Ch.30Sun Tail

The desert night is cold. However, the trained warriors didn’t seem to mind much. Both Sae-erin’s group and Jiyur’s group sat facing each other on the cold training ground floor.

“Do you like alcohol?”

Jiyur said this while rolling over a purple-glowing bottle of liquor. It tumbled across the ground until it touched Sae-erin’s feet.

Jiyur shrugged as if to say drink it if you like, or don’t if you don’t.

“No snacks, I’m afraid. I’m not the type to carry around cumbersome things…”

Flora and Theo were also handed their own portions of alcohol. Sae-erin’s posture tilted to one side. With an elbow resting on his knee and chin propped on his hand, he lifted the bottle, exuding a peculiar atmosphere.

Sae-erin spoke.

“What story do you want to hear?”

“Well. About your Blue Wing, of course. I’ve always been curious about the imperial knights who supposedly capture and kill reincarnators.”

“It would have been better to find Vice Captain Karnok…”

“I tried to find him… but he’s disappeared.”

Sae-erin turned his head to look toward the noisy pool area. Karnok was nowhere to be seen. Not just him—the other vice captains who had come together were also missing.

Only the vice captains had disappeared. This meant they had important business to attend to.

Sae-erin nodded and tilted the bottle. Behind the sweet fruit aroma wafted a peculiar cool forest scent. The aftertaste was clean.

Jiyur asked about the Blue Wing’s activities. Whether they really captured and killed reincarnators, if there were any exceptions, and how far their jurisdiction extended.

The number of questions Sae-erin could answer wasn’t many. He was a new member who didn’t know much, and there was information he couldn’t disclose to outsiders.

One question, one answer. After each exchange, they tilted their bottles.

Jiyur asked.

“Sae-erin, Theo, Flora. Can you distinguish between ordinary people and reincarnators?”

The trio exchanged glances at Jiyur’s question. They had learned how to distinguish between ordinary people and reincarnators. Though they hadn’t used it in the field, it shouldn’t be too difficult.

Sae-erin recalled the reincarnators he had met so far. They all exuded a strange atmosphere different from ordinary people. The aura surrounding them was also distinctive.

You’d know when you saw one.

“Of course.”

Sae-erin nodded and touched his cheek. His face felt hot from the alcohol. His cheeks were probably flushed.

“Oh! That’s fortunate. Then could you help me for a moment? I recently spotted a suspicious person who seems like a reincarnator. Since you’re from Blue Wing, you’d know for certain, so please take a look.”

Jiyur stood up as if ready to leave immediately. The trio exchanged silent glances. Was it right for them to leave on their own without a superior present?

“Vice Captain Karnok isn’t here…”

Theo was the first to stand up. He exclaimed enthusiastically.

“Great! Where do we go?”

Sae-erin’s gaze fell on Theo. He was drunk. Alcohol dulls the senses. Theo was currently incapable of sound judgment.

What about himself? His mind was clear and his senses sharp. He wasn’t drunk yet. That meant he could take care of his less capable companions.

Sae-erin also stood up.

“Sae-erin? Theo?”

Flora was the last to remain seated. Seeing her, Sae-erin said.

“Flora. Let’s go.”

“But…!”

“There’s a reincarnator, isn’t there?”

Wasn’t it a reincarnator, of all things? Sae-erin muttered while suppressing his fiercely stirring mana.

‘Be patient, White Dragon Sword.’

It wasn’t time yet.

In the end, Flora had no choice but to stand up as well. The three followed Jiyur’s group over the annex wall.

The gazes of soldiers guarding the palace followed them, but no one stopped their movement. Rather, they slightly bowed their heads toward Jiyur who ran ahead.

The First Prince’s escapades were something of a routine for Sun Tail’s soldiers. As long as he didn’t cause major problems, the soldiers wouldn’t intervene.

Jiyur’s group and Sae-erin’s group thus left the palace.

The place they arrived at after leaving the palace was Sun Tail’s night streets. It had a completely different atmosphere from daytime. Sae-erin’s gaze swept the surroundings.

The awnings that had been stretched out to avoid the sunlight were gone. In their place were small lanterns emitting a soft glow.

