Chapter 137

The White Bear Caravan threw open the gates of the fortress and welcomed the guests inside.

“It’s bigger than it looked from the outside.”

“Oh! A fortress built by stacking cargo wagons. It looks quite sturdy.”

The visitors from outside couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration at the sight inside.

“This is something Neo Seoul should study.”

“This could work as a shelter during long-distance expeditions.”

Neo Seoul constantly sought to expand its territory.

The goal was to find habitable land and build satellite cities. But every attempt had ended in failure.

Specially designed vehicles were often destroyed by desert sands or rendered useless by attacks from sandworms.

Even if they somehow managed to build a shelter, it would collapse under the assault of magical beasts.

Because of that, the plan to build satellite cities had effectively been abandoned.

“A fortress made by stacking reinforced vehicles? That’s worth trying.”

The White Bear Caravan’s fortress gave inspiration to many awakened.

Zeon understood their reactions.

Anyone entering this place for the first time would be overwhelmed by the unexpectedly vast scale of the fortress.

The atmosphere inside was that impressive.

At that moment, a woman approached Zeon.

“So you came as well.”

The woman who spoke to him was none other than Borin, the leader of the Blue Fallen Leaves Special Operations Unit.

“It’s been a while.”

“I didn’t expect to see you here again.”

“Same here.”

Zeon treated Borin casually. But Levin and Brielle did not.

Levin clenched his fists as if he might lunge at her at any moment, while Brielle showed clear hostility.

Knowing why they reacted that way, Borin gave a bitter smile.

“Calm down, boy. And you too, little elf. You’re not our targets today.”

“After what you did, expecting us to trust you so easily is a bit shameless, don’t you think?”

Brielle’s sharp words left Borin unable to respond.

No matter the circumstances, what she had done was indefensible.

She turned her gaze to Zeon.

“Anyway… just trust that we’re not enemies today.”

“I’ll be watching.”

“Then…”

Borin stepped back.

At that moment, Alexandro, the leader of the White Bear Caravan, appeared.

“Thank you all for coming this far. Now, we will reveal the real items brought by the White Bear Caravan.”

Confidence overflowed from his expression.

In contrast, the eyes of the awakened staring at him were filled with both greed and suspicion.

Even the items they had already released into the market had thrown Neo Seoul into chaos.

They weren’t necessarily extraordinary items, but they were things that couldn’t easily be obtained in Neo Seoul.

Alexandro continued, observing their reactions.

“The items we will be auctioning this time are all excavated from dungeons. There are thirty in total, and every single one is a rare item never discovered before.”

The moment he finished speaking, the awakened burst into murmurs.

“Dungeon items?”

“You’re saying that many items are here?”

“They really came prepared.”

Their reaction was only natural.

Dungeon items were not easy to obtain.

Not every dungeon contained items.

Even if a dungeon was successfully cleared, it was common to come out empty-handed.

Because of that, dungeon items were extremely rare.

Items obtained from dungeons were never released into the general market. They were taken by the raid team or the district they belonged to.

Naturally, most awakened had never even seen a dungeon item.

So it was no surprise that they found it hard to believe that there were thirty such items here.

Everyone knew that dungeon items were far superior to crafted ones, but their rarity made them almost impossible for ordinary awakened to acquire.

And now, thirty of those rare items were gathered in one place.

It was only natural that greed began to surface on their faces.

The atmosphere in the hall heated up instantly.

Sensing something unusual, Brielle whispered to Zeon,

“Are dungeon items really that good?”

“If there’s a chance to get one, plenty of people would risk their lives for it.”

“That much? They’re just items.”

“That one small item can decide your life—and your power.”

“Humans really have no end to their greed.”

“That greed is what allowed humans to build a massive city in this desert. Without it, they wouldn’t have survived in a world like this.”

“In that sense, it’s impressive. Something elves could never replicate.”

Brielle shook her head slightly.

The High Elf village she had lived in was located on a cliff.

They carved caves into the cliff to create their dwellings.

In Kurayan, elves had lived in trees, but on this desertified Earth, finding trees was harder than finding water.

So elves had also chosen to carve caves into cliffs to survive.

If elves had possessed the same intense drive as humans, they might have built a city rivaling Neo Seoul.

They had the ability and knowledge to do so.

But elves had stagnated, and at some point, they stopped progressing altogether.

That fact filled Brielle with quiet regret.

At that moment, Alexandro spoke again.

“Now, we will guide those of you with invitations to the fourth floor where the items are located. Only those with invitations may proceed. All companions must remain here.”

Only those holding invitations, like Zeon, were allowed to go up.

Everyone else had to stay behind.

From the West District came a man named Cha Jincheol; from the South District, Pan Cheongcheon.

From the North District, Borin attended, and from the East District, Raven.

Behind his sunglasses, Raven’s eyes trembled.

It was because he had spotted Zeon.

Of all people, that monster had to show up.

He already knew.

He had clashed with Zeon before.

