Chapter 143: Chapter 127: Journey to the Imperial City【Seeking first purchase after launch!】
Bajie, standing off to the side and rubbing his bleary eyes, had no idea what had just happened. Like Shadow Dragon, it had slept soundly through the night as if dead to the world.
Regrettably, Long Yi wanted to ask Yavenny for directions to the Elf forest, but since Yavenny wasn’t an Elf herself, such a question would likely prove futile.
Long Yi left the dorm, walking as if he’d just stolen something. Not long after leaving, he bumped into Ai Lin.
"Huh, why is there a strange yet refreshing scent? Brother Long! Have you secretly met with a woman?!" Little Zi shouted loudly. Little Zi had spent the night with Ai Lin, but she felt restless and had an inexplicable agitation.
Ai Lin sniffed Long Yi but didn’t detect any perfume.
"Absolutely not!" Long Yi said righteously.
Nonsense, the scent was from a certain place, it couldn’t possibly be on him!
Although Long Yi had bathed thoroughly in the morning, the scent that was in a certain place and described by a certain someone couldn’t be erased. The dragon scale armor, having been destroyed by Yavenny’s attack the previous night, was now rendered useless and hence couldn’t possibly block the scent. With no choice left, Long Yi could only hope that time would alleviate all traces of her scent.
Thankfully, Ai Lin didn’t sniff Long Yi all over.
Academy City wasn’t far from the Imperial City, and it was only a day’s journey by carriage. The Empire had always been researching airships, aiming to reduce the travel time to just four hours. However, it was unclear when the inaugural flight would take place.
After a day’s journey, the duo finally reached the Imperial City. Whether Ai Lin had grown accustomed to the scent, or if the scent had indeed faded away, Ai Lin did not bring up the topic of the scent again.
The Imperial City.
The grandest city of the White Dragon Empire, a bustling centerpiece of economy and politics.
The imperial city of the White Dragon Empire spans fifty miles east to west, forty miles north to south, with a population exceeding twenty million. It is permanently garrisoned by three hundred thousand troops, and atop the highest mountain behind the Imperial Palace, the majestic White Dragon Tower houses the peak of the Empire’s military power - the Guardian Dragon Knights.
The Imperial City is the pride of every citizen of the White Dragon Empire, especially for its residents. This pride is deeply ingrained within their hearts. Anyone visiting from outside of the Imperial City could sense the deep-seated pride in the voices of its residents whenever they mentioned "our Imperial City".
Ordinarily, carriages from the outskirts were not allowed into the Imperial City. However, Academy City was an exception, so the duo’s carriage had no problem entering the Imperial City. But they were still quite far from Ai Lin’s home, the Iron Blood General’s Mansion.
Having come this far, Long Yi was now stepping into Ai Lin’s territory. A thrilled Ai Lin excitedly introduced everything they were seeing. As someone new to the City, Long Yi showed the curiosity of a diligent student, asking all kinds of questions and humoring Ai Lin as she played the role of a guide.
All along, Long Yi had been so exceptional that Ai Lin had developed a slight inferiority complex in his presence. But now, she realized there was a lot he didn’t know!
However, this further increased Ai Lin’s admiration for Long Yi. Look at Brother Long, who, despite being so outstanding, was able to freely admit his shortcomings - he really was the perfect Brother Long!
Although the Imperial City was large, it was divided into three sections: the outer city, the middle city, and the inner city. The Iron Blood General’s Mansion was located in the middle city where outside carriages were not allowed. Thankfully, they weren’t too far off.
The outer city was mostly residential, filled with artisans and small-time traders. The middle city was a high-end residential and commercial area that housed the Empire’s officials. As for the inner city, it was the abode of the Emperor and had nothing to do with the common people.
Long Yi and Ai Lin walked together, with Little Zi following behind Ai Lin, Bajie jerkily walking behind Long Yi, and Shadow Dragon perched on Long Yi’s shoulder. Their group was rather conspicuous. A tall and vigorous male, a pure and sexy female. As they proceeded, Ai Lin continued to act as a guide, tirelessly introducing the shops and mansions they passed by.
Suddenly, an exclamation interrupted their journey.
"Miss Ai Lin!"
Looking up, they saw three youths, and the one who greeted them was standing on the right.
He was tall, handsome, had golden hair, and was neatly dressed. On his chest hung a badge with the emblem of a tiger’s head.
"Brother Alec!" On seeing the man, Ai Lin immediately straightened up and greeted him. Her greeting was neither affectionate nor distant.
"Haha, congratulations, Miss Ai Lin, I heard about your excellent third-place triumph!" Alec said.
"Thank you, Brother Alec. I’m still a long way off from you. You guys won second place!" replied Ai Lin.
So they were second!
Long Yi recalled one of the three in Ais’s team, there was indeed one named Alec.
"By the way, the Emperor has sent out invitations to the top three. Have you received yours?" Alec asked earnestly.
"Yes, I have!" Ai Lin replied.
"I am very much looking forward to seeing you in an evening gown, Miss Ai Lin." Alec continued warmly.
"Thank you!" Ai Lin responded.
"Okay, okay! Miss Ai Lin just returned to the Imperial City and you’re already bombarding her with questions. Regardless of how exceptional your relationship is, you should at least let her rest for a bit after she returns home, shouldn’t you?"
