Chapter 124

Chapter 124

Seven years was by no means a short time.

It was long enough for a child to become an adult, and long enough for a frail self, once no sturdier than a sapling, to grow as large and strong as a great tree.

Just like Damian, who stood before Zeon now.

The delicate boy from seven years ago no longer existed.

His stubbornly set lips, unwavering eyes, and straightened back all showed that Damian was no longer a tender-hearted boy, but a man with strong convictions.

The problem was that Zeon could not tell what convictions he carried.

Since Zeon was not a god, there was no way for him to know exactly what Damian had in mind when he came here.

Damian, who had been smiling at Zeon, opened his mouth.

“Brother! May I ask you one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

“Did Lord Daeioden achieve what he wanted?”

“He did.”

“Then Hieltun no longer exists in this world, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then what about Lord Daeioden?”

Instead of answering, Zeon looked up at the sky.

Damian’s expression turned regretful.

“So that is what happened. Still, he achieved his lifelong wish, so he must have departed in peace.”

“I suppose he did.”

“How have you been, Brother?”

“I just wandered here and there.”

“When I look at you, I really think the world is unfair.”

“What do you mean?”

“Some people work themselves to the bone just to find a path, but you roam the desert freely, as if it were your own backyard.”

“Your ability is more than unfair enough too. You know that very well.”

“I do! But I’m saying it because the difference is still too great.”

Damian pouted.

“Don’t make an expression that does not suit you.”

“Was it obvious?”

“Quite.”

“I must still be lacking. I thought it looked fairly natural.”

“Let me ask you one thing too.”

“What is it?”

“El Harun.”

“......”

In that instant, Damian’s face hardened.

As if it had been a lie, his smile vanished completely.

“Did you find it?”

“What about you, Brother?”

“I asked first.”

“Not yet. But it won’t be long.”

“Is that so?”

“What about you?”

“I haven’t found it yet.”

“I thought so. It isn’t hidden in any ordinary way.”

Damian smiled coldly.

Zeon studied Damian’s expression carefully and asked,

“Will you tell me when you find it?”

“Of course I have to tell you, Brother. I promised Lord Daeioden.”

“Can I trust that?”

“Brother, I at least always keep the promises I make.”

“I will believe you.”

This time, Zeon smiled.

Damian looked at Zeon with a strange gaze.

---

When Zeon and Damian returned to the White Bear Caravan, Briel had already finished shopping.

Zeon asked Briel,

“Did you find anything you liked?”

“Yes! But it was too expensive, so I couldn’t buy everything.”

Briel looked sullen.

The goods brought by the White Bear Caravan were things difficult to obtain in Neo Seoul.

Naturally, their prices were unimaginably high.

Because of that, Briel could not buy everything she wanted and managed to purchase only a few items.

“Still, with this much, I can try the alchemy I’ve wanted to attempt for a while.”

“That’s fortunate, at least.”

“Yes! Did your talk with Damian go well, Zeon?”

“It went well.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Yes.”

Zeon nodded.

In his field of vision, Damian was talking to Alexandro with a serious expression.

The Caravan Master of the White Bear Caravan was Alexandro, but he listened attentively to Damian.

Just from that, Zeon could tell.

He could tell who the true master of the White Bear Caravan was.

‘He really has grown.’

The problem was that he had grown too much.

His appearance had barely changed from back then, but inside, it seemed as though ten old foxes were lying in wait.

Zeon shook his head slightly and said to Briel,

“Let’s go back now.”

“Okay!”

The two left the fortress of the White Bear Caravan.

Once they had moved some distance away from the fortress, Briel asked cautiously,

“What kind of person is Damian?”

“Why?”

“Well, they had far too many items that elves and dwarves would like. All of them are hard to obtain.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. There were piles of things I never saw even when I was in my village. Especially the Blue Laurel Leaf. That was a treasure I was seeing for the first time.”

“The Blue Laurel Leaf is a treasure?”

“It’s useless to other races, but to elves, it’s an incredible treasure. Just carrying it increases vitality. There’s no better item for enduring the harsh climate of the desert.”

“It must be an item especially compatible with elves.”

There were items like that from time to time.

Items that had little effect on other races but greatly affected a specific race.

The Blue Laurel Leaf was probably one of those items.

Originally, blue laurels had been very common in Kurayan. But on the desertified Earth, they had become a rare treasure difficult to obtain.

It was so rare that even Briel’s High Elf village had not been able to acquire any.

“How did he get a Blue Laurel Leaf? If I could, I’d kidnap him and ask.”

“If you react that way, other elves must be even worse.”

“They would be. They’d probably all go mad for it.”

“Hmm!”

Zeon turned his head and looked at the fortress.

At the highest point of the fortress, Damian was watching him.

---

“It is the first time I have seen you pay so much attention to someone.”

“That is because he is a man worth that much attention.”

“Is that so?”

At Damian’s answer, Alexandro’s eyes gleamed.

