The Way Back (1)
After drinking heavily with Krnartash all night, he stayed one night in a guest room.
The next day, early morning.
Woojin yawned lazily as he rummaged through his bag, trying to organize the various survival supplies he had bought yesterday so they would be easier to see.
'There isn't that much luggage.'
He had purchased many things with the money he squeezed out of Krnartash, yet his belongings had actually become lighter. That was because Woojin had handed over about eighty percent of the inner cores he possessed to the Nol tribe.
The inner cores he had obtained when he scorched the beasts of the farm faction to death with a rain of fire in the past.
Perhaps because they were such valuable cores, Krnartash had refused to accept them and tried to decline… but Woojin forced them on him anyway.
"Not like I can eat them all anyway."
A complete inner core could be preserved for quite a long time, but even that had its limits.
It had taken a long time to come here from the deep regions of the Demonic Realm, and at this rate the cores would soon spoil. It was better to hand them over before that happened.
And… to fight their enemies, the Nol tribe's strength needed to be improved further. Once they began their northward campaign in the future, they would inevitably clash with the priests of the Dark Side.
'If I feed them well, they'll earn their keep.'
At the very least, it wouldn't be a loss.
Thinking that, he closed his travel bag. He pulled the straps tight to secure the cover and tied the cords firmly so they wouldn't come loose.
The pack was neatly arranged like military gear. Now he was ready to set out on the journey.
'Alright… shall we go?'
He walked out of the room.
As he stepped into the living room, he saw the Nol Queen sprawled across the sofa, while Arwen and Coco sat in the corner playing.
Swish, swish—
Arwen waved a stalk of foxtail grass. Coco busily chased the movement. The squirrel leapt up, trying to grab the grass.
It looked as if someone were playing with a cat.
Krnartash lay face-down on the sofa, watching the two of them. As the foxtail grass moved, the Nol Queen's eyes followed its trajectory.
"We should get going."
Arwen and Coco immediately stopped playing and began preparing to leave. Krnartash muttered with regret.
"Leaving already? I was planning to treat you to breakfast."
"We've got a long way to go."
He planned to head south as quickly as possible and meet some old acquaintances.
Krnartash replied,
"Even so, at least eat breakfast before you go. It'll take some time to bring the rhinoceros."
"Alright."
Rushing wouldn't change anything anyway.
They gathered around the table and ate breakfast. It was a dish made by boiling vegetables and pork backbone in a large pot until it bubbled vigorously. Recently, the Nol had grown fond of it.
'They called it bone stew, right?'
It was fairly decent.
It felt similar to pork bone hangover soup. Since they had begun interacting with humans, the Nol tribe's food culture had noticeably improved.
While he was gnawing the meat off the bones…
Just as the meal ended, footsteps could be heard outside. The sound of a massive creature approaching.
'The rhinoceros is here.'
Woojin stood up while picking his teeth. The others rose together behind him. He grabbed his travel bag and went outside.
A rhinoceros was walking toward them, and a Nol rider sat on the back of its neck.
It was a familiar face.
"Is Rogar going to be the rider?"
When Woojin asked, Krnartash nodded.
"You said you want to keep it a secret that you're alive. It'll be more comfortable traveling with Rogar than attaching some other guy to you."
"That's true… that would be better."
It was a thoughtful consideration.
After expressing his thanks, Woojin and his companions climbed onto the back of the war rhinoceros.
"Take care."
"See you again next time."
With brief farewells finished…
The rhinoceros began walking leisurely, heading south—not very far away.
***
The war rhinoceros was strong, but its stamina was somewhat lacking. After bursting into a run at explosive speed, it would stop intermittently to rest.
'This is a bit frustrating.'
The spider he had been riding recently had been so capable that the rhinoceros felt somewhat lacking in comparison…
Still, it wasn't slow. Each time the rhinoceros alternated between sprinting and resting, the destination noticeably drew closer.
The dark clouds were gradually thinning.
Already, patches of blue sky had begun to appear. Flowers and wild grasses had sprouted here and there. This was thanks to the Third Expeditionary Force having purified several Rift Cores.
Passing through those landscapes, the rhinoceros diligently ran toward places where the shadows were lighter.
And then… several days later.
A large city came into view. Buildings stood in clusters inside wooden palisades, and around the surrounding plains stretched vast wheat fields.
Woojin asked to confirm.
"…This is the Third Pioneer City?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Rogar nodded. Woojin couldn't help but admire the sight again.
'They're even farming wheat now.'
In the past, such a thing would have been unimaginable. So many changes had occurred that it was difficult to adjust.
If Woojin felt that way, how much more so for Arwen and Coco? The former Dark Side priest and the squirrel magic beast looked around with wide eyes, like country folk visiting a city for the first time.
The rhinoceros approached the city.
Farmers pulling weeds glanced over once, then lowered their heads and continued working. Even though a rhinoceros magic beast was roaming around in broad daylight, they didn't treat it as anything unusual.
But the guards at the city entrance reacted quite sensitively.
"Sorry, but the rhinoceros cannot enter. There have been several cases where city buildings were destroyed."
Saying that, the guard signaled to Rogar with hand gestures that entry was prohibited.
Rogar accepted it without hesitation.
"I'll camp nearby in the forest with the rhinoceros. Guardian, please go into the city and take care of your business."
"Will that be alright?"
"It's fine. In fact, this is more convenient for me."
Rogar insisted it was okay. Woojin dismounted the rhinoceros without another word.
He walked into the city.
The first place Woojin headed was a building on the outskirts of the city. Though not particularly large, it was an elegant mansion.
Knock, knock.
He knocked on the door several times, but no response came from inside.
'…Looks like Cindy isn't here.'
