From Slave to King: My Rebate System Built Me a Kingdom With Beauties!-Chapter 231: Journey Back.

Byung and the rest of the orcs were already back on the road by the time the sun fully rose, their horses moving at a steady pace that ate up distance far more efficiently than walking would have. They rode through treacherous terrain that shifted between dense forest and rocky outcroppings, the path winding in ways that made navigation challenging even for the sisters who claimed familiarity with the region.

But Byung could no longer stop thinking about the bigger picture that the dwarf’s words had painted. The dark continent was the only thing occupying his mind now, consuming his thoughts with possibilities and preparations he needed to make. He absolutely had to make sure his settlement’s forces were ready to face that existential threat once the barrier eventually dropped. Because it would drop—the dwarf’s certainty about that had been too complete to dismiss as mere delusion.

There was something Byung had learned during his previous life on Earth, a truth that applied across worlds and circumstances: no one could stop the inevitable, especially when it was simply the natural order of things reasserting itself. Barriers weakened. Seals failed. What was separated would eventually reconnect. Fighting against such fundamental forces was like trying to hold back the ocean with your bare hands—you might delay it briefly, but the outcome was never truly in question.

Byung rode behind the youngest orc sister, deliberately positioning his horse where he could listen to how they spoke among themselves without being obviously intrusive. Their conversation was casual, comfortable, the easy banter of siblings who’d traveled together countless times. They were absolutely nothing like Kraghul in temperament or outlook—where he’d been bitter and consumed by rage, they showed humor and genuine affection for each other.

"Father was surprisingly calm when we left," Mazga said, adjusting her position in the saddle. "I expected more resistance to his daughters riding out on a rescue mission."

"He knows we’re capable," Roktha replied with a snort. "And he knows Kraghul needs us more than he needs his pride intact. Father’s practical above all else—sentiment doesn’t override necessity."

Thulga, the youngest, laughed quietly. "He still made us promise to send word the moment we found our brother. I think he’s more worried than he’s letting on. Kraghul’s been missing too long."

"Of course he’s worried," Mazga said softly. "That’s his son. Our brother. But Father also knows that sending a full war party would attract too much attention, create political complications we don’t need. This way is cleaner."

Byung kept his mouth shut, listening but not contributing, learning their dynamics through observation rather than interaction. He hoped desperately that he would soon recognize the road they were currently traveling on, some landmark or familiar feature that would tell him how far they were from his settlement or from any location he knew. But everything remained frustratingly unfamiliar from horseback.

But more troubling than simple disorientation, he had an increasingly uneasy feeling he couldn’t shake. Because somehow, inexplicably, he could listen to their thoughts in addition to their spoken words. Not clearly—it was passive, fragmentary, more like hearing conversation from another room than reading minds directly. But it was definitely there, an ability he absolutely hadn’t possessed before.

This realization led to another disturbing discovery: he was missing time. Large chunks of the previous day were simply gone from his memory, blank spots where experience should be but wasn’t. He couldn’t shake off the growing certainty that darkness had come far too quickly last night, that the transition from evening to deep night had happened in a way that didn’t match how time normally flowed.

And this elf that seemed to follow him around invisibly, tethered to him through mechanisms he didn’t understand—she wasn’t like the other elves he’d encountered. Velara operated by different rules entirely, moved through shadows and silence in ways that suggested corruption had fundamentally altered what she was.

Byung decided to gamble on a possibility that had just occurred to him. If his system could track experience and skills, could record his transformations and abilities, surely it could access memories he couldn’t consciously retrieve? He focused internally and asked his system directly to fill in the missing time, to show him what had happened during those blank hours.

This was potentially the single greatest advantage his system provided—not just power or evolution, but perfect information storage that his biological brain couldn’t corrupt or lose.

And to his utmost surprise and growing horror, everything that had occurred during those missing hours replayed in his head like watching a movie on fast-forward. The elf’s invisible presence, the sexual encounter, every moment of it returned with perfect clarity. The playback happened in what felt like a single second because time didn’t move the same way in his subconscious mind as it did in external reality. Information could be downloaded and processed at speeds his conscious thoughts couldn’t match.

Byung was absolutely speechless as the implications crashed over him in waves. The encounter hadn’t been a dream. Velara was definitely still tethered to him, definitely still influencing his experiences, definitely still pursuing her own mysterious agenda through their connection.

But looking past the immediate shock, it all suddenly made perfect sense in a way he should have realized sooner. If he now had access to magic through absorbing her abilities, it logically meant he should be able to learn significantly more about magical theory and application through careful observation of the elf who continued following him around. She was a living repository of corrupted dark elf knowledge spanning centuries.

"You’re very quiet back there, goblin," Thulga said, glancing over her shoulder at him with curiosity rather than hostility. "Most males can’t stop talking when they’re riding with women. Trying to impress us or establish dominance or whatever it is your gender does."

"Just thinking," Byung replied carefully, steadying his horse with practiced ease. "Trying to figure out where we are, how far to my settlement."

"We’re heading in the right general direction," Mazga assured him from her position at the front. "Should reach recognizable territory by tomorrow afternoon if we maintain this pace. Your people will probably spot us before we spot them—goblins are excellent scouts when they want to be."

Roktha grunted agreement, her horse keeping easy pace beside her sister’s. "Father always said never underestimate goblin reconnaissance. They see everything, hear everything, and you never know they’re watching until it’s too late." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Your father sounds wise," Byung said diplomatically.

"He is," all three sisters said simultaneously, then laughed at the synchronization.

"He’s also stubborn, traditional, and absolutely convinced that his way is the only correct way to do anything," Thulga added with obvious affection. "But yes, wise. He sent us specifically because he knew we’d get the job done quietly."

"And you think I can help with that?" Byung asked.

"We know you can," Mazga said seriously. "You know where our brother but there is one more thing we are yet to let you know. We know who you are, the evolved goblin who handed Vrognut to the humans. There is no way we wouldn’t have heard about you."

Byung realized at that moment they were playing dumb but why couldn’t he read their mind or rather, why didn’t he have access to this information?

Byung kept quiet because if they knew who he was and didn’t attack or try to kill him, it must mean they knew his importance in finding their brother.

However, Byung was relieved they knew who he was because it would make things a lot easier especially since they recongized him as someone who took down one of his own.

The conversation continued as they rode, the sisters gradually becoming more comfortable with his presence, testing his reactions with increasingly direct questions about his capabilities and intentions. And through it all, Byung remained aware of the invisible dark elf’s presence, of the missing time now recovered, of the magical potential he’d barely begun to explore.

The dark continent was coming. The barrier would fall. And he needed to be ready with every advantage he could possibly gather, no matter how strange or morally complicated those advantages might be.