"Huh?… I heard something," Min said.

"Hello…" a voice echoed faintly.

Both Ahrie and Min looked around, scanning left and right.

"Where the hell is that coming from?"

"Heeeeelloooooo…"

"HELLOOOO!" Min screamed back instinctively.

Ahrie squinted, hand raised near his brow—then noticed the faint glow on his ring.

The voice was coming from there.

"The fuck?" he muttered.

Min tilted his head. "Your jewelry's talking to you now?"

Ahrie lifted the ring to his mouth. "Yooo…"

"Oh hi! Is this Ahrie?" the voice replied.

"No…" Ahrie raised both hands dramatically, grinning like a villain. "...kekekek It is I—"

"Okay then, goodbye."

"W-wait, it's me!" Ahrie cut in quickly.

"Remember the place where you got that ring?" the voice said.

"Yeah."

"Go there tomorrow. Big extermination job."

The ring dimmed, the voice fading out.

Ahrie stared at it for a second—then grinned.

Min leaned in. "What was that about?"

"Money," Ahrie said with a wide grin.

Min grinned back. "Ohhh… I like that."

They sat down, placing their bronze coins in front of them.

"It's gonna be a long road ahead…" Ahrie muttered.

Min sighed. "We need a horse."

Both froze.

Then their eyes widened.

They looked at each other—same thought.

They immediately started counting their coins.

Ahrie dumped his pouch. Min did the same.

"Three hundred twenty-eight," Min said.

"Damn… hope that's enough."

They jumped up and sprinted straight to the stables.

Inside, rows of jacked horses stood like muscular statues—veins, manes, and pure attitude.

"How much?" Min asked, eyes shining.

"Five-fifty," the stable owner replied.

Ahrie and Min were gone before the man could blink.

They walked along the street, heads low, spirits crushed.

"Why the hell are horses so expensive…" Min grumbled.

As they dragged their feet past the town square, Ahrie spotted the elder's house.

"Ohhh… maybe I can get one." He suddenly grinned and jogged off.

Min blinked. "Wait—what?"

He chased after Ahrie, still confused but somehow hopeful.

Ahrie knocked on the elder's door.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

One knock at a time—slow and suspicious.

The door cracked open. The butler peeked through.

"Yoooo," Ahrie greeted.

"…It's you," the butler said flatly.

"Is the elder home?" Ahrie asked.

"Yes, but… what are you doing here?"

"I was hoping we could borrow one of your horses," Ahrie said. "The one you gave us before kinda… ran away."

The butler chuckled. "Hold on a moment."

The door shut.

Min turned to Ahrie. "Whose house is this? Some rich guy who owes you money?"

"No," Ahrie said, face suddenly serious.

"This is the house… of a scary gang leader."

Min froze, eyes wide.

Ahrie burst out laughing. "Pff—look at your face!"

A few minutes later, the door opened again. The butler smiled politely.

"The elder agreed. Please, follow me."

They walked toward the stable.

"Woaaah…" Min said as the gate opened.

Dozens of jacked horses stood inside, their muscles flexing like they were posing for a painting.

"Look at all these jacked horses…" Min whispered in awe.

The butler raised an eyebrow. "Jacked… horses?"

Ahrie and Min pointed proudly at them. "Those!"

"Ah," the butler said. "You mean Etrahne."

"Wooaah—Etrahne," Min repeated awkwardly, pretending to know.

"Yeah—wooaaah, totally," Ahrie echoed.

The butler continued walking. The two followed behind quietly.

"We'll ditch that Etrahne thing, right?" Ahrie whispered.

"Y–yeah… jacked horse is fine," Min whispered back.

"We're here," the butler said. "Pick one you like."

Ahrie and Min looked at each other.

"Do you know how to pick?" Min asked.

"Hell nah, bro."

"Ouff… we're fucked then," Min grinned.

They started walking through the stable, pretending they knew what they were doing.

The butler followed a few steps behind, hands neatly clasped.

They stopped at a grayish horse—bulky, scarred, and mean-looking, its eyes a deep scarlet.

"This one," the butler said, "is a war horse that accompanied the elder during his active years. Ninety-one years old."

"Damn…" Ahrie and Min both blinked.

"Respectfully… next."

They kept moving, checking every stall, hoping something called out to them.

Then Ahrie spotted it—

a jacked horse hiding in the corner, trembling like it saw a ghost.

His eyes widened.

The same damn horse he'd chased for days.

Ahrie slowly crept behind it… quiet… patient…

The horse turned its head, scanning the area. When it didn't see Ahrie, it exhaled in relief—

Then a voice whispered right behind its ear:

"F-o-u-n-d y-aaaa."

The jacked horse screamed like a dying trumpet and bolted forward—

but Ahrie grabbed the rope just in time.

The rope strained. The horse started dragging him across the dirt.

Min, sitting in the corner with sunglasses and a bag of popcorn, didn't even move.

"Yeah, that's definitely the one."

Ahrie shouted through gritted teeth, "THIS IS THE ONE!"

He locked eyes with the horse. "We'll spar every day. Three times a day. Every week. Every month."

