Chapter 36
As I raced over the plateau, a rather worrisome thought crossed my mind.
It was none other than the feeding issue for Hairan.
When I left the city, I did buy a lot of meat to feed the creature, but looking at its activity level and massive size, the meat I prepared would soon run out.
Since it doesn’t eat grass, I’d have to keep finding meat for it…
Hairan, seemingly oblivious to my concerns, continued to run joyfully.
On it ran, and it felt like more than four hours had passed, yet it maintained a steady pace, seemingly unexhausted.
Its colossal body radiated a lukewarm warmth, and its breath didn’t seem to grow ragged.
This meant it was conserving its stamina rather than running at full speed.
As the sun in the sky began to shyly hide away, the world slowly started to glow with the hues of sunset.
Hairan kept running, and when those sturdy legs hit the ground, the sunset-colored sand shattered and flew in all directions.
Hairan finally came to a halt when darkness enveloped the sky.
It wasn’t that Hairan had exhausted all its energy; I just wanted it to stop so I could take a break.
Without any resistance, Hairan obeyed my wish and moved toward a large rock.
Next to the big rock stood a dried-up tree, which seemed just right to set up a campsite.
I hopped off Hairan’s back.
Whoosh—
“Want some water?”
I didn’t forget to take care of Hairan either.
I took a wide bowl from my bag and filled it with water.
It seemed like Hairan was quite thirsty after the long run, gulping down the water in an instant.
The amount of water it drank was massive, in line with its colossal size. Hairan emptied the large bowl three times over.
Preparing a campfire wasn’t that difficult.
I chopped down the dried-out tree and used my mana to ignite it.
With a hot campfire in front of me, I created a comfortable spot behind the large rock as a windbreak.
The ground was covered with a thick blanket; it was sometimes what I used to cover myself when I slept.
I sat on top and took out a thin book to start preparing Hairan’s dinner.
Whoosh—!
It seemed to get excited at the smell of meat.
Hairan lay flat on the ground, letting out heavy huffs.
“Do you want it that badly?”
—Hiiing!
The meat I bought to feed Hairan was some unidentified smoked meat.
I took out a huge chunk wrapped in paper from my bag, cut off my portion, and pushed the rest towards Hairan.
It used its long neck to reach out and gobbled up the meat.
Chew— chew— chew—!
Should I really call this creature a horse? The little teeth peeking out looked sharp like a beast’s fangs.
Hairan devoured a piece of meat the size of my thigh in no time flat.
Then it sprawled out next to the campfire.
It seemed quite pleased.
I settled back on the blanket and opened the thin book.
It was a book about the legend of the Thunderbird.
The Thunderbird is a myth passed down among the residents of the Hairan Plateau, described as a bird that appears with thunder when the blue sky is covered in dark clouds.
Of course, this bird doesn’t actually exist, and the stories contained in this book are merely tales of the inhabitants of the Hairan Plateau, just fiction.
So I hope no foolish adventurer chasing after empty dreams tries to pursue it.
The Thunderbird, carrying dark clouds and thunder, is depicted with a benevolent appearance rather than its ominous one.
This gigantic bird occasionally reveals its massive form amid storm clouds, and the legend says that if one sees it, they will encounter their fated opponent.
Perhaps if you visit Hairan on a day when storm clouds gather, you might see many residents running outside in the rain.
Whoosh—!
As I was deeply engrossed in the interesting story, Hairan started nudging my body with its large beak.
I guess it got bored since I was just quietly reading.
I sighed and petted its head.
“What is it?”
Whoosh—
What on earth does it want to say?
Hairan blinked its big eyes and turned its head away.
While staring at it, I realized I hadn’t yet given it a name.
“Hmm…”
There are so many names I could give to a horse.
From fictional horses that only exist in imagination to names of real racehorses from modern times.
However, picking a name that suits this creature among the many was no easy task.
“How about Sleipnir?”
Hairan merely flicked its ears but showed no other reaction.
It seemed it didn’t like that name.
“How about Torrent?”
The same reaction again.
I sighed and clutched my head.
“Rational Selection? Gemini? Zelda?”
It appeared it really didn’t like those names either, as it waved its tail vigorously.
Dust rose around us in clouds.
“Then how about Rice Shower…?”
Whoosh—!
What a picky creature.
I sighed and just blurted out a name that seemed fitting.
“Nightmare.”
In that instant, Hairan’s tail shot up into the sky.
It swayed gently, quite different from earlier, as if it approved of the name.
“Do you know what that name means?”
As if, Hairan—or rather, Nightmare—only wagged its tail and rolled around on the dirt.
