Central District and the Bank

Huff... huff... I finally got off the shared carriage and reached the square at the entrance to the central district.

The ride had been brutal. It had done nothing but jolt. The road was dirt and full of bumps, so it had rattled and shaken the whole way.

I miss concrete!

On top of that, the seats were wooden, with absolutely no cushioning, so my backside hurt terribly!

"Leon, what's wrong? Come on, we're going."

"Y-yes..."

I somehow managed to follow Marcel-san.

This seemed to be one of the entrances to the central district, and it opened onto a large square.

Beyond the square, the roads were paved with stone, and the city was incredibly beautiful. Anyone could enter, but in clothes that screamed poor commoner, I stood out.

There were people like the young woman from earlier, too, but once they found work, they received uniforms from their workplaces, so there didn't seem to be many people dressed very shabbily.

As we walked along the broad cobblestone road, expensive-looking shops lined both sides. I wondered where the nobles' mansions were.

"Marcel-san, where are the nobles' mansions?"

"The nobles' mansions don't face the main street. They're farther in along the roads. The barons' mansions are around here, then the viscounts' a little farther on, followed by the counts, marquises, and dukes as you approach the royal castle. That's how the district is laid out."

"I see."

So I probably wouldn't get to see any of the nobles' mansions. I was a little curious, but Mom had said it was better not to get involved with nobles, so maybe it was for the best that I couldn't see them.

Though Marcel-san was a noble too.

We had been walking for a while, but Marcel-san showed no sign of stopping. We were heading to the bank, right? Was it really this far?

"Marcel-san, we're heading to the bank, right?"

"Yes. It's better to take care of our business first, isn't it?"

"Is it really this far? Do nobles walk, too?"

"Nobles travel in carriages from their own estates. The central district is so large because each noble estate is enormous, so the district has had to expand accordingly."

Nobles got special treatment even here... I wanted to become a noble already...

"We'll be there soon, though."

As Marcel-san said that, a very large building came into view ahead of us.

Knights patrolled the area around it, giving the place a somewhat intimidating atmosphere. Could that be the bank?

"Is that the bank?"

"That's right."

It looked incredibly difficult to enter! If I had come here alone, I probably would have been turned away at the door. They said anyone could use it, but that was definitely just a formality. I was so glad Marcel-san was with me.

I was sure we would be stopped when we entered the building, but contrary to my expectations, no one stopped us.

Once we went inside, though, I understood why. There were rows of knights inside as well.

So I guess no one with bad intentions would dare try anything here.

Even though I hadn't done anything wrong, I nervously followed Marcel-san to one of the counters. The clerk there was a young man.

"Hello. How may I help you?"

"I came today to open an account for this child. Can it be done right away?"

"Is this the child?"

"That's right."

"Pardon me, but this child doesn't look as though an account would be necessary. Accounts expire if there has been no activity for three years. Will that be all right?"

"Oh, that won't be a problem. I'll pay the account-opening fee, too."

"Understood. Please fill out this form. If possible, I would like the applicant to fill it out personally. Will you need someone to write it for you?"

"No, I can write, so that's fine."

"Very well. Please do so."

It seemed they had been suspicious of us, but everything was all right! What a relief. My heart had been pounding.

So this was the form I needed to fill out.

The form only asked for my name, gender, age, and the name of the city where I lived. I couldn't remember the city's name for a moment, but I soon remembered it by searching Leon's memories.

The Royal Capital, Lasria. I'd better remember that.

Once I had filled out the entire form and handed it to the clerk, he checked it and then brought out something that looked like a crystal ball.

"Please channel a little mana into this. It will register your mana."

I did as I was told and channeled mana into it. The crystal ball glowed faintly.

"Your mana has now been registered. It will take about ten minutes to create your account, so please wait a little while."

With that, the clerk went toward the back.

Um, what was that crystal ball? It could register mana...? More importantly, wasn't that technology far too advanced? How did it even work?

"Marcel-san, what was that crystal ball just now?"

"That is a crystal ball that can register mana. Whenever you deposit or withdraw money from your account, it can verify your identity."

"Um... Was it invented by someone?"

"No. It was found about a hundred years ago in a church deep in the forest. There were around a hundred crystal balls, and at first, no one knew what they were for. But after studying them, they discovered that mana could be used to identify individuals and that all the crystal balls were connected to one another. After that, they began using them for banking."

"I see... So was someone responsible for making them?"

"No. People say they are divine relics."

"Divine relics...?"

"That's what they call objects whose origins are unknown, which cannot be destroyed, and which do not deteriorate. The crystal balls are useful now that their purpose has been discovered, but apparently there are still some relics whose purpose remains unknown."

"There are things like that...?"

I never imagined there could be anything like that... Could there really be a god in this world...? Then again, perhaps there had been gods on Earth too.

That wasn't something I could figure out just by thinking about it now.

Just as I was thinking that, the clerk came back.

"Thank you for waiting. Here is your bank card, Leon-sama."

I accepted the bank card. It seemed to be made of wood, and it had my name, account number, and the name of the registered branch written on it.

"You can show this bank card at the counter, and once your identity has been verified through your mana, you can withdraw or deposit money and make transfers. Please be careful not to lose it, as replacing a lost bank card costs one silver coin. The account-opening fee today is three silver coins. Please make your payment."

Three silver coins!? It cost that much? Most commoners couldn't afford to open an account! More importantly, was it really all right for Marcel-san to pay that much for me...?

"Three silver coins."

"Payment received. Thank you for your business today."

The clerk said that and gave a slight bow. So this world did have a culture of bowing...? No one around my home ever did it, so this was my first time seeing it.

Wait, that wasn't important right now—the money!

I hurried after Marcel-san, who was already heading toward the exit.

"Marcel-san, are you really sure it's all right for you to pay that much?"

"Didn't I say I would pay for everything today? More importantly, you should buy a strap to hang that card around your neck so you don't lose it."

Marcel-san said that and kept walking ahead. Maybe I should just thank him.

"Marcel-san, thank you very much. But you really don't need to buy me anything else!"

"No, you should get one. Besides, I've never had the chance to spend money on anyone before. Let me buy it for you."

How could I refuse after he said something like that...?

"Then please do."

"Good. From here on, we'll go sightseeing in the central district. We need to get some lunch, too."

"Yes!"

I followed Marcel-san with a faint wry smile.