Chapter 266

Chapter 266

Twenty minutes.

That was how long it took for the pack of several hundred Flame Wolves to be annihilated.

Lee Jung-ho flicked his sword broadly and shook off the blood.

Flame Wolf blood scattered, and the sword blade regained its original smooth appearance.

Even after cutting down hundreds of Flame Wolves, Lee Jung-ho’s sword remained perfectly intact.

The bones and muscles of monsters were incomparably harder than those of humans. Once a monster reached Grade C, its durability had to be considered stronger than steel.

A sword that remained unharmed after cutting through hundreds of such monsters could not possibly be an ordinary weapon.

‘An item.’

And it was definitely an item obtained from a high-grade dungeon.

Zeon thought it had to have at least three or four options attached to it.

SHING—!

As Lee Jung-ho sheathed his sword, not a single drop of sweat had formed on his face.

To Lee Jung-ho, dealing with a pack of monsters at this level did not even count as a pre-meal workout.

“Wow! That’s really cheating.”

Claire shook her head.

She had gone on missions with Lee Jung-ho a few times, so she knew how strong he was, but it still sent chills down her spine every time she saw it.

At City Hall, there were at least six more powerhouses like Lee Jung-ho.

And there was no telling how much hidden power remained beyond that.

No one who had not experienced City Hall’s true strength could ever understand it.

Those who knew even a little of their power could not dare think of opposing them. Just like Claire now.

Claire looked at Zeon.

She thought that, like her, there would be at least a little fear on Zeon’s face.

Contrary to her expectations, however, Zeon’s face showed no disturbance whatsoever as he looked at Lee Jung-ho.

She observed him carefully, wondering if he was merely forcing himself to hide his fear, but that did not seem to be the case.

‘Is this man really not afraid of Lee Jung-ho? Is he that confident in his own ability?’

Claire bit her lip hard.

At that moment, Lee Jung-ho said to Zeon,

“I apologize for wasting time because of me. Let us depart now.”

“Yes! Thank you for your work.”

Zeon nodded and moved on.

Duduyan and Aslan hurriedly stuck close to Zeon’s side.

It was to get even a little farther away from Lee Jung-ho.

That was how shocking the martial force Lee Jung-ho had displayed was.

‘He did not even use any Skills.’

The fact that he could cut monsters down so brutally without using a Skill was astonishing. And terrifying.

Aslan muttered,

‘If I ever set foot in Neo Seoul again, I’m a son of a bitch—no, a monster bastard. I shouldn’t even piss in that direction.’

For some reason, he felt as though he would be cut down by Lee Jung-ho if he moved away from Zeon, so he clung even closer.

Whether Zeon knew that or not, he walked on indifferently.

They passed the corpses of the Flame Wolves Lee Jung-ho had killed and walked for quite some time.

It was a desert with not a single signpost.

No matter where they looked, similar scenery continued endlessly.

Enormous sand mountains and hills stretched on like waves.

The moment an ordinary person was exposed to such an environment, they would fall into a panic and lose all sense of direction.

Lee Jung-ho and Claire were not ordinary people.

Naturally, they felt no fear. But they could not help feeling overwhelmed.

Lee Jung-ho took a compass from inside his coat.

The needle of the compass was spinning madly.

It worked well near Neo Seoul, but once it moved far away, it became useless like this.

‘As expected, once one comes out into the distant desert, a Navigator is essential.’

Lee Jung-ho wrinkled his nose.

Navigators were extremely rare.

Navigators who could determine direction accurately even over long distances and avoid monster habitats were even rarer.

The absence of Navigators was one of the reasons Neo Seoul could no longer expand its territory. That was why the existence known as Zeon stood out all the more.

The guide who surpassed professional Navigators was none other than Zeon.

He even detected monsters better than Navigators.

“There is one monster one kilometer away.”

“Is it a dangerous monster?”

“I do not think so.”

“How do you know that?”

“I just know.”

“In that case, understood.”

It could have sounded like a careless answer, but Lee Jung-ho let it pass.

He himself was a high-grade Awakened.

High-grade Awakened had senses of their own.

Senses that could not be explained in words.

It was a realm ordinary people could never understand even if they spent their entire lives trying.

Just as Zeon had said, after they walked about one kilometer, a massive monster came into view.

It was an enormous ox whose shoulder height looked to be a full five meters.

The spiral horns growing from both sides of its head looked sharp enough to pierce straight through the body of most monsters.

Its muscular body was covered in thick scales.

Duduyan recognized the monster’s identity.

“It’s a Thunder Buffalo.”

“To think we’d see one here.”

Aslan’s eyes widened when he saw the Thunder Buffalo.

Lee Jung-ho and Claire approached them.

“Is it a special monster?”

“It is a rare monster. It is called the wanderer of the desert.”

Zeon answered.

He also knew this monster.

“What is so special about it?”

“It is unusually herbivorous.”

“Herbivorous? Is there grass to eat in the desert? To maintain a body that huge, an ordinary amount would not be enough.”

“Cacti are its staple food. It wanders the entire desert in search of cacti. That is why it is called the wanderer of the desert.”

“Hmm! As expected, the desert is full of things I do not know.”

“This works out well.”

“What does?”

Instead of answering, Zeon looked at Claire.

“You are a Tamer, correct?”

“How did you know?”

Claire’s eyes widened in surprise.

That was because the fact that she was a Tamer was supposed to be a secret.

Zeon continued without caring.

“If you are a Tamer, you should be able to tame that creature easily. Contrary to how it looks, it is not hostile to humans.”

“Really?”

Her surprise lasted only a moment. Claire’s eyes began to sparkle.

For a Tamer, the opportunity to tame such an enormous monster was not something that came often.

Lee Jung-ho asked Zeon,

“Is there a reason to go out of our way to tame that monster? We do not have time.”

