Chapter 1187 Quest Completion (Part 2): Changes of the Holy City
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Swoosh!
Swoosh! Swoosh!
When Shin arrived at the Teleportation Hall of the Holy City, he was immediately greeted by a scene that was similar to what he had seen in the previous city. But it was clear that there was no war going on. This was just a regular scene of this place.
The flood of players that were coming in and out of the hall was almost causing human traffic already. The entrance was close to being overcrowded if not for the city guards who were keeping everything under control.
What was more surprising about this was the fact that this particular hall was much larger than the one that he was previously on. Its size was at least thrice, if not four times, of the previous Teleportation Hall.
The number of teleportation circles within the hall was directly proportional to the size of the hall. He could also see some special chambers that could simultaneously transport a huge number of players without a problem.
These chambers seemed to vary from different sizes, which indicated the number of players that they could accommodate.
Naturally, the price of using these special chambers was much higher than using the regular magic circles that the players usually used when going to or coming from the city.
After observing the hall, Shin walked toward the exit, following the line of players that was moving outside the hall. And when he reached the huge doorway, he was immediately greeted by a sight of a busy plaza filled with a variety of players.
There was a huge spot where players, who set up their stalls, were gathered. That place was very organized, making it look similar to the huge bazaar from the real world.
The players that were walking through the aisles of each line of stalls were creating a flow of players that were constantly moving forward. Some of the players were stopping in front of a stall from time to time, but they were not disrupting the natural flow of people walking behind them due to large the space of the place.
There were also city guards and patrolling paladins walking by who were keeping everything in order. And with their presence, no one from the players would dare to cause any trouble, especially when they could see how high the levels of these guards and paladins were.
A single of them was already an Elite NPC with their level reaching the 170 mark. There were also some Special Elites and Commanders passing by from time to time, who were on similar or much higher levels.
Provoking these NPCs was not much different from committing suicide.
Opposite that side, Shin could also see multiple rows of carriages with different ranks. Most of them were the ones that the players regularly used when traveling across the city, but he could also spot some luxurious and exquisite ones on the other rows.
At the same time, he could also see some carriages with many fancy and noble designs passing by the road. They were creating a constant flow that was making the scene similar to the busy roads in the real world.
The streets and sidewalks were also the same as players were constantly moving through them.
Casting his gaze at the distance and looking at the buildings within the surroundings, Shin also discovered that the city also improved in this area.
There were a lot of huge buildings now, making the scenery no different from the big cities in the real world. Even though there were no skyscrapers and other towering buildings, the ones that the Holy City currently had were by no means small.
There were also a variety of establishments around, making the whole place much closer to reality.
After observing everything, Shin could not help but mutter to himself. "I guess the Holy City has successfully promoted into a Capital City."
He then started wandering around the city while heading to the blacksmith shop of Grandcraftsman Berlin. He went to the spot that he remembered. But with the current size of the city, which without a doubt had gotten much larger, he was not sure if the other places that used to be there would most likely be redeveloped or transferred to other places.
And sure enough, when he arrived at the place where he remembered the blacksmith shop of the Grandcraftsman was located, he found nothing but an unfamiliar place.
The blacksmith shop was supposedly in the secluded part of the city. It was not in a total outskirt, but it was at least in an unpopular region. But right now, this place was currently in a busy street where a lot of players were passing by.
There were also quite a few establishments around where players were constantly coming in and out. Some were bards and pubs while the others were obviously an inn that were providing similar services.
There were a few shops around that were owned by moderately wealthy players while the rest were from NPCs.
Looking around, Shin could not help but become somewhat impressed. He was occasionally nodding his head as he observed the establishments around while walking down the street.
Not long after, he finally found the blacksmith shop. And he became surprised once again at what he was seeing. The shop was far from what it used to be. Its somewhat rundown appearance that it had before was nowhere to be seen as it was now a proper shop where players were constantly visiting it.
At the same time, he was also seeing a number of experts visiting the place, which indicated that this was no longer an 'unpopular' place. The experts and large organizations might have discovered the named NPC staying in this place, particularly the Grandcraftsman Berlin.
Artisans and Blacksmiths in that rank were not only few but very rare. Even the top blacksmith within the game, Black Hammer, who was also the chief blacksmith of the Hand of Midas, was still quite far from that rank.
Shin did not find it strange that these experts both from large organizations and independent individuals visited this place on regular occasions.
He would also not be surprised if Berlin had already reached the rank higher than he was previously given his talent and the time that had already passed.
What troubled Shin right now was the long line of players waiting outside the shop. Given the situation, it was impossible for him to just overtake everyone and enter the store. Aside from being impolite and rude, he would also provoke the pair of NPCs guarding the entrance.
