Chapter 112

After finishing their meeting with Osel, Turan's group did not leave immediately. Instead, they stayed at Rida’s mansion, soothing their minds and bodies exhausted from long labor.

More precisely, it was a time for Solif to refresh himself after being stuck in the middle of nowhere and feeling depressed.

Early morning.

As Turan sat in one corner of the annex's living room, reading a book, he encountered Meisa coming out of her room.

She had just washed up, as evidenced by her damp, reddish-brown hair that she was drying.

"Off to the gambling house again today?"

"Yeah."

"You never get tired of it, huh?"

Almost every day, Solif left the mansion and made his rounds through the various gambling houses scattered throughout Merem.

At first, he enjoyed common spectacles like dogfights and cockfights, but recently, he seemed to have become engrossed in a Southern-style game that involved matching pieces made from animal bones.

"Well, at least he doesn’t complain about losing money, so he must not be losing much. Here, I got a new book. Want to read it?"

"Yeah."

Meisa accepted the book Turan handed her and sat down across from him.

Since Turan had little interest in gambling, he preferred to spend time like this, sitting with Meisa in a sunlit spot, quietly enjoying a book.

Turan mostly read travelogues and history books, while Meisa enjoyed romance novels and fairy tales.

Sometimes, they spent hours without exchanging a single word, but the sound of turning pages was enough to remind them of each other’s presence, which was comforting.

Of course, there were times when such silence became a bit tiresome. When that happened, they would leave the mansion and head out into the streets.

Wandering through the bustling market or browsing shops wasn’t bad, but what they enjoyed most was watching plays.

"The play was really good this time."

"Yeah...! The song Ele sang at the end was so heartbreaking. And the dances were amazing."

Due to her noble status as the heir of House Aravion, Meisa had not been able to visit theaters freely like others.

Seeing her so excited after watching a play reminded Turan of the times he had visited theaters with Ashiz in the past.

It made him regret not having arranged such moments for her earlier when he had the chance.

On nights when they watched a play with particularly impressive dances, they would try to reenact the moves in the annex’s garden.

"Was it like this?"

"I think they held their hands a little higher."

On a moonlit night, with only the sound of insects buzzing around, the two of them held hands and twirled on the grass, mimicking the dance steps.

They passed under each other’s arms, hopped lightly, and leaned their weight against each other in a series of intricate movements.

When the dance finally ended, Meisa was leaning back as if about to fall, supported by Turan’s arm wrapped around her waist.

Standing still, sharing their warmth, they gazed into each other’s eyes in silence and—

"Ah!"

Whoosh, a strong gust of wind blew through, causing their hair to intertwine and flutter.

Watching from the side, Bije stomped her feet angrily and swept the two of them up with wind magic.

"Ahaha! Bije, stop it!"

"You want to dance with us too, huh? Come here."

In the end, Bije fluttered around them, darting back and forth and flapping her wings, creating a chaotic yet artistic dance. With laughter filling the air, their impromptu midnight dance came to an end.

*

After spending about three weeks enjoying themselves in various ways, the three of them visited Rida to bid her farewell.

"Will you be back soon this time as well?"

"I think it might be a bit difficult. We’ve taken on a rather significant request this time."

"Don't feel too pressured about it. The Family Head only asked you to seize the opportunity if it presents itself."

It was a direct request from Osel, the Family Head of House Lavitas, to eliminate a traitor to the family and retrieve a sacred relic.

According to Rida, very few people within House Lavitas were even aware of this.

If the matter became widely known, it would damage the family's prestige.

Rumor had it that a few high-ranking nobles had each sent their subordinates out in pursuit, but without exceptional tracking abilities like those of House Zahar, the chances of locating the target were slim.

"I can't promise we'll find them, but if we do, we'll make sure to retrieve the relic."

To be honest, the unlimited healing rights promised by the Family Head didn't hold much value for Turan's group.

After all, if they eliminated the traitor and absorbed his magic power into the sacred relic, Turan himself would become an exceptional healer.

Even considering that, however, returning the sacred relic was a better option than having one of them use it.

‘If we use the sacred relic as we please and get caught, even our current fragile alliance will be shattered… But if we return it, we can secure a Great Noble House as an ally.’

Nagin and Aravion, Zahar and Varaha.

Considering they were already at odds with at least four Great Noble Houses and the fallen gods behind them, they needed a noble house that was both independent of divine rule and on friendly terms.

Right now, the relationship between Turan’s group and House Lavitas was akin to that of friends helping each other out with a few favors.

If they returned the sacred relic and granted such a great favor, a more strategic alliance could be forged.

