The city of Erbaia.
This city was situated on the banks of the Lithe River. It was a bustling port city that had grown over the years to become a hub of magical activity and trade. It was a medium-sized city, home to a mix of races including humans, elves, dwarves, and even a few half-creatures.
Erbaia was located eight days' distance from the capital city, Edin, accessible only by ship through the river Lithe. The journey to Erbaia was picturesque, with the river meandering through lush forests and rolling hills. As the ship neared the city, the first thing noticed was the massive city walls that surrounded it.
Upon entering the city, one was immediately struck by the vibrant and colorful atmosphere that was fueled by the use of magic in everyday life. Every street and alley is lined with buildings adorned with intricate magical arrays that could be used in a variety of ways.
There were levitating wood-element arrays that hosted lush greenery, water-element arrays that housed large masses of water for each district within the city, and multi-elemental greenhouses that produced food and other magical ranking resources.
Despite magic and high-ranking occupants, Erbaia welcomed mortals and low-rankers alike. It was a city that embodied cooperation and harmony.
Even though it was a medium-sized city, Erbaia was still in Edinburgh's central region. In contrast to other city-states found in the four duchies, the city was naturally developed.
Erbaia was also home to a thriving potion and herb market, with vendors hawking their wares in every corner of the city. The potions and herbs sold here are renowned for their potency and effectiveness.
The city was well-guarded, with Ace and Adept-ranked guards patrolling the streets and keeping the peace. The city protector, a Master-ranked mage, oversaw the city's protection and was aided by a team of skilled guards led by an Expert-ranked captain.
The Master ranked mage's name was Sorin Windrider. He had purple hair and looked to be in his early twenties. The Expert-ranked captain's name was Rhea Bloodweaver. She was a ranger-class Expert.
***
Inside the city of Erbaia. Sorin's residence, located in the city hall's underground space.
Eyes closed and in a meditative position, Sorin was busy doing his ranking practice. A Master-ranked cloud was summoned around him. Sorin's elemental comprehensions were slowly affecting the cloud and his isolated surroundings. This produced a rapidly spinning gust of wind that took the shape of a Darkwind wyvern.
Sorin stopped his ranking practice suddenly and frowned. He summoned his spectral screen and checked out the emergency notification that had popped up at the front of the screen– the source of his frown.
"Hm? A ship carrying a huge batch of Slughorn potions is about to get attacked. Who's this crazy bastard?"
Sorin was surprised when he read the details of emergency notifications sent to him by his Intel unit. According to the report, the Slughorn ship left Erbaia. It was heading to the Lionheart duchy– the southernmost part of Edinburgh. Still, the ship had not left the city of Erbaia's jurisdiction, prompting Sorin to act.
***
Attacks on large merchant ships carrying ranking resources were rare but not unheard of. Edinburgh's central region was quite secure. So a few groups of fluvial raiders and bandit groups active in the central region were very careful with the type of targets they selected for their raids.
Sorin could have never imagined that the fluvial raiders would one day raid House Slughorn's shipment. After all, House Slughorn was very active in Erbaia. It owned multiple large and small vessels, a huge real-estate property, a bunch of potion labs and factories, a specialized education institute for potioners from all over Edinburgh, and a large group of rankers assigned as guards and mercenaries for the clan.
One could say that House Slughorn had two significant locations that represented its fortune and pride. The first place was House Slughorn's ancestral estate in the Lionheart duchy, representing House Slughorn's pride. The second place was the city of Erbaia– the place responsible for House Slughorn's fortune.
As such, House Slughorn paid extra attention to city development. If Erbabia wasn't so close to Edinburgh's capital, Sorin wouldn't have been Erbaia's city protector. There would have been a ranker with Slughorn as his surname in his place. In fact, House Slughorn would have practically bought this city to itself if it wasn't located in Edinburgh's central region.
Not that Erbaia didn't have Slughorn members as its city protectors in the past. In fact, many Slughorns were serving as part of the city's backbone in city administration and other fields.
Sorin was affiliated with Edinburgh. He was sent here to Erbaia as its protector a week ago. The kingdom of Edinburgh had subtly forced a Master-ranked Slughorn clan member to relinquish his position as Erbaia's city protector, enabling Sorin to take over Slughorn's city protector's position.
***
Sorin instantly felt refreshed by channeling his Master-ranked mana throughout his body. He was about to use a teleportation array to reach the port in the blink of an eye. But he frowned again when he received another emergency notification.
'Crown Prince Rodrick Renar seeks an audience with me? I don't get it. There was no prior announcement for me to prepare for this meeting.
What is going on here? What kind of freaky coincidence is this? Unless…"
Sorin didn't know what to do at the time– ensure the Slughorn vessel's safety or play host to the crown prince. But just then, the control arrays at his residence were overridden, banning his access to the teleportation portal right in the heart of the city port.
Sorin had access to only one teleportation portal that led him to his office in city hall. It seemed that Crown Prince Rodrick had already entered his office and was waiting patiently for his arrival.
"Hehe. I guess I got my answer."
Sorin sighed and decided to greet the crown prince first and foremost. Only crown prince Rodrick could answer some of his questions. If his guess was right, House Slughorn's influence in Erbaia was about to take a huge hit.
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