Chapter 48
**Line 1:** CHAPTER_TITLE: The Port City of Okjeo
Whoosh. Crackle.
“Ah... ah. Can you hear me?”
“Yes, I can hear you clearly. Please go on.”
Beyond the surface of a massive communication mirror, a muscular giant appeared.
The father of Junior, the Iron Duke Amerk.
I remembered hearing about him from Lan in Gaya sometime back.
One of the Ten Dukes, and even without an Ineung, he stood close to the peak of the previous generation as the fifth seat of the Seven Pillars.
His raw physical might was astonishing—stronger than anyone I had ever faced when it came to Cheneung alone. And that power came through the mirror screen as plainly as if he were standing right beside me.
“Greetings, Your Grace!”
Blanser bowed with a politeness that was strangely out of character for him.
“Heh heh, I do not require such formality from you, my disciple. My own father was to me like a father. You are my disciple, after all, so relax.”
Amerk the Duke had switched from “grandfather” to “father of my teacher” in a hurry, likely to help Blanser and Crow’s Duck’s awkward act look more natural.
“No! Master said to bow his head properly to Your Grace, the fourth seat, and the prime minister of the empire—regardless of who it is!”
“Heh heh. The Grand Duke is fussing over this old man more than necessary.”
“Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but I have heard that Junior has gone missing. Is this true?”
Junior had vanished about five days ago.
His diligent and serious nature had been well known to everyone around us.
Not once had he caused any trouble, so neither our group nor the National Academy had ever imagined that something like this could happen to him when he simply stopped showing up at the academy.
The reason we had not gone looking for him sooner was exactly that.
“You’ve all seen the mechanical orbs that orbit Junior, correct? They are equipped with tracking functions. But in the past few days, they have remained fixed at one point with no movement. It seems something has gone wrong with his whereabouts.”
“Could it be that the machine itself malfunctioned?”
“No. That is not the case.”
The Iron Duke shook his head firmly on the other side of the mirror.
“The tracking function is not a feature of the orb itself. It is engraved into the metal that forms the orb—an Ineung ability that follows the user’s consciousness. Even if the orb were shattered into pieces, the tracking would still be possible.”
“Then it must be one of three possibilities. Junior deliberately removed the orb and is in a situation where he cannot move, or...”
The first case had an extremely low probability.
Normally, wherever Junior went, he took the orb with him. Why would he separate from it?
If not the second, then it had to be the third...
“But it would be better if it were the second. I simply cannot bring myself to say the third.”
While I hesitated to voice the last option, Amerk spoke instead.
“The third is probably what you suspected. Fortunately, his vital signs remain normal, so the worst has been avoided. Still, he is in grave danger. I would like you to search for Junior.”
“Eh? Wouldn’t it be better if you went yourself instead of us?”
Teraden asked with genuine curiosity on his face.
“Of course I am searching for him as well. But the more hands the better. I hope you will all be willing to lend a hand.”
“Do you have any guess why Junior vanished?”
“Um...”
Amerk furrowed his brows and rubbed his stubbly chin, deep in thought.
“Unfortunately, I have no leads.”
“Then where is Junior now?”
“In the port city of Okjeo, the second city of the East Kingdom.”
“Eh? Okjeo? That’s at the eastern tip of the East Kingdom—far from here!”
“...Will you help me find that boy anyway?”
“Junior is our precious companion. Since we now know he is in danger, we cannot simply turn a blind eye.”
A faint smile curved Amerk’s lips at my answer.
“Khhahaha! Truly grateful. I will relay any further location or related information as soon as it is gathered. I will never forget this kindness.”
Now that all exams had ended, and we added the holiday and break days, we had roughly twenty days left to us.
Rushing at full speed to Okjeo without rest, we would reach it in about four and a half days.
After spending a week round-tripping, we would have ten days left to search for Junior.
At first glance it seemed enough, but we had better move quickly in case something happened.
“We must make haste. Let’s depart at once.”
Maru, Teraden, Blanser, and I—all of us who had finished preparing—left the National Academy immediately and headed for Okjeo.
Actually, during the festival period, I had considered paying a visit to the Arirang religion as requested by the Pope, but it would have to wait for another time.
“Lord, may I not follow you?”
At the same time, Jubern, having learned that the Haru group had left for Okjeo, hurried to Lan with a worried look.
