Chapter Twenty-Five: Puppeteer
The town had a considerable population.
The attire of the people here resembled that of the Persian era, and the Eastern Dance Maiden’s outfit was quite similar to that of the Hu Ji. The writing used was akin to script, and the common language was not very widespread here. If a less educated professionist arrived in the Eastern Kingdom, it often led to communication issues, especially given the many local dialects. Monks appeared to be one of the most common professionists in the Eastern Kingdom, with guards at the city gate being monks, sporting short hair and dressed in simple clothes, with leg bindings and wrist guards, all in a neat style.
These were low-tier monks, lacking strictures and not bound by vows of poverty, living much like ordinary adventurers.
The Eastern Kingdom has a plethora of entertainment venues.
Essentially, you could find taverns run by dance maidens in any town within the Eastern Kingdom; the swirling dance of the Eastern Dance Maiden is a must-see attraction when traveling this region.
In this area, one hardly sees any wizards, with only the occasional professionist dressed as a sorcerer.
The customs of the Eastern Kingdom differ between the north and south; in the desert regions, women wear veils, but as one moves away from the desert, the atmosphere becomes much more open, and the closer one gets to the sea, the more liberal it becomes. The territories where Eastern Ronin operate are particularly infused with a sense of debauchery. Most monasteries stationed in the desert belong to the Good Faction, while those beyond the desert and in fertile lands mostly belong to Neutral and Evil Factions. The monks who have continuously collaborated with Soren are representative of the Evil Faction.
Due to a near-complete cessation of trade with the East, not many merchant caravans could be seen in the town, with only a few leading large caravans of camels.
However, there were still quite a few active professionists nearby; for adventurers in the Eastern Kingdom, delving into the underground ruins within the desert is merely a daily task.
In fact!
You could even see professionists setting up stalls on the street selling artifacts from the Arcane Empire era.
Some exquisite statues preserved for over a thousand years, certain rusted metal parts, and parts of alchemical puppets. Stone slabs inscribed with text, and so on.
The Eastern Kingdom has numerous underground ruins.
Activities akin to “bargaining” are very popular here, with many adventurers returning from exploring the underground ruins with seemingly valuable items, which they then sell to others at not-so-cheap prices. As for whether these items are truly valuable or useful, that tests one’s judgment, as many things are only taken from the surface of the ruins and might merely be decorations or junk. Essentially, most towns have a small bargain trading area or shops.
Soren took a stroll around the town.
He also had a glance at the black market for bargains but found nothing that piqued his interest.
There were a few items emitting faint spiritual light, but for a deity, ordinary exceptional equipment no longer attracted his attention, while other items held little value.
Truly valuable bargains could only be found in a city called ‘Pearl of the East.’
There, items brought out from the depths of underground ruins by Eastern Kingdom’s legendary adventurers appear regularly, with a high probability of legendary equipment showing up, and possibly even lost ancient artifacts.
Crossing the street ahead, he arrived at the Dance Maiden Tavern.
A crowd was gathered along the side of the street, and Soren paused to glance at them, seeing a young man performing a puppet show.
Several palm-sized puppets connected by fine silk threads moved flexibly under the control of the young man, engaging in combat wielding wooden weapons.
“Good!”
“Do another act!”
The onlookers would occasionally cheer, and those who enjoyed it tossed a few copper coins.
A puppeteer.
A group of individuals in the Eastern Kingdom specializing in alchemy, mostly comprised of bards, sorcerers, and Eastern Dance Maidens who have advanced their skills. They inherited some knowledge from the Arcane Empire period and improved the production techniques of golem puppets. They simplified the crafting process of golem puppets, turning it into a more accessible wooden puppet production.
These puppets are actually all living beings.
They are imbued with the lowest-level “Activate Construct Life,” and if combat is required, one simply needs to equip them with real swords.
Influenced by the monks, puppets in the Eastern Kingdom are more delicate, and in battle, they are more agile. Some puppeteers can even create puppets that wield specialized abilities.
Isn’t this reminiscent of those golems with specialized abilities?
“A rather low-level puppeteer.”
Soren lost interest after a few glances; this street performer-level puppeteer was comparable to a down-on-their-luck bard, a very common figure in the Eastern Kingdom.
Ahead lies the tavern.
The taverns in the Eastern Kingdom often have sounds of silk and bamboo music. Upon entering, one can see dance maidens in vibrant, waist-cinched long skirts; in the Eastern Kingdom, one should certainly refrain from causing any disturbances in the tavern. This land, due to the Eastern Empress, has dance maidens controlling large gray areas, making them a formidable power second only to many monasteries.
Soren merely took a glance inside and quickly noticed at least three capable Eastern Dance Maidens.
“Hu Ji Tavern.”
Soren seemed to recall something and chuckled lightly, shaking his head before summoning a waitress.
Moments later,
A mature dance maiden with lingering charm descended from the loft. She looked at Soren with curiosity and smiled lightly, “You must be a guest from the south?”
Soren nodded silently.
His appearance had caught attention along the way, as the fashion from the Southern Coast differed significantly from that of the Eastern Kingdom.
“Passing through the desert has become difficult recently.”
The dance maiden before him smiled flirtatiously, gently leaning closer to Soren, a faint fragrance wafting from her; she seemed to tease him, “I wonder what service you are looking for?”
Since this was a place of pleasure, it naturally also offered flesh trade.
The Eastern Dance Maidens provide services such as assassination, intelligence, espionage, romantic and sexual transactions; they resemble bards in some ways, though they belong to a more adept category. Properly trained Eastern Dance Maidens must master at least three skills out of disguise, poison, drugs, seduction, hypnosis, illusion, reconnaissance, and stealth.
In the Eastern Kingdom, the maidens have taken over many businesses belonging to the Thieves’ Guild.
Moreover, under the Eastern Empress, they control a formidable thief organization; she is the largest information broker in the Eastern Kingdom.
“A map.”
Soren paid no mind to the dance maiden’s flirtation; as the ruler of Modo, a half-elf serving a true god, if he truly desired beauty, countless beautiful half-elf maidens awaited his selection. He entirely ignored the minor charm spells she was subtly using and calmly said, “I need a map. The larger and more detailed, the better.”
“Money is not a problem.”
………………(To be continued ~^~)
