Chapter 337

Chapter 337

Zeon, Levin, Briel, Mandy, and the others sat on the Armored Bus and looked out the window.

It was a bus heading back to Neo Seoul.

Quite a few people besides Zeon’s group were riding inside the bus as well.

All of them seemed exhausted, and they had fallen into a deep sleep.

That was only natural, because from the moment they left Neo Seoul, they had been forced through an intense march.

There were not just one or two buses heading toward Neo Seoul.

Dozens of buses were returning to Neo Seoul.

Normally, they would have worried about monster attacks, but they all knew that when this many buses moved at once, monsters could not attack easily. Reassured by that, they had all passed out.

Levin and Briel were the same.

The only ones awake on the bus were Zeon and Mandy.

After looking out the window for a long time, Mandy suddenly spoke.

“Thank you.”

“Hm?”

“Thanks to you, many people survived.”

“It was nothing…….”

At her sudden words, Zeon only gave a faint smile.

“When we return to Neo Seoul, I’m going to rest properly without thinking about anything.”

“You should.”

“I’ve carried out many missions, but this was the first journey this hard.”

“I imagine it was.”

“Do you think there will be more?”

“What?”

“Beings like that Necromancer.”

“Why do you think that?”

“I just have a feeling this is barely the end of it.”

Mandy let out a deep sigh.

As a half-elf, her intuition was far sharper and more sensitive than a human’s. She also knew many more of Kurayan’s secrets, things humans did not know.

Zeon looked out the window and muttered,

“No one knows what the future will bring. I just hope changes like this don’t happen too dramatically.”

“Hah! Living in Neo Seoul without thinking about anything would be the best. But that kind of daily life won’t be possible, will it?”

“Who knows? Just enjoy this moment.”

“Hah! You really are carefree. All right. I’ll try a little too.”

Mandy sighed and sank deep into her seat.

Thinking that Mandy’s intuition was rather frightening, Zeon looked out the window.

He saw dozens of buses racing across the desert, kicking up dust.

“Whew!”

A deep sigh flowed from Zeon’s mouth as well.

---

Neo Seoul, which they had returned to after so long, was peaceful.

Such fierce battles had unfolded day after day at the new Mana Stone Mine, but the people here were not even aware of that fact.

That was how far removed from civilization the place where it had happened was.

People did not seem all that interested in events occurring far away.

“Wow! We’re home.”

“Woooo!”

—Pii!

When they returned home, Briel, Levin, and even Gaia joined in and caused a commotion.

The three of them ran around or flew around the room, showing their excitement.

Zeon sat on the red sofa and looked out the window.

He had returned after a long time, but Neo Seoul’s scenery had not changed at all.

The same was true of City Hall, visible beyond the red neon signs.

Zeon rubbed his eyelids and muttered,

“I’m tired!”

He was not saying it for no reason.

He had exhausted that much mental strength on the way here.

The problem was Nigel, the half-demon dragon.

He could not tell others about Nigel’s existence.

He wondered whether anyone would believe him even if he told them, but he also could not go around saying that a dragon existed. If he did, it would only cause great chaos in Neo Seoul.

For the time being, it seemed he would have to keep matters about Nigel to himself.

He did not even have the leisure to continue thinking.

“Gaia!”

—Pii!

“If I catch you, you won’t get away with it.”

—Pii! Pibii!

“Where did you learn such naughty words?”

—Pii!

It was because Briel and Gaia were running around right before his eyes.

Gaia, who had come out of subspace after a long time, flew all over the room like a fish returned to water, and Briel chased busily after it.

It was a complete mess, enough to drain the soul.

“Hmph!”

Even so, watching them made him smile.

A little noise was better than too much silence.

Zeon did not dislike this kind of commotion.

At that moment, Levin burst out of his room and shouted,

“Who took the little dagger that was in my room?”

“Eek!”

“That’s a dungeon-made item. Hand it over right now!”

“We’ve been caught. Run, Gaia!”

“Pii!”

Briel and Gaia hurriedly ran into a room and locked the door.

Levin arrived at the door a moment too late and knocked several times, but the firmly shut door showed no sign of opening.

Levin let out a deep sigh.

“Those troublemakers. Seriously, not a single day is quiet around here.”

“Are you okay without that item?”

“Well, it’s not anything that amazing, so I’ll be fine without it.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Brother, you should check whether anything of yours has disappeared too. Lately, Briel has been passing attribute-containing items to Gaia.”

“She’s probably trying to help Gaia grow stronger.”

“You knew?”

“It would be stranger if I didn’t. Don’t worry. Gaia has already taken all the useful things among my belongings. There’s nothing more to disappear.”

“Ah!”

Levin let out an exclamation without realizing it.

Only then did he realize that Gaia usually stayed in Zeon’s subspace.

Zeon’s subspace was no different from a treasure vault to Gaia.

It would rummage through it as much as it liked, looking around, and if it found something it liked, it would absorb it.

Zeon did not stop Gaia from doing that either.

That was because he knew Gaia would never touch truly dangerous or important items without his permission.

Thanks to that, the remarkable items Zeon had collected before were left untouched in one corner of his subspace.

Zeon had no desire to take out the items left there.

As if suddenly remembering something, Zeon asked,

“What about Aaron and Dominic?”

