Andric woke up early the next morning to wait outside the tavern for townspeople to bring their horses to him. However, when he stepped outside, there were already a few horses and their owners standing by. The horses ranged across many sizes, and Andric wasn’t certain of how to evaluate them.

Luckily, Farvald and Isbrand were also in the crowd, and they approached Andric after having inspected the horses that were brought to the tavern.

“You’re getting a horse so that you can join the Radegart Riders, right? If you’re coming back to Radegart with us, you don't need a young horse. Instead, you should get one that’s at its peak and strong enough to carry plenty of supplies and loot that we capture,” Farvald said while standing beside Andric.

“I heard that you’re trading a martial technique for one of these horses. You’re really wasteful, you know?” Isbrand said in a hostile tone.

Andric looked at the horses, then said to Farvald, “Can you help me pick out the best one?”

“Sure,” Farvald agreed and pointed forward. “That one; It’s a nine-year-old speed breed. Breeds made for speed are pretty rare around here, and it’s really going to be helpful when we start raiding villages. Don’t worry about not being a distance breed, not everyone in the Radegart Riders has a horse that’s good for traveling, so we’ll have to match their pace. You won’t be the slowest.”

Andric thought about what Farvald said as he looked at the horse he pointed out. He knew that the lifespan of a horse was around thirty years, but he didn’t know when a horse’s physicality started going downhill. He didn’t plan on using the horse for long, though, so just a year or two of top-condition would be enough.

“Hey, you’re not even going to look at our horses?” a townsperson complained outwardly, inwardly complaining that Andric had made friends with Farvald.

“No, I’m not,” Andric confidently spoke and strode forward. He pressed his hand against the side of the head of the horse Farvald had pointed to, and he tried to feel for some sort of connection with the creature. He felt no connection and eventually looked at the owner and said, “I’ll take this one.”

Andric paid the Severing Slash Technique for the horse, and the other owners slow dispersed while the seller explained a few things to Andric, such as what kind of vegetables the horse liked. After feeling that Andric knew all he needed to know, the original owner also left, leaving his horse with Andric, Farvald, and Isbrand.

The horse was quite large, but that wasn’t unexpected. It needed to eat and drink much more than a human did, but it could survive by eating grass and drinking from rivers, so Andric wouldn’t need to bring too many extra supplies along. Having a few days worth of stored water would be enough to get between barren areas.

“That’s a fine horse, but it’s not as valuable as a martial technique. Even if you come raid with us, you’ll be lucky to break even after this trade,” Isbrand said, standing at Andric’s previous location.

“I’m not worried about it,” Andric said. He suddenly jumped onto the horse’s back, easily clearing the height required to do so. To Farvald and Isbrand, who were in the Human realm, a jump like that would’ve been impossible.

Andric’s body had grown when he reached the Novice realm, but he was mostly compact and streamline. If someone at the Human realm looked at him, they would think he was an ordinary person who didn’t even try to strengthen his body. Because of this, Andric’s personal weight didn’t exceed two hundred pounds, even though he could easily lift twice or thrice as much as that.

Andric’s motives were unknown to either Farvald or Isbrand. At first, Farvald had guessed that Andric was journeying to get stronger, but it was known that Andric had come to Radegart without a horse, which would’ve severely limited his traveling capabilities. Furthermore, although Andric had been seen practicing many martial techniques, he never used a weapon. It was common knowledge that sword martial techniques were stronger than unarmed martial techniques. Plus, joining a band of raiders wasn’t a good way to get stronger. If anything, it was only a method to gain funds for using other methods, but Andric had showed no lacking of funds when ordering food and drinks in the tavern.

Isbrand had known Andric for even less time than Farvald. He thought that Andric was a rich young master who was dropped off at Radegart and told to gather experience. But, if that was true, how would Andric not know how to select a horse? Selling an ordinary martial technique like the Severing Slash Technique wouldn’t be much to a rich family or sect, but Isbrand guessed that Andric wasn’t from either of the two. If so, where did he acquire such wealth?

Isbrand’s questions were destined to remain unanswered. Andric held onto the reins on his new horse and said, “Forward,” while expecting the horse to listen to his command. Of course, nothing happened.

“Go!” Andric shouted in a low voice and kicked the sides of the horse, and it began to move slowly.

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‘What kind of idiot…’ Isbrand thought while watching Andric. He then ran forward and asked, “Do you not know how to ride a horse?”

“Unfortunately,” Andric replied, tugging on the reins. Isbrand quickly caught up to him and stopped the horse.

“Get off and follow me. Farvald, you get your horse, too. We’re gonna have some riding lessons,” Isbrand said with a clear look of disdain.

“Alright, senior brother,” Farvald bowed to Isbrand and quickly ran toward his home.

