Chapter 902: Journey to the Far North

Dragon!!

Gawain’s gaze froze instantly, lingering for a long moment on the string of characters forcefully scrawled across the page. It was as if he could see through the slight tremors at the edges of the handwriting, catching a glimpse of the fierce turmoil raging in Modir Wilde’s heart as he penned those words.

Then he lifted his eyes to the map hanging not far from his desk—the map that precisely charted the entire continent of Loren. Beyond Loren’s shores, however, lay vast oceans and possible new lands, all beyond the reach of his satellite surveillance. Only symbolic outlines and rough directional markers were noted:

Far to the southwest of Loren’s endless seas stood the legendary “Tower of the Heavens,” an ancient elven myth now confirmed by ground scans from the Aether Station.

To the southeast, across an unknown stretch of ocean, lay the “New World” discovered seven centuries ago by Gawain Cecil’s oceanic expedition. Parts of its coastline had also been verified by the Aether Station.

Far to the east, beyond storms and currents, was the continent of the sea witches—Euo—and their capital, Antavien.

To the north of Loren, beyond the Saint Dragon Principality’s coastal peninsula, lay the Eternal Storm, a tempest already observed by humans. Beyond that storm, however, was the Dragon Kingdom of Talrond—a realm known only through indirect accounts.

This dragon kingdom lay at the extreme north, possibly near the North Pole itself, surrounded by seas dotted with countless icebergs—details that matched those recorded in Modir Wilde’s notes…

“He actually, by some twist of fate, crossed the Eternal Storm… and drifted near Talrond…” Gawain muttered to himself. “Is that luck or misfortune…?”

Muttering under his breath, he lowered his head again, focusing on Modir Wilde’s incredible journey:

“…For a while afterward, I was caught in a whirlwind of tension, shock, and excitement. It was a dragon! A real, living dragon! At first, I thought my long isolation and drifting had driven me mad, conjuring illusions. But soon I realized everything I saw was real. The dragon even circled in the distance for a while…

“I watched the great beast nervously, unsure what it would do with me, an uninvited guest. I was certain it had noticed me—just as I could see it. Yet, for some reason, the dragon only circled briefly before flying straight away into the distance…

“It seemed not to notice me… or perhaps it just thought this pile of broken wood I was clinging to was some floating debris? I didn’t know how to feel. On one hand, I feared the dragon might suddenly turn back and attack me—if that happened, I wouldn’t stand a chance. On the other, I hoped it would come to find me… maybe it was my only hope of escape, if the dragon was friendly enough…

“I spent a cold night filled with anxious dread… or rather, a long twilight.

“After crossing a certain boundary, the sun never dipped below the horizon. It hovered within a certain range, cycling through ‘morning—noon—dusk—and morning again.’ Just as ancient scholars predicted, our planet’s tilted orbit around the sun causes prolonged daylight or darkness at the poles… I suppose this is another important observation, though who knows if I’ll ever bring this knowledge back to humanity…

“On the third day after seeing the dragon, I spotted a colossal… wall of storm clouds on the distant sea.

“At first, I thought it was a chaotic ‘charging cloud wall’ from a maelstrom, and panicked. But soon I realized it lacked the wild, uncontrolled magic and eerie glow typical of such storms. It didn’t move, yet its scale dwarfed any maelstrom cloud wall I’d ever seen. Stretching from sea to sky, it was a true ‘impenetrable barrier.’ Below it, the sea churned with countless whirlpools and towering waves that crushed all hope… I think I knew what it was.

“It was part of the Eternal Storm! From the highest peaks in the north, or using a mage’s eye or other devices, one could see its lingering effects in the sky. From the Saint Dragon Principality’s peninsula, you could even glimpse its edge. And here I was, in uncharted waters, observing it up close…

“Damn it, I’d circled all the way around and drifted to the far side of the Eternal Storm!!

“The continent lay just beyond, the coasts of the Saint Dragon Principality or the Violet Kingdom on the other side of that cloud wall. By the gods of magic, fate was playing a cruel joke on me… Now I could finally confirm the continent’s direction and the way home—only to realize it was a dead end.

“I seriously considered trying to cross the storm back to the continent, then laughed at my own naïveté and recklessness. Then I thought about trying to sail around that massive cyclone… and laughed again.

“But after laughing, I thought maybe the second plan could work… With human courage and resilience, it might be possible. After all, I’d already drifted so far—from the eastern continent, all the way around the sea to the far side of the Eternal Storm. Why not circle halfway around again, to the other side? Though I was in worse shape now, and my ship was nothing but a pile of broken wood… daring to try was better than being trapped forever in this endless ocean…”

At this point, Gawain couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.

Earlier, reading the first half of the notes, he’d thought young Modir was reckless (and apparently, he hadn’t changed much with age). But now, he found himself admiring the man’s courage and tenacity. To drift alone at sea for months, all the way to the Arctic Circle, and still muster the will to challenge a natural wonder like the Eternal Storm—that was no ordinary spirit.

“He really did inherit the stubbornness of the First Pioneer…” Gawain murmured with a smile, then continued reading—

“X Month, X Day. I must record what happened today. I… I don’t even know how to express my feelings.

“Earlier today, I began executing that bold ‘detour plan.’ After some meditation and rest, I felt my magic was strong enough to steer this broken raft safely along the edge of the Eternal Storm. So I did—and I approached the cloud wall without incident. Then… damn it, the blue dragon appeared again!

