Before leaving the forest completely, Lee Sungmin called Selgerus through Neville. When Selgerus saw Lee Sungmin, she took no time to yell and complain at him. Seeing that every time he called her, it would be because he had problems with his equipment.
“Please tell me your spear isn’t broken again?! I remade it with a whole ore of orchicalcum!”, Selgerus cried out in vain.
At the sight, Lee Sungmin shook his head and smiled bitterly.
“It’s not broken, it’s fine.”, Lee Sungmin said coolly.
“Then what is it? Is the magic armor the problem?”, Selgerus quipped at Lee Sungmin skeptically.
“No, I just wanted to ask if I could commission on a new product.”, Lee Sungmin replied.
“……how long have you been repairing your spear and armor? There’s no better material than orchicalcum. So it would reduce the quality of the spear if you repaired it half-assedly.”, Selgerus said, not taking her attention away from the spear and it’s armor counterpart.
She was sullen because, even though she had the title of a Meister, as a blacksmith, it was rare to have experience working with orchicalcum. Lee Sungmin reached into the spatial pocket and pulled out a box. It was a box he had received from Heoju’s legacies.
“What is that? You’re not asking me to make something out of that box, are you?”, Selgerus looked at Lee Sungmin like he was an idiot.
She had thought he wanted her to make something out of a shabby box. Lee Sungmin remained silent and smiled whole-heartedly. He opened up the box slowly for Selgerus to see the contents inside the box. Inside were the set of scales and bones from a dragon Heoju had slain. They gave off a subtle but brilliant and undeniable golden hue.
Selgerus tilted her head and took a look at the contents. She blinked her eyes repeatedly in confusion.
“……what is it?”, Lee Sungmin asked her as she looked blankly at the materials.
Selgerus couldn’t make heads or tails out of the scales and bones. She assumed they were relatively high-quality from first impressions but didn’t really quite know what she was looking at. However… It was not the same for Neville.
Neville’s jaw dropped and his eyes widened in disbelief. He then puckered up his lips and regained his wits and struggled to ask a question to Lee Sungmin.
[No way… are those possibly the bones and scales of a dragon?], Neville asked in a quivering voice as he stuttered to speak properly.
“Yes.”, Lee Sungmin and replied with a nod to Neville.
Then, Selgerus’ expression changed. She didn’t express her emotions of disbelief in such a wild and visible manner like Neville as she was a meister and dealt with several interesting materials. But regardless, she scurried closer to the box like a squirrel and peeked once more at the contents.
“No way.”, she spat out in a trembling voice.
“A dragon’s bones and scales? Oh my god… No, that can’t be possible! You… …have you hunted dragons?”, she exclaimed in surprise trying to hide her shock.
“No, I didn’t hunt one aha… I just got lucky.”, Lee Sungmin said sheepishly, scratching his head.
“Such… …how on earth do you have to be lucky to get the bones and scales of a dragon? Did you come across a dead corpse of one? Or did you rob someone for this?!”, Selegerus continued to question Lee Sungmin in disbelief.
Neville was feeling the same, as he did not know how much luck one person would need to attain the contents inside the box. Neville glanced at the box, moved his hand, and opened the auction window of Erebrisa.
[Dragon’s scales and bones…There’s some in small quantities at the auction house, but……that much is…. How the hell did you…….], Neville spat out, as he had never seen something so priceless and in such a large quantity.
“There’s more than this…”, Lee Sungmin muttered quietly, unsure of whether mentioning it would be helpful or not to the situation.
Heoju smiled along gleefully as he listened in on the conversation and observed the shocked looks from the two in pride. Heoju, who had hunted dragons in the past, did not bother to process the bones and scales separately, but kept them as trophies and put them in a conservatory storage, so they remained intact and in brilliant condition.
When Lee Sungmin pulled out some more boxes and opened them, Neville and Selgerus shut up.
After a prolonging silence, Neville opened his mouth.
