When outsiders like Aslan and Melusine arrived, the people in the coastal city, after realizing they weren't an invading barbarian army, didn't pay them much mind. Even as the empire began its decline, it remained a world power that attracted many foreigners. Especially with most of the European continent under Roman occupation, it was, without a doubt, the focal point of the world.
In this era, signs of the Huns were beginning to appear in the eastern parts of Rome, and they had started harassing the eastern borders, but the chaos was currently confined to the east. However, while Rome possessed top-tier powerhouses, due to a long period of peace and an equally long period of decline, the combat effectiveness of its lower-ranking soldiers was truly a cause for concern.
This was especially evident when a stranger like Aslan arrived in Rome and a considerable amount of time passed without any soldiers coming to question him. Those soldiers seemed far more interested in the beautiful women walking down the street. Perhaps it was because they had experienced the dark period of the Age of Gods' decline that the recovered Rome had developed the concept of "enjoyment" to its absolute extreme.
However, it was precisely because of this that the nation began to fall into internal and external troubles. Frequent contact with the Huns in the east led to the country being gradually influenced by the feudal dynasties of the East. Feudal lords and ministers who held de facto control over vast territories appeared in many regions, and even the imperial family experienced a series of upheavals. At the same time, due to the dark age that followed the end of the Age of Gods, the state began to place increasing importance on controlling the peasantry. The rights of the coloni... the lowest class of common people, were reduced again and again, though of course, there were various reasons for this.
But Rome was, after all, still Rome, the king of the Mediterranean region. As control over the lower classes became stricter, the enjoyment of the ruling class became ever more extravagant. As a master blacksmith, Aslan naturally had no shortage of money and took the rare opportunity to enjoy the high-class services this country had to offer.
Soaking in the hot water of the grand bathhouse, feeling the endlessly circulating clean, hot water, Aslan let out a long sigh of relief. This was a top-tier relaxation experience that was hard to come by in Great Britain. After all, Great Britain was just beginning its post-Age of Gods era; how could it compare to the comfort of Rome, which had long since recovered from its own dark age? What satisfied Aslan the most was Rome's cuisine. After arriving in Rome, he could finally escape the days where the main course was always mashed potatoes.
However, although his quality of life had improved, his search for the Machine Gods had made no significant progress. Even a visit to the ruins of Troy, the final setting of the famous Greek myth, failed to yield many clues.
It seemed that the story of how some gods entered the early Roman pantheon after the Trojan War, and how the other gods perished, had become a taboo within a taboo, a process that absolutely could not be recorded. Was it as the stories said, that Zeus was overthrown by his son, or did they experience some other inexplicable catastrophe?
Or perhaps, as Machine Gods, their own energy sources were no longer sufficient to support their continued existence. After all, in this proper human history, Zeus had not achieved the unification of all the Machine God authorities, which led to the entire Greek pantheon being defeated by the White Titan that walked the earth. Perhaps the seeds of their destruction were sown back then.
Due to the lack of key records and the fact that the remaining ruins of Greek mythology on the European continent didn't reveal many clues, Aslan could only try to gather information through rumors and back-alley talk.
Speaking of which, while this country had indeed begun to decline, it had to be said that the current emperor, the Sword Emperor Lucius, was a truly ruthless character. Although the east was in constant friction with the Huns, he was also constantly reclaiming lost territory. He had even pushed southeast to the borders of India. If not for his eventual battle with Artoria, perhaps Rome could have truly been restored to its former glory under his rule.
Aslan wondered how the emperor lost in Artoria's timeline. Thinking about King Arthur's world line, Lucius had confidently engaged Arthur in a Noble Phantasm clash and was subsequently erased from history. Whether he could become a Servant was a separate question, but at least in the history books and the minds of future generations, this emperor would likely not exist. However... in the Camelot Singularity in the game, Bedivere initially disguised himself as Lucius. This implied that perhaps in Artoria's world line, the emperor wasn't erased from history, or at least could be detected as a Heroic Spirit.
Whatever, who cared about the specifics? As long as Rome and its emperor failed, and the whole empire, lacking his support, spiraled into decline and ruin, that was enough.
Soaking in the bath, Aslan glanced at the sky. He estimated the person he was waiting for would arrive soon. Before his goals and ideals were realized, even if he liked to indulge, Aslan wouldn't let himself become completely immersed in pleasure.
It was mainly because the back-alley informants he had gotten to know in Rome all liked to conduct their business in the great bathhouses. On one hand, most people would never imagine that intelligence trading would happen here. People in the bathhouse said whatever they wanted, and information could be mixed into casual chatter without seeming too obvious. On the other hand, perhaps after running around for so long, these informants also wanted a place to properly relax. In the bathhouse, they could relax while completing their work. After the transaction, they could even find a beautiful woman for another kind of relaxation.
An ordinary-looking young boy hurried into the bathhouse and sat down next to Aslan. "Excuse me, you must be Mr. Aslan, right? My boss said that the best-looking person who caught my eye at first glance would definitely be Mr. Aslan."
Aslan nodded twice while frowning slightly. He stroked his chin, wondering if he should disguise his face later. This was Rome. Even if Christianity was the current trend, the shadow of ancient Rome's influence was still profound. As a boy, he ought to be careful. His body and even his soul belonged to his dragon, and he absolutely, absolutely could not afford to slip up and get into trouble here!
Seeing Aslan frown, the boy realized he might have said something to displease his client and quickly waved his hands. "Mr. Aslan, are you by any chance a devout believer?"
Aslan paused for a moment, then quickly realized the boy must have misunderstood something. After all, in this period of mixed faiths, while some were open-minded, many chose to be conservative. "No, I'm not religious. The information?"