Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Damian’s lips trembled.

He looked at Zeon and Deioden with an expression of disbelief.

It had taken barely ten minutes for the two of them to bring down every warrior of Elharun.

At least Zeon had struggled somewhat against Hammerson, but Deioden had brutally killed the warriors of Elharun one by one without expending any effort at all.

His hands had been so cruel that the dwarf warriors and elf rangers facing him had been frightened and tried to flee.

But no one could escape from Deioden’s hands.

Deioden killed them one by one with cruelty, as if killing ants.

The elf rangers and dwarf warriors died while writhing in terrible pain and overwhelming fear, and Deioden laughed as he admired his own work.

That sight of Deioden gave Damian tremendous fear as well.

Only then did he realize just how terrifying a being he and his father had touched.

“Dad!”

Damian looked at his father’s corpse in his arms.

On Belov’s lifeless face, the fear and bewilderment he had felt just before death still remained.

“I told you we shouldn’t accept their commission, didn’t I? What is this? Damn it!”

Damian bit his lip hard.

Before he knew it, large tears had gathered in his eyes.

Not only Belov, but all the Awakened of the caravan had either died or been badly injured.

The caravan that had been responsible for Kamchatka Colony’s finances had collapsed.

The fall of the caravan meant the fall of Kamchatka Colony.

“Hah!”

Damian let out a sigh and wiped away his tears.

His chest hurt as if it were being torn apart, but now was not the time to grieve.

He did not even have the right to grieve.

Because this disaster had happened because of them, he had to take responsibility somehow.

He carefully laid down his father’s corpse and walked toward Deioden.

Deioden looked at Damian with an interested expression.

Damian dropped to his knees before Deioden and said,

“I’m sorry. I’ve committed a sin worthy of death.”

“Then you should die.”

“Even so, please forgive me just this once.”

“Forgive you? A young cripple speaks too carelessly. If you ask me to forgive you, am I supposed to do it?”

“I’m not that shameless.”

“Then?”

“I want to make a deal.”

“A deal?”

“Don’t you want to know Elharun’s location?”

“Do you know it?”

“Not yet.”

“And yet you talk about making a deal? Is there something wrong with your head?”

“As you know, my ability is Navigator. If I set my mind to it, I can find any path.”

“Oh!”

Only then did Deioden show interest.

He was an amusing boy.

Instead of appealing to emotion, the young boy spoke of the benefits Deioden would gain by sparing him.

It was not easy for someone who had just lost his father moments ago to be this cold-headed.

In a certain sense, Damian was a remarkable piece of goods as well.

“I will definitely find the path to Elharun. So please spare me.”

“How can I trust you? You may be lying.”

“As I already told you, our caravan is based in Kamchatka Colony. If my words are false, you may come and kill me at any time.”

Damian raised his head and looked straight at Deioden.

His face was completely stained with tears, but his eyes alone shone clearly.

Deioden smiled faintly and said,

“You had better keep your promise.”

“I will. Then I will take that as your permission and go.”

Damian bowed deeply to Deioden and rose from his seat.

As he passed by Zeon, he said,

“I’m sorry, brother!”

“......”

“If you ever need me, please come find me anytime.”

Zeon only nodded silently.

Deioden had already decided to let Damian go.

It was no longer something for him to argue about.

In a way, Damian was pitiful too.

That was because he had been thoroughly used by Elharun and the Gold Dragon Haieltun.

By comparison, Zeon and Deioden had suffered no damage at all.

In truth, they had lost nothing.

Damian, on the other hand, had suffered enormous damage.

He had lost his father, and most of his subordinates had either died or been injured.

In this state, it was impossible to guarantee whether the caravan could ever recover.

No matter how much of a Navigator he was, the desert was not forgiving enough for a young boy to survive easily.

The path Damian had to walk from now on would be as harsh and grueling as the path Zeon had walked until now.

“Wait!”

Zeon suddenly called Damian.

“Why?”

Damian looked at Zeon with a puzzled expression. Then Zeon pointed at the belongings of the elf rangers and dwarf warriors and said,

“I’d like to leave the handling of these to you.”

“What?”

“They’re the belongings of elves and dwarves, right? I think they’ll sell for quite a bit. Am I wrong?”

“You’re right. They’re hard to obtain, so they can bring in a large profit.”

The mana particle cannons the dwarves had brought were precious items combining science and Magic.

Although they had not worked on Deioden, they could deal heavy damage to other Awakened and monsters.

The armor worn by the elves and the humans’ weapons could also be sold for high prices.

“But right now, I don’t have the Mana Stones to pay you for these items.”

“I’ll receive the Mana Stones later.”

“Thank you, brother!”

Damian did not refuse Zeon’s consideration.

The situation was far too bad for him to put pride first.

Zeon said to Deioden,

“I’m sorry for deciding on my own without permission.”

“Hmph! Enough. They’re useless items to me, so do as you please.”

Deioden did not even glance at the objects rolling on the ground.

Items like these could hold no meaning for him.

If he had coveted wealth and glory, he would have remained in Neo Seoul and become someone in power instead.

What mattered was that Zeon had finally realized his own talent clearly and was displaying it.

At the very least, he was doing more than his share.

At this level, he would not hold Deioden back at a crucial moment.

Deioden raised his head and looked at the eastern sky.

He felt that the destination was no longer far away.

