Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Roen's Adolescence
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There are days like that.
Just waking up from sleep, and your shoulders and back feel as light as a feather.
Your throat is moist, and every breath in and out tastes sweet.
Endorphins, serotonin, all sorts of good stuff bubbling up, filling you with peace and good vibes.
That was Roen today.
Sparkle!
Roen opened her eyes in her warm bed. From head to toe, a perfect day was dawning—a thrilling premonition tingling through her.
She had nothing to do today.
She'd been given three days of growth leave, and all she had to do was eat well, sleep well, and play well. Her wallet was stuffed, too.
Roen jumped out of bed, ate breakfast, washed her face, and brushed her teeth.
She threw on some comfy clothes and headed out.
'I wonder how everyone else is spending their day?'
Helena was probably meditating all day. No doubt reviewing the last battle, pondering how to fight even better. You have to rest your mind when you rest your body, though.
Harkrux would be reading. Having grown up as a reverse folk, parched for knowledge, he devoured books every day like he was quenching a thirst.
Gerot... who knows. Why should I even care about him?
Roen pouted her lips.
Well, he'd probably find something good to eat. Picky eater from a rich family and all.
Kang Geohan... that idiot would train, of course. But not his usual mindless grind. He always said rest was training, too.
"Oh, Sir Knight, out for a stroll?"
"Sir Knight, good morning!"
The honey bread vendor uncle and the flower seller auntie greeted her in front of the lodging.
After buying heaps of honey bread and flowers with her fat wallet, they'd gotten chummy in just a few days.
"Yes! Good morning!"
Roen waved and started her walk. No destination. Just wherever her feet took her, to places she hadn't seen before.
Her steps led her to the northern wall.
There, Roen stood with her mouth agape for a long while.
"Wow... so cool."
The northern horizon was dyed blue. The sea maze shimmered faintly in the distance. Where the expedition had set out from.
They were probably locked in a bloody battle with Logot Kingdom by now, but the distant blue horizon looked as soft as pastel paint.
And above it, the dawn aurora rippled. A spectacle visible only in the fresh morning just after dawn. Golden light shimmered like curtains.
It contrasted with the deep blue of the sea maze below, creating a fantastical palette.
Roen's heart thumped.
'This world is truly mysterious.'
Look up at the horizon, and it was all untouched wilderness, beyond human reach.
Her mission was to explore and pioneer those far-off lands no one had ever stepped on.
Adventures in unfamiliar skies and strange lands. Dangerous, yes, but just as wondrous—every day with her friends.
Didn't the thought alone make her chest tingle?!
'Gigant Rider is the best.'
She pictured her friends, each doing their own thing.
'Next time, I gotta bring the friends along.'
They'd love it for sure.
Even that training-obsessed Kang Geohan—I have to drag him here.
She stretched and turned back.
She ended up in a market she'd visited before. Everything from daily goods to knight gear—nothing they didn't sell.
It was interesting, but she'd already seen it, so she turned into an alley to head somewhere else.
"Wow!"
There, she let out another gasp of awe.
Tweetle-lee~
Pretty birds chirped in cages.
Baskets overflowed with flowers she'd never seen. Merchants smiled brightly beside glittering jewels.
Who could've imagined such a cute market tucked away in a narrow alley like this?
"What's this bird called?"
"Ah, it's a flame canary. It holds the mystery of red."
"Wow...."
She had no idea what the mystery of red was, but the name was pretty, and it sounded cool anyway.
Roen got lost in browsing the narrow alley market.
'So happy....'
Discovering brand-new things in new places was great, of course, but stumbling on something unexpected in a familiar spot felt even more amazing.
It was like a dream.
"I've never seen stuff like this. Flame canaries, happy roses, tear emeralds... learned a ton today. Feels so good."
A sudden thought struck her.
The world is full of wonders. Pay a little attention, search a bit, and you uncover hidden treasure chests.
The world is packed with gifts, and all I have to do is find them.
'What I need is a dash of adventure!'
Like a filter over her eyes, serotonin and endorphins bubbled in her mind, turning the whole world into a sparkling flower field.
'Kang Geohan misses out on this, always training. Living in his narrow little world, the fool.'
But even Kang Geohan would gasp in awe at such pretty scenery, Roen was sure.
Humming a tune, Roen skipped along.
Rumble!
This was a place she visited every day.
The massive waterwheel at the heart of the Eastern Border Fortress.
Falling water turned the giant wheel over 25 meters in diameter. And the turning wheel pumped water back up.
Yes. Perpetual motion.
The wheel's axle marked the boundary: left side was a high-gravity zone at ten times normal gravity, right side normal. That's how the miracle worked.
Water fell with ten times the force, rose with one times. Nine times the energy harvested pure!
This infinite power fueled every workshop in the fortress and drove countless cranes.
The fortress's beating heart.
Roen loved this place.
"This is proof. Proof that this used to be wilderness."
Before the Eastern Border Fortress, it was all high-gravity zone.
A terrain where gravity crushed down so hard, not even plants could grow.
Gigant Riders plunged into such lands, slaying the monsters adapted to it, seizing and taming their cores.