“If any future reader finds this, you won’t believe what that blue dragon did—she (I now know she’s a lady) dove straight from the horizon, heading directly for me and my ‘ship,’ looking frantic. I heard a deafening voice roar in my ear, ‘Don’t do anything foolish!’ Then those terrible claws grabbed the poor hull of the New Adventurer. She seemed intent on capturing me and my vessel, but she surely didn’t expect the ‘New Adventurer’ to be nothing but loose planks. The magic binding the wood was shattered by the dragon’s claws, and her immense strength crushed everything… What happened next followed the laws of magic and matter perfectly.

“I lost even that pile of ‘broken wood.’ It shattered completely and was almost immediately swallowed by the waves.

“Worse, I ended up hanging from the claws of that blue dragon, who I still don’t understand at all… The only good news is I’m still alive, and my notebook is still with me…

“Now, I’ve been dropped onto a massive iceberg floating on the sea, with the dragon still nearby. Just now, we finally cleared up the misunderstanding. This ‘lady’ clearly thought I was trying to commit suicide by flying into the Eternal Storm, while I briefly explained my adventure and desperate plan to return home… She seemed a bit disappointed and downcast.

“But I’m ten thousand times more frustrated and downcast than she is!!

“The only thing stopping me from challenging this wicked dragon to a duel is my human reason and noble restraint—I definitely can’t beat her.

“By the way, I should mention casually, almost as an afterthought, that this dragon’s name is ‘Melita Pernia,’ and she claims to be a member of the Talrond Council…”

Gawain’s hand trembled, nearly tearing a page from the ancient, precious manuscript.

He never expected to see the name of Miss My Little Pony here!! So it turned out that the dragon Modir Wilde met lost in the Arctic Circle six centuries ago was that very same creature?!

And back then, Melita claimed to be part of the Talrond Council… Wasn’t she supposed to be a senior agent of the Mithril Vault? How does this council fit in? What’s the connection between the council and the Vault?

A sudden curiosity about Talrond’s society and Melita Pernia herself flared in Gawain’s mind, but his thirst for knowledge quickly pulled him back to Modir’s journal—the Arctic adventure of the Duke of Exploration clearly had more to come, and the next part promised to be even more fascinating:

“…After an awkward moment, the dragon and I had to discuss what to do next… Fortunately, despite her rough manner, this dragon lady was reasonable and even felt guilty… Okay, I take back calling her ‘wicked.’ She truly regretted the damage she caused…

“I first asked if she could help me return to the human world—flying across the ocean shouldn’t be difficult for a dragon. But she said she didn’t have permission to go to Loren yet. She mentioned some kind of application and assessment system, implying that dragons like her must seek approval from higher authorities in dragon society before traveling to other continents… This was surprising, even shocking. Bards always described dragons as fierce, savage beasts—high-level monsters, really—never considering that such intelligent beings might have their own society and civilization. Now I’m certain human assumptions have been way off… I find myself curious about the daily lives of these dragons.

“After that, I asked if this dragon lady could find me a place to stay. That seemed reasonable—if dragons lived in this far north, they must have some kind of settlement or nation. At the very least, she should have her own lair, right? That would be better than drifting endlessly on the icy ocean…”

Gawain smiled to himself, eager to read on and discover what awaited the intrepid explorer next.

“Things didn’t go as planned. This dragon named Melita flat-out rejected my proposal. She said that if the higher-ups in the council found out what was happening here, it could seriously jeopardize her financial situation for the next six months. So there was no way she’d take me to Tyrhold… Damn it, why do dragons have to worry about money?! Can’t they just stick to the usual—kidnapping princesses and princes on the human continent?

“In any case, my plan to add a major entry to my adventure journal was clearly a failure. This dragon lady had no intention of showing me the dragon kingdom… But it wasn’t all bad. Melita, at least, seemed responsible—though she cared more about her finances than anything else, she didn’t just toss me onto this iceberg to fend for myself.

“She said she could take me to a ‘waystation’ near Tyrhold… It didn’t sound like a place where dragons lived, but it was definitely better than floating on an iceberg in the middle of the sea.

“To be honest, I didn’t really trust this dragon. She was polite enough, but her way of doing things made me suspicious. If my magic were still at full strength, I’d rather have powered this iceberg and challenged the eternal storm again. But… there are no ‘ifs’ in this world.

“I had to admit my weakness. I had to admit I… had no other choice.

“So I agreed to Melita’s offer. Then… she hoisted me up in her claws and took off, heading further north.

“A quick note here: most of this entry was actually written while clinging to the dragon’s claw—probably a first-of-its-kind ‘adventure achievement.’ What other adventurer can say they’ve done that?

“…After some time flying, just as I felt my magic starting to falter, something else finally came into view.

“At first, I barely made out a vast stretch of land—a continent far to the north, unknown to humans. I couldn’t see it clearly, but it seemed protected by some massive barrier. Inside the shield, the landscape was lush and green. Just as I was about to focus and get a better look, the dragon veered off in another direction—if my sense of direction was right, we were heading northwest along the edge of that continent. We flew that way for a while longer before finally reaching our destination—

“A towering metal spire rising from the sea.”

(End of chapter)