The birds were chirping, and the sun was rising.

The leaves of the trees and blades of grass were covered in dew as the cold winds of night collided with the warm winds of day.

Deep in the wilderness in the north, nocturnal animals went to sleep while diurnal animals woke up, prepared to hunt for their food.

However, the noise of human activity daunted them as they hid in their burrows and nests.

In the mountainous forest, where no men should ever tread, there was a camp that covered the entire clearing. The noise was overbearing and bustling.

The neighing of horses, the whetting of weapons, the laughter of the rough soldiers, and their training resounded in the big camp.

It was dawn, and people had just woken up, prepared to continue their arduous journey.

Illyan was one of such people.

At this very moment, he snuck off from the camp and relieved himself on the tree. However, it didn’t take too long, as he finished in just a few seconds. The stronger his body became, the fewer impurities his digestive system couldn’t get rid of.

It was the same with his sleeping habits. The need was slowly disappearing. The only thing that made him feel still human was the need for a huge amount of food to sustain his body.

Once he was done relieving himself, he wandered around like a ghost and collected some plants and herbs in the vicinity.

He felt an intimacy with nature as he employed his [Natura Breath Method]. This time, he didn’t use it to hide his aura entirely. Instead, he just dispersed some of his life force to look like a common person. He felt a little lethargic because of that, but he didn’t dare ease up at all. Ever since they left the town, he didn’t dare to stop circulating this method.

If he slackened and Ezekiel was around at that time, then he wouldn’t even have time to cry about it.

In fact, even going out like this was still a little risky, as hiding in the carriage would be best.

But this was something he could not compromise on.

He knew damn well that he would stay the entire day in that carriage again and couldn’t help but stretch his body by walking around.

In fact, he very stealthily employed [The Way of the Body] to move his muscles, to remove all the cramps and sore spots, and to help the blood circulate.

It was not that he couldn’t endure a day of sitting.

Unfortunately, it was already the third week since they left the gates of the town, and they were still far from their destination.

The mountainous roads that were not maintained were hazardous to ride on, and the speed at which they proceeded was a testament to it.

If even Illyan felt like this, then the others felt even worse.

In the end, Illyan had to help them by creating ointments that relieved all these problems. Fortunately, the mayor’s people weren’t beginners in this, and Vice-mayor Hatar, who was also the mayor’s son, commanded that they would set off ninety minutes after dawn each time to let people adjust.

Of course, the soldiers who had to go on foot had the opposite problem.

Thus, they were also glad that they had more time to rest.

However, some still didn’t miss their training sessions as they wielded their blades.

Terren was one of such people, as he held the bastard sword in two hands at one time and in one hand at other times. He was sweating like a pig, but his focus didn’t waver.

At the side, Nord, Cara, and Garran sat watching him work.

Yes, they were on this expedition too.

Nord and Cara chose the history specialization, and as such, they were offered the option of becoming assistants to other historians and archaeologists in this place for money.

Two poor people obviously wouldn’t miss such an opportunity, especially when two of their friends were part of the expedition by default.

Garran, hearing this, went to the administration of the merchant guild and pleaded to be an assistant to the merchants who would tag along the way. Since he was actually capable, they didn’t have a problem with it at all, and he also joined the group!

Illyan was sitting at the side with his hands propping his bored face as he stared at these guys.

‘They are really inseparable.’ His thoughts drifted to Zers, his only childhood friend.

However, he didn’t drown in melancholy as he stared at Terren’s swordplay.

It wasn’t great, but Illyan greatly benefited.

[The Way of the Body]’s goal was not to depend on any techniques, but ironically, it progressed the fastest when learning new body or weapon techniques.

Terren’s movements were flawed, but with Illyan’s experience, he immediately fixed them inside his mind and permanently imprinted them into his memory.

He wouldn’t have problems with swords after watching Terren and other soldiers train for almost a month. His mind was filled with sword techniques.

That’s why he always found some time to observe during the morning and even asked Terren to show him something new once in a while.

