As the carriage slows down, I focus my gaze on Baron Camux. "Go, I hope you make it in time." Huh? What does that mean? His words leave a bitter taste in my mouth—I don't know why.

I open the door while the carriage is still moving. Just before I jump, I feel through my pseudo-domain that the last monsters are dying. From what I can sense, they're wolf-type. Huh? They're already dead? So that's what he meant when he said, I hope you make it in time. Because they're such low-tier monsters, the soldiers kill them instantly. This sucks.

I sit back in my seat, defeated. I glance at the Baron, who's holding back a smirk. He's clearly enjoying how miserable I am for not getting to fight.

The same thing happens two more times in the next three hours. I'm starting to lose it. I can't arrive in time because of the battle mages. The only way the carriage would actually stop is if a large horde appeared—which is almost impossible on this route.

I give up on fighting and start training my Imra. I sit in a yoga pose, cross-legged, close my eyes, and start moving my Imra side to side. I've gained more control thanks to my new ability, but I'm still a rookie.

I can't do anything complex yet. Anything with detailed construction is way out of reach. There's still so much to refine—especially one thing: being able to sense what someone transmits when they answer questions.

I remember someone mentioning it before, but I'd completely forgotten. Recently, I realized something that most adults do when talking to me—they use their Imra to touch mine, to extract more details from my responses.

So what's more important? Blocking it? Learning it? Ugh, so hard to decide… After thinking for a bit, I decide that learning to block it might be easier. But then—how?

How do people learn the details of something? To understand the human body, they open it. To know a material's content, they research it. To build an object, you have to know its inner workings. So then… is there a way to block that?

My mind is on the verge of short-circuiting from so many unanswered questions. Eventually, I reach a conclusion: The only way to truly know something is from the inside. And to block that? You need to be strong enough on the outside, so no one can get in and figure you out.

With a new sense of pride and motivation, I begin training that kind of Imra. I try to keep my Imra sealed tightly around my body. Not even a single thread should leak—those tiny loose strands reveal unconscious information.

I lose track of time. I have no idea how many hours I spend trying to seal my Imra. In the end, I get no results. I'm still too inexperienced for this kind of ability. I need more practice.

"Did you give up?" A voice snaps me out of my thoughts. I open my eyes and see the Baron. Sol is also looking at him. Cris is fast asleep, making little noises.

"Yeah… it's impossible to make it in time with battle mages guarding the carriages." I admit my defeat. Sure, I could pretend to be a mage and fight that way, but honestly, that would bring me more trouble than benefits.

"I could order them to stop the carriage for a close-combat fight." I stare directly into Uncle Camux's eyes. Hope floods my body.

"Really?" That's the only word that comes out of my mouth. My heart leaps with excitement—I can finally blow off some steam!

"I could… but I won't." A mischievous smile spreads across his face. "You have to understand, Maki—I don't want my tournament stars arriving late." He gives me one last playful look, clearly enjoying my disappointed expression.

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He places the book he's holding over his face, shifts his body into a comfortable position, and a few moments later, begins snoring softly. Cris usually falls asleep just as quickly—like uncle, like nephew.

Sol yawns a little too. We had lunch not long ago while the carriage was moving. Dinner will be in a few hours, so I guess it's nap time. I close my eyes, and slowly, the god of sleep takes me into his arms.

I wake up to the smell of food in the air. The carriage slows so we can eat in peace. Since we're still moving, we can't have soups or anything messy. Dinner is a mix of rice, beans, and fried fish.

My body feels brand new after that nap and a meal. Training Imra is exhausting. I've always known that, but since I love pushing past my limits, I never really took fatigue seriously.

"Kids—I almost forgot. Want to play something?" Camux speaks up, and all of us turn toward him at once.

"I have a deck of cards I completely forgot about. We could play Blaja if you're up for it." Cris and Sol are surprised—and start getting excited.

Me? I have no clue what Blaja is. "Can you explain it to me?" I don't want to miss out on the fun. When I ask for the rules, they both look at me in disbelief.

"You've never played?" Cris asks first.

"Nope, never even heard of it." Sol starts explaining the game, and I understand it immediately—it's just Blackjack. I've never been great at it, but at least I know the rules and can join them.

Some other reincarnated person or assimilated soul probably brought this game over and shortened the name.

We spend three hours playing together. I start off terribly, but improve little by little. In the end, the Baron is the undisputed champion. The carriage eventually stops so we can rest and sleep before another day on the road.

I stay alone in the carriage—or, better said at night, my room. With no one around to see my abilities, I begin constructing pieces of armor all over my body using ice mana, then infuse Imra into them to make them more stable.

I spend a long time doing just that, alternating between building with and without Imra. Finally, when my internal clock tells me it's bedtime, I grab the sheets and fall asleep almost instantly.

The next day passes quickly—more of the same until nightfall.

"We're almost there." Baron Camux's words wake up Cris, who's next to him. Sol and I look out the windows and see Marril in the distance.

It looks twice as big as Talar, and it's quite lively—even at night.

"We're finally back. I missed my home," Cris says, clearly excited.

"After all this time, I can finally sleep comfortably in my bed," Sol adds, visibly relieved and happy to return to her city.

"You didn't like Talar or Mancor? That kinda hurts. I thought you had a great experience." Their faces twist into awkward smiles as they apologize and try to explain.

I laugh and tell them I was joking. They both pout and turn back to stare at their city through the window.

The city gate is large and beautifully decorated. You can tell people worked hard on it—it looks both majestic and elegant. We skip the short line at the entrance. Inside, the city looks quite similar to my village in terms of architecture, but the difference lies in the size and number of houses.

We won't do any sightseeing until tomorrow—our only free day. The day after that, we'll teleport to Primaver right after breakfast. We need to arrive early for the tournament registration.

I sleep in a private room at the Baron's house. It's slightly smaller than my room back home, but just as comfortable. The bone-white walls give it a warm, homely feeling.

We have a light breakfast in the dining room before heading out to explore the city. We don't want to fill up too much—we want to sample the local street food.

The city really does feel like my hometown. There's compacted sand everywhere, a few streets with neatly cut stones, and houses made mostly from wood and stone.

The street food is just as delicious. I start trying different snacks here and there. My parents gave me some spending money, and this is the perfect time to use it.

We arrive at a large fountain in the middle of a street and rest in the shade. Sol wears a red dress that reaches her knees—elegant and casual at the same time—with comfy walking sandals. Cris has gray pants, a white shirt with sleeves to the elbows, and white shoes that match well. I'm also wearing a white shirt, dark blue pants, and matching shoes—courtesy of my mother, so I don't embarrass the family.

We continue sightseeing until lunchtime, then return to their home for the meal. We'll spend the rest of the afternoon at the Solar household. I'll have time to explore more after the tournament.

Cris and Sol go off to their training sessions. Sol especially needs to improve as much as possible for the tournament in a few days.

They've given me a small room for training—just enough space. Time to shake off this stiffness from all the traveling!

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