The Way Back (2)
After roughly setting down the quill he had been holding, Woojin quickly took the letter Bow handed him.
He broke the wax seal that closed the envelope. Carefully pulling out the contents, Woojin's eyes ran down the lines written on the paper.
The contents of the letter…
A greeting asking how he was doing, updates about daily life, small worries that had come up recently, and so on. It was filled with the kind of light conversation close acquaintances exchange with each other.
The contents were extremely ordinary.
But Woojin could feel a sense of instability hidden within the words.
'…The handwriting is a mess.'
Cindy normally wrote neat and elegant cursive, flowing naturally like birds chirping.
Woojin looked over the letter again.
Crooked letters, and drops of ink smudged like tear stains. The content of the letter was calm and everyday, but there were several mistakes that were unlike her usual writing.
The dissonance felt like… watching a child trying desperately to hold back tears.
"Did Cindy seem alright?"
Feeling uneasy, Woojin asked. Bow let out a faint sigh before replying.
"She seemed quite unstable."
Cindy had developed emotional problems after her entire family was massacred. It had seemed to improve after she met Woojin…
But after the rumor spread that Woojin had died, Cindy's mental state began collapsing rapidly. Just like when he had first met her.
Still, the situation wasn't entirely bad.
"When I told her you were certainly alive, she seemed to regain some composure. I doubt there will be any serious problem."
"I see."
The perceptive monk had comforted Cindy well enough to help her regain her calm. Hearing that, Woojin felt somewhat reassured.
He picked up the letter again. His eyes fixed on the final sentence Cindy had written.
— I miss you.
'…I'll have to hurry a little more.'
***
Even when in a hurry, things that needed to be done had to be finished properly. While Woojin quickly wrote his report, Arwen provided Bow with various pieces of information.
The farm faction, the customs and ideology of the Dark Side priests, and the leader who commanded the enemies…
Since Arwen held a high rank among the Dark Side priests, she knew many valuable pieces of information. The old monk sat across from her and listened attentively.
"Huh… beasts treating humans as livestock. What a bizarre situation."
Bow muttered in disbelief. He showed particular interest in the farm faction.
After thinking for a moment, Bow spoke again.
"You said the higher the title, the stronger they are?"
"Yes, that's right."
Baron, viscount, count, marquis, duke.
The beasts had created a hierarchy as if imitating humans. The stronger and more exceptional a beast was, the higher the rank it received.
Bow continued questioning.
"Then… the peak of that hierarchy would be a king?"
"Exactly."
The king grants noble titles.
Naturally, the king who ruled over the beasts of the farm faction would possess the greatest power. That was the conclusion the Dark Side priests had reached.
"There's almost no information about the king. The farm faction is extremely closed off, so beasts with high ranks rarely leave their territory."
Barons and viscounts occasionally come outside the farm to deal with miscellaneous matters, but nobles of count rank or higher rarely appear outside.
That was why the noble Woojin had hunted during his previous infiltration was probably a baron or viscount. Arwen believed that to be the case.
Bow asked another question.
"Was that noble strong? I'm curious about their level."
"That… I don't know."
Arwen answered awkwardly. She had never had the chance to see the enemy's true abilities.
Woojin had either infiltrated the enemy camp and assassinated them while they were asleep, or simply wiped everything out in one strike with a rain of fire.
Still, there was always a general sense one could feel. Woojin, who had been writing the report beside them, answered instead.
"From what I felt, they didn't seem particularly impressive. But they're still worth being cautious about."
"Is that so… I see."
Bow folded his arms and thought for a moment, then began bombarding Arwen with all sorts of questions again.
Perhaps because of the old monk's sharp presence, Arwen became visibly nervous. Cold sweat formed as she answered each question.
Woojin occasionally added a few comments to their exchange while finishing the report.
'…This should be enough.'
He had finished writing.
After neatly organizing the stack of reports, he placed them on Bow's desk. Then Woojin immediately began preparing to leave.
Seeing this, Bow spoke.
"I know you're in a hurry… but at least stay for lunch. It would feel a bit disappointing to send you off like this."
"Alright."
It had been a long time since they met. Leaving immediately after finishing business would be rather cold.
They would eat together and depart around noon. Thinking that, Woojin covered half his face with a bowler hat and scarf, then walked leisurely outside the cathedral with Bow.
Then…
They encountered a man. A monk who looked to be in his early thirties. With a friendly smile, he spoke to them.
"It seems we have unfamiliar guests."
Bow replied flatly.
"They're acquaintances of mine. We're going out to have a meal."
"Oh… that's a rare sight."
Since they had met like this, the man extended his hand for a handshake.
"My name is Radin."
It was a name Woojin knew.
'Weak Radin.'
He had once been the worst student among his peers, always falling behind. Yet through perseverance and obsession, he eventually rose above the rest.
In the past, Vikram had felt inferior to this man and sought to master the mind's eye. Because of that, he had fallen into irreversible ruin.
"Radin. Nice to meet you."
Woojin grasped his hand and began introducing himself… but suddenly realized something.
'…I can't use my real name.'
