Chapter 86

Chapter 86

Early in the morning, Zeon left the house.

Behind him followed a girl wearing a pointed hat.

The girl walking unsteadily, as if drunk, was Briel.

Briel asked Zeon,

“Yaaawn! Where are we going?”

“We’re going to a restaurant to eat.”

“A restaurant?”

“It’s a place that gives you food if you pay money.”

“Really?”

At the word food, Briel lifted the brim of her pointed hat with a finger and looked up at Zeon.

Her eyes were unfocused and hazy. But within them was a fierce curiosity.

If there had been any change in Briel after being rescued by Zeon, it was curiosity.

Her curiosity toward things she had never experienced had begun to explode.

Food was one of the things she craved.

Because she had lived every day eating only an unidentified soup, her craving for delicious food was strong.

Saliva had filled Briel’s mouth.

The change in her expression was amusing, so Zeon naturally smiled.

That was when it happened.

“Oh, hyung!”

A voice suddenly called out to Zeon.

When Zeon turned around, he saw a buzzed short-haired boy with flashy earrings and piercings.

“Levin!”

The boy was Levin.

Levin approached Zeon.

“Where are you going?”

“To eat. Want to come?”

“I already ate.”

“Really?”

Levin’s gaze turned toward Briel. Then Briel quickly hid behind Zeon.

“Who is she?”

“A dependent.”

“Huh?”

“There’s something like that. Where are you going?”

“Dongdaemun.”

“Why Dongdaemun?”

“It looks like that bastard has resumed activity over there.”

Levin’s eyes were cold as he answered.

His mouth was smiling, but his gaze was as sharp as a blade.

Zeon realized that Levin’s ability had grown.

‘Grade E?’

Some Awakened remained at the same grade they first awakened at, while others grew.

The difference lay in one thing.

It was whether they honed their awakened talent in a harsh environment.

That was why many Awakened regularly went out to hunt monsters. But not everyone’s grade rose because of that.

Some rose quickly, others rose slowly. And some stagnated entirely.

Fortunately, Levin did not seem to belong to the latter group.

“Be careful.”

“Don’t worry. I have the strength to protect myself too.”

“Good.”

“Enjoy your meal. You be good too.”

Even at Levin’s words, Briel did not answer and only hid behind Zeon.

Briel’s hatred of humans was extremely deep-rooted, and even Levin’s warm words did not sway her.

Levin did not feel hurt by Briel’s reaction.

That was because Levin possessed emotions as dry as Briel’s.

He only acted this friendly toward Zeon because Zeon had looked after him. He treated everyone else coldly.

At that moment, Levin’s body turned blurry.

He had used his awakened ability, Ghost Transformation.

Levin passed through the wall and disappeared in an instant.

“What was that?”

Briel’s eyes went round.

It was because she had never seen such an ability before.

Briel looked up at Zeon.

“He wasn’t just a punk?”

“He was a punk, but he isn’t one now.”

“What a strange human.”

“Are there High Elves with that kind of ability?”

“No! Not a single one......”

Briel firmly shook her head.

In her mind, Levin’s evaluation was revised from mere punk to capable punk.

Zeon smiled faintly and started walking.

Briel hurriedly followed behind him.

A short while later, the two arrived at the street where the restaurants were. For some reason, however, old man Clexi was nowhere to be seen.

Zeon frowned slightly.

It was the first time he had seen old man Clexi not come out to do business.

‘Did something happen?’

Zeon asked a nearby merchant.

“Is old man Clexi not coming out today?”

“He won’t be out because he has business.”

“What kind of business?”

“I only heard that it was personal.”

“I see.”

Zeon did not ask any further.

He did not have a hobby of prying into someone else’s private life.

There were many shops selling food on this street besides old man Clexi’s.

Zeon and Briel chose one of them and sat down.

The shop owner was quite skilled too.

The broth had been made with unidentified meat, and it was full of equally unidentified vegetables.

Still, it was delicious.

It was not quite on old man Clexi’s level, but this shop owner was also fairly skilled.

Zeon asked Briel,

“Are you fine with meat?”

“Why?”

“Don’t elves usually eat vegetarian?”

“That’s prejudice. What vegetarian nonsense when there’s nothing to eat and you might starve? We hunt monsters and eat meat too.”

What the elves had expected when they crossed over to Earth was lush greenery. But as a side effect of Terraforming, the entire Earth had undergone desertification, and finding grass had become harder than finding meat.

Even the vegetables in the food they were eating now had been artificially produced in a factory, not gathered from nature.

If anything, this place was far richer than the High Elf village, and it had far more delicious things.

Briel sweated heavily as she ate the food in front of her.

Zeon’s gaze suddenly turned toward a man sitting at the neighboring shop and eating.

The man had his head lowered and was focused on his food.

But his outfit was unusual.

He was wearing clerical clothing, something difficult to see in the current age.

He wore black clothing with a cross engraved on the chest, the kind priests had worn long ago when religion had still been intact.

Perhaps feeling Zeon’s gaze, the man in clerical clothing lifted his head.

He was a middle-aged man with hair neatly slicked back, thick horn-rimmed glasses, and small eyes curved in arcs.

