The civilization level of a city in this world is influenced by the type of Treasure Hall located nearby. Treasure Hall that reached the height of physical civilization are rare, meaning few cities benefit from their influence. Even across the entire world, Code was probably one of the very few cities that had received such advanced physical civilization boons.
Taking the Level 9 certification exam had been unfortunate, but as it turned out, getting to see a city like Code was a silver lining.
I couldn't wrap my head around the logic, but this city had the capability to physically manufacture even mecha soldiers—the things that would normally manifest as Treasure Weapons or Phantoms.
The terminal I used to access the city's system was obviously far more advanced than the smartphone I'd lost in Yggdrasil, and in a city like this, smartphones would be easy to come by. All sorts of other handy gadgets would surely be available too.
Since I had the mecha soldiers on loan from the princess as guards, I didn't even need to summon spiders today.
I strolled along at a leisurely pace, taking in the sights—rows upon rows of tall buildings rising in a jagged skyline, a cityscape quite different from the Imperial Capital. A bit of a walk now and then did wonders.
Wide roads made of some mysterious metal that didn't reflect sunlight.
The townscape, almost devoid of greenery, felt futuristic, yet as far as I could see, there wasn't a single person around. It was starting to feel like I was trapped in some bizarre dream.
It seemed Code had far too many buildings relative to its population. The city system kept things clean so nothing was falling apart, but the rows upon rows of deserted buildings carried an unnatural air—something reminiscent of a Treasure Hall.
So, where should I head first? Did a place like Code, where the city system provided everything—food, clothing, shelter—even have anything resembling the shops of the outside world?
At the very least, restaurants and dessert parlors didn't seem necessary.
Last time I went outside to look for people who'd serve as my Royal Guard, I'd found someone almost immediately. This time, though, I couldn't spot a soul.
There had been people walking around the building where Nora was, so maybe this particular area just wasn't heavily populated.
I wandered around for a while, but no matter how long I spent, the scenery never changed. Straight ahead, no matter how far I walked—it was buildings, buildings, and more buildings.
Cool and the others seemed to be running around investigating various things. Should I contact them? But this outing was supposed to be a hobby, not work...
If they happened to be nearby, I wouldn't mind having them tag along, but going out of my way to reach out felt like too much effort. Times like these really made me appreciate Tino.
My feet were starting to hurt from all that walking. I summoned a chair and a drink, then decided to take a short rest at the edge of the main road.
Nice weather. The warm, gentle air was making me drowsy. A little sunbathing was good for you now and then.
I gazed up at the sky visible between the gaps of the high-rise buildings and let out a sigh.
"If only I had a map or something..."
Just then, one of the mecha soldiers that had been following me silently extended its hand in front of my eyes.
A semi-transparent image flickered to life in a wide area before me.
No—that was a map. An exquisitely detailed three-dimensional rendering of countless gleaming buildings and the wide streets between them where spiders could scurry about.
It was like magic. And when I spotted one particular spot on the map—a tiny figure seated in a chair at the edge of a street—I couldn't help but let out a sigh.
"Amazing... It's just like an 'Unerring Waypost.'"
The "Unerring Waypost" was a Treasure Weapon—a scroll that automatically mapped the area around your current location. It was an incredibly useful item that eliminated the hassle of mapping when exploring Treasure Halls. But even that Treasure Weapon didn't have the power to display a three-dimensional projection.
So this was Code's city system. Just how many times was I going to be amazed?
Still, even this 3D map wasn't perfect. It appeared to show a map of all of Code, but for some reason everything outside a certain radius from my current location was displayed in darkness. The lit area even showed walking people and spiders, but the dark regions didn't provide any detailed information.
"That tall building there... must be the princess's building."
I identified the tall tower at the center of the illuminated area and traced the path I'd walked to get here.
If this map was accurate, the princess was apparently looking outside with the wall turned transparent. Even so, that was awesomely detailed.
