Chapter 148: The Deep Blue Palace
After buying a large amount of rare materials in the Neutral Zone, Chen Ran took another tour of the other places in the Neutral Zone to get to know the environment. At the same time, he also came to the outside of the most famous building in this city.
The Deep Blue Palace.
This palace was located in the very center of the city and was the residence of Prince Sayna. It was a circular palace. The entire outer perimeter of the palace was surrounded by seawater introduced from outside Diya City, forming a circle of azure sea.
The radius of the circular sea surrounding the palace was more than two hundred meters, and it was connected by a long bridge at the front and back. The palace was like a small island standing in the city. Looking from afar, the surrounding walls were also very distinctive. Just looking from the outside, one would have the idea of wanting to go in for a walk.
Of course, that place was not a place one could just enter. Chen Ran just casually strolled around the outside for a while and then left on his own. He was just familiarizing himself with the environment here. He also had lunch at a restaurant in the Neutral Zone.
The Neutral Zone gave a very good feeling. There were not many chaotic scenes. Perhaps most of the people here had some connection with the noble circle.
According to the guide under Leif, the requirements for living in the Neutral Zone were very high, and ordinary people could not live here.
Even the ordinary people who worked here often had to go through special training at local institutions that specialized in noble etiquette. Those waiters and attendants were trained according to the requirements of the nobility and even the royal family. Only after reaching a certain strict standard could the well-behaved ones be introduced to places that needed manpower.
The training institutions here were often also employment agencies. This rule was personally set by Prince Sayna, and the nobles living here were also very satisfied with this move. This also made the Neutral Zone more and more standardized, not even inferior to the civilization of the Imperial Capital, the City of Dawn.
This place was different from the smoky, money-grubbing atmosphere outside the Neutral Zone. It was a paradise that many people longed for.
At this point, there was also a specially built academy in the Neutral Zone. This was a noble academy established specifically for the nobles living in the Neutral Zone, called the Sea Blue Academy. Although this academy was not as large in scale or as numerous in students as the Diya Academy outside the Neutral Zone, that academy could only be called an academy for the children of rich merchants. The teaching environment here was much better than that of the Diya Academy, and there were commanders and high-level mages from the Deep Blue Palace who came to teach courses. All of this was also at the behest of Prince Sayna. The people who studied here often had a better chance of going to the Dawn Academy in the Imperial Capital for further study, not because of connections, but in terms of real strength.
For the stable order in the Neutral Zone here, Chen Ran truly admired the master of that palace. To be able to stabilize the environment of the Neutral Zone in a demon capital like Diya City, prestige alone was far from enough. One also had to have sufficient ability.
After purchasing fifty portions of steel and other materials from ordinary shops elsewhere, Chen Ran used them to prepare the equipment for his nearly fifty brothers.
This round trip took a full day. By the time he returned to the hotel, the sky had already darkened.
Chen Ran returned to his room.
On the sofa, the girl had not yet woken up, but from her complexion, her originally pale face had eased a lot. Her face was serene, and she slept quietly, curled up in the half-slipped blanket.
Looking at the somewhat slipped blanket, Chen Ran couldn’t help but walk over and tuck it in tightly again.
At this moment, the sleeping girl seemed to feel something. Her slender eyelashes fluttered, and she actually opened her eyes at this moment.
Her hazy gaze flickered. The girl suddenly realized the figure beside her and instinctively made a move. But just as she moved, the severe pain in her back made her gasp, and she fell back down in pain, sweat beading on her forehead. When she looked again, she finally realized Chen Ran’s familiar face.
“Hey, beautiful, I know I’m very handsome, but you don’t have to be so excited.”
Seeing this girl whose face had returned to its coldness, Chen Ran couldn’t help but want to joke. He picked up the blanket that had slipped to the floor and gently covered her.
“So it’s you…” Seeing Chen Ran’s face clearly, the girl finally breathed a sigh of relief. She wrapped the warm blanket around herself and suddenly realized her body…
“Hey, hey, hey, don’t get the wrong idea. If it weren’t for me, you would have been dead before. It was unavoidable to see some things when I was treating your wounds. Although I saw some things I shouldn’t have, your whole body was covered in shadow poison at that time, and there was no sense of beauty at all. Don’t always think that I’m taking advantage of you.”
The girl’s grip on the blanket tightened a little. Her flaxen-gold, slightly curly long hair fell down, covering her face, which was as red as if it were bleeding.
“Thank you.”
This thank you was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.
“Did you do what happened on the west side of the city yesterday?” Chen Ran raised his head and couldn’t help but ask.
Without much thought, when the girl had come over injured, Chen Ran had guessed that what had happened last night must have been the result of this fierce girl’s reckless actions.
The girl nodded. “I found the target of the mission, but I didn’t expect them to have a large number of powerful guys here. I was injured by a high-level dark mage in that battle, but fortunately, I managed to escape. Because my injuries were too heavy, I had no other choice. In this city, I could only find you…”
“You found the right person,” Chen Ran said, leaving for a moment and taking some milk and some exquisite pastries from the magic refrigerator in the room. He placed them on the coffee table in front of the sofa. “You were too reckless. No matter how strong you are, you are still alone. There is a not-so-small force of the Dark Temple lurking here, and there is even an eighth-tier Dark Temple elder. A group of people dealing with a little girl like you, it’s a sure thing. Aren’t you afraid that they would do that to you after they killed you…”
After pouring the milk and placing the plate on the table, Chen Ran sat down in the chair opposite and, looking at the girl’s hesitant expression, said, “Don’t say anything. Eat something and then go back to sleep. Rest well for a few days. After the dark power in your body has dissipated to a certain extent, I will completely heal your injuries at once, and I guarantee that there won’t even be a scar.”
Suddenly realizing that the girl seemed to be having trouble with the blanket, Chen Ran smiled and walked into the room again.
When he came out, he had a dress in his hand. It was one that Eva had left here a few days ago, and it was just right. He placed it beside the seriously injured girl.
“Your cloak is full of blood and is in tatters. I happen to have a girl’s dress here. It might not fit very well, but you can make do with it for now. If it doesn’t work, we’ll think of another way. There’s food, a study, a bathroom, and everything here. You can just stay here for a few days. We’ll talk about other things after you’ve recovered.”
The girl nodded, her head lowered, and she didn’t say anything.
Chen Ran looked at the somewhat reserved girl and said with a smile, “Speaking of which, you’re really a quiet person. You don’t talk much. I don’t know if you’ve been autistic since you were a child. I kind of miss that interesting painter. He was good at bragging and chatting. It was very relaxing to be with him.”
Chen Ran stood up and finally said, “Phew, that’s it for now. I still have things to do. I’ll go back to my room first. If you have any questions, just knock on the door.” Then he turned around and walked into the study on his own.