[……except for the Black Dragon Association within the Orthodox faction who have members from half-dragon/half-human blood, it’s been over 300 years since a ‘real’ dragon has been seen in this world. Now, dragons have become nothing but myths and legends to those who hear of them. Three hundred years ago, when dragons still roamed Eria they were beings of absolute and unparalleled magic might. There was little to no evidence of them ever being hunted.], Neville uttered in a small breath.
“That’s enough materials to arm an army with. Forget the folklore and myths for a moment, that’s something if used properly as equipment would be on a level much higher than orchicalcum in terms of magical potency and compatibility with internal energy. But, that’s just one general use for the remains of a dragon. Those are the best alchemy materials and equipment any alchemist would go crazy for in the entire continent…. I don’t know if… No, I can’t do it.”, Selgerus gave up and sighed.
Though she really wanted to experiment and at least to attempt working with dragon materials, she knew better than anyone she had no qualifications whatsoever to work with it. She had zero confidence in even producing a decent weapon with it.
“It’s not just me however, not even dwarven blacksmiths with the title of a Meister can handle the bones and scales of dragons. It’s not something anyone has dealt with before. I don’t know if it was the case with the chief, but…….”, Selgerus continued in a dispirited voice.
“The Chief?”, Lee Sungmin asked with a little bit of expectation.
“The Dwarven Chief. He’s an old man whose years are growing on him, but he also knows when he’ll die and is in good shape still. Maybe the chief can handle that……?”, Selgerus muttered, still unconvinced of the possibility since the materials were so difficult.
At that remark, Lee Sungmin glanced at Neville. Neville shook his head with an expression of embarrassment.
[The chief of the Dwarves would be Mr. Mackendor. Unfortunately, Mr. Mackendor is not connected to Erebrisa. He was a member 50 years ago, but he suddenly gave up his membership and cut off all ties with us.], Neville spoke.
“He is also the person that tested me and granted me the title of Meister, but I haven’t seen the old man in decades.”, Selgerus murmured.
[However, it’s obvious that he’s still working. The sun’s furnace, which can only be used by the chief, is still running steadily and works as his workplace. Luckily, sometimes works made by the chief come out on the market.], Neville chipped in, trying to give Lee Sungmin some information to work with.
“Wouldn’t other Dwarves be able to meet the chief?”, Lee Sungmin asked.
“No, they can’t meet with him either on any kind of whim.”, Selgerus spoke and continued to speak.
“The chief’s got a hell of a character. It’s been decades since he’s come out and every time someone tried to talk to the chief he would kick them out and hit them with a hammer GAHAHA!”, Selgerus broke out into laughter thinking of all the foolish dwarves who tried to reason with the chief.
[……what Mr. Mackendor bought in his last deal with us at Erebrisa, was a huge amount of food. Food doesn’t go bad in spatial pockets, so it’s probably enough for a hundred years to eat alone.], Neville responded as he seemed a bit flustered with the mannerisms he noticed from the Dwarven Chief.
At that remark, Lee Sungmin was left speechless. According to Neville, Mackendor was staying in the sun’s furnace with food that could be eaten for a hundred years as if he were hibernating like a bear.
Selgerus or any other blacksmiths with the title of Meister could not handle the bones and scales of the Dragon, nor could they arrange a meeting with the chief.
[You mean you can’t use it, even if you have good materials.], Heoju grumbled, clicking his tongue.
It was unfortunate, but Lee Sungmin couldn’t do anything about it. But just in case, Lee Sungmin handed over some of the dragon’s teeth and scales to Selgerus.
“I’m not confident.….”, she muttered helplessly.
“Didn’t you say you’ve never dealt with it? So why not give it a try.”, Lee Sungmin responded to her bluntly.
“But, I don’t know how much I should give you…….”, Selgerus said so, because she wasn’t sure how much these materials would even cost.
“I don’t need money.”, Lee Sungmin replied in matter-of-factly tone.
At Lee Sungmin’s words, Selgerus was moved and bowed her head. Lee Sungmin was surprised and waved his hands in embarrassment at the actions done by Selgerus.
“You don’t have to.”, Lee Sungmin said to the bowing Selgerus.