I laid back, looking up at the sky.
Sleepiness began to wash over me.
I hugged the sword nearby and said, “I’m going to sleep, so if any monsters come near, wake me up.”
I wondered if it could understand me?
Nightmare blew its breath towards the campfire with a tranquil expression.
Whoosh— whoosh— as the gust of air made the flames dance wildly.
*
Thud… thud… thud…
A faint sound is heard in my semi-conscious state.
Suddenly, something hot brushed over my face.
“Gah…!”
I jolted awake, and Nightmare’s bright red eyes were looking down at me.
Not grasping the situation, I stared back blankly, and the creature extended its long tongue to lick my face again.
“Ew…”
The hot, sticky sensation wasn’t particularly pleasant.
As I recoiled in disgust, Nightmare let out a rough huff.
“Pffft—!”
“What’s up with that?”
Nightmare answered with actions.
It rolled one of its front legs and began staring intently at a spot.
It was as if it was signaling that there was an enemy there.
I placed my hand on my sword and gazed over towards that direction.
The blurred focus gradually came into view, revealing a group charging across the wasteland.
Riding through the darkness were people on horseback.
The reflection of the pale moonlight showed that they were knights clad in armor.
“What the…”
A sense of foreboding washed over me, bringing to mind the words of the horse market merchant.
“Greed tends to blind the eyes, especially for a young girl like yourself…”
I quickly began to pack my things.
Nightmare huffed out breaths more aggressively, as if anticipating what was about to happen.
The massive muscles twitched as its stiff black mane ruffled upright.
Once I finished gathering all my gear, Nightmare lowered its back, ready for me.
I leaped onto its back.
“Run!”
The moment my words ended, Nightmare took off like the wind.
My heart began to race in unexpected pursuit.
Thud—! Thud—! Thud—!
Each time Nightmare’s legs hit the ground, a rough rumble echoed.
I had no doubt that Nightmare could easily shake off this pursuit.
After all, it was a pureblood Hairan.
However, no matter how vigorously Nightmare ran, the gap between us and our pursuers didn’t seem to widen.
Through the dust being kicked up behind us, I caught the sight of our pursuers closing in.
They had massive bodies like Nightmare, and their muscles looked like they were about to burst.
What about their eyes? The bloodshot pupils bulged, and they were frothing at the mouth.
They were either third or fourth generation Hairan breed horses, but something was definitely off.
Nightmare sprinted at full speed. Heat radiated from its body and hot air burst forth from its nostrils.
Yet the distance to my pursuers kept shrinking.
I glanced back and began to manipulate my mana.
Kiiiin—!
As the sound of the circle revolving spread through my body, pure white stars flickered into existence around me.
A collection of pure mana.
A basic attack spell that operates through simple physical force.
Ten magical missiles floated in the air before me.
I shot those ten starlights backward.
Pabababak—!
“Ugh!”
“Gah!”
The white starlight knocked back the soldiers charging towards me on their horses.
However, the number of soldiers I knocked off their mounts was limited. The foremost knight, who was chasing after me, swung his sword to dispel all the magical missiles.
I frowned. The knight sprinting ahead shouted something at me, but the wind around us drowned out his voice.
I needed stronger magic to shake him off.
Kiiiin—!
As soon as I made up my mind, the mana circle started spinning.
Grrrrr—!
A giant sound began rolling in from afar, and dark clouds began swirling in the once-starlit sky.
The movement was unsettlingly quick, and before long, Nightmare and I were galloping through the black clouds.
Thud— thud— thud—!
The sounds of our pursuers vanished, and even the wind ceased around us.
All I could hear were the powerful hoofbeats of Nightmare and its ragged breathing.
In that moment, a gigantic light flashed in time with Nightmare’s hoofbeats.
“Ah…”
I gaped in awe.
What revealed itself alongside the light was a massive bird, which was generating blue lightning with its silent flapping wings.
Grrrrr—!
The delayed sound shattered my eardrums.
I squeezed my eyes shut tightly and clung to Nightmare’s neck.
Boom—!
Lightning struck down incessantly.
Bright flashes burst through my squeezed eyelids, electrifying sensations coursing through my body.
How long had it been in that state?
Suddenly, I became aware that the wind had returned, which had previously vanished.
Thud— thud— thud—!
I blinked, glancing around.
The dark clouds that had engulfed us had completely vanished, along with the pursuers.
Light flooded back into the sky and surroundings. Nightmare dashed quickly between the stars and moonlight.
“Thunderbird…”
I murmured absentmindedly, recalling the storybook I had packed away.