Apparently she hadn't returned yet. When Woojin showed visible disappointment, Arwen, standing beside him, asked curiously.
"Whose house is this?"
"A younger friend of mine named Cindy used to live here… but she must still be busy with her business."
It was disappointing, but not unexpected.
Cindy was probably extremely busy running a new business using the inheritance she had received.
'I guess I'll have to ask around and find her myself.'
Thinking that, he turned around.
He walked toward the center of the city. There stood a large cathedral. It seemed expansion work had been done, as several annex buildings had been added.
However, Woojin paid no attention to the newly constructed buildings. Among them, he headed toward a particularly shabby and worn training hall.
When he carefully opened the door…
A group of soldiers standing in formation came into view. Their posture looked familiar. Feet spread shoulder-width apart, knees bent in a seated stance.
'Horse stance.'
The soldiers were training.
Heavy sandbags were tied to their arms and legs. As groans escaped from all around, an old man clicked his tongue in disapproval.
A blind monk wearing a shabby training robe. Woojin had once received instruction from that old man.
"Bow."
Bow, holding a long wooden stick, was watching over the soldiers as they trained.
"Your stamina is worse than that of novice monks… you should be ashamed. Even children of eight or nine could endure longer than you."
Speaking sharply, Bow tapped the soldiers whose posture had collapsed with his stick.
Woojin quietly watched the scene.
'Just like before… that man hasn't changed at all.'
The world was changing at a breathtaking pace, yet there were still some things that remained the same.
Just as he was thinking that…
Perhaps sensing a gaze, Bow tilted his head slightly. Using his mind's eye, he scanned his surroundings. Soon he discovered a familiar presence.
"…Let's end training here for today."
Bow made the declaration.
The soldiers looked confused. Training was ending much earlier than usual.
"Uh… we can go?"
"Anyone who wants more training may stay."
Naturally, no one did.
The soldiers rushed out of the training hall one after another. Woojin walked forward against the flow.
Soon, the two men stood facing each other.
"It's been a long time."
As he greeted him, Bow grinned and lightly tapped Woojin's chest with the stick.
"So you were alive after all… I knew it would be like this."
"Everyone seems to say that."
"Come along. Let's go to the office and have some tea."
Bow walked ahead.
Woojin and his companions followed him into the cathedral building. When they sat down on the sofa in the office, a nun set down freshly brewed tea and snacks before quietly withdrawing.
There were no more eyes watching them. Woojin took off the stifling hat and scarf and tossed them aside.
Seeing this, Bow asked,
"Are you deliberately pretending to be dead?"
"It wasn't intentional… I was gone for a long time, and rumors spread that I had died. So I decided to just live up to those expectations."
Woojin replied while sipping his tea. It must have been an expensive tea, because the aroma was quite good.
Though it was a luxury item that was difficult to obtain…
Arwen hesitated to touch her teacup. Sitting stiffly like she was on a bed of thorns, she anxiously glanced around.
It seemed she was worried that people might discover she was a priest of the Dark Side.
'In reality, that worry is meaningless.'
He had already discovered it.
"Why are you traveling with a Dark Side priest?"
One could not deceive the mind's eye. The old monk had already seen through Arwen's identity.
When Bow suddenly asked the question, Arwen flinched in shock, but Woojin casually chewed on a snack and answered.
"I recruited her as a subordinate."
"That's reckless. She seems like a priest with very powerful abilities. What if she suddenly betrays you and stabs you in the back?"
"It's fine. She's kind at heart."
"And is this one kind too?"
Bow gestured toward the squirrel. Coco was sitting on the table, busily gnawing on a sugar-coated biscuit.
It looked cute… but the old monk didn't seem to like the squirrel very much.
"Move it farther away. I don't want a monster like that sitting at the table."
"Squeak!"
Perhaps angered by being called a monster, Coco let out a sharp cry and puffed up her cheeks. Seeing that, Woojin commented,
"This one understands human speech."
"That's not important… just move it away. If it were up to me, I'd lock it in an iron cage. Just looking at it gives me chills down my spine."
"Isn't it cute?"
"At least not by my standards."
The mind's eye sees through the essence of a being.
From Bow's blind perspective, Coco was nothing more than a monster with terrifying power—a leader-class magic beast from the deep regions.
"Arwen. Hold onto her."
"Yes."
Woojin picked up the squirrel and handed it to Arwen. Though Coco sulked, she had no choice but to sit in Arwen's arms like a baby.
Watching this, Bow shook his head in disbelief.
A powerful Dark Side priest, and a magic beast capable of destroying an entire city with ease.
What kind of combination was this?
"Explain."
"Alright."
Woojin began recounting everything.
Bow listened attentively with his arms folded. So many things had happened that Woojin kept drinking tea to moisten his throat as he continued the story.
After quite some time…
"…And that's how things turned out."
The long explanation ended.
A strange silence settled over the room. Bow thought quietly for a moment before speaking.
"In all my life I've heard many strange stories… but this one is on a different level. It's so bewildering that it's hard to even process."
"Well, that's understandable."
Even listening to the entire story was impressive. Woojin's tale was filled with bizarre and unbelievable events.
But Bow didn't dismiss it. The monk handed him a quill pen and paper.
"Could you write your story down? There's a lot in it that could help the Order Alliance. Extract the important information and record it."
"Alright."
Telling a blind man to write would be cruel. So it seemed he would have to finish writing the report himself before leaving.
Chewing on a biscuit, Woojin busily scribbled with the quill. Bow also moved about briskly. He rummaged through his desk and took something out.
A letter sealed with red wax. Bow brought it over and handed it to Woojin.
"What's this?"
"After the rumor spread that you had died, Cindy came here once. She left this letter with me at that time."
Cindy had left him a letter.
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