The capital of the Maafern Kingdom. It is a fortified town located in the basin of a large river.

Although it is located in the center of a desert, it is surrounded by fertile soil, and wheat, vegetables, and fruits are grown around the town.

The town is surrounded by high walls on all sides to protect it from the invasion of monsters and enemy nations. Ballistas and pitchforks were placed on the top of the walls, and soldiers were watching overhead in case of invasion by flying monsters.

After a brief screening at the gate, Urza and Levienna enter the inner part of the royal capital.

They saw a spacious road stretched out just inside the town stone gate. Beyond the road, a white castle could be seen in the distance. Perhaps that is the palace of the king of this country.

As they pass through the gate, they hand over the leader of the sand bandits to the soldier who is checking the gate and report that the rented sand-dragon carriage is a trap set by the sand bandits.

It seems that the captured bandits' belongings are the property of the state, and all the weapons, dragon carriage, and sand dragons belonging to the sand bandits were confiscated at the town gate.

On top of that, Urza and Levienna are forced to pay a very high toll, making them feel unsatisfied.

In any case... the two women arrive at the royal capital.

This is where they wait to meet Zenon. And they have arrived at the destination of their journey.

"We've finally arrived at the capital, desu~no!"

Urza raised her kanabou above her head as she looked around the streets.

It had been a whole day since they had been separated from Zenon.

Although it has not been so long, it has been a day and a thousand years for Urza.

The time without seeing her beloved master was something she could not help but long for.

"Zenon-bocchama... probably hasn't arrived yet..."

Levienna uttered a sigh as she followed Urza through the town's gates.

Zenon had been kidnapped by Falcon Pharaoh, but the direction from which he flew was directly opposite the capital.

No matter how fast he could escape, it would be impossible for him to reach the capital before them.

"Let's get an inn for the time being. And... while we are at it, let's gather information about Bocchama."

"Gather information... desu~no?"

Urza tilted her head.

Her face was vacant and innocent. It was a look that really didn't get it.

"Have you forgotten the purpose of this trip? We are here to find out about the guru of this kingdom, Rudanaga, aren't we?"

Recently, nobles and outlaws from other nations have been ravaging the Slayers Kingdom.

They know a mysterious leader named Rudanaga is behind it, and they have come to the neighboring nation to investigate.

Incidentally... since they have no knowledge of the game, they did not know about Rudanaga, the fourth heavenly king of the Demon King Army.

"Let's find out more about the guru before Bocchama comes to the capital. You want to help him, don't you, Urza-san?"

"Of course, desu~no! For the sake of Goshujin-sama, Urza will do anything! I'll kill anyone and crush anything!"

"Okay, okay, don't ask me what we're going to destroy. But first, let's just look around the town and find a place to stay. We'll secure a base."

After that, Levienna and Urza walk down the main street together.

Although it was the main street in the town center, surprisingly few people were on it. Even though the sun was still high in the sky, the street was deserted.

Stores and stalls lined both sides of the street, but the number of goods sold was surprisingly small. The number of buyers is thin, and the shopkeepers have gloomy expressions.

"...Isn't it a very gloomy town, desu~no? Is this really the biggest town in the kingdom, desu~no?"

Urza mumbled suspiciously as they walked along the main street.

It is pretty different from the capital of the Slayers Kingdom. There, many stores are crowded during the daytime, and bars and brothels open at night, making it lively in another sense. It was only late at night or at dawn when the streets were completely deserted of people.

"...Probably because of the high tolls. No goods are coming in from the outside, and the peddlers have stopped coming. Or perhaps the inhabitants living in the capital are taxed even higher."

Levienna speculated.

Even from her perspective as a servant of the Marquis, the toll tax in the capital was quite high. No merchant would pay such a large amount of money to bring their goods to the town.

In addition, some people looked like vagrants sitting here and there on the street. Some of them are also obviously weak.

It is no wonder that the town is infested with sand bandits. The people who are unable to pay their taxes and need a livelihood have fallen to banditry.

"...What are the rulers of this kingdom doing? If this continues, the whole kingdom itself will rot away."

The Maafern Kingdom was clearly corrupt. Even a first-time visitor could see it.

If left unchecked, many people would die from poverty. Either the Maafern Kingdom will slowly disappear as there is no one left to live there, or it will be destroyed by invasion or revolution from other nations before that... In either case, the Maafern Kingdom's life will not be long.

Hearing Levienna's explanation, Urza ponders over it.

"Hmm... Urza doesn't really know the hard part. Anyway... are you aware of that, Levienna-san?"

"...Yes, I'm aware of it. You mean the 'guest' in the back?"

Levienna nodded at Urza's words.

They had felt a presence following them from behind since they had passed through the gate.

They were being followed. More than one person.

"......"

"......"

Urza and Levienna nodded at each other and dared to run into the dark backstreets.