The Volun city wall: A marvel of architecture, stone masonry, enchanting, and strategic genius. It stands attention above the city skyline, an impressive two-hundred-and-fifty feet tall, its silent presence proclaiming one single message…Beware ye that seeks to disturb our peace.

  - Prince Guanji, Eld. Prof. Dr. Auth.

  Gareth could now read more complex Imperial Common, after Guanji had given him some really advanced academic texts. He had successfully completed his assigned tasks these past few weeks. He now knew the faces and names of the 42 people that lived on the 5 acre castle - Guanji had tricked him from the start by giving him a false number of people. Gareth had needed to spot two people that had their own duties, habits, and cliques. He did this by grabbing a cleansing tool - essentially just a magic vacuum cleaner - and just 'sucked off' the extensive carpets of the castle grounds while memorising people, pretending to be a cleaner. He then spotted another twenty while trimming hedges in the garden, raking leaves off the forest trails, and dusting the upper floors. He was just about to head onto the roof when Guanji gracefully told him that he'd found everyone.

  His next assignments had been reading extensive language documents, correspondences, then fantasy. It was boring at first, but by the time he had finished reading how people spoke to one another, he knew enough words to understand fantasy documents. Then it became a matter of trying to stay on track with training, while wanting to read. Some of the texts had been so interesting that he'd personally bought a copy of the artful designs and pictures of A Flora and Fauna Guide, by Rickard Corsten, as well as the sick biographies of actual adventurers. Volun was overflowing with people who had actually done some insane shite like beheading hydras, punching wyverns, destroying hordes of beast waves, and neutralising armies of undead.

  He then grew curious about megafauna, and how the city even managed to keep literal Kaiju out of the city. He asked Oliver about it while they took a short rest between sets of katas. Oliver had seen that question as a prime opportunity to teach him about Defense. So, off they went on a bit of a 'field trip' to the wall.

  Oliver had wanted to show him this feat of magical engineering as it, "Constituted an excellent perspective on defence; both the macro of city defence, and the micro of pvp combat."

  They were now only a few metres from entering the southern gatehouse, and Gareth was getting a little excited to see a literal medieval castle's walls, and all the monsters that lurked just outside.

  The Volun city wall was built from dark grey granite stone blocks, 10x10x10 feet. Its base was visibly thicker than its wavy upper ramparts, but he couldn't guess how thick its base was purely because of the scale Gareth was looking at. Two-hundred and fifty might not seem like much, but once he was standing under it and looking up, he realised that he had perhaps underestimated just how tall that truly would be. In a word: Immense.

  When they got close enough to the wall for him to actually study the stones, he saw dimly lit runes forming little lines all across each corner of each stone. It meant that some form of magic fuckery was afoot, and Gareth wished he could find out what it did, he missed searching stuff up online.

  Gareth pointed the runes out to Oliver and asked about them. They stopped just outside the gatehouse, a one-story-high recess of stone in an otherwise sloping wall. The quazi tunnel lead to a rather large banded metal double door, “I do not know the exact enchantments, as those are kept confidential by the city’s military architects. What I can note are the observations I have made in my free time, and I have seen this wall perform some strange...machinations. Slots opening on the outside and releasing titan-slayer blades larger than three men, slicing even tier 5 Titans. I once saw a Titan, as big as the wall itself, launch a mighty blow, but instead of breaking…the walls just shifted with the blow, while keeping the soldiers atop it stable. I've seen it heat against cold attacks and steam against fire. I'm not sure who built it, but they were a grandmaster of their craft.”

  They both flashed their badges at the normal sized side-door, and were let into a steampunk fanatic's wet dream. Cogs, gears, and goggles. Steam everywhere, hammers clanking, and gyros whirling. It was loud with a capital L, and Gareth loved it!

  He felt like a tourist as Oliver gestured for him to follow. They set off up a series of stone steps that led to a second floor, then a third. The base of the wall was more comparable to an engineer workshop on steroids. Each floor, and each sector, had its own specialties carefully crafted for a singular purpose: defending the wall.

