Free Web NovelChapter 245: Iron Rock’s Situation
Flying in low over the city, Lucas was able to get a good look at Iron Rock and what he saw left him with a mixed opinion.
While Iron Rock was certainly cleaner and better organized than Herald City, that was hardly a high bar to cross.
From what Lucas could tell, the city down below had undergone several rounds of expansion, with obvious differences between the various old and new districts. These expansions did have some semblance of urban planning to them, but there were also a number of issues which the young boy found irksome.
For instance, most of large-scale smithies and forges were located along the south-east and south-west banks of the Belton, a bit downstream from the rest of the city. This was probably done to isolate most of the living spaces from the excessive noise and smoke which these facilities produced, as well as to minimize fire risks and take advantage of the river to power large waterwheels.
However, Lucas was still able to spot a fair number of smaller smithies throughout the city, all of which were belching smoke and ash.
This mix of residential and industrial zoning, while understandable given the Rockwell Kingdom’s level of civil development, was also not something Lucas could approve of. Not only was it dangerous from a purely infrastructure perspective, it was also extremely detrimental to the general populace’s health and well being.
Then, of course, there were the standard problems Lucas had come to expect from large human settlements; a lack of any kind of city-wide sewage system, narrow streets and alleys crowded with mixed-traffic, slums and shanties on the city’s outskirts, and so on and so forth.
None of this was to say that Iron Rock was in a state of disarray or disrepair, just that compared to the visions of utopian-like continent spanning cities from Lucas’ inherited memories, there were many, many things that could be improved upon.
A number of these improvements wouldn’t even require much effort or investment to implement yet would dramatically improve living standards.
Knowing he was getting ahead of himself again, Lucas shook his head and focused on more practical matters, such as the city’s defences.
In this regard, Iron Rock was substantially better off than both Herald City and Port Calden, but that was only to be expected.
Iron Rock was further away from where the explosion occurred, which had not only given it more time to prepare, but also a bigger buffer zone with regards to the Wild Beasts fleeing from the Great Western Forest.
Higher city walls, an abundance of siege weapons, readily available high-quality weapons and armours, and a larger number of fighters with higher average strength had allowed Iron Rock to better weather the current disaster than its southern neighbours.
On top of that, the number of publicly known Spirit Initiates who resided in Iron Rock was 9, 6 of whom belonged directly to the Carlson Family. Together with the Raging River Legion Commander who had been sent here by General Balfour to coordinate the overall situation, there should have been 10 Spirit Initiates in total guarding this place.
Oddly enough, within the range of his senses, Lucas actually picked up the Life Auras of 11 Spirit Initiates, and there might have been even more than that in the city, seeing how spread-out Iron Rock was.
Why this was, Lucas didn’t bother speculating for now. All that mattered was that as long as a Sixth Order Beast didn’t show up, Iron Rock would probably be secure for the moment.
Shifting his focus to the matter of refugees, Lucas was again encouraged by what he saw.
From what he had learned from various merchants and administrators in Herald City, only about 35% of the Carlson County’s population lived west of the Belton, while the rest lived to the east. This made sense seeing how the mines which fueled the territory’s industries were all located in the eastern hills.
Now, that wasn’t to say that a significant number of people didn’t live in the west, just that the majority didn’t.
The reality of this population distribution was borne out in the number of evacuees which Lucas could see occupying Iron Rock.
In both the Baker County and the Moore Viscounty, almost all civilians fled during the disaster, and those who managed to escape eventually made their way to the regional capitals, causing Herald City and Port Calden to literally overflow with refugees.
Iron Rock, on the other hand, experienced far less forced migration as the bulk of the County’s population had the Belton to act as a barrier to the encroaching chaos. This allowed the city to retain more of a semblance of order.
It was impossible to get an accurate count from just a cursory aerial investigation, but Lucas estimated that the number of people inside Iron Rock right now didn’t exceed 100,000.
If most of the original population still remained, which seemed likely given Iron Rock’s circumstances, that would mean the city was currently hosting about 40,000 refugees.
That number was certainly enough to strain local resources, but unlike in Port Calden or Herald City, Iron Rock wasn’t on the verge of breaking down entirely; at least not yet.
All of this was good news, or at least, it should have been, but it also created a problem for Lucas.
Simply put, with Iron Rock and the Carlson Family not feeling a real sense of risk and urgency, it would be very hard to convince the leaders and people here to follow a mass-evacuation plan that forced them to abandon so much land and property.
