Chapter 123
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 123
His days as a shepherd now felt like a memory from a lifetime ago.
Back then, Turan would often gaze toward the east while tending his sheep. He had imagined that the world beyond the horizon held something infinitely mysterious and vast.
He never dreamed that only a few years later, he would have explored almost every corner of that vast world—or that even that world would eventually feel too small, drawing his gaze toward the west.
"So this is Turan’s hometown..."
Early in the morning, Bije finally landed in a valley within Hisaril Hill, carrying Turan’s party. Meisa’s voice trembled slightly as she took in her surroundings.
Solif brushed aside the sparse grass at his feet and spoke up. "Can your father and mother really live well here? There’s literally nothing."
The land was desolate, covered in patches of short weeds that barely reached their ankles. The distant hills and valleys were barren, with hardly a tree in sight.
"As long as there is sunlight for prayer, I am content," Godis Baraha said.
"I don't mind, as long as we have food and water. I’ve already spent a whole year locked in a single room," Mrs. Baraha added.
At the couple’s nonchalant remarks, Solif let out a light sigh and shook his head. "Well, we bought plenty of things to keep you entertained in the cities we passed, so you won't be bored. Even if this is a poor neighborhood, a noble doesn't have to worry about starving."
After all, hadn't Keorn roamed these parts hunting wolves? The fact that a leopard magic beast had appeared meant there were plenty of animals at the foot of the Sky Mountains. Of course, humans couldn't live on meat alone; they would need a water source and arable land.
Naturally, Turan, who had frequented this area since his youth, had already prepared for this.
"The hideout I have in mind is here."
Turan led the group to a small basin a few kilometers south of their landing spot. It was a deep depression where the surrounding cliffs twisted at complex angles, making it impossible to see into from above. Even the entrance was perfectly concealed.
"How on earth did you find a place like this?"
"When you're a shepherd in this town, there’s nothing to do but wander while driving the sheep."
Had he been an ordinary commoner, it might have been different, but even when Turan was weak, he was a noble who could easily run dozens of kilometers in an hour. There was virtually no terrain in this vicinity that he didn't know by heart.
Upon entering the basin, the group gasped at the wide-open interior. Despite being enclosed, it received plenty of sunlight, the ground was level, and the fine grass suggested the soil was rich enough for farming.
"This is actually great. We just need a water supply."
"Groundwater?"
"Looks like I’ll have to put in some work again."
Having already mastered Earth Manipulation Magic during the reclamation project in the south, they immediately began excavating the land outside the basin. With the immense mana of powerful nobles, they carved tunnels dozens of meters deep in an instant. No matter how arid the wasteland, it didn't take long to intercept a vein of groundwater.
"Water, here! It’s a strong flow!"
"Good. Stop there and let's channel it."
A short while later, they diverted the groundwater to create a small well inside the basin. The water was crystal clear—perfect for washing, irrigation, livestock, and drinking.
Next came the task of building a house. Naturally, any timber suitable for construction in this area had long since been scavenged, but Turan had anticipated this.
"Both of you, step aside. I’m going to set the pillars here."
"Who has the straw?"
"Is this it?"
While passing through various cities, they had purchased a variety of construction materials: wooden pillars, doors, glass windows, roof tiles, and bricks—items impossible to find in such a remote frontier.
Building a house wasn't simple, even with the materials, but they were no strangers to construction. They had experience rebuilding a burnt-down village and rapidly constructing housing for the settlers at the reclamation site.
They leveled the ground and used telekinesis to snap the prepared materials into place. Any missing or misaligned parts were modified on the spot with magic. The structure rose with incredible speed.
"Our son is even good at building houses!"
"It feels like he’s actually doing the least amount of work, though..."
Godis, who had been grumbling at his wife’s praise for Solif, received a sharp smack on the back and quickly looked away.
After a few hours, a respectable brick house stood in the middle of the basin. It was three stories high with about ten rooms. It was designed with plenty of space—not just for the Baraha couple, but to accommodate anyone else who might visit later. At the very least, Turan’s party would need to sleep there tonight.
"Building and decorating a house yourself is actually kind of fun. I didn't know I’d enjoy this."
"You were just daydreaming when it came time to pick out the furniture, though."
Solif, who had been whistling while setting down a bed, laughed sheepishly and made himself scarce.
