Chapter 131: Above the Beastkin Skies

​Although the Sea God had been dealt with, everything wasn’t over yet.

To completely erase the remnants of the Sea God, the Sea God Cult had to be thoroughly uprooted from Dawnstar City.

This issue was resolved by Runox.

While all the cultists were away, he smashed the Sea God Cult’s temple and statues.

Then he dragged the corpse of a fishman monster mutated by the Sea God’s power and hung it in the city square.

It was a rather shocking act, but undeniably effective.

Once the true nature of the Sea God Cult was revealed to the public, ordinary believers began abandoning their scriptures and leaving the cult.

Of course, the fanatical ones continued to deny reality, but there was no longer a Sea God to answer their prayers.

Late in the evening, with the moon hanging over Dawnstar City, weary people were shuffling through the streets.

Their faces were filled with emptiness.

“The people of Dawnstar City look so drained.”

“Well, it’s only natural after losing the god they had believed in overnight… But still, what can you do.”

“Do you think Dawnstar City will be okay now?”

“We have to believe it will.

We’ve shown them the path they were on was wrong and pointed them in the right direction.

That’s as much as we can do.”

Suddenly, a strange wind blew by.

It wasn’t the salty stench typical of sea breeze but a warm and gentle one.

Following the wind with my eyes, I saw a large white wolf sitting atop the roof of a tall inn.

The wolf’s clear gaze swept over the streets of Dawnstar City.

Unlike before, its presence was now distinctly felt.

At that moment, Runox spoke.

“What are you planning to do now?”

As soon as he finished, the wolf’s form scattered into the wind.

After a moment’s hesitation, I answered.

“What about you, Runox?”

“I plan to travel a bit more around this land.

I haven’t fulfilled my mission yet.”

“I see.”

“And speaking of which, if you don’t mind, would you consider exploring this land with me—”

“No, I’m thinking of heading back now.”

I quickly cut him off mid-sentence.

He clicked his tongue in disappointment.

“That’s a shame.”

Before sunrise, while the cool moonlight still illuminated the road, I slipped out of the inn and mounted Nightmare’s back.

Clop, clop—

Nightmare’s hooves echoed through the streets of Dawnstar City.

At this hour, when everyone else was asleep, walking alone down the road, I came across discarded scriptures of the Sea God Cult scattered here and there.

The once-pristine books were now unrecognizable.

Covered in mud and footprints, they looked like remnants of the Sea God Cult’s collapsed influence.

Suddenly, I remembered the twin siblings who, like me, had left their hometown to become adventurers—Su and Shu.

Kids I could call my friends.

If I told them about what I had experienced in the Beastkin land, Janghon, how would they react?

They’d probably tell me to stop lying and wouldn’t believe a word.

Maybe they’d laugh it off as a fairytale.

That’s how ridiculous most of what I experienced in Janghon was.

The moment I left Dawnstar City and stepped onto the main road, I felt a gaze from the sky.

When I turned my head slightly, a massive wolf face was looking down at me.

It felt like a silent farewell.

When I lifted my hand and waved in response, surprise spread across the white wolf’s face.

Was it really that shocking for me to notice its presence?

Lightly chuckling, I stroked the two swords radiating a mysterious aura at my side.

I began retracing the path I had once taken.

Because I was suddenly craving the giant bird egg I had eaten upon arriving in Dawnstar City—and the peach guarded by the golden monkey.

When I want something, I go for it.

That’s my philosophy.

The large mountain with peach trees about ten days from Dawnstar City was still swarming with monkeys.

As I pulled on Nightmare’s reins and approached the base of the mountain, the monkeys scattered in a frenzy.

Screech—!

Screeee—!

Still as noisy as ever.

I ignored the common peaches scattered near the foot of the mountain and headed toward the summit.

Though the path was rough due to the lack of human traffic, it posed no problem for Nightmare.

Snort—!

Perhaps remembering the giant peach guarded by the golden monkey, Nightmare began drooling.

After running hard, we arrived at the top where a lone, massive peach tree stood.

At that moment, rustling came from the upper branches, and a large golden monkey peeked out.

It seemed wary, glancing nervously at Nightmare.

“Hello.”

If I packed my bag full of peaches, I’d have plenty to snack on until I reached the port.

Drawing the Ice Dragon Sword from my waist, I threw it toward the tree.

Whoosh—!

The swiftly flying blade sliced through the peach tree several times.

Before the large peaches hit the ground, starlight mana surged from my body and gently caught them.

Screee—!

The golden monkey let out a loud cry at the starlit peaches.

