Azeranen

Azeranen is one of the largest cities in Conoilith, and one of the wealthiest. Situated on the far south-eastern coast of Conoilith, Azeranen's name means 'Blue Hills' in Conoilithian, possibly referring to the hills and fields around the city in the twilight mist. The city is also often recognised as one of Conoilith's most beautiful cities, second only to the capital, Ankorien ān Riarond itself.

## **GEOGRAPHY**

### **GENERAL LAYOUT**

Azeranen is built around its main port, stretching along the coastline in a linear fashion, with the harbourfront facing southwards. In the approximate centre is the City Hall, with the Ducal Palace located at the western end of the city, and the Azeranen City Ghetto marking the eastern end of the city. The city is surrounded by fields and rolling hills, with the northern fields further inland used as pastures and to grow crops.

### **PLACES OF NOTE**

**THE CITY HALL**

The City Hall is one of the oldest buildings in Azeranen, and is the central hub of the city's activities, along with being the meeting place of the city council.

**THE DUCAL PALACE**

The Ducal Palace is the residence of the Duke and Duchess of Azeranen, whose family formerly ruled and governed Azeranen. It is a relatively lavish palace, built in 2650 to serve as a new home for the Duke and Duchess after the older Ducal Castle was gutted during a fire, which was converted into a military base afterwards.

**THE DUCAL CASTLE**

The Ducal Castle was the former residence of the Duke and Duchess of Azeranen, until a fire left it uninhabitable in 2650. No longer deemed suitable as a home for the ducal house, after repairs it was turned into a military base and prison, serving that purpose to this day.

**THE GHETTO**

A secluded district of the city initially established as a place where ethnic minorities and social outcasts would be restricted to. Over time, however, conditions improved, as the residents of Azeranen were increasingly more diverse and grew to be more tolerable to other ethnicities compared to their brethren in the Conoilithian Empire's far west. The ghetto to this day remains a district of the city serving as the home for ethnic minorities and undesirables, although control over it is no longer as tight as it was before.

## **FUNCTIONING AND LIVING**

### **ECONOMY AND LIVING CONDITIONS**

Azeranen, occupying one end of the lucrative trade in the East Sea, is extremely rich. Goods and wealth from the vast majority of Burithien end up here, with the city reaping the rewards through taxes on its citizens and tolls for the countless ship captains who come into port. Alongside gaining income by levying fees on its mostly well-off citizens and captains seeking to dock, Azeranen also possesses extensive wool and shipbuilding industries, and the services provided for those visiting the city, such as catering, lodgings and entertainment, also turn in a tidy profit.

Living conditions in Azeranen consistently remain among the best in Conoilith; starvation and disease are kept well under control with public soup and bread kitchens, and public hospitals, many of which are funded by the Duke and Duchess themselves. Although not all people in Azeranen enjoy a rich and prosperous life - over 65% of the city's population are considered 'poor' - they still nevertheless have homes and stable access to food, water and hygiene. The majority of Azeranen's population live in townhouses, with many families owning an entire rowhouse to themselves, while those less fortunate in the densely built centre of the city live in flats, and the rest in the urban sprawl residing in small, two-storeyed brick houses.

### **CITY GOVERNMENT**

Azeranen, as with all cities in Conoilith, is headed by the city mayor.