21st Century Archmage

‘What a picturesque sight.

After the first day of snow, the snowfall alternated between light and heavy. In Nerman, which only had plains, the white blanket of snow was a monotonous sight. But the moment Bebeto and I reached the North and arrived at the boundary of the Rual and Litore Mountains, the majestic, epic scenery created by the mighty hand of nature made me exclaim again and again. The canvas was painted with not just a few dozen, but hundreds of snow-covered mountains. The snow piled heavily atop branches that bent with the weight shyly bared their bodies in the sun.

Whoooooosh.

The chilly wind that spoke of winter also played a role. Every time the wind blew, the powder atop the mountain peaks scattered into the wind, adorning the skies with a sparkling rainbow. The sight of the seven-colored blessings within the flying snow inspired a surge of emotions in all those who witnessed it.

‘From here on out, its Temir territory.

When I recovered from my daze, we were already deep into the mountains, one hour of flight away from the northern fort, Orakk Castle. It was the territory of the Temir tribes, the tough warriors living within the mountains.

Guooooooooooo!

Like a dog delighting in freshly fallen snow, during the entirety of the flight, Bebeto could not conceal his excitement and periodically blared out his characteristic cry, enjoying the winter flight.

“How much longer do we have to go?”

Behind me, Kantahar was wearing an airplate and clinging tightly to me.

“Not much longer, sir! Once we pass that big mountain over there, we will see a valley! Thats where our tribe is!” yelled Kantahar with all his might.

‘So its not just mountains.

This was my first time going into the boundary area of the Rual and Litore Mountains. I saw valleys here and there, as well as traces of agricultural activity.

‘To think they survived all this time amongst monsters, big respect.

The flocks of monsters stood out clearly against the white backdrop. I saw orcs, hungry ogres, trolls, and monsters that looked like gnolls strolling all over the mountains. The Temir people had survived in such a monster-infested place. It was no exaggeration to say that their environment was far harsher than Nermans.

Swooooooosh.

Bebeto filled his wings with a gust of wind and soared high into the sky, effortlessly passing a massive peak in the blink of an eye. Even without teaching him flight techniques, he grew more skillful by the day. He was a smart kiddo who excelled all on his own.

‘Oho, that must be it.

After passing the mountain, a fairly large valley spread out before us, a basin around 1km on every side at the foot of a mountain. A pretty high fence made of sturdy stones and wood was set up around the perimeter, and inside was the Aishwen Tribe Kantahar belonged to.

Thump thump thump thump thump thump!

Seeing Bebeto suddenly show up, several warriors in a wooden watchtower loudly banged on a drum.

“Karukao…!”

“Kukai…”

Shouting things I couldnt understand, hundreds of warriors pointed at Bebeto as they scrambled up the fence, drawing their bows. Despite the cold weather, several of them had bare upper bodies.

‘Sigh, you guys are far from being our match. Tsk tsk.

I had already heard the gist from Kantahar. Because the Aishwen Tribe was the weakest among the Temir tribes, they were located at the place closest to Nerman. As such, whenever the coalition attacked Nerman, the Aishwen had to act as guides for the other tribes and needed to invest the greatest manpower. In their recent attack on Haiton Village, half of their already strained warriors had to participate in the invasion.

Even if they didnt want to, they were helpless before the threats of the other tribes and the Great Shamans command. In my eyes, the Aishwen Tribe was so feeble that a single spell could wipe them out. How could a tribe without any wyverns possibly block Bebeto and me?