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Chapter 62

It had been three days since Zeon entered the Mana Stone Mine city.

During that time, Zeon didn’t do much.

He walked the streets or sat in alleys watching people pass by.

It was the daily life of an unemployed person with nothing to do.

It was a stark contrast to the bustling scenery of Mana Stone Mine City.

At first, there were people who looked down on Zeon for being like that. However, knowing that Zeon had beaten Cha Dong-seok’s subordinates, they refrained from picking fights recklessly.

At least in Neo Seoul, there was some semblance of order, but in Mana Stone Mine, such things were not common.

Mana Stone Mine was a place where the strong trampled the weak and everything was taken away without question.

Zeon was perceived as a strong person by the people.

His true strength was unknown, but at least he was stronger than Cha Dong-seok.

At least a D-rank Martial Arts Awakened.

D-rank might not seem like much, but considering that there were barely a thousand valuable forces in all of Neo Seoul, it showed how precious they were.

Thanks to that, Zeon was able to live comfortably.

“Have you rested well?”

On the third day, Mandy came to visit.

During that time, Mandy’s face was full of vitality, perhaps because she had rested well and eaten well.

“Thanks to you… You seem to be doing well too.”

“I’m also, thanks to you.”

“Seeing as you’ve come to find me, it seems like it’s time to leave.”

“That’s right. There’s an armored bus heading to Neo Seoul in thirty minutes. We’re going to take that bus.”

“Are they transporting Mana Stones?”

“Yes! They say Mana Stones are being gathered and sent to Neo Seoul.”

Mana Stones was the most important resource in Neo Seoul.

All facilities in Neo Seoul operated on energy extracted from Mana Stones.

Because of that, Mana Stones had to be supplied regularly.

The mining city was the place that played the biggest role in supplying Mana Stones. Once a certain amount of Mana Stones, mined at the risk of miners’ lives, was collected, it was loaded onto armored buses and sent to Neo Seoul.

Today happened to be the day they were sending the gathered Mana Stones to Neo Seoul.

Zeon nodded.

“That’s fortunate.”

“If the timing hadn’t been right, we would have had to wait at least another week. We’re lucky.”

Mandy couldn’t hide her excitement.

Zeon thought of Mana Stones mining as part of civilization, but it wasn’t the case for Mandy.

To her, accustomed to life in Neo Seoul, Mana Stones Mine was no different from a rural backwater countryside.

She wanted to enter Neo Seoul as soon as possible and enjoy the benefits of civilization to the fullest.

“Take this.”

She handed something to Zeon.

“What is it?”

“It’s a temporary access card.”

“Access card? Does that mean I can enter Neo Seoul?”

“Yes! It’s temporary, but you’ll have access. Just for one month though. After that, you’ll either need to obtain citizenship officially or find another way.”

“Well, that should be enough.”

Zeon took the access card and examined it closely.

The access card, made of an unidentified metal, bore magical inscriptions.

It was something Eloy had obtained by coercing the general manager of the Mana Stones Mine, an impossible task for someone like Mandy who valued etiquette, but not difficult for Eloy, who was no different from a lawless individual.

Eloy, having regained her strength, caused a commotion, and the weary general manager of the mining operation eventually relented and provided the temporary access card.

Mandy smiled and said.

“Let’s go by bus.”

“Let’s do that.”

Zeon got up from his seat and followed her.

The two headed toward the open space.

In the open space, a large armored bus was waiting.

The bus was covered with various pieces of armor to protect it from attacks by monsters, giving it a patched-up appearance.

Though far from stylish, it was an unavoidable choice for safety.

There were railings and gun mounts installed on the roof of the armored bus, and five Awakened were aboard.

They were there to protect against attacks by monsters and scavengers.

Behind the armored bus were boxes full of Mana Stones, while in the front were miners returning to Neo Seoul.

The faces of the miners returning to Neo Seoul after a long time were filled with excitement.

“Here we are.”

Kim Sangsik, who was already seated on the bus when Zeon and Mandy boarded, waved at them.