Thus, the fortress was born.
The thought made Roen's heart pound.
'The riders who pioneered this place long ago fought fiercely, just like us?'
Imagining fortresses rising on the lands they'd pioneer, people living there—it made her chest tremble.
Roen read the names carved beside the waterwheel.
Names of riders who'd joined the pioneering.
Someday, her name might be carved like that. The thought filled her with deep emotion.
'This is just the beginning.'
It hit her anew.
Sure, she'd conquered wilderness back at the training camp, but the pressure of grades left no time to savor it.
Now, having conquered new wilderness with the Eastern Pioneering Unit, she truly felt like she'd stepped to the starting line as a Gigant Rider.
"No way."
Roen shot to her feet. Her chest itched too much to bear. She couldn't keep this feeling to herself.
'Show Kang Geohan, too. He needs a walk. He'll love it.'
Walking these mysterious streets side by side with Kang Geohan. The image warmed her heart for no reason.
Roen dashed to the physical training room. He'd surely be there.
"Huh? Roen?"
Sure enough, she found Kang Geohan about to pick up a mana stone in the training room.
"What're you doing?"
"Oh, time to train."
"Aren't you overdoing it? Maybe time for a break?"
But disappointingly, Kang Geohan shook his head.
"Nah. I couldn't train this morning—talking with Engineer Ren."
"Again?"
Engineer Ren. Roen's eyes narrowed at the name. But Kang Geohan, oblivious, kept talking.
"Yeah. Lots to discuss on Gigant upgrades. Almost done in a few days... man, I'm pumped."
With that, he hoisted the mana stone and started curling for biceps.
Roen asked, her expression turning uneasy.
"Uh... so after that, what're you doing today?"
"Hm? After arms... legs!"
"Legs?"
"Yeah! Legs! Legs are the best. Train your leg mana essence, and you can draw out way more mana stably. Like growing your heart. You should train legs, too. It'll help with Gigant control big time."
Disappointment clouded Roen's face.
But... no helping it. Kang Geohan was always dead serious about training. The walk talk might have to wait till tomorrow. Or tonight after his workout?
Roen flashed a bright smile again.
"Then I'll train with you!"
"Great! Here, take this."
Kang Geohan tossed her a mana stone.
Roen caught it and did front squats as he'd taught her, asking,
"But don't you get bored training all the time?"
"Nope."
"I mean... how about a walk sometimes? Lots of good spots here. I found some awesome places. Gotta get some fresh air now and then to recharge."
"Yeah? I've wandered plenty... where'd you go?"
Roen bit her smile.
She confidently unpacked her treasures of the day.
"You know, I went to the northern wall, and..."
"Oh yeah, that's nice."
"You've been?"
"Yeah. At dawn."
"Wow! Then you saw the dawn aurora?"
"Dawn aurora? Dunno... good spot for running, so I dashed around."
"Running... spot?"
"Yeah. Run with mana stones, strengthens whole-body mana essence, not just legs. Especially uphill there. Legs love uphills. Better with friends. Right?"
Roen blinked.
"Oh... I see. Ah! And I found a back alley market. Birds, flowers, jewels..."
"Oh, been there."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Tons of rare herbs. Treasure trove for mana supplements."
"Mana... supplements?"
"Yeah. Especially that flame canary."
"Ah! The red pretty one...!"
"Stew it deep—delicious. Soaks in the mystery of red, boosts mana essence growth."
"...."
"You check it out. Gotta eat well. Little bits add up to mountains before you know it. All you need is... a dash of adventure?"
Roen bit her lip hard.
"Oh... got it. Then... you've seen the infinite waterwheel in the center?"
"Oh, yeah. Best spot."
"...You trained there too?"
"Of course. Training room under it, right? High-gravity training grows mana essence and muscles at once—can't beat it. Perfect for mana balance, too. Whew... putting a training room there means the pioneer riders thought the same as us."
Hoo....
Kang Geohan set down the mana stone, sweating bullets.
Roen asked softly.
"Now legs?"
"Yeah!"
"After legs, what?"
"Eat! Gotta eat right after to grow mana essence fast."
"...Together?"
"Sure."
Roen's gloomy face brightened a bit. A few good restaurants with Kang Geohan flashed in her mind.
Kang Geohan wiped sweat, saying,
"We got that lizard king, right? Gonna eat its meat. Ahh... wonder how much blood, flesh, mana essence it'll build? Oh yeah, could share, but it's rare—won't be cheap."
"Cheap...?"
"Yeah. But you're a comrade who fought with me, so 10 silver per kg. Good deal? Won't sell to Gerot types even if they beg with cash."
"So we're eating monster meat?"
"Yeah. 10 silver. Total bargain?"
Kang Geohan grinned brightly. Roen finally shrieked.
"You eat a ton!"
Then she turned and stormed out of the training room.
Left alone, Kang Geohan stared blankly at her back, muttering.
"What's her deal? Kid's loaded."
Rich folks always want more, huh?
Kang Geohan shrugged it off, shouldered a mana stone, and started squats.
Legs!
Another fulfilling day.