The Untold Story of Tiberias

Lindens

Nick and Neil finally get to town. The city is full of beautiful buildings. Frenetic sounds rang out as Nick passed through the square. The city seems to be very prosperous and peaceful. From the entrance, to the middle of the city and all corners of the place, Nick could see the flag pennant depicting a rose with two swords crossed behind him.

Neil explained briefly that the image is a symbol of the Kingdom of Tiberias that has been used for generations. The rose symbolizes the valor of the virtues of the name of the nation, and the sword represents a powerful protection for the entire population of Tiberias. In reality, the opposite is happening. The rulers of the land tortured their own people without mercy.

“Don't be fooled by his outer appearance. This city does look good, but the only ones who can enjoy this luxury are the nobles and the rich. A large proportion of the population lives in slums hidden behind the magnificent walls of the city. And the people who work for the nobles are also nothing more than slaves with very small salaries,” explained Neil when he saw Nick's admiration for the city.

Nick's expression turned serious. “Slavery?” tanyanya.

“Ah, sorry, I didn't mean to ruin your admiration for this city. Although not the capital, but this place is also quite large and famous since the beginning. The city was built during the reign of the previous King and became a trading center of the surrounding areas. Therefore Linden, the name of this city, became one of the most beautiful places in the kingdom.

“But since King Tiberias IV was overthrown, trade has only been monopolized by the evil nobility and the rich. People are forced to pay high taxes or devote themselves to working for a small fee.

“The beauty of this city is broken. Slums appear below ground. And the trade of human slaves or magic creatures is actually rife. Linden is only beautiful on its surface, where nobles and the rich live. But behind all this, the suffering of the people becomes its victim,” Neil said.

“Show me the way,” Nick said suddenly.

“Hah?”

“I want to see that place. The real face of this city,” said Nick seriously.

Neil finally took Nick to the suburbs. They passed through shops and luxury boutiques full of dresses and jewelry before finally reaching the front of a dark alley. Neil guided Nick into the alley. No more scents of cakes or expensive perfumes. Instead of the smell of bacin and the pool of water that welcomes them. The alley looked empty. There was only one or two people dressed in tattered camping who were lying or sitting limp on the edge of the alley. Those people looked helpless, shabby and smelled bad.

Some children peeked while hiding among the weathered wooden pillars of the rickety house that seemed to have almost collapsed. Occasional moans were heard from behind those simple houses. It looks like there's a very sick person inside.

The atmosphere of this alley is really bad. Nick did not expect that behind the grandeur of the city out there, there is this extreme suffering.The condition of the place may be as bad as the state of the village that Nick came to a while ago.

“This,” said Neil suddenly stopped in front of a rickety building that was slightly larger than before. “This is an auction venue connected to a luxury building out there. I take you in through the back door, the driveway used by the ruthless men brings in the captured slaves,” Neil explained.

Neil opened the hood of his robe and stepped in through the moss-smelling old door. A thick-bodied guard blocked their way. But the guard recognized Neil and let the two men in.

“Neil. You haven't stopped in a long time. Did you bring a friend?” ask the keeper.

“I heard about the Duke's son from the guild people. Are you in charge of handling it?” The guard asked again.

“You know it's classified information, Jac. You better not interfere and just focus on your work as a guard dog,” said Neil sharply.

The look on the guard's face turned sour. He was upset by Neil's dog. Even so, the guard doesn't seem to want to make trouble with Neil, the hitman who is respected even by the people who work underground.

“Enter. You came at the right time. Today's auction will feature incredible magical creatures. You must be surprised,” said the guard as he stepped back to give way.

Neil walked past the guard followed by Nick. The thick-bodied guard watched Nick closely, as if scanning for a new face brought by Neil. Nick doesn't care about it. The young man just walked straight behind Neil, passing through a narrow passageway that to his left right lined with iron bars.

Nick tried to observe the dark room behind bars. How surprised he was when he realized that inside there contained small children who were cowering in fear with their legs chained using a large heavy iron ball. The other room contained more mature, shabby young men who looked weakly scarred. There were also those that contained young women whimpering and sobbing slowly in fear.

“Do not do anything now. You better not draw attention by trying to destroy this prison. liberating the slaves openly will only trigger chaos that we can not handle, Nick,” muttered Neil half whispered.

Nick could only clench his hand holding in anger. How could humans confine their neighbors and torture them to this extent? While monsters roam out there, humans oppress each other in this place. How ironic.

Before moving to the auction site, Nick's eyes were pounded on a golden-haired woman sitting in a prison room. The room was empty and contained only one woman. His figure was so striking because the color of his golden hair was sparkling as if it was emitting light from each of its strands. The woman's skin was also very white and seemed to emit a bright glow around her body.

Nick was glued for a moment. He had never met directly with the people of that figure. But the young man soon recognized his pointed ear which was widely discussed in the ancient books in the Calada library. That woman is an elf.

Nick's gaze seemed to be realized by the elf woman. He looked up slowly and looked back at Nick directly into the eyes of the young man. They stared for a few seconds. The gaze of the female elf was so deep, calm and sharp. There was no fear or doubt reflected in his eyes, even though his entire body was bound by a smashed iron chain.

The intense moment only lasted for a few moments because then Neil came back to Nick.

“I think he is the main dish at this auction. A girl elf. With the bonds of black magic, even an elf would not be able to break free from this prison. What a pesky fate of the girl,” Neil comments following the direction of Nick's view.

“Let's go to the auction room,” invite Neil. Nick finally leaves the elf woman in a dark cold prison. The elf continued to look at Nick until the young man's back vanished behind the wooden door leading to the auction room.