Chapter 98
In that instant, Old Man Clexi felt as if all the blood in his body had turned ice-cold.
A chill swept over him like he had been drenched in freezing water, and alarm bells rang continuously in his head.
He sensed something unusual in the tone hidden within Zeon’s short words. Still, he forced himself to remain calm and replied,
“I just regained consciousness a moment ago.”
“That’s a relief.”
“I heard you joined the raid team as well?”
“Guildmaster Yoo Sehui asked me to.”
“Either way, thank you. Thanks to you, I was able to make it out alive.”
“I’m glad I could help.”
Zeon smiled.
That smile felt as chilling as a blade pressed against his throat.
Old Man Clexi quickly changed the subject.
“In the dungeon… did you come out alone?”
“Yes.”
“What about the Inazuma raid team?”
“It seems they couldn’t make it out.”
“Weren’t you with them?”
“I was.”
“Then?”
“It seems they couldn’t find the way out.”
“…Hmm.”
A low groan escaped Old Man Clexi without him realizing.
Koji, the leader of the Inazuma raid team, was a B-rank Awakener.
His subordinates Yuri, Bairun, and Komain were C-rank, while Shuhan was D-rank.
It was by no means a force to be taken lightly.
With that level of power, they could wipe out a slum raid party in an instant.
And yet, such a team got lost and failed to escape the dungeon?
No one would believe such a story.
‘Did he wipe out the entire Inazuma raid team by himself?’
It was hard to tell without a closer look, but there wasn’t even a single scratch visible on Zeon’s body.
‘First Goran… and now even the Inazuma raid team…’
Gulp.
Old Man Clexi swallowed dryly without realizing it.
At this point, he had no choice but to admit it.
The man standing before him possessed overwhelming power.
Behind that handsome face, there was surely unimaginable brutality and cruelty hidden.
“Has the dungeon completely collapsed?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
When a dungeon collapses, everything inside it disappears as well.
That meant the Inazuma raid team had been completely erased from existence.
Zeon spoke,
“It’s unfortunate.”
“What… do you mean?”
“That such high-level manpower like the Inazuma raid team couldn’t make it out.”
“…That’s true.”
“There won’t be any problems, right?”
“Probably not…”
“That’s a relief. I really hate dealing with troublesome matters.”
“…Hmm.”
Only then did Old Man Clexi realize that his fists were clenched tight.
His palms were damp with sweat.
To him, Zeon said,
“Then, shall we head back now?”
“…Let’s.”
Old Man Clexi replied with difficulty.
Zeon walked lightly, as if he were merely out for a stroll. But the steps of those following behind him felt as heavy as if weighed down with iron.
***
At the news of Old Man Clexi’s return, Yoo Sehui came running out barefoot.
“Grandfather!”
“Sehui!”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m a bit drained, but I’m fine.”
“Haah… thank goodness.”
Yoo Sehui let out a sigh of relief.
“Sorry for worrying you.”
“Then why did you go into a dungeon in the first place? Dungeon raids should be left to younger people…”
“Hmm…”
“I’m serious—if you go into a dungeon again, you won’t be seeing me. Got it?”
“I don’t want to go through that ordeal again either. I won’t enter one myself ever again.”
“That’s a promise?”
“I promise.”
“Alright. You must be tired, so I’ll let it slide for today.”
“Thank you.”
Old Man Clexi gave a faint smile.
He was already on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.
If he had to endure any more nagging, he might have actually passed out.
Just then—
“I hope I’m not interrupting a touching reunion between grandfather and granddaughter.”
An unfamiliar voice pierced Old Man Clexi’s ears.
In an instant, his gaze turned cold.
He had already sensed who the owner of that voice was.
“Tajik?”
“It’s been a while.”
The man greeting him with a smile was none other than Tajik.
At his appearance, Old Man Clexi’s expression stiffened.
“I’m glad to see you returned safely.”
“Thanks to you.”
“But I don’t see the Inazuma raid team. Did they return to Neo Seoul first?”
“They failed to escape the dungeon.”
“What do you mean?”
The smile instantly vanished from Tajik’s face.
Old Man Clexi knew that this cold expression was his true face.
“Are you saying the Inazuma raid team was wiped out?”
“Unfortunately, after helping this old man escape, it seems they got lost inside the dungeon. They couldn’t make it out in time.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“What can I do if it’s the truth?”
Old Man Clexi replied calmly, without changing his expression.
Tajik glared at him with a frightening gaze, but it wasn’t enough to shake him.
“What about Zeon?”
“He went home.”
“You’re saying he’s unharmed?”
“Not a single scratch…”
“……”
Tajik pressed his lips tightly together.
Old Man Clexi smiled faintly to himself.
‘Seeing that brat flustered like this is rather amusing.’