“They said they’re going to rest at home for a while. Looks like they got properly scared this time. That’s good, I guess!”

Levin gave a small laugh.

The raid party that his friends Aaron and Dominic belonged to had practically collapsed during this expedition.

When they fell into the underground fissure, most of their main fighting force was wiped out, and because of that, the raid party declared that it would disband.

It was not common for a raid party to voluntarily disband. But all its important members had either died or been injured, so there was no helping it.

In the end, Aaron and Dominic had no choice but to return to Neo Seoul, left adrift.

It was unfortunate for the two of them, but for Levin, it was a good thing.

Because now he did not have to worry about the two of them dying.

As Levin went into his room, he said,

“I’m going to catch up on sleep for a while. You should rest well too, Brother.”

“Sure!”

Zeon smiled and waved his hand.

He, too, intended to catch up on sleep for a while.

Zeon sank deep into the sofa and closed his eyes.

---

Jin Geum-ho looked up at the enormous structure with his hands clasped behind his back.

The massive structure boasted a size nearly equal to a three-story building.

Made from monster by-products and special metal developed independently by Neo Seoul, the gigantic structure looked at first glance like a huge telescope.

Its long, round body was densely engraved with countless mana circuits whose purpose was impossible to guess.

“Be careful there!”

“If it’s off by even an inch, everything will go to waste. Everyone, focus.”

Researchers were absorbed in their work atop the structure.

They were in the middle of installing a massive object onto the separated structure.

Jin Geum-ho looked at the object slowly descending into the center of the structure and muttered,

“That mana engine contains the full essence of Neo Seoul.”

It was a mana engine made from none other than Moby Dick’s heart.

Naturally, the tremendous mana contained in Moby Dick’s heart had been concentrated within it intact.

With that one mana engine, it could handle all of Neo Seoul’s power needs. Even so, Jin Geum-ho’s face showed a slight trace of dissatisfaction.

That was because the mana contained in Moby Dick’s heart was weaker than he had expected.

Clank!

With the sound of metal, the mana engine combined with the cylindrical object.

Wheeeng!

Along with the sound of electricity being supplied, the cylindrical object lit up.

Jin Geum-ho silently looked at the cylindrical object, which shone so brightly it seemed to have become the sun.

It was then.

Wuuung!

The lower part of the cylindrical object flickered unsteadily.

It was proof that the mana supply was not smooth.

Sure enough, the chief researcher spoke with an apologetic expression.

“As expected, the mana is insufficient. It seems we will need to create one more auxiliary engine.”

“So that is how it is after all?”

The corner of Jin Geum-ho’s eye twitched.

He tried hard to hide his emotions, but his displeasure was revealed plainly.

That was how bad his mood was.

“We need the heart of a Grade S monster.”

“Grade S…….”

“I apologize.”

The researcher lowered his head deeply, as if he had committed a sin.

Obtaining the heart of a Grade S monster in an intact state was never easy.

That was because Grade S monsters had the tendency to blow their entire bodies apart rather than hand over even a fragment of bone.

That tendency became even stronger when countless people attacked them together.

That was why it was so difficult to obtain the intact heart of a Grade S monster.

It was then.

“Will the Kraken’s heart do?”

A cold voice suddenly came from the entrance.

When he lifted his head and looked, Seo Tae-ran was walking in, her heels clicking.

A faint smile formed at the corners of Jin Geum-ho’s mouth.

“You’ve returned.”

“Thanks to your concern, I was able to return safely.”

“But did you say Kraken?”

“Yes! We were fortunate enough to obtain the heart of a Grade S monster in an intact state.”

“Well done. You worked hard.”

“Not at all. I’m glad it can be of help.”

Seo Tae-ran lowered her head and answered.

After a moment, she raised her head and looked at the cylindrical object.

“Is this Heavenly…… Punishment?”

“Yes. My life’s masterpiece. There are still several obstacles left, including the mana engine, but the framework is almost complete.”

“That’s…… a relief.”

Seo Tae-ran’s voice trembled faintly.

It had been truly long since she, called the iron-blooded woman, revealed this much emotion.

Jin Geum-ho stared silently at Seo Tae-ran for a moment, then opened his mouth.

“Where is Zeon?”

“He should be home by now.”

“Did he hide honey at home or something? He really does like his house.”

“That is fortunate for us.”

“Is it?”

“If he had been interested in Neo Seoul rather than his home, there would have been many disruptions to our plan.”

“That is true.”

Jin Geum-ho nodded.

Zeon was a white elephant.

Too hot to eat, yet too valuable to throw away.

Because of that, even Jin Geum-ho, the mayor of Neo Seoul, had not been able to make any decision about Zeon.

Jin Geum-ho reached out and stroked the cylindrical object.

“You said a Necromancer appeared?”

“That is correct. If not for Zeon, many people would have been sacrificed.”

“The world’s inflection point is forming faster than I expected. This time, Zeon was there, so we were able to prevent a major sacrifice, but there is no guarantee it will be the same next time. That is why we must complete Heavenly Punishment even a day sooner. No matter what sacrifice it takes…….”

Jin Geum-ho’s voice contained a firm conviction that would never waver.

He had come this far by sacrificing countless people.

But his final destination was not merely this much.

There was still a long road left for him to walk.

“Until then, I will never stop, nor will I look back. No matter what sacrifice it takes…….”