The City of Uverd

With multiple high-story buildings, it was a densely packed society with barely any vegetation, except only for the outskirts Atsuo and Lord Kaiser were coming from.

Uverd is known for being the city of news and communications in Northern Rozair. Anything that occurs, quickly gets documented, checked, printed, distributed, and repeated. The entire process was very thorough, but the efficiency of the working class here was most notable about the whole thing.

Something that happens on the opposite side of Rozair, was sure to make the news by the end of the day.

It was a bit older than Taigoren, though still pretty modern and fancy looking to a common eye like Atsuo’s. Everyone wore neat, expensive suits and shoes, whilst being in a hurry somewhere. Compared to them, Lord Kaiser and Atsuo stuck out like sore thumbs in their stained uniforms.

They exchanged glances and went to a nearby shop to get some normal attire, normal being the formal standard set by everyone in the city.

They quickly realized that wearing good clothes can get a bit costly.

Along with the medals from the competition, the two of them got a fair bit of money as well.

That money combined, however, would only be enough to buy one suit.

“Choose,” Lord Kaiser said lifting the clothes in his hands, “pants or jacket…”

Atsuo looked at his options, pondering whether this would really change their pathetic appearance in other’s eyes.

“Honestly, we’d probably look even worse…” Atsuo said, truthfully, to which Lord Kaiser lowered the clothes.

“Fine, I’ll wear both then…” Lord Kaiser said impatiently, but being relieved on the inside.

“That’s what I was about to say… but whatever…” Atsuo said disappointedly.

They went to one of the registers, with Lord Kaiser planning to leave the store in his new attire, and old ones in his bag. While Atsuo, remained the same as before.

“Do you have a coupon from us?” the male cashier said.

The voice sounded very familiar.

Atsuo and Lord Kaiser looked up in disbelief. It was Deimos, working at a local shop in Uverd.

“What are you–” Atsuo began but was quickly interrupted.

“Only for our regular customers, buy one get one free!” he said cheerily, then motioning them to shush, “Please choose whichever stand out to you.”

He led Atsuo to one of the most expensive stands.

Atsuo stared at the countless options before him, struggling to pick a single one, while Deimos went back to the front desk, where Lord Kaiser waited.

“Also! As a sign of our gratitude for your continued patronage, we will throw in a pair of brand-new shoes as well!” he said, glancing around the store as he slammed a pair of shoes on the counter for dramatic effect, “…each…”

Lord Kaiser did not have to be told twice. He nodded and ran over to Atsuo telling him to pick out some matching shoes.

After they got dressed and went up to pay, Deimos nodded in approval.

“Very well… they suit you perfectly!” he said, going through the register and getting them their change.

“And your coupon…” he said, giving them a piece of paper with a serious expression on his face.

On it, they saw a specific location and time later that day. It was clear he wanted to meet somewhere safe and discuss what happened so far. They nodded and headed for the exit.

“Thank you for shopping with us!”

Deimos’ voice faded as they went back into the busy streets of Uverd.

While he was on his shift, the two of them decided to get familiar with the city, maybe get some lunch, and find the exact spot from the note Deimos gave them.

The city was densely packed, making it look small from the outside, but inside, there was a lot to see.

Lord Kaiser and Atsuo went past countless shops, selling antiques, random equipment, interesting costumes, and most often, newspaper stands and libraries.

While there were many things in this city, grocery stores were not one of them.

Instead, people ate at the food stalls around the narrow streets, and small restaurants that had to import food from Taigoren and other surrounding countries.

Among all of Rozair, Uverd was the only city that stood on it’s own. Not part of a country, but not big enough to be a country at the same time. Still, in other’s eyes Uverd was indispensable to all of the countries in Rozair.

Atsuo and Lord Kaiser went down an eerie looking alleyway and entered one of the small restaurants that lured the passerby tourists with the smell.

To their surprise it was nearly empty, with only two people who were already finishing their food.

They sat down at the front and ordered a bowl of noodles each.

The service was fast, food was fresh. They had no complaints.

They quickly ate, thanked the old man behind the counter, left a tip, and were gone.

Walking down another road, they emerged in an open area that had a fountain in the middle. Surprisingly, not a lot of people went there, so they used their chance and went down a more scenic route.

As they walked they felt the more beautiful side of Uverd rather than the usual rush hour experience.

“Just in!” some vendor yelled out, as they passed.

“Just in!” he continued repeating himself, “…students from Drezore now face treason charges to the state!”

Their eyes widened as they froze in place.

Atsuo and Lord Kaiser whipped around after hearing the all too familiar wording, and knowing someone who matched those exact circumstances.

In his hand, the vendor held a newspaper high in the air, with two faces all over it.

Their breath hitched as they stared at their own reflection.

They were right.