But business and personal matters had to be kept separate.
No matter what, he owed Tajik.
And that debt had to be repaid.
Old Man Clexi spoke,
“Take this magic stone to Xiaolun. Consider it payment for saving me.”
“……”
Old Man Clexi handed a magic stone to Tajik.
It was one of the top-grade magic stones he had kept in storage—something obtained from a boss-level magical beast, not available on the market.
The black, glossy stone was extraordinary at a glance. But Tajik didn’t even spare it a look.
The way he clenched his teeth and fists showed just how furious he was.
‘Understandable. The Inazuma raid team must’ve been the strongest card Tajik could play.’
Though he was a trusted subordinate of Xiaolun, the ruler of southern Neo Seoul, there were limits to the forces Tajik could command.
Xiaolun never concentrated his power in a single person.
He kept everything important tightly in his grasp, tossing only scraps to his subordinates.
The Inazuma raid team had been Tajik’s strongest asset.
And now, that asset had vanished in the blink of an eye—his anger was only natural.
‘He’ll go on a rampage for a while.’
This was the best Clexi could do to smooth things over.
What Tajik did next, and how Zeon responded, were no longer within his control.
Of course, that didn’t mean he could ignore it entirely.
“Hoo…”
The heavy sigh that escaped unconsciously spoke volumes about his state of mind.
***
“You’re back?”
As Zeon opened the door and walked in, Brielle spoke without even turning her head.
She looked exhausted, as if she hadn’t slept all night.
Her eyes were bloodshot, and dark circles hung heavily beneath them.
Zeon asked,
“What’s wrong?”
“I… failed.”
“Hm?”
“I said I failed. I stayed up for two nights straight, focusing on it, and still…”
Brielle looked like she was about to cry.
While Zeon was away, she had devoted herself entirely to alchemy.
She used every material she had bought from the Goblin Market.
The result—total failure.
All the materials were gone, and all that remained was crushing fatigue and a sense of helplessness.
“Sniff…”
Tears welled up in Brielle’s eyes.
Zeon asked,
“What exactly are you trying to make?”
He had been curious for a while.
He had asked a few times before, but Brielle had never told him what she was working on.
“A mana amplification potion.”
“An amplification potion?”
“Yeah. A drug that temporarily increases mana capacity.”
“Isn’t that basically a narcotic?”
“That’s different!”
Brielle snapped.
She knew better than anyone the harm caused by drugs.
Her own body had been ruined while making them.
The mana amplifier she was creating had taken inspiration from those substances.
Back then, she kept it hidden—but now that she was free, things were different.
“Sniff… What should I do? I really want to make it.”
Brielle glanced nervously at Zeon.
She had used up all the materials she bought last time.
To buy more, she needed money.
And right now, Zeon was her only source.
Zeon took a gem out from his pocket.
At that moment, Brielle’s eyes widened.
She immediately recognized it as a magic stone.
And a very rare one at that.
Judging by its size and luster, it had clearly come from a boss.
“A magic stone?”
“Do you want it?”
“Yes! Yes!”
Brielle nodded her head frantically.
“Then tell me—what can be made using the wings of a Queen Ghost Dragonfly?”
“Wait, is that from a Queen Ghost Dragonfly?”
“That’s right.”
“But why the wings?”
“Don’t ask. Just so you know, it was in a forcibly molted state.”
“Forcibly?”
Brielle frowned.
Forcing a Queen Ghost Dragonfly to molt wasn’t something easily done.
“That would require either an S-rank tamer or an S-rank item…”
“It’s already happened. So don’t question whether it’s possible—just tell me what can be done with the wings.”
“There are plenty of uses. For starters, since they’re unaffected by gravity, you could create flying items.”
“To what extent are they unaffected?”
“In theory, they could keep rising indefinitely.”
“Without being affected by altitude at all?”
“Yeah. With Queen Ghost Dragonfly wings, you could probably lift something hundreds of kilometers into the sky. But is there any point?”
“Why?”
“There are flying-type magical beasts in the sky. They wouldn’t just sit back and let something humans launch stay up there.”
“…Hmm.”
“Whoever did this, if you ask me, it seems like a waste of effort.”
Zeon didn’t agree.
‘Whoever found a dungeon with two bosses and precisely forced only the Queen Ghost Dragonfly to molt wouldn’t overlook something like that. They must either be confident in neutralizing flying-type beasts or have countermeasures prepared.’
It was only speculation.
But Zeon believed he was right.
He said to Brielle,
“If it were you, organize all the possible ways to use the Queen Ghost Dragonfly’s wings and bring it to me.”
“Got it.”
“Here.”
Zeon handed the magic stone to Brielle.
A bright smile spread across her face.
“Jackpot!”