Chapter 56

Chapter 56

The journey was smooth.

Zeon avoided monster habitats with ghostly precision.

Sometimes it seemed as though they were taking a long detour, but when they looked back later, there were cases where they realized the path Zeon had taken had actually been the shortcut.

At times like that, chills ran down their spines.

When the sun set and evening came, Zeon found the best terrain and made a place to sleep.

They ate the jerky Zeon had stored away, and drinking water was handled by wringing out the dew that had gathered overnight on cloth or clothes spread wide open.

As they traveled with Zeon like that, the two were able to learn at least a little about how to survive in the desert.

Mandy felt awe toward Zeon.

‘He really does know the desert.’

Of course, there were many people in Neo Seoul who knew the desert well. But their area of activity was limited to the vicinity of Neo Seoul.

That was because once they went beyond that, there was no guarantee they would survive.

But Zeon was different.

Although this was clearly a region he was visiting for the first time, he could instantly grasp where monsters lived and what kind they were.

He truly was the greatest guide.

Only then did Mandy understand why Zeon wandered the desert alone.

With this kind of ability, there was no reason to go through the trouble of traveling the desert with others.

The more people traveled together, the easier it became for monsters to detect them.

There was no such concern when traveling with Zeon.

He seemed to move along the boundary lines of monsters’ territories.

Even so, following Zeon was not easy.

That was because the sand, which swallowed their feet up to the ankles, gnawed away at their stamina, and the hot sunlight beating down from overhead stole the moisture from their bodies.

In particular, the suffering Kim Sang-sik endured as an ordinary person was incomparable to Mandy’s.

Even though Zeon had been considerate of him, he had reached his limit and was panting.

His lips were split open, with the skin peeling away, and the focus had long since vanished from his eyes.

That was true even though he was riding a Bactrian Camel.

The desert was far too harsh an environment for an ordinary person with no abilities to survive.

Mandy glanced at Kim Sang-sik.

“Hah! Hah!”

He was swaying weakly on the Bactrian Camel’s back like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

It was unfortunate, but there was no way she could help him any more than this.

That was when it happened.

Zeon, who had been walking in the lead, suddenly stopped and examined the sand on the ground.

Mandy carefully asked why.

“What is it?”

“We have to be careful from here.”

“Pardon?”

“This is sand that Sandworms like. They prefer sand this soft and fine-grained.”

The finer the grains of sand, the more even small vibrations were amplified.

It was the ideal terrain for monsters like Sandworms, which sensed vibrations on the surface and foraged that way.

Mandy asked with a puzzled expression,

“Are there different kinds of sand?”

“There are.”

“You can tell them apart?”

“If you survive in the desert long enough, it’s possible.”

“Really......”

Mandy shook her head.

If anyone could do that, the desert would already have been ruled by humans. Because that was impossible, the desert still remained the territory of monsters.

Only Zeon could do it.

Now Mandy knew that fact for certain.

“We’ll move along the outskirts of the Sandworms’ territory. There’s a low chance they’ll detect us, but still, be careful not to make footsteps.”

Zeon spoke as he moved forward.

If he had been alone, there would have been no reason to be this careful.

The desert was his domain, and Sandworms were no match for him. But as long as he was traveling with Mandy and Kim Sang-sik, he had to be careful.

One of the realizations he had gained while wandering the world for seven years was that most people harbored jealousy and envy.

They had to drag down those better than themselves somehow, and if possible, they wanted to pull them down to their own level.

Zeon was not afraid of people like that, but he absolutely hated becoming troublesome already.

It was while Zeon was walking along the outskirts of the Sandworms’ territory like that.

“Mm!”

Suddenly, an alien sight entered his vision.

Far away, he saw an object half-buried in sand.

“What is it?”

Mandy asked with a puzzled expression.

“It looks like a corpse for now......”

“A corpse?”

She looked in the direction Zeon was looking.

After concentrating for a long while, Mandy was able to recognize the object Zeon was looking at.

“That’s definitely Team 7’s clothing.”

Mandy furrowed her brow.

It was too far away, and the body was buried in sand, so she could not tell who had collapsed there.

Zeon said,

“Let’s go closer for now.”

“Yes!”

Mandy nodded and followed Zeon.

Behind her followed the Bactrian Camel Kim Sang-sik was riding.

Only after walking for nearly twenty minutes were the three able to arrive near the fallen person.

Only then did the face of the one lying there become clear.

Mandy opened her eyes wide.

“Anika?”

It was definitely Anika, the only woman in Team 7.

At that instant, Anika’s eyes flashed open.

“Hoho! You fell for it.”

As if she had never been collapsed at all, she sprang to her feet.

Mandy’s eyes widened in shock.

“What is this?”

“What do you think? You fell into our trap. Hoho!”

Anika burst into laughter as she stepped far away.

At that moment, those who had been hiding in the nearby sand sprang out.

Zahar, Felix, Darren, Seido, and the rest of Team 7 had all been hiding.

They surrounded Zeon’s group.

Zahar looked at Mandy and said,

“You somehow managed to stay alive.”

“Team Leader Zahar. What do you think you’re doing?”

“What do you mean, what am I doing? Looking at your complexion, it seems you’ve been eating and drinking properly, so we’re going to share. As you can see, we haven’t eaten properly for days.”

Team 7 looked terrible.

Their faces were gaunt and dry, and their skin had become rough, with flakes peeling away.

