Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Levin had passed out from the extreme pain and only woke up the next morning.

“Ugh, I almost died.”

Levin shuddered at the memory of the agonizing pain from the previous night.

It was the worst pain he had ever experienced.

He never wanted to go through that again.

Eloy, who had been eyeing him, exclaimed.

“Hey, your body has changed!”

“What?”

“Why do you look so fit now?”

“Really?”

Levin lifted his shirt slightly, revealing a set of defined abs. Not only that, his chest, arms, and legs were all now packed with muscles.

Levin had always been slim, without much muscle.

But overnight, he had transformed into a muscular build, with firm, powerful muscles.

Levin asked Zeon.

“Is this because of the Sand Angler’s gallbladder?”

“That’s right.”

“Wow! I can’t believe just one gallbladder could do this.”

Levin marveled.

“That’s the effect of the Sand Angler. It’s hard to hunt them, but once you consume the gallbladder, it transforms your body to its peak condition.”

“Thanks, hyung! I can’t believe you gave me something so valuable.”

Levin said, looking at Zeon with gratitude. Eloy and Brielle grumbled in response.

“Tch! If I knew, I would’ve eaten it.”

“Me too! What a waste.”

Although they complained, their expressions weren’t envious.

Eloy had already trained her body to a level where she didn’t need the gallbladder, and Brielle, not being a Martial Arts Awakened, had no need to strengthen her body.

Zeon spoke up.

“Let’s eat the rest of the Sand Angler meat while we stay here.”

“Yes!”

Levin, having experienced the gallbladder’s benefits, replied without hesitation.

The group decided to stay at the oasis for another day.

During this time, Brielle crafted a robe from the Sand Angler’s belly skin.

Her cone hat seemed to have endless supplies for making the robe.

Using enchanted scissors, she cut the belly skin, coated it with a mysterious liquid, inscribed magic circles, and infused it with mana.

The others watched in silence as Brielle worked.

All the liquids Brielle used were ones she had created herself through alchemy.

She was trying to bestow new properties on the robe using these unique concoctions.

Brielle had not only reached a high level in alchemy but also as an enchanter.

Eloy, recognizing how impressive this was, looked at Brielle in astonishment.

‘This little brat is no joke.’

As the magic circles activated, the robe glowed, signifying the new properties it had gained.

“Great! It’s done.”

Brielle announced, holding up the robe with a wide smile.

Levin asked cautiously.

“What properties does it have?”

“Protection from wind, water, cold, and heat. It also aids in fatigue recovery and has defensive properties. Pretty loaded with options, huh?”

“That’s amazing.”

“Hehe.”

Brielle giggled, donning the robe. Immediately, the oppressive heat was blocked, making it much easier to breathe.

It was a significant improvement, especially given the harsh desert conditions.

Even though it was hastily made, it was quite a success.

Brielle even made her own shoes in the meanwhile.

After several attempts, she was eventually able to impart lightweight properties to the shoes.

Lightening her body to prevent her from sinking into the sand, aiding her stamina from being reduced to nothing.

While Brielle was busy crafting, the oasis vanished as if it had never existed.

With the Sand Angler meat all consumed, the group moved on.

Following behind Zeon, Brielle muttered to herself.

‘This is great. I’m not tired or hot anymore. I need to find ways to further enhance this robe when we get back to Neo Seoul.’

Despite walking for a long time, Brielle didn’t feel exhausted or hot. She felt comfortable, as if she could walk all day without getting tired.

Brielle unknowingly hummed a tune, clearly in high spirits.

Levin felt the same. The group’s pace had increased significantly, reducing Eloy’s need to worry about them.

Eloy moved up to walk alongside Zeon.

“You’ve wandered the desert for a long time, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must have seen almost everything. Have you been around here before?”

“I haven’t been everywhere. I’ve never been to the western part of Neo Seoul.”

Eight years might seem long, but it wasn’t enough to explore the entire planet.

Zeon had mainly been to the southern and eastern regions of Neo Seoul.

The west remained unknown territory.

Zeon looked around and said.

“I’m not sure how far we are from Neo Seoul, but if we’re lucky, we might find a colony.”

“A colony? In this place? It doesn’t look like anyone could survive here.”

“I’ve seen people survive in worse conditions. I’m sure there are survivors somewhere.”

Zeon’s words carried a strong conviction, a belief in human resilience.

‘No matter how ruined the Earth becomes, humans will always survive. Individually they might be weak, but when united, they have incredible strength.’

However, despite Zeon’s confidence, they didn’t find any signs of human life after several days of walking.

All they saw was the vast, endless desert.

The continuous journey was taking its toll on the group, but Zeon remained steadfast at the front, leading them on.

“Wait!”

Zeon suddenly commanded, halting the group.

The three others looked at him curiously.

“Why?”