  Exploding spiked stone spheres/boulders, alchemist fire, poisons delivered by the gallon, blades, chainballs, mana bombs, metal poles that sparked at the end, barrels of oil, caltrops. It was all made in the base of this city wall, and many crafters dreamed of one day being proficient enough to work within it. In corpo terms: it was a high-skill job with long hours, massive pay, and massive potential for either dismemberment or promotion, sometimes the latter due to the former.

  People nodded to them as they passed, but Gareth was a good little tourist and kept his mittens to himself, touched everything like it was made of glass, and was differential to anyone they encountered. The people were friendly, if professional, and would show Oliver clear respect because...Gareth guessed his tier was higher?

  Need to ask Ellisandra that one when I get a chance.

  Gareth had gotten his own ID badge done when Guanji was kind enough to bring an official to the house. He was strictly told what he could and could not access with his badge. Which, given that he was training as the city lord's daughter's protector, gave him access to a lot of places. Such places included “areas of defence vital to the protection of all charges.”

  They soon reached the top of the wall by following a series of staircases ascending through featureless square rooms, lit by white mage lamps. The walkways were massive, both in girth and length. Two squads of ten halberd-wielding warriors patrolled between evenly spaced small watchtowers. One such patrol passed them, and Oliver briefly saluted. Gareth just gave a polite bow as he had been taught to do.

  It was still pissing rain, even that high up, and Gareth looked to either side. The wall was windy-winding, and was built or shaped into a natural wavelike pattern for some reason. He could see the bright light of the Volun city tree, even through the thick rain. The buildings far below seemed beautifully lit up with their own colourful dazzles of light, the streets were clearly visible and easy to follow in the darkness of Night. He could see the grand pillars of the colosseum lit up with yellow flame torches, and the pure white pearlescent globe of the Training Area on the far side of the city. He spotted grand pagoda hotels and lowborn inns; saw the steaming vents of a glass-fronted, warmly lit bakery; the seductive red-wood panels of a brothel; the green fields of farmland and their accompanying longouses; and any number of building identifiable or otherwise. He could even spot large areas of complete blackness within the city where he guessed the temples took up acreage. It was beautiful in a way Gareth couldn't describe. For the first time this foreign city reminded him of Terra, its lights, its civilisation, its...atmosphere.

  The rain drowned out whatever sounds he might have heard echoing from below, the rain overpowered whatever smells might have been drifting up, but it could not drain away the sudden surge of gratitude in Gareth's heart. He wasn't in a cybercity, hopelessly burdened by debt, with a family that he couldn't see. He was in a place that was training him, paying him, helping him grow into a force to be reckoned with.

  Oliver lightly flicked him on the shoulder and nodded his golden locks to the other side of the wall. For some reason, words were suddenly hard to come up with. He followed.

  Rain streamed onto the stone blocks at their feet, efficiently channeled into gutters along the crenelations on either side. Mounted sparingly between the merlons of the crenelations were large disks of brass metal, like a giant magnifying lense on a swivel. It reminded him of those touristy binoculars at places that had a nice view. Next to each such disk was a large brass bell for signalling the alarm.

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  When Gareth looked out over the outside, he expected to see a world of natural beauty…only to see absolutely fuckall at all as the clouds and rain hid the soaking wet terrain, not to mention that it was darker than a post-golden-age Insta FYP...

  “Well, that's just shit.” Gareth muttered to himself.

  “Do not fret, junior brother.” Oliver cheerily said and tapped a small square carving cut into the stone. It glowed dimly and activated the viewing lense, revealing a resplendent landscape beyond, “This here scrying mirror filters out all the Water element within its view, meaning we cannot really see rivers,” he pointed to a fuck-off massive crocodile seemingly floating over a rock bed a few hundred meters away, “but at least it means we can see what is hidden out there.”

  “Downright sick as fuck.” Gareth said with awe.

  “Haharar! I like the way you talk lad! It is fuckin' sick.” He joined Gareth in staring through the lense. It was still dark - cause its fucken Night - but he could at least see through the rain, mist, and clouds now.