It must’ve been fascinated watching me harvest them, because it began bouncing around excitedly in the branches.

“Thanks again today.”

Screeee—!

Touched by my gratitude, the monkey shook the branch it was sitting on wildly.

I gave a small laugh and turned away.

My business here was done.

Screee—!

With the monkey’s farewell screech behind me, I rode Nightmare out of the monkey-filled peach mountain.

My next destination was a high, rocky mountain that reminded me of Nightmare’s birthplace.

The summit was always veiled in clouds, giving it a strangely mystical atmosphere.

I licked my lips as I looked up at the peak.

Before arriving in Dawnstar City, I had climbed this mountain and borrowed a giant bird’s egg for lunch.

Even though I’d only roasted it over fire, the taste had been surprisingly good.

Pwhiiiieeek–!

Nightmare also seemed to recall the taste of the giant bird egg and began licking its lips.

The moment I tugged the reins, Nightmare started climbing the rocky mountain as if it had been waiting for this. When there were no footholds, it created platforms of crystallized stone in the air and soared through the sky.

Eventually, we reached the mountaintop.

Gray clouds drifted around us. The nest’s owner, the bird, seemed to have gone hunting, as it was nowhere in sight. Inside the large nest, there were two plump eggs that looked delicious. Last time I came, there had only been one—apparently, it had laid two more since then.

They look tasty.

Smacking my lips, I stuffed the large eggs into my bag. Each egg, about the size of Nightmare’s head, was quite heavy and sturdy, so I wasn’t worried about them breaking.

After descending the mountain, I started building a makeshift kiln out of mud. The eggs had to be roasted slowly and evenly in an enclosed oven to avoid burning the outside while ensuring the inside was thoroughly cooked.

Controlling the temperature was easy. All I had to do was toss the Flame Dragon Sword inside the oven.

While munching on a peach and letting time pass, the roasted bird eggs were finally ready.

Before, when there had only been one egg, Nightmare and I had to split it in half. But now, there was no need for that. I had gotten two eggs.

I peeled one for Nightmare and one for myself and began eating.

Ppiiieeekk–!

Just as I was stuffing my mouth full of egg, a bird’s cry echoed from the mountain above. The one that had gone out hunting seemed to have returned.

Ppiiieeekk–!

The giant bird flapped its wings and circled the mountain area for a long while.

On the day marking one month since leaving Dawnstar, I finally reached a city with a pier, accompanied by Nightmare.

Though it hadn’t been that long in terms of time, it felt like I was returning after an eternity.

The city streets looked the same as ever.

Each mage was accompanied by a beastkin acting as a guide for tourists, and those who weren’t were approached by a new beastkin every few steps.

And I was no exception.

“Oh, honored spellcaster. Is this your first time on these lands?”

“Of course not.”

When I flicked my red long coat and replied fluently in sign language, the beastkin who had tried to guide me gave a nod and quietly backed off.

I had already decided to return, so I had no intention of staying here.

I guided Nightmare straight toward the airship.

If I had missed the timing, I might have had to stay here for about a week.

Luckily, there was an airship just about to depart, and I was able to board right away.

I looked around just in case, but there was no sign of Wendy.

About three hours passed after boarding the airship. As preparations were completed, a surge of mana began to flow into the mana stone engine installed beneath the ship’s floor.

Kugugugugu–!

The massive body of the airship cut through the white clouds as it began ascending into the sky.

I leaned against the wide railing and looked down at Janghon, the land of beastkin.

A refreshing breeze pushed the white clouds across the sky.

In an instant, the land of Janghon disappeared behind the misty veil.

That was when I noticed a mage standing nearby, also leaning against the railing and looking at the sky. Deep dark circles hung beneath her eyes.

“Excuse me.”

“Y-yes?”

She blinked as if surprised I was talking to her. I nodded and asked,

“By the way, this airship… does it go anywhere besides Janghon?”

“Um… I don’t think so, as far as I know…”

“Really?”

“The land of the beastkin was only recently discovered, after all.”

I nodded at her response and turned my gaze back to the blue sky.

Perhaps an unknown world lay hidden beyond those white clouds.

A land even mages didn’t know about. A place no one had ever set foot in.

The thought crossed my mind—that I wanted to embark on an adventure to discover such a place.

And then it happened.

From beyond the white clouds, something massive began to emerge.

The first thing I recognized was its large eye. Then slowly, a black body revealed itself.

Long, fluttering fins trailed behind it, pushing clouds like white waves with a mighty gust.

“Gasp…