Every city-state had places beyond the reach of royal authority.
Siltovis did. Betar City did. Even Breeze City was no exception. Gangs held sway around the southern Slum, where countless crimes took root. No matter how often they were driven out, they always returned, and Olmedo could only tolerate their existence in the shadows. The cost of wiping them out was greater than anyone could imagine.
Betar City, meanwhile, was entirely controlled by the powerful, who had never cared whether those beneath them lived or died. Not long after Breeze City relocated, Betar City, besieged by Ratfolk, had reportedly begun its own evacuation. Olmedo did not even dare tell Annan how many people had escaped.
That was why Elves liked to say other races were born with sin. For all their arrogance, Elves truly never harmed one another. They held lofty ideals and were willing to fight for honor.
Dark Elves excepted.
Siltovis's history made it even more complicated than other cities. Its underworld was much like the gangs in the Slum: some ran casinos, some sold flesh, and some trained pickpockets. Succubi roamed at night, Vampires sought prey in taverns, and other magical creatures emerged after dark.
The Vampires living in Siltovis had even split into factions:
Vampire clans who worked with Noble. Vampire clans who found their meals in taverns. Vampire clans who led gangs and kept people as livestock. And outsiders drawn here by the city's reputation.
The factions had developed a pecking order of their own:
Vampires who mingled with Noble looked down on those who hunted in the Tavern. Tavern hunters looked down on those who skirted the law. And those who skirted the law looked down on outsiders who killed indiscriminately.
"We're not the ones who took your friend!"
Sienna's mother hadn't seemed particularly