  His eyes followed the road leading out of the city, the very one he and Ivor had walked down a few months prior, and saw trees. Big trees, small trees - trees that leaned and trees whose branches twisted and whirled. Some glowed dimly, similar to the city tree, but distinctly less powerful; while others seemed to absorb light like an inescapable black hole in the dim jungle below.

  Gareth felt his skin prickle as a giant green leopard, grass and small plants growing along its 10 foot long spine for camouflage, stalked behind a ground of adventurers. He was just about to call the alarm when a blazing white ballista bolt lanced from the wall 50 yards away, traveling insane distances as only its afterimage were visible, and struck down the leopard with a single shot through the chest. It was pinned to the ground, and died swiftly after, still managing to give the surprised party of four a heart attack.

  His gaze left the sad sight of the leopard, and travelled deeper into the untamed sections next to the road. He couldn't see too much due to the concealing plant growth, but there would be an occasional flash of light as a beast performed some form of bloodline ability, a crash as a tree toppled, and a scuffle as two giant beasts fought over something.

  He saw a ten ton beetle battle a sinuous snake sporting seven heads, each spitting a different spray of venom that seemed to not affect the beetle overly much. He saw a two storey tall turtle...sitting. THEN he saw a battle break out between a lightning-fast chameleon and a swarm of saprofil bugs - a hivemind of insects that Connor had warned him about. There were constant actions, constant violence, constant life! It was a vibrant ecosystem that Gareth could scarcely imagine with his city-life upbringing.

  They travelled further down the wall until Gareth could spot the Crystalline river snaking its way through the landscape. He couldn't actually see the water of the river, but the schools of fish, the 20 ft crocodiles, the families of scaled hippos, and the winding riverbed gave him the clue that this might be the river. Further supported by the fact that the river flowed with just tremendous speed that he could hear its roar over the falling rain.

  If the jungle had been teeming with life then the river was veritably bursting with it. Schools of vibrant fish numbering in the hundreds twisted through the currents like tornados of sparkling scale. Crabs with crystalline carapaces filtered mud, waved their pinchers that were large enough to snap a man in half, and just did crab things. Then there were the leeches. Giant, five foot long, blood red sacks of ugliness and teeth. The other animals and beasts avoided them like the plague, but as he watched adventurers with hooks and spearguns caught a few and chopped their heads off.

  There were no mundane animals, as he knew them. Each species had its own quirks and talents, as proved by one giant 10ft fish that was ravaged by an even larger crocodile. It spurted a strange white substance into the water upon its death. That cloud of white rapidly shifted into hundreds of tiny little fish that scattered in every direction, thus ensuring its species's survival. There were vibrantly green frogs that could leap more than fifty feet out of the river, there were salamanders that boiled the surrounding water to ward of predators, and an untouchable shrimp that would miraculously dart out of a creature's mouth just before it snapped shut.

  On land, the world was just as chaotic. Birds dove into the water like tribal spears, piercing small fish. A majestic eagle swooped down to scoop up fish in its giant hooked talons. There were birds that preyed on other birds, while there were fish who gobbled up the birds that stupidly landed in the water and didn't take off quickly enough.

  “How are there so many beasts?!” He asked incredulously.

  “Rift breaks, mostly. The goddesses Shaevalur and Coranel also heavily influence beasts to reproduce and spread their bloodline, as is their duty. The rest either migrate naturally, escape from Shekaron's labyrinth, or came into being due to a magical accident.”

  “Incredible.” Gareth stared out at the vibrant landscape, his eyes wide with

  “Incredibly dangerous is what it is. Unless you are tier 3 or above, you will very quickly become part of their food chain.” Oliver said with a grimace.

  “What level is tier 3 again?” Gareth asked absently as he studied something on the horizon.

  “Shakaron be praised, they still haven't taught you how tiers work? I should have a word with-”

  “No-no, they taught me,” he hurried to interject, “I just forgot. There was a lot of information, and a lot of the terminology just went over my head.”

