Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Sand Blaster.

It was Zeon’s favorite skill and the first skill he had mastered.

He used it with great proficiency.

A single Sand Blaster wasn’t particularly powerful, but when dozens were fired simultaneously, the story changed.

It had enough force to shred most monsters instantly.

Zeon had hunted many monsters with the Sand Blaster.

But now, his opponent was Balrog.

Balrog’s body was tougher than most large monsters, and it had a powerful force field.

High-ranking monsters like Balrog, those A-rank and above, had force fields that provided significant defense against both physical and magical attacks.

The higher the monster’s rank, the stronger the force field.

Balrog’s exact rank was unknown as it had just appeared today.

But judging by its presence and force field, it was clear:

‘It’s at least S-rank.’

That meant the minimum was S-rank.

Even having just awakened, Balrog was already this powerful. If it regained its full strength, it would be unimaginably destructive.

‘How could you wake up such a monster, Damien?’

Balrog was capable of destroying a colony in an instant.

Releasing such a monster on Neo Seoul’s doorstep was reckless, even if it was to extract information about El Harun from the elves.

Perhaps Damien trusted Zeon to be able to stop Balrog.

If it was Zeon, he could definitely stop Balrog.

Whoosh!

The Flame Whip flew at an invisible speed.

Zeon used his Sand Stride to retreat.

The whip barely missed, scorching the air in front of Zeon’s face.

Sizzle!

The air itself seemed to boil from the mere proximity of the Flame Whip.

The heat was intense enough to melt the skin of most Awakeneds.

But this level of heat couldn’t harm Zeon.

He wore the Inferno Gauntlet.

The gauntlet, embedded with the eye of a Red Dragon, protected Zeon perfectly from flames.

At least Balrog’s fire attacks wouldn’t kill him.

What remained was pure skill and physical combat.

Swoosh!

The Flame Whip came at him again.

Even without the fire, the whip’s raw power was enough to rip apart the body of any monster.

Zeon blocked the whip with the Inferno Gauntlet.

The gauntlet’s strength was on par with the Flame Whip, allowing Zeon to withstand the attack.

Bang! Bang!

The Flame Whip and the Inferno Gauntlet clashed repeatedly, sending shockwaves and firestorms in all directions.

Zeon and Balrog moved at such speeds that Serian and Mariel couldn’t even track their movements with their eyes.

The old man, maintaining his barrier, stood with his mouth agape.

“Was he really that strong?”

He knew Zeon was formidable.

The fact that the twins he sent after him had failed to report back was proof of Zeon’s strength.

But he hadn’t expected Zeon’s physical prowess to rival Balrog’s.

“Is he a Martial Arts Awakened?”

The old man quickly dismissed the thought.

Zeon was more than a Martial Arts Awakened.

The sand swirling around him proved it.

The sand moved as if it responded to Zeon’s will, like hunting dogs awaiting their master’s command, ready to tear at their prey at any moment.

Zeon gestured, and the sand coalesced in the air, forming compact masses the size of a child’s arm.

These Sand Missiles shot at Balrog with terrifying speed.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Dozens of Sand Missiles exploded on Balrog’s massive body.

But they inflicted no damage.

The force field protected Balrog entirely.

Zeon knew this would happen.

He used the Sand Missiles to wear down the force field.

No matter how strong, a force field couldn’t last forever.

Balrog, having just taken over Damien’s body, wouldn’t have the reserves to maintain it indefinitely.

Luckily, the old man’s barrier enclosed an enormous amount of sand. And Zeon had the control to manipulate it.

“Let’s get serious.”

Zeon raised more sand.

The sand rose like a tsunami and crashed down on Balrog.

Boom!

A sand wave, tens of meters high, engulfed Balrog.

Serian covered her mouth in shock.

“A Sand… Mage?”

“My God!”

Even Eli’s eyes widened in astonishment.

A giant sand pillar lifted Zeon into the air, confirming his status as a Sand Mage.

Roar!

Furious, Balrog unleashed The Eye of Destruction.

The red beam from Balrog’s eyes instantly melted the sand supporting Zeon, turning it into lava.

The barrier’s interior transformed into a volcanic landscape, with rivers of molten sand flowing and the air heating up to unbearable levels.

Breathing alone felt like it would sear their lungs.

“Ugh!”

“Damn it!”

Those who survived covered their faces with their sleeves and retreated.

“My Queen!”

Even as she was being pulled away by Borin, Serian couldn’t take her eyes off Zeon.

He spread his arms like a conductor, causing the sand before Balrog to explode like bombs.

Boom!

The tremendous pressure and countless sand particles engulfed Balrog.

Zeon had used Claymore.

Most monsters would be torn to shreds by one Claymore blast.

But the opponent was Balrog.

