Chapter 661: Where Rivers Fly and Towers Soar: Regalia
Julius halted cold in his track, his eyes wide in disbelief. Could the sight unfolding before his eyes be true, was it a figment of his imagination, or a lucid dream painting his expectations in surreal strokes?
He shook his head, his heart pounding and breath hastening. No. His imagination wasn’t good enough to create massive ships groaning on flying rivers, their immaculate sails flapping in the sky like shifting clouds.
They entered the city, the cold river splashing like rain on the surrounding fields and providing fresh water to the population, while sailors discharged imported merchandise on broad docks.
Though impressive, he could accept the clever flying river, but how in the realm did they build a city inside a crater? Stationary towers hovered above, some converting sun rays into energy, others using it to deploy a see-through mana barrier at least four times denser than the college’s.
Flat houses constructed against the crater like rice fields extended to the most lavish palace he had ever seen. Even the Franca Empire’s didn’t come remotely close to its curved archways breathing mana like a living being, intricate facade shifting colors like a galaxy of its own, or the grandeur of the materials he assumed to be no lower than the seventh tier—perhaps even the eighth!
Youths flew on flat metallic devices, their feet strapped by something like chains, or even on soft carpets woven in all colors and patterns. That was the part that shocked him most. Those people defied gravity as if it were natural, and he doubted they were all powerful arcanists.
As he gasped at the sight, a firm hand suddenly gripped his shoulder. His wandering mind snapped back on a guard.
Covered in shining plates melding gold and silver and holding a broad war hammer on his shoulders, he glared at Julius, his voice coming out frustrated. "I don’t have time to waste with a brat. It’s my last reminder: show me your identification badge or scram!"
Julius’ eyes darted to the frowning crowd behind him before he scratched his head. Had he been so absorbed that he didn’t hear the guard? Well... the city was just too dazzling, and now that he had snapped from the initial shock, his face burned in eagerness to discover it.