Surprisingly, nothing happened during the night. The wolves only entertained the idea of raiding or stealing from our Cataphract but didn’t act on it. It was fortunate for them—a bloodthirsty General of the Six was watching them like a hawk.

Hilde grumbled with disappointment.

“What a shame. If they’d tried to steal something in the night, I could have killed them in self-defense~.”

“We’re here to negotiate a truce. Don’t do anything that could be used against us,” the Regressor chided, dismissing her words as a poor joke, though I could tell she was entirely serious, which made me shudder. She’s a bit… strange.

We decided to set off before Hilde’s murderous intent had a chance to manifest. Once we were ready and mounted on the Cataphract, we called for the driver.

“Dizzy, are you awake?”

After a pause, the golem responded, its voice faint and crackling.

[…Connection… limi-t… range… ex-ceeded…]

The golem’s voice trailed off weakly, and as it tried to grip the steering wheel with its creaky arms, its head slumped, as if drained of energy. Hilde poked the golem and muttered.

“Tsk. Looks like it’s reached the limit of its communication range~. Too bad.”

“It’s a miracle it made it this far outside the Military Nation’s borders. Dizzy, the mission is over. There’s no need to transport this unit anymore. Shut down if you understand.”

The golem gave a faint response before completely losing its magic and going still. That marked the end of the communication officer’s support. From here on, we’d have to find our way on our own. Hilde quickly folded the golem and tossed it into the back, then took the driver’s seat.

“Well, can’t be helped. ‘I’ll’ drive from here. But if I get bored, we’re in trouble, so, Father, please feed me some snacks along the way!”

“What snacks would you find in the Military Nation? Our supplies are all canned food.”

“Ugh! Cursed country!”

With Hilde’s click of the tongue, the Cataphract began its journey into the vast wilderness.

A little before dawn, as the sky started to lighten faintly, the Cataphract rattled across the plains. Since we’d removed the roof to reduce weight, the Cataphract’s appearance, despite its impressive performance, wasn’t much different from that of a simple cart. The exposed roof allowed the wind, light, and dust to hit me without any filter. The wide wheels acted like the pins of a music box, delivering the song of the land as they rolled over the uneven ground. The sky and earth alike seemed determined to make human life difficult.

But minor discomforts like these are proof of true life. It’s because we’re alive that we feel the urge to avoid discomfort. We continued moving forward, with the fresh wind sweeping past our backs…

But one half-dead passenger expressed great discontent under the sunlight. As the sun peeked over the horizon, Tyr groaned and tilted his parasol.

“Never have I traveled such a bright road. Not a single bit of shade in sight.”

“Hold on a moment. I’ll put up a canopy.”

“That won’t be necessary. Flimsy cloth would be no better than nothing.”

“It’s not like I’m putting it up just for you, you know. We’ll need it if it rains.”

This was more for appearances’ sake than practicality, as we all knew it wouldn’t be much help. Still, to appease Tyr’s irritation, I set up the canopy, providing some temporary shade.

Hmm. There’s sincerity in it, so I’ll accept the kindness.

For someone who had just declined, Tyr sat under the canopy without further complaint, still draping the parasol over his shoulder but now looking noticeably calmer.

“Didn’t you say this would be a long, hurried journey? Why aren’t we moving at night? Wasting nearly half the day doesn’t seem like the behavior of those pressed for time.”

“Why the rush? When you’re in your coffin, you can’t even tell the difference between a day and a month. Yet you’re fussing over a single night.”

“That’s when I’m dwelling in darkness. When the sun so brazenly shines, I know the passing of each day whether I wish it or not.”

“I have days when I wish the sun wouldn’t rise, but there’s nothing we can do. We have to see what’s ahead as we go.”

Tyr scoffed in response.

“No matter what lies ahead, it’ll be nothing more than rocks or fences, won’t it? I can simply destroy or evade them.”

It’s strange that he mentions “destroying” before “evading.” Some obstacles, though, can’t be overcome by force.

“I don’t think that’ll work.”

Offended, Tyr replied with a mock-angry expression.

“You underestimate me. Night is my time, and darkness illuminates my path. Even without light, I can handle it.”