“No, I should. Because I want to.”, she replied, keeping her head down.
After learning that scales and bones could not be processed right away, Lee Sungmin showed the dragon heart to Neville to see what he should do with it.
Neville, who was inwardly not expecting any more surprises as he was already shocked beyond belief, collapsed his countenance when he saw the dragon heart.
[Oh, my God. ….], Neville said, completely giving up on the image of being a professional broker.
“Yes?”, Lee Sungmin questioned Neville as he tilted his head in confusion at Neville.
[Oh, no. I’m sorry. I was so surprised……dragon heart……dragon heart. Haha……!], Neville replied, gathering his wits about him.
Neville then, shook his head with a bitter smile.
[There has never been a dragon heart on the auction block of Erebrisa. I don’t know if there’s a wizard who can handle it. You wouldn’t be able to handle even with a decent sorcerer.….]
“Will you look into it?”, Lee Sungmin asked bluntly, cutting off Neville’s rambling.
[Okay, I’ll start by asking around our sources and I’ll let you know if I come across anything useful.], Neville snapped back to attention.
That was the end of Erebrisa’s business dealings, as Neville returned into Lee Sungmin’s shadow and vanished.
—-
Lee Sungmin returned to the bonfire. He could see Aladdur asleep by the tent snoring loudly, and Rubia curled up next to him snuggled in his warmth like a child.
Nearby, the Crazy Heavenly Demon was watching the bonfire with an emotionless expression.
“Have you finished up your business?”, Byuk Won-Pae asked Lee Sungmin.
“Yes.”, Lee Sungmin replied as he approached the bonfire.
“When I see how amazing you are, this old man is often ashamed of himself.”, Byuk Won-Pae spoke, unmoving his gaze from the bonfire as he smiled bitterly.
“……yeah?”, Lee Sungmin spoke carefully as he was aware of Byuk Won-Pae’s expression.
“It’s been over half a year since I first met you and started traveling with you. Do you remember how we first met?”
“I remember.”, Lee Sungmin replied with a nod of his head.
It had been a complete coincidence that he had met the Crazy Heavenly Demon while traveling north to Travia. No, maybe it was fate not a coincidence.
Lee Sungmin didn’t want to think too deeply on such obscure topics like fate. Perhaps if fate really existed, their meeting in the north was indeed a meeting of fate.
The meeting with The Crazy Heavenly Demon was sudden, and by meeting with him, Lee Sungmin was able to get directions on what to do and where to go further in his travels.
“You were strong then, but weaker than this old man.”, Byuk Won-Pae said coolly.
“I was indeed.”, Lee Sungmin did not deny it.
In fact, Lee Sungmin almost died in the fight with the Crazy Heavenly Demon. Had it not been for Heoju, he would have died.
“And soon after, you developed at an incredible rate. You were already close to me or on par with this old man at the time. And after you killed the Blood Heavenly Demon you leapfrogged in skill to my level. But it didn’t stop there, recently you have become even stronger than me at this point.”, Byuk Won-Pae continued with a melancholic tone.
“…Are you feeling ashamed of yourself?”, Lee Sungmin asked carefully.
“I felt that 10 years ago when I met someone stronger than me for the first time. That was the Swordmaster from Beyond the Heavens, a martial artist in the Realm of Transcendence. I realized then, how small I was, and that the world was wider than I thought.”, Byuk Won-Pae said, trying to laugh off the awkward experience he recalled.
“I don’t feel a sense of shame. I’m not discouraged at all by comparing you to my current self. This old man prides himself in his unique martial arts and skill still. Ten years of hard work didn’t break me through to the realm of Transcendence, but it wasn’t completely fruitless. One of those things was meeting you and getting rid of the curse I had that made me crazed and berserk.”, said Byuk Won-Pae, smiling lightly.
Lee Sungmin remained silent. To feel shame by comparing oneself to others. To despair. Lee Sungmin also felt these things several times in the past. Lee Sungmin was well aware that to overcome that misery and destructive thought cycle was never easy. Shit. He had spent over 2,100 years trying to do it.
