Chapter 212

“Looks like it’s going to be another scorching day.”

Eloi grumbled as she stepped out of the shelter.

It was still early morning, but the sunlight was already blazing down fiercely.

Just being exposed to it made it feel like her skin was burning.

As an Awakener, she could endure it as mere heat—but an ordinary person wouldn’t last even an hour before drying up and dying.

“Seriously! It’s even hotter today.”

“Wow…”

Brielle and Levin, who came out after her, also frowned deeply at the unusually intense sunlight.

Zeon stepped out last and looked up at the sky.

The blazing sun made him instinctively narrow his eyes.

Pulling up the hood of his robe, he said,

“Be careful not to get heatstroke.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got this, hehe!”

Brielle laughed as she patted the robe made from desert maw hide.

Levin and Eloi looked at her with envy.

With a wave of Zeon’s hand, the shelter they had used the night before collapsed and turned back into flat ground.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes!”

Levin immediately turned into a ghost and followed behind Zeon.

‘I need to get stronger.’

Traveling with Zeon had made one thing clear.

In the desert, kindness and justice meant nothing.

What truly mattered was strength.

Only those strong enough to survive the harsh environment and the assaults of massive magical beasts had the right to speak of justice.

Just like Zeon.

Levin still didn’t know what Zeon’s sense of justice was.

But whatever it was, there were hardly any who could challenge it in this desert.

If that was the case, then Zeon’s will itself was justice.

Levin wanted to become someone like him—

Someone strong enough to assert their own justice.

That was why, without being told, he voluntarily maintained his ghost form.

Ghostification was a skill that consumed an enormous amount of mana.

As long as it was active, his mana drained continuously.

With Levin’s current ability, he couldn’t even maintain it for an hour.

After an hour, the transformation would break, leaving him completely exhausted—

So drained he couldn’t even move a finger.

Thud!

As his ghost form dissipated, Levin fell to the ground.

“Ugh!”

“Sigh… what a burden.”

Clicking her tongue, Eloi hoisted Levin onto a two-humped camel, then started walking across the sand herself.

Brielle stared at Levin—now slumped like luggage on the camel’s back—with curious eyes.

Seeing her expression, Levin felt a sense of danger.

“What?”

“Want to try this?”

Brielle pulled out a transparent bottle from her sleeve and shook it in front of him.

“W-what… is that?”

His voice trembled involuntarily.

Brielle replied casually,

“Something good for your body.”

“Is it really?”

“Trust me. I made it as a test using materials I got from the Iron Fortress.”

“A test? So I’m the first one drinking it?”

“Yep! Don’t worry. You trust me, right?”

“I—I do.”

“Then drink up.”

Smiling, Brielle poured the liquid into Levin’s mouth.

Too weak to resist, Levin ended up swallowing every last drop.

The moment he did, a fiery pain erupted from his lower abdomen.

“Gah!”

His eyes shot wide open from the sudden agony.

Brielle looked at his face and said,

“It might hurt a little at first.”

‘A little? Are you insane?!’

It felt like his insides were being torn to pieces.

The pain was so intense he couldn’t even scream.

Seeing Levin trembling atop the camel, Eloi frowned and asked,

“What the hell did you feed him, kid? Don’t tell me you tried to assassinate him with poison because you don’t like him.”

“Who said anything about assassination?”

“Then what did you give him?”

“A mana amplifier!”

“What?”

“Are your ears blocked? It’s a potion that amplifies mana.”

“Bullshit! That’s impossible. There’s no such thing as something that amplifies mana.”

“This is why half-breeds are hopeless. You keep trying to think within human limits.”

“Then what—pure… no, High Elves are different?”

“Of course we are.”

Brielle looked straight at Eloi.

Though she had been captured by humans and forced to make drugs, Brielle’s mind was filled with the secrets of the High Elves.

The greatest duty of the High Elves was the preservation of tradition—

To safeguard the countless techniques and knowledge accumulated since Kurayan and pass them down intact.

Old High Elves would teach everything they knew to the young, making them memorize it all.

Brielle had gone through that process.

Though she had been captured before completing it, she still retained a significant portion of that knowledge.

Among it was a method to amplify mana.

The problem was that the required ingredients only existed in Kurayan.

Earth and Kurayan had vastly different ecosystems, so the materials didn’t match.

Because of that, Brielle experimented with Earth materials that had similar effects.

Eventually, she found substances in the Iron Fortress storage that closely resembled the ingredients for Kurayan’s mana amplification potion.

She tasted each one, tested them on herself, and determined the exact effects and proper dosages.

After great effort, she finally created the potion Levin had just taken.

She had told him it was just a test—

But in truth, she had poured everything she had into making it.

‘If this really amplifies mana, then making mana recovery potions will be easy.’

Mana amplification potions couldn’t be distributed freely—they were too dangerous.

But mana recovery potions…

…was different.

If things went well, it was something that could dominate the potion market in Neo Seoul.

Countless people had researched it, but until now, no one in Neo Seoul had succeeded in creating a proper mana potion.

If Brielle were to release a mana recovery potion, the activity range of Awakeners, dungeon raids, and the frequency of hunting magical beasts would increase dramatically.

