The aerial inspection of the city that I had asked Edgar to conduct yesterday was approved without issue, though there were a few areas I wasn’t allowed to approach.

In the morning, the soldiers guarding the capital were informed that I would be wandering around from above, so soldiers had been stationed throughout the city.

Then, from midday, I was free to conduct my inspection.

It would have been nice if Teresa could have joined me, but since she had come all this way to the city, she decided to meet with the nobles and merchants from Riana who were staying here, so we went our separate ways.

By the way, the places I was told not to approach were mainly areas where people from other territories or countries were gathered.

It’s not exactly extraterritoriality, but if the soldiers of this city were to patrol such areas too openly, it could create unnecessary friction.

And even more so, it wouldn’t be a good idea for an outsider like me to be floating around above those places.

Well, my goal isn’t espionage or surveillance, so it doesn’t really matter if I can’t get close!

“Whoa… I see now…”

Avoiding the restricted areas, I drifted aimlessly above the capital, and as I did, I started to get a sense of the design philosophy behind the city’s layout—a question that had been on my mind since yesterday.

This city has a port attached to its southern side.

There are warehouses to store cargo unloaded from ships, as well as facilities for people who disembark.

As a result, the port and its surroundings resemble a small town of their own.

It’s something that’s only possible because of the sheer size of this capital.

The port district is located at the lowest elevation.

From there, as one moves uphill, the areas where commoners and merchants live begin, followed by the noble district and the residences of the wealthy.

At the highest point, a road extends from the noble district leading to the lord’s mansion, which overlooks the city from atop a hill.

The land naturally slopes toward the sea, and they must have made good use of that natural geography.

More noticeable than the hill and the lord’s mansion, however, are the tall towers scattered throughout the city.

At first glance, I thought they were clock towers or something similar, but as I got closer, I saw lightly armored soldiers stationed at the top floors.

Their job was to keep watch over the sea.

At first, I assumed they were there to respond to harbor accidents, but given that multiple towers were conducting surveillance, I realized that wasn’t the case.

Their focus was the sea itself.

Just as Riana and Zelkis focus on fortifying their defenses against the eastern Demon Lands, this city’s primary threat seems to come from the sea.

After all, monsters exist in the ocean as well.

And from what I’ve heard, they tend to be even larger than those on land…

I don’t know if any of them actually come ashore, but if they were to attack alongside a high tide, it would be a disaster.

Perhaps the reason the lord’s mansion is located where it is, with its large windows facing the sea, isn’t just for the view.

Even now, a new ship is arriving at the port, and many people are involved in unloading its cargo.

Protecting them is likely also part of the Salion family’s duties.

◇

“I see now…”

Muttering to myself again, I continued drifting above the port.

Rather than a city that actively engages in trade itself, this territory seems to serve more as a trade hub.

Of course, they do have their own famous armed fleets, so they must conduct trade themselves as well. But judging from the variety of ships coming and going, my assumption isn’t wrong.

Even in my previous life, large-scale transportation primarily relied on ships.

With no air freight and still underdeveloped land routes, maritime trade in this world holds even greater importance.

Thinking about it, though Mercenal borders the Demon Lands, its territory is divided by large rivers wide enough for multiple ships to pass one another.

If monsters from the Demon Lands were to invade this territory, it would be more likely for them to come over the mountains rather than crossing the river.

To the north of this territory are Zelkis and Riana.

Deepening cooperative relations with both of them clearly benefits this territory as well.

“I see, I see… Oh?”

After completing my observations, I figured it was about time to head back… but just before returning, I decided to take a quick look outside the city walls.

There, I found a Knight Order training ground.

It wasn’t all that different from our own training grounds—except for one major difference.

A deep pit, about 50 meters square.

It was attached to the training grounds.

At first glance, it looked like some kind of reservoir… but there’s no way they’d build something like that right next to a training facility.

There’s a river flowing nearby, and farms are located further away in the surrounding villages.

Given that this city has an abundance of water sources—rivers, ponds, and even lakes—it didn’t make sense for the pit to be for securing drinking water.

And above all, it was empty.

…What is this?

◇

After returning to the mansion, I found that Teresa had yet to return.

As a result, Elisha, having learned of my return, invited me for tea, and I decided to ask her about it.

“It’s a water training ground.”

Elisha answered my question casually. A water training ground… a pool, basically?

With so many natural bodies of water around, why would they need a designated place for that?

Just as I was about to voice that thought, it hit me.

“Oh… Because of the monsters, huh?”

Judging by Elisha’s expression, I was right.

I’d never really thought about swimming in this world, but even if there are plenty of places with water, that doesn’t mean they’re safe.

No one knows where monsters might appear, so a controlled, isolated facility must be necessary.

“That’s right. If there’s a water-related emergency, the city’s soldiers are responsible for rescue operations. That’s why they train to move effectively underwater.”

“Huh…”

So they willingly dive into potentially monster-infested waters?

That takes some serious guts.

Riana’s soldiers—at least the ones who used to be adventurers—charge headlong into the Demon Lands, but these guys… they’ve got their own brand of crazy.

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Sera・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind Garment】・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Lesser Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・4 cards

Seriana・【Area Identification】・【】・39 cards

Elena・【】・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】・4 cards

Alec・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・9 cards