Still, this was Lucas’ job, and thanks to the insights provided by Viscount Moore, the young boy felt he had a good chance of succeeding even if he didn’t resort to... less cordial means.
Lucas didn’t have the strength or authority to force the Carlson Family to obey him, but his Master did.
If it came down to it, Celestina arriving in person would be enough to settle this matter; however, that would also mean Lucas had failed at his assigned task. He wasn’t so prideful that he would risk peoples’ lives just to prove his competency, but Lucas still felt it would be best if he didn’t need to get his Master involved as she was busy enough with other matters.
With such thoughts in mind, Lucas and the rest of his delegation began their final descent into a large open field inside the Carlson Family Manor.
The Lord’s complex was massive, covering over a square kilometre of land, with numerous warehouses, training facilities, gardens, and residences. There was even a small artificial pond with fish clearly swimming inside of it.
Then, of course, there was the main palace, a towering building made entirely of a white stone Lucas couldn’t identify. It was equal parts imposing and opulent, a visual representation of the Carlson Family’s wealth and strength.
Touching down in what appeared to be some kind of open-air training yard, Lucas, Allina, and the rest of the soldiers hopped off the backs of their Tartans and were immediately greeted by a single, older looking woman. ƒreewebɳovel.com
Compared to Port Calden, where the Viscount and most of the Moore Family’s Elders and administrators had come out to meet them, this reception seemed less enthusiastic, possibly even a bit rude, but nothing could be further from the truth because of one simple fact, the identify of this old woman.
There was only one Complete Peak-Rank Initiate native to Iron Rock, the sole surviving granddaughter of the Carlson Family’s founder and its current Supreme Elder, Elizabeth Carlson.
From appearances alone, it was obvious this elderly Spirit Initiate was approaching the end of her life, probably with no more than a couple decades left of vitality; however, her back remained straight, and the air about her remained regal.
From Lucas’ perspective, from the way she was dressed to the way she presented herself, Elizabeth Carlson seemed more like a noble than his own Master.
Most of the time, Celestina Balfour had a relaxed demeanor, one that made her feel approachable but hardly left a ’noble’ impression. She also preferred to dress casually when she wasn’t donning her armour, preferring loose pants and a shirt made of common cloth to dresses or fancy attire.
When Lucas had asked his Master about this once, her only response had been ’these are comfier’.
In contrast, the woman standing before him now was dressed immaculately in tasteful, long-sleeved black dress. There was nothing gaudy or over-the-top about Elizabeth, but clearly, she paid great attention to maintaining her image.
It was also apparent that in her youth, Elizabeth had been quite a beauty as even in her twilight years, hints of her past elegance remained.
This wasn’t to say Marquess Balfour was somehow inferior in any regard, just that she presented herself differently. It was also possible that she just didn’t care what people thought of her.
Celestina’s attitude actually made some sense, in fact, as in this world, what mattered most was strength, and that was something she had an abundance of.
At least in the Rockwell Kingdom, no one would dare disparage Celestina Balfour regardless how she dressed or acted, not if they wanted to keep their head attached to their body.
While Lucas was eyeing Elizabeth, however, the latter was also eying him.
Much unlike the younger Victoria Moore, Elizabeth Carlson, a woman with 289 years of life experience, immediately identified Lucas as the leader of this delegation.
That didn’t mean she wasn’t surprised by the fact that the envoy sent by Marquess Balfour was, from Elizabeth’s perspective, a baby barely old enough to walk on his own two feet, but that didn’t mean she would take him any less seriously.
Over her long life, Supreme Elder Carlson had interacted with many people both inside and beyond the borders of the Rockwell Kingdom, so she knew well enough not to judge a person by their appearance, regardless how shocking that appearance was.
Elizabeth also had many dealings with Celestina, even considering her an old friend from the same generation; as such, she knew that while the latter could be a bit eccentric and unconventional at times, everything the Marquess did had meaning behind it.
If Celestina had sent this boy here to represent her, there must be a good reason for it.
Intrigued by this unexpected situation, the old woman immediately collected herself, turned to face Lucas directly, and performed a perfect noble bow, "Greetings, honoured envoy. I am Elizabeth Carlson, Supreme Elder of the Carlson Family. I apologize for the Count’s absence; he is currently dealing with issues out in the city and will return shortly. Until then, please allow me to act as your host and offer you some modest hospitality on his behalf."