These lanterns lined the streets endlessly. On the gently illuminated streets, drunkards and dancers mingled, exuding a strange heat.

The overall atmosphere had become sticky. If you stared blankly, you might naturally be drawn into the city.

Sae-erin placed his hand on his sword and calmly regulated his breathing.

Their destination wasn’t Sun Tail’s night streets. The group headed toward the outskirts of the city. The place they arrived at was the city’s back gate.

Beyond the back gate stretched long rails. A path made for easy transportation of heavy carts from places like mines.

Flora explained. Sun Tail was a country where a mineral called mana stone was heavily mined. These rails probably played an important role in transporting the mana stones.

“Where is the reincarnator?”

By now, shouldn’t that reincarnator person be visible? Sae-erin asked while touching the blue powder scattered on the dirt ground. A faint residue of mana emanated from it.

“We’re almost there, so don’t rush. The place where he appears isn’t here, but at the mana stone mine a bit further away.”

A cool breeze washed over his face. As time passed, the intoxication subsided. Sae-erin slightly regretted his impulsive decision.

But what could he do? They had already come this far, and the other party didn’t seem to be lying. Sae-erin stood up and nodded.

“If he’s not there, we’ll return immediately.”

“Don’t worry, he’s been showing up there without fail every day recently.”

“And yet you couldn’t catch him?”

“That’s a bit strange… you’ll understand what I mean when we get there.”

As Jiyur began giving orders to the soldiers stationed at the back gate, preparations for departure were immediately made. The transportation to the mine wasn’t horses or camels.

It was a cart that used mana stones as its power source.

“This is a transportation method I’ve never seen before…”

“There’s probably no other country that uses mana stones like this…”

The cart moved very quickly. It was almost as fast as riding a horse. Sae-erin leaned against the edge of the cart, enjoying the cool breeze. His snow-white hair glistened softly in the moonlight.

***

The cart reached its destination. The vast mine was empty. Of course it was. Even workers need to sleep. It was the mine’s closing time.

“We’ve arrived. The place where he usually appears is inside the mine.”

Sae-erin’s gaze turned toward the inside of the mine. Despite being the middle of the night, the interior of the mine was brightly lit. Strange stones embedded densely along the path were emitting light on their own.

They were similar to the luminous stones he had seen in the imperial armory.

Jiyur and Sae-erin’s group entered the mine along the long rails.

“The mana…”

“It’s incredible…?”

As soon as they entered the mine, the trio exclaimed in admiration. The amount of mana floating in the air was excessive. It felt like being underwater.

When Sae-erin moved his hand, blue currents of light scattered around it. The mana, responding to his movement, emitted light on its own.

Jiyur, who was walking ahead, stopped not far from the entrance. He went into a secluded corner and gestured toward the group.

He meant for them to hide like him. After hesitating briefly, Sae-erin’s group nodded and hid behind a large pillar.

“How long do we have to wait?”

To Sae-erin’s question, Jiyur shrugged. It meant he didn’t know the exact time. Sae-erin leaned against the wall with his hand on the hilt of his sword.

After that, a tedious wait began. No one knew how much time had passed. Sae-erin gauged the elapsed time by the fading intoxication.

About thirty minutes.

Then, a faint presence was felt not far away. Not just Sae-erin, but the others also seemed to sense it as they all flinched.

“It’s him…”

The moment Jiyur whispered quietly, something massive appeared with its back to the light. It took a moment to recognize the figure because of the light.

It was half in human form, and half covered in blue ore.

“Heuuh…”

Its voice was also grotesque. The man with massive ore on his body looked around, then sat down and began chewing on blue ore that was half-protruding from the wall.

-Crunch, crunch

Each time the mineral broke, the blue ore growing on the man’s body emitted light.

Jiyur’s gaze turned to Sae-erin’s group. His eyes seemed to say: Isn’t this definitely a reincarnator?

The deliberation wasn’t long. As he stepped forward, the White Dragon Sword was drawn. Shing- A belated sound echoed as a snow-white trajectory stretched long.

Just as Sae-erin’s sword was about to reach the blue ore man.

Swoosh-

The man’s figure disappeared. The White Dragon Sword sliced through empty air.