Yarra's Adventure Notes-Chapter 123 - 44 No.3 Manias Street_1

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"Coo~~~~" Under the blue sky of dusk, dove whistles cut through the airspace of the City of Knowledge. Smoky tendrils thrust straight up from the chimneys of homes all over the city. The rising columns of smoke, tinged with gold by the setting sun, formed a hazy, illusory forest.

The city of knowledge was bustling under the setting sun. Vendors were seizing every last minute of the day, loudly hawking their wares, trying hard to reduce their inventory. Off-duty commuters threaded their way home through the city streets, alleyways, and avenues. Most shops along the streets had already closed for the day, save for a few that remained open into dusk, awaiting the arrival of the day’s last wave of customers.

The northern district was different compared to the other four districts of the city. For the people of the northern district, sunset was the time to dress up at home, with the rise of the moon signalling the start of the day’s most bustling period. But the northern district was out of its ordinary rhythm today. Before the sun had even set, a steady flow of carriages—some modestly decorated, others dazzlingly opulent—could be seen on the streets, all headed towards the same destination—No. 3 Manias Street.

Manias Street was a quietly beautiful street in the northern district, where artists would come from all over for their cultural pilgrimage. It is a favorite spot for the nobility and the wealthy to purchase property. Unless one is extremely wealthy, owning property on this street is beyond reach. But there has always been a curious phenomenon on Manias Street: the owners of buildings No. 1, No. 3, and No. 5 have never appeared there. Their identities remained mysterious, and very few people knew who these three buildings belonged to. Of course, the mystery was solved today. All three buildings belonged to Marquis Snape. He bought all three buildings at once simply because he didn’t like having neighbors.

Once you step onto Manias Street, you would be immediately impressed. The street itself was a mere eighty meters wide; with the side lanes, it was almost a hundred meters wide. It could accommodate twelve carriages running side by side. Any carriage traversing Manias Street would somehow feel insignificant. Lining both sides of the wide street were towering plane trees, their thirty-meter-tall trunks standing proudly. The leaves turned golden in the autumn wind, forming a fine bruise under the sunset.

Outside the rows of plane trees were neatly arranged patches of lawns. Each lawn was a perfect square, measuring five hundred meters in both length and width. They were separated by wooden yard walls in the middle, with metal fences serving as yard walls facing the street. Unique villas occupied the center of each lawn, coloring the two sides of the street.

In the afterglow of the setting sun, a carriage approached from the distance. As it rounded the corner and stepped onto Manias Street, it was very ordinary, even overly so. It was a rented carriage from a livery stable. To those knowledgeable about the livery business, it was apparent that even the coachman was temporarily hired from the livery stable. Yet, no one dared to underestimate the occupants of the carriage, because their destination was also No. 3 Manias Street—the focus of the City of Knowledge tonight. Being invited to tonight’s ball by Marquis Snape was a symbol of status in itself. No one would dare to underestimate them, even if they came on foot in ragged clothes.

The carriage moved slowly, stopping in front of No. 3 Manias Street. There were already seven or eight opulent carriages and another three or four extraordinary-looking horses parked in front of the spacious gate. It seemed some guests had arrived early. The coachman was stiff with tension, carefully driving the carriage to the designated spot guided by the greeter, fearful of scratching those expensive vehicles.

Those who had arrived were all dressed in uniforms or formal attire, sitting politely in their driving seats, waiting patiently for their masters. Upon seeing this newly arrived fellow and his ordinary carriage, they looked with interest. It wasn’t just the coachmen. A family of four who had just stepped down from the carriage that arrived earlier also halted their steps. Standing in front of the gate, they waited curiously, wanting to see who would arrive in such a carriage.

The carriage came to a stop, and a highly trained attendant in black quickly stepped forward. He respectfully opened the door of the carriage. A pure black polished long boot stepped off from the carriage, landing on the solid wooden step below. With a clack as the boot heel hit the ground, a man slowly emerged from the carriage. Above his black boots were a pair of black silk trousers with grey straight-line patterns. A dark belt encircled his waist. He wore a white shirt underneath. The collar of the shirt was adorned with fashionable ruffles. Over the white shirt, he wore a silk vest with gold prints on a black background. A silver flower was pinned to the vest. A deep purple long coat was draped over him. His white shirt cuffs peeked a little under the coat, revealing a glimpse as he moved his arm. His hands were cloaked in black gloves. The man had short golden hair, and a black wide-brimmed hat was set on his head, swaying with each head movement.

The man stepped down from the carriage and stood in silence for a few seconds. He subtly adjusted his attire, then slowly turned around. He removed his hat with his left hand and held it to his chest. He extended his right hand, palm up, in the direction of the carriage door, and leaned forward slightly, waiting.