And if that happened, Zeon’s influence in Neo Seoul would grow significantly.

Zeon lived in the slums to avoid troublesome matters—but now that he had revealed his abilities, countless people would seek him out.

To remain free from them, he needed power.

Not just power as a sand user—but authority within Neo Seoul.

Brielle believed that mana potions could become that power.

For now, the mana amplification potion came first.

A perfect test subject was trembling in pain.

“Gah!”

With a scream, Levin jerked his head up, his eyes bloodshot.

Eloi looked at him with concern.

“Isn’t this going to go wrong?”

“It won’t…”

Brielle replied firmly.

This wasn’t just anyone—it was Levin, someone close to her.

If there had been even the slightest side effect, she would never have made him drink it.

This pain was simply part of the process toward success.

At that moment, Levin’s expression suddenly changed.

Color returned to his face, and a smile formed on his lips.

Just moments ago, it had felt like his body would explode—but once the intense pain passed, his body felt comfortable, even energized.

And that wasn’t all.

‘My total mana has increased… by about thirty percent.’

Thirty percent might not sound like much, but it was nearly one-third of his total.

Normally, the total amount of mana never increased unless one’s rank rose.

For it to increase without a rank-up was unheard of in the world of Awakeners.

And yet, that impossible event had just become reality.

Levin was its first beneficiary.

Though increasing mana capacity required enduring hellish pain, it was more than worth it.

Levin opened his eyes wide and grinned.

“This is amazing. My mana increased by about thirty percent.”

“See? I told you.”

“Can I take another one?”

“Sorry, but the effect only works once. Even if you take another, you won’t get the same dramatic result.”

“Really? That’s a shame.”

Levin smacked his lips, slightly disappointed—but not too much, since he had expected as much.

If such a revolutionary potion increased mana every time, Awakeners would become endlessly stronger.

Brielle added,

“Consider yourself lucky. Getting the same materials again will take a lot of time and effort.”

“You mean…?”

“It means we don’t know when I’ll be able to make another proper mana amplification potion. Recreating the exact same one will take time.”

“I see.”

“So enjoy this moment, you idiot!”

Even being called an idiot didn’t bother Levin at all.

In fact, he was itching to use his newfound power.

He leapt off the two-humped camel and activated ghostification.

Even in ghost form, it didn’t feel burdensome.

Thanks to his greatly increased mana.

“Yes!”

Levin cheered, throwing an uppercut into the air.

Watching him, Brielle smiled.

‘It worked. If the mana amplification potion succeeded, then making regular mana potions will be easy.’

The confidence from success filled her with joy.

At that moment, Eloi cautiously asked,

“Do you happen to have another one left?”

“As if.”

“Damn it! I should’ve been the one to drink it.”

“Like I’d give it to you. Idiot!”

“Ugh, you’re such an unlikable brat.”

Since she was the one who regretted it, Eloi couldn’t push further.

She looked at Levin, now in ghost form, with envy.

“Ugh…”

***

“This damn sandstorm. Can’t it just stop already?”

“Haah… quit whining. It’s already hard enough as it is.”

There were people traveling through the desert in buggy cars.

Rattle! Rattle!

Four buggies pushed forward through the sand as if they might fall apart at any moment.

In the lead buggy sat a middle-aged man with a claymore at his waist, a woman with striking blue hair, a man with a cold demeanor, and a man with a massive, mountain-like build.

The owner of the claymore was Jang Yongbeom.

They were his party.

His teammates—Giselle, Aiden, and Mountain—were all renowned powerful Awakeners in Neo Seoul.

Behind Jang Yongbeom’s buggy, other buggies followed, each carrying Awakener parties.

All of them had accepted the same request in Neo Seoul.

Recently, several Pathfinder teams dispatched to the west of Neo Seoul had failed to return.

Pathfinders were elite Awakeners assigned to exploration missions—capable of overcoming most dangers without hesitation.

For multiple such teams to go missing was a serious issue.

Because of this, Neo Seoul had commissioned several parties to investigate.

At first, Jang Yongbeom had intended to refuse.

He had sensed danger.

But this time, refusal wasn’t an option.

The mission had been forcibly assigned by Neo Seoul.

“Everyone stay sharp. This request doesn’t feel right.”

“Still, it can’t be worse than that Deioden hunting mission, right? Even though that one failed.”

Aiden smirked.

Giselle gazed out the window and said,

“Could something as dangerous as that person even exist in this desert? You worry too much, captain.”

“Who knows? The desert is vast. There might be something just as dangerous… or worse.”

“No way. There’s no way another human like that exists…”

Just as Giselle dismissed his words—

BOOM!

A sudden explosion erupted from one of the buggies at the rear.

“What the hell?!”

“Check it!”

Jang Yongbeom’s party stopped their buggy and turned around.

They saw a massive spear embedded in the rear buggy.

Someone had thrown it.

“Damn it! John’s dead!”

The Awakeners from the attacked buggy jumped out, shouting.

At that moment—

Pig-like creatures began emerging one after another from the sand dunes.

An orc scouting party.

Jang Yongbeom stared at them and muttered,

“Were these bastards the ones who wiped out the Pathfinder teams?”