Chapter 267

Thanks to taming the Thunder Buffalo, the journey to the Steel Fortress became much easier.

When traveling through the desert, one constantly encountered magical beasts.

There were so many that it almost felt as though magical beasts existed in numbers equal to the grains of sand in the desert.

No matter how powerful Lee Jeongho was as an A-rank awakened, there were limits to the strength he possessed.

Lee Jeongho’s abilities were specialized for fighting humans.

His power was overwhelming in one-on-one combat rather than battles against large groups.

The reason he had been able to slaughter the pack of Flame Wolves so easily was because they were merely C-rank beasts.

If he had to face a pack of B-rank or higher magical beasts, even he would struggle.

In other words, the compatibility was bad.

If he had crossed the desert alone, he would have already been exhausted or seriously injured from fighting countless magical beasts.

But after riding on the Thunder Buffalo’s back, they rarely had to face magical beasts directly.

Most small-type magical beasts avoided them the moment they saw the Thunder Buffalo.

Its scales were harder than steel, making it impossible for their teeth to pierce through.

Since attacking it would only damage their own fangs, the magical beasts simply gave up on attacking altogether.

Thanks to that, Zeon’s group was able to head toward the Steel Fortress comfortably without needing to fight magical beasts.

The journey was so comfortable that even Duduyan, who was normally highly cautious, was lounging lazily on the Thunder Buffalo’s back.

“This is nice. I wish everyday life could always be like today.”

“Seriously.”

Aslan agreed with her.

Although they had gone through plenty of hardships, these past few days heading toward the Steel Fortress had been the most leisurely period of their lives.

At that moment, Zeon spoke.

“The sun will be setting soon. Let’s rest over there tonight.”

The place he pointed to was beneath a massive sand dune.

It was sunken inward like a volcanic crater, making it ideal for blocking the wind.

“Let’s do that.”

Lee Jeongho agreed with Zeon’s suggestion.

During the entire journey up to this point, he had never once opposed Zeon’s decisions.

Since Zeon knew the desert better than anyone else, it meant he trusted his judgment completely.

The Thunder Buffalo stopped where Zeon had indicated.

Everyone climbed down from its back and began preparing to camp.

Preparing the meal was Aslan’s responsibility.

While staying in the slums, he had diligently gathered ingredients and stuffed a large backpack full of supplies.

Watching Aslan prepare dinner while drenched in sweat, Duduyan muttered,

“They say even dog shit has its uses.”

Duduyan made no effort to help him.

She had no talent for cooking, nor was she picky about food.

To a Dark Elf like her, cooking was merely a means of supplying energy for movement.

As long as she could eat and regain strength, that was enough. She had absolutely no interest in fussing over flavor.

Naturally, all the cooking responsibilities fell to Aslan, and he handled them well.

“It’s ready. Everyone, come eat.”

The meal was nothing more than stew made by tossing assorted ingredients into a large pot and boiling them together.

Still, since he had added plenty of heavily dried meat, it had a fairly rich flavor.

After solving dinner simply with stew, everyone went to sleep.

Duduyan and Aslan, who were accustomed to sleeping in the desert, fell asleep the moment their heads touched the ground.

Zeon also created a simple shelter beneath the sand and went to sleep inside it.

Seeing that, Claire grumbled,

“That really is such an enviable ability. Some people have to sleep while getting blasted by sandstorms, while others get to sleep comfortably underground in the sand…”

“You’d be better off sleeping a little more instead of wasting time complaining.”

“Aren’t you envious of it too?”

“I already don’t have enough time just polishing my own abilities. There’s no reason to covet someone else’s.”

“Honestly…”

Claire shook her head.

He was a man who had blinded himself in order to obtain the Mind’s Eye.

There was no way a man like that would care about the abilities of others.

Claire cautiously asked,

“What does the world look like through the Mind’s Eye? Is it as vivid as seeing with your actual eyes?”

“If it were exactly the same as seeing with my eyes, there would’ve been no reason to become blind.”

“Then it’s different?”

“It is.”

“How?”

“Ah! Sorry. I shouldn’t ask about someone else’s secrets so carelessly…”

“It’s not because it’s a secret. I simply can’t explain it.”

The world seen through the Mind’s Eye was like transparent glass.

An imperfect world, barely holding together as though it could shatter at any moment.

Perhaps what he was seeing was the world’s true form.

And within it, humans were…

Lee Jeongho shook his head, clearing away the useless thoughts.

Claire silently stared at him for a moment before looking up at the sky.

At some point, deep darkness had already settled overhead.

A pitch-black sky where not even starlight could be seen.

Claire’s shoulders unconsciously shrank.

“Hoo…”

***

The next day, the group once again rode the Thunder Buffalo toward the Steel Fortress.

The blazing sun beating down on the Thunder Buffalo’s back exhausted Claire first.

“Haa… I seriously want to turn on cold water and take a long shower.”

“Just endure a little longer. Once we arrive at the Steel Fortress, you’ll be able to wash as much as you want.”

“Really? I can really use cold water as much as I want?”

Claire’s eyes widened at Duduyan’s words.

Lee Jeongho was equally surprised.

“A colony shouldn’t have water that plentiful. How can you shower freely?”

“I don’t know about other colonies, but our fortress has a bit of extra water. Thanks to Zeon.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Just take it that way.”

With that answer, Duduyan firmly shut her mouth.

The underground lake beneath the Steel Fortress was a secret.

They could not hide the fact that they had an abundance of water, but the existence of the lake absolutely had to remain hidden.