He looked at Zeon and smiled broadly.

“The food in Shinchon is quite good.”

“You must be from another district.”

“I mainly reside in Dongdaemun. It has been quite a long time since I came over to Shinchon.”

“The distance isn’t that great. Was there a reason you couldn’t come all this time?”

“A certain man disliked me, you see.”

The man in clerical clothing wiped the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief as he answered.

Zeon looked closely at the man.

The man did not avoid Zeon’s gaze and met it head-on.

Suddenly, a man came to Zeon’s mind.

“You must be Johan.”

“Oh!”

At the name Johan, the man’s eyes widened as though he was rather surprised.

From his reaction, Zeon instinctively knew that his guess was correct.

“What brings the ruler of Dongdaemun to Shinchon?”

“What else? A nuisance who blocked my path at every turn is gone, so I came to take a look.”

“You don’t seem to have come merely to look around.”

“I couldn’t stay still when I was curious about the person who got rid of that nuisance.”

The nuisance he was referring to was Goran.

In other words, he had come to see Zeon, who had eliminated Goran.

The man’s name was Johan.

He was the ruler of Dongdaemun.

It was said that he had once been a clergyman.

The entire Earth had undergone changes close to destruction, and a new humanity called the Awakened had emerged.

The world had completely changed, but religion had tenaciously survived and maintained its lineage.

Johan, who had been a low-ranking clergyman, awakened, and afterward, he expanded his power terrifyingly and completely seized Dongdaemun.

Even after awakening, Johan always wore clerical clothing.

That was why Zeon was able to recognize him.

Johan had been Goran’s complete nemesis.

The two had clashed over every little thing and coveted each other’s territory. But because the strength of the two forces was equal, their confrontation had been prolonged.

Because of that, Johan had not been able to enter Shinchon for quite some time.

Zeon said,

“You came to see me.”

“That’s right! How could I bear my curiosity about the new ruler of Shinchon?”

“There is a separate new ruler of Shinchon.”

“Heh-heh! He is nothing more than a figurehead. Isn’t the true ruler you?”

“I am not interested in ruling others.”

“Do not lie.”

“Pardon?”

Johan smiled and said,

“Men, especially men with power, all wish to stand above others. That is men’s innate destiny and identity.”

“......”

Zeon did not bother answering.

He felt no need to.

Johan continued speaking, unconcerned.

“I heard the voice of God. He whispered to me. He told me to fulfill my mission.”

“Mission?”

“The mission to lead people down the righteous path.”

A fierce light shone from Johan’s eyes behind his glasses.

Zeon knew what that gaze meant.

‘He’s insane. His eyes are full of madness.’

A person who was simply insane could not have eyes like this.

Only someone with a certain obsession could radiate such pure madness.

Johan was prepared to burn anything to fulfill his mission.

“Thanks to you, Goran has disappeared, so I can now spread the teachings of the Lord widely throughout Shinchon as well. In that sense, I am grateful.”

“Eaton will not allow that.”

“Pfft! Are you serious? Eaton is only fit to be second-in-command at best. Under Goran, he may have been able to show his ability, but he has no ability to lead things on his own.”

Johan rose from his seat and approached Zeon.

He pointed at Zeon’s chest with his finger and said,

“What matters is your will. If only you allow it, I can spread the teachings of the Lord in this place as well. What do you say? Will you not give me the opportunity to bestow the Lord’s teachings?”

“What exactly are those teachings?”

“It is simple. Believe in God, exercise power on behalf of His will, and make the world peaceful.”

“How do you know God’s will?”

“I know it.”

“Pardon?”

“Because in this world, only I can hear God’s voice. God intends to reveal His will through my mouth. In other words, I am God’s mouthpiece.”

Johan spoke those arrogant words without the slightest change in complexion.

Zeon asked,

“So your will is God’s will?”

“That is how it is.”

“Was coming here also God’s will?”

“That is correct. Now only your decision remains. What will you do?”

“I do not believe in God.”

Zeon did not miss the faint crack that appeared on Johan’s face.

He had spoken indirectly, but the meaning contained within his words was simple.

Zeon did not want Johan entering Shinchon.

If Johan became active in Shinchon, the street would become noisy.

Eaton, who had only just become the ruler of Shinchon, could not stop Johan.

Johan forced himself to speak calmly.

“Is that so? That is unfortunate. But I understand. Everyone thinks differently, after all.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Still, will you not regret it?”

“I do not think I will particularly regret it.”

“We will know in time. In any case, it was good to meet you.”

Johan did not try to persuade Zeon.

He too had lived for decades as the ruler of Dongdaemun and had met countless people.

Naturally, his eye for people was outstanding.

Though they had exchanged only a few words, it was enough for him to recognize what kind of person Zeon was.

Zeon was not someone persuasion would work on.

Rather than wasting time persuading him, it would be better to find another method.

Johan’s gaze turned toward Briel behind Zeon.

“Your daughter?”

“A burden.”

“She is a pretty child. I hope she grows up beautifully just as she is.”

With those words, Johan vanished from Shinchon.