80 – 15 – Party Formation – 5

A sharp golden beak, eyes shining with intelligence, a head covered in rich feathers, and a magnificent golden crest rising around its neck.

Although called a golden eagle in Korean, since it was not actually bald, it possessed the exact same features of a bird of prey belonging to the hawk family rather than a vulture.

Gi-jun admired it as he stood face-to-face with the creature.

“Wow, it’s huge.”

“W-W-W-W-W-W-What is this?”

Ji-hye clung to Gi-jun in fright, only to be dragged back by Laura and Scintilla, who had quietly approached from behind.

If it had been just a massive golden eagle, Ji-hye would not have been so terrified.

But the problem was that beneath the upper body and wings of the golden eagle lay the lower body of a lion.

It was a griffin, a mythical beast.

“It is trying to assert dominance.”

―Grrrrr…!

Unica said, attempting to assert dominance over the griffin with the sharp horn on her forehead.

“Griffins are famous for their rarity and symbolism rather than their strength. They are very intelligent and deeply loyal, but that also makes them difficult to tame. Just owning a griffin is proof of a prestigious guild, and—”

―Piyoooooo!

Did Unica fail to assert her dominance? The griffin scooped up dirt from the ground with the sharp claws of its front talons and threw it at her.

Of course, it was blocked by the shield Gi-jun quickly thrust forward from the side and did not reach Unica.

“So it is to assert their authority over us while playing a prank with a bad-tempered griffin? Something like that?”

“Exactly. …Thank you.”

“It looks pretty cute when you look at it from the front, though…”

Gi-jun faced the griffin as he brushed off the dirt on his shield.

The creature’s round eyes seemed to glare fiercely at Gi-jun, but then momentarily shrank as if it had discovered something beyond his burning eyes.

―Peeee—!

And surprisingly, it thrust its head toward Gi-jun and began to act cute.

Gi-jun lowered his shield, stroked the creature’s head, and quietly stared at Unica.

Unica wore a deeply aggrieved expression, but she did not want to get hit by another clump of dirt by meddling unnecessarily, so she decided to stay quiet.

Instead, she turned her gaze back to the large oval sphere connected by a strap to the belt fastened around the griffin’s waist and spoke.

“A griffin with a sky carriage is certainly considered high-class among the transportation methods of the Leta continent. The Demander… I have only heard of them by name, but I must acknowledge their influence.”

“Hmm, so that is a sky carriage?”

“Come take a look, Lord Jun. It is very spacious!”

At Laura’s call, everyone approached and inspected the interior.

While the exterior was covered in an unknown metal, the interior had plush seats like a carriage and was equipped with windows, allowing them to look outside.

“It looks completely like a UFO from the outside…”

“Shh.”

Cautioning Ji-hye, who was muttering carelessly, he touched the seat with his hand.

Heh. Triumphant smiles appeared on Gi-jun’s and Lucy’s lips at the same time.

Comparing the cushiony feel of seats wherever they went and indulging in a sense of superiority had recently become a bad habit for the two.

“Shall we head out, then? Normally, we would have had to brace ourselves for quite a bit of shaking… but since that child seems to follow Lord Jun well, we won’t need to worry much.”

“Are we really riding in this…? I am so nervous.”

“The sky carriage is enchanted with magic to minimize shaking during flight, so please board with peace of mind.”

“Let’s get in, everyone!”

“Hehe, to think I will be flying in the sky…!”

The party members boarded the sky carriage, some trembling with anxiety, others raising their voices in anticipation.

Once Laura, Ji-hye, Gin, and even Unica had stepped inside, Scintilla urged Gi-jun.

“Hurry and get in, Jun.”

“Hmm.”

However, Gi-jun was staring back at the griffin, which had been gazing intently at him for some time.

He felt as if the creature wanted something, so he could not just leave it be.

It was only when the creature fluttered its wings, approached him, bent its knees, and offered its back that he realized.

“You want me to ride on your back?”

―Peeee—!

“Wait a minute!”

At those words, Unica stuck her head out in shock.

“Lord Jun, do you perhaps possess a high-rank Riding skill?”

“I was thinking of learning it this time.”

“Then stop talking nonsense and get inside! A griffin is not something you can ride without a Riding skill!”

―Kyaaaaak!

“Kyaak?!”

Unica, who had been trying to stop Gi-jun’s reckless challenge, shrank back in fear at the griffin’s threat and hid inside the sky carriage.

Seeing her completely dominated, Gi-jun shook his head and stroked the griffin’s head.

“I will give it a try, and if it is too hard, I will just give up.”

“I warned you. The griffin is definitely acting on its owner’s instructions to play a trick on you, Lord Jun.”

Perhaps that was the case, but he thought that it might actually help with his training in its own way.

Furthermore, since skills usually yielded greater achievements when mastered through harder training, Gi-jun climbed onto the griffin’s back, resolving to learn the Riding skill during the journey to Cor.

“Shall we depart then?”

―Piyoooooo!

The griffin spread its wings wide with a resonant cry.