  He slapped Gareth on the back of the head, which stung more than it should have given how softly he hit him, “You should listen in your lessons.” With a last pointed look he explained, “It is relatively simple to understand, tiers are a way to refer to a certain bracket of levels: tier 1 are levels 10-20, tier 2 for twenties and tier 3 for thirties. It is hard to detect someone's exact level, yet the tiers are so distinct from one another that we can guess their relative strengths. We often seperate people into low, mid, or high in their respective tier, but even that is sometimes hard to detect if a person cultivates multiple paths.”

  Feeling slightly bashful at missing something so simple, he briefly thanked him and changed the subject, “What's all that darkness on the horizon?”

  Oliver briefly squinted, “That there is the most dangerous forest you will find around these parts…Most parts, honestly. We do not go there often. It's real shit-show, even by Volun standards. Imagine the worst parts of what a forest can be; the venomous insects, beasts, exposure, and slam it all together into one foul smelling cockpot of deadliness.” Oliver spoke a lot with his hands, so with grand gestures of throwing shit together he had a large scowl on his face that spoke volumes of his dislike of the forest.

  “What makes it so bad?” Gareth asked with a small smile at his observation of Oliver, it was endearing to be sure.

  “Well, do you know how there are areas that are aligned to certain elements?-” he would have continued but saw Gareth shake his head and did a double take, “well…you've got areas aligned to different elements, and that one is aligned to Darkness.” He lamely waved in its general direction, “It will permanently be darker than your grandmother’s armoire, unless you have a darksight bloodline of some sort. For the many of us not so blessed, we carry around torches, which means one less appendage to fight with, and one dropped torch away from being blind and lost. Worst of all, do you know which tree is most prevalent within the woods?”

  Before Gareth could answer Oliver rushed on and dramatically threw his hands into the air, “The Watching Thrine tree! Are you familiar with plants that develop defence mechanisms against being eaten?" He didn't wait for Gareth's answer, "Well, this tree developed a way to make large animals feel like they're being watched. So, as you are traipsing blindly through the shrubs, which are thornier than Coranel’s heavenly bush, you constantly feel like you're being watched. Each tree makes you feel like Mogeel's scythe is hanging over your neck, watching your every move. It is one aspect of natural defense I find interesting, even if I fucking hate the godscurs’d place. The trees do not harm you, they are trees after all, but it brings to light a crucial aspect of defense: intimidation. If your opponent fears you before you ever draw your blade, then the battle is already won."

  "What else about defense can you tell me?" Gareth asked somewhat dumbly. He leaned between the crenelations and peeked to the ground far below. Feeling that childish urge and not seeing any harm, he spat over the edge, just for the fucks of it. His glob of spit disappeared between the droplets of rain, but he still felt better.

  "Look at that building over there," Oliver pointed a gauntleted hand to a building about a mile away, and Gareth swivelled the looking glass in its direction. The building rested on the left bank of the Crystalline river. It stood maybe three stories tall, just barely peeking over the surrounding trees, and had orange terracotta roof tiles. The trees hid most of it, but it was one of maybe...four-five...buildings beyond Volun's walls.

  "I see it."

  "That is the Neighing Hippo Inn-"

  "Hippos don't neigh."

  "Maybe not yours." Oliver reposted and Gareth raised his hands in mercy. "Anyway. I am not sure if you have noticed, but there are very few buildings beyond Volun's walls due to the evident danger." He gestured to where three adventurers were desperately pulling on the legs of their fourth member, whose upper body was stuck in the mouth of a giant toad. "Therefore, what does that tell you about that one little building with knee-high palisades?"

  "That they couldn't afford the real-estate prices inside the city?" Gareth asked, knowing it was the wrong answer but wanting to tease Oliver a little. He got another slap on the back of his head.

  "No...It means that appearances can be deceiving. Cultivators shelter within the city because they cannot handle the beasts outside; the walls are a sign of weakness. Those that choose to live beyond our walls are incredibly powerful cultivators that have the ability to passively ward off hordes of monsters. The lesson in defence is thus: If someone appears defenseless, be on guard. Cultivation can make a monster of the most defenseless seeming old man. If some schmuck starts boasting about how strong he is, about how you should fear him: attack. If your opponent is calm, collected...quiet: be cautious, for they are hiding their strength."