Turan looked out the window at the well, and a thought occurred to him. "Maybe I should make a small pond and bring in some fish."
"How would you bring them here?"
"The nearest lake is about four hundred kilometers away. If I use Fluid Manipulation Magic to carry the water and the fish together..."
"Oh, come on. You’d definitely get caught by someone on the way."
"I suppose so."
It seemed he had gotten a bit carried away by the novelty of creating a home with magic. Once the hideout was complete, the five of them and one golden eagle shared food and wine in the small garden, celebrating the end of their journey.
As the feast wound down, Turan quietly stood up and headed toward the back. Solif asked, "Hm? Where are you going?"
"I’m going to stop by the house where I used to live."
"Want me to come along?"
"It’s fine. Stay and look after your parents."
Knowing they would be parting again soon, Solif understood the importance of spending time with family. He nodded and turned back to the table.
Just then, Meisa crept up behind Turan. "I want to go too."
"It won't be very interesting. I’m just going to take a quick look so I don't draw any attention."
There was a reason he had sought out a hidden basin instead of settling in one of the nearby villages. He wanted to be prepared in case someone later tried to trace his tracks back to his hometown. If they settled in a village, his identity would be easily discovered through simple inquiries.
"It’s night anyway, so we won't be seen. Two people should be fine, right? I want to see it—the house where you lived."
At Meisa’s words, Turan smiled helplessly and took her hand. A moment later, the two of them—along with Bije, who was patting her stomach after eating a mountain of jerky—soared out of the basin.
After flying for about a minute, huddled close together, they saw a sheep ranch situated on a low hill.
"Is that it?"
"Yeah. It’s been a while, but nothing’s changed."
It had been a little over three years. Not quite four. It was too short a time for much to change, even with someone else living there. Focusing his senses, Turan felt the presence of three people and two dogs inside the house. Since they couldn't use magic like he could, they likely kept sheepdogs.
"They repaired the fence that was broken before, and it looks like they slaughtered the one that was in poor health... The village elder must have brought in a fairly skilled shepherd family. I thought he’d just pick one of the village thugs and send him up here."
As he explained what he saw, Turan turned his head to find Meisa staring intently at him.
"What?"
"Nothing. Hearing you talk like that makes it feel real—that you were actually a shepherd. To be honest, it didn't really sink in before."
"Is that so?"
"Anyone would think you were someone who’s never done a day of hard labor in his life."
Turan rubbed his face and shook his head with an embarrassed smile. After observing his childhood home for a while, he walked toward the base of a cliff about a kilometer away. A small tombstone was planted there.
"This place is...?"
"My mother’s grave."
"You buried her here instead of the village cemetery?"
"I figured the villagers might dig it up later if I put her there. We didn't exactly get along."
Perhaps remembering the stories he had told her before, a look of pity flickered in Meisa’s eyes. Turan tidied up the grave, which had become overgrown from neglect, then folded his hands and closed his eyes.
In his mind, he recalled everything he had been through and the secret history of his mother and father that he had uncovered.
‘Why didn't you tell me, Mother?’
Of course, the answer came from his own mind. The Turan of that time was too young and weak to handle such secrets. It was highly likely that Vizella hadn't even known what kind of talent Turan possessed or how powerful a mage he could become.
"If my mother were alive, there are so many things I’d want to ask her."
"Like what?"
"What kind of person my father was, why they were running away... things like that."
But the dead could not return. Turan suddenly thought of the soul magic he had been practicing lately. They said those who awakened Spiritual Awareness could see and speak with souls that had recently passed. But "recently" surely didn't mean years.
After spending a few minutes there, Turan opened his eyes at a presence beside him. Bije was standing next to him, eyes closed, head bowed deeply toward the grave.
"Good girl."
After staying one night at the hideout, Turan’s party began preparing in earnest to climb the Sky Mountains.
In truth, there wasn't much "preparation" to be done. They had already bought almost everything they needed for survival and stored it in their high-capacity pouches. All they had to do was have Bije catch a couple of deer to prepare a large supply of fresh meat.
"Well then, we’re off."
"Please, do not overexert yourselves. This place is a perfectly fine home as it is..."
"I told you not to worry, Father. We’re just going to take a look. Just a look," Solif boasted, but his confidence only seemed to deepen the worry on the Baraha couple’s faces.