He knew just how overwhelming his power was.

You wouldn’t know unless you fought him yourself.

Just how violent and destructive that handsome man really was.

If he were alone, he had no confidence he could defeat Zeon.

But he wasn’t alone.

There were awakened from the East District who had been dispatched with him.

Together with them, he believed they could deal with Zeon.

Meanwhile, Pan Cheongcheon was also watching Zeon closely.

So that man is Zeon.

A man presumed to be connected in some way to Tajik’s death.

There was no clear evidence, but still—

This is getting interesting.

A faint, sinister smile formed on Pan Cheongcheon’s lips.

Every district had sent representatives to the auction.

That alone showed just how much attention the White Bear Caravan’s items had drawn.

Let’s see what kind of items they’ve prepared to cause this much commotion.

Alexandro led the group up to the fourth floor.

“This is it.”

He confidently opened the door to the storage room.

In that instant, an overwhelming energy poured out from within.

Borin and the other awakened immediately stiffened.

“Ugh!”

“What is this…?”

They were all high-ranking awakened.

Naturally, they had encountered many items before and were sensitive to the energy and mana they emitted.

Their skin tingled, and their hearts pounded.

That meant the purity of the mana flowing from the items was incredibly high.

Items that emitted such refined mana were not common.

Zeon crossed his arms and looked into the storage.

Like the others, he could feel the aura of the items.

Well, would you look at that.

Zeon had conquered countless dungeons while crossing the desert.

Naturally, he had encountered many dungeon items as well.

That was why he knew—

The items inside this storage were exceptionally rare.

His gaze shifted toward Damian, who was standing quietly in one corner.

This must be his doing.

Not a single person attending the auction paid any attention to Damian.

That was because Damian was thoroughly concealing his presence.

But Zeon knew his true nature better than anyone.

Damian is a navigator. He specializes in finding paths. That means he can also locate dungeons better than anyone. The items the White Bear Caravan acquired must have come from dungeons he discovered.

Though he couldn’t match Zeon’s ability to control the desert sands, Damian still possessed a ridiculously powerful ability of his own.

Alexandro introduced the first item.

“This item was obtained after a grueling raid of a place called the Blue Forest Dungeon. It is… the Bow of Nylia.”

“What?”

The moment the first item was revealed, Borin reacted first.

The refreshing mana emanating from the Bow of Nylia—

It belongs to the elves.

As an elf, she could tell immediately.

Items used by elves in Kurayan carried a distinct aura.

Nylia is one of the elven heroes. If it’s a bow bearing her name, I must obtain it.

She didn’t know why Nylia’s bow had become the core of a dungeon, but as a weapon of an elven hero, it was something she absolutely had to secure.

“The Bow of Nylia?”

“It doesn’t look ordinary.”

“The very first item is already impressive.”

As murmurs spread among the participants, Borin’s expression grew urgent.

If competition intensified, securing the bow might become difficult.

If it fell into another faction’s hands, retrieving it later would be impossible.

Damn it! I have to crush the competition before it escalates.

Just as Borin steeled herself—

“Since this is the first item, we’ll start at a low price. One ton of magic stones—1,000 kilograms.”

Alexandro announced the starting bid with a smile.

Neo Seoul’s currency was Sol, but it only held value within the city.

In other colonies, Sol was practically worthless.

Unless inter-colony trade became more frequent, there was no reason to use Neo Seoul’s currency when such meetings happened only once in decades.

That was why magic stones were used as currency instead.

Magic stones were valuable not just in Neo Seoul but in other colonies as well.

One ton of magic stones could sustain an average colony for months.

In Neo Seoul’s currency, it was equivalent to one million Sol.

An enormous amount.

Yet Borin called out without hesitation.

“1,000 kilograms.”

“Oh! We have a bidder. Anyone else?”

“1,500 kilograms.”

A man named Cha Jincheol from the West District joined the bidding.

That was the beginning.

“1,700 kilograms.”

“I’ll go 1,800.”

The East and South Districts joined in as well.

The atmosphere quickly heated up.

For Borin, it was frustrating, but for the others, it was only natural.

No one could know the full power of the Bow of Nylia without testing it directly, but even its aura alone made it clear it was extraordinary.

If such an item went to another district, it would directly increase their strength.

It could even disrupt the balance of power.

“2,200 kilograms.”

“2,400 kilograms.”

The bids kept rising endlessly.

At this rate, it wouldn’t stop.

She had to make a decisive move.

Borin shouted,

“4,000 kilograms!”

At nearly double the current price, the other bidders hesitated.

“Tch! Who knows how many good items are coming next? We can’t spend that much right from the start.”

“Forcing the North District to burn through their funds is enough. We’ll aim for other items.”

Naturally, each district’s supply of magic stones was limited.

If they spent too much early on an unverified item, they might miss out on something truly important later.

No one else continued bidding.

And just like that, the Bow of Nylia fell into Borin’s hands.

But the real auction had only just begun.

“Now, the next item is…”