Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 760 - : The Elf’s Horsemanship

Chapter 760 -760: The Elf’s Horsemanship

“The witches of the Fifth Era weren’t all keen on horse-riding.”

While the maid of the Lemer household went to register Shard, and the stableman went to prepare the saddle and other items, Shard stood in the stables and said to Tifa.

The dark-haired girl clasped her hands naturally in front of her chest, always so elegant and full of charm, regardless of the moment.

“You know about this too?”

“Yes.”

Two different echoes of witches had not only given Shard interesting knowledge but also let him understand some of the customs and cultures of the Fifth Era. He hoped to use this conversation to alleviate his own unease:

“Powerful witches can fly on their own or use alchemical tools like flying carpets. Those who prefer mounts might have alchemical golems or majestic spirit horses. The witches who truly prefer living mounts tend to favor unicorns or four-winged pegasi.”

“But even in the Fifth Era, unicorns were a cherished species. And although four-winged pegasi were not rare, their price was also very high.”

Tifa said curiously, and Shard nodded, then gently stroked the chestnut horse’s head, hoping it wouldn’t throw him off later:

“That’s why the lower-ranked witches and those who need to travel long distances actually favor chocobos the most.”

This fact was also mentioned in “Feliana’s Notes.” Miss Feliana was particularly fond of travelling while seated on the side of chocobos, and these creatures also had a good carrying capacity. There was a half-page in the notes dedicated to the food recipe for chocobos, a pity that in the Sixth Era, Shard had not yet seen such creatures.

As if seeing through Shard’s thoughts, Tifa smiled and said:

“I heard from the miss that the Sekses Medical Academy and the Papacy of the Church of Nature still have large groups of chocobos. Other Magic Academies and churches also breed them in small quantities. They’re just never traded to prevent commoners from seeing them, so chocobos can only live within certain areas. If you really go to the Far North’s Saint Byrons, you should be able to see Circle Sorcerers riding chocobos, traveling through the ancient castle clusters and academy cities.”

This imagination and sense of imagery suddenly pulled the world, in the midst of the steam wave, back to the medieval fantasy era.

“I hope among the chocobos, there’s one with the same color as Mia.”

Shard thought and then recalled the Elven Knowledge he had acquired after completing the Divine Banquet’s Time Key.

That vast knowledge was stored in his head and hadn’t been fully mastered by Shard all at once. And now, as he recalled, the knowledge about elven horsemanship suddenly popped up in front of him.

“Oh?”

He suddenly exclaimed and turned to ask Tifa:

“May I borrow a strand of your hair?”

“Of course, what for?”

“I think I’ve found a way to learn horse-riding temporarily.”

Soon, a new round of horse racing began. Shard, mounted on the chestnut horse and holding the reins, appeared on the second track. It seemed that someone had spread the word about “Rejed’s Hamilton” joining the race, and when Shard showed up, there was actually a round of vigorous applause from the sparse audience.

The autumn sun outside was a bit dazzling; Shard lifted his hand wearing the anti-abrasion glove to shield his eyes from the sunlight.

In his left glove, he had the “Animal Obedience” talisman that Tifa gave him, and around his waist was an amulet, the “Lucky Rider Amulet.”

This was the skill of the elves, using a woman’s hair, an elven token, and a stone from the stable, combined with simple rune engraving, they could create an amulet that helped the rider control the mount. Of course, Elf Riders usually used such amulets to tame more powerful mounts, rather than ordinary horses.

Shard didn’t have an “Elven token,” but he had the “Ever-Youth Leaf.” Using Tifa’s long hair, with a special braiding technique, he tied the leaf and a random stable stone together, then used a knife to inscribe Elven Runes on the stone surface—Tifa did the engraving, as Shard didn’t have such fine craftsmanship.

Now, that amulet hung at Shard’s waist, and it was with this simple amulet that Shard felt confident he wouldn’t embarrass himself in the upcoming race.

[How fascinating.]

“She” was chuckling softly.

The referee, a bearded man in a red shirt, had already come over, and the riders were getting on their horses, ready to start. On the track to Shard’s right, the brown-haired youth who looked slightly older than Shard actually flipped him the middle finger.

Shard frowned and turned to look at Tifa beside the track. Miss Maid nodded; she had found her target for the “delayed Limp Curse.”

“What’s so fascinating?”

Shard gripped the reins a bit nervously.

[Remember the content of the God of Gambling’s Blessing “Mortal Luck”?]

The referee blew the whistle softly, signaling that the race was about to start. Then, he raised the revolver into the sky.

