Chapter 302

Chapter 302

Zeon looked at the man who had turned to ash with cold eyes.

“The Helbrin Mercenary Corps, Scavengers disguised as mercenaries. They wander the desert and hunt humans. Their Captain is Hassim. They number eighty. All of them are Grade C to D Awakened, and Hassim is Grade B.”

That was the information he had learned from the dead man.

Unfortunately, the ones Zeon had caught up to were not the core of the Helbrin Mercenary Corps.

They had loaded all kinds of supplies necessary for the desert onto the backs of their Bactrian Camels. That was why they weighed so much and left deep footprints. Because of that, Zeon had thought they were carrying the people they had captured as slaves.

This too had been part of Hassim’s scheme to confuse any pursuers.

They were enemies, but it was impressive enough to inspire admiration. It was truly remarkable adaptability.

Thanks to that, Zeon had ended up chasing the wrong people instead of Hassim.

In the meantime, all the others had scattered in every direction and were heading toward Neo Seoul. Finding them all in a short time was impossible, even for Zeon.

At that moment—

“That’s...... right!”

Briel’s voice came from behind him. But her voice was trembling.

When he turned around, he saw Briel, her face pale blue.

“What do you mean, right?”

“They’re the ones who kidnapped me.”

“Are you sure?”

“How could I forget?”

Briel was looking at the arm of a charred corpse. Around the man’s arm was an iron bracelet.

The rough bracelet had been scorched black by the tremendous heat.

Briel picked up the bracelet.

“This...... is mine.”

“Yours?”

“It was taken from me when I was kidnapped. So these are definitely the people who kidnapped me. I never thought I’d see this again here.”

Briel’s gaze as she looked at the bracelet was distant.

It was a bracelet passed down from mother to daughter, then from the daughter, once she grew and became a mother, back to her daughter again. Like that, it had been inherited from generation to generation.

“I thought I’d never find it again......”

When she had been captured by human hunters and had the bracelet taken from her, she had lost her identity as a High Elf.

The guilt of failing to protect the bracelet inherited from her mother had plunged her into the abyss of despair and made her give up on herself.

Zeon said,

“This gives us another reason to catch them.”

“I learned it for the first time. That the people who kidnapped me were the Helbrin Mercenary Corps. And that they were Scavengers......”

As soon as she had been captured by the Helbrin Mercenary Corps, they had put mana restraints and a blindfold on her. Above all, because of the fear and despair of being captured by humans, she had been unable to judge anything properly. So she had failed to obtain information about the hunters who had captured her.

“Haa!”

She had never told Zeon, but she had always wondered.

She had always wanted to know who had kidnapped her.

Only after several years had that question finally been answered.

Briel stroked the bracelet endlessly.

The bracelet, which had ended up in the hands of an unknown Scavenger, had been stained by the blood of countless people.

A bracelet that should have been pure had been tainted by human malice.

The result was what it looked like now.

Blood had seeped into it, leaving it filthy, corroded, and ruined.

This bracelet would never return to its original form again.

She had caused that.

If she had not pointlessly left the village, none of this would have happened.

Drip, drip.

Tears flowed from her eyes.

Her tears would not stop.

Squee!

As if Gaia understood Briel’s heart, it comforted her.

“I’m okay! Really.”

Squee!

“Yeah! Don’t worry.”

Briel gently patted Gaia’s back, then looked at the bracelet again.

She carefully put the bracelet on her arm. But no change occurred in the bracelet.

“As expected, I’ve lost the qualification.”

“Qualification?”

“There’s something like that.”

Briel answered with a bitter expression.

Zeon assumed there must be circumstances behind it and did not press any further.

Briel put the bracelet into the subspace inside her pointed hat.

“Haa!”

A sigh left her, and countless emotions crossed her face.

---

In the end, they could not catch the rest of the Helbrin Mercenary Corps.

They had already scattered throughout the desert. Tracking each of them down one by one was impossible, even for Zeon.

Zeon decided to stop the pursuit here and return to Neo Seoul.

After all, he had heard that the Helbrin Mercenary Corps’ destination was also Neo Seoul, so they would meet again.

‘If I keep an eye on the Spider Queen’s side, something will come out.’

He did not know exactly what it was, but one thing was certain: Eli was plotting something.

If he watched her, some kind of movement would surely be caught.

“Let’s go back.”

“Okay!”

Briel understood Zeon’s thoughts as well, so she followed without complaint.

Unlike the sky, no monster existed on the ground that could obstruct Zeon’s movement.

He ground down small monsters with sand, and he detected and avoided large monsters in advance, so nothing blocked their way.

Thanks to that, the two of them were able to arrive in the slums the next day.

“We’re home.”

As soon as Briel returned home, she threw herself onto the sofa.

Gaia also came out of the subspace and rolled around with Briel.

After returning home, Briel’s gloomy mood eased a little.

For Briel, who could never return to the High Elf village again, this place was a precious nest above all else.

Zeon said to Briel and Gaia,

“I’m going to meet Old Man Kleksi, so rest here.”

“Okay!”

Squee!

Zeon immediately left the house and headed to the street where Old Man Kleksi did business.

“Welcome. I haven’t seen you for a few days.”

“I went outside for a while.”

“With Briel too?”

“Yes!”

“So that’s why neither of you were around. I thought something had happened.”

“Something did happen.”