As it stomped hard on the ground with a loud thud, the surroundings vibrated, and its body instantly soared into the sky.

Naturally, the sky carriage connected to the creature also rose in the air—just as they had said about minimizing the shaking, it was fascinating to see it maintain its balance in the sky.

―My contractor doesn’t need any of this. In the future, you will be able to fly through the sky at the speed of light.

“No, that’s also a bit… Whoaaa?”

Strength entered his legs of its own accord.

The griffin flapped its wings violently to soar higher, causing its body to shake mercilessly and tilt almost vertically.

However, Gi-jun was a tanker who knew a thing or two about maintaining balance.

He grabbed the griffin’s back with one hand and held on with all his might.

―Peeeeeeeeee—!

Easily carrying the weight of the five riding in the sky carriage plus Gi-jun on its back, for a total of six people, the griffin soared higher and higher into the air.

In the dawning dawn sky, the griffin flew easily past the sun and buried itself in the clouds, letting out another cheerful cry.

“Phew.”

The griffin quickly broke through the clouds and sailed through the clear sky once more.

Gi-jun easily dried the moisture that had condensed on his armor with Ur’s heat and smirked.

He had grown somewhat adjusted to the rapid ascent now.

“Shall we speed up?”

―Pee?

Gi-jun scoffed at the cry, which seemed to ask if he would be okay.

“I won’t budge from just this.”

―Piyooooooo!

The griffin accepted the challenge Gi-jun proposed.

It seemed to fold its wings slightly, then released intense wind mana and accelerated further, racing through the empty air!

“Ohhhhh! Is this guy using elemental mana?!”

―It seems so. It’s not called a mythical beast for nothing. Will you be okay, contractor?

“As much as you want—”

Of course, it was not comfortable.

Along with the anxiety that he might be thrown backward if he relaxed his body even slightly because it was too fast, the wind striking him as he cut through the air at high speed was not just chilly, but sharp enough to slice his skin.

However, to surrender at just that level would be a waste of the stats he had raised to Legendary grade.

As the griffin’s speed grew faster and faster, Gi-jun instead got the hang of it, slightly relaxing his legs, adopting a comfortable posture, and holding onto the area near the griffin’s neck.

“Let’s go faster.”

―Pee?!

By then, the griffin also realized that Gi-jun’s competitive spirit was no joke, but it could not call itself a noble mythical beast if it backed down here.

As the griffin unleashed all the mana it had been saving and accelerated even further, the wind mana could even be seen manifesting in a blue hue behind its wings.

“Whoaaaaa!”

Gi-jun smiled naturally at the sense of speed that seemed to clear his chest and the refreshing feeling from the wide-open scenery.

Facing the dawning sky on the back of a griffin flying at full speed was indeed a rare experience, was it not?

Although he had been dragged to the tutorial after living peacefully on Earth, suffering all kinds of hardships, and even crossing over to the Leta continent, at this moment, he felt grateful to have immersed himself in this mysterious world.

“Good! So this is your best!”

―Peeeeeee!

“In that case, I shall make you even faster! Lucy!”

―I knew you’d say that, so I was preparing.

Gi-jun’s spiritual power converted into light spirit energy and permeated the griffin’s body.

Although light spirit energy possessed too many characteristics to list, the easiest one to explain was speed.

While Gi-jun’s innate dexterity played a major role in allowing him to always quickly detect and block enemy attacks, it was also because light mana and this light spirit energy extremely boosted his senses as well as his reaction speed.

―Piyoooo!

The griffin accepted the reinforcement from the light spirit energy positively.

Letting out a brave cry, as if to live up to Gi-jun’s expectations, it flapped its wings and released mana once more—adding acceleration upon acceleration as it raced through the empty air!

“Yeehawww!”

―Hmm, my contractor really has an aptitude for light.

―Piyooooo!

Lucy felt satisfied for reasons that were hard to understand as she saw Gi-jun adapt quickly to the high speed.

Only after flying for at least three hours did the griffin’s wingbeats slow down, as if it had grown tired.

Sensing that the creature was exhausted, Gi-jun patted its back and asked it to go down, slowly descending as there happened to be a wide plain nearby.

“I want to try diving too.”

―Peeeee.

―Keeek.

―It says we should hunt together later. …No, I understood what the griffin said myself, you know? Why is Ur cutting in and pretending to translate?

―Keeheet.

Following the griffin’s stable landing, the UFO-like sky carriage also landed gently on the plain.

At that moment, messages appeared before Gi-jun’s eyes.

―Rare achievement unlocked! You have not only successfully ridden and steered the Griffin, the Monarch of the Firmament, without a Riding skill, but you have also broken past the griffin’s limit speed! Charm (L) has increased by 1. You have obtained 3,000 points as a reward for unlocking the achievement.

―You have obtained the Rare-grade title [Sky Rider]. Due to the title’s effect, your speed increases by 10% when mounted, and you will easily gain the favor of all types of mounts.

