The Golden Horse

Ria liked cats.

She loved their freedom. And yet, she couldn't resist when they would occasionally indulge her with their capricious affection.

However, she had never kept one while living in the royal palace. At best, she would occasionally pet the ones other nobles kept.

In her previous life, she had fed stray cats.

There was a path the cats used in the corner of her garden, and she would leave food there.

She'd had a long relationship with one particular cat, but she wondered what had happened to it after she died.

It was a stray, so she hoped it was living strong.

And next to cats, Ria liked horses.

She had learned horseback riding as a hobby, had even studied some classical equestrian arts, and above all, she loved caring for them.

When she was young, she had worked at a ranch in Hokkaido for several years. It definitely wasn't because the ranch's four beautiful sisters had dazzled her.

"I want a horse too!"

On the seventh day after departing the royal capital, Ria shouted.

"You want a horse…"

Lulu muttered in exasperation from atop her donkey.

"You're faster running than riding a horse, aren't you?"

That was true. When layering body enhancement skills with enhancement magic, Ria could travel at a hundred kilometers per hour for half a day.

Even that was based on her experience so far; she had never actually tested her limits.

"If you'd like, you could ride my horse…"

"Johnny is Carlos's horse. I want my own. I want to brush it and comb its mane."

While most of the horse's care was left to attendants, daily brushing was a knight's duty. Without that kind of communication, horses simply wouldn't obey.

"Ria, you're acting like a spoiled child, you know?"

When the three had decided to travel together, what to call Ria had become an issue.

In the end, Lulu continued calling her Ria, while Carlos decided on "Ojou."

"Well, I don't mind if you buy a horse, but around here you'll only find draft horses at best. There should be a horse market near the border, though."

Bringing the knight Carlos along had been the right call. He possessed this kind of everyday knowledge. Considering that, Reyas must have had him accompany them for exactly this reason.

"The border? That'll take ten days."

"No, more like double that. Roads don't match the map."

Those were the words of a man who had actually traveled the route, but Ria was an exception.

"If we go at the pace of Lulu's donkey, that is. If it were just me, I could get there in a day."

"That's ridiculous."

"No, it's true. When Ria was ten, she carried me on her back and ran a two-day journey in half a day."

"Are you really human, Ojou…?"

No, I'm a dragonkin.

The journey was enjoyable.

Security was good within Casalia; bandits rarely appeared, and dangerous animals and monsters were limited to certain regions.

Surprisingly, Carlos provided the most conversation topics. After all, he was an ordinary talented person. Though born into nobility, he was merely the second son of a viscount family. He had struggled through both martial and academic training before joining the knight order.

In Lulu's case, she had lived as a shut-in in a remote mountain village until adulthood. After coming to the capital, she had often been dragged along by Rufus's unreasonable demands, but that was common knowledge in the court.

As for Ria, her heroic tales had taken on a life of their own and couldn't be stopped now. The goblin settlement massacre incident, the orc army annihilation incident—all the rumors had grown exaggerated tails.

No matter how you looked at it, a kingdom's princess having the epithet "Bludgeoning Ria-chan" was going too far.

"One of the rumors was 'Won't break even if a dragon steps on her,' right?"

"Ah, that one's true. When I fought that pack of earth dragons, I slipped up a bit. Being stepped on hard enough to sink into the ground really did hurt."

Ria laughed, adding, "One of my favorite swords broke too." The other two could only manage strained smiles.

Crossing the river at the border, gentle mountains spread out before them, and in a basin there lay a settlement made up of countless tents.

"Ooh…"

The two young women, leaving their country for the first time, let out sounds of admiration. Carlos, on the other hand, had been here before with the knight order.

"Besides Cordova and our country, merchants from several other small nations gather here. They trade all sorts of things besides horses."

"Alright! I'll go on ahead. You two follow slowly!"

So saying, Ria slid down the steep cliff. Carlos looked back and forth between Lulu and Ria in a panic, but he lacked the skill to ride his horse down such a cliff.

In the end, he followed the gentle path along with Lulu, though his gaze kept drifting toward Lulu's ears.

As Carlos had said, the place was filled primarily with open-air stalls selling all manner of goods.

From food to daily necessities to folk crafts—the variety was wide, and there were even weapons for sale, which caught Ria's eye.

