Chapter 96 – The Famous Horse Gradturk
“I see. Lord Licorice and the others are at …….”
“Yes, yes. You said you wanted to come to the desert, so we thought we’d pick you up.”
“I’m going for a spin in Gradturk! So one night at …… two days at the most should be enough!”
“Oh, I’ve only seen that horse at the awards ceremony, that I have not. Do you mind if I go with you to the stables?”
So the three of us went to the stables.
It was decided that Riizu and Serene would remain at the guild home.
They will return to blacksmithing and blending respectively.
“But why don’t all the guild members go out to meet him, that I don’t know?”
Tobi mutters as he leaves the platform and walks through the city.
On the road and in the city, players we passed would notice us and wave or call out to us.
This happens a lot right after a tournament, but I’m sure it will subside soon.
It would be nice if the NPCs would give you a discount on their products, though, since you are supposed to have won on behalf of Saara as well as the players.
And as for Tobi’s question about why the five of us didn’t go together, it was obvious.
“Let’s figure out the maximum number of people in the party. We’ll have to beat the field bosses while raising the girls’ levels.”
“Ah, yes. The party is limited to five people, so it’s no use having all of us there, that it is.”
“It’s our friend to begin with. It makes sense for us to go here, doesn’t it?”
“I’m a friend of a friend, that I’m delicate, Selene is shy, and Liz is incompatible with Siesta, that I’m not. ……”
Either way, if two people are going, it’s going to be us.
While we were talking, we arrived at the stables. …… Tobi looked around and immediately found it.
That’s why–
“It’s huge, that it is. ……”
“When you said “great horse,” I imagined a slender, thin horse.”
“Well, it’s the emperor’s horse, so I guess it makes sense!”
They stand out, compared to the other horses and camels.
The two Gradturks were both black horses with fine, fluffy manes and sturdy bodies.
In the camel-heavy stables of Warha, they graze as calmly as if they were masters.
Despite its rather sluggish appearance, it is a famous horse, and once it starts running, it is extremely fast.
It takes about half the time to get from Waja to Maiya by camel.
“Well, he’s a big horse, so brother Alberto would be a better fit. It’s not for us to say, though, since we took that opportunity away from him.”
“That’s true, that it is. It would look great if my heavily armed brother rode it. But if this horse is light enough, two people can ride it,……, or even three, can’t they?”
“Now that you mention it, two men might be okay, three women might be okay.”
The Gradturk has that much size.
Even Tobi, who had never seen one before and didn’t know much about running, was impressed by its sturdy appearance.
“Well, I’d better get going, Hind.”
After completing the formalities with the NPC who manages the stables, Yumir puts the harness on Gladturk.
As I was talking to Tobi, I followed suit.
“Yeah, I guess so. It wouldn’t be good if we were late for the rendezvous.”
“Have a good day, that I do.”
“Mmm! I’m off!”
With Tobi seeing me off, I set out into the Luqiyah Desert toward the Grado Empire.
First, we headed for the border via the oasis city of Maiya, followed by the wilderness city of Baska.
The Gradturk is ruthlessly good, but it has less stamina than a camel, so it needs to take frequent breaks.
When we arrived at Maiya, we had to make sure to water and feed the animals.
“Now I am the wind! Move it, Gladstark!”
“Don’t get excited and go to ……!
“I know! Don’t worry!”
Nevertheless, as I sit on its back, I know exactly how it feels.
Not that I was dissatisfied with the camel, but this sense of speed was going to be addictive.
The scenery flowed backwards at high speed.
Since it’s a desert, there are few landmarks, so it’s hard to tell how far you’ve come. ……
Gradturk kicked powerfully at the sand and went forward, forward, forward.
I guess they’re tolerant of the desert heat.
“Oh, I see. If you look at that thing, it’s …… Oh, it’s so fast.”
As I muttered and zoomed in on the map in the menu, it was easy to understand the speed at a glance.
I see a straight line towards the city of Maiya, quickly crushing the distance that was so far away.
This is only my third time on the Gradturk, so there are many things I haven’t fully grasped.
“Hind, let’s race to Maiya for a change!”
“Competition? I mean, they’re the same horse in terms of performance in the game, so wouldn’t they be tied?”
“We’ll never know unless we try! Let’s go!”
“Oh, hey!”
Yumir kicked the horse in the stomach and accelerated.
I regripped the reins of my own Gradturk and hurried after it.
Maiya was already in front of me, and I could faintly see the city beyond the mirage.
“Why …… are you running ahead of me, why are we losing ……?”
As it turned out, I overtook Yumir on the way and arrived at Maiya first.
Now we pay for the use of the oasis and give the Gradturks water to drink.
“I don’t know, maybe you’re heavier than me now. You know, if you think about it–“
“How dare you call me, a woman, heavy!”
“Listen to me, until the end! I mean, when are you going to realize you’re wearing armor! This is probably the third time I’ve said this to you, come on!”
“Oh, …… it was. But Hind, the weight of your armor will continue to decrease due to status compensation, right? So it’s no wonder you don’t know your exact weight anymore.”
“I guess that’s what they say. ……”
Because with the priest’s puny physical attack and physical defense, that kind of thing almost never happens.
However, there is one thing to keep in mind in light of what happened this time.
“‘But you’ve found that when you’re riding, as in real life, the lighter you are, the faster you’ll go. Why don’t you basically just leave your gear off while you’re riding?”
“Sure, it’s just a matter of opening the menu and one-touching it. I’ll do that next time.”
When the player is not wearing any equipment, he looks like a plain clothes.
If you are in the desert, all you need is a cloak to protect you from the sun and you will be fine.
I feel that the lighter the weight, the longer the stamina of the camel or horse will last, and once it is in the inventory, the weight will be gone.
When you enter a battle, open the menu and recall the equipment set that you have memorized, and you’ll be fine.
Priests and wizards don’t basically equip armor, so I don’t think it’s worth it, but other professions with heavier equipment may be able to get certain effects.
As I spoke to that point, I saw that Gradturk and the others had finished their water.
“Well, let’s go with the new revelation.”
“Hmm. I’ll be the first to arrive next!”
“No, I’m done with the competition.”
Licorice and the others have just informed us that they are waiting for us at the border fort.
From here, the Yavirga Desert and Baska Wilderness are a long way ahead, but these two horses should be able to reach them in no time.
We proceeded further east with Gradturk, aiming to meet up at the border.
