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“If you think we look too alike that you can’t tell who is who, just call us Eldore.”
“It’s okay because I can tell.”
“Really? How?”
“Even our parents sometimes can’t tell us apart.”
No matter how hard it was to tell who was who, their energy was slightly different, so Yuder could only distinguish them through it.
He didn’t think they would understand if he explained, so he agonized for a moment. Fortunately, however, the door with a golden lion knob opened, showing up Kishiar’s aide, Nathan Zuckerman.
“Is everyone here already?”
“I’m Nathan Zuckerman, the Commander’s aide. I will let you know about this mission before he arrives. You can ask questions after I’m done explaining.”
Both Nathan Zuckerman’s exotic features and cold expressions made it difficult for the members to open their mouths easily. Even the frank Eldore siblings didn’t.
Nathan continued nonchalantly as if he were accustomed to that gaze.
“This mission is very important because it is under the order of His Majesty the Emperor. You may think it’s just a return to the capital by retrieving the Red Stone, but we don’t know all the power behind it yet. That’s why we have to prepare thoroughly. It’s unlikely, but maybe a third force will intervene in the middle, aiming for the Red Stone. Therefore, the Duke- no, the Commander has selected five knights of the Peletta Duchy who are proficient in this mission to join in. I want you to cooperate with the knights when something happens that you don’t think you can solve with your own power.”
“Are you coming too, sir aide?”
When Hinn raised her hand and asked, Nathan shook his head.
“No, I will be staying here to act as the Commander’s Lieutenant.”
“How long will it take?”
“He said it would take about a week.”
A week. Yuder pondered upon the plan that was much earlier than expected.
‘I don’t know how long it was going to take to get there.’
Yuder remembered that he, who lived near where the Red Stone fell, spent almost 15 days only coming to the capital after taking a test to join the Cavalry.
Of course, it must’ve been slow because he was young at the time and didn’t know how to find his way. Still, no matter how fast he moved, it was questionable if they could perform this mission within a week.
‘How long did it take for Kishiar to finish up? I think it took more than a week. Did he consider the Red Stone? Is the retrieval mission easy? Or was the given time limited by the Emperor?’
The current emperor was the predecessor of the emperor that Yuder had served, so he didn’t know how to handle things. However, the emperor that Yuder worked under back then would order Yuder to finish the missions under a time limit.
If the current emperor had such a personality, it would be understandable that he was trying to move so fast.
“My goodness. I guess I’m the last one.”
At last, Kishiar appeared from the inside. He was dressed in a black cape over a white-clad uniform and with a sword. The hood of his cape was big enough to cover his face whenever he wanted.
Everyone else seemed to be overwhelmed by his extraordinary atmosphere and elegant beauty, but Yuder was the one to notice the splendid appearance of the sword Kishiar was wearing.
‘He’s bringing it, too.’
The Divine Sword.
But no one but Nathan and Yuder could even imagine it was the legendary Divine Sword.
“We will not use wagons for fast transportation. Is there anyone who can’t ride by horse?”
Horses were the most common means of land transport. There was even a joke that there were more horses than dogs and cats on this continent.
In particular, the Orr Empire was famous for paving the way for wagons from a long time ago, as most of them consisted of plains.
Therefore, all Orr people learned how to ride horses from an early age. Even Yuder who grew up alone with his grandfather in the mountains also learned how to ride a horse and drive a cart.
“We can.”
After seeing everyone nod, Kishiar gave a signal to Nathan. Nathan, who greeted him with a gentle manner, went down first.
“The horses we’re going to ride aren’t normal horses. Maybe you’ve heard it at least once. We will ride the Mist horses brought by the mages of the Pearl Tower.”
“Mist horses…”
Kanna muttered mysteriously. Yuder, of course, knew what it was.
‘Mixed species created by magic.’
Once upon a time, the mages of the Pearl Tower did a lot more extraordinary experiments than now.
The most useful was the birth of Mist horses made by hybridizing horses with ancient monsters that lived only in fog and storms.
‘I never thought I’d ride it. Come to think of it, they must still be used a lot by this time. I forgot.’
Mist horses were alive, but no matter how long they ran, they wouldn’t be as tired as a real horse and left no footprints. Instead of mane, they were made to listen only to mages commanding them through the stone lodged in their bodies.
Since they were not truly alive, they could travel much faster than real horses, but most of them were used by mages from the Pearl Tower because of the small population.
But, only the Pearl Tower mages knew how to create a Mist horse.
Good thing they dug up the secret of making the horses before they collapsed. Because of that, even after the terrible mixed breed disappeared, the technique could still be used elsewhere.
Old mages who have been stuck in towers for many years and stubbornly abiding by their own rules. Until the Cavalry was made, they were the only people in the world who had the power to work miracles.
It was them who felt the fate that the Cavalry would replace them and protested the most. And it was them who engaged in excessive interference and occasional attacks. In the end, their greed brought anger.
The Mist horses naturally disappeared together after the tower collapsed. Yuder followed Kishiar downstairs, recalling another tower and its iconic monster years later.
“Your Highness, these are the Mist horses you’ve instructed us to prepare.”
In front of the entrance intentionally vacated, four mages in robes with pearl buttons, which could be seen as mages from the Pearl Tower, were dragging several Mist horses. The figure was simply spectacular.
“Wow…”
Most people never get a chance to see Mist horses.
The horses’ appearance was forced to be visible by spraying a handful of silver powder at where the whirlwind gathered. They were also huge enough to look twice the size of a normal horse.
They needed reins and mana crystals made of special materials in order to keep the horses controlled.
Every time the Mist horses tied to the red reins held by the mages rolled their feet, only the sound of wind blowing spread quietly over the shadowless ground.
Looking at the beast’s black hole-like eyes, Yuder didn’t like the look of them.
“They look amazing. They’re glowing silver, too. Does it sparkle like that at night?”
“Yeah, but not enough to catch the attention of a beast or a monster.”
Beasts or monsters rather avoided Mist horses. Because something not born naturally tended to be ostracized anywhere.
Only humans tried to distort and exploit it.
Yuder, who unconsciously answered Kanna’s self-talk, blinked after a while, feeling the gaze toward him.
“How do you know that? Have you seen one before?”
“… I’ve heard about it. There was a mage I met while passing by.”
“I see.”
Fortunately, his comrades did not question the authenticity of the answer. It was the same for everyone who traveled to the Capital for a long time just a few months ago, away from where they used to live all their life.
“Duke-nim. It’s been a while.”
As they waited a little longer, knights wearing light armor appeared not far away and rebuffed themselves in front of Kishiar.
Compared to the shining armor of the Imperial Knights, they were dressed as simple mercenaries, but the pattern on their capes was the same as the flame pattern used by the Duke of Peletta.
They were the Knights of Kishiar’s Peletta Duchy.
“We had a hard time getting eleven Mist horses. These guys have a habit of trying to fight each other when they’re gathered, so when you tie them, you will have to keep them at a distance. You don’t need a saddle, but you will need a signal of a certain sound to adjust the speed.”
After confirming that all of those who will retrieve the Red Stone had gathered, the tallest mage from the Pearl Tower briefly explained how to handle the horses.
“If you have to slow down and stop, you will need to do a long whistle. And if you have to run fast, you will need to whistle short and fast. The whistle doesn’t have to be loud. They’re designed to understand the sounds of the humans on their backs. Other than that, be careful not to put them near fire. They could melt or disappear.”
Those who were new to the Mist horses listened very carefully to the guide. Of course, Yuder knew even if he didn’t listen, so he paid more attention to the faces of the crowd.