[Bonus chapter for 200 powerstones *hiccup*, next at 400 :'< ]
Leonel wasn't surprised that the Royal Blue Fort held the same moniker as Royal Blue Academy. The reason why the Academy had this name in the first place was due to its proximity to the Royal Blue River which directly fed into the World Sea. In fact, they weren't far from the coast even now.
Earth, in this age, only had one large ocean body — though, this ocean body had numerous separating currents and the like.
After unifying the world, the Empire made amazing technological advances, eventually unlocking terraforming abilities that not only helped colonize the Moon and Mars, but also control the shift of tectonic plates.
The current Earth was not unlike Pangaea of the past. As a result, there was just one ocean.
'I wonder if there is just one universe… Is it Earth that's evolving to the Fourth Dimension? Or is it our universe? Or maybe it's on a smaller scale like our solar system?'
Leonel's brow furrowed and he tossed this to the back of his mind, He simply didn't have enough information.
If only Earth was evolving, that meant their colonies would be left behind. If not… The Empire would have many more variables to contend with.
This aside, the Royal Blue Fort was the fortified government building of the Royal Blue Province. There were a total of nine Provinces, and unsurprisingly, in terms of economic output and the overall wellbeing of its people, the Royal Blue Province was also ranked third just like Royal Blue Academy was.
However, whether that would continue to be true from now on was unknown. As a flourishing Province, Royal Blue Province had many industries, but among them, real estate had an exceptionally great place here. This was precisely due to its location near the coast.
Paradise Islands that had orbits that passed over the ocean were highly sought after. Those who were poor saw Paradise Islands as prisons that kept them from the surface, but for the rich and powerful, it was a good way to get away for a few days and even seen as a great vacation spot.
With such an important source of income gone now, it was obvious that Royal Blue Province would likely be on a downward trend from now on.
However, this also represented opportunity.
The nine Provinces were ruled by nine Governor Dukes. Obviously, the Governor Duke of Royal Blue Province, Governor Duke Leum of the Leum family, wouldn't want to see his power wane and thus might be more willing to let a few things slide…
Along the way, it wasn't rare to come across Invalids. However, the jeep was clearly built for these situations as a high level armored vehicle.
With the S-grade Zone gone, this was no longer a hotbed of powerful Invalids. The various F to C-grade Invalids they ran across were easily mowed over or outrun.
Such a situation made Leonel all the more serious. Without this jeep, he and Aina could just as easily deal with these Invalids, but the Officer driving it most definitely could not. This was the advantage technology gave.
The more Leonel saw such a situation, the more certain he was that acting rashly just because he had a little bit of power now was a foolish thing to do.
In Leonel's hands, a cube with a bouncing blob of silver could still be found. When he had wanted to put it into his spatial bracelet, Montez gave him another palm to the forehead, saying that living organisms with strong Life Force couldn't be placed into such things.
'… So you're living, huh? I wonder what you are…' Leonel observed the little blob of silver performing tricks as though to cure itself of boredom.
Aina sent a curious glance over, but it seemed she was also unaware of what the blob was. And, since she had ignored Leonel's implied question earlier, she felt it would be a bit too shameless to ask about it. So, the two sat silently at the back of the jeep.
Soon, a looming wall of steel that stretched 20 meters into the sky appeared, causing Leonel's eyes to narrow. He had seen this government building before, but it most definitely didn't have such walls in the past.
After a complex series of protocols and bypassing the gates, the jeep slowly rolled into the Fort.
Royal Blue Fort was like another world. Unlike the wreckage on the outside, it was organized, clean, and even had clear hallmarks of diligent city planning. If one knew nothing about what was going on outside, it would be easy to believe that this was just another day…
The only clear difference here was that technology had regressed. With a quick glance, Leonel could tell that other than the street lamps that illuminated the dimming light of dusk, those who frequented the streets didn't have personal tech of their own.
The buildings were mostly residential apartments separated into street blocks. In addition, there seemed to be one grocery store and an entertainment center per street block, but there weren't many people using them. This could have either been due to a curfew, or maybe they weren't so simple to use. Leonel felt it was likely a combination of the two.
It didn't take long for the jeep to reach the core of the Fort. Since the Fort itself had a diameter of barely ten kilometers, it wasn't very large.
The engine cut and the sounds of opening doors made Leonel take a deep breath. Steeling himself and calming his heart, he took a step out, an aura of authority exuding from his body.
Aina smiled lightly but didn't say anything. She knew that Leonel wasn't trying to pressure anyone on purpose by doing this, he just had a habit of taking even the smallest things incredibly seriously, let alone something that likely involved his life and death.
However, his actions caused the three officers who brought them here to break out into a cold sweat. At this point, they were no different from the students of Class A who suffered Leonel's torment all these years.
At that moment, they felt like Leonel was a wild beast that might swallow them at any time. Even the imposing walls of the Governor Duke's mansion felt like they had shrunk several folds.
"Leo!"
Suddenly, Leonel's suffocating aura vanished as a familiar figure appeared from the large, towering double doors of the mansion.
Leonel blinked before smiling lightly.
"James."
The name had hardly come out before he was engulfed by a bear hug.