Chapter 162
From early morning, a huge crowd gathered in the slum square.
“Waaah!”
“That’s a ton of people.”
Brielle and Levin stared wide-eyed at the people filling the square.
Today was the day the Pegasus Raid Team would depart.
They had expected a lot of people to come watch the send-off ceremony, but the sheer size of the crowd far exceeded their expectations.
It was an era with little to enjoy.
Even a departure ceremony like this had become entertainment for the people.
“They’re coming out.”
“It’s the Pegasus Raid Team.”
Amid the cheers of the crowd, the Pegasus Raid Team appeared.
Ten desert buggies and twenty large transport vehicles. With over two hundred Awakened accompanying them, it was an enormous scale.
There were many dungeon raid teams in Neo Seoul, but not many could mobilize this many people for a single expedition.
At the very front of the Pegasus Raid Team stood Lee Jiryung.
“Waaah!”
At his appearance, the crowd erupted into deafening cheers.
Even though he could have ridden in a buggy, Lee Jiryung walked forward instead, exuding an overwhelming presence like that of a lion.
He stopped in the square and briefly enjoyed the cheers of the crowd.
At that moment, a breeze swept through, ruffling his hair. The sight resembled a lion shaking its mane, and the crowd grew even more frenzied.
“Lee Jiryung! Lee Jiryung!”
“Waaah!”
After enjoying the crowd’s reaction for a while, Lee Jiryung walked toward Zeon.
“You came.”
“I made a promise.”
“Ready to depart?”
“As you can see.”
Zeon glanced at Levin and Brielle.
Lee Jiryung frowned slightly.
The only luggage they had was the backpack Levin carried on his back.
“Will that be enough?”
“Everything we need is inside.”
“An interdimensional backpack, huh? Then it’s fine.”
Lee Jiryung didn’t ask where Zeon had obtained such a thing. A man like him would naturally be able to get one—that’s what he thought.
At that moment, a woman in a gray robe approached Lee Jiryung. Unusually, even her hair and eyes were gray.
She asked him,
“Is this Mr. Zeon?”
“That’s right. The only sand mage in Neo Seoul. Say hello.”
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Zeon. I’m Kelda, the head of the rescue team of the Pegasus Raid Team.”
“Nice to meet you as well, Ms. Kelda.”
Zeon gave a slight bow.
Kelda studied him carefully.
Perhaps because her eyes were gray, they revealed almost no emotion—like glass marbles.
“Please take care of us during the dungeon raid. If anything makes you uncomfortable while we’re traveling together, feel free to tell me anytime. I can handle most matters on my own.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Then…”
Kelda bowed and left.
Lee Jiryung spoke again.
“Let’s go as well. Get on the buggy at the very rear. I had it left empty for you.”
“Thank you.”
Just then—
Levin, who had been quiet until now, raised his hand.
“Can I drive that vehicle?”
“You?”
“Yes! I’ve always wanted to try driving one. Is that okay?”
At Levin’s bold request, Lee Jiryung frowned.
Within the Pegasus Raid Team, he was like a god.
No one dared question or oppose his decisions. Once he decided something, that was the end of it.
The buggy Zeon was supposed to ride in already had an Awakened member of the Pegasus Raid Team assigned to it—
both driver and monitor.
If Levin were to drive, that person would have to step down.
As Lee Jiryung hesitated, Zeon spoke.
“I’d prefer it if it were just the three of us riding together. It’s uncomfortable having someone else with us.”
“…It can’t be helped. Do as you wish.”
“Thank you. I’ll be careful not to damage the vehicle.”
After thanking him, Levin dashed toward the buggy.
Lee Jiryung turned to Zeon.
“Then we’ll meet again at the Magic Stone Mine.”
“So that’s where you’re doing maintenance.”
Zeon nodded.
Located about a hundred kilometers from Neo Seoul, the Magic Stone Mine was a major supply hub.
Raid teams and caravans heading out on long expeditions—like the Pegasus Raid Team—almost always stopped there to check their preparations or restock supplies.
Once they left the Magic Stone Mine, there were no more safe shelters.
From that point on, they would face the desert’s harsh environment and magical beasts head-on.
Because of that, there were occasionally people who chose to turn back at the mine.
Zeon boarded the buggy with Brielle.
Levin was already seated in the driver’s seat.
“Heh…!”
Grinning endlessly, Levin ran his hands over the steering wheel.
Watching him drool in excitement, Brielle muttered,
“You look like a pervert.”
“You just don’t get it.”
“Get what?”
“A man’s heart.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“A buggy is a man’s dream. Once you get to hold the wheel yourself, anyone would end up like me.”
Levin gently stroked the steering wheel as if it were a precious treasure.
“Unbelievable.”
Brielle finally turned her head away, but Levin didn’t care.
For a boy from the slums, getting the chance to drive a buggy was nearly impossible.
No matter how sturdy the vehicles were, they could easily break down in the desert.
That’s why driving was never entrusted to just anyone.
Because it was a special situation—and because they were traveling with Zeon—Levin had been allowed to drive. Under normal circumstances, he would never have been given the wheel.
