Looking up at the Citadel of Rivergate, June let out a half smirk.
Corsair had heard of this Citadel before, but looking up, he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of awe emerging from his heart.
The Citadel was truly inspiring. Rivergate was built on a wide river that connects the Storm Sea to the body of water that connects to Bastion. There stood a series of walls made out of monolithic stones that descended from a tall cliff, which, from afar, looked like steps meant for a giant.
Each wall was tall as it was wide; from down here, he could tell that it was filled to the brim with siege weapons.
It was nothing short of enormous.
Though from what he had heard, the Citadel was actually a complex structure that functions as a great dam and a lock. The tallest point of the titanic walls held back the fierce current, while the lower ones were chambers, filled with gates that could be filled or drained due to some mysterious ancient enchantment.
It's due to this that allows ships relatively safe travels, to and from the Storm Sea, by climbing or descending the cliffs. From what he had heard from Jess, due to the ancient systems of locks, it ensured that nothing could swim further upstream from the river without getting annihilated by the Citadel battlements.
'Perhaps the Fallen Titan Goliath would use it as stairs.'
A brief image of the Nightmare Creature that had destroyed Erebus Field crossed June's head. Though, of course, in reality, the titan was too small to use it as a staircase.
June chuckled to himself before leaving the docks and stepping on the stone path that led to the motel and other buildings.
Swoosh Swoosh-
A gentle breeze brushed through June's thick, dark, messy hair as he shook his head and descended down from the ship.
It seems that the Riverman, Jess, and the other passengers had already left the docks before him.
The passengers seem to be high in spirits, it seems, after all, Night Garden is one of the more popular attractions that the Dream Realm has to offer. One of the more dependable ones that's available anyway, at least.
Stretching both arms, he looked forward and saw a metallic sign that pointed to a path that led to the motel named [Rest Easy Inn].
There was also a small text written below the larger words as well.
"Because you check in.. You rest easy!"
June muttered to himself as a slight frown slowly appeared on his chiselled face.
As someone who's methodological and prefers efficiency above most... He couldn't understand the need for the extra line beneath. Isn't that what a motel is supposed to do?
Regardless, from the Dock stood a path that splits into two. One leads to the motel where he was heading, and the others lead to buildings owned by the Dragonet Clan and Valor.
June yawned and scratched his head as he walked along the path to the motel.
There seems to be quite a decent number of people here as well, walking along the paths and on the lush grass, taking pictures with their cameras.
June would have guessed that in a few years' time, this part would be filled with mundanes and Awakened alike.
From what he had heard, the motel is actually quite new, as it was built around 2 years ago, due to the large influx of people entering the Dream Realm. Because of the constant migration from the waking world, although dangerous, tourism across the different citadels has had a significant increase.
This eventually led to Saint Jest of the Dragonet Clan constructing a motel at his own Citadel, to house visitors wishing to travel from Night Garden to Bastion and vice versa.
The pathway leading to the motel was only around 70 meters, so it shouldn't take long for him to arrive.
Still, as June walked along the stone paths, he couldn't help but to get immersed in the breathtaking view here. From the emerald green leaves that surround him to the lush and vibrant grass growing around the stone paths. During the daytime, the verdant leaves would have shone magnificently.
It was just as peaceful as it was beautiful.
However, June himself knows that this isn't the time to rest. According to the calculation that the Cinder Fox had given him, Quiver and the other Pandavar's smugglers should have arrived here not too long ago.
Though thankfully they probably won't leave soon, as normally most people tend to take a few days off at the motel, to regain energy before continuing on their way. That, and if they leave too soon, would leave some suspicions as well.
'They're probably leaving in around two days.'
June thought to himself.
Hopefully, finding those pesky smugglers wouldn't take long. Although he had seen Quiver's face before, in June's experience from busting a few drug smuggling operations here and there, it's not too uncommon for these types to use memories to hide their faces when smuggling drugs.
The picture he saw was definitely Quiver's actual appearance, though. Security in Bastion is much more tighter compare to here in Rivergate, where smugglers could just use a memory to alter their appearance in the eyes of others ever so slightly.
However, thanks to June's dormant ability, which allows him to think and decipher at a much faster rate compared to others, finding Quiver shouldn't take long. After finding him, the other smugglers should be found relatively quickly as well.
After a few moments, it seemed that he had finally reached the entrance of the motel. The design wasn't anything that special itself, made out of Dream Realm woods and a few concrete here and there.
It size was decent for a normal motel, which he hadn't expected, due to how dangerous it is in these parts of the Dream Realm. It was around roughly 1,200 square meters in his estimate, with a large image of a goat drawn on the door. The walls were also covered in lush vines as well, creating a gentle atmosphere for the building.
Letting out a tiresome sigh, June opened the wooden door in front of him and entered the lobby.
Creak Creak-
Inside the motel didn't offer much silence compared to outside, creating a striking contrast that made June a bit surprised. It offers a myriad of sounds coming from a playlist of Awakened and mundanes, who were all hanging around in the lobby.
The room was actually quite spacious, around 10 square meters respectively. There were wooden tables accompanied by sofas on both sides of the room and a long and vibrant crimson carpet leading to the reception as well.
There was a decent number of people within the building as well. If he were to guess, there's probably around a hundred and fifty or more mundanes and Awakened currently at the Citadel of Dragonet.
A smirk carved itself on half of June's face as he walked down the crimson carpet and towards the reception.
Behind the reception, there seem to be two posters hanging on both sides of the counter, one for the Dragonet Clan and the other for the Great Clan of Valor.
'They're not here in the lobby...'
June thought to himself after scanning the people within the room for a brief moment.
Quiver and the other Pandavar's smugglers aren't here, or at least they are not making any mistakes that might give them away.
After all, besides June himself, there are other elite executives of the Black Market hunting down the Pandavars currently. It would be quite a surprise if the Pandavar clan haven't caught on to this fact yet and notified their own members.
"Excuse me, sir, can I have a room to stay for around two to three days, please?"
June asked the receptionist nonchalantly in a polite manner.
"Yes, of course that'll be 23 minted coins, please."
"Sure, here it is."
With a slight nod, he placed the coins on the table.
"Alright then, your room is number L25, on the left wing."
The receptionist gave out a bright smile as he pointed over to the direction of the room in which he would be staying for the next few days.
"Thank you."
June gave a light nod in return before heading over to the left wing of the motel.
There were a few paintings scattered along the corridor he was walking in, apparently one of them depicted what Europe looks like, before it became an unlivable wasteland.
'So, I guess that's what it looked like back then.'
June thought to himself as he walked towards his room. It was honestly hard to believe that Europe back then looked decent at all, though it did look interesting. Apparently, one of the paintings depicts a city that was half underwater. People living there had to sail on boats to traverse the city.
With a sigh, June halted in front of his door and slowly opened it. Tomorrow, he had a lot of work to do.