Andric jumped off the back of his horse and allowed Isbrand to walk it, heading to his home. Along the way, Andric was silent, while Isbrand muttered things like, “What kind of young master…”

Like most townspeople in Radegart, Isbrand lived on a farm. Due to winter, the fields were being tended, so the area looked empty. There was a barn near Isbrand’s home, and it was filled with pigs and horses. He left Andric outside with his horse, and he went inside the barn to fetch his own, which he came out riding on.

Isbrand’s horse was similar to Andric’s, but a few years younger and of a different breed. If anyone who knew a lot about horses saw them, they would say they were totally different. But, Andric didn’t know, so he thought they were the same.

“First, we’re going to wait for Farvald. We’ll begin once he gets here,” Isbrand said and stopped his horse in front of Andric. “You can get on your horse; to get a feel for sitting on it. As you spend more time with your horse, moving it around will become more natural.”

Andric jumped onto his horse and imitated what Isbrand was doing. He had seen many people riding horses in the past, but it was surprisingly difficult to get the horse to move exactly how he wanted it.

Several minutes passed, and Farvald arrived on his horse. He rode quickly toward Andric and Isbrand, then slowed abruptly as he reached them. Andric could only look at him with jealousy.

“Okay, the first lesson of Senior Brother Isbrand’s Horse Riding Class now begins. We’ll be leaving Radegart in a few days, so we don’t have a lot of time. Within these few days, I’m going to teach you how to accelerate and decelerate your horse. Understand?” Isbrand said to Andric

He nodded and replied, “Yes, senior brother.”

The first lesson on horse riding began. With Isbrand on one side and Farvald on the other, Andric was slowly taught how to pilot his horse.

The most difficult part of riding a horse was making it move according to the rider’s will. With Andric’s strength, there was no chance he would fall off, but he couldn’t simply slap the horse until it moved like he wanted it to. If he slapped, kicked, or pulled on the horse too hard, he could even risk damaging the horse. Isbrand and Farvald were still in the Human realm, so they couldn’t do very much damage, but Andric had to be careful about circulating his spirit energy while on the horse.

A martialist could stop their spirit energy from circulating, and that would make their strength go back to the peak of the Human realm. But, when Andric was in risk of being thrown off the horse, he subconsciously activated his spirit energy to get a better grip. It took him a long time to learn to move with the horse, rather than against it.

At night, Isbrand offered to take care of the horse for one silver coin, and Andric paid him. The next day, Andric walked to Isbrand’s farm and participated in the second lesson. He rode slightly faster than the day before, and his body became more accustomed to being on the horse’s saddle.

That evening, Farvald delivered news of when the Radegart Riders would be leaving: the next morning. With so little time remaining until departure, Isbrand hastened his lesson, immediately teaching Andric the most important things about riding a horse. By nightfall, Andric could make his horse speed up and slow down, but that was about all. As long as he traveled with a group, his horse would naturally follow along, but Andric wouldn’t be able to take the horse anywhere by himself.

The next morning, Andric took his carrying sack out of his bag of storage and wore it on his back, equipped a set of metal armor, then walked to Isbrand’s farm. Along the way, he used the Silent Gallop Technique, allowing him to reach the farm very quickly.

Isbrand had already brought his horse and Andric’s horse outside and was giving them water. He brought water up from a well a dumped it into a trough for the horses to drink from. Andric realized that he didn’t have anything for his horse to drink water from.

“Time to leave,” Isbrand said and mounted his horse.

“Yep,” Andric acknowledge him and jumped onto his own horse.

Their methods of getting on their horses were different, but they both accomplished the same thing. Isbrand rode to his house to fetch his saddlebags, then led the way toward the meeting place of the Radegart Riders. Of course, along the way, Andric tried his hardest to keep up with Isbrand’s pace.

At the meeting point, Farvald and the others were sitting on their horses and looking north. The sun had been up for a short while, and everyone had their back to it. For many of them, it was their first time heading out to raid. For Theudobald and the two brothers, it wasn’t their first time leaving Radegart, and only Theudobald had ever killed someone.

Carlman and Hagano had lived in Radegart for their entire lives. Their only experience with the outside world came from the traders who occasionally came to sell goods and buy food. Isbrand and Farvald were young, but both of them had ambitions for greater things. Farvald’s parents were traveling martialists, so it understandable where his dreams came from, but Andric couldn’t pinpoint why Isbrand yearned for the martial way.

Everyone had their own equipment. Besides Andric everyone else had their provisions stored in saddlebags. Only him and Theudobald wore metal armor. The two brothers, Carlman, and Hagano wore leather armor. The five oldest members of the Radegart Riders had swords, while Isbrand, Andric, and Farvald were unarmed.

“Are we all ready?” Theudobald asked. He still didn’t like Andric, but he didn’t say anything about him.

“Ready!” their group exclaimed, and set off shortly after.