Like Mandy, Kim Sangsik also had color back on his face.

He gestured to two empty seats.

“You can sit here.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll take this seat.”

The two of them thanked him and took their seats.

Zeon sat by the window, while Mandy took the aisle seat.

As the bus slowly started moving, the massive gates of Mana Stone Mine City opened, and finally, the armored bus emerged into the desert.

The moment they stepped out of the gates, the air itself changed.

Hotter and more humid air rushed into the bus.

Inside the armored bus, where there wasn’t even air conditioning, it quickly became sweltering. Still, not a single person complained.

Just being able to travel on the armored bus was enough to satisfy everyone.

That was the era they lived in.

Everything that used to be taken for granted in the past was now enjoyed only by those with power and money.

For people living in the slums, air conditioning was a thing of imagination.

Zeon leaned against the window, looking outside.

At that moment, Mandy spoke to Zeon.

“By the way, do you have a place to stay?”

“I have the house I used to live in.”

“If it’s been empty for too long, someone else might be living there now.”

There were no empty houses in the slums.

The moment someone vacated a space, someone else would move in.

No matter how much one claimed it was theirs, it was useless.

There were no landowners, no house deeds.

The majority of the buildings were haphazardly constructed, and with each increase in population, safety was ignored in favor of expansion, resembling anthills. Still, there was always a shortage of homes.

Zeon smiled.

“It doesn’t matter. I just have to find it again.”

“Instead of that, why not just come into Neo Seoul? You could figure things out while living there for a month.”

“I’ll think about it slowly.”

“Okay!”

Mandy looked at Zeon’s profile.

‘Perhaps living in the desert for so long makes him not want to live in a bustling place.’

Somehow, she felt like she could understand Zeon.

Mandy gave up on trying to convince Zeon and sank into her chair.

The vibrations from the floor were still noticeable, indicating how rough the ride was. Still, it was tolerable.

If everything went smoothly, they would arrive in Neo Seoul by evening.

Mandy closed her eyes.

Since there was nothing else to do, she might as well try to sleep.

Before long, she fell into a deep slumber.

Mandy didn’t know how long she had been asleep.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

She woke up involuntarily at the faint vibrations she felt in her buttocks and back.

‘What’s going on?’

The vibrations were too strong to be from the bus alone.

At that moment, Zeon spoke as if he had been waiting.

“You’re awake. I was about to wake you up anyway.”

“Why? What’s going on?”

“Look over there.”

Zeon pointed outside the window with his finger.

Mandy widened her eyes and looked where Zeon was pointing. However, she couldn’t see anything strange except for the horizon stretching far away.

Zeon spoke.

“You’ll see in about five minutes.”

“What?”

Knowing that Zeon wasn’t one to make idle comments, Mandy patiently looked out the window.

As Zeon had predicted, after five minutes, Mandy could see the source of the vibrations she had felt in her buttocks and back.

“What’s that?”

A massive cloud of dust was rising from beyond the horizon.

The dust cloud was rapidly approaching the armored bus.

Zeon said.

“It’s monsters. Looks like a pack of Fire Wolves.”

“Damn it!”

Mandy quickly got up from her seat.

If Zeon was right and the distant cloud of dust was indeed caused by a pack of Fire Wolves, then the armored bus was in danger.

Fire Wolves were desert marauders.

They possessed the traits of both wolves and hyenas.

Once they targeted prey, they would relentlessly pursue it until the end, sticking to it until death.

What made them particularly dangerous was their tendency to gather in packs.

Once they captured prey, they would devour it to the bone, leaving no trace behind.

That’s why even high-level Awakened avoided facing Fire Wolves.

Mandy shouted.

“It’s a pack of Fire Wolves. Get ready.”

At her shout, the Awakened who had been lounging on the roof of the bus quickly stood up in alarm.

“Fire Wolves?”

“Fuck!”

“It’s true. A pack of Fire Wolves is charging at us.”

The Awakened soon spotted the Fire Wolves pack.

From afar, the Fire Wolves pack was charging as if crazed.