“It’s not that I doubt your strength, Tyr….”

At that moment, Hilde spotted something and sharply turned the wheel, shouting.

“Watch out!”

With a thud, the Cataphract shook violently. It seemed the front wheel had hit something solid, causing the cargo to lift briefly as Azi let out a surprised yelp. Thankfully, the Cataphract, a masterpiece of the Military Nation built to conquer any terrain, was undamaged. The shock, however, was another story.

To avoid the sudden obstacle, Hilde twisted the steering wheel abruptly, forcing me to hold onto the railings to stay upright. Amid the jerking motion, Tyr asked.

“…Weren’t we just crossing the plains?”

“That’s right.”

“Then now… it’s as if….”

Tyr slowly looked around.

We were on a gentle hill dotted with sparse trees and scattered remains of old structures. Only faint traces were left, suggesting they had been abandoned for a long time, like ruins of an ancient village. Tyr asked.

“…It feels like looking at ruins. What village is this?”

Ah, in Yulguk, that’s one of the most pointless questions. While I debated how to respond, the Regressor answered.

“No one knows. No one knows if this was a village of the former Golden Nation, or if it was built and destroyed by Yulguk, or if it just appeared like this the other day. This is Yulguk.”

“What do you mean, ‘no one knows’?”

“It’s not just this. You’ll find a sand dune that suddenly turns into a pile of stones, or a cliff that appears in the middle of a village. Nothing is surprising here. There’s no reason behind any of it.”

Speaking, the Regressor looked ahead.

Navigating through the remains of the village, the Cataphract finally reached the top of a hill and began descending. The view, previously obscured by the hill, now unfolded before us. The Regressor muttered as he looked at the massive structure at the bottom of the descent.

“…That’s probably the same.”

In the distance stood an enormous wall, its grand structure stretching along the horizon, as if it were decorating the landscape. It was so tall it blocked the view beyond and so long that we couldn’t see one end of it.

However, the wall didn’t extend endlessly; it simply stopped, not broken or fallen, but as if construction had halted mid-way. As a result, it failed to fulfill the purpose of dividing one land from another.

Fortunately for us, Hilde steered the Cataphract toward the section where the wall was absent.

The closer we got, the more impressive the wall’s scale became. The towering walls stood upright on well-compacted ground, showing no signs of wear or the passage of time.

Perhaps there had been no battles, or maybe the wall was strong enough to withstand any assault. Tyr couldn’t stop marveling at the structure, though it seemed entirely impractical.

“Such a grand scale. I’ve never seen a wall so vast and imposing. Its height is dizzying, and its endless reach is awe-inspiring. Had it not broken midway, it would be a landmark in history. I can only imagine how long it took to build a wall of this magnitude….”

The Regressor responded to Tyr’s musings.

“One day, probably.”

“Hmm? Shei, did you say one day?”

“Yeah. The person who built that wall did it in a single day. I don’t know much, but that much is certain.”

The Regressor’s statement was a known fact. Although I’d never faced the Golden Mirror myself, I knew it was true.

But….

“Shei, stop skimming over the details and explain it properly. Who built it, and what exactly does he do?”

It’s a difficult thing to explain, of course. But surely it’s time to speak up. How much longer are you going to keep it indirect?

The Regressor hesitated, clearly uncertain.

“Uh….”

I’m not sure how to explain. The Golden Mirror’s power is so alien…. I honestly don’t fully understand it either.

Wow, what an evasive answer. It’s fine if you can’t explain it; the Golden Mirror’s power is that strange. But to think you’ve been confident up until now? You’ve barely given any thorough explanations.

“Ahem. Why don’t you explain it, then? You seem to understand it well.”

“Finally, a chance to teach. Student Shei, make sure you learn.”

“I-I know this too! Just explain for me!”

“There’s a saying that if you can’t explain it yourself, you don’t really understand it. Oh, Shei.”

“You—!”

“Shei, how long must we wait?”

“…Fine, I got it.”

Ideally, I’d have a chalkboard and a pointer, but since that’s not an option here, I’ll have to settle for words. Sitting back, I began my explanation.

