After I properly baptized Maria as my disciple…
I noticed a change in Kugssa's demeanor. Her face was stern, and she seemed a little jealous.
"Why…?"
The moment she whispered that word, I felt a strange burst of energy—one that sent chills down my spine.
Then… it vanished just as suddenly.
It made me question whether my senses were still working properly.
"Kugssa?" I called her out, just in case… to confirm what I had just felt.
But—
"Hmph! Why didn't you do the same with me? Am I not your first disciple? Are you going to abandon me now?"
She responded… normally!
Then she started crying again.
I couldn't just tell her I had already baptized her in the past, or she'd explode on me all over again…
I had this gut feeling that if I didn't go along with her whims, something terrible might happen.
So I made up an excuse—that I no longer had any mana left to perform the ritual and that I would baptize her as soon as my body had recovered.
Thankfully, she accepted the excuse.
Once I calmed her down, I began telling them the story of my journey—starting from when I met Ressel, all the way to my arrival in the Empire…
...
"So Master… you're 14!? Really!?"
What's wrong with her now?
And why are they all staring at me like that??
"Yes, I'll turn 15 in a few days."
Speaking of which… in this world, I'll be considered an adult once I turn 15.
"Thank goodness! That's good… that's really good…"
And now she's acting weird again…
I grabbed my sword and drew shapes in the dirt…
To create a miniature map.
"The important thing is, we'll follow this route to reach the Dark Continent. We'll head to the Immortal Continent, and from there take a ship to the Dark Continent."
Maria interrupted me, "Why take that route? Wouldn't it be faster if we traveled through the Joy Continent? I mean, the sea between the Immortal Continent and the Dark Continent is filled with Disasters-Rank monsters."
She had a point, kind of… but she still didn't understand the difference between royalty who own everything, and commoners who can't even afford a simple carriage—let alone a ship…
"The Joy Continent is just a small landmass. It won't have any ship suitable for our voyage. And monsters exist in the ocean between the Joy Continent and the Dark Continent too."
That's when she finally understood what I was getting at.
"I see."
"We shouldn't waste any more time. Let's head for the borders of the Immortal Continent!"
And so… we set out at last.
...…
Several hours into our journey, I noticed something…
None of my disciples had good flying skills.
So I taught them the skill〔Celestial Crown〕.
Thanks to the Blessing of Virtue I had given them, they had no trouble learning the skill.
Maria took a full day to master it, while Kugssa only needed three hours to both learn and adapt to it…
Yes… they're monsters!
With them using the Celestial Crown and me relying on my Virtue's levitation ability, our speed increased dramatically.
That very night, we reached the borders between the two continents.
The Saint Empire is located in the Saint Continent, which shares borders with the Immortal Continent to the west, and the Union of Races to the east.
Fortunately for the Empire, it doesn't border a third continent—otherwise, it would've long become a forgotten page in history.
Our current destination is the Immortal Continent, the second smallest continent after the Joy Continent. But despite its size, it boasts mighty empires with rich histories and powerful militaries—unlike anything in the Saint Continent.
Thankfully, we didn't face any trouble crossing the border, thanks to my identity as a noble knight from the Joy Continent and the pass I received from the tower there.
After safely crossing into the new continent, we took the shortest path toward the far east—specifically to the port city of "Wild Sparrow."
Strange name.
Crossing the entire continent took us three months, even with our high mobility between cities.
During that time, I taught Kugssa how to control her yet-unawakened Sword Intent…
But for the first time… Kugssa failed at something.
Well, I suppose it wasn't all that strange—she hadn't awakened her Sword Intent yet. So instead, I taught her a skill I had lost when ascending to Half-Virtue back in the Poison Valley…
A skill called: 〔Western Yin-Yang Harmony〕.
It was an incredibly powerful ability I learned from a companion in one of my past worlds.
It allows one to hide their presence, breath, and even aura…
In other words, it's a stealth and assassination skill.