―Through your overwhelming dexterity that makes the impossible possible, your legendary charm that wins the favor of mythical beasts, your body that endures speeds transcending limits, and the achievement unlocked, you have skipped stages to master the Rare-grade skill [Riding]. You are now able to ride all kinds of mounts, including mythical beasts.

―Rare achievement unlocked! You have not only successfully ridden and steered the Griffin, the Monarch of the Firmament, without a Riding skill, but you have also broken past the griffin’s limit speed! Charm (L) has increased by 1. You have obtained 3,000 points as a reward for unlocking the achievement.

―You have obtained the Rare-grade title [Sky Rider]. Due to the title’s effect, your speed increases by 10% when mounted, and you will easily gain the favor of all types of mounts.

―Through your overwhelming dexterity that makes the impossible possible, your legendary charm that wins the favor of mythical beasts, your body that endures speeds transcending limits, and the achievement unlocked, you have skipped stages to master the Rare-grade skill [Riding]. You are now able to ride all kinds of mounts, including mythical beasts.

He had thought that he might be able to learn the Riding skill right away, but he had not expected to even unlock an achievement.

Gi-jun thought this achievement might be a bit of a cheat, because no matter how he looked at it, the condition for unlocking it seemed to assume ‘breaking the speed limit through the communion between the rider and the griffin.’

But what about him? Had he not easily broken the griffin’s limits with the power of the Spirit of Light?

“Hmm… Well, whatever. I got a title and a skill, so it’s fine. If anyone takes issue with it, I’ll just excuse it as an attempt to sound the alarm on the current system’s loose achievement evaluation.”

―I have no idea who that excuse is for.

―Keyerrrr…

“Yes, yes, good job. I’ll give you some food in a bit, so wait quietly.”

After stroking the griffin’s head a few more times, Gi-jun got off its back and approached the carriage, only for the closed door to open and reveal a slightly haggard-looking Unica.

“W-What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Lord Jun… Were you alright…?”

“I’m fine, though…?”

“You are… truly amazing. We tasted hell inside as the sky carriage shook… Had Miss Ji-hye not cast magic to mitigate the shaking, everyone except Lady Scintilla might have been found inside as corpses.”

Ji-hye, who had actually cast the magic, was sprawled inside the carriage with a face that looked the closest to death, while Gin and Laura looked as if they had burned everything to white ashes as they hung their heads.

“How was riding the griffin, Jun? You seemed to be having quite a bit of fun.”

Only Scintilla, whose stat grades were all evenly high, stepped down from the carriage with a calm complexion and smiled brightly at him.

Although Gi-jun felt overwhelmed by her, he honestly reported that he had succeeded in learning Rare-grade Riding.

Hearing this from the side, Unica shouted in extreme excitement.

“Did you say a Rare-grade Riding skill?! The Riding skill starts from the Common grade, you know…!”

“Ah, really? Why did I get it at Rare grade right away?”

“I think it is probably because the Riding skill only grants the ability to ride mythical beasts starting from the Rare grade.”

Scintilla laid out her reasoning in a calm voice.

“Normally, you must have a Rare-grade Riding skill to even dream of getting on a griffin’s back and controlling it. However, because Jun did it the other way around, his Rare-grade Riding skill was recognized.”

“Is… is such a thing really possible?”

“It is not completely unheard of. I have heard that some people even create Legendary-grade skills from scratch.”

Gi-jun also nodded at those words.

Although it had been passed down to him by Biche, was not Salutaris—which was born from a mix of her teachings and his own unique application—also at Legendary grade from the very start?

“I… see…”

“If you are jealous that I got the skill, do you want to try riding it too, Unica? You might be able to get it as well.”

“I will pass on that.”

Unica replied instantly with a subtle smile.

Gi-jun checked with the rest of the party members, but they also refused, making a chillingly identical expression to Unica’s.

Unfortunately for them, the griffin, whose energy had surged after eating the food Gi-jun prepared, bolted through the air at a speed transcending its limits all afternoon, succeeding in covering a path that had taken three days to travel in just half a day.

They had entered Cor, the great city of Gratia.

* * *

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): You met a former companion by chance? And joined the same party?]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): And she is even a woman?]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): Ah, there is absolutely no possibility of that? There is another guy in the party she likes…?]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): Right, where would you have the time to date anyway? You are still only at Rare grade. Don’t even dream about it.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): I will go and judge for myself. Got it? Until then, consider every woman your enemy and remain on guard.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): A Flame Human? The disguise you used was a Flame Human? Ah—]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): They are a race with a slightly complicated story. As far as I know, there was only one civilization they belonged to.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): Yes, just one. They disguised themselves as being from other civilizations to make tracking them difficult, but as far as I know, they are all from the same civilization.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): So if there is a survivor, they cannot help but know.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): So there is still one left. That’s impressive. Then she must be the representative of the civilization.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): Yes, of course. Whose disciple are you? Hang in there, Jun.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): I am always on your side. You will never lose to anyone.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): …But don’t try too hard to look cool either. It would be annoying if she fell for you and started clinging to you.]

[Biche♥ (Dimensional Waiting Room): You think it’s already too late?]