Chapter 99
Zeon was sitting on a street in the slums.
There was no particular reason.
He simply felt like it.
Squatting in front of a building staircase, absentmindedly watching people pass by, he drew no attention from anyone.
Thanks to that, Zeon was able to enjoy a rare moment of leisure.
The blazing sunlight and even the stuffy air felt pleasant.
Just as he was savoring the quiet of midday—
a loud commotion shattered the peace.
“Hurry up!”
“We need to process it before the corpse rots!”
“Move! Move! You filthy beggars!”
Dozens of Awakeners came rushing down the main road leading into Neo Seoul.
It looked like they had just come back from a fierce battle—every one of them was covered in sand and the bodily fluids of magical beasts, their bodies battered and worn.
What caught Zeon’s attention was the large truck they were dragging along.
On the truck bed lay the corpse of a massive magical beast.
“A Crown Bear? That’s not something you see every day.”
The Crown Bear was a gigantic magical beast with crown-shaped horns on its head.
Like a bear, it could move on both four legs and two, and it could even use its forelimbs like human arms, making it extremely difficult to deal with.
The hide of an adult was so tough that most weapons couldn’t even scratch it, and it also had strong resistance to magic.
Because of that, ordinary Awakeners were no match for it.
To hunt a Crown Bear, you needed a well-balanced party of martial-type and magic-type Awakeners—or an entire raid group.
Still, it was worth the effort.
An adult Crown Bear was an enormous treasure in itself.
Its gallbladder—commonly called bear bile—increased mana, while its internal organs were key ingredients for various potions.
Even its flesh and bones could be used in alchemy, meaning a single kill could bring in an immense fortune.
The problem was time.
A Crown Bear’s corpse decayed incredibly quickly, so it had to be processed as soon as possible.
That was why the hunters were rushing like this.
“Move aside, you damn beggars!”
They shouted loudly as they sped toward Neo Seoul like madmen.
People walking along the street moved out of the way on their own.
They knew that even if they got run over by the truck, no one would care.
To those people, the slum dwellers were worth less than roadside stones.
At least stones could be used for construction—slum residents had no use at all.
Like a sandstorm in the desert, the Awakeners who hunted the Crown Bear vanished into Neo Seoul in an instant, leaving the street in chaos.
“I wonder how much something like a Crown Bear sells for?”
“Do you happen to have one hidden away?”
At that moment, a voice came from one side of the street.
When Zeon turned his head, he saw a man who clearly didn’t belong in the slums.
Dressed in a neat suit with his hair slicked back, the man was none other than Tajik.
Zeon answered calmly,
“If I did, I’d be happy. But what brings you to a dirty place like this?”
“I came to see you.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Zeon blinked as if he truly didn’t know the reason.
Tajik found that attitude irritating, but he suppressed his rising anger and continued calmly,
“It’s about the Inazuma raid team.”
“Ah, the Inazuma raid team. They were quite capable. It’s unfortunate things turned out that way.”
“Unfortunate?”
“If I had been just a little more capable, we could’ve come out together. I’m sorry.”
At Zeon’s shamelessly composed answer, the corner of Tajik’s eye twitched.
Everything that happened took place inside the dungeon.
No one but those involved could know what truly occurred.
And once a dungeon collapsed, it disappeared completely from the world.
Not a single trace of its existence remained.
Tajik had no way of knowing what had really happened inside.
‘Koji is competitive. And he never disobeys my orders. He definitely challenged him.’
Tajik had ordered the Inazuma raid team to assess Zeon’s level.
The most accurate way to gauge someone’s strength was through direct combat.
That meant Koji and the team must have fought Zeon.
The problem was—only Zeon returned alive.
“So you’re saying the Inazuma raid team fell behind and couldn’t escape the dungeon in time?”
“That’s what happened. A regrettable situation.”
Zeon replied calmly, without the slightest change in expression.
Tajik tried to read the truth through subtle changes in Zeon’s face—but it was useless.
‘This bastard…’
For a moment, killing intent surged within him.
He quickly suppressed it, but he failed to avoid Zeon’s gaze.
Instead, it was Zeon who saw right through him.
Unaware of that, Tajik continued,
“So to summarize—the Inazuma raid team failed to escape and was erased along with the dungeon. That’s what you’re saying?”
“Yes.”
“That’s hard to believe.”
“What part?”
“The Inazuma raid team isn’t incompetent enough to fail escaping a collapsing dungeon.”
“Is that so? Then I guess they were just unlucky. The collapse must have happened suddenly.”
“…Haah.”
Tajik let out a sigh without realizing it.
There was no opening in Zeon’s words.
Not only had he failed to gauge Zeon’s strength, but he had also lost the Inazuma raid team for nothing.
‘Should I just be honest and try to recruit him?’
He needed someone to replace the lost assets.
From what he had gathered so far, Zeon was the perfect candidate.
But after speaking with him, Tajik changed his mind.