If word of the underground lake spread, not only the scavengers but even Neo Seoul would surely become greedy for it.

Lee Jeongho came to his own conclusion.

“So you managed to draw up groundwater.”

Most colonies secured water that way.

Neo Seoul itself supplied water to twenty million people using the same method, so it was not strange at all.

The thought that she would finally be able to shower once they reached the Steel Fortress brightened Claire’s expression.

Lee Jeongho asked Zeon,

“So you can detect water too?”

“Not if it’s deep underground.”

“So you can detect groundwater near the surface.”

“I’m not detecting the groundwater itself. I’m sensing damp sand.”

“It’s basically the same thing. Either way, it’s a useful ability.”

For the first time, he felt envious of Zeon’s ability.

If he possessed that power, he would never die of thirst in the desert.

Unlike himself, whose abilities existed solely for killing, Zeon’s powers were helpful to many people.

‘Why isn’t the Mayor trying to recruit Zeon? He’d be useful in so many ways…’

Suddenly, he became curious about Jin Geumho’s thoughts.

If he himself possessed the Mind’s Eye, which saw essence, then Jin Geumho possessed the Heavenly Eye, which pierced through the principles of the world.

The reason he had obtained the Mind’s Eye skill in the first place was because he followed Jin Geumho’s advice.

Without Jin Geumho, he never would have gained the Mind’s Eye.

Whenever there was someone useful to himself or Neo Seoul, Jin Geumho would recruit them by any means necessary.

There was only one reason he would not recruit someone with desirable abilities.

‘Don’t tell me the Mayor judged Zeon to be harmful to Neo Seoul? If that’s the case, then it makes sense why he didn’t recruit him.’

Visible abilities were not everything.

Even with the same power, the outcome changed completely depending on who used it and how.

In the end, the problem was not the ability itself, but the person named Zeon.

Setting aside personality and ability, it was obvious that Zeon himself simply did not fit into Jin Geumho’s plans.

Once he thought of it that way, Jin Geumho’s actions became understandable.

‘Enough thinking. Focus on the mission. No matter what Zeon is, all I need to do is bring back Moby Dick’s Heart.’

It was then.

“Wait! If we keep going like this, we’ll run into a pack of magical beasts two kilometers ahead. Turn the Thunder Buffalo to the right. We’re going to make a wide detour.”

“Okay!”

Claire immediately asked the Thunder Buffalo to head in the direction Zeon indicated.

Following her command, the Thunder Buffalo changed course to the right.

Lee Jeongho and Claire did not doubt Zeon’s words.

During the journey here, Zeon had already proven his abilities multiple times.

Whenever they followed the route he pointed out, they avoided magical beasts.

This time was no different.

Just to confirm, Lee Jeongho activated the skill Presence Detection and immediately sensed countless life signatures far away in the distance.

Just as Zeon had said, there was definitely a group of magical beasts there.

‘Unbelievable.’

Lee Jeongho clicked his tongue.

Thanks to Zeon continuously detecting magical beasts for them, the group eventually reached the top of a sand dune overlooking the Steel Fortress.

The moment they climbed the dune, they saw a gigantic mountain of red sandstone in the distance.

Claire unconsciously gasped at the imposing sight of the crimson sandstone mountain.

“Mm…”

She had never imagined such a gigantic red mountain could exist in the middle of the desert.

Duduyan spoke to the astonished Claire.

“That’s our home, the Steel Fortress.”

“The Steel… Fortress.”

“Yeah! And that over there is Arkelon.”

Her finger pointed toward a massive hill-like shape beside the red sandstone mountain.

“Huh? My god!”

“Mm!”

Not only Claire, but even Lee Jeongho—who rarely reacted to anything—could not hide his shock.

Because the hill they had mistaken for a mound of sand was actually the shell of a gigantic turtle.

Its shell was so enormous that an entire small village could fit inside it.

And Zeon knew that there truly was a village inside it.

“The Mobile Fortress Arkelon. So I’m seeing you again.”

After hearing Zeon’s words, Claire asked,

“You call that a mobile fortress? My god! How did anyone tame something like that? I’ve never seen a creature that huge before.”

Her face was flushed red, as though she had fallen in love at first sight.

The moment she saw Arkelon, she truly had fallen for it.

“I want to see that child right now.”

Without giving anyone a chance to stop her, Claire jumped off the Thunder Buffalo and ran toward Arkelon.

Zeon tried to guide the Thunder Buffalo toward Arkelon as well.

But the terrified Thunder Buffalo refused to move.

Even the C-rank magical beast was overwhelmed with fear by Arkelon’s immense presence.

Having no other choice, Zeon and the others also climbed down and walked toward Arkelon.

With every step they took closer, they became more and more overwhelmed by Arkelon’s sheer grandeur.

Even Zeon could not help admiring Arkelon after seeing it again for the first time in so long.

“You seem to have grown even bigger.”

In just eight years, Arkelon appeared to have grown even larger.

If given infinite time, it seemed like Arkelon might one day become larger than Neo Seoul itself.

Claire was already stroking Arkelon.

But her expression suddenly changed.

With a face that looked on the verge of breaking down, she turned toward Zeon.

“This child… is dying.”

Large tears streamed from her eyes.

Others might not know, but as a tamer, she could tell.

This gigantic turtle was slowly dying.

As though sensing her emotions, Arkelon, which had been hiding inside its shell, slowly extended its head outward.

Its eyes, each larger than a person, were clouded with murky exhaustion.

Zeon spoke to Arkelon.

“It’s been a long time.”