He had known Damian for as long as seven years.

That was why he knew.

He knew how remarkable Damian’s ability and mind were.

Navigator.

The word meant exactly what it implied: one who guided the way.

There were countless Awakened in this world, but those who awakened as Navigators were extremely rare.

Among them, a Navigator as outstanding as Damian was even rarer.

Alexandro had learned that through exchanges with other Colonies.

Damian was an absurdly excellent Navigator.

Because he was there, the White Bear Caravan had been able to exchange with other Colonies while suffering minimal losses, and it had been able to grow this much.

No matter how strong the Awakened of Akutsk Colony or other Colonies were, Damian never paid them any mind.

This was the first time Alexandro had seen him show concern for another Awakened.

At least, it was the first time since Alexandro had come to know the Awakened named Damian.

“Is he a magic-type Awakened?”

“Well, how should I put it? Ah, I’d rather not say.”

“Why? Did you swear an oath to keep his secret?”

“I owe him a debt. So I want to keep at least the bare minimum of loyalty.”

“Hmm!”

“More than anything, I don’t want to get on his bad side.”

“Are you that afraid of him?”

“Honestly...... yes! I’m afraid of him. At least on this desert, there is no one who can defeat him.”

“Hmm!”

Alexandro let out a low groan.

‘If Damian goes this far in speaking of him, then he truly is someone I must be careful of.’

Suddenly, a hot emotion surged up from deep in his chest.

Alexandro knew exactly what emotion he was feeling now.

It was the desire to win.

The desire to fight someone strong and defeat him.

Although he was currently the Caravan Master of the White Bear Caravan, he was also an outstanding Awakened and a warrior.

When he saw a strong opponent, he wanted to fight him and trample him.

‘Someday, there will be a chance to face him. For now, Damian’s matter comes first.’

He forced down the desire to win that rose within him.

Then it happened.

In the distance, he saw another group approaching from Neo Seoul.

Just by looking at their clothes and armaments, he could tell.

They were a group of Awakened.

Besides Dongdaemun and Shinchon, another group had heard the rumors and come.

Alexandro shouted to his subordinates.

“Guests are coming. Prepare to receive them.”

“Yes!”

His subordinates’ vigorous replies rang out from below.

Alexandro was about to go down when he suddenly looked back at Damian.

“Damian!”

“Yes.”

“When should we open the fifth floor?”

“After we have drawn enough attention.”

“Understood. I will do that.”

Alexandro went down, leaving Damian alone atop the fortress.

Damian watched Zeon until the very end as he entered the slums.

---

As soon as they returned to the slums, Briel ran home.

She was itching to test alchemy with the items she had bought from the White Bear Caravan.

The place Zeon chose was the street of food stalls where Old Man Klexi did business.

Although the sun was still high in the sky, Old Man Klexi could be seen with his shop already open.

When Zeon approached, Old Man Klexi acknowledged him.

“What brings you here in broad daylight? A fellow who only moves after sunset—what wind blew you out this early?”

“What about you, Old Man? Why did you open so early? It isn’t time yet.”

“I opened because it’s peak season.”

“Peak season?”

“The whole of Neo Seoul is noisy thanks to the Caravan from outside. Even the bastards who usually don’t show the tips of their noses during the day have been moving around since morning. If a merchant misses a chance like this, he might as well close up shop.”

“I woke up early because I went to the White Bear Caravan too.”

“Oh! You already went there?”

Zeon did not miss the sharp gleam in Old Man Klexi’s eyes.

The one paying closer attention to the movements and information of the White Bear Caravan than any organization in Neo Seoul was Old Man Klexi.

He had probably already mobilized the Eye of Argos to gather information on the White Bear Caravan.

“So? What was the inside of the Caravan like, in your eyes?”

“It was a perfect fortress in itself.”

“A fortress?”

“Its defenses are impressive enough that Dongdaemun tried something and was humiliated.”

“Tsk! It isn’t surprising at all that those fanatic bastards tried something.”

Old Man Klexi clicked his tongue first.

He had already expected as much.

He was only a little surprised that they had tried something so quickly and had been caught and humiliated.

“They will probably never give up. Fanatics, once they become obsessed with something, keep biting until the very end.”

“The White Bear Caravan will not go down easily either.”

“Oh! You rate them that highly?”

“I saw their strength for myself.”

“Then that is reliable. If nothing else, your eye for people is exceptional.”

It was an admission that he recognized Zeon.

In truth, Old Man Klexi evaluated Zeon highly.

“But you don’t seem to have come simply for a meal. What is your real business?”

“Please let me know if you detect any unusual movements from the White Bear Caravan.”

“Unusual movements? Do you have some suspicion?”

“I just don’t have a good feeling.”

“Hmm!”

Old Man Klexi narrowed his eyes.

This was the first time he had seen Zeon make such a serious expression since getting to know him.

That alone gave him a bad feeling.

“Very well. If I see any strange signs, I will let you know first.”