Terren was also very happy to show off as he only thought Illyan was curious.

“We are setting off in ten minutes!”

In the end, an order was given as everyone prepared to leave.

Illyan also said his farewell to Terren and the others as he left for his carriage.

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As he passed through the camp, many respectful greetings were thrown in his direction, and he nodded back.

“Good morning, Dr. Kaoran!”

The role of physician was highly respected by the townsfolk. They had also passed through several villages already, and there he was also the most welcomed person.

In fact, the amount of respect they gave to the vice-mayor was just a fraction of that given to him.

It was mainly because there were many sick people or people with poorly treated injuries that could not heal properly.

In the end, he was like a god who came and solved their problems with a wave of his hand.

Illyan personally didn’t like this spotlight, but there were some apprentice academics who seemed sour.

After all, they had been working toward their aspirations for years already without any rewards. On the other hand, Illyan had already paved his path in just a little over a year.

But it was just a bitter feeling of jealousy. Nothing more. They knew what they were getting into when they became apprentices back in the day. Nobody came into the institute to seek riches.

They just wanted to tread on the path of the specialization they chose further than anyone else and be validated by others, for their names to be written in history.

Of course, some of them weren’t interested in such a life and yearned for fame, riches, and women. But these usually left the institute and even the north to live their lives in the south, where they would be employed by someone.

Korin’s story was similar to that, except that he was summoned by the king of Vanaras to work instead of going voluntarily.

‘Sounds familiar…’ Illyan sneered in his mind. He didn’t really like that he had to listen to someone’s orders.

However, he respected the rules since he knew that becoming an academic had its disadvantages too.

There was no free lunch in this world. Even in the Bakur Tribe, he had to hunt and fight to pay off all his debts.

But it didn’t change the fact that he disliked it very much. Now that he knew the taste of stealing the loot from enemies’ bodies, he felt that going back to being an obedient citizen would be an impossible task.

Not that it was needed.

The world was a mess. Or at least, that’s what Illyan guessed.

From the recordings on the Arkravav Empire in the library, the diary of Arwen, and the behavior of the acolytes, Illyan was pretty sure that the world outside the Vanaras Kingdom would be much different.

Be it the natural disasters, the rise of the undead creatures, or just the war between people, the anarchy was a huge problem there.

Because of that, mortals who couldn’t fight were mostly living in the big cities. Anywhere else, they wouldn’t be able to die a natural death.

That’s why the Arkravav Empire mostly imported mortals from their vassal kingdoms, which were usually in the corners of the continent where even birds wouldn’t shit.

As such, most of the people in the empire of a hundred treasures would have one or two things up their sleeves.

The resourceful people would be able to survive in this place. The powerful people would be able to survive too.

However, only those who were both resourceful and powerful could truly thrive in this kind of environment.

That’s what made Illyan excited but terrified too.

Now that he knew the Vanaras Kingdom was a kind of haven for weak people due to the energy leakage occurring here, he felt that leaving this place too soon would be an unwise move.

Training to the limit here should be his priority.

However, he knew that the common techniques he had obtained from the acolytes would limit him greatly, which made him hesitate.

But he also knew his own talent, so trying to acquire better techniques wouldn’t change anything if he couldn’t train in them.

“One step at a time…” Illyan muttered to himself as he finally arrived at the carriage and sat down inside.

“Did you say something?” Vanda, who was sitting across from him, grinned as she leaned toward him.

Illyan almost sighed exasperatedly as he stared at the woman in front of him.

He was somewhat oblivious to the opposite sex, but even a block of wood would realize this girl was the seductive type who liked to cause chaos in the hearts of poor men.

Unfortunately for her, the only person affected by her coy behavior was Arun, next to her, whose face quickly filled with blood.

Illyan, on the other hand, felt nothing. He stared at her, and his eyes even stopped at her exposed neckline, appreciating it for a bit before turning his gaze away. But that was all.

His heart was too weary to feel such youthful passion.