“The Thunder Buffalo’s back is extremely large and comfortable. If we ride it, the time it takes to reach Steel Fortress will be greatly shortened.”

“Hmm!”

Zeon looked at Claire.

“What will you do?”

“I’ll try.”

Claire approached the Thunder Buffalo.

Perhaps sensing a human approaching, the Thunder Buffalo raised its head and looked at her.

Its large eyes looked clear and gentle like those of a real ox.

“Hello!”

Claire waved her hand and spoke in a friendly voice.

At that moment, the necklace hanging around her neck shone.

The necklace’s name was the Rainbow Pendant.

It was none other than a Grade S item.

The Rainbow Pendant instantly strengthened her insufficient ability and control.

It was such an absurdly powerful item that it could only be used once a day.

Even then, after using it once, her mana would be depleted, and she would enter a state of exhaustion for at least two days. Because of that, it had the drawback that she could not use it carelessly.

Claire knew that fact as well, so unless the target was truly exceptional, she tried not to borrow the power of the Rainbow Pendant.

However, after confirming the strength of those accompanying her, she thought there would be no problem even if she collapsed from exhaustion.

Being a Tamer did not mean one could instantly tame a monster.

Some forcibly subdued monsters and tamed them that way, but that was not Claire’s style.

Of course, she also used force depending on the situation, but under normal circumstances, she preferred to share communion.

She carefully spoke to the Thunder Buffalo.

“I want to be friends with you.”

SNORT!

The Thunder Buffalo flapped both ears and stared intently at Claire, as if seeing through her inner heart.

“We will not harm you. We only wish to become your friends. Won’t you accept my heart?”

As if courting it, Claire spoke with an earnest heart. And the Thunder Buffalo accepted her courtship.

“MOOOO!”

It responded with a cry that contained not even a trace of hostility.

Claire stroked the Thunder Buffalo’s face and said,

“Thank you for accepting me. Then, would you carry us?”

THUD!

No sooner had she finished speaking than the Thunder Buffalo knelt.

Seeing that, Duduyan and Aslan’s jaws dropped.

“What is that woman? She tamed a monster that easily?”

“Even Lady Deborah couldn’t do that.”

Steel Fortress also had a Tamer.

It was Deborah, Urtian’s wife.

She was a Grade C Tamer.

She also possessed a powerful item called the Necklace of Subordination.

Thanks to it, she could tame monsters of a higher Grade than herself. But even she could not tame a monster as easily as Claire had just done.

Taming a monster required strong patience. That meant it required a great deal of time. Yet Claire had tamed the Thunder Buffalo far too easily.

“Either her ability is far superior to Lady Deborah’s......”

“Or she definitely has an item far stronger than the Necklace of Subordination.”

“How many monsters like that does Neo Seoul have? That man Lee Jung-ho is already too much to handle, but even the Tamer is beyond imagination.”

“Damn it! To think we have to open Steel Fortress to monsters like them. If only I hadn’t drunk that damned alcohol, this would never have happened.”

Aslan lowered his head and blamed himself.

Duduyan did not comfort him.

Partly because she knew comfort would be useless, and partly because she did not particularly want to comfort him.

That was how grave the mistake Aslan had made was.

Claire climbed onto the Thunder Buffalo’s back first, and the rest of them climbed up one after another.

The Thunder Buffalo’s back was wide enough to remind one of a playing field.

There was still room left even after all five of them sat down.

Claire asked Zeon,

“Where should we go?”

“West.”

“You heard him, right? Would you go west?”

Claire whispered in a gentle voice.

The Thunder Buffalo moved west.

THUD! THUD!

Every time the Thunder Buffalo walked, heavy footfalls rang out.

Claire lay down on the Thunder Buffalo’s back and said to Lee Jung-ho,

“Unless I give it another command, it’ll keep going west. So I’m going to lie down and rest for a bit.”

“You worked hard. Rest well until evening.”

“Yes!”

Claire closed her eyes.

In only a few minutes, her face had turned pale and gaunt.

No matter how much the Rainbow Pendant had helped her tame the Thunder Buffalo, fundamentally, it had only been possible because she had scraped together every last bit of her own strength.

Because of that, both her mana and stamina had been exhausted.

Claire fell into a deep sleep in an instant.

Lee Jung-ho looked at Claire with his unfocused eyes.

Because he was so accustomed to not expressing emotion, it was impossible to tell what he was thinking merely by looking at his face or eyes.

THUD! THUD!

Every time the Thunder Buffalo moved, sand scattered with the heavy sound of its steps.

Even with five people on its back, the Thunder Buffalo walked silently without showing the slightest sign of difficulty.

There was no need to provide it with separate feed or water.

That was because it found cacti on its own and resolved its hunger and thirst.

It was enough to make Lee Jung-ho let out a sigh of admiration.

“I did not know traveling on a monster would be this comfortable. If I had known it would be like this, I would have come out into the desert from time to time.”

“Not everyone can enjoy that kind of luxury.”

“I suppose not. If anyone could do this, the human domain would not be so small. What do you think, Sandmancer?”

“I do not think that deeply.”

“The strong must think many things. As their influence on the world is great, they must possess a sense of responsibility. That is the duty of the strong.”

“Well, perhaps it is.”

“Zeon!”

“I also think and act sufficiently in my own way. So keep the nagging to one verse, please.”

At Zeon’s light retort, Lee Jung-ho’s eyebrow twitched.

If the other party had been anyone other than Zeon, he would have cut him down in an instant.

But for now, he needed Zeon.

To bring Moby Dick’s heart back safely from this damned desert, he had to receive Zeon’s guidance.

Lee Jung-ho gripped the sheath of his sword with all his strength.

It was a habit that emerged when he was desperately enduring something.