Rise of the Inquisition (Arcs 7-9)

Chapter 197: Corruption

Jingks and Evius are teleported outside of the city, and immediately Jingks looked around, only to scratch the back of his head. The two of them were standing in what he thought as the middle of nowhere, with only tall trees in the distance contrasting against the green plains. He turned to Evius, who was looking in the opposite direction of him.

"Where are we?"

"We're still inside the kingdom, but we're on the outskirts of High Garden. Outskirts might not be the proper word to describe it actually, since we're far away from High Garden."

Jingks folded his arms.

"What was the purpose of bringing me out here?"

"I want to show you something."

Jingks was skeptical of what Evius wanted to show him, but he turned and looked in the same direction that Evius was looking in. Immediately, his eyes laid sight upon a town in the distance. The town being made entirely of wood, with only a small watch tower in the middle of the city being made of stone.

"You wanted to show me a town?"

"That town is one of the towns of High Garden, designated specifically for the lowest of the lowest classes of High Garden."

"So why are we looking at it?"

Evius turned to Jingks.

"Because we're going to go into the town, and you're going to see it."

Jingks turned to Evius.

"Why?"

"You'll know soon enough."

"Would it hurt to tell me why I need to see this town, now?"

Evius shook her head.

"No."

"Then why can't you tell me?"

"Because I want to keep you in suspense. Now Jingks, pull your hood over your head and let's start walking into town."

Jingks sighed, but he listened to Evius as he pulled his hood over his head. The two of them then walked into town together, adjacent to each other. The two of them looking like a couple, since they were walking very close to one another. When they were in the town, Jingks instantly saw the conditions plaguing the town.

"Faster dammit! Walk faster!"

Jingks watched as a High Elven soldier, wearing light green armor and holding onto a whip, cracked at the backs of ragged peasants who walked by. The peasants were holding onto large baskets full of various objects; stones, swords, armor, and more things. The peasants didn't show any reaction when the whips cracked at their back, but instead only showed their dull dirty faces as they walked by Jingks.

"What is this?"

"This is how High Garden truly is. A rotten society, which cannot be accurately described so one may come to an understanding of it, as to understand High Garden you must see High Garden itself."

"So I'm guessing this is where the unfavorables go?"

Evius nodded her head.

"Anybody who is deemed useless and unwanted, will be thrown into small towns outside of the main city, High Garden. They will be put to work on mines, farms, or any thing else deemed important to the Council."

"And it's all hard labor?"
"Yes, all of the jobs outside the city are indeed hard labor. Which means most of the peasants - who should be called slaves, won't live years past thirty."