The next morning, a loud voice pierced through the quiet air. "Oi, Rick! Wake up! We're leaving you behind if you don't get up!" May's shout rang through the camp, full of urgency and a teasing edge.
"Well, I don't see it as a problem," Rony chimed in, grinning, "since we can just carry him in the carriage."
"Yeah, I agree. It's a good idea," Kai added with a smirk.
But Andrew has something different in his mind. Step by step, Andrew approached with a bucket of cold water in hand. Without hesitation, he flung the icy liquid at Rick.
"Wake up already,you brat, " Andrew said bluntly, "How long do you plan to sleep like that?"
The sudden shock of freezing water jolted Rick awake. Shouting in mock panic, "Ah!.... I'm drowning! Help! Help! He—"
Everyone burst into laughter, amused by Rick's exaggerated cries.
After a while, they packed their belongings, and the group resumed their journey following a simple breakfast.
Even as the carriage rolled on, Rony couldn't help but continue his playful charade, "Help! Help! I'm drowning! Ah!" mimicking Rick from the morning.
Mark chuckled, "You really are something else, Rick."
Rick, clearly annoyed and embraced shot back, "Just shut up. You'd act the same if someone threw water on you while you were sleeping."
"Yeah, you're right," everyone replied, laughing together, breaking the awkward tension.
After a brief silence, Rick asked casually, "By the way, what's the name of the town we're heading to?"
Andrew replied, "Didn't I tell you already? It's Easter."
"The town's name is Easter," Andrew explained, "but since it's quite a bit larger than a normal town, you can call it a proper city."
"I see… How far is Easter City?" Rick asked, curiosity piqued.
"Well, depending on our speed, it should take at least another seven days," Kai answered.
"Seven days?" Rick echoed, surprised, " doesn't that sound too far…"
"Well normally it take way more time on carriage to travel between two destination compared to that Easter city is close. " Kai remarked.
Rony grinned and added, "Looks like you don't know much about the geography of our continent and kingdom. Let me explain," he said, puffing up with confidence.
Currently, we only know of two continents. One of them is our great continent—the larger of the two. Compared to the other, it is vast beyond comprehension. According to a famous explorer, it would take more than half the lifespan of an average human to traverse the entire land. That alone should tell you how immense our continent truly is.
Even though our kingdom is considered small, it is still far too large for humans to travel across by carriage. The nearest city from here takes weeks—sometimes months—of travel by carriage. In the past, moving between even two towns was exhausting and slow.
But then came the invention of the train. Thanks to this wonder, journeys that once required weeks could now be completed in days.
"Train, huh? The thing that move on the power of magic stone. " Rick asked curiously.
"That's right," Rony explained. "And here's the most interesting part: this technology wasn't created by us at all. It originally came from the second continent. They're far more advanced in technology than we are. In fact, they gifted us trains over 150 years ago."
"Gift?" Rick's eyes widened in surprise. "So you mean the technology doesn't even belong to us?"
Rony nodded. "Exactly. Most of the technology we use—trains, skyships, and countless other inventions—does not belong to us. Some famous Explorers say the second continent is highly advanced. They even possess weapons that require no magic at all."
Rick leaned forward, fascinated. "So people can just… use them without magic?"
"Yes," Rony replied, his tone calm but firm. Then, with a sly smile, he added, "Hey, Rick, do you want to know how we discovered the second continent?"
Rick's eyes lit up with excitement. But before Rony could continue, May interrupted with a serious face. "That's enough for today. Don't start telling stories again."
"But Rick was enjoying himself."Rony said with a grin.
"That's true," May noded "But once you start telling stories, you never stop."
"Don't forget, " Kai interupting May " when we first met, you wouldn't stop talking about your tales. We know you love history and geography , but sometimes you need to restrain yourself. "
Rony chuckled and nodded. "Alright, alright. I'll stop."
But Rick wasn't paying attention to their exchange. His mind had wandered far away. He was thinking about the vastness of their world—so massive that he could hardly believe it. How could such a great land exist, and yet so little of it be known?
"When I departed on this journey, I never imagined the world would be so immense," Rick thought to himself. "There are so many mysteries, so many things I've never seen before. And maybe that's exactly what makes this world so interesting."
The thought of what Rony had told him earlier about the second continent lingered in his mind throughout the day, until finally, the sun dipped low and the camp settled into quiet.
They set up camp again, preparing food together. As they ate, Rick turned to Rony.
"Earlier, you said there are only two known continents. Does that mean… there could be more?"
Rony's eyes lit up, clearly pleased by the question. "I'm glad you asked. Let me tell you something. The second continent was only discovered about two hundred years ago—by a single explorer determined enough to cross the endless sea. Before that, no one cared. Everyone thought there was no other continent besides ours. No one was truly interested in the world, nor in searching for something new.
"But everything changed when the second continent was found. It shocked everyone. Suddenly, the impossible became reality—there was another continent. After that, people began taking great interest in the geography of the world, searching for more. And because of that, the belief grew stronger: there must be more than just two continents in this world."
"But what's the name of the second continent?" Rick asked eagerly.
"There is none," Rony answered simply.
"No name?" Rick blinked in surprise. "How can there be no name?"
"The first problem is that we don't fully understand their language. Only a handful of people know even fragments of it. According to them, they never thought about giving their continent a name, and we can't just decide one for them. Doing so could risk breaking our relationship with them," Rony explained patiently.
"I see… Thank you," Rick said with a nod.
Rony gave him a sly grin. "Well then, Rick, do you want to know how we actually found the second continent?"
"I,I think i will pass this time. " Rick with awkward smile.
Rony was pressuring Rick but May cut in, giving Rony a sharp look. "That's enough. Don't go starting another story. You'll just make things harder for others." She reached over and pinched Rick's ear.
"Ow! Stop, that hurts!" Rony yelped, squirming while Rick burst into laughter.
With that, they finished their meal and began preparing for the night. Later, as the camp settled and the others kept watch, Rick and Andrew found themselves on guard duty together.
Andrew had been quiet for a while, but finally he broke the silence. "Rick… I've wanted to ask you something for a long time."
Rick turned to him, weary but attentive. "What is it?"
"You're a son of a noble, aren't you?" Andrew asked, his eyes fixed on Rick.
Rick didn't hesitate. "Yeah. That's right."
Andrew looked surprised. "You admited it so easily? I thought you'd make excuses to hide your identity."
Rick gave a tired smile. "There's no point in hiding. It explains many things about me. Denying it would only make things more complicated."
Andrew nodded slowly, still processing the admission.
Then Rick said, with a determined tone, "In that case, I want to ask you something too."
Andrew raised an eyebrow. "Ok… What is it you want to ask me?"
"I want to know about your past… and about Lily," Rick said quietly.
"So, you heard everything that day, huh?" Andrew replied, gazing up at the night sky. "I don't think I need to answer that."
But Rick didn't back down. "I still want to know," he said firmly, his voice filled with determination.
Andrew sighed, his expression softening. "Why are you so interested in my past?"
Rick met his eyes with a sad but sincere look. "Because you helped me. I want to help you too, in any way I can. And by knowing your past is the only way I can think of way to do that… So please, tell me."
Hearing this, something stirred within Andrew—an old memory buried deep inside.
"I want to help you because you helped me" a cheerful voice.
Andrew gave a short laugh. "It's strange… how much you resemble her, even though you don't know anything about her." He paused, his voice turning solemn. "Alright. I understand. I'll tell you about my past."