Ch.261261. Training (3)

After finishing my conversation with the king of the Kore Kingdom, whom I had decided to refer to simply as “Your Majesty” due to the “concept-forgetting magical effect” called “taboo name” that prevented me from calling his name…

“Here is your ‘horse tally.’ With this, you can borrow military horses from post stations or government offices anywhere in the eight provinces after completing the necessary procedures. It also serves as identification, so please be careful not to lose it.”

“I understand. I’ll keep that in mind.”

What the inspector—also called a royal inspector—handed me with her businesslike demeanor (suggesting that some of her emotions were being controlled by external factors) was… a horse tally familiar to me.

This round metal object, similar to a medal in shape and size, was made of copper with horse figures engraved on its surface, and was currently imbued with some kind of magic.

There were five horses engraved on it. This meant that I could borrow up to five horses. In practical terms, a tally with five horses engraved on it would allow me to borrow up to five military horses, but…

“Those military horses. They’re not actual horses, are they?”

“…That’s correct.”

Of course, the “military horses” that could be borrowed with this magical tally weren’t ordinary horses, but rather a type of magical beast created and controlled by national magic, summoned through this tool.

When I examined it with my magical sight, my vision told me this:

Magical water resembling ink—a magical construct in the form of a horse that would be classified as a structure similar to a doll or golem if one had to categorize it.

Since it’s not a living creature, it can move without requiring food or other supplies. And because it’s not biological, it won’t tire and can run all day long.

Of course, these creatures don’t receive energy from thin air, so they would be recalled after about 48 hours of movement when their magical power is depleted. But honestly, if they can run that distance without rest, it’s not a major issue.

Throughout the roads of the Kore Kingdom, there are government offices called “post stations” that manage the roads. I suspected these stations were responsible for function adjustments and recharging of these magical constructs.

Anyway, after the inspector—the female official who called herself a royal inspector—gave me the tally and left…

“Wonsul. Take your fourth sister home safely. And give my regards to your mother… who is your Grand Master.”

“Yes, sir! Leave it to me!”

As our final preparation before departing for Hanyang, we wanted to send Cheong-i, whom I had accepted as a disciple, back to her estate.

The materials I used were oak, a bit of soil from my homeland, and a natural “waystone” that I had brought along just in case.

This waystone, about the size of a pebble, is an auxiliary tool used by wizards for spatial magic like teleportation, but its original form is actually a mineral similar to a naturally mined magnet.

With its unique magical power that fixes space, wizards process it and engrave formulas on it for auxiliary use, while druids like me use it to create long-distance teleportation gates.

Especially someone as monstrously powerful as my mother can easily cross continents with a warp gate, but I, who am still far inferior compared to her, need such auxiliary means.

[…Open, Gateway of the Forest.]

Only by using magic in this way could I barely connect this land with my homeland.

The Shim father and daughter, who had arrived with their luggage packed, were momentarily overwhelmed by the magical and mysterious atmosphere of the gate that appeared before them.

“Master, I look forward to your guidance!”

“Yes, take care—”

As I watched the two of them prepare to enter the gate with Wonsul, I suddenly remembered that I had forgotten to give them something essential.

“Oh! I almost forgot!”

“Forgot… what?”

“Yes! Shim Cheong, come here with your father!”

Having remembered what I had nearly forgotten, I hurriedly called Cheong, and when my second disciple approached, I handed her two necklaces.

“These are necklaces with translation functions. They’ll interpret what you say into a language others understand, and vice versa. They’ll be quite useful in many ways.”

“…Is that so?”

“Indeed. I’m using something similar right now.”

Given the significant differences between the languages used in the Eastern and Western continents—particularly since the language of the Kore Kingdom has almost nothing in common with others—this was practically essential.

Anyway, after completing this “simple” procedure, we finally parted ways briefly, and only then did we finish our preparations to leave Dongnae Port.

And just as we were silently packing our belongings and about to leave the city…

“””””””””WOOOOAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!”””””””””

“”””Th-thank you, Master! Thank you so much!””””

What greeted us was a crowd of well over hundreds of people who had somehow gathered at the city exit.

Since everyone had been busy rebuilding the city, we hadn’t expected anyone to come see us off, so we were genuinely surprised as we looked at them…

“…I think I’m starting to like these people.”

“…Actually, me too.”

I waved back in response to the passionate farewells coming from behind us, having such a conversation with Sophia as we left the city.

※ ※ ※

Some time after the two of us left Dongnae Port…

“Oh, this is quite a nice experience, isn’t it?”

“…Yes. It feels strange.”

Following my personal notion that it would be somewhat odd to stay cooped up inside Tarasque when we had come so far to travel, we prepared to head to the capital riding the black magical creatures—military horses (tentative name)—summoned by activating the power of the tally.

The Kore Kingdom is basically a peninsula, but with a thicker and more twisted structure than the Korean Peninsula we know.

Thanks to this, the distance from Dongnae Port to Hanyang wasn’t particularly far, so at this speed, we would probably reach our destination within a week at most.

Especially since these military horses summoned by the tally seemed to have an automatic navigation or walking function, moving on their own without needing to be driven, allowing us to travel comfortably while chatting with each other.

And… it was around that time.

“There seem to be unusually few bandits around here?”

“…Yes, I noticed that too.”

I’m not sure if it’s because they maintain law and order quite strictly, or because post stations—which serve as rest areas, lodgings, government offices, and security facilities—are placed at regular intervals along this road, or perhaps because this harsh nature has excluded all such people.

But the fact that we hadn’t encountered a single bandit despite traveling non-stop for nearly half a day along this road was quite impressive. I continued chatting about this and that until…

“…Wait.”

“I-I felt it too.”

After sensing something ominous in the distance while on our journey, Sophia and I drew our staffs and leapt into the forest, quietly suppressing our presence while sending the military horses ahead.

The reason we were reacting so sensitively despite both being high-rankers was simple.

The owner of this powerful life force I was sensing belonged to quite a high tier even among high-rankers.

…No, perhaps even that expression is incorrect.

The life force I’m currently sensing is not just powerful but primordial, so at this level, it might not match Kagan El-Temur but would at least be on par with Yesugei.

Moreover, there was another reason for my wariness.

I could sense magical power from here too. Despite being separated by at least hundreds of meters, possibly even kilometers, I could detect the magical response emanating from the same source as that life force.

And… in such situations, there are mainly two sources I can rely on.

One is Sophia’s precognition ability, which has become more precise and easier to control since becoming a high-ranker, and the other is our little squeakers whom I’ve always relied on for reconnaissance.

Thus, things proceeded quickly.

While forcibly dismissing and collapsing the two military horses, the mice approached for reconnaissance… and Sophia, having perceived the situation through precognition, began to speak.

No, fate begins to prophesy through Sophia’s lips.

[Fallen ■■… committed sin■ and reject■■ ■■■■, now become ■■■ and fallen—]

From beyond perception, records, self, and fragments from the transcendent world seep into my mind, gradually forcing “understanding.”

If I weren’t a high-ranker, I would surely collapse and die, but in my current state, I could somehow manage this.

And just as Sophia—or rather, the voice of fate borrowing Sophia’s lips—was finishing the noise-filled prophecy…

[[[Master, we can see it!]]]

“…Yes, I understand.”

As I received the voice of fate, feeling my mind grow strangely peculiar, I held my throbbing head and shared the vision…

‘…I see, so that’s what it means.’

There, a cloud that had fallen to the ground lay bleeding and collapsed.