Ryan and Elisa walked towards the city entrance where Serissa was with the guards.
Ryan and Elisa walked towards the city entrance where Serissa was with the guards, and he took a brass badge out of his bag.
Then he showed it to the nearest soldier.
"May I come in?"
The soldier nodded and gave Ryan permission to enter.
Ryan then entered the city without paying any attention to Serissa or Elisa.
Serissa saw him walk away but didn't speak to him and turned to Dimitri.
"Shall we go? I want to rest."
Dimitri then ordered his soldiers to prepare a carriage for Serissa to board, and they headed towards the academy.
Elisa entered after the soldier saw her silver badge.
"So where do I go now?"
**********
The streets of Lusaris was wide, paved with rose-pink sandstone, smooth from countless feet and wheels, and on both sides ran shallow water channels carrying clear water from the palace fountains to the back alleys. Small stone bridges crossed these channels every few steps, many of them topped with stone benches where old men sat smoking pipes or talking in low voices.
The markets were the city's beating heart. Not one single market, but entire alleys transformed into seas of goods
As Ryan walked, he noticed that the markets were divided.
Where he saw
The Perfumers' Market: filled with the scent of musk, oud, and cinnamon, selling oils in blue and yellow flasks, run by men and women with hands stained with henna.
The Coppersmiths' Market: where the hammering of copper rang out all day, making pots, lamps, and the small bells that Lusaris was famous for.
The Silk Market: lined with fine fabrics from every kingdom, from heavy velvet to light chiffon, in colours like a rainbow.
And other markets where everything was organized
People were everywhere. Not just the residents of Losares, but also merchants from faraway lands, travelers, academy students, soldiers, and even thieves gliding silently through the crowds. Ryan saw someone steal a small bag from another person's waistband.
Children ran between people's legs, some selling flowers in small baskets, others playing with wooden balls in the narrow squares. Stray dogs slept in shady corners, and cats climbed the clay and pottery domes.
The cafés were open to the streets, their owners placing floor cushions and baskets of fresh bread, serving bitter coffee in small copper cups. Men sat for hours playing backgammon (with ivory pieces and wooden boards), or listening to storytellers who stood on wooden boxes recounting tales of ancient kings and legendary monsters.
As for the smell of Lusaris, it was a unique mixture: hot spices, fresh bread, burning oil from torches, pipe smoke, the sweat of donkeys and wheels, and jasmine flowers climbing the walls of houses.
The buildings were not identical. Some were old, made of darker sandstone, carved with faded inscriptions that could barely be read. Others were new with shiny copper domes that had not yet rusted. The windows were small and decorated with wooden latticework,
From afar, Ryan could see the king's palace, a large palace in the center of the city.
Ryan then stopped in front of a large wooden inn with a sign that read: "Traveler's Inn".
But Ryan didn't go in; instead, he went to another place he wanted to see.
He exited the main market near the marble lion fountain, then turned left into a narrow, unnoticed alley. He passed under a low wooden archway, and suddenly... everything changed.
The paved rose-pink stone roads disappear, replaced by dusty alleys or worn wooden planks whose creaking fills the ears. The loud voices of vendors turn into whispers and sometimes screams, and the smell of spices and jasmine is replaced by the smell of damp earth, burnt charcoal, and sometimes rotten food.
These were The Poor Quarters