“Go to bed first. I’ll stand guard.”, Lee Sungmin volunteered himself and raised his body up.
“Shouldn’t you catch up on your sleep?”, Byuk Won-Pae turned to face Lee Sungmin and grinned.
The Crazy Heavenly Demon, Byuk Won-Pae got up and walked over to the tent to rest.
Lee Sungmin pondered on the conversation he just had. The Transcendental Realm was a large and difficult place to reach, as a warrior of The Crazy Heavenly Demon’s caliber, did not reach it in over 10 years.
Lee Sungmin knew he had made great strides in his progress and cultivation since the fight with Amzone, but he was still not quite there yet. Lee Sungmin had already reached the Realm of Transcendence in the 2,100 years he spent in his subconscious, but even with such memories, his current self had a long way to go in reaching the Transcendental Realm.
It was a long and arduous path, even if his heart, mind and body were finally aligned.
—-
When the morning sun rose. The group cleared their sleeping areas and began walking again under the guidance of the evil spirits. Aladdur was reluctant to go toward the direction of the City of Endless Night, but after hearing the details of the travel, he seemed to be more at ease.
“It’s a tribe… …where there’s a lot of forestry and greenery, but the South is big, so there’s a lot of minor and smaller tribes. There’s no real end in searching each of them one by one.”, Aladdur spoke hesitantly.
“I remember the location of the great river.”, Byuk Won-Pae said.
The Crazy Heavenly Demon tried to remember some details about the location of the tribe they were looking for.
“You’d better not trust the positioning too much. Most tribes don’t settle in one place unless it’s a larger tribe. Didn’t you say it was 10 years ago? Perhaps the tribe has already left the area you remember.”, Aladdur pointed out to the Crazy Heavenly Demon.
Byuk Won-Pae looked perplexed. If that really was the case, their plan of actions in the beginning, where they would rely solely on Byuk Won-Pae’s memory was a lost cause. The decision to take Aladdur with them, had been the correct one.
Looking at the Crazy Heavenly Demon, Aladdur smiled with a toothy grin.
“I’d like to perform my services for you all, but I can’t use a tracking spell just from one’s memory.”, he spoke.
“Did you get anything from the tribe at the time, or any kind of keepsake?”, Lee Sungmin asked the Crazy Heavenly Demon.
Byuk Won-Pae thought to himself and realized Aladdur was asking for a medium. After realizing so, he rummaged through the spatial pocket he carried with a flushed expression, letting out a small cough of embarrassment.
“Yes… …that’s…I mean, I mean… Hm!”, Byuk Won-Pae stammered.
What he took out was a small bracelet made of hand-carved materials. The old, intricate patterns had faded away, but the shape of the bracelet remained the same.
“What is that?”, Aladdur asked, peeking over at the bracelet with a perverse grin.
“That…… bracelet I received from the tribe 10 years ago.”, Byuk Won-Pae said, stuttering at the sudden question.
“You got it from a woman!”, Aladdur shouted out in excitement, teasingly.
Byuk Won-Pae avoided Aladdur’s gaze and tried to ignore his remark, as it was spot on.
When Aladdur received the bracelet with both hands, he began to move his lips and recite the words of the spell. The bracelet started to become covered in black smoke.
“Don’t burn it!”, Byuk Won-Pae cried out.
“Don’t worry, I won’t.”, Aladdur said, maintaining his closed eyes, but letting out a small laugh.
Eventually the spell started to end and the smoke went into Aladdur’s nostrils. Aladdur nodded his head, breathing in and out loudly.
“Hmm.”, Aladdur muttered to himself.
Aladdur opened his closed eyes.
“I see where they are.”, he spoke out to the group.
“Where are they?”, Byuk Won-Pae asked excitedly like a child.
His past dignified image nowhere to be seen as Aladdur suspected the behavior to be because of a woman.
“Let’s get out of the woods for now.”, Lee Sungmin interjected bluntly.
Aladdur smiled and nodded his head in response. Then he spoke out to the group excitedly,
“It’s not that far away.”, Aladdur said letting out a happy smile.