Perhaps, in the long run, it might even lead to the formation of a coalition against the gods.

Compared to that, a sacred relic that merely halted aging but didn’t grant true immortality wasn’t all that valuable.

In fact, they could obtain the power of agelessness just by embedding the Lavitas Bloodline into the Mimic Relic.

“Well, this old woman trusts you. You’re rare, trustworthy, and kind young folks in these times. If you’re ever in the area, don’t hesitate to drop by.”

“We had a great time here, Rida-nim!”

Perhaps it was thanks to his frequent visits to gambling houses and taverns over the past few weeks, but Solif’s face looked noticeably more lively as he cheerfully called out.

Seeing his energetic demeanor, Rida let out a hearty laugh before turning to Turan and Meisa.

“I saw you dancing recently, you both were quite good. I’d love to see it again next time.”

At the mention of their dance in the garden, Meisa’s face turned red, while Solif, unable to understand what was being referred to, tilted his head in confusion.

Only Turan, who had known that Rida occasionally spied on them using the relic’s perception, could manage an awkward smile.

*

Leaving Rida’s mansion, Turan's group, instead of flying directly toward the South Sea, headed to a nearby dormant volcanic area from a secluded spot, riding on the swing pulled by Bije.

It was the hot spring area where Turan had first met Rida and where the Monkey King, Aikul, resided.

“It’s been a while, Aikul.”

“This guy always looks like he’s scowling. Do you hate me that much?”

Just as Solif grumbled, Aikul snorted loudly and frowned upon seeing him.

However, when Meisa, following behind, waved in greeting, Aikul grinned and waved back.

While Bije, now almost as strong as Aikul, teased him with wind magic and received a flick on the forehead in return, the three of them ventured into the hidden part of the hot spring, that Rida had told Turan about, to gather sulfur.

After that, they bid farewell to Aikul and took off toward the East Sea. Since they traveled at a steady pace with breaks in between, it took them about two days to reach the South Sea.

Looking down at the coastline stretching below, Turan opened the notebook where he had recorded the hometowns of the people he had rescued from Palayan Island.

“Osti Village, north of Lunan City… It should be around here.”

“Isn’t that the village over there?”

Thanks to Rida, they had obtained a map of the territories ruled by House Lavitas. This made it easy to locate the towns and cities on the western coast of the South Sea.

A short while later, Turan entered a fishing village and encountered two men and one woman he had previously rescued.

“Ah… Ahh…”

“Wizard-nim!”

“Savior! It is truly an honor to see you again-”

Upon recognizing Turan’s face, the survivors each reacted in their own way.

One was so overwhelmed with emotion that they burst into tears, unable to speak.

Another cried out and immediately prostrated themselves.

The last attempted to express their joy with overly formal words they barely knew how to use.

Turan was invited to one of their homes, where he briefly listened to how they had been doing.

“You saw people disembarking at Gorong Village and Tospa City?”

“Yes. We were the next group in line, so I remember it clearly…”

“Then we don’t need to stop by there unnecessarily.”

“No, we should still go. I want to check if they’re doing well.”

As promised, the Red Whale Pirates had returned the survivors to various port towns and villages along the South Sea.

Of course, some had no homes to return to, as their villages had been completely destroyed by pirate attacks. In such cases, they simply settled elsewhere, following other survivors.

“My wife was in that exact situation. Her hometown was burned to the ground, so I told her I’d take care of her and brought her here.”

At the man’s words, the woman beside him blushed, looking shy.

Back when they were held captive and abused by the pirates, many of them had looked frail and on the brink of death. But now, seeing that they were living well brought Turan some relief.

After chatting for a bit longer, Turan and his group left the village, leaving behind the survivors who swore to live in eternal gratitude.

From there, they continued visiting port towns and villages under House Lavitas’ rule.

Most survivors seemed to have settled down and were doing well, but there were also unpleasant encounters at times.

“Is there someone named Soru in this village? He should have arrived about six months ago.”

“Oh, yes, I remember. He was the one who suffered greatly after being captured by pirates. But not long after he returned, he fell seriously ill and… well…”

“Does he have a grave?”

“A-A grave? Well, that’s…”

“So there is one. Take me to it.”

The village chief’s face visibly tensed in panic.

Catching the scent of fear coming from him, Turan pressed harder, almost threateningly, until they were led to the grave of the survivor he had rescued.

Moments later, using Earth-Shaping Magic, Turan unsealed the poorly constructed grave and pulled out the rotting corpse. He inspected the large wound on the back of the skull.