Just as the carriage jerked before setting off, Illyan responded with a blank face.

“Nothing, I was just muttering to myself.” Then, he closed his eyes and ignored the woman.

“Aww! Come on! Don’t be like that! Can’t you tell your big sister?” Vanda, who liked to call herself a big sister, came closer with her eyes wide open.

But Illyan was unmoved.

“Tch, you’re such a stubborn guy. But I like it.” Vanda smiled devilishly before letting him off.

Others in the carriage just smiled wryly as they minded their own business.

They knew that Vanda liked to mess around like this a lot.

What she enjoyed most was the feeling of conquest.

The more stubborn the man, the more enthusiastic she became. Until she had them completely infatuated, she wouldn’t let go.

On the other hand, men like Arun could not give her that thrill. She usually ignored them…

“Where is Mr. Korin?”

Arun couldn’t stand the awkwardness and asked loudly. Korin wasn’t in the carriage despite their already setting off. This made him feel uneasy.

“He’s discussing something with the vice-mayor. He’s been in the city several times already, after all. But he should be joining us later.” Tami explained with a kind expression.

“Oh…” Arun nodded thoughtfully.

Illyan also heard this and felt regretful.

While he considered Korin untrustworthy, he still felt that his company was enjoyable.

Every discussion they had was rich, as the man was one of the most knowledgeable people Illyan had ever met.

He even felt that if the man didn’t attempt to scheme against him, they could be good colleagues. But it was not meant to be.

Since Korin would not be coming anytime soon, Illyan simply pulled out some books and parchments and began to study.

These books weren’t his. They were Korin’s, as he used this time to educate his people further on their specializations. Spending so much time inside this carriage would be a waste if it wasn’t productive.

Illyan felt the same way as he plunged into his studies without a care, but others were less pleased.

Still, they didn’t complain. Illyan could see no passion in their eyes in whatever they were doing, but he could see the obsession behind their eyes.

He was interested in what motivated them, but not enough to ask, as he kept his distance.

In this way, several more weeks passed.

They had already crossed valleys and forests and were now skirting the mountain range, slowly nearing their destination.

They stopped every evening to sleep and eat, setting off again in the morning.

During the day, Illyan mostly studied mathematics and its profound applications, and during the night, he practiced meditation. He didn’t dare move around much, feeling that someone might notice him.

The fact that he was already constantly running the [Nature Breath Method] was enough strain on him.

One day, as they traveled along the mountain with the deep valley on their left side, the carriage suddenly halted violently, causing the passengers to be thrown forward.

“Aw?” Vanda immediately squealed as she fell into Illyan’s arms.

He rolled his eyes and pushed her away.

“What happened?”

One of them asked.

“Something is probably wrong,” Korin murmured with a furrowed brow.

Since he had rejoined them after leaving that day, he hadn’t needed to accompany the vice-mayor again, so he spent his time in the carriage.

“There are trunks on the road!”

At that moment, soldiers began shouting, informing those farther back.

“Hmm? Wooden trunks? That’s it? Just get rid of it.” Arun, who had seemed frightened before, now scoffed in annoyance.

However, Korin’s face turned aghast.

“At this place and time?”

Illyan immediately understood his implication.

Spring was coming, and with it, the rainy season had begun.

Not only that, but the snow was melting, turning the ground into mud.

Now, in this unsavory weather, they were traveling on an unmaintained road at the edge of the mountain.

On their right side was the steep slope of the entire mountain, impossible for humans to climb.

It was then that a piercing crack sounded in everyone’s ears as dust rose all around.

Before anyone could react, a huge boulder weighing several tons rolled down from above, crashing into one of the merchant wagons.

The entire structure collapsed like a house of cards, with splinters and rocks flying everywhere. The horses pulling it were crushed and quickly pushed over the road’s edge, scattering widely across the valley floor.

“It’s a rockslide!” one of the soldiers roared as people stared at the muddy mountain, where the land was loosening and crumbling.