Caesar walked down the stone fleet of stairs and headed to the western side of Rahvin kingdom, where the slums were located. Just like any other city, there was a relatively poor side, full of the ill or the parentless.Before the insurance plan was implemented, when a child was left alone without parents, they were forced to survive by themselves. Whether they scavenged for food or stooped down to thievery, they barely made ends meet.
The slums were full of b.a.s.t.a.r.d children, elderly, and those incapable of finding work, such as bandits, thieves, and those that are warranted for arrest. As such, the buildings were relatively cheap and no one wanted to live on the western side of Rahvin kingdom. There were two sides to every coin, and even though the Rahvin kingdom was known for its beauty, even it had its ugly side.
However, with a little work and cleaning, the western side of Rahvin kingdom would be a perfect place for the fox-kin to temporarily reside. Not many citizens dared to enter, and the fox-kin had become long used to filthy areas, thus, it was the perfect hiding spot.
Soon, as Caesar walked further down the road, it became barren and the normally busy streets were nowhere to be found. The common street vendors were non-existent and the roads became dirtier and dirtier as they walked.
Men and women that were covered in rags were lying down on some sort of cheap blankets at the sides of the streets, small cups filled with bronze coins lying at their side. Their bodies were malnourished and their hair was seemingly fading due to the lack of food.
The stench of rotting flesh, food, urine, and defecation a.s.saulted Caesars, Elizabeths, and Gingers noses. The sewage system was not accessible by all of the poor, and many of them don"t even bother to use a toilet.
Both Elizabeth and Ginger scrunched up their noses and frowned, while Caesar"s face remained extremely placid. He didn"t mind the fact that both Elizabeth and Ginger were disgusted, and kept walking until he reached the middle-most section of the slums.
Many onlookers glanced at Caesar curiously, some knowing of his ident.i.ty, and some not. However, none of them possessed the energy to call out to him, and most didn"t even dare to try. Their experience with n.o.bles, especially princes, was awful.
In the middle of the slums lied a weathered down fountain with vines crawling up the sides, giving it a certain aesthetic. It was filled to the brim with unhealthy, rainwater that the poor used to wash their clothes, and sometimes even drink.
Trash littered the ground and due to the lifeless nature of the residents, they didn"t care much about cleanliness. They simply lied down on their blankets and relied on their children or friends to feed, clothe, and hydrate them.
Filthy looking prost.i.tutes glanced at Caesar with pa.s.sionated gazes, however, his returned glare scared all of them away. Soon, he reached a very ragged looking building and gently pushed on the wooden door with the palm of his hands.
A loud creaking sound echoed throughout the surroundings as he entered. Dust was kicked up with every step and Caesar was forced to strain his eyes to see where he was going. Thus, he took Elizabeth off of his shoulders and told her to wait outside.
Elizabeth begrudgingly agreed and waited out with Ginger, along with the other residents of the slums. Considering Gingers strength, Caesar highly doubted anything would happen to them and he carried on without worry.
He swatted down the mind-boggling number of spider-webs and soon approached a wooden table located at the end of the room. An old, decrepit man with a long, white beard sat at the end of the table. Ancient looking books and parchments were scattered all over the table and floor.
The old man was currently daubing his quill pen into an inkstone, diddling down some words as he muttered out a few incoherent words. A strange, bronze monocle covered his right eye and his left appeared to be blind.
Caesar scrutinized the mysterious man for a few more moments before sitting down on a brittle, wooden chair in front of the table and crossing his legs. He patiently waited until the man was done writing before interrupting him with a smile.
"Pardon my intrusion, however, I would like to buy the entire western side of Rahvin kingdom, whether it is land or houses, I am willing to pay the current owners quite handsomely," Caesar said with a smile whilst tapping the table with his index finger.
The old man suddenly stopping writing on his piece of parchment and raised his head, closely scrutinizing Caesar. "You"re the crown prince, you don"t need to buy anything, simply take it away…" he said quietly and once again began writing, not paying Caesar anymore heed.
"Alas, if I take it away, they will continue to stay and have a reason to complain, however, If I pay them… they will no longer bother us, nor would they be capable of doing so. Do you understand?" Caesar asked with a frown. Taking away things with your authority brought upon dislike from the citizens. Why would he risk his reputation for something so simple?
The old man once again raised his eyes and scrutinized Caesar deeply. In fact, he had initially thought Caesar would become enraged at his rude att.i.tude, such would be something that most royals would be inclined to do, however, contrary to his expectations, Caesar remained calm.
"Sigh, I apologize for my previous behavior, too many rich sn.o.bs have entered into this place… here, I"ll help you out…" As the old man breathed a deep sigh, he reached under his desk and pulled out a thick book, full of papers.
"These are the deeds for the houses you want. Buying this much land is a much more troublesome task than I a.s.sume you bargained for" he said with a small chuckled and pushed the book in Caesar"s direction, to which he flipped page after page.
"Thank you for understanding, I"ll send a few people over with money, and I will buy as much as I possibly can," Caesar said with a smile and stood up from his chair. Dust was wafted up into the air and Caesar simply walked toward the door of the ragged building.
"Deckard is the name, It"s a pleasure to meet you… prince" Deckard called out from behind after Caesar reached the door, to which a small smile formed on his lips. It wasn"t every day that you met royalty with some form of self-control.
Once Caesar reached the door, he lightly pushed on it and exited the place. The blazing sun, Elizabeth, and Ginger greeting him with a smile. Three or so thugs were sprawled out on the ground with their tongues hanging out of their mouths.
A wry smile appeared on Caesar"s face as he pat both Ginger and Elizabeth on the head, "Daddy, why are these people so much sadder than the people in the palace?" Elizabeth asked curiously as she was placed on his shoulders.
"No matter how hard you try, the world will always be home to the survival of the fittest. Unfortunately, the people here were either too weak or too unlucky to survive, as such, they can only dwell on the streets and beg for money" Caesar explained as he walked back to the palace.
"We have tons of food, money, and water… can"t we just help these people by sacrificing some of our luxury" Elizabeth asked with a tilt of her head, an extremely intelligent question coming from such a young child.
"Tragically, it is better to teach a man how to fish, then to simply treat them to lunch… they, themselves, must strive for betterment if they ever want to change" Caesar explained to the young girl and quickened his pace. It was far too idealistic to want to help everyone in the world, in his opinion, it was much more realistic to only save those worth saving.
Ginger at the side frowned, she had never heard of such an ideology before.