Translator: Kim | Editor: Darling
Our group headed for Kara, the desert city. It was a long way so usually, we had to cross the Hypogeum Mountains and some areas of the Great Desert. But instead, we took a portal provided by a magic towel and it only took only a few minutes.
Once I arrived at the top of the portal tower in the center of the Kara Castle, I went down to the observatory right below and enjoyed the scenery. The Kara Castle had a population of 130,000 and another 110,000 peasants lived nearby oasis outside the castle. So, it’s a spacious and thriving city. Also, there were a lot of spectacular mosque-type buildings in the center of the city and I could see several large temples as well.
I was very surprised to see vast farms and forest areas outside the castle. Unlike other cities in the middle of a desolate desert, I could see quite greenness of nature around the city of Kara. Probably, a vast oasis in the north of the city and well-constructed irrigation facilities made it possible.
Shura also seemed amazed. She opened her eyes wide and looked below the Kara Castle.
“It’s amazing. How can there exist such a large city in the middle of a desert?”
I answered.
“Thanks to its good location and abundance of resources.”
Kara was located next to the devil’s trade route which was known as the most treacherous one among the Great Desert trade routes. There’s no access to water for more than a month in this route. Also, Shikar bandits and demons raided people all the time so merchant groups from other continents were very reluctant to take this route. Therefore, the merchants in Kara purchased all kinds of luxury and spices from other merchants and engaged in intermediate trade, selling goods to the Prosia continent and accumulating a tremendous amount of wealth.
In addition, the Mount Basra at the northern end of the Kara Castle was entirely made of marble and the Uz River Iron Mine in the south was producing the world’s finest iron ore. On top of these, the city had an abundant source of water, unlike other desert cities. Indeed, it deserved to be called Heaven in the desert.
Armida joined the conversation.
“The tourism industry is the best in the world as well. A friend of mine also has been here before.”
The great oasis of Kara had a legend that it was made by the blessing of the Great Saintess of Water who’s one of the Seven Great Saintesses. Therefore, it was recognized as an important shrine for those believing in the doctrine of water and pilgrims continued to come every year.
Kara was also home to the world’s third-largest temple of corruption and large gambling facilities which obviously contributed to a boom in its tourism industry.
And it’s the very reason why I chose Kara as my final destination.
People could make good money and enjoy a lot of fun here. It’s also a good place to practice swordsmanship since an endless desert, which was full of demons, stretched outside the city. And most importantly, no one knew who I was in Kara.
The only problem was that with its huge army, the Kingdom of Robros in the southeastern part of Prosia continent would invade Kara around this winter. Yet, Kara was pretty fortunate. In the future, the imbalance of power in Prosia continent and endless wars would occur due to the frequent emergence of the Seven Sacred Weapons. Kara would fall into the hands of the Royal Army of the Kingdom of Robros on the first day but luckily, it was no longer drawn into a war afterward. Only until the Era of Destruction came eight years later.
In my opinion, it seemed that there wouldn’t be a problem if I took refuge in the other desert city around this early autumn and came back to Kara around next spring.
Armida sneakily glanced at me.
“But I’m not sure if we can stay here.”
“Sis, what’s the matter again?”
“Now, three of the Seven Sacred Weapons are owned by those on the side of the Power of Light. Right?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“So, the playing field is uneven. The Power of Darkness is clearly under a handicap.”
Armida looked anxious. Although Valkyries were not allowed to get involved in matters happening in the human world, she’s still a Valkyrie of Darkness who’s obviously a representative of the Power of Darkness. She’s surely not happy with the Power of Darkness being dominated by the Power of Light because of the recent emergence of the Seven Sacred Weapons.
But it’s just an unfounded fear. Next year, two of the Seven Sacred Weapons would choose their owners. One Sacred Weapon would choose one on the side of the Power of Darkness and the owner of the other Sacred Weapon would completely vanish. In other words, with Armida and Shura, the Power of Darkness was not really under a handicap. It’s about 3.1 to 3.
“Yet two Sacred Weapons are owned by those on the side of the Power of Darkness, aren’t they? You and Shura.”
“But you also know that I can’t get involved in matters happening in the human world, don’t you?”
“Well… there’s a Valkyrie on the side of the Power of Light, isn’t there? You know that shit fly, right? I’ve heard that she won a worldwide reputation not long ago, didn’t she?”
Armida chuckled.
“Well… she’s kind of thoughtless. How could she make such a huge trouble during this time of great importance? Tut.”
“Anyways, don’t worry. There won’t be a big problem due to the owners of the Seven Sacred Weapons. Of course, there will be wars between nations but that’s what they always do. So, it’s none of our business.”
