Chapter 125
Choi Suwan was an awakened.
And not just any awakened—he was one fused with machinery.
Both of his legs and one of his arms were mechanical.
Awakened who merged with machines were extremely rare compared to martial-type or magic-type awakened.
To begin with, the rate of such awakenings was low, and even if someone did awaken, the chance of successfully integrating with machinery was slim.
That was the biggest disadvantage of mechanized awakened.
They had the ability to fuse with machines—but not to create them.
Only by successfully integrating with existing machinery could they display abilities equal to—or greater than—martial or magic-type awakened.
Because of that, the quality of the machine they bonded with determined their overall potential.
In that sense, Choi Suwan was relatively fortunate.
He belonged to the faction of Kim Kyungsoo, the ruler of the western region of Neo Seoul.
Kim Kyungsoo was a pure Korean.
He believed that since Neo Seoul originated from Korea, pure Koreans should rule this land—and he acted accordingly.
The western district worshiped highly advanced mechanical civilization.
They had recreated computers that had vanished over a hundred years ago, and used them to manufacture numerous machines.
Perhaps because of that, mechanized awakened were especially common in the western district.
Choi Suwan was one of them.
Although his awakening rank was low and he wasn’t assigned top-tier machinery, he still possessed a mechanical arm and legs comparable to an E-rank awakened.
His mechanical legs could reach speeds of over 70 kilometers per hour, and his steel arm could exert destructive power comparable to a martial-type awakened of the same level.
The advantage of mechanized awakened was that as their rank increased, they could replace their bodies with better ones.
The western district had machines—bodies—prepared for high-ranking awakened.
As long as one rose in rank, becoming stronger was always possible.
Choi Suwan’s dream was to one day become a high-ranking awakened and upgrade to a powerful new body.
But before that—
he needed to survive.
“Haah… haah!”
Choi Suwan sprinted at high speed through the outskirts of Neo Seoul.
His face was drenched in sweat, and his eyes were filled with panic.
Ssshhhk!
At that moment, the sound of something slicing through the air rang out.
“Fuck!”
Choi Suwan cursed and swung his mechanical arm.
Clang!
With a metallic sound, the arrow was deflected.
But it was too soon to relax.
Whirr!
A chain flew in next, wrapping around his legs.
He stumbled and fell to the ground.
“Damn it!”
He quickly tore the chain apart and stood up.
The chain itself couldn’t restrain him—but it had slowed him down.
“Bastard! Finally caught you.”
“Damn, he’s fast.”
“Seriously, these machine freaks are the biggest pain. They never get tired.”
The ones who appeared were men in shabby clothing.
There were three of them, all wearing masks.
Choi Suwan shouted,
“Who the hell are you? Why are you chasing me?”
“You really don’t know?”
“…Scavengers.”
He gritted his teeth.
Scavengers didn’t exist only in the desert.
They were in Neo Seoul too.
They hid their identities completely, attacking other awakened and stealing everything they had.
The scavengers surrounded him and spoke,
“Now that you know, you’ll stop resisting, right? It’s better for everyone.”
“Yeah. No need to make this harder—just give up. We’ll spare your life.”
“Heh heh heh.”
Choi Suwan shouted back,
“Don’t make me laugh! Who said I’d just roll over?”
He charged at the scavenger in front.
Though he had been fleeing due to being outnumbered, he had confidence in his strength.
I just need one hit. Just one…
If he could land even a single blow, he could instantly render his opponent incapable of fighting.
At that moment—
the lead scavenger suddenly smirked and pulled something from his chest, throwing it.
Fwoosh!
The object spread wide in midair and wrapped around Choi Suwan.
“What the—?”
What bound his entire body was a semi-transparent net.
Made of some unknown material, it tightened around him like a massive tentacle.
“I’ll just tear this apart!”
Choi Suwan roared and exerted his strength.
Explosive energy surged through his mechanical limbs, generating immense output.
But the semi-transparent net only stretched—it showed no sign of tearing.
What the hell is this?
“Heh. It’s an item we got from the White Bear Caravan. Wasn’t sure at first, but the performance is solid.”
“For scavengers like us, this is top-tier gear.”
The scavengers smiled in satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Choi Suwan couldn’t hide his shock.
“An item from the caravan?”
“Yeah. Apparently, in a place called Akutsk Colony, they use stuff like this to hunt magical beasts. Thought it’d be useful for human hunters like us too—and looks like it was worth it.”
“Tch…!”
Choi Suwan struggled once more to tear the net apart, but it was useless.
The semi-transparent net binding him was made from processed hide of a small magical beast known as a blood-sucking marten, giving it tremendous tensile strength.
Because of that, it couldn’t be torn by physical force alone.
For a low-level awakened like Choi Suwan, who relied on physical strength, it was practically a nightmare.
One of the scavengers pulled out a small rod from his waist.
“There’s still one more thing I want to test.”
“What is that?”
“Heh… Near Akutsk Colony, there’s a creature called the external electric eel. It has an internal organ that generates high-voltage electricity—top-tier stuff. It can produce an enormous electric charge in an instant. This rod contains that eel’s electric organ.”
“So?”