He did not care if he would provoke the players outside since he was confident in protecting himself against them. The problem was those two guards since their strength far surpassed his.
He could not see their information even with the use of 'True Sight' Ocular Skill, so he could not see their levels, much less tell how strong they were. But at the very least, he could guess how powerful they were.
Both seemed to be in Commander Rank based on the auras that they were emitting, so their levels shouldn't be too low. These two guards were much stronger than the three Overlord Rank Monsters that he faced earlier, or at least comparable to them.
But since these two could be considered humanoid creatures, their set of skills and arsenal of techniques would definitely be huge. Picking a fight against them was practically impossible.
But then again, when he looked at the long line of players, Shin felt a little discouraged since he did not know when his turn would be given how long it was.
His time was limited, so he could not waste it by standing there and waiting for who knew how long.
Thinking about that, Shin decided to use his influence within the game. He was an official envoy of the Church of the Sun and Moon. His status would definitely be high.
On top of this, his noble title was also promoted to Duke just recently as one of the rewards that he had gotten from the previous Empire Quest.
He was sure that he would be able to take advantage of all these to bypass a couple of restrictions.
Having this thought, Shin nodded his head and walked toward the shop without caring about the gaze of the players around him.
Some of them gave him a death glare that seemingly warned him from going forward while the others were looking at him with scornful eyes. Some seemed to be mocking him as they could tell what he was trying to do while the rest were waiting to watch a good show.
Since they were here to stand waiting for their turn, they would not reject such entertainment to relieve their boredom.
But regardless of their thoughts, none of them dared to voice them out due to the two powerful guards guarding the entrance.
Shin was slightly nervous due to the two guards not showing any kind of reaction. But he could sense the overwhelming pressure that they were emitting. He felt like he was walking on a thin thread right between life and death.
Shin was confused at first, but he later understood that this must be some sort of test. He could sense that one of the guards was closely observing him while the other was looking at him with interest.
Not long after, he reached the door where the two guards were standing. He stood in front of the two NPCs and waited for them to say something.
As if taking that as a cue, the guard standing on the right suddenly opened his mouth. "Greetings Lord Evoy, and the Great Duke of the Sky Deceiving Valley."
Shin was slightly taken aback at the respectful tone of the guard as he was not expecting such a polite tone. And as if that was not the end, the two powerful NPCs gave him a respectful bow followed by a unique salute for the members of the Church of the Sun and Moon.
As a response, Shin instinctively returned the bow and salute respectively.
One of the guards quickly followed after the greeting. "Can we ask why the esteemed lord the purpose of his visit?"
Shin was confused at first before replying with a polite tone. "I am here to visit Grandcraftsman Berlin. I have a special relationship with him, and he entrusted me with a couple of tasks before, so I am here to tell him my progress."
Hearing that, the same guard seemed to have remembered something and suddenly said. "Ah! That is right! Sir Berlin has instructed us that if the esteemed lord pays him a visit, we are to let him in."
At that moment, the door of the shop was suddenly opened as a young blacksmith NPC stood behind it. Based on his size and appearance, it was clear that he was from the dwarven race.
The young dwarf looked at Shin for a moment, seemingly observing him closely. It felt that he was not seeing the other people around as his focus was entirely on Shin.
Shin could not help but feel a little awkward from that gaze and unconsciously retreat by a step.
The two guards, on the other hand, quickly step to the side and let the young dwarf observe Shin more clearly.
A few seconds went by, and the young dwarf finally nodded his head. "Not bad. Our Great King sure has a good eye for people. You are much better than those trash that come to visit under the endorsement of the elders."
He then turned around and signaled Shin to follow him. "Let's go. Master is already waiting inside his workshop. He has waiting for you for a long time already while keeping his body in shape."
"You just come at the right time since he just broke through from that threshold a couple of days ago. This is the perfect time to craft a masterpiece," he added with a voice that only Shin and himself could hear.
Shin was stunned for a moment before quickly chasing after the young dwarf. Behind him, the door of the shop was quickly closed, leaving the players waiting outside completely stunned.
They were not sure which topic to discuss as everything that the NPCs had mentioned was all too stunning.
An Envoy of a Church? A Duke with a personal territory? A friend of a Grandcraftsman? A chosen individual of the Great King of Dwarves?
Each title that they heard was amazing in its own right. And all of it was owned by a single person!
Just who was that guy to be treated politely by those high NPCs?
Too many thoughts were running inside everyone's head, making them unable to voice them out. Due to this, a strange atmosphere filled the air, creating a strange scene.
Even the players walking in the street nearby could not help but pause their steps due to their curiosity after seeing what was happening outside this famous blacksmith shop.
Then it was followed by a deafening silence due to everyone unable to speak or choosing to remain silent.
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