The horse's eyes watered. It shook its head violently—no, please, anything but that.

It pulled harder.

The rope frayed.

And with one last desperate yank—

Snap.

The horse galloped off into the distance.

Ahrie sat in the dirt, covered in hay, smiling like a maniac.

"…I love that one."

The jacked horse sprinted straight into the next stable house.

Ahrie groaned. "Oi, Min! Help me ou—"

He froze.

"Where the fuck did you get that?"

Min slowly pulled down his shades, a bag of popcorn in his hand.

"Dunno. Found it next to me."

He squinted at a note taped to the bag.

"'For dynamic effects.'"

The air went dead quiet.

Craaaw… a crow screamed somewhere.

Ahrie scratched his head. "Just… help me catch the damn horse."

Then he spotted the butler trying—and failing—to hide his laughter.

Ahrie's eye twitched.

They moved to the next stable.

The jacked horse was there again, shaking in the corner.

As Ahrie, Min, and the butler approached, the horse suddenly pushed something forward—

A young, slim horse stepped out.

Jet black from head to hoof, eyes glowing a sharp blue.

"What the hell is that?" both Ahrie and Min asked.

The butler stayed silent, his face unreadable.

The jacked horse peeked from behind the slim one, trembling.

Ahrie and Min ignored the new horse and kept walking toward their old target—

Then the slim horse charged.

It swung its front leg straight at Min's head.

Min tilted his head slightly, dodging with a calm smirk—

and started popping.

The butler blinked.

The horse froze mid-attack, confused.

Ahrie facepalmed. "Bro thinks he's in a music video…"

While the slim horse was busy trading blows with Min, Ahrie bolted in from the side—

he spun midair, ready to pull off a butterfly kick.

The slim horse braced itself, eyes narrowing, muscles tensing—

WHAAAM.

The poor thing dropped like a sack of rocks.

Ahrie had used the flat side of his rapier, knocking some sense into it.

He dusted off his hands, kept walking.

Then the slim horse staggered back up… and blocked his path again.

"This persistent bastard…" Ahrie muttered, cracking his neck.

He raised his rapier for another hit—

—but the horse lowered its stance.

Then bowed.

"Eh?" Ahrie blinked.

The butler blinked too. "Oh…" he muttered, realizing something.

"Seems like it's chosen you."

"Chosen me?" Ahrie raised a brow. "The hell you mean by that?"

"Etrahne has a hierarchy," the butler began.

"Low-born and high-born.

The low ones are the brown types — good for carriage work, hauling, all that."

He gestured around the stable. "But the high-born… they're prideful. They don't serve just anyone. Too stubborn for their own good. This whole stable? Built just for that one," he nodded toward the slim horse. "It refuses to share space with the others."

Ahrie crossed his arms. "So getting picked by one's a big deal?"

"Very," the butler said with a small grin. "A lucky encounter, really."

"So they're strong then?"

"They can be. High-born Etrahne has a chance to unlock unique abilities."

Ahrie's grin spread. He looked down at the slim horse bowing before him—

Then the butler added,

"…in about thirty years or so."

"HAAA?!" Ahrie's yell echoed through the stable.

He glared at the jacked horse in the corner.

"I'd rather fight that fucker instead!"

The jacked horse screamed back, shaking its head violently.

"Picked me too!!" Ahrie shouted.

"NEIGHHH!!" the horse screamed back even louder.

The butler burst out laughing.

Moments later—

Ahrie and Min walked out of the elder's stable, leading the slim black horse behind them.

Both of them looked defeated.

"Dude… how the hell's this horse gonna carry us?" Min muttered.

"Dunno… shaaatupp…" Ahrie groaned.

They walked down the dirt path in silence.

The sun was setting.

Ahrie waved a lazy hand without looking back.

"See you tomorrow, Min."

"Yea…" Min replied.

Both looked exhausted.

Defeated.

Ahrie and the slim horse stopped in front of the inn.

The owner stared — confused — but Ahrie's face screamed "don't ask."

The man sighed. "...Nah, fuck it. Let 'em in."

Ahrie shoved the horse through the door, dragging it up the stairs like it was luggage.

Wood creaked. Someone upstairs yelled, "What the hell is that noise?"

Inside his room, Ahrie tied the horse beside his bed.

"Stay put."

He headed out to buy feed.

By the time he came back—

The slim horse was sprawled across his bed, snoring like it paid rent.

Ahrie froze.

Then, calm but seething—

"...Wake up, you piece of shit."

He kicked the bed. The horse jolted awake.

Ahrie tossed the food down. "Eat."

The horse stared at it, then at him. Didn't move.

Ahrie's eyebrow twitched.

"Eat."

The horse turned its head away.

"…You're testing me, huh."

Next thing you know—

THUD. THUD. THUD.

Outside, the inn's customers froze mid-bite.

The owner stared at the ceiling.

"…What is he doing up there?"

Another THUD.

Someone whispered,

"Is he… fighting the horse?"

Then came the muffled sound of chewing.

Followed by Ahrie's voice, out of breath—

"Eat up so you gain weight dumbass"

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