The lit portion was only an incredibly tiny fraction of the whole map. Less than a tenth, compared to the total area.
I nodded to myself and looked at the blue mecha soldier—out of the red, blue, and green trio—who had produced the 3D map.
"I see, I see... so that's how it works."
I didn't have one myself, but the "Unerring Waypost" could only map a certain radius around the user's current location. This 3D map apparently operated on the same system. Not showing the full map from the start was a bit of a pain, but there was also the fun of gradually filling it in.
I was in the middle of the city. I had the guards the princess had loaned me. There shouldn't be anything too dangerous. Time to go on a proper adventure for the first time in a while.
If I found something nice, I'd bring it back as a souvenir for the princess.
For now, I set my goal as escaping the currently illuminated area on the 3D map, and stood up from the chair.
§ § § "You're going to... let me out?"
At Kutoori's words, Princess Arisha nodded with a cheerful smile. The question of "How exactly?" almost escaped Kutoori's lips, but he managed to swallow it back down.
The Code system was airtight. Kutoori had tried out every function his权限 allowed, but he couldn't find any back doors.
The King's lock on Princess Arisha's room could only be removed by the King himself.
The building materials used in Code's structures were unbelievably sturdy—a brute-force breakout was nearly impossible. Klai could probably demolish the walls at full power, but that also meant the walls would withstand anything short of that, and even if you escaped that way, the city system would hunt you down.
Kutoori had no idea how to get Princess Arisha out of her room.
Could she have negotiated something with the King?
He'd heard the story from Rusha: that Thousand Transformations had made the princess throw a tantrum, then vanished without warning, and upon returning, had apparently conversed with the King.
If he hadn't heard that from an ally, he would've dismissed it as a tall tale. But even coming from Rusha—who had his share of oddities—Kutoori still only half believed it.
As always, that guy was completely nuts... "Thousand Transformations" might not be as fitting a title as "Absurd Nonsense."
Princess Arisha had been confined because she could become a complication in the succession battle. Even from Kutoori's perspective, the response seemed a bit excessive, but succession was a sensitive issue in any country. Especially here, where all princes and princesses stood equal under the city system.
And now... get her out?
Those were dangerous words you wouldn't dare speak aloud in this city.
Those with high-level permissions could review past footage, and every sensor constantly checked for any signs of rebellion.
He'd always assumed the plan was to extract Princess Arisha at the moment of the succession transition, exploiting the chaos of the city's upheaval—but maybe that wasn't it?
Even bringing up the idea of getting her out at this stage would only make everyone around them more suspicious— "So where is this guy now?"
"He went to check the exit route... He should be back soon, supposedly."
That was a problem. Rusha had asked him to relay that he'd met with Zachary Code, but he'd forgotten to pass that along... Well, the guy probably knew already without being told.
Zachary had no intention of harming Arisha for the time being. But the atmosphere within his faction was precarious.
Zachary himself, and the commoners who followed him—all of them seemed caught in some strange fever, waiting for the King's death.
Some of those commoners were even prepared to resort to self-destruction.
People with conviction were dangerous. If things continued like this, a catastrophe could be brewing.
Zachary wanted to speak with Kly, Arisha's Royal Guard Captain. They needed to reach some kind of accommodation before the King passed away.
"Sorry about this, but when the guy gets back, tell him we'll be at the usual place with that man."
"...Got it."
Sending messages through the city system was risky. Messages could be monitored by those with even higher permissions.
Since Thousand Transformations himself had been the one contacting the commoners—and should have anticipated that Zachary had become a leader among them—these few words should convey his true meaning clearly enough.
At Kutoori's request, Arisha nodded with a somewhat bored expression. Kutoori flashed a grin, then hurried off to fulfill his role.
§ Arisha stared at the door Kutoori had left through for a while. Eventually, she turned her gaze away and looked outside, murmuring softly.
"...How boring. I wish he'd come back already."