Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Kaian pressed his body tightly against the seat.

The entire sky had to be collapsing.

Otherwise, there was no way it could make such a violent noise.

RUMBLE! BOOM!

Lightning struck endlessly in every direction.

FLASH! FLASH!

And whoever had built this ridiculous carriage clearly had some terrible hobby.

From the moment they entered Lightning Ridge, glass windows had opened across all four walls.

Thanks to that, everything outside was wonderfully visible.

"Hahaha... This is insane."

Apparently, the carriage's creator had been extremely considerate.

Please enjoy the final sight you'll ever see before you die.

At least fill both eyes with it.

I definitely can't look away...!

How could he look anywhere else when lightning seemed ready to kill him at any moment?

Rattle! Clatter!

Kaian glared at Eldarin, who sat calmly inside her mana shield.

Then he shouted loudly enough that even the thunder could not drown him out.

"That's cheating! Are you two the only ones planning to survive?! What am I supposed to do?!"

"I told you to hold on tightly."

"What?"

BOOM! BOOOOM!

Kaian stared at Eldarin in horror.

"Hold on? Hold on to what...?!"

The chair?

The wall?

Or maybe his teacher's collar?

If she wanted him to hold on, she could at least have installed a handle on the ceiling.

So this is why people say Highest-tier Mana Users are hopeless! They don't have any common sense!

Mages in the modern age were divided according to the amount of mana they possessed.

Low-tier, Mid-tier, High-tier, and Highest-tier Mana Users.

Back during the Chaos Era, there had been a more detailed S-to-F ranking system.

But during the Recovery Era, the current rough classification system had taken its place.

The official reason was that detailed rankings encouraged too much competition between mages.

Eldarin always became angry whenever she heard that explanation, calling it complete nonsense.

But there was one truth people had believed both then and now.

Every truly exceptional mage was insane.

Looking at the silver-haired mountain-goat elf in front of him, Kaian completely agreed.

They say the elders were never wrong! At this rate, even a six-hundred-year lifespan won't be enough!

For the first time, Kaian understood the fire spirits who had thrown themselves headfirst into the herb thief's backpack.

If he were not busy rolling around inside a carriage that was violently dodging lightning, he might have charged headfirst into Eldarin too.

This is unfair! Completely unfair!

Unfortunately, reality was different.

Kaian could only desperately protect his head with both arms while rolling around the carriage.

Those quacking fire spirits were brave.

To make matters worse, the road had become even rougher.

WHOOSH! RATTLE! CLATTER!

THUMP! THUD! CRASH!

Finally, Kaian shouted again.

"Do we really have to... UGH! Go through... HERE?!"

"Of course. The road into the Silver-White Vein is difficult, so we must pass through this place."

"Huh?"

Kaian desperately hoped he had heard wrong.

Come on. Don't say something ridiculous.

It's already more than dangerous enough. How much worse can it possibly get?

Praying to mana itself, Kaian shouted another suggestion.

"But if we keep going like this... ACK! Won't it only become... MORE dangerous?!"

"You know nothing. This is the fastest route and the most efficient one."

"EFFI! CIENT! GHK!"

Then Eldarin suddenly spread both arms wide.

With absolute confidence, she declared,

"The outer walls of this carriage are enchanted to absorb electrical current and convert it into power! The endless energy gathered from Lightning Ridge will safely carry us all the way to the Silver-White Vein!"

Her pupils were wide.

Her laughter sounded strange.

Her voice was louder than usual.

Fear filled Kaian's face.

What stood before him was pure madness.

Is this the power of dopamine?

As he rolled helplessly around the carriage, Kaian made a silent promise.

When I cut down every pine tree in this place, I'm destroying this carriage too.

As if she had somehow noticed his thoughts, Amber spoke into his mind with a tired sigh.

[Kaian, give up... Eldarin was a legendary racer who won several rallies. Ever since the Auto Magina was invented, she's been obsessed with speed. Eldarin will never give up her modified carriage.]

What? Rally?

They have races?

That meant there were plenty of mages in the world insane enough to build carriages like this.

Worse, his own teacher was crazy enough to win races with them.

Fine. I understand now.

Once I become a hero, I'll definitely protect ordinary citizens from lunatic mages like these...!

Kaian's determination to become a hero grew even stronger.

And amid all that chaos, his excellent observation skills chose the worst possible moment to work.

He noticed a vicious bolt of lightning falling directly toward the front of the carriage.

Kaian groaned inside his head.

Ah... my terrifying talent.

There was really no need for me to be this observant.

But what came out of his mouth was a completely honest scream.

"AAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Kaian was certain.

I'm dead.

This is definitely going to kill me.

But Eldarin gave a confident smile.

"Hmph. Not a chance."

As if responding to her words, the carriage screamed strangely and shot forward.

Calling it running would have been inaccurate.

It was closer to an explosion.

Veeee...!

FWOOOOSH!

"WHOOOOOOAAAA...!"

The lightning struck directly behind them.

BOOOOM!

Kaian whipped his head toward Eldarin.

"W-What was that just now?"

"I used part of the electrical energy we've stored since entering Lightning Ridge."

Eldarin smiled proudly.

"When the gauge is full, Fulgor can accelerate beyond your imagination. Would you like to see?"

The mountain-goat elf teacher had completely failed to understand the mood.

Kaian shouted his refusal three times in horror.

"NO! I'M FINE! I SAID I'M FINE!"

"Hmph. You wouldn't get another chance like this even if you paid a thousand gold. What a strange child."

Eldarin genuinely meant it.

In magical combat, one of the most important things was speed.

Fast thinking.

Fast casting.

A fast body.

No matter how powerful a spell was, a slow mage could not survive.