The main items traded were things like swords and spears, but nothing particularly impressive.

What she picked up was something classified as a concealed weapon in this world—what was called a shuriken in her previous life.

(But the balance is off. Without proper forging, they're no good after all.)

Shuriken techniques were one of the classical martial arts.

Taking detours, she made her way to the edge of the settlement.

Hundreds of horses were gathered there, forming groups and herds.

People from nearby small settlements had brought their horses here to sell. The smell from so many large animals was overwhelming.

From small ponies to draft horses, various types were for sale.

Of course, what Ria wanted was a warhorse, but it also needed the endurance to withstand travel. There were no horses like the Thoroughbreds of her previous world.

"Little lady, if you're buying a horse, you should start with a pony."

A horse trader called out to her, but that wasn't what she needed right now.

"How about this white one? It's perfect for a little lady like you."

She wasn't going to decide based on appearance alone.

"I want one that's finished its initial training, around two to three years old."

"In that case, this way."

Apparently recognizing that she had some discernment, the man led her to a section with about twenty horses, all stallions, he said.

Here, Ria secretly used Identify magic.

She wanted a horse that was sturdy, had stamina, and above all was clever. She examined them one by one.

There were horses with bent legs. Horses with thin hindquarters. But what Ria looked at were the horses' eyes.

And then she found one—a horse with exceptionally clear eyes.

Its coat was bay. It had a stocky build, well-balanced but with nothing particularly noteworthy about its appearance.

"That one's pretty good. It's not fast, but it can run long distances, and it's gentle—perfect for a girl. Already trained, clever, and patient. The only thing is, it's a bit of a neat freak. If you don't wash its feed bucket properly, it won't eat its fodder."

The man was honest enough to mention its shortcomings—probably an upright merchant. If you consider trust to be paramount, that made sense.

"Two years old?"

"That's right. The price is a bit high—seven gold coins."

Ria had already decided to buy without any intention of negotiating. But there was one thing she needed to confirm first.

"Will you let me ride you?"

Her eyes met the horse's. After a moment, the horse slowly nodded.

"Sold. I'll need a full set of tack as well."

And so, by the time Lulu and Carlos caught up, Ria had already secured her mount.

"Hmm, this one was seven gold coins? Well, it does look sturdy, but…"

Carlos sounded dubious. From a knight's perspective, this horse probably looked entirely ordinary. Even considering it was only two years old, its build wasn't exactly magnificent.

But Lulu understood. After all, she could also use Identify magic.

"Double the vitality… three times the stamina, and double the endurance. The muscle strength is considerable too, and its mental resistance far exceeds the human average."

"What?! Is this really a horse?!"

Ria was humming as she fitted the horse with its tack. Her good mood rivaled—no, perhaps surpassed—how she felt when maintaining her favorite sword.

"Its potential is far higher than even Reyas-sama's horse. In fact, its intelligence is higher than a human's… and it's two years old?"

"Whaat?! I-it's smarter than me?!"

Carlos-kun was by no means stupid, but he wasn't exactly wise either. At least not in terms of ability scores.

"Higher than me, even. Only slightly lower than the princess."

"What?!! The princess's intelligence is that high?! You're joking!?"

"Hey now."

Ria's gaze turned cold at his shock, but the horse whinnied, and her mood recovered.

"Ria does have high intelligence. But… this was true of Master Rufus as well—just because someone has high intelligence doesn't mean they can live their daily life wisely."

In very measured words, Lulu evaluated her master.

"I'm aware that I'm a fool. A person who knows they're a fool is far wiser than someone who mistakenly thinks themselves clever."

That's called "knowing one's own ignorance."

"You are wise… You're too wise and don't know your limits, which is why everyone around you has trouble…"

Lulu muttered with a tone of resignation.

"Ah, well, anyway, nice to meet you. This here is Johnny, my horse. So, Ojou, have you named this one yet?"

Ria, who had been stroking its mane, stopped and thought for a moment.

"Orfe… was kind of stupid… Rudolf had temperament issues, apparently… Brian was timid…"

Muttering to herself, Ria's memories gradually traced back through her previous life. Eventually, she arrived at a name that would be meaningless to the people of this world.

"I've decided! Your name is Matsukaze!"

This was the moment the famous horse Matsukaze was born.