The legend of the Crimson Demon clan started from Suqing

#352 - Watergate City Priestela

After that, Zun Zun bid farewell and left.

He didn't mention going to Pristella, nor did he make any promises; Crusch also didn't mention Pristella, as their camp's affairs weren't suitable for involving others.

But Crusch, or rather, the Crusch camp, understood very well that Anastasia wouldn't fail to invite Zun Zun, the only difference being the reasons for persuasion.

Therefore, both sides tacitly avoided the topic.

It took ten days to travel from the royal capital to Pristella, and they didn't rush along the way. After all, they didn't expect Miklotov to just chat for a while, so they were very leisurely along the way.

During this time, Otto analyzed the current situation for Zun Zun, and the final conclusion was to simply have him marry a royal selection candidate.

"Why do I have to get married?"

"Isn't it because Lord Zun Zun simply hasn't done anything!"

A year has passed since the royal selection began, and aside from initially defeating the White Whale and assisting in the subjugation of Sloth, the Zun Zun camp has done absolutely nothing and is about to fade from the public's view.

"Listen carefully, Lord Zun Zun, you are the most special of the royal selection candidates. Initially, you did attract many people with this gimmick, and the subsequent White Whale and Sloth also showed them your strength. However, from then on, you disappeared without a trace and did absolutely nothing. Continuing like this will make it impossible to become the next king! More importantly—"

Otto clutched his head in despair, shouting unwillingly, "As your knight, I've actually become someone else's chief retainer. All my efforts have been in vain. Can you understand my feelings!?"

He seemed very annoyed that he was helping Felt develop.

If a royal selection candidate wants to stand out, they must make remarkable achievements, or do things that attract attention. In modern terms, it's about 'traffic,' and Zun Zun hasn't seized this 'traffic.'

Plus, starting late, the only way to become the next king is to marry someone.

But Zun Zun didn't care. Anyway, he didn't want to become king in this world, and he didn't care about power or fame.

"Honestly, I selfishly want you to choose Felt-sama, but now Anastasia-sama is the best choice; Crusch-sama, although not very prominent now, still maintains her base; and Priscilla-sama is barely acceptable, and Emilia-sama is also…"

Otto rambled on.

Unexpectedly, this guy had also become a matchmaker for other royal selection candidates, just like Miklotov.

And so, they chatted all the way, and nothing bad happened on the road.

In any case, the three of them safely arrived in Pristella.

To enter Pristella, one must pass through the main gate that manages entry and exit from the city.

The border between the Kingdom of Lugnica and the Kararagi City-State, towards that vast river flowing in like the sea, is called the Tigris Great River, and the city was built on a lake where a tributary of this river flows.

To enter the city, one needs to cross the bridge spanning the river, and then submit documents at the main gate connecting the inside and outside of the city, located at a corner of the outer wall that protects the streets in a circular shape.

After arriving at the main gate, they received a registration form, the content of which was roughly a confirmation of agreement to abide by the city laws. The so-called city laws were nothing more than not causing disturbances or using magic without reason, and so on.

Moreover, the carriage they were driving also had to be strictly inspected, which took a lot of time.

"The entry and exit controls are particularly strict, it's becoming less and less like the City of Water, and more like a Water Prison."

"That's the tone of someone with little travel experience. For traveling merchants, waiting for inspection like this is commonplace. It's quite conscientious that they didn't ask for 'sleeve money'."

Otto recalled his unbearable past as a traveling merchant.

The so-called 'sleeve money' refers to stuffing some money as a bribe, which is not a good thing.

"Maybe it's because we reported our names."

"…That's not good, I'm getting more and more uneasy."

Zun Zun was, after all, a royal selection candidate. The inspector's expression when he heard that he was coming to this city was very conflicted, and he was probably already brainstorming.

"Forget it, this is something Anastasia didn't convey, it has nothing to do with us."

"I wonder how flustered he'll be when more royal selection candidates arrive later."

Otto also has a bit of a mischievous side.

Speaking of which, Zun Zun was also looking forward to it.

After waiting for a while, Flum led the dragon carriage to reunite with the two, and the group moved towards the inner gate in front of the main gate.

The inner gate slowly opened, and the streets of Pristella gradually unfolded before their eyes.

The azure light was dazzling.

Zun Zun squinted his eyes, and it took a while for him to gradually adapt, and then he saw the beautiful scene.

The city's structure, built in a circular shape, was designed similarly to the seating of a football stadium, if ignoring its size. The closer to the city center, the greater the height difference, with neat stone buildings arranged on each level.

Waterways flowed everywhere on the streets. A particularly large waterway—no, a canal—divided the city into four parts from the center.

Azure City, Water City.

Otto, beside him, looked at Zun Zun, seeming to expect him to react to this scene.

"What's wrong?"