Judging by the marks, it looked like a shovel or an axe had been used.

“Anyone can see he didn’t die of an illness.”

“I-I really don’t…”

“If you just tell the truth, I’ll make it painless.”

Already suspecting that the village chief had been involved, Turan made full use of his torture skills. Soon, the chief confessed that he and several influential figures in the village had conspired to kill the survivor.

The motive, unsurprisingly, was the settlement money that Turan had generously provided to each survivor.

Those with surviving relatives in the village rarely faced such problems, but those who had lost all their kin and settled alone often found themselves targeted in this way.

Each time this happened, Turan would carry out brutal interrogations, exposing the culprits and tearing them apart before hanging their remains at the village entrance.

“W-We should report this to the city…”

“Shh, be quiet.”

As expected, the villagers were terrified of the wizard who had suddenly appeared, tortured, and executed their town’s leaders. But Turan didn’t care.

After all, House Lavitas would overlook small crimes like this without much concern.

“Whoa…”

“Let’s just go.”

Solif and Meisa seemed disturbed by the gruesome scene, but they didn’t try to stop Turan.

They had heard about his past when he almost lost his sheep farm to the elders of Hisaril Hill Village.

It wasn’t hard to guess that Turan saw those past oppressors and these murderers as the same kind of people.

After passing through about ten such villages, they boarded a ship and traveled across the South Sea. Eventually, they revisited Palayan Island for the first time in a long while.

Leaping off the ship onto the shore, Solif whistled as he scanned the coastline.

“So this is the land of gold?”

“Weren’t you the one who told me about it?”

“I did, but I’ve never actually been here myself. I was just passing along what I heard.”

As he said, it was Solif who had first informed Turan about the island where saltpeter could be found. But even he had only heard about it from the pirates he had accompanied at the time.

They repaired the abandoned pirate hideout, which had fallen into disrepair from years of neglect, and spent the night there.

At daybreak, they ventured into the mines located deeper within the island.

“Well then, time to get to work again.”

“Damn it. We’re really doing this all over again?”

“Quit complaining and start digging.”

Just as Turan had done before, the three of them grabbed pickaxes and began striking the earth, tearing into the ground with relentless effort.

Maintaining and repairing the mine ceiling with Earth-Shaping Magic and Telekinesis Magic, which they had grown highly skilled in during their land reclamation work, was just an added bonus.

Naturally, since all three of them were now far stronger than Turan had been at the time, their work efficiency was also significantly higher.

The mine, which had already suffered an invasion of one wizard-miner, now had more holes than an anthill.

By the time they finally emerged from the mine after spending an entire day inside, the three of them had secured several hundred kilograms of unrefined gold and silver, along with more than a ton of saltpeter.

"This should be enough for quite a while."

"Yeah, we gathered even more than I did last time."

He had consumed a vast amount of the Spirit of Fire in their battle against the Great Sea Serpent, and afterward, he had continued using it for practice, depleting his supply to a dangerously low level.

Their visit to Palayan Island this time was specifically to replenish his stock by securing a large quantity of saltpeter.

While Turan combined sulfur and charcoal to create more Spirit of Fire, Meisa and Solif melted the gold and silver they had collected, molding them into ingots.

Since they had received pre-made molds from Rida in advance, all they needed to do was repeatedly melt and cool the metals, making the process fairly simple.

Before long, a massive pile of black powder, gold ingots, and silver ingots stacked up in front of the mine.

"All done."

"Wow, we're practically rich. Well, maybe not by Great Noble House standards, but still."

"For wandering nobles like us, this is more than enough wealth to carry around."

They each took only the Spirit of Fire for themselves, leaving most of the gold and silver buried deep within the mine, taking out only a small portion.

Even though each of them carried a large-capacity pouch, Solif had a backpack instead, storing such a vast amount of gold and silver would take up too much space, leaving little room for essential supplies.

"I hope no one digs it up."

"There’s no one really interested in this island anymore, so it should be fine. And even if someone finds the mine, it won’t be easy to reach the spot where we buried it."

As he said, the mine was now a chaotic mess of tunnels, resembling an anthill.

Even the slightest disturbance could trigger a chain collapse.

Unless someone already knew in advance that a huge stash of gold and silver was hidden in the deepest part, there was no reason for anyone to venture inside.

At that moment, Solif seemed to have a thought and muttered to himself.

"Maybe this is how ancient treasure maps were made. If we die, this place would become the stuff of legends—‘An island where untold treasure lies buried.’"

“Right.”

The three of them exchanged glances and burst into laughter.

