While he couldn't say he was surprised to learn Gabe hadn't heard of it, Barnaby had still thought it worth asking. After all, the man claimed to be a traveler, and Stern Bild was a huge tourist destination, especially with Hero TV's soaring popularity.

"Yes," he confirmed with a small nod. "My partner and I both come from Stern Bild, actually, but neither of us have met anyone here who's heard of it. I'm not sure why that is."

Of course, finding someone who knew of the place wouldn't exactly change much. But at least it could offer some potential clues on why there seemed to be so many discrepancies regarding what people knew about the outside world.