"Lord Zun Zun, don't you have any reaction to seeing Pristella?"

"…Indeed, this place is hailed as the City of Water, which is eye-opening, but unfortunately, I've been to another City of Water, so I'm not surprised."

"Another City of Water?" X2

Otto and Flum exchanged glances.

Pristella is a very famous City of Water. If there was a water city like it, they couldn't not know about it.

"Don't believe me? Then I'll show you. Memory Manifestation."

"What's going on, this idiotic magic!"

Otto couldn't help but exclaim when he saw the light screen appearing in front of him.

"Idiotic magic, huh… That's quite fitting."

Zun Zun couldn't help but laugh.

This magic was learned from Toqi Yang Jie. Because that guy could just order the spirit to do it at will, it was quite difficult to learn, and what he learned was still ambiguous.

"One of the Yang-attribute spirit magics. Currently, I can only see my own memories, but I've already grasped the context, and I'll definitely be able to see other people's memories later."

"Seeing memories and stuff… This magic is too weird."

Although Otto and Flum were quite critical of this magic, after seeing the even more BUG-like Reinhard, their acceptance ability was surprisingly strong.

"Okay, let's take a look at the City of Water in my memory, Alcanretia."

"Oh, oh, oh, this City of Water is also great!"

"Of course, it's known as the City of Hot Springs and Water, and it's quite famous in my hometown… Provided there's no infamy of the Axis Order."

"Axis Order?"

"D-Don't, don't say it out loud!"

Zun Zun suddenly clapped his hands on Otto's shoulders, his eyes were red, and his tone and demeanor became nervous.

"Listen carefully, Otto, there are some things you absolutely cannot say! That existence is a natural disaster, a being more terrifying than the Crimson Demons. You absolutely, absolutely, absolutely cannot mention them, got it!?"

"O-Okay…"

Otto dazedly agreed.

Speaking of which, Zun Zun is from the Crimson Demons, right? Is it really okay to compare his own race to people? Or is it that the Crimson Demons are also not right in the head?

"O-Okay, next is the Water Feather Pavilion that Joshua mentioned… He said Anastasia and the others would be waiting for us there, right?"

"Yes, it's already been confirmed in advance. I'll lead the way from here."

Flum took the reins proactively.

When she just took back the dragon carriage, she confirmed the direction and location with the inspector, and then the dragon carriage slowly moved towards the streets of Pristella. On the slightly sloping road, the scenery that seeped in little by little from the window was pleasing to the eye.

At the same time, it was also discovered that Pristella had more and wider waterways than ordinary roads, and the construction of the streets was also coordinated with the waterways, so the land appeared very intricate.

It was as if—

"It's not like Alcanretia, which draws water into the town, but more like a city built in the idle space of the water."

"Pristella's structure prioritizes waterways in construction, so the roads for pedestrians and vehicles naturally bypass the waterways, or have to cross them."

Although it's a little inconvenient, seeing the small boats spread out on the waterways and moving smoothly, it seems that it's not that inconvenient after all.

"Speaking of which, this city seems to be divided into four equal parts by a huge waterway."

"Yes, Pristella is divided by the central Grand Canal, and they are called First Street, Second Street, Third Street, and Fourth Street respectively."

"Hey Otto, where is that?"

Zun Zun pointed to the distant tower. Because it was in the very center and also the tallest building, it looked very conspicuous, and couldn't help but make people cast their gaze over.

"That's the City Central Hall, a place for broadcasting, and it's not a big deal."

"Is that so."

"Is Lord Zun Zun very curious about that place?"

"Yeah, because I saw a huge amount of magic power…"

His eyes were already slightly red.

Otto patted his head and said, "I forgot, Lord Zun Zun also has such a setting."

"What do you mean by setting?"

Zun Zun rolled his eyes.

At this time, the dragon carriage stopped, and Flum's voice came.

"Lord Zun Zun, we're here."

"That was pretty fast, huh?"

He got out of the dragon carriage.

What came into view was an inn. Although the mix of Japanese-style buildings and other-world architecture was a bit abrupt, Zun Zun, who had seen it in Alcanretia, wouldn't be surprised.

"—I thought it would satisfy you, but it seems it didn't succeed."

A somewhat disappointed, gentle voice came from behind.

Turning his head, he met the pale blue eyes peeking out from across the fence.

Standing there was a beautiful girl wearing a white dress made of animal fur, and a particularly conspicuous fox fur scarf. Although the cold season had passed, her clothes were still the same as before.

A small body, long pale purple wavy hair, a graceful and luxurious cute face, and large, round eyes that seemed bottomless.

That's right, she was the one who invited Zun Zun to this city.

"Long time no see, Anastasia."

"Yes! Long time no see, Zun Zun! Welcome to Pristella, thank you for coming, and—"

She took a step forward and took Zun Zun's hand.

"Please marry me!"