There were too many to count, they seemed countless. There might easily be thousands of them.

It was the first time Mandy had ever seen a Fire Wolves pack of this size.

The Awakened couldn’t help but show their fear at the crazed charge of the Fire Wolves.

“This is insane!”

“Go at full speed!”

“Damn it!”

The bus driver, sensing the danger, pressed the accelerator to the floor.

The armored bus raced through the desert at an incredible speed. However, the distance between them and the Fire Wolves pack didn’t widen at all; instead, it closed in rapidly.

Zeon muttered.

“They’ll catch up soon.”

Once the Fire Wolves set the armored bus as their prey, they wouldn’t give up easily.

Having faced them before, Zeon knew how relentless they could be.

“Damn it! Going home after so long and we just had to encounter monsters?”

“Argh!”

As the miners panicked, Mandy shouted.

“If you want to live, grab your pickaxes. Hit the ones that try to climb onto the bus!”

Even her shout couldn’t bring the miners to their senses.

Suddenly, Mandy’s expression changed.

“Tsk! Useless fools.”

Mandy’s other personality, Eloy, emerged.

Glancing at Zeon, she said.

“Don’t mess with Mandy. It’s a crisis right now. If you’re not happy, you step up.”

“Who said anything?”

“Damn it! Such bad luck.”

With a sneer, Eloy pulled out the Mad Gumiho she had been carrying behind her back.

Kwaaagh!

At that moment, the roar of the Fire Wolves resonated loudly.

Suddenly, the pack of Fire Wolves was upon them.

Flames flickered from the jaws and tails of the Fire Wolves. They were aptly named because of these flames.

As the Fire Wolves approached the rear of the armored bus, they opened their mouths wide. Flames shot out from them.

“Block it!”

“Damn it!”

The Awakened on the roof of the bus deployed their skills to block the Fire Wolves’ attack. However, with the sheer number of Fire Wolves, it was impossible to block every attack.

In the end, flames erupted onto the armored bus.

Kwaang!

With a deafening boom, the armored bus shook violently.

Thankfully, it was reinforced with thick armor all around; otherwise, a regular bus would have melted under such intense heat by now.

“These bastards…”

“Die!”

The Awakened individuals unleashed their skills.

Crack!

Boom!

Fire Wolves hit by the skills fell with screams. However, before the space could even be cleared, other Fire Wolves filled the void.

At that moment, Eloy climbed onto the bus.

“You bastards! Your all dead”

Without hesitation, she swung the Mad Gumiho.

Kwaang!

With one swing of her attack, dozens of Fire Wolves fell. However, with so many Fire Wolves, it was hardly noticeable.

“Damn it! What the hell has Neo Seoul been doing while so many of these assholes gather like this? You idiots!”

As Eloy cursed Neo Seoul, she continued to rampage. However, even with her and the other Awakened, it was impossible to stop all the Fire Wolves.

The Fire Wolves clung to the armored bus.

They tried to reach people through small windows to attack. In fact, some people were bitten by the Fire Wolves without being able to resist and disappeared.

“Aargh!”

“Save me!”

Their screams from outside the window soon vanished.

A Fire Wolf’s head also appeared where Zeon was sitting.

“Tch!”

Thwack!

Zeon clicked his tongue and lightly punched the Fire Wolf.

The head of the Fire Wolf that had clung desperately to the armored bus burst apart.

Zeon looked out the window.

In the distance, a massive entity loomed, observing this place.

It was a colossal monster, as if ten Fire Wolves were put combined in one. It was undoubtedly the leader of the Fire Wolves.

That monster emitted a presence unlike any other, even among the other Fire Wolves.

The heat emanating from the leader raised the air around it. The flames erupting from its shoulders testified to this fact.

Awoo!

The monster emitted a roar.

The roar shook the space and rattled the bus Zeon was riding.

“Ughh!”

“Ahhh!”

The miners inside the bus screamed and collapsed.

Blood flowed from their ruptured eardrums.

Zeon frowned as he watched this scene.

“You bastard! That hurt my ear…”