Chapter 9
I finally arrived to the neighbouring town late at night.
The town was completely surrounded by a stone wall the size of a two-storey building, and its gates were already closed.
But even if the gates were open, it would be difficult to enter as a “street urchin”, dirty all over from exploring and training in the forest.
In the countries of this continent, people could be roughly divided into four categories.
First, “nobles” were the ruling class. They could travel anywhere they wanted within the country, and could even travel to other countries as long as they had a reason to do so.
Next were the “commoners”. This referred to people who became citizens by paying taxes to the ruling noble—I was currently in a baron’s territory—which allowed them to travel anywhere within the territory they registered in. If commoners wanted to travel to a different noble’s territory they only had to pay one silver coin as tax, but travelling to a different country required a special permit.
Bellow them were the so-called “free folk”, which, simply put, were homeless people. They weren’t required to pay any taxes, but instead were restricted anywhere they went. They couldn’t even enter a town or a large district without paying a toll of one silver coin.
The lowest category was that of the “slaves”. In short, they were people who sold themselves. It might be easier to understand if I said they were commonly referred to as serfs. They tilled their landlord’s fields and were paid according to how much was harvested. They could have a family to some extent, but had no freedom to stop working.
Just like there were people like that orphanage’s old hag who sold orphans, there were also nobles and wealthy people who kept illegal slaves as lovers, but that was an exception.
I was currently part of the “free folk”, so I would have to pay one silver coin as tax to enter the town.
Furthermore, as free folk lacked not just citizenship but even a family register, they were under the risk of not receiving help from guards when they were the victim of a crime. And as was the case for a street urchin like myself, if I was unlucky enough to be confronted by a nasty gatekeeper upon entry, not only could all the money I had on hand be taken away, but I could even be forcefully sold as a slave.
The reason I wanted to enter the town deliberately despite the risks, wasn’t only because I wanted to replenish my food, but because I also wanted to acquire a weapon along with a certain “thing”.