Due to the emergence of the Seven Sacred Weapons, a great war was looming in this world. Humans had always loved to go wars against each other and now they also got the Seven Sacred Weapons. So, it’s obvious that they became even more fearless. On top of that, the church leaders went nuts to expand their congregation. No wonder this world fell into ruin. Only blood history would be written.
Because of this kind of chaos, I really had gone through a very hard time in my past life.
During the Great Orc Invasion, I was next to Count Myer and got almost killed by the great Orc hero Grolmogg. Also when those on side of the Power of Darkness launched a full-scale offensive, I went to the Eastern Front as a general and was smashed to pieces.
But thanks to those experiences, the Prosia Continental Army got incredibly powerful. Obviously, those who had battle experience were actually good at fighting in battles. After experiencing many wars, both generals’ and soldiers’ skills got significantly improved. In addition, those kinds of experiences were a great help for Prosian people surviving during the Era of Destruction.
“Well, I kind of agree with you.”
“I mean, your crazy friend caused a huge trouble so everyone’s trying to solve that matter. Right? They’ve already got a lot of things to do. Why the hell would they get involved in matters happening in this world? If they do, it’s a dereliction of duty.”
On our way to here, Armida had told me that all those who became the owners of Sacred Weapons this year were supposed to go after Savondia. So, it’s difficult for them to get involved in other matters.
“Yeah, I think you’re right.”
“So, don’t worry about those things. Just mind your own business. We’ve also got a lot of things to do.”
“I got it.”
I rushed down the portal tower in a hurry. I finally arrived at Kara, the City of Dreams and Pleasure. On a day like today, I don’t want to get stressed with anything. I’m too busy enjoying my life ahead.
A little later, I rented a three-story building with a large plot of land from the local government office to open a business in Kara. This was a martial arts school where they taught old continental swordsmanship and the cost of a year’s rent was 45 riffs of gold. It’s quite a burden but still, I chose this building because it was spacious and had an outdoor training ground.
Kara was the land of opportunity. If one had good skills, he or she could be rolling in money. And I got some good skills. I could easily pay my rent.
* * *
Interior construction lasted nearly three days. During this time, my team and I worked together on interior decoration with the help of a few laborers and we’re ready for starting our business.
After putting Yojo on garden rocks of the outdoor training ground, I got lost in thought. I was trying to use again the magic which was cast accidentally during the battle with Katrianne. But it wasn’t easy at all. I tried all the moves but Yojo didn’t even flinch. It’s almost as if what happened back then was not real.
‘No, I’m right. It was definitely magic…’
Clearly, it was not about the move or mana infusion. Then there’s only one possibility left. It’s magic activated in the mental realm. Except that, there’s no way to cast magic.
But the problem was that I could cast magic in the mental realm only if I became a Wizard-Level magician or Mind Master. In other words, as a Master Swordsman, I could not cast this magic.
However, I certainly had used this magic back then. If my prediction was right, it meant that I had briefly reached a Mind Master level.
I scratched my head. Reaching the Mind Master level was not a joke. I barely reached the Master Swordsman level a year ago. Thus, it didn’t make sense that I had experienced such a great level even for a brief moment.
Yet it might have made sense given the current situation. So if it was true, it would mean that I had something special which others didn’t. And I had no idea what that was.
‘How am I different from other Master Swordsman? Only the fact that I was revived… Ah! Is that it?’
Now I came to my senses. But still, I was not 100% sure and there’s one suspicion.
I had experienced the realm which others never had. It’s the spiritual realm. It’s a phenomenon of great nature which even the Grand Duke Cloud, known as the strongest swordsman in history, were eager to experience but had never experienced.
Yes. I did experience the spiritual effect even for a split second. The process that led to a revival in the past from the death in my past life. That was why my subconscious might be able to lead to the mental realm for a brief moment. The mental realm was merely a midway point through to the spiritual realm.
But the problem was that I couldn’t remember it. To be honest, it happened so quickly and actually there’s not much stuff to remember. Yet I could infer at least one fact from that experience. In terms of a spiritual effect, even time was meaningless.
‘Since I’ve come back to the past, I now live the past, present, and future at the same time.’
The Era of Destruction in the future was my past experience. Also, the Era of Destruction was something I would experience in the future from my current perspective. Besides, the present worked in the same way. Not only my time in the present was always the future of my past but it’s also the past of my future.
If there’s any difference, it would be the place where I stayed according to my will. By this time of year, I was taking heir-preparation classes in Carl’s territory in my past life but I was currently at Kara. So it meant that the time got disordered due to my spiritual effect and my choices. Also, the places where I stayed got changed.
Yet the problem was I had no idea except only this fact. Yet it’s very important information. It meant that no one knew this phenomenon except me and I had the first clue about reaching the spiritual realm.