Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 679: Beautiful but stupid

Chapter 679: Beautiful but stupid

The city of Nysodosia was unlike Pheripolis in several ways, and Ana, along with Nadia and Arwen, was opportune to lay eyes on a number of them.

They had been lucky to join the caravan heading into the city, of course, only after Ana had agreed to dinner with the caravan leader’s son.

He was a fatty with a good heart so Ana saw no reason to refuse.

In any case, upon entry into the city, the three ladies were quickly drawn in by the beauty of Nysodosia.

Unlike Pheripolis, which was divided into three steps, with the third step sharing a border with the Azure Seas, Nysodosia was located in a valley filled with several artificial lakes and a lot of tall buildings.

According to the caravan leader, who introduced himself as Seleukos, Nysodosia was once a dry land with nothing but metals which it mined and sold to the other city-states for resources it couldn’t get, like vegetables and the like.

All that changed during the reign of the 13th ruler of Nysodosia, a woman who had seized the throne from her brothers in the most brutal conflict ever recorded in Henosian history.

To date, no other battle over the throne has been as bloody as the War of Seven Crowns.

Empress Arethusa, after butchering her brothers and claiming the throne, had gone ahead to lead Nysodosia into what it is today.

She had carried out several projects, starting with the Crystal Project, which involved creating artificial lakes by redirecting some portions of the inland lakes in Henos.

From then on, Nysodosia would go on to become one of the most prosperous cities within the Solomon Alliance.

It was popularly known as the City of Canals with its main form of transport being boats.

"It’s beautiful," Arwen confessed, her demeanor markedly more lively than earlier on their journey.

Currently they were on Seleukos private boat.

Nadia nodded in agreement. "It is."

"But how do we find the bounty hunters?" Arwen asked.

"Don’t worry," Nadia said. "Ana will have that information soon."

As the two ladies stood outside enjoying the sights, Ana was currently seated in Seleukos private study, indulging in dinner.

"I thought I was supposed to be having dinner with your son." Ana calmly said as she indulged in a salad.

She hadn’t seen a need to change what she was wearing, so she kept it on while Seleukos, a brown-skinned man with a rather muscular physique, was wearing a white tonga with a button on one shoulder revealing his identity as a member of the merchant community, an unofficial community.

He had his luscious dark hair braided and seemed to enjoy wearing jewelry as he had on quite a few.

Seleukos chuckled as he replied. "That was merely a means to ensure that my wife doesn’t come after me for taking three beautiful women into my caravan."

"I see." Ana seemed skeptical but didn’t bother pushing the matter.

"So you are looking for the bounty hunters," Seleukos said with Ana nodding in response.

"We are. My colleagues and I are in search of the mythical Beast."

"A foolish endeavor if I do say so myself. No offense of course."

"None taken. So can you direct us?"

"I could take you there myself. In truth, I have some dealings with those lunatics."

"Lunatics?"

"Don’t mind me, they aren’t insane per se, but they do have their quirks. That’s what happens when you dedicate your entire life to hunting down the Beast, though I’d have to admit they have long since strayed from their origins."

"I heard about that. If you were to gauge, how far from their origins have they strayed?"

"They mostly focus on hunting mutants now. Very few still chase after the Beast and those ones hardly get any support when in need of it."

"I see," Ana muttered.

"Anyway, if you wish to go after the Beast, then they are your best bet."

"Thank you."

"No need to thank me. So pray tell, do you plan on taking up residence in Henos?... I can tell you aren’t from around these parts."

"I’m a traveler." Ana simply said to which Seleukos responded.

"Quite unfortunate. However, if ever you are interested, do endeavor to reach out to me."

As he spoke, he took out a bronze coin and handed it to her. "This is my insignia. Show it to any merchant, and they will help you get across to me."

"I’ll keep that in mind," Ana said as she kept the coin aside.

The conversation shifted to more mundane things like economics and social structures but after roughly an hour, it had to come to an end as the boat had arrived at their destination.

"Use the coin I gave you; it would grant you immediate access into their main circle, so you aren’t played for a fool in the outer parts," Seleukos remarked as Ana, Nadia, and Arwen disembarked from his private vessel.

After giving their thanks, they made their way to the entrance where two guards were waiting.

"State your name and business." One of them said while the other scrutinized them extensively.

Ana took out the bronze coin she had and replied. "We are wanderers and we were hoping we could speak to someone about the Beast."

The guards exchanged looks with one another before proceeding to step away for the trio to pass.

"Thank you."

After they’d gotten past the door, one of the guards spoke up. "Beautiful but stupid. The worst kind."

"Indeed." The other nodded in agreement.

***

"What the hell was that?" Alex questioned as he arrived back in the village just in time to watch as wolf-like creatures attacked the approaching barbarians.

Archibald glanced back at him, his expression turning livid as he exclaimed. "You did this!... You brought them here!... Because of you, my work has been cut short!"

As he spoke, he rushed Alex, quickly closing the distance before grabbing his shirt.

Alex didn’t even know when he instinctively reached out and grabbed Archibald by the neck before proceeding to raise him off his feet.