Let us turn the clock back by about an hour.
Far from the coastline, deep within the vast and boundless ocean, a city stood amid the endless blue waters.
Sea City.
It was not only a source of inspiration that wandering poets yearned to visit, but also a place countless adventurers dreamed of exploring.
Countless celebrated poems and stirring songs had been born here.
The entire city was built upon an enormous circular island measuring dozens of kilometers across.
Seen from high above, the island resembled a gigantic, meticulously carved disc, steadily supporting the bustling city upon it.
Around the island's outer edge stood an immense magical barrier.
Under its protection, no matter how violently the waves came crashing in, the moment they approached the barrier, they would turn into light, white foam that gently lapped against the shore.
Rather than causing any harm, the waves merely added to the city's charm.
The residents here made their living almost entirely through fishing and cultivation.
Thanks to magic, Sea City functioned as a self-contained system and could easily remain self-sufficient.
However, as the situation across the continent changed and people's quality of life improved, the city gradually began attracting more and more visitors from abroad.
Some were willing to spend large sums of money to travel aboard expensive but exceptionally fast and efficient flying Magical Beasts.
Among these, the Frost Dragon Route operated by the Sorcerer Kingdom was especially well regarded.
Even more people, however, preferred traveling by ship. It was considerably cheaper and allowed them to enjoy the journey at a leisurely pace.
As for Naohara, he preferred simply tearing open space and teleporting.
Holding Keno's small hand, he walked with her through the bustling harbor.
People fished along the shore, sailors carried cargo, and children ran about playing. It was a picture of peace and tranquility.
"The people here look so happy~"
Keno looked around and could not help voicing her admiration.
As a Vampire who had lived for more than two hundred years, she naturally knew of Sea City. Most of what she knew, however, had come from hearsay. She had never actually seen the place with her own eyes.
After all, aside from her experiences with the 13 Heroes, she had spent most of her life shut away in her little room studying magic.
Even after joining Blue Roses, she had mostly operated within the Kingdom and its neighboring countries.
The peaceful atmosphere of Sea City came as a small surprise to her.
"Happy? I suppose that's not wrong."
"But this happiness has to be built upon some kind of order, just as the Sorcerer Kingdom has us, while the Theocracy has the Six Great Gods."
Naohara spoke softly.
According to historical records, Sea City had been founded roughly four hundred years ago, and not a single internal conflict had broken out there since its establishment.
The reason lay entirely in the city's unique laws.
Sea City's laws did not prohibit murder.
In other words, this was a city where people were technically free to kill, yet precisely because of that, public order was exceptionally good.
That brought up a rather interesting point. [Not being forbidden doesn't mean you're free to do it.]
In Naohara's view, Sea City differed from the nations of the continent because it was governed more by people than by written law.
The people here despised those who exploited loopholes in the law even more than ordinary criminals.
To put it another way, the rule of law did not appear out of nowhere. It was born from the sense of justice people carried within themselves.
Most mentally mature people could judge whether something was right or wrong.
If something was clearly wrong, then even if the law did not explicitly forbid it, it could still be recognized as wrong.
In this country, the law contained no provision against murder.
But murder was obviously something that could not be accepted. When it happened, the residents themselves stepped in and punished the "offender" in place of the law.
That was why Naohara considered this place closer to rule by man.
"To be honest, I really like this city."
Naohara liked the way things were handled here.
Because murder was not explicitly forbidden, everyone became a watchdog, and people could band together to punish anyone who refused to abide by the rules.
There was almost a sense that power belonged to everyone.
If his second life, the world where Momonga had lived before, had operated under rules like these, powerful corporations might not have been able to act with such reckless impunity.
Government functions had broken down, public security had deteriorated, homeless children were common in civilian districts, and the police had become little more than decoration.
Those affiliated with large conglomerates lived inside [Eco-Cities], secluded paradises completely detached from the outside world.
This had severely intensified class conflict.
The clearest examples were terrorist attacks carried out by the poor against the wealthy, the wars that followed, and the increasingly chaotic collapse of social order.
Naohara still clearly remembered the [Eco-City] war that had broken out in Europe in 2118, during which a new neo-Nazi organization had emerged.
Pandora's uniform design had also been modified by Momonga based on the SS uniforms worn by that Nazi organization at the time.
(P.S.: This is part of the original setting.)
"Peace and happiness aren't things you can achieve just by talking about them."
"The mindset you carry determines the kind of world you see."
To a pessimistic person, the world appeared gray. To an optimistic person, the world was filled with color.
Someone who spent every day thinking about murder would only see Sea City as a country where killing was freely permitted.
But to someone who wanted a stable and orderly society, Sea City was a country where people lived peaceful, secure lives.
Hearing this, Keno nodded in agreement.
In her eyes, it was undoubtedly a novel and daring method of governance.
"The founder of this city really was farsighted."
Under laws like these, Sea City could have ended in only one of two ways.
One possibility was that people would act without restraint, turning it into a chaotic, lawless city that would eventually destroy itself.
The other was exactly what stood before them now.
No racial discrimination, no war or conflict. Only peace, friendship, and mutual assistance.
"If I'd known it was like this, maybe I should've moved here back then."
Keno had barely finished speaking when a large hand landed on her head and vigorously ruffled her golden hair.
"Tsk, do you have some kind of complaint about me?!"
"Hehe, I'm kidding, I'm kidding!"
Keno hurriedly begged for mercy.
Looking at her now-disheveled hair, she shot the culprit an annoyed look.
She could not even say something like that without getting punished. What a petty man.
The two continued onward, chatting casually while taking in the various buildings along the way.
Sea City's recycling system was quite interesting.
Household waste was collectively broken down and processed with magic, while wastewater was purified before being discharged into the ocean, effectively protecting the marine environment.
It was a world apart from a certain island nation from his first life.
Along the way, several residents approached them and volunteered to serve as guides, but Naohara turned them all down.
If he had simply come sightseeing, he would not have minded.
But today, he had serious business to attend to.
About half an hour later, Naohara reached a primeval forest behind Sea City and arrived at a pond.
There, three True Dragon Lords had already been waiting respectfully for quite some time.