Burning Road
Nightmare, black as the night sky itself, never stopped galloping.
Even after they left the dry, cracked earth behind and reached the sand flats where every step sank deep, the horse pressed on without pause.
Moonlight and starlight poured like a river across the pure white sand.
"Haa..."
I looked up at the sky. Having witnessed the giant bird called the Thunder Bird twice already, I could no longer dismiss the legend as mere fiction. Why had it revealed itself to me twice?
Even the people who had lived their entire lives in Hairan had never once laid eyes on it.
The Thunder Bird had appeared like a legend—and vanished like one as well.
When I searched the heavens now, I felt neither clouds nor the charge of lightning.
"Don't tell me you're my destined partner?"
Thud- thud- thud-!
I whispered to Nightmare with a small smile.
Nightmare gave no answer and simply kept running, heading for the ridge of that endless expanse of sand.
Desert wind swept cool across my face as I gazed upward again.
In the pitch-black night sky, glittering stars gathered and flowed like a river.
They looked like horses racing across a vast plain, or like a school of salmon fighting their way up a roaring waterfall.
We had arrived at the desert known as the Shelter of the Stars.
Night, of course, could never last forever.
As the moon began to set and the sun rose beyond the ridge, the world brightened.
Like fire kindling from the far edge, the pure white sand drank in the sunlight and revealed itself in platinum brilliance.
Darkness lifted from the sky, and the stars lost their light.
The moment they vanished completely, Nightmare and I reached a small city cradling a single oasis.
"Purpose?"
The question came from a guard standing as if to bar the city gate.
His skin was a deep copper all over.
"I've come looking for a blacksmith who can hammer starlight. Is he in this city, by any chance?"
"Hammer starlight...?"
The guard chuckled softly at my question, then continued.
"I know plenty of legends about starlight, but this is the first I've heard of a blacksmith who can hammer it."
"There must be skilled blacksmiths, though?"
"Well now. If you're after a truly skilled blacksmith, you'll want the city called Burning Road."
I let out a small sigh at the guard's words. It seemed we would have to race across this vast desert a while longer.
"You there. You're not planning to cross this scorching desert dressed like that, are you?"
"Is that a problem?"
"You'll collapse from the heat. I recommend a turban to protect your head and a robe that can cover your whole body."
I nodded and led Nightmare into the city.
The horse followed my touch obediently through the gate.
"That's a fine horse you've got!"
The guard who stood watch at the gate called out.
He waved to us, then returned to his post.
The little city was already bustling with people moving about in the new morning—setting up awnings, arranging stalls, or heading to the oasis for water.
It was full of life.
Nightmare's massive frame naturally drew every eye.
I moved to avoid the growing stares.
My first stop was the butcher's shop.
Inside, unknown cuts of meat hung in thick clusters from iron chains.
I chose the pieces that looked to have the least bone and placed my order.
"Sandworm meat. Excellent choice."
"Sandworm...?"
"Aye. Delicious stuff. Don't tell me you've never heard of it?"
I had only just arrived; how was I supposed to know what a sandworm looked like?
Yet despite the ominous name, the meat glowed a vivid red, full of life.
"Is it some kind of bug?"
"Closer to a snake than a bug. The name's just a name."
That was a relief.
I stuffed the meat the butcher handed me into a large leather bag and hung it beside Nightmare.
The horse clearly disliked the new weight on its back; it lashed its tail furiously in protest.
I frowned and gave its rump a sharp slap.
The dancing tail settled at once.
Then the butcher spoke to me.
"Hey there."
"Yes?"
"That mount of yours... does it carry Hairan blood?"
"You know Hairan?"
"Only by rumor, of course. And just as the rumors say—magnificent. Third generation?"
I glanced around at the butcher's question.
Unlike the people of the Hairan region, the locals and travelers here stared at me and Nightmare with curiosity, but none of them cast that hot, sticky look of greed.
Apparently they could not tell a pureblood Hairan from its descendants.
"That's right. Third generation."
"And that meat's for the horse, I take it?"
"Yes."
"Upkeep must be expensive..."
The butcher watched Nightmare for a moment, then swung a great cleaver and sliced off a chunk of the bright red meat.
He tossed it to the horse.
