Namgoong Gyo thought for a moment before continuing calmly from where he left off.
"The Western continent is far more divided than the East."
"Oh? How much more divided?" Caelrisu asked curiously.
"Quite a lot," he replied. "The West is split into nine regions, two Alliances, three Dominances, and four Monarchs.
The Three Dominances are the Temples of Reason, Light, and Time, each ruling vast territories through faith and power.
The two Alliances are the Golden Evening Sun Alliance, which includes the Aurelis, Solisrisu, and Vesperion Clans, and the Martial Alliance, which includes the Namgoong Family, the Green Forest Family, and various other small Martial Families, and to which I also belong."
He paused briefly before continuing, "And the Four Monarchs..."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Caelrisu suddenly interrupted, eyes widening.
He raised a brow. "What is it, young lady?"
"If you're part of the Martial Alliance and my Clan is in the Golden Evening Sun Alliance, doesn't that make us enemies?" She asked, her tone genuinely worried.
For a moment, Namgoong Gyo stared at her, then let out a low, weary sigh followed by a quiet chuckle.
"Ah… don't worry, young lady. If it's for the protection and growth of the daughter of my Saviour," his voice softened, carrying a rare warmth, "then why not?"
The sincerity in his tone caught her off guard. Her lips parted slightly as her eyes glistened with emotion she couldn't hide.
He blinked, realising only after speaking that his words had come out a bit weird. Something about it felt… strange.
Caelrisu looked down, her voice small but thick with feeling. "Thank you… Uncle."
Namgoong Gyo cleared his throat, turning his gaze away with an awkward cough. "Hmph. Don't thank me yet; I might just make you regret it once training starts."
Her soft laugh lightened the air again, and he found himself smiling faintly before continuing, "Now then, where was I? Ah yes, the Four Monarchs…"
He leaned back slightly, his gaze drifting upward as he talked about them.
"The Four Monarchs are the rulers of the lawless lands scattered across the Western Continent. But don't mistake 'lawless' for human anarchy; these are places where the very laws of the world cease to exist. Space, matter, even logic itself… all bend or break in these regions."
He raised a finger. "First, the Flame Monarch, ruler of the Frozen Mountain Range, a stretch of volcanic peaks spanning several hundred thousand kilometres. But the volcanoes there don't spew molten lava. They erupt with black blazing ice, ice so hot that everything that touches them turns into ashes."
Caelrisu blinked. "Black blazing… ice?"
"Mm." He nodded.
"A paradox in existence. Some researchers say that it exists because the two building blocks are in a rare state where one is in a solid lattice, while the other two are able to move freely through the structure.
When asked how something like this can form, they answered that it's due to pressure from the air, which is roughly 180,000 to 200,000 times higher, and a temperature above 20,000 degrees Celsius.
But no one believed them, and this theory was rejected."
"Next is the Forest Monarch, ruler of the Inverse Forest. A realm where gravity is meaningless, trees grow upside down, their roots clinging to drifting clouds instead of soil. Rivers flow upward, and the canopy hangs beneath the heavens like a curtain of emeralds.
Temple of Reason believes that the trees have specialised roots that absorb nutrients and water vapours directly from the atmosphere, as these plants were planted by [Reason] to fulfil the wish of a child, who saw it in a storybook."
Hearing this, a smile blossomed on Caelrisu's face as she thought of such a mystical forest.
He paused, his tone softening as if painting the next vision with care.
"Then comes the Floral Monarch, ruler of the Flower Field. A paradise only a thousand kilometres wide, yet said to contain more life and beauty than the rest of the continent combined. The air there hums with serenity, flowers are so radiant you could gaze upon them for eternity, and insects sing peace into your thoughts."
Caelrisu's eyes widened in wonder. "That sounds… beautiful."
"It does," he said quietly. "But no one knows where it truly lies. Only that it exists; that's why there is no theory by researchers for it."
Finally, his expression darkened. The warmth in his voice vanished, replaced by something grave.
"And last… the Cursed Monarch, ruler of Hell among the living. A wasteland where the skies rain endless shards of glass sharp enough to cut through the world itself. There's no air, no light, no sound, only silence and the constant fall of glittering death. Nothing lives there. Nothing can live there. It is a place that rejects existence itself."
Caelrisu drifted into deep thought, her mind painting vivid images of the strange and wondrous lands Namgoong Gyo had described: blazing ice volcanoes, upside-down forests, serene flower fields, and the glass-raining hell.
For a moment, she imagined herself journeying through each of them, her heart thrumming with both fear and curiosity.
Then, her focus returned, and she looked up at him with renewed interest.
"So, who's the strongest in the West?" she asked eagerly.
Namgoong Gyo gave a small, incredulous chuckle.
"Is that even a question? It's obviously the Three Temples. They possess strength so absolute that even Thrones can't destroy them. The only ones who could are the mythical Anathemas, but if they tried, the Lords themselves would descend. "So", he said, shaking his head, "in truth, no one dares challenge them."
