Chương 26: Chapter 18 : Observing the Classes

They continued walking without any real destination. For the first time in several days, no urgent quest seemed to be pushing them in any particular direction. They no longer had appointments with landlords, no paperwork to submit to a bank, and no forms left to fill out. Their only mission now was to better understand the kingdom Aldric had arrived in. Every so often, Emma would slow down in front of a shop window or a building to explain another small detail of everyday life.

A bakery stood open, and the smell of freshly baked bread drifted all the way onto the sidewalk. Several residents walked in, emerged a few moments later with a long baguette tucked under an arm, then continued on their way. Behind the display window, a man wearing a white apron pulled a fresh batch from the oven before placing the loaves on a large wooden shelf.

"What is his role?"

"He's a baker."

"He feeds the people."

"Yes. Every morning, he bakes bread, pastries, and other foods that people buy before starting their day." In his former world, bakers also existed, but they usually worked in the kitchens of castles or villages. Here, this craftsman owned his own shop and seemed to supply an entire neighborhood. Several customers greeted him as they entered, proof that they had known one another for a long time. They resumed walking.

A few streets later, a man in a blue uniform walked at a steady pace carrying a satchel filled with envelopes. He stopped at every apartment building, unlocked the mailboxes with a key, slipped several letters inside, then continued along his route.

"And him?"

"A mail carrier."

"He delivers those messages to their recipients?"

"Exactly." The knight watched the mail carrier disappear around the corner.

"Does he travel across the entire city every day?"

"Almost. Each mail carrier is assigned to a specific route." Aldric seemed to appreciate the organization.

"A repetitive task demands an excellent memory."

"It does. And a great deal of patience." The knight took out his small notebook. Emma watched him jot down a few words with his usual care before he quickly closed it again. She didn't even bother asking what he had written anymore. For the past several days, she had known that every new discovery they made would end up carefully organized in its pages. They then crossed a small square where a city sanitation truck was parked along the curb.

Two workers emptied large garbage bins into the truck before returning each container to its place.

"What is their role?"

"To keep the city clean."

"What are they called?"

"Sanitation workers."

"That is an essential responsibility."

"Most people overlook what they do."

"They are mistaken." He gestured toward the spotless streets around them.

"An army cannot defend a city overrun by waste." Emma smiled faintly. She had never thought about sanitation workers that way. To Aldric, no role seemed insignificant. A few hundred meters farther on, a bus pulled up to a stop. The driver opened the doors, let several passengers get off, then departed a few seconds later with a new group of riders. The knight watched the vehicle as it drove away.

"This one transports the people."

"Yes."

"Does he always follow the same route?"

"All day long."

"Remarkable." A little farther on, they stopped in front of a small medical clinic. At that very moment, a woman wearing a white medical coat stepped outside, pulled off her mask, and glanced quickly at her phone.

"And her?"

"She's a nurse."

"She heals the wounded?"

"The wounded... but also the sick. She helps the doctors take care of their patients." In his former kingdom, healers already held an essential place within both the armies and the villages. Even so, the organization here seemed far more extensive. Every profession had its own area of expertise. Each person appeared to devote an entire lifetime to mastering a single skill in order to serve others as effectively as possible. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

They continued their walk for several more minutes. Aldric never stopped observing the craftsmen, shopkeepers, employees, and pedestrians they passed along the way. Whenever he encountered a profession he didn't recognize, Emma told him its name and briefly explained its role. He listened with complete attention, occasionally asked another question, then discreetly wrote a few words in his notebook before continuing on. Little by little, an idea began to take shape in his mind.

This city did not function because of a handful of exceptional individuals. It relied on countless people, each performing a different task. Bakers prepared food, mail carriers delivered messages, sanitation workers kept the streets clean, bus drivers connected different neighborhoods, and nurses cared for the people. Every role seemed indispensable to the others.

"This city is built upon an astonishing number of specialized roles."

"Yes... and you've only discovered a tiny fraction of them so far." Eventually, they reached a large square where several streets converged. The area was lively without being noisy. Office workers stepped out of nearby buildings for their lunch break, tourists photographed the old façades, a delivery cyclist crossed the square, and a line of schoolchildren followed their teacher across the plaza.