“In any gambling game, I can display an unusual amount of luck.”

[So, is there a wager on this horse race?]

Bang~

The gunshot exploded, and Shard took off immediately.

“There is.”

[So, what are you worried about?]

The horse race Shard took part in did not require leaving the racetrack to loop a nearby path, but rather to complete three full rounds of the racetrack itself.

There were a total of nine contestants, and at the start, two horses from lanes eight and nine actually collided. Then, during the first turn, something resembling a water bottle was thrown down from the stands, startling the frontrunner in lane three.

Thus, by the end of the first lap, Shard found himself last in the leading group. He was only trailing three horses, and the leader was merely two and a half horse lengths ahead of him.

No surprises occurred during the first lap; the power of the amulet allowed Shard to handle the docile mount well. The chestnut horse might not have been the fastest, but it was definitely the most stable, almost making Shard believe he could actually ride a horse.

Halfway through the second lap, Tifa’s delayed [Limp Curse] took effect. The contestant in lane four, half a horse length ahead of Shard, let out a panicked cry and dropped out of the first tier, while the stands erupted with timely cheers and whistles.

So, inexplicably, Shard became third.

The race entered its final lap, with Shard, growing increasingly comfortable with horse riding, handling the stable progress with even greater ease. He leaned forward slightly, thinking only of maintaining his third position until the finish line.

However, to his surprise, on the final straightaway, the chestnut horse actually picked up speed on its own. Its pace had been stable in the front, and it remained very stable even during this final sprint.

When he finally crossed the finish line, Shard had even overtaken the second place—this was confirmed after repeated verification.

Therefore, Shard, who could not ride a horse at all, managed to achieve second place in this horse racing competition.

Afterward, when he returned to Miss Galina’s side, she even jokingly encouraged Shard to continue racing. According to the schedule’s rules, if Shard could participate in five consecutive races and maintain the first place in total points, not only would he receive a very commemorative medal, but he would also be awarded a considerable prize money.

Of course, Shard declined.

But at least, Miss Galina achieved her goal of changing the subject. After Shard returned to the stands, Queen Diana never mentioned the Princess again, instead becoming interested in Shard’s horsemanship.

She even wanted to invite Shard, a young man with a knighthood title, to participate in the “Tobesk Horsemanship Competition” next spring. The “Tobesk Horsemanship Competition” is a regional event inherited from olden times, originally intended to showcase the bravery of knights, but in the Steam Age of declining knight class, it was to enrich the cultural life of citizens.

The “Tobesk Horsemanship Competition” requires riders to race on a specified outdoor route, using longswords and bows and arrows to attack targets set up along the way. The ranking is based on a combination of the number of hits and the final arrival time. The winner can exceptionally receive the “Draleon Honor Knight Medal” and be featured on the front page of the Draleon Evening News on the same day. Of course, almost all of the annual winners are nobles, as commoners don’t have time for such professional training.

This is the most renowned official activity in the Tobesk Region during spring besides His Majesty the King’s inspection of the spring sowing.

“I will consider it,” Shard replied evasively, though he had no interest whatsoever in participating in such an event.

Anyway, Shard spent the remaining afternoon time nestling with Mia by Miss Galina’s side. It was not until around four-thirty in the afternoon that Queen Diana prepared to return to the city.

Miss Galina did not follow, but instead returned to the manor with Tifa and Shard, inviting Shard to dine with her.

In the dining room where the crystal chandeliers brightly illuminated the gold and silverware on the spotless white tablecloths. A porcelain vase sat in the center of the long table, containing the two wilted roses that Shard had given away—the witch had, of course, noticed Shard passing the flowers to Miss Maid, but she did not seem to care at all.

The cat lay beside Shard waiting to be fed, while Tifa poured wine for both with the new fruit wine Shard had just created. The witch gazed out at the manor’s courtyard from the window, and Shard fiddled with the ring in his hand.

After the race, he had received the Queen’s feather fan and Miss Galina’s gold ring as agreed. Just as he thought, it turned out to be an alchemical item made by the witch herself.

“It’s nothing important, just something that can detect malice. When you’re looked upon with a malicious gaze, you’ll be able to sense it faintly. I wear it when I attend gatherings with many people, but it doesn’t work very well on Circle Sorcerers. Just consider it a toy,” Miss Galina explained, then watched as Shard handed the ring to the cat beside him.

Mia, lounging on the table, moved a bit like a wriggling worm, sniffed the ring with her tiny pink nose, then turned her head away disdainfully, completely uninterested.

“Hmm? Doesn’t it like the ring?”

Shard was puzzled now, too.