“Simply put, the Golden Mirror’s power is alchemy. It’s the world’s most powerful, expansive alchemy, almost akin to creation itself.”

“That’s the ability you used to toy with iron scraps?”

“Our alchemy is mere child’s play compared to the Golden Mirror’s. That wall—it looks as if it was a massive structure that something destructive tore through, right? But it’s quite the opposite.”

The reason why people in Yulguk each ride their own mounts, why the Alchemical Nation’s people have become nomads.

“The Golden Mirror ‘alchemized’ that wall as he passed through the barren plains.”

That’s the power of the Golden Mirror, the authority that creates a nation’s territory.

The Golden Mirror overturns everything in existence—or rather, creates something entirely new. Creation itself is a disruption of existing order. To avoid the chaos of his passage, the people of Yulguk have become wanderers.

After a brief pause, I continued my explanation.

“When you think about it, doesn’t it seem strange? Why is the wall built below the hill? Why does such a massive structure break off for no apparent reason? Alchemy explains those questions. It was built below the hill because he used the earth and stones there as materials. The wall cuts off with no trace because… it wasn’t destroyed—it was simply made only up to that point.”

In Yulguk, it isn’t surprising when any terrain or structure appears. The reason is simple.

It exists because the Golden Mirror created it. No further explanation is needed.

However, Tyr, who had been out of touch for three hundred years, raised a question.

“Why did the one called the Golden Mirror leave the wall incomplete?”

“No one but the Golden Mirror knows. Who knows why he still builds walls like that, despite arguments against their use. And why he roams through Yulguk, filling empty lands with random creations. There’s endless speculation.”

“What a strange individual.”

“Well, you’re a vampire who sleeps suspiciously much until people meet you in person, aren’t you? Until you meet the Golden Mirror, you won’t know. I’m only repeating what I’ve heard.”

Anyone with decent knowledge of their neighboring nations’ history could answer this much. And it’s even more likely if that nation is a hypothetical enemy.

For what he claims to be mere hearsay, his understanding is unusually deep…. Didn’t he say he’s a citizen of the Military Nation? He speaks as if he’s lived in Yulguk.

Call it indirect experience. While the Regressor was muttering internally, Tyr suddenly remembered something and clapped his hands.

“Ah, I recall now. Hue, you mentioned in the Abyss that a nation collapsed because someone made endless amounts of gold through alchemy. Was it this Golden Mirror?”

“Oh, you remembered. My teaching wasn’t in vain, after all.”

“Of course. I’ve kept every word you said close to heart.”

“That’s right. The one who plunged the Golden Nation into chaos and ruin was none other than the Golden Mirror, Democrias. His mere existence devalued all the gold and weapons of the Golden Nation, and in a world flooded with fakes more radiant than the real thing, the people of the Golden Nation lost faith in everything.

Trust crumbled, the economy collapsed. The wealthy fell, and the poor declined further. In the endless turmoil, all resentment turned toward the Golden Mirror and the alchemists he had taught. The king of the Golden Nation sought to execute every alchemist….”

There’s no point in explaining any further; the result is right in front of us. I shrugged as I continued.

“Seems he failed, judging by the ruin of the Golden Nation and the current state of Yulguk.”

What exactly happened… I might learn once I meet the Golden Mirror. Why the King of the Golden Nation, a monstrous figure with the authority to understand and analyze all human techniques—the Iron King, one of the Five Monarchs—was ‘devoured’ by a mere human. Why the one who killed the king now calls himself the Golden Mirror.

I’ll have the chance to find out.

“That’s why they say agriculture isn’t possible in Yulguk unless it’s on blessed land. It was never the best for farming, but even if the foundation were laid, once the Golden Mirror passes through… the golden fields they painstakingly cultivated would become the marble floors of a palace.”

That’s why the people of Yulguk treat gold like common stones. They aren’t deceived by appearances. Food, mounts, clothing—they create what they need as they go or seize it when necessary. Their logic centers only on survival.

Despite possessing the most tools in the world, they live in a manner closest to the wild.

The Cataphract moved past the unfinished wall, which had failed in its purpose, revealing the inner land to the wanderers.