---

Damian loaded the corpses and items like the mana particle cannons onto the caravan and left the Valley of Death.

For him, he probably did not want to remain in this place, where he had lost his father and his subordinates who were like family, for even a moment.

Zeon understood Damian’s feelings.

He would have done the same.

On the other hand, Zeon and Deioden had no reason to hurry.

The fact that the nonhuman races had blocked their path meant they had already entered Haieltun’s sphere of influence.

Haieltun’s lair was certain to be somewhere not far from here.

From now on, they had to move with caution.

They had to rest when they could and preserve their stamina.

That was why the two decided to rest for a day in the Valley of Death.

Zeon looked at the Valley of Death with a fascinated expression.

The Valley of Death, made entirely of sandstone, boasted a strange beauty.

He thought that if the world had not turned into a desert, many people might have come to see this scenery.

After staring at the Valley of Death for a long while, Zeon suddenly took off his gauntlet. That was because his wrist itched.

As Zeon looked at his wrist, his eyes gleamed.

The third line was emitting light.

It was proof that Zeon had become Grade C.

“So I’m Grade C?”

It did not feel real.

It felt like only yesterday that he had awakened as Grade F, yet he was already Grade C.

If he had been in Neo Seoul, he probably would have been jumping with joy. But after traveling with Deioden for so long, even his current achievement did not seem that impressive.

And it felt even more so when he thought about the opponent he had to fight from now on.

The opponent was a dragon.

Even if it had only half the abilities passed down in legends and myths, it could overturn the world.

If compared to a weapon, it possessed power equal to, or greater than, the nuclear weapons of the past.

The being Deioden intended to fight was that absurdly strong.

Too strong for Zeon’s imagination to dare measure.

To fight such an opponent, Zeon had to become stronger as well.

At Grade C, he could not even guarantee survival.

“Phew! I still have a long way to go.”

Zeon let out a sigh without realizing it.

Even though Deioden saw him, he said nothing.

At first, it was true Zeon had followed because of Deioden’s coercion. But after fighting the Awakened from Neo Seoul, Zeon had accompanied him of his own will.

Therefore, everything that happened from now on was under Zeon’s own responsibility.

Agonizing over it and making decisions were entirely Zeon’s share.

As Zeon put on his gauntlet, he murmured,

“I need to find a way to become stronger.”

Others might say he was already strong enough, but Zeon was not satisfied.

Zeon’s goal was to surpass Deioden.

He already handled sand well enough, but he had to handle it even better.

‘I need a powerful interpersonal Skill. One that can finish the enemy with a single blow.’

He had felt it keenly in his fight against Hammerson.

He needed a powerful interpersonal Skill.

Zeon closed his eyes and recalled his Skills.

At least Sand Blaster and Sand Missile could be called interpersonal Skills.

Sand Blender was closer to an area Skill, and it displayed great power when dealing with monsters.

Sand Soldier was still too low in level to be used as a main Skill.

‘What remains is Exion......’

Exion was his trump card.

Its power was extreme, but he could not carelessly use it in front of others.

That was because a trump card showed its power only when kept tightly hidden.

‘Sand has poor cohesion. That’s why Sand Blaster and Sand Missile can’t exert their full power. I need a stronger, new Skill.’

Zeon thought about how to strengthen its power.

At least Sand Missile was stronger than Sand Blaster. If so, it was right to find a way to strengthen Sand Missile.

‘I need to condense Sand Missile further. To do that, I need to change its form first. Cut away every unnecessary branch without a single wasted part.’

Sand Missile had the size of a child’s forearm.

Its form was similar as well.

At that moment, a steel ball appeared in Zeon’s mind.

A round steel ball was a powerful weapon in and of itself.

He wondered what would happen if he abandoned the form of a missile and refined it into the form of a steel ball.

Zeon did not let the inspiration that had come to him in an instant slip away and immersed himself in thought.

Sssshhh!

The sand around him floated up.

Zeon’s concentration had moved the sand on its own.

Deioden silently watched Zeon.

He too had gone through that process.

He had created Skills that best suited his own ability by himself.

Although it was difficult and painful, because of such contemplation, the current Deioden had been able to exist.

If one only followed a path someone else taught, there would be a clear limit.

Most of the Awakened in Neo Seoul who walked around with their shoulders stiff, thinking they were impressive, had chosen the easy path.

Deioden did not acknowledge such people.

At least Zeon was walking a different path from them.

For that alone, he deserved recognition.

Deioden suddenly took out Crayon.

Crayon, reflected in the campfire light, emitted an even more intense red glow.

Crayon, which had absorbed Akaruk’s sword, now radiated an even greater presence.

THUD!

Deioden stuck Crayon into the ground.

“My friend!”

―Your heart seems troubled, my friend!

At that instant, Crayon answered.

Other people’s ears could not hear it.

It was a voice only Deioden could hear.

Zeon always thought Deioden was talking nonsense to himself, but in truth, it was different.

Sssshhh!

A human form appeared before Crayon.

It was a man who looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties.

He was a typical handsome white man with blond hair, blue eyes, and a tall, well-proportioned build.

Deioden looked at the man.

It was not a real body.

It was only an illusion projecting his appearance in life exactly as it had been.

The one who had been his wife’s kind older brother.

The one who had been a good maternal uncle to his daughter.

The one who had been Deioden’s dearest friend.

And the being who had lost everything and become the ego of a sword by his own will.

That was Crayon.