#45 - Unexpected interception
As the magical white horse returned, the herd of wild horses automatically made way for it.
Subsequently, Muen was presented with something straight, but definitely not a tail hair.
After placing the long, thorn-like object in Muen's hands, the white horse shook its head and let out a whinny.
"Are you saying this is your father's... horn?"
Muen held the spike with both hands, looking at the horse in bewilderment.
The white horse nodded, then pointed its golden horn towards the willow wood in Muen's pocket.
"Are you saying this can replace the tail hair?"
Muen finally understood what the horse meant.
Seeing the white horse nod in response, Muen became somewhat puzzled.
[Could it know how to make wands?]
Dismissing the absurd thought that flashed through his mind, Muen focused on examining the object in his hand.
It was a spike that had been stored for a long time, covered with a layer of dull golden mottled gray matter.
After gently tapping it, the gray matter began to slowly fall off, gradually revealing a silver filament slightly thicker than a unicorn tail hair inside.
Poof~
Gently blowing away the remaining dull golden powder on the filament, a dazzling silver light flashed across it.
When the white horse saw this scene, two crystal tears flowed from its eyes.
This was definitely a very rare magical material.
Having read "Wand Making and Maintenance", Muen was well aware that items exhibiting magical properties at the material stage were extremely rare.
Unicorn tail hair, dragon heartstring, and Veela hair didn't show any magical properties when they were just materials.
Only when they were embedded in a wand could their magical properties be activated.
And the only thing recorded in "Wand Making and Maintenance" as having extraordinary magical properties at the material stage was phoenix feather.
The feathers of this divine bird could not only be used to make wands, but they were also a talisman in themselves.
......
The silver filament was now floating quietly above Muen's hands, surrounded by specks of light.
Muen was well aware of the preciousness of this gift, and he nodded slightly to express his gratitude.
The herd of wild horses next to him also lowered their heads, as if mourning their former guardian.
"I will use it well, rest assured!"
......
"I told you, this map is definitely accurate."
The sun had already risen high, and Muen and Brad had left the grassland where the wild horse herd was located.
Brad patted his chest proudly, boasting of his family's past glory.
"If I had known, we should have gotten two mares. I noticed a few good stallions in the wild horse herd."
Muen now completely believed in the Forster family's horsemanship, even including that graffiti-like abstract map.
But now his mind wasn't on raising horses. He was carrying all the wand materials on his back.
As long as he returned to the farm cabin tomorrow, Muen would have plenty of time to make a wand.
And it would be a completely different wand.
"You said that... unicorn, right? Could it also give us a..."
Muen's surprised look made Brad not say the following words.
"If you don't mind having a few more holes in your body, I highly encourage you to try it."
"Don't say that. I think you can communicate with it. How about next time I lead a beautiful mare over?"
"No, I refuse!" Muen rode his horse even faster.
"Don't be like that, Muen. It definitely needs it. Otherwise, how was it born?"
......
On the way back, the two teenagers were filled with joy because they had both gotten what they wanted.
However, this good mood didn't last long.
That evening, just as they crossed a stream, they saw the herder's cabin where they were supposed to rest was burned down in the distance.
This was originally where they planned to spend the night.
After discovering this scene, Muen handed the horses to Brad and climbed to the opposite hillside.
From here, he could see the main road not far away.
Suddenly, there were many patrolling soldiers on the road, and many travelers were stopped and taken to the military camp not far away.
After telling Brad the situation, the two decided to take a detour to the herder's spare cave to spend the night.
......
After it slowly got dark outside, Brad lit a bonfire in the cave.
The sudden change made both of them lose the desire to speak.
The army, which should have been at the foot of Snow Eagle Mountain, had actually come near Xilin and was blocking their way home.
This was something the two of them hadn't considered before they came out.
"This is already the hinterland of Flowing Cloud City. The army shouldn't be here, right?"
Brad threw a piece of firewood into the fire, muttering to himself.
The boundary between the Gracia Federation and the Melani Empire was Heitu City, north of Black Iron Mountain.
It would take at least twenty days to cross Snow Eagle Mountain from there.
And the wild horse herd that Muen and Brad went to find this time was on the southernmost side of Snow Eagle Mountain. It was at least a month away from the front line.
Moreover, the war was still in the preparation stage, and the armies of both countries had not yet completed their assembly.
This was also the reason why Muen and Brad dared to come and find the wild horse herd.
But now the army was actually blocking the road inside Flowing Cloud City, which was already a state of military control.
"They don't seem to be fighting a war, but looking for someone," Muen replied casually, unloading the package on his body.
"Looking for someone? This is almost Xilin. Besides, looking for someone shouldn't be the army's business!"
Xilin was located at the southernmost end of Flowing Cloud City and was also a prosperous port.
Even during the Federal Sovereignty War ten years ago, Xilin had never been under military control.
Muen didn't know how to answer this question. His understanding of war might not be as familiar as Brad, who came from a herding family.
But not being familiar with war didn't mean he wasn't sensitive to danger.
Sudden events often represent the unknown and risks.
In order to deal with possible changes, Muen could only choose to make a wand at this time.
Taking out the toolbox, Muen began to work under the light of the fire.
Seeing this scene, Brad also closed his mouth.
In his opinion, it didn't matter who the army was looking for.
Anyway, he had run all over the nearby area when he was herding horses. If the army was still blocking the road tomorrow, he would lead Muen on a detour and be able to return to Xilin.
......
Muen's wand making was originally at the last step: embedding the wand core.
It's just that the wand core he received now was a bit thicker, so he had to adjust the size of the wand core groove.
This was not a difficult task for Muen, who had experimented hundreds of times.
When Brad leaned against the wall and prepared to sleep, Muen had completed the final step.
The wand core was embedded into the groove of the willow branch without any sense of disharmony.
When Muen was about to glue the wand together, something strange happened.
The green fluorescent light that had originally seeped into the tree trunk actually began to slowly exude outwards, and a green fluorescent light slowly appeared in the originally divided place.
Then the wand miraculously healed, and there was no trace of the originally divided place.
Fortunately, ordinary people couldn't see the magical fluorescent light, and Brad next to him was already almost asleep.
When Muen was about to get up and go outside the cave to conduct a wand test, a stranger's hoarse voice suddenly came from outside the cave.
"It's really fortunate, it turns out there are really people here~"
