Chapter 965: Thief   Karyk's observation of the guards was cut short as they entered the inner city, accompanying the carriages. Although his observation was brief, he quickly discerned a stark contrast between the inner and outer areas of the city. Despite both being part of the same city, they seemed like entirely different worlds. It became evident why the outer citizens were treated poorly while the inner citizens held more authority. freewēbnoveℓ.com

In his future visits to the city, Karyk had only entered the inner part directly, leaving him unaware of what the outer city was like. This time, he was able to see more clearly. If the inner city was spacious, the outer city was its complete opposite. Apart from the main road leading from the gate to the inner city, there were no other properly constructed paths. Even the alleys were narrow, allowing only two people to walk side by side. The abundance of houses in this area made it resemble a slum rather than a thriving neighborhood, especially all the houses that looked like they could fall apart at any time. 'This is truly strange. If the inner city was so well made, then why is this part of the city so bad? It should have been easy to solve this problem for people that are strong. Unless, they intentionally left it this way.'

He could not understand why the Civilization would let a large portion of their population live like this. It was as if this wasn't a place for them to stay, but instead a punishment. In this world, there was only one city, so these people could not go anywhere else either. Karyk accompanied the man as he walked through the narrow alleyways, not knowing where he was actually going. Occasionally, he saw a few people along the way. They were worse dressed than Qien, looking no different than beggars. In comparison, Qien looked like a prince. "How far is that place?" Karyk asked. "Not far. We will get there soon enough," Qien answered. However, even after a long time passed, they did not reach the destination. At this point, even Karyk was starting to get suspicious. It looked like Qien was intentionally trying to take him as far away as possible for unknown reasons. Karyk did not think much about his suspicions. Even if he was right, he could handle some small problems now that his powers were back. If anything, he wanted to see what this person had in mind. 'I wonder if the author of the book also came to this place with him? Or did I already sway too far from his memories?'

The illusion of the past was still ongoing, so he had a feeling that he hadn't changed much of the past. 'Maybe even if I hadn't started talking to anyone, he would have approached me first. It might also be part of the memories.'

Karyk let the young man lead him deeper down these confusing alleys. And after a long time, he finally stopped. In the place he stopped, Karyk could already see the giant border wall that was only a few feet away from him. However he was on the wrong side of the city. He was on the complete opposite side of the gate on the outer wall. He was as far away as possible. "It seems we came too far. Is this where you live?" Karyk asked, looking around. He noticed a few houses in this area. "Which one is yours?" Qien released his grip on Karyk's hand and took a step back, announcing in a resounding voice, "I have brought the person." In response to his words, the doors of the nearby houses swung open, and a multitude of people emerged, each clutching makeshift weapons in their hands. "You took so long this time. Were you deliberately trying to keep us waiting?" admonished one of the men, delivering a light slap to the back of Qien's head. Qien chuckled amiably, massaging the back of his head. "Sorry about that, we encountered some unexpected delays on the way here. But we're here now," he reassured the man with a friendly smile." The bulky man opened a scroll and checked the portrait within, before looking at Karyk. Malice appeared on the man's face.

"Hmm, it seems to be the same person." "Are you people thieves? And here I wondered, what big thing was going to be waiting for me. I must say, I am a little disappointed."

Karyk had thought that there was some bigger secret here since the writer of these memories included them instead of directly starting from the day of the birthday celebration. However, he was only left disappointed. If it was just an attempt to rob his coin, then it was insignificant. He did not care about the coin either. Ever since he regained his abilities, he did not need to eat much. He could go on, without resting as well. So the currency of this world was useless for him. "You are calling us the thief?" The man looked at Karyk, as if he was looking at a shameless person. "Before we start breaking your bones, hand over the thing you stole from the Inner City! And don't even think about lying! Your neighbor saw you last night! He is also the one who informed us."

"So hand it over, and we might let you live, as long as you promise not to tell anyone!"

The man raised his bat, gesturing that he had a short temper. "Hmm? I stole from the inner city last night?"

Karyk was taken aback. He was really surprised by this information. The owner of these memories was a thief who had stolen something from the inner city? How could he achieve something like that? Then again, he had a feeling that these people weren't lying. Moreover, when he appeared in these memories, he was already caught sleeping. It was highly likely that he was sleeping because he was tired after the theft last night. He was quite curious. Just what did this person steal? What was so important for him to take such a risk? He even included this in his memories? It could only be something important.