"Food trinkets! Get your food trinkets here! Just walk right up and show your citizenship! Food trinkets here!"
"If anyone wants to party, please head over to Joe's Bar! Free drinks for all citizens! Take home as many as you want, just make sure not to waste them!"
"The King will be at Wilbur's house tonight, if anyone wishes for an audience! Stay hale, stay happy, Lanthanorians!"
Feeling his head ringing like a drum, Daneel woke up to these voices, massaging his temple.
Opening his eyes, everything was blurry for a few seconds before he blinked hard, clearing up his vision.
Looking at his hands, he started panicking, as they weren't his.
The skin was dark, and there were many scars and lesions which showed that these were the palms of a warrior.
Feeling his face with them, he realized that he also had a beard, along with a short crop of hair.
Also, he was lean, as if every part of his body was built to output the maximum amount of power and speed possible.
What…the hell was going on? Where was he?
Thinking back, he retraced his steps, trying to figure out how he got here.
He had gotten a message that there was a strange light coming from the room in which the Empire Spirit was housed, and then, the moment he tried to step into the room…he lost consciousness.
As he concentrated, he realized that the last thing he had heard was a notification from the system.
Hastily, he asked the system to repeat its last message.
[Host's mental input has been hijacked. No threat to host's life detected. System has detected an accessible information source. Assimilation in process.]
No threat?
Hearing this, Daneel's rapidly beating heart calmed down.
This wasn't the first time he was experiencing something like this. Before, when he had talked to his Master, he had gone into a simulation where he saw and felt things, which was similar to what was happening right now.
Hence, finally getting a hold of himself, he started to look around.
He was sitting in a very comfortable chair, and in front of him was a wide street on which numerous people were passing by.
The shouts from before had been from hawkers who could be found everywhere, spreading messages like these.
Looking up and around, he saw that he was sitting in the portico of a rather large house.
However, in his dazed state, he had failed to notice that there was actually someone sitting beside him.
Indeed, in the chair beside him, there was an old man with a knotted beard and long, black hair. He had some of the strongest features that Daneel had ever seen, almost looking like he had been hewn out of a rock.
However, instead of making him look ugly, the features gave him a masculine and handsome look.
As Daneel stared, without turning around, the man spoke.
"Finally woke up, kid? It's about time. I thought you would sleep all day."
The voice was familiar, and as Daneel comprehended the meaning of the words, he realized where he had heard it before.
This was the Empire Spirit!
As if sensing his realization, the man spoke again.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm the Empire Spirit, great job realizing it, you're a genius(yawn). I don't have all day, there's a feisty woman waiting for me in Joe's. So, let's get right down to it."
Saying this, the man finally turned towards Daneel, and as he did so, the King of Lanthanor noticed that there were no pupils in his eyes.
Instead, there was only a golden light, which was the exact shade as what he had seen coming from beneath the door back in Lanthanor.
"You made it, kid. Damn, you won your own event! Like, shouldn't there be rules against that? Ok, fine, that's none of my business. The point is that you reached the first condition necessary for accessing the information stored inside me. Now then, tell me what you see around you."
As much as Daneel was excited about just what information he had unlocked, he was even more interested in the place around him.
Everything was…brighter. Shinier.
The clothes that everyone wore were shimmering slightly, indicating that they were all enchanted.
Everywhere he saw, there were happy families going about their daily lives.
Now that he had the time, he listened to what the hawkers were saying once again, and he was amazed.
Food trinkets? What the hell were those?
Curious, he was going to get up, but stopped, wondering whether he was supposed to stay here to interact with the Empire Spirit.
"Go on. Explore. This is half your reward for this milestone, you know. Take your time. I'm everywhere, so just call for me if you need me. I'll go say hi to Martha."
Saying so with a casual expression on his face, the man disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Indeed, an actual puff of smoke, like a magician from Earth.
Although he felt it was weird, Daneel chose not to ask, and instead stood up to go to the hawker who was making the announcements about the food trinkets.
After approaching the man, he saw that in his hand was a covered bowl in which there was a piece of meat.
It looked normal at first, but when Daneel looked closer, he dropped his jaw with shock.
At one corner, layers after layers of meat were coming into existence in front of his eyes, making him understand that this whole thing had been developed inside the bowl.
How?!!!
Wanting to find out the answer to the question, Daneel reached his hand forward, but he felt it swatted away by the smiling man who asked, "ID, please?"
Puzzled, Daneel was about to call for the Empire Spirit, but he heard a voice near his ear.
"Touch your wrist's pulse point."
Heeding the message, he did so and was startled when he saw a round, badge-like object appear out of the skin on the upper side of his hand, below his knuckles.
"Thank you, sir. Enjoy your meal. You can collect refill pills at the government office on the next street. Have a nice day!"
The badge had the design of the royal 'L' made out of a dragon, and while Daneel had been captivated by it, he hadn't noticed that the man had scanned the badge using some apparatus in his pocket.
After doing so and saying those words, he handed the bowl over to a bewildered Daneel, who hastily opened the lid and examined the meat.
It looked normal, except for that end where the meat had been forming.
This was something like a dream world anyway, so Daneel just took a bite, and experienced some of the tastiest, most succulent meat he had ever eaten in his life.
Finishing it in one go, he felt thirsty, so he found a bar in front of him which he entered.
"Hello, fellow citizen! I see you enjoyed the meat! Sorry, I just like to look at the street when I'm free. The hustle and bustle calms me. So, what would you like? Some of my special brew? Or just some beer?"
Having heard of the special brew before, Daneel asked, "The former, please."
"Right on."
A few moments later, he found himself drinking one of the best wines he had ever tasted.
It was a clear red color, with a sweet flavor to it that lingered on his tongue. If he had to describe it, it was like drinking an ice cream made of scotch.
After scanning the badge again, Daneel left the bar feeling tipsy and started exploring the city.
Everywhere he went, he just needed to show the badge.
He had dessert, he got a massage done, he bought a weapon trinket, he got a haircut, and he was even offered the services of a professional escort.
Time lost meaning to him. It felt both as if it was standing still, and as if it was moving at a pace too fast to notice.
Either way, Daneel felt perfectly happy enjoying himself in every which way, putting aside all of his duties.
After what felt like days, he was on that street in the beginning again, and feeling tired, he sat down on that same chair on the portico of that same house.
Looking to his side, he found the Empire Spirit, looking at him with a smile.
"Is this where you spend your time when you aren't doing anything?"
Chuckling at the question, the golden-eyed man answered, "Yes! This, and other places, in other times. I'm a living spirit, after all. So, what did you think?"
Daneel did not need to think to answer.
"It's a…utopia!"
Indeed, it was one.
He had asked around, and it seemed that the concept of money itself was foreign.
This place operated on one principle: if a citizen did the job assigned to them as per their interests, they could avail anything and everything they wanted in the city.
Happiness was everywhere, and Daneel was so impressed by the ruler of this city that he felt that it would be fine to commit any crime in order to find the secret behind building something so perfect.
Hearing the answer, the Empire Spirit grinned and answered, "Exactly. This was, in one point in history, the Empire of Lanthanor. Before all the citizens were massacred by the Emperor in one night."