20 years is an awfully short time to have something like that lost.
Remember though, the golden rule to RPG's and MMORPG's alike.
The main character is almost always between the age of 15-19, and have all the experience an elite battle-scarred soldier in his 50's would have, and is normally stronger, more courageous, and can take more of a beating then the strongest man alive. And remember that all injuries heal incredibly fast.
Additionally, everyone above the age of 20-22 consider themselves old and out of shape, and will gladly move to give room for the younger whipper-snappers.
Also, remember that we're only going back 20 years, but everyone currently alive have forgotten everything that happened 20 years. Obviously, there's no one alive that can tell the stories, since everything that happened back then is just rumors and ancient lores. Nevermind the fact that Maat is an 80-year old man. Although that can be explained by him being senile. Everyone else that's alive were too young when it happened to remember anything.
Hence why Dancer is now a forgotten job.
And remember to enter random people's homes and strike up conversations with them like you've known them for years, and to look through their wardrobe, treasure chests, drawers etc. to find items that you can "borrow". they don't mind. You're the hero. But that doesn't mean the stores will give you stuff for free.
In conclusion, SE can do whatever the hell they want. Even if it seems incredibly weird that such a large part of the planet's history would be lost in merely 20 years.
Edit: Also, tell me any real-life city you can escape from a high-security prison and kill hundreds of guards, and then be considered a free man when you're finally outside, and can strike up conversations with the very guards that put you in prison, and be allowed to walk away like nothing ever happened.