“Yeah. It’s basically like a stun gun—just with a bit more power.”
The scavenger pressed the electric rod directly against Choi Suwan’s chest.
Crackle!
Electricity surged, and Choi Suwan’s body convulsed violently.
His muscles seized under the high-voltage current, leaving him unable even to scream.
Moments later, he lost consciousness.
“Hey! That did it.”
“Damn, the performance is legit.”
“Nice. Hurry up—take off his limbs.”
The scavengers laughed as they crowded around him.
They tore the mechanical legs and arm from Choi Suwan’s body.
Normally, machines fused with mechanized awakened couldn’t be separated.
They were recognized as part of the body itself.
But when struck by the electric shock device obtained from the White Bear Caravan, that bond weakened.
The high-voltage current temporarily paralyzed the system.
Click! Clack!
In reality, the scavengers removed Choi Suwan’s prosthetic arm and legs with ease.
“Got them.”
“This is insane.”
“We’ll make a fortune selling these. Heh.”
Mechanical limbs from mechanized awakened fetched high prices.
They could be transplanted into another mechanized awakened—or dismantled for valuable parts.
“What about this guy?”
One of the scavengers pointed at Choi Suwan, now left with only his torso and one remaining arm.
He had only lost consciousness—he wasn’t dead yet.
The answer came without hesitation.
“What do you mean what? We kill him. If he comes back for revenge, that’s a problem.”
“Yeah. Let’s kill him.”
With that, Choi Suwan’s fate was sealed.
Thud!
Their blows crushed his head.
After twitching briefly, Choi Suwan died.
“Hey, contact the others. Tell them to buy items from the White Bear Caravan. This is a goldmine.”
“Where did these blessings even come from? Heh.”
“Let’s go.”
The scavengers disappeared calmly into the darkness.
—
“It’s chaos.”
“…What?”
At old man Kleksi’s sudden remark, Zeon looked puzzled.
“Some of the items released by the White Bear Caravan seem to have fallen into the hands of scavengers.”
“Aren’t those items only sold to verified buyers?”
“They probably bought them secondhand from those buyers.”
“That makes sense.”
Zeon nodded.
It had already been a week since the White Bear Caravan settled in and began selling goods.
During that time, countless items had spread throughout Neo Seoul’s various districts.
Some of those items had now ended up in scavengers’ hands.
“The scavengers are hunting other awakened using items from the White Bear Caravan.”
“Is the damage severe?”
“From what I’ve gathered, dozens have already been taken down.”
“That many?”
“If you include the ones we haven’t tracked, it’s even more.”
Kleksi’s expression was grave.
Scavengers primarily operated in the desert.
They concealed their identities completely, targeting awakened and travelers alike.
Though most were based in the desert, some lived within Neo Seoul itself.
The reason they hadn’t been a major issue until now was simple—
using skills within Neo Seoul left traces.
Those traces could be tracked, so scavengers avoided operating inside the city as much as possible.
But now, their restraint had broken—
because of the items released by the White Bear Caravan.
These items, originally designed to efficiently hunt magical beasts, were just as effective for hunting humans.
In particular, the net made from blood-sucking marten hide and the electric rod powered by the external electric eel had caused major damage.
These two items allowed users to subdue other awakened without relying on their own innate skills.
Lower-ranked awakened had no way to resist.
The scavengers weren’t just using those two items—they were experimenting with others as well.
Items never meant for such purposes were being tested and optimized for hunting awakened.
As a result, the casualties were rising rapidly.
“So Neo Seoul must be in chaos.”
“Every district has gone on alert.”
“They probably never expected scavengers to use caravan items like this.”
“Creative bastards. Who would’ve thought they’d use items to hunt other awakened inside Neo Seoul?”
“Everywhere you go, there are always lunatics.”
“There are too many of them. Right now, this is only happening inside Neo Seoul—but soon, the same thing will start happening in the slums.”
That was Kleksi’s biggest concern.
Neo Seoul still maintained a certain level of order.
The slums did not.
If the same thing spread there, the damage would inevitably be far worse.
Deaths were unavoidable—but he wanted to avoid large-scale chaos in the slums at all costs.
“What about City Hall?”
“What?”
“This is happening because of the items released by the White Bear Caravan. Is City Hall just doing nothing?”
“No response at all.”
“Really?”
“It’s not that they don’t know what’s going on. It feels more like they’re deliberately turning a blind eye.”
Kleksi frowned deeply.
He had spent his life in Neo Seoul and the mana stone mines.
He had met and fought countless people—but none were as difficult to understand as Jin Geumho, the mayor of Neo Seoul.
Jin Geumho was an enigma.
Though he stood at the center of Neo Seoul, he rarely stepped forward.
If he had remained active like in the early days, the city would never have been divided into multiple districts.
His power was that absolute.
And yet, for some reason, he had withdrawn from public affairs and lived almost in seclusion.
As a result, other districts had grown, and new rulers had emerged.
“I can’t figure out what he’s thinking. It’s frustrating.”
Kleksi let out a sigh.
Zeon looked toward City Hall beyond the walls.
This entire situation… he must be orchestrating it. But why? Is he trying to use this as an opportunity to reshape the order of Neo Seoul?