In that instant Nightmare opened its jaws and snatched the meat from the air.
The butcher laughed in satisfaction at the lightning-quick motion.
I looked up at the sky. The sun had climbed high, and a good deal of time had passed.
The temperature around us was rising sharply.
Heat haze shimmered above the scorching sand; anyone wandering this region bare-skinned would cook to a nice crisp in no time.
The locals wore robes to shield their bodies from the heat and turbans to block the sun beating down on their heads.
I led Nightmare along and bought a suitable robe and turban.
"How do I look?"
I asked Nightmare after wrapping myself in the robe and winding the turban around my head.
The horse stared down at me for a long moment with those crimson eyes, then snorted a gust of breath straight into my face.
Hmph-!
Apparently the outfit did not meet with approval.
In truth, after absorbing Calvein's mana I had no need of robe or turban.
Any heat that tried to invade my body was completely blocked by Calvein's power.
I insisted on the clothes anyway—because of the eyes of the people around us.
"Even if you don't like it, put up with it. People instinctively reject anything different from themselves."
Prrrr-
Nightmare snorted at my words and trudged forward with heavy steps.
Together we wandered the city, seeking out every blacksmith we could find.
I wanted to check whether any of them could work with starlight.
But even after visiting every smith in the place, I heard not a single story about starlight.
In the end it seemed I would have to seek out the city the guard had mentioned—Burning Road.
I led Nightmare out of the little city.
Our stay in that nameless place had lasted less than two hours.
The desert at midday burned with fierce heat.
Nightmare no longer showed the powerful stride of before; tongue lolling, the horse trudged along weakly.
The platinum sand, baked by the sun, threw up heat haze, and Nightmare must have felt as though it were running across a griddle.
"Want to rest a bit?"
About two hours had passed since we left the city. Nightmare, who could gallop for hours without trouble, now nodded feebly.
The problem was that there was nowhere to rest. All around us stretched nothing but the endless platinum sand flats.
Hot haze rose and blurred the horizon where sky met sand into a shimmering smear.
I uncorked the water bottle at my hip and breathed a soft breath into it.
"Hooo-!"
The Mana Circle seated in my heart spun rapidly.
Cold starlight mana raced out on the breath I exhaled.
The frozen breath frosted the water inside the bottle, and in an instant it became ice water.
"Here. Drink this at least."
Nightmare drained the small bottle of ice water in a single gulp.
Then, looking unsatisfied, it flicked its tongue and turned to stare at me.
The message was clear: more, please.
"No."
I rested a hand on my hip and shook my head firmly.
In the scorching desert, water meant survival. We had to ration it carefully.
Nightmare clacked its teeth at my refusal, then trudged on with its head hanging limp.
How long we walked after that I could not say. Suddenly, far in the distance, the wavering shape of an oasis appeared.
"Oh!"
A cheer burst from my lips. I immediately yanked Nightmare's reins and shouted.
"Come on! There's an oasis right ahead!"
Prrrr-!
Nightmare's reaction, however, was lukewarm.
Why was a horse that looked ready to collapse from exhaustion acting like this?
I tilted my head and patted the thick neck.
"What? You said you wanted to rest."
Nightmare shook its head and began walking in a direction completely opposite the oasis.
The horse's stubbornness was formidable. No matter how hard I pulled the reins, it insisted on that single course.
At last I gave up and sighed—and in that very moment the oasis that had shimmered through the haze vanished without a trace.
Only then did I remember the stories of mirages that appear in the desert.
"Did you actually recognize it?"
Pwihing-!
Nightmare answered with a light snort of breath.
Somehow it looked rather pleased with itself.
Time passed, and the sun hanging high in the sky began its slow descent.
Far away, another oasis revealed itself.
Wondering if this too was a mirage, I frowned and tried to study it carefully—when Nightmare suddenly broke into a run.
The charge was unstoppable, as if the horse was certain the oasis ahead was real.
With every moment the distance closed.
This time it was no mirage; it was a genuine oasis.
When we finally reached it, other travelers had already claimed spots.
Five of them in total.
They looked at me, each resting a hand on a weapon.
Yet their gazes held only wariness, not hostility.
"Hello?"
The moment I offered a light smile and greeting, their caution melted away in an instant.