Chapter 13

Chapter 13

#13. The Golden Carriage of the Magic Realm (2)

The Northern Region is full of monsters. You might think there’s no place in the empire’s frontier without monsters, but the North is especially packed with tough ones.

It’s been two centuries since the allied races and monster armies from the Age of Barbarism disappeared.

Even though most humans in Arcadia are now more familiar with fighting each other rather than monsters…

The North remains locked in a perpetual war against savagery.

Especially the Magic Realm, filled with ancient dungeons from the Golden Age, is like a sacred ground for monsters.

Even as the Silver Age replaced the Age of Barbarism…

The mysterious energy from these ancient dungeons, combined with the rich deposits of magic stones in the North, naturally gave birth to all sorts of rare monsters that continued to evolve and thrive.

But hey, being rare also means big bucks!

And expensive usually means these monsters are way stronger than your average creep.

So here we are—treasure hunters, mercenaries, and adventurers from all over the continent (especially the Empire) roaming the Magic Realm in search of instant riches.

“Huff… Huff… Oh ancestors, please save this unworthy descendant!”

Travis, a C-rank adventurer from the North, was wobbling his way across the vast expanse of the Magic Realm.

“T-Travis! Wait up! We’re coming too!”

Behind him, the rest of his adventuring party—mercenaries and such—were struggling to keep up.

“I’m so hungry… My head’s spinning from hunger…”

“Stew… I’d sell my soul for some warm Arad stew right now! Who cares about 2 coppers? I’d pay a silver if I had to!”

“Damn it! I can’t feel my injured arm! Please, ancestors, don’t let me have to cut it off! I’ll make bigger offerings from now on, I swear!”

This four-person party wasn’t always just four.

They originally started out as seven, including porters.

The monsters’ killing aura was insane.

Here, even calling an ordinary horse “special grade” would be laughable; they’re so rare that only the wealthy can afford them.

In the North, only noble knights or super-rich aristocrats could even dream of riding one.

Because of this, most adventurers exploring the Magic Realm were on foot, dragging along low-ranked porters instead.

Ordinary horses collapse and foam at the mouth almost instantly once they enter the Magic Realm.

“Why did the porters have to get attacked first?”

“Shit!”

Now, those porters were nowhere to be seen.

They’d all been eaten by monsters about a week ago.

Somewhere around the middle of the Magic Realm.

Maybe the tragedy began then.

Most of the food, water, and medicine carried by the porters were lost.

As a result, the whole group was looking pretty rough.

No food, no healing, no weapon maintenance—just a bunch of beggars stumbling around.

What good was having gold pieces worth of rare monster loot stuffed into their backpacks when their stomachs were empty after a week without proper meals?

Worse still, their wounds were becoming problematic.

Without fresh bandages, several injuries had already started festering and rotting.

At least the snow-covered plains provided enough water to avoid dehydration.

Step, step, step…

Travis’s party staggered forward. From afar, they looked like a group of zombies shambling through the wilderness.

‘I can’t collapse here! If we sell the loot we’ve got, we could open a small shop in Haven!’

Travis clenched his teeth and trudged on as the leader.

‘Limits, pushing limits!’

‘If we run into monsters or bandits in this state, we’re done for!’

‘Even if we make it to Haven, we’ll probably end up as X-gods anyway!’

‘I just wanna lie down and sleep forever…’

Meanwhile, the thoughts of Travis’s companions leaned more toward despair than hope.

“Eh…?”

Just then, something caught Travis’s attention.

He stopped abruptly.

“Oh my gods, ancestors! Am I hallucinating? Is this the end for me? Now I’m seeing things…”

He mumbled weakly, staring at what appeared to be a golden carriage crossing the Magic Realm in the distance.

Thankfully, the golden carriage wasn’t a mirage or a hallucination.

“What? A carriage in the Magic Realm?”

“Ancestors above, this isn’t a dream, is it?”

“Is that carriage plated with gold? How rich must this merchant be?”

However, the sight of the golden carriage felt oddly surreal.

Not only was it bizarre to see a carriage capable of traversing the Magic Realm, but one covered entirely in gold seemed downright unbelievable.

“…”

“…”

Travis’s group forgot their hunger and fatigue as they stared dumbfounded at the golden carriage approaching them.

“It’s not actually gold…”

“It looks similar to gold, but the color is slightly different.”

“The two horses pulling it seem normal too.”

“But wait, how can regular horses survive in the Magic Realm?”

Finally, up close, the carriage was indeed strange-looking.

After all, seeing a carriage in the Magic Realm was strange enough.

“Hello there!”

Then, the man driving the mysterious golden carriage greeted Travis’s group.

A young man with black hair and dark eyes, possessing striking good looks.

“Uh, hello…”

“Are you… perhaps a magician?”

Travis and his party approached the young man with utmost respect.

“Welcome to the golden carriage of Arad, strangers. Meeting me here in this vast Magic Realm must mean you’re incredibly lucky.”

The man introduced himself as Arad, accepting their respectful demeanor as if it were completely natural.

“Wait… Arad? As in… Arad Stew?!”

Realization dawned on the group.