Caelrisu leaned forward, eyes gleaming. "Alright then… what if we remove the Three Temples and the Thirteenth Zenith from the picture?"
Namgoong Gyo paused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm… now that's a difficult question, young lady."
He tilted his head, a faint smile curving his lips. "But if I had to choose… I'd say the Eastern Continent would hold the upper hand."
She blinked. "Why is that?"
"Because of the Veiled Lantern Society," he replied, his tone growing more serious. "Information is the most crucial thing in any war. If a true continental conflict broke out, the side that knows first, the one that understands its enemy's secrets, sins, and weaknesses, would already be halfway to victory. And in that regard, no one in this world can outmatch the Veiled Lanterns."
Caelrisu tilted her head thoughtfully, curiosity flickering in her eyes.
"Then… are Heretics and those Weepers of the Vacant Throne the same?"
Namgoong Gyo chuckled softly. "You could say that every Weeper is a Heretic, but not every Heretic is a Weeper."
"Please explain," she asked, leaning forward with genuine interest.
"Well," he began patiently, "Heretics are simply those who believe in the so-called Evil Gods, illusionary beings that reject the Three Temples and the righteous faiths. They're meant to be purged wherever they're found."
"Then why do Weepers exist at all?" she pressed.
Namgoong Gyo sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Because, young lady, you can't exactly massacre a hundred million people, can you?"
"N-No…" she said softly.
"Exactly. The deities call it mercy, but that's just a pretty lie." His tone turned sharper. "The truth is, the Weepers are too vast and too strong to be wiped out. Their faith spreads like rot, hidden in pain, in grief, in death. Even if you burned their temples and slaughtered their followers, they'd still rise again from the despair that war leaves behind."
"I see…" Caelrisu murmured, her brows furrowed. "And that would shake the faith people have in the Three Deities, wouldn't it?"
He gave a small nod. "Yes. If such suffering and death spread, faith will falter."
"Now," Namgoong said, "I'll explain the difference between Mages and Martial Artists."
"Oh?" Caelrisu replied, genuinely curious. "Please do."
As a martial artist herself, this was a topic she naturally found interesting. Noticing her enthusiasm, Namgoong continued.
"Well, first of all, most mages, especially the senior ones, are known to be… surprisingly kind. They interfere with the world constantly, helping the poor and the needy, while either purging or enlightening those they deem evil."
He paused briefly.
"For some reason, they tend to seek solitude. They rarely form organizations or factions and almost always act independently, helping others without binding themselves to any greater force."
Caelrisu tilted her head slightly.
"So… they're good and nice people?"
Namgoong shook his head.
"Honestly, I also believe many of them are decent people. But within the Martial Alliance, there's an unspoken rule: never trust a mage." He gave a small shrug. "Personally, I think that belief stems more from inferiority than experience."
He continued, shifting into a more instructional tone.
"As for their power system, it's fairly straightforward. Rank One through Rank Nine. As they grow stronger, they usually specialize in a single element of magic. Ordinary mages store their Essence in their hearts, but Awakened ones who follow the mage path draw it directly from their souls, just like martial artists do."
Caelrisu nodded, committing the information to memory.
"Then what about Martial Artists?"
Namgoong smiled faintly.
"We're almost the complete opposite. Martial Artists walk the path of solitude as well, but not to help others. We isolate ourselves to temper our minds through constant meditation and relentless training."
His eyes sharpened slightly.
"We follow absolute practicality. Anything that helps us reach our goal is acceptable. At the same time, unlike mages, we build factions, raise disciples, take multiple wives, and have multiple children. That's why the higher a martial artist climbs, the more inhuman he appears to those below him."
He then laid out the hierarchy plainly.
"Our ranks progress from Third-Rate, to Second-Rate, to First-Rate, which you are. After that comes Peak Rank, where I stand. Beyond that is Transcendent Rank… and then Mandala."
He exhaled softly.
"Anything beyond Mandala?" He shook his head. "That's something I don't really know."
There was a brief silence before she straightened, a spark returning to her voice. "So… will we learn about survival tactics now?"
Namgoong Gyo blinked, then gave a rueful laugh. "Ah, sorry to kill your enthusiasm, young lady, but I have some errands in the market related to our job. So, no lessons for today. We'll head out tomorrow morning. I'll teach you the survival curriculum outside the city."
"Okay… then what should I do till then?" she asked, slightly deflated.
"Hmm…" He reached into his robe and pulled out a small leather pouch, tossing it toward her. "Take this."
She caught it and peeked inside, and then her eyes shone along with the glitter of ten gold coins.
"You're still a young girl, after all," he said with a teasing smile. "Go explore the market. Eat something nice, watch a play, and see the world a little. It'll help you someday more than you think."
As he went on warning her about what to avoid and how to bargain, Caelrisu's attention had already drifted away. Her eyes sparkled with barely contained excitement.
'I will finally have some alone time. I can go far away from the market. I can finally see what I received from 'My True Self'!'
The thought pulsed in her mind.