Zeon gave up the front seat to Brielle and sat in the back.
At that moment, the vehicles ahead began to move. Levin quickly shifted gears.
As he pressed the accelerator, the buggy lurched and started forward.
Levin shouted excitedly,
“Here we go!”
“You actually know how to drive, right?”
“Of course. Just trust your big brother.”
“I’d trust you if you looked trustworthy.”
Brielle muttered with an uneasy expression.
It had been years since she was captured by human hunters and brought to Neo Seoul. At first, she thought this place was hell. She had only waited for the day she could escape.
But now that she was about to leave Neo Seoul, even if only temporarily, her feelings were strange.
She wasn’t leaving for good—just stepping away for a dungeon raid.
And yet, she already missed the place she lived in.
“Tch! I’m getting weird.”
Brielle pouted.
***
The Pegasus Raid Team was divided into four main groups.
The first was the exploration team.
Their role was exactly what it sounded like—exploring dungeons.
Their main tasks were to discover hidden dungeons and assess their size and details.
The dungeon discovered this time had also been found by them.
The second was the base team.
They established operational bases inside dungeons so that the raid team could proceed comfortably.
The third was the raid team itself.
They were the core of the entire operation.
Using the information gathered by the exploration team, they devised and executed the raid plan.
The fourth and final group was the rescue team.
They waited at the base and stepped in to save the raid team if they encountered danger.
Naturally, they were composed of highly skilled Awakened.
The one leading the rescue team was the gray-haired woman—Kelda.
Within the Pegasus Raid Team, her nickname was the Gray Witch.
Kelda sat beside Lee Jiryung.
She was not only the leader of the rescue team but also Lee Jiryung’s secretary.
In truth, her role as a secretary was more important than her role as rescue team leader. That was why she always stayed by Lee Jiryung’s side during dungeon expeditions like this.
She spoke in a calm voice.
“A total of three hundred Awakened have been mobilized for this mission. Of those, two hundred belong to Pegasus, and the remaining hundred are mercenaries. All mercenaries have been placed in the transport vehicles.”
There were different grades of transport vehicles.
The better ones were equipped with facilities for simple cooking and even showers. Those were assigned to members of the Pegasus Raid Team.
The older, worn-out transport vehicles naturally went to the mercenaries.
They were originally designed to carry dungeon byproducts, so they lacked convenience facilities and had poor ride quality.
Even so, the mercenaries couldn’t complain.
Opportunities to participate in large-scale dungeon raids like this were rare for them.
Just taking part in such a raid added to their experience.
With enough of that experience, they could later be given opportunities to raid even larger dungeons.
That was why they endured being packed into cargo holds without a word.
“We’ve loaded supplies for ten days and plan to purchase another ten days’ worth at the Magic Stone Mine.”
“So a total of twenty days’ worth?”
“Yes. We’ve never taken more than ten days for a raid before, but considering the difficulty of this dungeon, we prepared double.”
“Are the supplies stored in subspace?”
“Yes. They’ve been divided and stored across two subspace items, and the supplies we purchase at the Magic Stone Mine will be stored in other items.”
“Perfect.”
Lee Jiryung smiled in satisfaction.
Kelda’s work was always flawless, which pleased him greatly.
As if something had just occurred to him, Lee Jiryung asked,
“Why don’t I see the Awakened from the West District?”
“They’re scheduled to join us at the Magic Stone Mine.”
“So they went there ahead of us?”
“Yes. The supervisor dispatched by City Hall will also join us there.”
“Everyone’s doing as they please.”
Lee Jiryung frowned.
Even if a dungeon was discovered and cleared like this, all the items obtained from it did not belong solely to the raid team.
To raid a dungeon, permission from City Hall was mandatory.
If they were caught raiding without approval, they would be expelled from Neo Seoul altogether.
At the same time, deceiving City Hall was impossible.
Large-scale dungeon raids required numerous Awakened and vast resources, which inevitably involved huge amounts of money.
City Hall monitored the flow of those funds as if it were looking at the palm of its hand.
That made deception impossible from the start.
Once a dungeon raid was approved, City Hall dispatched a supervisor.
The supervisor observed the entire process, ensuring that no items were secretly siphoned off.
Evading their watch was nearly impossible.
The supervisor inspected the items obtained from the dungeon and reported them to City Hall, which then imposed taxes based on the report.
In other words, the supervisor was essentially a tax collector.
Naturally, no raid team liked them.
“Have you identified the supervisor yet?”
“My apologies. I’ll confirm their identity as soon as they join us and see if they can be persuaded.”
“Handle that.”
“Yes. And… about Zeon.”
“What about him?”
Lee Jiryung looked at Kelda.
“Isn’t he the one who killed your younger brother…?”
“That’s right.”
“And you’re still traveling with him?”
“You’re asking why I’m not killing him?”
“Yes.”
For a moment, a cold smile appeared on Lee Jiryung’s lips.
“I made a promise.”
“…Pardon?”
“That I’d forget the grudge over my brother’s death.”
“Do you intend to keep that promise?”
“What do you think?”
Lee Jiryung asked back, turning the question on Kelda.