The Imperial Capital also had a noble district.
It was just that, unlike the clearly divided Royal Capital, the noble district of the Imperial Capital was actually a cluster of high-class buildings surrounding the Imperial Palace.
The nobles' mansions had all been built around the Imperial Palace, enclosing that area into the noble district. Beyond it was the commercial district, then the commoners' residential district, followed by Knights camps such as military training grounds.
Beyond the Knights camps stood the walls of the Imperial Capital.
Thus, unlike the clearly divided Royal Capital, the Imperial Capital had a ring-shaped, descending social hierarchy. The closer one was to the city walls, the lower one's social status. The only exception was the Knights camps. They were stationed near the walls for the convenience of defending the city and deploying forces, and were normally surrounded by fortress-like district walls. They were considered important military grounds, and no one besides officially affiliated Knights was allowed to enter.
Under such circumstances, House Bigusle was naturally located in the noble district near the center of the Imperial Capital, not far from the Imperial Palace.
Only after Shien's group entered the noble district did they realize that the number of people coming and going here gradually decreased. Most of those present were patrolling Knights and carriages rushing back and forth. There were instead few pedestrians on the streets.
But security here was extremely tight. Fully armed Knights patrolled everywhere, and they were exceptionally vigilant. Shien's group had merely worn cloaks that concealed their faces, yet they drew many wary and suspicious gazes. Several orders of Knights stopped them along the way and demanded that they remove their hoods and reveal their faces. The atmosphere was so heavy and stern that it was like a massive citywide search. Anyone