, provided it met certain standards and gained approval from the Liberatorium.

Yet, Celestine had left him with a tantalizing hint, mentioning other, deeper purposes the guildhall served—ones she'd promised to explain only once they were standing before its great doors.

That promise had sparked a subtle curiosity within Kaiser, one he intended to satisfy soon enough. For now, though, his thoughts wandered to other matters. He noticed how none of the passersby had approached Celestine—not to beg for coin, nor to seek autographs or favors. Back in Nebrosa, he remembered bitterly, people had been far less reserved. He had scarcely been able to walk a single street without being accosted by peasants, beggars, and even ambitious knights looking to prove themselves to him.

He frowned thoughtfully. Were these people simply more civilized? Had Celestine's dignity and kindness inspired a respect that kept the crowd at bay? Perhaps it was both, he concluded. He found himself almost envious of the casual anonymity Celestine seemed to enjoy among her own people.

Elsie's excited chatter pulled him momentarily out of his thoughts. "Elsie heard that the Liberatorium has the best sweets! Elsie would love to try some!"

Aria immediately tugged at Kaiser's sleeve, her voice imploring, "Can we stop for sweets, Kaiser? Please, please, please, please, please?????"

Kaiser met her gaze, arching an eyebrow slightly. "Perhaps later, little spider," he replied quietly, not unkindly, "When we've concluded our business at the guildhall."

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Aria pouted theatrically but nodded obediently, clinging tighter to his arm. Celestine glanced back at the exchange, smiling gently at Kaiser's subtle display of affection, a warmth in her eyes acknowledging the depth beneath his icy exterior.

Celestine finally slowed her pace, glancing back at Kaiser as she indicated a large, impressive structure looming just ahead. "That's it," she announced, her voice tinged with a quiet pride. "The guildhall of the Central District. Our destination."

Kaiser followed her gaze, eyes narrowing slightly as he studied the grand building, its architecture blending traditional elegance with modern precision. Even from this distance, he could sense the sheer importance it held, not just as a place of commerce, but as a linchpin of society itself.

Aria gasped openly, pointing at the imposing structure with unabashed awe. "It's beautiful!"

Elsie giggled, her eyes lighting up like polished coins. "Elsie believes the guildhall will have everything we need and more! Riches, gold and lots of Sul!" She bounced on her toes, glancing at Celestine and Kaiser with a hopeful, mischievous grin. "Elsie will take all the quests if they let her. Perhaps there's a special reward for someone who does the most!"

Celestine laughed, shaking her head in amused resignation. She placed a gentle hand on Elsie's shoulder, as if to anchor her before she could run off and try to barter with the first official she saw. "One thing at a time, dear Elsie. If we walk out of there with the whole guild's treasury missing, I suspect they'll send every Liberator in the city after you."

Elsie only beamed wider, utterly undaunted. "Then Elsie will just have to become the richest and strongest of them all. No one will dare hunt her then hahaha!"

Ivan adjusted the pack on his shoulders, visibly nervous now that their destination had come clearly into view. "It's more intimidating than I imagined," he admitted sheepishly.

Celestine gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Ivan. The guildhall may look daunting, but it's there to help us. Think of it as the first step toward your own Tales, ones you'll one day tell proudly to your children."

Ivan blushed slightly but nodded eagerly, clearly bolstered by her words.

As they climbed the broad, timeworn steps toward the guildhall, Kaiser couldn't help but note the sheer number of young people gathered before its doors.

He paused a moment to take in the strange sight: so many youths adorned in armor that defied the drab discipline of any Nebrosan regiment. Each suit was distinct, some were fashioned of overlapping plates the color of iron bark or burnished copper, others laced with chain and leather, trimmed in colors as bold as any pennant. Most remarkable, nearly every armor bore small, glassy orbs set into the chest or shoulders, glowing faintly green. Here and there, Kaiser spotted rarer blue orbs, these clusters almost jealously guarded and worn with pride.

One young woman's mail was scalloped like the scales of a serpent, with a blue orb at her throat shining clear as a sapphire. Another youth, lean and sharp-eyed, wore a dark cuirass etched with leaf motifs and half a dozen green orbs banded around his arm like trophies. Others had bands of tiny green stones woven into their belts, or wore visors marked by a single, glimmering gem.

Kaiser took it in with a cool detachment, neither mocking nor admiring. In Nebrosa, such flamboyance would have been beaten out of a recruit by sundown, but here, every young Liberator looked as if they carried a small legend of their own.

Celestine noticed his gaze and offered a faint, knowing smile. "The younger Liberators are always a bit… theatrical," she whispered, a touch of affection in her tone. "Tales attract all kinds—scholars, wanderers, warriors, even a few actors."

Aria, for her part, was utterly starstruck. "Look! That guy has real wings, like a pigeon!!!" she gasped, tugging at Ivan's sleeve. His face was less impressed, but he still nodded in agreement.

Elsie, equally dazzled, clapped her hands in delight. "Elsie has never seen so many heroes in one place! Maybe Elsie will finally get shiny armor, too!"

Kaiser let the hum of excitement wash over him, feeling it settle into his bones in a way that was almost… soothing. There was a sharpness to this world, a readiness in its people that set it far apart from the stifling caution and tradition of old Nebrosa. Here, no one shied from ambition, and even children grew up hungry for greatness. He could respect that. He could admire it even.

For all the garishness, the colorful Sol Cores, the posturing and theater of it all—there was an honesty to the system. Here, strength wasn't hidden or inherited; it was earned, tested, and displayed for all to see. The Tales, these quests posted for all with courage enough to seize them, acted as a forge. They demanded risk, demanded growth, and made mediocrity a choice, not a sentence.

He thought of the Nebrosan courts, of years wasted in rooms thick with incense and fear, where every child of rank was coddled or crushed according to their parents' wishes, not their own merit. Here, a youth with a blade and enough will could leap over a hundred careful sons and daughters, carving their legend in daylight rather than shadow. The weak could die or fade, yes, but so too could the complacent. Mediocrity was, in truth, a fate worse than death.

The Liberatorium had found a brutal, beautiful way to avoid it. In forcing even the young to measure themselves, to fight and risk and learn the bitter cost of failure, they had built something more honest than any lineage or law. If a parent pushed their child here, it was to see them live beyond safety, beyond the fear of what might be lost. It was a world where the only true inheritance was what one could seize for themselves.

Kaiser felt something rare—a stirring of real comfort. Here, he would not have to pretend. Here, ambition was a virtue, and power was a promise kept only by the strong. It suited him, this world.

This, he thought, is how greatness is born. Not in secret, but in sunlight. Not behind closed doors, but beneath the gaze of rivals and kin alike. And as he moved forward with his companions, Kaiser realized he no longer felt lost, he felt at home.

He followed Celestine up the last few steps, glancing only briefly at the statues guarding the entry: a bearded man with an open tome, and a cloaked apprentice, their gazes fixed upon the crowds as though searching for the next worthy champion.

Beside the main hall, Kaiser noted a smaller annex, plain but sturdy, likely an office or a chamber for guild scribes.

The doors to the hall opened with a low groan, and they entered a hush more reverent than any temple Kaiser had known.

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