Slow thoughts.

Slow casting.

A body too slow to avoid an enemy's attack.

Death waited at the end of all three.

Naturally, the more skilled a mage became, the more accustomed they were to high speed.

And as soon as this child reaches the Silver-White Vein, he must confront the inferno inside his inner world.

And that inferno is anything but small.

It would be troublesome if Kaian became overwhelmed by his own flames.

Experiencing the extreme speed of a true mage beforehand would help him overcome that moment of fear.

And yet he refuses.

What a strange child.

Once again, Eldarin completely failed to realize that she had never explained any of that to him.

As a result, Kaian had absolutely no idea why he was being forced to experience this horrifying speed.

He simply bit his lip and trained his patience.

...We survived, so I'll forgive her instead of headbutting her.

Unfortunately, his relief lasted only a moment.

The carriage made another strange sound.

Then its shape began changing.

CRACK! CLUNK!

Kaian frantically looked around.

"What?! What is it now?!"

"Calm down. Our Fulgor is merely changing into its true form."

"Our Fulgor? True form? What are you even talking about?!"

Instead of answering, Eldarin stared outside the window with an enchanted expression.

Amber answered for her.

[Fulgor is... the name Eldarin gave the carriage.]

Amber squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment as she spoke.

Eldarin, however, felt no shame at all.

Consumed by excitement, she looked ready to throw open the carriage door.

"Look! Our Fulgor has changed its shape to match the terrain!"

"The wheels have expanded until they extend beyond the body! The floor has risen, increasing the ground clearance! And a reinforced guard has formed at the front to block rocks and sand!"

Watching Eldarin excitedly explain every detail, Kaian closed his eyes.

Suddenly, he remembered his father, Julius Valentin.

Right.

Father was like this too.

The citizens of the Empire would never have known it, but the solemn and dignified head of House Valentin had a hobby.

Every Saturday morning, Julius personally cleaned and polished his carriage until it shone.

Afterward, he would care for each horse one by one while humming happily.

He gave every horse a name.

And I'm pretty sure he named the carriage too...

Kaian stopped thinking there.

Apparently, it was an emotion he was still too young to understand.

Amber looked at him with sympathy.

[Give up, Kaian. You'll feel better once you give up.]

Kaian nodded.

Amber nodded back.

Neither of them needed words.

Meanwhile, Eldarin's beloved Fulgor continued crushing uneven rocks beneath its wheels while converting lightning into power.

Eldarin smiled brightly.

"The gauge should be almost full now."

Then she looked at Kaian.

"Sit properly. Our Fulgor is about to become even faster."

"Oh, please..."

Veeee...!

FWOOOOOOOOOSH!

"WHAT KIND OF CARRIAGE IS THIIIIIS?!"

With Kaian's desperate scream echoing behind it, Fulgor safely escaped Lightning Ridge and entered a small cave.

"Once we pass through here, we'll reach the entrance to the Silver-White Vein."

The cave was completely dark.

Not a single ray of light entered.

But the clever Fulgor used the energy it had gathered from lightning to illuminate the path ahead.

The road was so narrow that the carriage seemed ready to scrape against the cave walls at any moment.

And yet...

Fulgor only became faster.

It definitely inherited its owner's personality.

RATTLE! RATTLE! RATTLE!

Kaian was reaching his limit.

His stomach churned violently.

"Ugh... urk...!"

"If you're going to vomit, I'll throw you out the window."

Eldarin glared at him dangerously.

Considering she had even named her carriage, she would probably really do it.

...Then you shouldn't have made me sit backward in the first place.

But Kaian no longer had enough strength to complain.

He lowered his head and rubbed his face.

He would have to endure through willpower alone.

Who was he?

Wasn't he the future hero who had survived that damned ash desert?

This is nothing.

At least she didn't tell me to walk twenty kilometers.

After forcing himself to calm down, Kaian finally raised his head.

FLASH!

"Ugh!"

Brilliant light flooded eyes that had already adjusted to darkness.

"That's the Silver-White Vein."

At Eldarin's words, Kaian squinted through the front window.

His eyes slowly adjusted.

And once the world became clear again...

"Whoa..."

A gasp escaped him.

Before him stretched a forest of silver minerals rising like stone towers.

Afternoon sunlight struck the mineral forest and scattered in dazzling rays.

It was so mysterious that Kaian felt as though he had entered another world entirely.

His mouth fell open.

"Beautiful..."

What he saw was completely new.

Nothing in his eight years of experience, and nothing his imagination had ever created, looked like this.

"So there are... places like this in the world."

Kaian felt his world suddenly become much larger.

What does it look like inside?

He stared ahead with his mouth hanging open, already imagining the inside of the Silver-White Vein.

He had completely forgotten about his upset stomach.

Then Amber carefully spoke to him.

[Kaian, be careful. From this point on, you really, really need to hold on as tightly as you can.]

"Huh? Why?"

Lightning Ridge was already behind them.

They had passed through the narrow cave.

They had finally reached the vein.

So what was she talking about?

Amber saw Kaian's confused expression and was about to explain.

Then...

Their surroundings suddenly became dark again.

Eldarin and Amber's mana shields immediately glowed brighter.

FWOOOOSH!

Kaian blankly pointed at their shields.

"Huh? Why are those getting brighter...?"

His question was answered immediately.

TILT!

Fulgor's body suddenly angled downward.

"Huh...?"

Eldarin grinned.

"This is the highlight."

Amber looked apologetic.

[I'm sorry, Kaian. If you get hurt, I'll heal you again.]

And then...

Fulgor began racing down a nearly vertical cliff.

"HUH?! WHOOOA! AAAAAAAH!"