Northern Market.
Actually, Sean wasn't sure if it was the north. Rietis was larger than any city he had ever visited before—even larger than all of them combined. It would take several trips through these market districts to tell them apart.
Fortunately, he had enough coins on him, but the journey still took nearly an hour to reach. This city was truly massive!
"Sir, we've arrived. That building ahead is the Scholar's Library... Are you planning to visit, sir? I know there are many interesting places in the north. I can wait here for you," the coachman said, pointing at the structure before them.
What a businessman.
Seeing that Sean paid generously and was an outsider, he immediately thought of making another profit.
"No need. I'll be delayed for quite a while."
"No matter, I can wait here..." A businessman never says 'no' to a chance to earn money; as long as there was an opportunity, he'd try to hold onto it.
When Sean didn't reply, the coachman gave an awkward laugh.
"I'll rest at the carriage stop across the street. If you need to go anywhere else later, sir, you can come find me directly."
"Alright," Sean finally agreed casually.
He turned and walked toward the Scholar's Library...
The place really did look like a library. After climbing the steps, there was a large fountain on the platform. The people passing by were all dressed impeccably, suggesting they were at least wealthy merchants or affluent families.
As for nobles, they rarely appeared in such places. After all, in this world, nobility represented power. If they enjoyed reading, they could easily build a grand study at home. Wealthy merchants and affluent families didn't have such luxury.
Wealthy merchants were exactly what the term implied, while affluent families covered a broader range—such as scholars, record-keepers, and others who had achieved something in their field of study but weren't nobles and whose families weren't in business.
In short, they were people with influence in the region!
Sean deliberately paused by the fountain...
The tracking notification that had been following him since the carriage left the Sky-Covering Wings headquarters had disappeared about ten minutes ago. The pursuers likely hadn't followed.
So he wanted to check if they were still around.
But there was no notification in his sight. It wasn't until he reached the door that he sensed a [Watch!] from someone standing behind it.
So those two or three people tailing him were gone?
Sean glanced back...
There were only eight or nine people on the platform, none acting suspiciously. Their statuses above their heads were all normal.
Not a single one was targeting him. They were either [Thinking!] or [Chatting!]...
How strange.
Had those people been watching him?
Or were they simply monitoring the Sky-Covering Wings headquarters, and he, a man coming out of there, had been caught in their surveillance?
He remembered there were three earlier, but after he got on the carriage, it became two...
Perhaps the remaining one stayed at the headquarters' entrance.
He wondered if they would follow. He looked toward the staircase behind him.
Occasionally, one or two people came up, but none were targeting him... To be safe, Sean pinned on the badge symbolizing his noble status.
It was the family crest he had carried when leaving Taylormian. Every imperial noble had a badge representing their family. Others would see it and recognize his identity.
Sure enough...
As soon as he put on the noble badge, the person who had been [Watching!] him at the door immediately switched to a friendly smile.
"Lord Baron! You're here again today."
Uh...
Sean looked at the man approaching him. The first words were already an attempt to get familiar.
"What would you like to see today?" the man asked.
"What do you have here?" Sean, visiting for the first time, needed to clarify.
"Astronomy, geography, history, humanities, and even the stories and novels passed down through the ages... As long as you can name it, my lord, we can find it," the man said confidently.
So this place was essentially a bookstore.
The name Scholar's Library fit perfectly.
"I've just arrived in Rietis and want to find a map of the city," Sean said, which made the man a bit awkward. After all, he had just claimed they could find anything, and now he was immediately proven wrong.
But businessmen didn't care about such things. He arranged a seat for Sean and then went upstairs alone to find what he needed...
The Scholar's Library had three floors. Almost every visible space was filled with bookshelves. Most people around were seated at tables near the walls, with attendants standing by to serve them. A few others sat quietly reading.
It felt like stepping into a library.
Around Sean, a few young men and women were sitting and reading.
"Lord Baron, these are what you requested," the man said after a while, carrying a stack of parchment scrolls from the second floor.
They varied in size, likely different types of maps. Sean chose the largest one and spread it on the table. It was about a square meter in size, with the entire city of Rietis drawn quite comprehensively.
It seemed even better than what Kalyana had drawn. Dense areas were outlined with fine strokes.
Countless texts and lines, but upon closer inspection, they felt remarkably clear...
The key point was that in Sean's eyes, the map instantly took shape and projected itself, accompanied by countless tiny yellow dots!
The only areas he could currently see people were from the Sky-Covering Wings headquarters to the Scholar's Library. It felt like a path drawn in shadow, with pedestrians on that road clearly visible.
To the west, of course, was the road to the Prince's Mansion, which he had walked last night.
In the vast city of Rietis, he could only see pedestrian markers on two routes...
A city must have at least a hundred thousand people, especially Rietis, a major city. With such a population, the dots nearly overlapped into a solid mass! On both routes, they were almost all yellow.
That represented [Neutral] goodwill. Only within the Sky-Covering Wings headquarters was there a small cluster of green dots, representing the girls.
After Freya announced his joining of Sky-Covering Wings, most people's goodwill toward him instantly became [Friendly]. Those dots represented them.
"Are you satisfied, sir? Look, we are here," the man standing beside him said, noticing Sean hadn't spoken and hurriedly asked.
"Yeah, not bad!"
"This is the work of a master scholar, covering almost the entire city of Rietis. Look here—this is a famous tourist area in the city..." As he spoke, he didn't forget to introduce the city's surroundings to Sean.
Just then, a voice suddenly reached his ears...
"So, you're a noble friend."