A demonic beast called a disaster.

The sand was unable to penetrate the force field on the Balrog’s body and scattered in all directions.

“This won’t work! We need to help him.”

“You can’t, My Queen!”

Eli opposed the idea.

She hurriedly stepped in front of Serian and continued.

“My Queen saw it too, didn’t you? That man holds a grudge against our kind. If we help him, he will definitely betray us.”

“Eli!”

“We need to think rationally. If the location of El Harun is exposed, all our people who crossed over from Kurayan will be in danger.”

Eli’s eyes were bloodshot with intensity.

She had always coveted Serian’s position and had secretly opposed her.

But there was one thing they agreed on: the protection of El Harun.

El Harun was the last bastion for all those who came from Kurayan.

It had to be protected until they gained more strength.

“We don’t need to use our strength. Let these humans inside the barrier die. That way, the secret of El Harun will be kept safe.”

“No, My Queen!”

Borin countered Eli’s argument.

“How dare you!”

Eli glared fiercely at Borin, but she continued undeterred.

“I understand that El Harun is important, but so is this place. Neo Seoul is our home, isn’t it? We already live under the watchful eyes of humans, and if this place falls, where will our people go?”

“We have El Harun, don’t we?”

“I don’t know about El Harun. This place is my home. Most of our kind probably feel the same way.”

“Who are you to speak so freely? Shut your mouth.”

“I’m sorry, but I must speak. If we don’t help Zeon, many people in Neo Seoul will die. The city itself might not suffer much damage, but the people in the slums will. Their deaths will deepen the hatred and resentment against us.”

Having spoken her mind, Borin felt a sense of relief, despite knowing it could incur Eli’s wrath and possible consequences.

Eli turned her gaze to Serian.

“Do not listen to her.”

“Eli!”

“Humans are our enemies. Never forget that.”

“Ha! I’m sorry, Eli. I’ve always respected your opinions, but not this time.”

“My Queen!”

“No matter the risk of El Harun’s exposure, we must prevent the many deaths. And if we let Balrog go unchecked, do you think we’ll be safe? We might be safe for now, but eventually, Balrog will cause us great harm.”

“But…”

“Enough. That’s an order. If you defy me again, I’ll consider it mutiny and punish you.”

Serian’s stern gaze silenced Eli.

She couldn’t argue any further.

‘Damn it!’

Eli bit her lip so hard it bled, feeling humiliated.

Ignoring Eli, Serian stepped forward.

Zeon was fiercely battling Balrog.

The area within the barrier had already transformed into a lava field, another demonstration of Balrog’s power.

Balrog, a monster born of hellfire, thrived in this environment.

The more the surroundings changed, the stronger Balrog became.

Zeon intensified his attacks on Balrog.

Boom!

Zeon used all the sand at his disposal to attack Balrog.

But the limited sand, most of it already melted, restricted his efforts.

Zeon bit his lip slightly.

‘Should I go all out?’

He could manipulate the sand beneath the lava if he wanted, but doing so would reveal his full power.

As Zeon hesitated, Serian shouted.

“I’ll help!”

She activated a skill,

A massive swarm of light burst from her entire body and was shot toward Zeon.

He felt an immense energy flooding through him—Serian’s skill, Blessing of the Earth.

It temporarily transferred a significant portion of her mana to him.

Being an S-rank Awakened, Serian had a vast and deep reservoir of mana.

Zeon, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of mana, felt a new sense of power.

‘With this…’

He realized he could use his full power without revealing his true strength.

That was all he needed.

“Great!”

Zeon shouted as he soared into the air.

Balrog followed, flaming wings sprouting from its back.

It closed in on Zeon in an instant.

Boom!

Balrog broke the sound barrier, creating a sonic boom.

The Flame Whip in its hand morphed into a spear, aimed at Zeon’s throat.

In that critical moment, Zeon quietly whispered,

“Sand Storm!”

Whoosh!

The lava churned, and an enormous amount of sand erupted into the air.

The swirling sand engulfed Balrog and its Flame Whip.

But Zeon didn’t stop there.

“Sand Mixer!”

The fine sand particles spun like a blender, eroding Balrog’s force field.

As the force field weakened, Balrog’s skin was exposed to the rapidly spinning sand particles, which began to wear it away.

Roar!

Balrog, in immense pain, unleashed The Eye of Destruction, firing beams of high-temperature energy throughout the barrier.

“Damn it! I can’t hold on any longer. Finish it quickly.”

The old man shouted, coughing up blood.

At that moment, Serian and Borin launched their attack skills.

The scattered sand particles obscured everyone’s vision.

In that instant, Zeon released Exion.

Finally, maximum output was achieved.

With black sand spread out like wings, Zeon struck Balrog directly.

Boom!