They had escaped the shelter safely, but it was clear they had starved because they could not find anything to eat.

They had carefully rationed the emergency food they possessed, but it had all run out two days ago.

After that, they had been starving the entire time.

In Team 7’s field of vision, they had spotted Mandy and Kim Sang-sik alive and well. Unlike them, who were starving, Mandy’s face had color.

It was clear they had food.

Zahar looked at Zeon.

“I suppose you’re the one holding the food and water?”

With Mandy and Kim Sang-sik’s abilities, finding food in the desert was impossible.

In the end, the only person among them who could be a variable was Zeon.

“Abandon them and come to our side. That would be better for you too.”

He spoke politely, but his eyes were nothing short of savage.

Because he had already gone two days without food, he could no longer see anything clearly.

If it meant obtaining drinking water and food, he could even kill his own parents.

“If you give us water and food, Neo Seoul will reward you greatly.”

Zahar’s eyes resembled those of a monster filled with venom.

The same was true of the other team members.

If not, they would never have abandoned their pride and hidden in the sand to lure Zeon’s group.

Zeon smiled faintly.

“If I give you water and food, will you really let me live?”

“Of course. We’ll protect you all the way to Neo Seoul.”

“That doesn’t sound trustworthy at all.”

“You don’t have any options anyway. At least taking our hand will give you some chance of survival.”

While Zahar spoke, Felix, Darren, and the others took positions behind Zeon’s group.

They looked ready to use their Skills if necessary.

Then Mandy stepped forward.

“Do you really have to do this? We’re all on the same side.”

“The same side? Aside from my own team, I have never once thought of anyone as my people.”

“So that means you have no intention of accepting this man as a teammate either, right?”

At Mandy’s words, Zahar’s expression stiffened.

He had fallen for her leading question.

The moment he realized there was no use trying to persuade them gently, he gave the order.

“Kill them all.”

“Kill them!”

“Haaah!”

Darren and Seido, both martial-type Awakened, charged first, while Felix and Anika supported from the rear.

Darren’s mechanical prosthetic arm and Seido’s sword attacked Zeon, while Felix’s curse and Anika’s Magic poured down on Mandy.

“Did you think I’d just take it?”

Mandy, filled with venom, unleashed the Skill she had kept tightly hidden until now.

Mandy’s body split into five in an instant.

It was Mirror Image, one of the illusion spells.

PUCK! PUCK!

Felix’s curse and Anika’s Magic struck Mandy’s illusions.

Meanwhile, the real Mandy moved behind Anika.

“I never liked you from the beginning either.”

She tried to cast Magic at the defenseless Anika. But Zahar moved faster.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

THUD!

His strike landed on Mandy.

“Kyaaak!”

Mandy screamed and was flung away.

As befitted a Team Leader, Zahar’s attack was extremely powerful.

Mandy fell face-first on the ground and vomited blood. Seeing Mandy like that, Anika raised her killing intent.

“I almost died. You fucking bitch!”

She spat curses without hesitation.

Zahar left Mandy’s disposal to Anika and turned his gaze toward Zeon.

Darren and Seido were attacking Zeon fiercely.

But Zeon was avoiding all of their attacks by a hair’s breadth.

“He’s rather skilled.”

Darren and Seido were among the better Pathfinders.

In particular, their combination was perfect and had driven many people to despair.

Darren pressed forward with strength, while Seido’s sword shot in like a flash of lightning.

The two drove Zeon back perfectly, as if they shared a consciousness.

Zeon seemed to have no way to respond and only kept dodging. But his movements were strange.

He slid freely over the sand as if someone were pulling him with a rope.

It contrasted with Darren and Seido, whose feet sank deep into the sand up to their ankles every time they moved.

Because of that, even though the two held an overwhelming advantage, they could not easily subdue Zeon, and time passed helplessly.

‘He’s used to fighting on sand.’

Zahar pressed his lips together.

If time passed like this, there was no telling what variable might arise.

He had to subdue Zeon before that.

“You bastard!”

Zahar joined in.

BAAANG!

The air burst under his punch.

Naturally, the target was Zeon. But Zeon avoided Zahar’s attack by a hair’s breadth.

Zahar attacked repeatedly and said,

“The more you resist, the harder it’ll be on you. You’d better surrender quietly.”

“You won’t let me live even if I surrender, will you?”

Zeon said with a smile.

Even under the combined attack of three people, his expression was relaxed.

That sight touched Zahar’s nerves.

“I’ll cut off your limbs and throw you to the monsters as feed.”

“If you like monsters that much, I’ll call them for you.”

“What?”

BAAANG!

At that instant, Zeon stomped hard.

With an explosive roar, fine grains of sand scattered into the sky.

A powerful vibration traveled far through the sand.

It was not an ordinary stomp.

Zeon had used his control to send the vibration very far.

And he had transformed it into the kind of wave Sandworms liked best.

The effect appeared immediately.

RUMBLERUMBLERUMBLE!

The Sandworms far away reacted to the vibration and came rushing in.

Zahar and the team members could not feel them, but Zeon’s senses caught their movements clearly.

“What kind of bullshit trick is this?”

“Die!”

“You fucking bastard......”

Zahar, Darren, and Seido, sensing the unusual atmosphere, were about to attack Zeon.

BAAANG!

Gigantic worms broke through the sand and revealed themselves behind Zeon.

They were Sandworms.