“What happened?”

Zeon told the curious Old Man Kleksi what had happened in the desert.

After hearing the entire story, Old Man Kleksi’s expression grew serious.

“So what you’re saying is that the Helbrin Mercenary Corps are Scavengers, and it seems those bastards made some kind of deal with the Spider Queen, the second-in-command of the North District, right? And because of that, they’re hunting one hundred slaves?”

“Yes!”

“And they avoided your pursuit and entered Neo Seoul?”

“Yes!”

“Subhuman bastards have crawled in again.”

Old Man Kleksi clicked his tongue.

There was no way Scavengers who lived by plundering in the desert could enter Neo Seoul.

Neo Seoul’s entry system was strict, so those whose identities could not be proven could not enter.

Eli might be able to use her influence to get one or two of them in somehow, but smuggling in dozens of people without leaving any trace was impossible.

In the end, the Helbrin Mercenary Corps’ only choice had to be the slums.

“If they entered here, they would naturally know that your base is Shinchon, so they must have gone elsewhere.”

“Most likely.”

The slums were not only Shinchon and Dongdaemun. Centered around Neo Seoul, they spread widely to Jongno in the north, Cheonho-dong in the east, and Guro in the south.

Although their influence was insignificant compared to Shinchon or Dongdaemun, people still lived there.

If those bastards hid in such places, finding them would be truly difficult.

“Can you find them?”

“Argos’s Eye is spread there as well, so if there are suspicious movements or unfamiliar people, we should be able to find them.”

“That’s a relief.”

“However, even if we find them, capturing or punishing them will not be easy. The ones who rule those places will not tolerate it.”

Compared to Shinchon or Dongdaemun, Jongno, Cheonho-dong, and Guro were all markedly weaker. But that did not mean they had no pride.

If anything, people like that clung to pride even more.

That was because they believed that if even their pride was trampled on, they would lose everything.

Zeon said calmly,

“I’ll deal with that myself. For now, please focus only on identifying their whereabouts.”

“Understood.”

Old Man Kleksi nodded.

Zeon was not someone who would listen even if one tried to stop him.

Old Man Kleksi knew all too well that no one could stop Zeon when he wore such a resolute expression.

“I suppose I should pray for the souls of the bastards who’ve gotten themselves firmly marked by you. In any case, to think even the Spider Queen is involved. There’s no way to predict how large this matter will grow. I hope it passes quietly.”

“I hope so too, but it’ll be impossible.”

“Hoo! I suppose so.”

Old Man Kleksi sighed.

If this had been Old Man Kleksi only a few years ago, he would have welcomed chaos, thinking of it as a perfect opportunity to make money. But perhaps because his strength had faded, his way of thinking had changed a great deal in the past few years.

Now, he preferred peace over chaos, and quiet calm over noise.

‘Maybe it’s because my time to die isn’t far off.’

He knew.

His remaining lifespan was not very long.

He could tell just by the fact that his body was no longer what it used to be.

He might somehow hold on for a few more years, but in the end, he would not be able to stop death.

He was not afraid of death.

After all, humans had to die someday.

If he had one wish, it was only to enjoy a little peace before he died.

‘Well, it’s an impossible wish, though......’

It was a hellish era.

Everything had collapsed, and Neo Seoul had been built over the ruins.

In that process, countless people had died, and even now, people continued dying to maintain Neo Seoul.

The struggle for humanity’s survival was still ongoing.

Even enjoying this much peace was something to be grateful for.

Old Man Kleksi sighed and said,

“I’ll make you a bowl of beef noodle soup, so eat before you go.”

“I’d be grateful.”

Old Man Kleksi turned around and began making food.

While waiting for the food to come out, Zeon sat in a chair and watched the people passing by.

The sun was still high in the sky, so there were not many people on the street.

The occasional passersby also moved quickly, seeking shaded places to avoid the hot sun.

They were all dressed shabbily and wore weary expressions, but they still held firmly to their will to live. Some even wore expressions of hope.

This was what made this place different from other colonies or survivor villages.

The people there had no hope for the future. For people who had to worry about surviving day by day under the attacks of monsters, hope was an extravagant emotion.

Even the people living in the slums could hold hope because this place was Neo Seoul.

Zeon had a responsibility to protect their lives.

Perhaps that was the price of the immense power he possessed.

At that moment, Old Man Kleksi’s voice broke Zeon’s thoughts.

“What are you thinking so hard about? Eat your beef noodle soup.”

“It’s already ready?”

“I already had the broth simmered. All I had to do was boil the noodles, so it was quick.”

“Thank you for the meal.”

Zeon lifted the bowl and brought it to his mouth.

He intended to taste the broth first before eating the noodles.

“Ah! This is incredible.”

“Hehe! That’s broth boiled with my secret recipe. For reference, the ingredients are......”

“That’s enough. Please stop there. I’d rather enjoy it deliciously while keeping this feeling intact.”

“Tsk! Picky, aren’t you......”

He said that, but Old Man Kleksi was smiling.

Zeon did not know.

He did not know that Old Man Kleksi prepared separate food for him and Briel.

Naturally, he did not use things like monster meat.

It would not affect Zeon at all, but he did not know what kind of reaction young Briel’s body might have.

However, he did not say that aloud.

‘They say people get sentimental when they grow old. Is it really time for me to die? Tsk!’