Soon, a small hand wearing a white silk glove rested on the palm of the man’s hand. The fingers were long and supple, the palm shape soft. The hand was slightly larger than that of an average female, which was a bit unfortunate.

The man gently grasped the small hand in his palm, his expression focused as he led a lady out of the carriage.

The woman has black high-heeled booties on her feet and wears a thick silk jumpsuit with the lapels unbuttoned in half. Where the lapels meet in the middle of the body, sparse black straight lines of varying thickness stand out against the white background. Although it is a jumpsuit, it actually consists of separate pieces that can be worn individually. The lower half is a straight skirt, while the upper half is more akin to a men’s double-breasted suit with lapels turned outwards and jet black collar. Underneath the jacket, she wears a white lady’s shirt with a narrow black printed tie around her neck. A purple woman’s hat sits atop her head, her whole figure exuding a neutral elegance that combines charm with agility.

The man gently assists the woman to descend the steps and stand on flat ground before placing his hat back atop his head. The woman gives the man a grateful smile and extends her left hand to rest it on the man’s arm, with her right hand circling from the front of her body to support the left. The man nods his head at the woman with a smile, and then they walk arm in arm towards the open metal gates at the end of the garden.

A family of four, who had paused momentarily at the gate in hopes of joining the newly arriving party, wrinkled their brows at the sight of the woman’s outfit. They continued on without delay, entering the gate. They recognized the woman’s attire as formal dress wear, albeit of an unusual sort. Brands of nobility or wealth would seldom wear such a dress due to its distinctive style.

The dress is known as a Knight’s Gown, specifically designed for professional women knights. Many professionals, when attending formal banquets or charity balls, prefer not to wear ordinary aristocratic attire. At the same time, arriving in randomized armor would show a lack of respect to the host. Thus, a thousand years ago, a number of designs for special professional woman’s clothing were created. These designs not only displayed the unique features of the professional’s work but also maintained a beautiful and solemn appearance. The gown this woman wore was one of such.

Although professionals hold high status on the Yarran Continent, the foreign noble family in attendance evidently did not wish to interact extensively with the newly arrived professionals, particularly since relations between the noble and professionals, especially independent, high-ranking professionals, have not always been friendly on the Yarran Continent.

Nobles are synonyms for aristocracy, measured by lineage, family, status, and power. In their view, all civilians within their territories should be subject to them. However, professionals, especially high-ranking professionals, often do not see it this way. In the world of professionals, power is paramount, and only those with immense strength can earn the respect of others and have significant say in matters.

Starting from two thousand years ago, friction has long existed between the two ideologies. Nobles resist engaging in dialogue with top-ranking professionals on equal footing. Still, their people cannot mass produce high-ranking professionals, and their power is insufficient to suppress the opposing party. Additionally, they often require the help of the other party. As for professionals, their numbers are limited, and various domestic and personal relationships often lead them to require assistance from the nobles. Ultimately, it led to a delicate balance between the two parties where nobles afford high-ranking professionals equal or even higher treatment, while high-ranking professionals join the noble groups for a stable income.

However, there exists a group of professionals who advocate for independence and refuse to attach themselves to nobles or wealthy people. These people often band together to earn money through their own abilities. Initial mercenaries and adventurers, and even professional guilds, were formed by such independent adventurers. Moreover, the higher the professional level, the more prevalent such independent professionals are.

For independent professionals, nobles have no countermeasures. Their power far exceeds reason, making it impossible to suppress them. Attempts to bribe them backfire as they prefer to work for hire but refuse to join noble forces as a subordinate. This resulted in a profound dislike for this uncontrollable force among nobles and the wealthy.

Unfortunately, regardless of their disdain, independent professionals form a significant proportion of professionals, particularly after the establishment of the Neutral Land. This ratio increases annually, much to the annoyance of nobles and the wealthy who are left helpless.

Under such conditions, a sect of conservative nobles chose to ignore independent professionals, interacting with them sparingly and disregarding their existence. This is why the sight of the professional duo prompted the departure of the family of four.

The duo looked at each other with a sigh of resignation and likewise arrived at the gate. The man handed his invitation card to the welcoming steward at the gate. The steward glanced at the invitation, his face full of respect as he signaled subtly to two ushers behind him. The ushers promptly approached and bowed, leading the way for the duo.

The steward bowed to the backs of the departing duo and announced loudly: "The Adventurer’s Guild, Nellie’s adventure team, Miss Catherine K. Field, Mr. Pannis Wood have arrived!"