“There’s a monster ahead.”

“A monster? I’ll go and check.”

Levin stepped forward.

He quickly turned into his ghost form and flew ahead.

Eloy chuckled.

“He’s perfect for scouting.”

Whenever Zeon sensed danger, Levin would scout ahead.

With his frequent use of the ghost form, Levin had become faster and could maintain the form for longer periods.

He quickly returned from his reconnaissance.

“It’s a monster that looks like a wolf.”

“A wolf?”

“Yes, it has large horns on its head and is quite big. At least a D-rank monster.”

“A D-rank isn’t too dangerous.”

“But…”

“But what?”

“The wolves have saddles on their backs.”

“Saddles? Like the ones people use to ride horses?”

“Yes.”

“Does that mean there’s someone who tamed those wolf monsters?”

“I’m not sure. I didn’t see any humans around.”

“If someone did tame them, that would be incredible.”

Eloy said, excitement evident in her eyes.

They hurried towards the area where the wolf monsters were spotted.

Crossing a large sand dune, they found a wide basin where the creatures roamed.

As Levin had described, the monsters resembled wolves, each with a large saddle.

Zeon commented.

“Those saddles are too big for humans.”

“Yeah, they look like they were made for something much larger than humans.”

Suddenly, the wolf monsters started howling.

Woooo!

The sand fifty meters from them began to shift, and the ground opened up.

Emerging from below were humanoid monsters, two to three meters tall, with grotesque faces, large tusks jutting from their lips, dressed in animal hides, and wielding large swords.

They were similar to humans, but not quite human.

“What are those things?”

“They’re… Orcs.”

Brielle was the first to identify them.

Levin asked, shocked.

“Those are Orcs?”

“Yes, only Orcs reek like that. But what are they doing here?”

Brielle spoke, visibly puzzled.

Zeon answered.

“There must be something underground that interests them.”

“Like what?”

Brielle asked, tilting her head in confusion.

She knew Orcs to be simple-minded and incredibly resilient.

They didn’t adapt to their environment; they just endured whatever conditions they faced.

Generally, they avoided enclosed spaces like underground tunnels.

“If there’s food or humans…”

Brielle shuddered at the thought of humans being held by Orcs.

The Orcs approached the wolf monsters, which started growling in the direction of Zeon’s group.

Brielle frowned.

“I think they’ve caught our scent and alerted the Orcs.”

“Those wolves have that kind of intelligence?”

“They’re not ordinary wolves. They’re Blood Wolves.”

“Blood Wolves?”

“Yes! They’re vicious, highly dangerous, and have almost the same intelligence as a child. I’ve never seen one in person until now.”

She had heard tales from an elder in the high elf village.

The details were fuzzy, but seeing the Orcs jogged her memory.

“Chiwek! Humans!”

“I smell them.”

Understanding the Blood Wolves’ signals, the Orcs climbed onto their backs.

Surprisingly, they spoke in a language similar to humans, though their speech was accompanied by unpleasant breathing sounds.

Mounted Orcs and Blood Wolves charged at Zeon’s group.

“They’re humans.”

“They’re food. Catch them.”

As the Orcs shouted, Eloy bristled with anger.

“Stupid Orcs! Who are you calling food?”

She yelled, drawing her Mad Gumiho and leaping at them.

“Chwiik! An elf.”

“Elves don’t taste good. Kill her.”

The Orcs recognized Eloy and unleashed their killing intent.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A fierce battle ensued, with Eloy going wild against over a dozen Blood Wolves and Orc Riders.

“Kweek!”

“It’s a crazy elf.”

While Eloy engaged the Orcs, Zeon headed towards the underground tunnel from which the Orcs had emerged.

There was a rotten smell coming from below, but Zeon descended without hesitation.

The underground space resembled an ant cave.

The sand walls, somehow reinforced, maintained their shape without collapsing.

Numerous small chambers lined the walls.

Zeon opened one of the chambers.

The stench of blood hit him immediately, and he froze at the sight.

The room was filled with human corpses, stacked like trash and reeking of fresh blood.

“Ha!”

A sigh escaped Zeon’s lips.

It was evident that Orcs wouldn’t dig out a subterranean dwelling beneath the sands. This place had undoubtedly been constructed by humans, only to be discovered and overrun by the passing Orc Riders.

The bodies bore clear bite marks from the Orcs, a grim testament to their brutal end.

The state of the corpses left no doubt.

The Orcs had slaughtered and devoured them before Zeon’s party arrived.

Emaciated and desolate, these were the remains of people who had hidden beneath the sands, trying to survive in a world that had become a living hell.

Yet, even here, they couldn’t escape the Orcs’ savagery.

For those who had abandoned the fight, there was no sanctuary.

“May you be reborn into a peaceful world in your next life…”

Zeon prayed for their peace, then he summoned a fire.