Woojin was currently hiding the fact that he was alive. So he couldn't casually use the real name "Jin."
He blurted out a random name instead.
"My name is Jacob."
"Jacob! A fine name."
Radin smiled and shook his hand. His palm was covered in calluses. It seemed he still trained diligently, just like before.
The two men soon released their handshake.
"I'd love to join you for the meal, but that would probably be rude."
If the opportunity arises, perhaps they would meet again later.
After saying that, Radin walked away somewhere. Woojin stared at the monk's retreating figure.
Standing beside him, Bow spoke.
"What do you think of him?"
"He's very strong."
It felt a bit unfair to say, but he seemed to be on a higher level than Roland. Among all the humans Woojin had met so far, Radin would easily rank in the top three.
Curious, Woojin asked,
"He seemed exceptionally skilled. Is he also participating in the expedition?"
"Somehow, it turned out that way."
Before beginning the full-scale expedition, the Order Alliance had gathered numerous powerful individuals.
Saints and saintesses with extraordinary abilities, mercenaries, knights, mages, monks… among those selected, Radin was one of the most outstanding.
It wasn't particularly surprising.
'Radin trained longer and endured harsher discipline than anyone else.'
Radin had trained for more than thirty years at the very least—a blade deliberately forged by the elders of Vritra.
As far as Woojin knew, Radin was in his early to mid-forties. He simply looked young because he had a youthful face, but in reality he was a fairly mature man.
Roland, on the other hand, always looked much older than his real age because he never shaved his beard.
'I wonder what Roland is doing these days.'
Suddenly curious, Woojin asked,
"Do you know what Roland has been up to?"
"Well… I'm not sure. I haven't heard from him in quite some time. But he's a cheerful fellow with a stubborn streak. I'm sure he's doing fine."
Bow didn't know much either.
Hearing that only made Woojin more curious about Roland's whereabouts. The Third Expedition wasn't far off—where on earth was that eccentric holy knight now?
'I should ask around and find him later.'
With that thought in mind, they continued walking.
They entered a nice restaurant and took a private room. Sitting around the table were Woojin, Bow, Arwen, and the sky squirrel Coco.
"Squeee…"
Coco let out a pitiful whimper. The squirrel sat beside Arwen, but its body was too small for its front paws to reach the table.
Standing on tiptoe and struggling to hook its paws onto the table's edge, Coco wriggled desperately. Watching this, Bow finally spoke up.
"Just put it on the table."
"Is that alright?"
"It can't be helped. At this rate it looks like it might flip the table over."
Bow had given his permission.
Arwen lifted the squirrel and placed it on the table. Coco happily began gnawing on the cashew nuts that had been served as appetizers.
Bow quietly watched the scene… then muttered as if entranced.
"…The more I watch it, the more that little creature's antics seem somewhat cute."
Even the old monk had finally admitted it.
After finishing their meal, Woojin and his companions left the city without delay.
Bow searched through the inner pocket of his robe.
"Here, take this."
He pulled something out and handed it over. Woojin accepted it almost reflexively.
It was an object carved from a marble-white stone. At its center was a pattern resembling a human eye, and in the place of the pupil a green emerald was embedded.
It was something Woojin hadn't seen in a long time.
"Isn't this your recommendation token, Master Bow? Why are you suddenly giving this to me?"
Bow replied as if it were nothing special.
"If you run into trouble, just use my name."
Woojin was currently pretending to be dead and couldn't freely use his real name or identity. Having something like this as insurance wouldn't be a bad idea.
Most problems would disappear the moment someone saw Bow's recommendation token.
"Thank you for your consideration."
"Mm. Travel safely."
After exchanging their final farewell with Bow, Woojin climbed onto the rhinoceros.
The rhinoceros began moving toward their destination again. Having rested for a long time, it seemed to have regained its stamina. It surged forward powerfully, quickly picking up speed.
The monk's figure gradually faded into the distance.
Woojin glanced back over his shoulder… then tucked the recommendation token deep into his clothes.
'I really am fortunate with the people I meet.'
The thought came to him again.
Leaning against his travel bag, he yawned lazily. After tea and snacks in the office and then a full lunch, drowsiness crept over him.
Arwen suddenly asked curiously,
"Should I call you Jacob now, Jin?"
"…Well."
Not every past connection in the world was a good one.
Long ago, a merchant named Jacob had been bitten to death by Rex. In the rush of the moment, Woojin had blurted out that name without thinking.
It was the name of a despicable man, so he didn't really want to use it… but coming up with another alias felt bothersome.
"In front of others, call me Jacob."
"Yes, understood."
With a new name, they headed south.
Since they had plenty of camping supplies, there was no need to stop at other pioneer cities. The rhinoceros ran straight toward their destination along the shortest path.
Several days later…
Something appeared in the distance. A massive wall that seemed to stretch across the entire horizon—the structure commonly called the Alliance Wall.
"Waaah…"
Arwen and Coco, seeing the magnificent sight for the first time, gasped in amazement—just as Woojin had the first time he saw that city long ago.
'The Wall City, Yurgis.'
They had returned to the domain of humanity.
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