Back in Haven, they had tasted the legendary Arad Stew, which they planned to indulge in again upon returning safely, along with other fancy dishes at Jack’s Inn.

“Could you really be Arad, the chef from Jack’s Inn?”

Seeing the legendary chef here in the Magic Realm left them speechless.

‘Of course he’s not ordinary!’

‘Maybe he’s some kind of reclusive grandmaster mage?’

‘His youthful appearance must be a magical disguise.’

‘Cooking and healing were probably just hobbies for him.’

They had thought it strange that a healer could create such amazing food, but now it made sense—he was likely a magician.

“That’s correct. I am Arad.”

With that confirmation, Arad smiled slyly and continued.

“You folks look like you need supplies. My golden carriage offers food, drinks, healing, equipment repairs, and various other services… Though it does come at a price.”

Apparently, this golden carriage was some kind of mobile supply depot.

“How much…?”

“What kind of food and drinks do you offer?”

The group listened intently, their mouths watering.

“Thirsty, aren’t you?”

Arad hopped off the driver’s seat and approached them.

“A demonstration is often more convincing than words.”

Opening the back door of the carriage, he pulled out something large—the size of an adult male torso.

It was an orc keg.

Cracking it open, he began pouring something into cups.

“Here, have some refreshing drink.”

Gurgle gurgle…

That familiar color and aroma.

It was beer from the orc keg.

“Beer, BEER!”

Upon seeing it, Travis’s group nearly lost all rational thought.

“How much?!”

It had been nearly a week since they last ate properly.

While they melted snow for water, that was all they had.

Now, a cold beer was right in front of them.

Like zombies under a spell, they fished out their coin purses.

Despite being C-rank adventurers, their pockets held not only copper coins but also a fair amount of silver.

“One cup for thirty coppers.”

After glancing at their purses, Arad bluntly stated the price.

“Eh…?”

“Thirty coppers?! Are you serious?!”

In town, a cup of beer cost only 2-3 coppers.

Even in the Magic Realm, marking it up tenfold was outrageous.

“If you don’t have money, I accept monster loot as payment.”

“But… That’s too expensive!”

While saying this, Travis cautiously eyed the man before him.

‘Does he really need to charge so much…?’

When faced with temptation, human nature reveals itself.

‘Should we just kill him and take it?’

Many adventurers, especially those from the North, were essentially vagrants and bandits.

Including Travis and his party.

‘He’s alone, right?’

‘Even if he’s a magician, a surprise attack in close combat might work…’

‘There must be even more food and water inside that carriage.’

Such thoughts inevitably crossed their minds.

“True, it is a bit pricey, but there’s nothing I can do about that.”

Did Arad notice their intentions?

“Think about it. I’m running a business alone in the Magic Realm. It’s very troublesome and labor-intensive.”

Arad spoke in a meaningful tone.

Running a business in the Magic Realm—and describing it as merely troublesome—was loaded with implications.

“…”

Hearing this, Travis’s group hesitated.

They suddenly noticed how eerily quiet and peaceful the surrounding area was.

‘Even the monsters seem to avoid coming near!’

Could this guy be so powerful that even monsters steer clear?

‘He must be an incredibly skilled magician!’

‘Perhaps he’s an S-rank adventurer sponsored by the Imperial Guild?’

The more they thought about it, the more cautious they became.

‘Just pay the money. Consider it the price of survival.’

Ultimately, they decided to obediently pay up.

After all, moments ago, they had been willing to pay a silver coin for a bowl of stew.

Jingle jingle

The shimmering waves of cold beer were right in front of them.

“We’ll pay! And we’d also like healing and food!”

“Beer, food, and healing… Considering your minor injuries, that’ll be one silver and fifty coppers.”

“Yes? Yes!”

Travis was the first to pull out his silver and copper coins and hand them over to Arad.

“Good choice. The food will be ready shortly. Those with injuries, please remove your bandages and wait.”

“I’ll pay too!”

“Me too! Me too!”

“Take all my money!”

Following Travis’s lead, the rest of the party quickly began digging out their coins.

Soon after…

“Heaven… This is heaven.”

“Thank you, ancestors.”

“I spent two silvers on healing because my wounds were bad, but it was totally worth it. In the end, I saved my arm.”

“Money? We’ll make it back quickly by selling our loot in town.”

Sitting in front of Arad’s golden carriage, Travis’s group sipped their beer with blissful expressions.

“This Arad guy, they weren’t kidding about his incredible healing skills.”

“Well, he is a magician, so of course his healing magic would be top-notch.”

“What about that red potion? Can we buy it separately? It seems really effective…”

Their arms and legs, meanwhile, were freshly wrapped in clean bandages.

Though not experts in healing, they instinctively felt their wounds improving.

“Alright, here’s your meal.”

At that moment, Arad arrived with a tray loaded with unfamiliar dishes.

“What kind of smell is this…?”

“Wow…”

Even though they’d never seen these dishes before, the aroma and presentation made their mouths water uncontrollably.

“Worth every silver piece.”

They had expected maybe some Arad stew at best, but the food served far exceeded expectations.

“What is this dish called?”

Drooling profusely, they asked Arad about his creations.

“Oh, these? They’re called hamburgers and fries.”

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