Turan reminded them once more that this wasn't a particularly dangerous challenge, then climbed into the swing tied to Bije’s legs. It felt strange for the three of them to be in the swing together after so long.
"I’m actually a bit nervous."
"Me too."
"A little tension is good for the body. Let’s go, Bije."
The golden eagle took off, and before long, the Sky Mountains loomed close. When the transcendentally massive terrain, which had only been visible from afar, drew near, Solif let out a sharp gasp.
"Hey, I can't even see the top. Are you sure we can climb this?"
"We’re going to try. Higher, Bije!"
At Turan’s shout, Bije stopped her approach and began to spiral upward. As they rose from their usual flying altitude of a few hundred meters to a thousand, then twelve hundred, then fifteen hundred, everything on the ground shrank into insignificance.
"At this rate, it’ll be easy..."
As Solif muttered while looking down, Bije’s speed began to slow as if on cue. Turan clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"It looks like flying any higher is going to be difficult."
After he first started flying on Bije, one of the things Turan had been curious about was how high the bird could fly. Through several test flights, he had learned that the air grew thinner the higher they went, making it difficult to fly properly.
Now was no different. No matter how much Bije flapped her wings, there wasn't enough air for them to catch, so the swing couldn't rise quickly. Turan, Meisa, and even Solif joined in using Wind Manipulation Magic, which helped their ascent for a while, but that too didn't last. Just as it was hard to use water magic where there was no water or fire magic under the sea, it was difficult to use wind magic where there was no air.
Furthermore, the lack of air began to threaten their breathing. Of course, for powerful nobles like them, a single breath could sustain them for hours, so it wasn't a fatal blow, but it was a hindrance.
"Bije! Head toward the mountainside!"
At the shout from below, Bije squeezed out every last drop of her strength, flapping her wings to pull herself close to the mountain range. Turan used magic to reshape a section of the cliff, creating a ledge to set the swing. The eagle dropped the swing there as if discarding it, then landed and panted heavily.
"Good job, Bije."
It had been a short flight, but Bije was clearly exhausted from the final sprint. Turan stroked her head and let her rest on the metal perch at his side.
"Now it’s our turn to climb."
"It would have been great if we could just tunnel through to the other side with Earth Manipulation."
"If it were that easy, someone would have done it long ago."
The surface of the Sky Mountains could be warped with Earth Manipulation Magic, but as they dug deeper, they would soon hit a rock of unknown material that blocked their path. Like the structures of the Old Empire, this rock was nearly impossible to destroy physically, making such shortcuts impossible.
"Here, take the climbing gear. One for each of you."
They tied ropes around their waists to secure themselves to one another and began to climb the mountain on foot. Meisa, who was in the middle, looked down and whispered, "It’s so high... I feel like I’d die if I fell."
"I told you, we won't die just from falling anymore."
One of the natural laws Turan had learned from the Librarian was that there was a limit to the speed of any falling object. While the terminal velocity varied depending on the object’s weight-to-volume ratio and shape, generally, falling from more than a few hundred meters didn't make you fall any faster. Therefore, none of them—not even Bije—had to worry about dying from a fall. Compared to the toughness of their bodies, the rocks below were practically soft.
They climbed for several minutes. Thanks to the footholds Turan created with Earth Manipulation Magic, the movement itself was as easy as walking, but regardless, their breathing grew increasingly labored.
"I... can't... breathe. Damn it..."
"Save... your... breath..."
After silencing the complaining Solif, Turan took a deep breath and continued to carve out notches to climb. The Sky Mountains were indeed a formidable barrier. Without a top-tier magic beast like Bije, it would take an eternity just to get here, and the place was a magic realm where even breathing was denied to ordinary people.
The only consolation was that the summit was finally coming into view. What lay beyond? With a mix of anticipation and fear, Turan led the way, continuing to carve footholds and handholds into the near-vertical cliff.
"You...!"
"Wait...!"
He could no longer hear his companions' voices clearly. Perhaps it was because his breathing was so heavy, or perhaps the air was too thin to carry sound. Regardless, the rope around his waist was still taut, so they had to be following. Trusting in this, Turan didn't look back and continued to scale the vertical cliff.
And finally—
"Ah..."
From the very peak of the mountain range, he saw the other side.