Fortunately, Kugssa managed to use it to suppress her Sword Intent.
But… something kept bothering me.
Throughout our journey, I kept asking myself:
What the hell was that dream? What was that overwhelming presence I made a pact with? Have I truly… lost the ability to turn back time?
Especially the part… where I was told I could no longer reverse time…
I didn't have the courage to kill myself and test it…
Because if he was right—then that would be… the end.
At the same time, the darker part of me whispered,
"Isn't it wonderful? You'll finally escape this hell… and die in peace… forever."
But…
I resisted. I don't know why, but I did.
Maybe… I finally have something worth holding onto in this world…
Something that makes me fear death—makes me tremble at the mere thought of it.
Is that a good thing? Or a bad one?
I… honestly don't know.
...…
We finally reached Wild Sparrow City.
Besides it being a huge port town, there was something else I noticed…
Ever since we entered this continent—from the very first village to the last city before this one—
Even the weakest citizens were novice warriors or Magicians.
But here in this city, the weakest among them… were expert-level warriors.
This made me truly grasp the power gap between the Immortal Continent and the Saint Continent—regardless of size.
We took a short tour around the city and restocked our supplies for the long journey ahead…
Due to sensing the Dragon Curse stirring within me again, I didn't want to waste time and headed straight for the port.
I didn't want my condition worsening like before…
There was no despair here to feed the curse.
"Master, I asked the commander of the kingdom's navy about the possibility of finding a ship for our journey… but he kept dodging the question and just showered me with flattery…"
"Just as I thought. This trip won't be easy. Did you tell him we're headed to the Dark Continent?"
"Yes. He looked terrified every time I mentioned it."
"Can't blame him. We're talking about the Dark Continent here—the land no human has ever successfully reached."
I have a few bits of info about the continent itself, but no solid route other than by sea…
Thousands of brave souls had tried to get there. None returned. No one ever even saw them again.
As if all who reached it… vanished forever.
And I had no idea about the strength of the Disaster-Rank monsters between the continents either.
"Hmmm…"
We went to a small restaurant near the port. I ordered lunch and left Kugssa and Maria there.
"Wait for me here. I'll be back soon."
I headed straight to the port.
I had seen a group of elderly folks repairing fishing nets on a small boat earlier, so I approached them directly.
The reason I did so was because of the strength I felt from one of them.
"This young man wishes to know your names. Your craftsmanship drew me in—I couldn't help but come closer."
"Hoho… young folks these days still interested in this boring old trade, huh? This old man's name is Hobo."
His voice was rough on the ears, but somehow warm and kind at the same time.
He was bald with a gray beard. His clothes were ragged but clean.
His smiling face told you he had lived enough of life to be content.
"This old man is Hugo, the second brother."
"I'm Homo, the third. You're an interesting lad."
The two other elders resembled Hobo—one was strict and sharp-eyed, while the other was soft-spoken and the only one with hair (a wild mess of gray).
"Forgive me for introducing myself late—this young man's name is Telodeos."
After our introductions, we chatted a bit about fishing and their high-quality net making.
And honestly… I really was interested.
Once the mood had lightened, I finally asked:
"This young man is looking for a ship to take him to the Dark Continent. Do any of you know anything that might help?"
Their expressions changed immediately—not to fear, but to something closer to scornful anger.
"Are you joking, young man? We're just humble fishermen. How could we know such things?"
Humble fishermen, my as*!
Only a fool would believe a legendary warrior is just a simple fisherman.
"Then forgive me. I'm sorry for ruining the mood. But this… is a matter of life and death for me."
I turned to leave—
"Wait… I think I remembered something that might help you."
That's what I was waiting for.
"See that small restaurant over there? Inside, there's a waiter in his forties. Ask him about a fisherman named 'Bud.' Tell him we sent you."
Finally… it seems our journey is about to begin.
"Truly… thank you. Thank you so much."
Then I returned to my disciples.