‘No… he’s not the type to follow anyone’s orders. Just looking at how he handled the Inazuma raid team, you can tell how meticulous and rebellious he is. He’s not someone who would serve under another, and even less someone who would obey commands.’
Having organized his thoughts, Tajik put on a cold smile.
“I’ve heard enough.”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“No.”
“Understood.”
“I’ll see you again next time. Then…”
With a slight bow, Tajik disappeared.
Watching the direction he left, Zeon muttered,
“Looks like this won’t end quietly.”
Zeon knew people like Tajik well.
Men with eyes filled with ambition and confidence could not tolerate even a single failure.
Because to them, failure was tied to pride.
There was no longer any thought of using Zeon in Tajik’s mind.
What remained was only an obsession with restoring his pride.
“If I leave him alone, he’ll just keep becoming a headache, won’t he?”
Zeon let out a small sigh.
***
A massive wall that overwhelmed anyone who looked at it.
This was the barrier separating Neo Seoul from the slums.
Standing fifty meters tall and over five meters thick, the enormous wall was covered with all kinds of magic formations and weapons.
Built to protect Neo Seoul from giant magical beasts, it did not permit unauthorized humans to approach.
Especially at the massive gate connected to the slums, Awakeners stood guard, making it impossible for slum dwellers to even come near.
Even though Awakeners kept watch all day, only a handful of slum residents ever approached.
Even they only stared from afar out of curiosity, never daring to come close.
The Awakeners mocked them.
“Hah! Those beggars are snooping around again.”
“Leave them. They’re probably curious about what’s inside.”
“Curious about what, exactly?”
“Ugh! The smell…”
The Awakeners pretended to cover their noses.
Though they were all human, they did not treat slum dwellers as such.
To them, only those living in Neo Seoul were human.
Even within Neo Seoul, there was a hierarchy.
Awakeners and ordinary people.
But being ordinary didn’t automatically place someone below an Awakener.
Among ordinary people were those who had succeeded.
Those who ran businesses like slaughterhouses or magic stone processing companies, or those who excelled in their fields, were often treated better than average Awakeners.
In any case, people in Neo Seoul lived according to their roles.
A functional system of human society—long collapsed elsewhere a hundred years ago—still existed here.
What the Awakeners despised were those outside that system.
The people of the slums.
Neo Seoul could function perfectly fine without them.
That was why no one cared about their well-being.
As the Awakeners chuckled among themselves, they spotted a man approaching the main gate.
With the hood of his robe pulled low, he walked forward casually.
One of the Awakeners stopped him.
“Who are you? State your identity.”
“My name is Zeon.”
The man was Zeon.
“Zeon? From the slums?”
The Awakener frowned.
He was familiar with most people who came and went from Neo Seoul, but this was a face he had never seen before—so he assumed he was from the slums.
“Yes.”
“What’s a slum beggar doing here? Unless you’re from Neo Seoul or have a pass, you can’t enter.”
“I have one. A pass.”
“You do?”
“Yes.”
Zeon took out a temporary pass from his pocket and tossed it to him.
It was the one he had received after saving Mandy before.
A pass that allowed entry for one month.
The Awakener examined it with a frown.
“Issued by Mandy Cystein, guaranteed by Mechanic Kim Sang-sik? Check this.”
He handed it to another Awakener, who verified it with a scanner.
A blue light lit up.
That meant it was genuine.
Neo Seoul passes were protected by special magic, making forgery impossible. Even so, the Awakener looked at Zeon suspiciously.
“What’s your purpose for entering Neo Seoul?”
“I came to meet Mandy Cystein.”
“The issuer?”
“Yes. Is there a problem?”
“No. You may pass.”
With both the issuer and guarantor confirmed, there was no reason to stop him.
The Awakeners guarding the gate let Zeon through.
Grrrr—
With a heavy rumble, the thick gate doors opened.
“Go in. You’re allowed to stay in Neo Seoul for one month. If you’re still inside after that, the guards will track you down and kill you.”
The temporary pass Zeon received had a tracking spell embedded in it. If he remained past the permitted time, the magic would activate and allow guards to find him.
“I won’t be staying that long. I’ll leave as soon as I’m done.”
Zeon smiled as he passed through the gate.
The moment he stepped into Neo Seoul, the air changed.
It felt as if an air purifier had been turned on—the air itself was crisp and clean.
Completely different from the always dusty atmosphere outside.
It felt like even the depths of his lungs were being cleansed.
The streets were spotless, not even a stray pebble in sight, and the sand so common outside was nowhere to be found.
Sleek buildings soared toward the sky, and the people walking the streets were all neatly dressed and refined.
Vehicles and various modes of transport moved silently.
A scene Zeon had only heard about now unfolded before his eyes.
The most advanced city in the world.
A cutting-edge colony unlike any Zeon had ever seen.
Perhaps this was the pinnacle of current human civilization.
And into that city—
Zeon took his first step.