“Like when we were in Dongye—secretly, right? Haha, I sense you are worried that something might happen to those fine gentlemen in Okjeo.”
“...I myself recently suffered an unpleasant incident in the East Kingdom. Moreover, strange reports have been coming in from Okjeo lately, and since their destination is within the East Kingdom’s sphere of influence, I cannot shake this unease.”
But Lan did not seem particularly concerned about the Haru group.
“Your concern is understandable. However, those people are no longer the reckless youths of back then, so do not fret. Trust in them. Besides, Jubern, your wounds have not yet fully healed, so focus on recovering first.”
“Understood, Lord.”
‘Well, with the backup I’ll be getting, I won’t have to worry. And the princess meeting is coming up soon. I hope more than just the Seven Pillars will attend this time.’
Swallowing his words, Lan turned back to his work with relaxed focus.
Yet after finishing his duties, Jubern did not leave the study room but lingered beside Lan.
“Lord... I...”
“Hm? What is it?”
“It looks like there is a mountain of work to handle. Might I lend a hand?”
“No need. You are still a patient, are you not? I have Tant enough. Go rest.”
“Indeed, Captain! I will serve the Pillars with all my heart—do not worry.”
Tant offered his hand to help lighten Jubern’s load, but the latter seemed in no mood to leave.
“Lord is surrounded by so much work, and as his right hand, how could I remain still just because I am injured?!”
“No, that is not necessary...”
“Lord! Please let me help!”
Jubern’s firm insistence left Lan with no choice but to agree.
“All right. Since there is so much work, I suppose I can use your help.”
“Of course! Lord!”
“Hah! Truly, no one can match the loyalty of our captain! I must redouble my efforts!”
“...”
Watching the two of them bicker, Lan raised both hands in surrender.
* * *
“We must have come to the right place.”
We arrived in Okjeo just as the sun was setting.
We had run without a single moment’s rest and covered the central continent in roughly four days.
Okjeo.
According to the information from Amerk the Duke, Okjeo was the East Kingdom’s second city and a renowned port as well as a popular resort and tourist destination.
It was also famous for its white buildings.
Every alley was lined with neat houses, and even the streets and harbor were entirely white.
The cries of seagulls and the rhythmic crash of waves blended perfectly with the bustling noise of people haggling over seafood.
Bam!
“Ouch!”
While searching for a place to stay, Teraden bumped into someone.
“Whoa? Hey, you little brat! You bumped into me, so you should apologize!”
“What? Little brat? I bumped into you, and you’re the one demanding an apology? Damn!”
Teraden’s quarrel drew the attention of many passersby. Soon a dignified-looking man from the group that had been with the other party approached to calm us down.
“There are many eyes around. Please keep the noise down.”
“Tch! Got it, boss. You’re lucky that brat.”
“My apologies.”
The man called boss gave us a light nod and walked away with the still-grumbling Teraden.
Teraden, still fuming over the ridiculous situation, gritted his teeth and raised his voice.
“Lucky? You damn brat...”
“Teraden, calm down.”
“...Huff. Hoo. That guy. Just you wait.”
After calming Teraden, we wandered the streets for a long time before finally finding a modest inn on the outskirts of Okjeo.
The moment we stepped inside, every eye in the place turned toward us.
“What’s this? Staring at us like that? Damn, this feels bad.”
Teraden muttered gruffly, still unable to settle his anger.
The obvious stares swept over us briefly before the eyes quickly left us and returned to their own chatter.
It was strange. Of course Teraden’s sensitivity had something to do with it, but the city as a whole felt tense.
Moreover, the sheer number of people made it seem as if more outsiders had come than locals.
With the entire continent abuzz over the upcoming festival, many were likely vacationing in Okjeo.
But the people we met did not seem to be here just for a carefree vacation.
It appeared that Junior’s disappearance had entangled several incidents.
“Everyone worked hard. We didn’t get to rest even once on the way here, so let’s take a proper break today and start searching for Junior properly tomorrow.”
After a light meal, we retired for the night, preparing for the days ahead.
* * *
Meanwhile, the night after the Haru group arrived in Okjeo.
“I will definitely find it...!”
Thud.
In a sealed space, a blond boy collapsed powerlessly onto an old pile of debris, covered in dust.
A group of onlookers, their faces twisted in ugly smiles, approached the fallen boy.