When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 674 - 632 Leonardo: Hi hi hi, I’m here awo.

"Achoo!"

Leonardo sneezed loudly, rubbed his nose, and pulled a blanket from another student to drape over his shoulders.

"Who is cursing me, really?" Wiping his nose with a handkerchief, Leonardo looked up at the azure sky and the solitary warm sun and couldn't help but mutter to himself.

"After all, we're in the mountains, and the wind on the lake is strong, that's how it is." Standing at the bow of the ferry, the guide sent by the Holy Machinery Court Hall chuckled and spoke to Leonardo.

On the other side, Silvanic wrapped the blanket tightly with disdain: "Otherwise, why do they call it the Barbaric Lands in the mountains."

"Lower your voice." Dean Senius subtly kicked Silvanic's ankle with his right foot, finally silencing the grumbling scholar.

The guide either truly didn't hear, or was pretending, and merely leaned on the ship's railing looking towards the increasingly near port in the distance.

Ever since receiving the letter from the Lakin Clan's young lady, they had traveled all the way from Dawn Island, through the Immortal Stone Field, taking two months to reach the Holy Machinery Court.

It wasn't that they were dawdling, but rather due to the numerous luggage and personnel, they had to keep stopping, taking one month to reach Feiliu Castle, which is now the capital Xia Lvcheng of the Thousand River Valley Monarch Country, in September.

Then, several people fell ill due to exhaustion and acclimatization problems requiring quarantine, causing delays until October for them to barely set off.

The Holy Machinery Court was quite welcoming, sending guides to Joan of Arc Castle ahead of time to greet them, and given their large amount of luggage, they were simply put on a ferry instead of entering through the crowded New Life Bridge.

As winter approached, more refugees and merchants converged from all directions, filling New Life Bridge with crowds of all ages, driving carts, riding donkeys and mules, insults and cries of pushing constantly echoed.

There's even a specialized checkpoint at the bridgehead, a semicircular small plaza made up of wooden barriers, iron chains, and three to five cement houses.

Drivers of vehicles entered the dock town from the left, while the disheveled refugees were collectively guided to the right.

"What are they doing over there?" Leonardo pointed to the large area of wooden houses and tents before the New Life Bridge and the area clearly fenced off.

"Oh, that's the Purification Camp for the Baptism Ceremony." Seeing Leonardo's puzzled expression, the guide explained, "Refugees entering the island must first undergo a baptism with hot water and medicine, shave short beards and hair, and reside in the camp for seven days to signify rebirth."

"You're not forcibly converting them to the Holy Path sect, are you?" Silvanic asked from within the ship's cabin.

The guide immediately shook his head, "It's not about conversion, it's just a way to remove lice; the Holy Machinery Court is a clean city, we don't want to see any bed bugs spreading."

Silvanic snorted, obviously not quite believing the guide's words.

The guide smiled and explained to Leonardo, "Aside from that, they also have to undergo population registration, and if they have special skills, there will be someone to introduce them to work."

Leonardo looked at the refugees and Beastmen entering the purification camp with their families and then at the increasingly close dock in the distance, unexpectedly feeling a bit of anticipation.

The day after voting to travel to the Holy Machinery Court, Leonardo had some regrets.

When he heard about the Holy Machinery Court's invention akin to a perpetual motion machine, he couldn't help but want to fly directly to it.

But after the enthusiasm passed, reason returned to his mind.

Using the excuse of perpetual motion machines to deceive him into painting was not a one-time occurrence.

Especially as it was a remote town, apart from its proximity to Black Snake Bay, offering abundant alchemical resources, he couldn't think of any other advantage to research perpetual motion machines.

However, after psychological struggle, he still followed the team to the Holy Machinery Court.

What if? That Lakin family young lady wasn't someone who just talked nonsense. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Soon, during idle chat with the guide, the distant docking pier became increasingly close, accompanied by incessant canvas flapping sounds, livestock cries, merchants' sharp bargaining voices, foremen commanding laborers' crude shouts...

Many scholars and university students who were previously idling inside the cabin went up to the deck, leaning against the railing gazing towards the shore.

Initially, just silhouettes of masts and flags, the air carried the mingled scent of wood, wet ropes, and goods like spices, dried fish, and wine.

Water birds and crows circled in the sky, whistling thrushes began landing on the railing, at this distance, one could see the mountainous piles of goods on the dock.

Beastmen and human laborers dressed in durable short woolen clothes continuously carried wooden crates, burlap sacks, and buckets from the ship to warehouses or exchanges.

Stopping beside a plank path, the moment Leonardo stepped onto the brick stone ground of the dock, he felt far removed from the desolation he imagined.

Underfoot was either a black stone or mortar surface, and before him was a wide boulevard accommodating four horse-drawn carriages side by side lined with a row of orderly Insula architecture.

Perpendicular to the boulevard were two rows of four to five-meter-high wooden warehouses on either side.

Though not an architecture student, Leonardo had some understanding of Ancient Aier-style roads.

Every house front had a drainage ditch covered with cedar planks, and every four to five meters was a transplanted street tree.

Compared to Rapids City and Joan of Arc Castle's busy chaotic ports, this dock was somewhat quiet, but Leonardo had never seen such neat planning before.

The architectural opulence couldn't match Joan of Arc Castle and Rapids City, but this unique symmetrical and unified texture design left students of art in silence.

This unique sense of order and overall harmony was the first they had seen in a town.

What struck Leonardo the most was the dock's cleanliness, not just in terms of a lack of excrement, but also the absence of common thugs and beggars.

Leonardo turned and respectfully nodded to the guide, "May I ask a small question?"

"Of course, please go ahead."

"Why don't I see those rats on the street?"

"Rats? Maybe because we keep many cats."

"No, no." Leonardo quickly clarified, "I mean those idle people living off extortion."

"Oh, you mean that." The guide immediately explained, "I was just about to remind everyone, the Holy Machinery Court has strict laws, with an average of one or two law enforcers for every hundred people, being Cheka, Night Watchers, and gendarmes.

In the Holy Machinery Court, extortion is heavily punished, and offenders are forcibly sent to the Trinity Education Team.

Any rogues or troublemakers, if found without tax payments or employment within three months after causing trouble, are forcibly assigned work unless sick or disabled.

If they refuse, they are likewise forced into the Trinity Education Team to cultivate fields outdoors.

Thus, while there are some rats, their numbers are few, and they don't dare be too brazen."

"Too harsh!" Silvanic grumbled.

Leonardo realized, "I see."

At that moment, he surveyed the entire port yet didn't see even one thug or beggar, not even an awake drunk sailor.

Bear in mind, this group tends to love causing commotions.

"Is there perhaps a Prohibition Order?" Considering the Holy Path sect's retro style, Leonardo couldn't help but ask.

As a Falan, he would feel lifeless without drinking.

"Not really, the law prohibits drinking in public places, but you can drink in taverns, restaurants, or at home without a problem." The guide quickly explained to him.

"Public places, that's a new term, likely derived from Ancient Aier's 'public area', right?" Dean Senius asked with a smile.

"Yes." The guide grinned, "We'll give you a dictionary of new terms, full of such new phrases, since the Holy Machinery Court is a brand new city, filled with new things, we have to invent words to describe them."

"Hahaha, that's excellent." Senius said, following the guide towards the direction of the equestrian village.