*

After finishing their business on Palayan Island, Turan's group visited the Red Whale Pirates to seek out their leader, Tasan.

Tasan was delighted to see not only Turan, whom he had sworn to call "hyung", but also Solif, who had been his drinking buddy in the past.

He enthusiastically bumped shoulders with them, only to let out a pained yelp.

"What the hell did you do to get so damn solid?!"

"Heh, that’s a secret."

Of course, Solif had always been much stronger than Tasan, but since he possessed the Sun Bloodline, his physical abilities had previously been inferior to Tasan, who had the Fighter Bloodline.

However, now that he had awakened the Guardian Bloodline, his physical strength alone was at least equal to, if not greater than, Tasan’s, with endurance far surpassing him.

When Tasan shook hands with Turan and realized that Turan, too, had grown stronger than him, having anticipated this, he had already activated his Bloodline, his expression became slightly deflated.

"You guys must’ve gone on some incredible adventures. By the way, that beautiful lady over there… is she your partner, hyung?"

"Not yet."

Turan answered in a low voice, ensuring Meisa wouldn’t hear, but Solif, who was close enough to catch the words, snickered.

A short while later, the three of them sat in Tasan’s quarters, sharing drinks and exchanging stories.

When Turan mentioned how he had successfully returned the Palayan Island survivors to their hometowns, Tasan laughed heartily.

"Of course it all went smoothly! I, Tasan, have never failed in anything I put my name on!"

"That’s pretty damn impressive!"

"Naturally!"

The way Solif and Tasan perfectly matched their movements, bumping their fists together, made them look just like brothers. Turan couldn’t help but laugh as he poured out a pile of gold ingots onto the table.

Only then did Tasan, realizing the existence of the large-capacity pouch, widen his eyes in shock and glance back and forth between the towering stack of gold and Turan.

"Huh? What’s this?"

"It’s for your household. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a bit more wealth?"

"No, I—"

Turan reached out and covered Tasan’s mouth before he could refuse, knowing he was about to say he wasn’t expecting any kind of payment.

"Don’t think of it as a price. Just see it as an investment or goodwill toward the Red Whale family that controls a part of the South Sea."

"The Red Whale Family, huh…"

"A group of wizards dedicated to protecting humanity, that’s a family in its own right."

Tasan pursed his lips, seemingly unsure how to respond to Turan’s words, before abruptly turning his head away.

It was hard to tell, but it looked like his eyes were glistening slightly.

Once the wave of emotions had settled, and after Tasan had had a few drinks, his face reddened from the alcohol, he suddenly brought up an unexpected topic.

"Come to think of it, I saw something terrifying recently."

"Something terrifying?"

"A battleship with an unfamiliar family crest passed near this island. The moment it encountered a pirate ship, golden flashes rained down, splitting the ship clean in half. I was going to help, but the sight scared the hell out of me, and I bolted. If they had chased me, I might’ve been dead."

The moment they heard "golden flashes", all three of them instinctively tensed.

Just from the description alone, it was undoubtedly Light of Judgment, the secret technique of Varaha.

And if it was powerful enough to slice a ship in half instantly, then the person wielding it had to be at least among the upper ranks in strength.

"It might be dangerous if you ever encounter them, so remember this. The ship’s sail had a yellow circle covered by a white triangle in the center. Below that, there were four of these symbols."

Realizing that words alone might not be clear, Tasan spilled a bit of liquor onto the table and traced the emblem with his finger.

In the center was a symbol that seemed to represent the sun, and below it were four symbols that resembled stars.

Seeing this, Solif’s expression hardened, and he abruptly stood up.

"Wait. Can I talk to Turan alone for a bit, Tasan?"

"Hm?"

Tasan looked slightly hurt, sensing they were about to discuss something in secret without him. But after a moment, he decided that sulking over such a thing wasn’t manly and simply nodded.

Once they had stepped outside, Solif let out a deep sigh and spoke.

"What he just described, that’s Varaha’s crest."

"I figured as much."

A yellow circle with surrounding triangles typically symbolized the sun.

And combined with the mention of Light of Judgment, it was easy to deduce that a Varaha warship had passed through.

However, judging from Solif’s expression, it seemed like this wasn’t the only reason he had pulled Turan aside.

"The stars below the emblem indicate the rank of the person using it. One star means a retainer or a member of a vassal house. Two stars indicate a regular member or the head of a vassal house. Three stars signify an elder or someone in a high-ranking position. And… four stars are reserved for the Family Head."

In other words, the ship Tasan had seen wasn’t just any Varaha warship, it carried the Family Head of House Varaha himself.

***