Seeing that Bill and John had spotted the marked crossing, the knight continued, "That's the pedestrian crossing—exactly where you're supposed to cross the road. Use those every time."
His tone grew stern. "Next time I catch you walking in the carriageway or crossing outside the lines, you'll either pay the fine or choose between labor duty and the lash. Since this is your first day in Oros, I'll let it slide. Don't make me regret it."
Bill and John nodded quickly, looking properly chastened.
"Yes, sir. Understood," Bill said. "We're new here and still learning the rules. Won't happen again."
The knight seemed satisfied. "What brings you to Oros? If you're here to trade, you'll need to register at the city hall first before you can do any business inside the domain."
Bill answered promptly, "That's exactly where we're headed, sir. We came to do some trading."
The knight nodded. "Then walk with me. I'm on my way there now. If you have questions along the way, feel free to ask."
Bill started to protest that they didn't want to trouble him, but the knight cut him off with a wave. "No trouble at all. As long as you obey the laws, you're free to go anywhere in the city. We'll keep your lives and goods safe."
Bill didn't argue further. Making friends with a city guard on day one could only help.
The three of them set off together, the knight slowing his horse to match their walking pace.
After a short distance, Bill couldn't hold back his curiosity. "How do you keep the whole city this clean? No trash on the streets, no stink of piss or shit anywhere, and you've even planted trees along the roads. How is that possible?"
The knight sat a little straighter in the saddle, clearly proud. "All Prince Gaemon's doing. He says dirty cities breed disease and plague, so every citizen is required to keep the streets clean. Everyone must take their household trash to a designated spot—no dumping anywhere else. The people in each neighborhood then haul it outside the city to the proper dumping grounds."
Bill frowned. "But how do you make sure no one just dumps their garbage in secret?"
"We divide the city into districts," the knight explained. "Each district's residents are responsible for their own area. They clean it on schedule and carry the waste out. The city hall also sends patrols to check. If a district is found dirty, every resident in that area gets fined or put to work. After a while, people start watching each other. Everyone prefers living somewhere clean, so the rule sticks."
Bill nodded, impressed. "That's clever. Keeps the city spotless without the city hall having to pay for extra labor. One stone, two birds."
But he still had more questions. "What happens to all that trash once it's outside the walls? Even a big dump site will fill up eventually. How do you deal with it then?"
The knight chuckled. "No need to worry. The waste is taken to special processing yards where it gets sorted. Anything that can be reused—cloth, metal, wood—gets cleaned and sold to the workshops. The rest is burned. No matter how much garbage the city makes, it never piles up."
Bill's eyes widened. "Even the shit from people and animals? I haven't seen any on the streets. Do they collect that too?"
The knight laughed outright. "Hah! You noticed. Look over there."
He pointed at a passing wagon. Bill and John followed his finger and saw that every horse, ox, and mule had a small leather bag tied neatly under its tail, catching everything that came out.
"What in the Seven Hells are those?"
"Waste bags," the knight said. "Every animal entering the city must wear one. If they're caught without it and soil the streets, the owner gets fined—or loses the animal. Besides, the city pays good coin to collect all that dung. Farmers and workshops buy it by the cartload."
"People pay for shit?" Bill blurted, genuinely shocked.
The knight shrugged. "Prince Gaemon says it makes excellent fertilizer. Fields treated with it grow far more grain. I've seen it myself. Farmers from all over the domain come into the city just to buy the stuff. They process it and spread it on their land. So yes—dung is money here."
Bill shook his head in wonder as they continued toward the city hall, the clean, orderly streets of Oros stretching out before them.
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