At the center stood a small fountain surrounded by benches, where several people had settled down to eat a sandwich or simply enjoy the sunshine. Emma sat for a few moments to rest her legs. Aldric remained standing. For several minutes now, he had stopped observing the buildings. His attention was focused almost entirely on the people. His gaze followed each of them with remarkable patience. He studied their clothing, the objects they carried, the way they moved, and how they interacted with one another.

A police officer exchanged a few words with a shopkeeper before resuming his patrol. A young woman in athletic clothes left a fitness center. A technician repaired a traffic light. A florist arranged fresh bouquets outside a shop. None of these actions seemed extraordinary to someone who lived in the city. Yet to Aldric, they were gradually coming together into a single, coherent whole.

"I understand."

"What is it?" The knight did not answer immediately. He continued watching the crowd crossing the square.

"So every citizen has a class."

"In a way... yes." Aldric nodded slowly. The more he observed this city, the more obvious that conclusion seemed.

"The baker provides the food the people need."

"Yes."

"The police officer protects the city from those who disturb the peace."

"Exactly."

"The mail carrier delivers messages."

"That's his job." His gaze then settled on a medical clinic on the other side of the square.

"The doctors heal the wounded and the sick."

"Yes." Finally, he watched a group of children crossing the street behind their teacher.

"And teachers pass their knowledge on to the next generation. In my world, a party could only survive if everyone fulfilled their role. Knights protected the mages. Healers cared for the wounded. Scouts explored unknown lands. Blacksmiths forged weapons. No hero, no matter how powerful, could accomplish all of those tasks alone." Emma listened carefully. The comparison felt less and less strange to her. If anything, it highlighted something she had never truly noticed before.

The city functioned precisely because each person contributed a different skill. A baker might not know how to repair a power line. An electrician probably couldn't perform surgery. A doctor didn't drive a bus. And yet, each one depended on the work of the others.

"The differences between your citizens are not determined by their weapons or their magic. They are determined by what they know how to do."

"In the end, your way of looking at things is surprisingly accurate."

"In my world, only a handful of heroes were known by everyone. Here... this kingdom does not stand on the shoulders of a few heroes. It stands on thousands of different classes." For the past several days, Emma had felt as though she were introducing Aldric to the modern world. At that very moment, she realized that, through his eyes, she was rediscovering her own world as well. The square continued to bustle around them without slowing down. Pedestrians streamed past in an almost uninterrupted flow.

Some left office buildings while others entered nearby shops. Several delivery cyclists crossed the street as a bus unloaded another wave of passengers at the stop nearby. Behind every face was a skill, a responsibility, a role that helped keep this immense city running. That realization fascinated Aldric far more than the buildings or the modern machines ever had. His gaze lingered for a few more moments on the different professions unfolding before him. Then, almost unconsciously, he looked down at his armor.

The polished metal gleamed beneath the afternoon sun. His sword still rested across his back, ready to be drawn at the first sign of danger. Only a few days earlier, that armor had represented everything he was. It told the story of his battles, his victories, the oaths he had sworn to his king, and the years he had spent protecting his people. Yet here, no one seemed to need a knight capable of slaying a dragon.

"In this world..."

"Yes?" The knight continued looking at his breastplate.

"Then I am a hero without a class." She gently shook her head.

"No." Aldric looked up.

"No?" She gave him a small smile.

"You're simply between classes. No one is born a baker." She pointed toward the shop they had looked at a little earlier.

"Or a waiter." Her gaze shifted toward a café on the corner.

"Or an architect." Then toward the buildings overlooking the square.

"Or a doctor." Finally, she looked back at him.

"You learn. Then you choose." In his former world, most knights began their training in childhood. Apprentice blacksmiths entered the forge at a very young age. Healers spent years learning about medicinal herbs before treating their first patient. He himself had not become a hero overnight. Years of training had come before his first real battle. Gradually, that idea took on a new meaning. His class had not disappeared. It simply belonged to a world where it was no longer needed.

Aldric looked up at the hundreds of people still crossing the square. The baker would be baking bread again tomorrow. The mail carrier would continue delivering letters. Nurses would care for new patients, and bus drivers would follow their daily routes. Every one of them possessed a skill suited to this kingdom. He did not.

"Then my next quest is to change my class."

"Exactly." △ NEW OBJECTIVE △ Choose Your First Civilian Class △ SUGGESTED QUEST △ Find Employment