Chapter 314
The central district where City Hall stood boasted a level of security and order completely different from the other districts.
It wasn’t for nothing that countless Awakened military units, guilds, and research facilities were based there.
Causing trouble here was the same as openly challenging the authority of City Hall, and City Hall never tolerated those who opposed them.
City Hall possessed overwhelming military strength that other districts couldn’t even dream of matching.
Because of that, no matter how powerful an Awakened might be elsewhere, once they entered the central district, they inevitably became cautious.
This was no place where scavengers should have been able to operate.
And the scavengers had exploited that very fact.
By establishing a nest near City Hall, they had hidden themselves right beneath its nose and avoided suspicion.
The Number Five Nest David mentioned was located in the basement of a building two blocks away from City Hall.
The nonexistent seventh underground floor from the official blueprints—
that was the Number Five Nest.
“How interesting.”
“You find this interesting?”
David stood beside Zeon with a deeply troubled expression.
Zeon smiled.
“Aren’t you curious what kind of expressions the City Hall officials would make if they found out a scavenger nest existed right under their noses?”
“Not even a little.”
“That’s unfortunate. It would’ve been nice if you could’ve seen their faces with me.”
“Goddammit…”
Sweat continuously streamed down David’s stiff face.
The Number Five Nest near City Hall was the most important nest of all.
It was the only place in the central district where scavengers could safely rest, making its importance incomparable to the others.
If the Number Five Nest were exposed, it would send shockwaves through the scavenger world.
And if the other scavengers learned that David had guided Zeon here, they would never let him live.
After bringing Zeon to the Number Five Nest, David intended to immediately flee to the slums.
He had personally prepared a safe house there.
Zeon spoke.
“Lead the way. I’d like to meet them as soon as possible.”
“...Alright.”
David lowered his head like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse and led the way.
He guided Zeon to the building’s back entrance.
The back entrance was perfectly concealed from public view, and concealment magic had also been cast over it.
Because of that, most people never even realized a rear entrance existed there.
Zeon asked,
“How do you open it?”
“Haa…”
David let out a sigh.
At this rate, even his last trump card was about to be exposed.
Without a word, he took out the Moss and pressed it against a panel beside the rear entrance.
Clank!
The back door immediately opened.
“Ah! So the Moss is the key.”
“Each Moss contains its owner’s information.”
“Then all the other scavengers will know that you were the one who guided me to the Number Five Nest and opened the door for me.”
“Fuck…”
“You should run away quickly.”
“You’re letting me go?”
“Of course not. I need to confirm things first. You could still be feeding me false information.”
“Goddammit…”
David lowered his head and stepped inside the building.
Beyond the back entrance was a small elevator room.
An elevator that went directly to the seventh underground floor.
The two boarded the elevator and descended to Basement Level Seven.
With an anxious expression, David spoke.
“I’ll leave immediately after dropping you off, Mr. Zeon.”
“Go ahead.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Once I confirm this is truly the nest, I’ll have no more business with you.”
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me.”
Zeon let out a faint chuckle.
Ding!
At that moment, the elevator arrived at Basement Level Seven, and the doors opened.
David pointed beyond the doors.
“This is the Number Five Ne—”
Ratatatatat!
A barrage of bullets suddenly poured into the elevator.
They were specially manufactured rounds designed to kill Awakened.
More than powerful enough to kill an unprepared Awakened instantly.
David was turned into a beehive in the blink of an eye.
He didn’t even have time to scream.
Everything happened too suddenly and unexpectedly.
The bullets struck Zeon as well.
But unlike David, Zeon wore a robe crafted from Leviathan hide.
Tududududu!
The bullets violently hammered against his entire body, but they couldn’t penetrate the robe and simply fell to the floor.
Zeon muttered,
“So you were waiting for me.”
“I had a feeling it’d be you. And sure enough—fucking Sand Mage bastard!”
Instead of an answer, curses came from inside.
Within the Number Five Nest, numerous Awakened stood armed and aimed their weapons at Zeon.
At the center stood Hashim.
Beside him were Akashi, Buckshire, and Etli.
The core members of the Helbrin Mercenary Group had all gathered in one place.
Hashim looked at Zeon with an exhausted expression.
“What kind of grudge do you have against us that you’re chasing us this desperately?”
“Did you have some grudge against the survivor villages you plundered?”
“Fuck… when you put it like that, I’ve got nothing to say.”
“Well, there are actually several reasons. But I don’t think there’s any reason to explain them to you.”
“Your arrogance reaches the heavens.”
“I have the ability to back it up.”
“I know. That’s why we fled all the way here.”
“Running to a place near City Hall. A brilliant choice. If it weren’t for David, I never would’ve discovered you were here.”
“Heh-heh! I knew something was off the moment that bastard contacted me.”
Hashim grinned, revealing yellow teeth.
By the time David contacted him, Hashim had already completely taken over the Number Five Nest.
Because of that, he immediately realized David was searching for nests in order to locate them.
And in that instant, Zeon came to mind purely through instinct.
He had no evidence whatsoever, but Hashim trusted his instincts.
Zeon asked Hashim,
“Where are the people you kidnapped from the survivor villages?”
“You chased me all the way here over nothing more than those pieces of trash? Ridiculous.”
“Just answer the question.”
“I already handed them over to the Spider Queen. You were chasing us so persistently that we couldn’t afford to keep them with us.”
“You already handed them over to her?”
“What, upset about it? If you hadn’t pressured me so hard, I might’ve kept them alive a little longer. Then they wouldn’t have died so soon.”
“So you already knew. That she was raising ghouls.”
“Heh-heh! How could I not know? I’m the one who introduced her to the guy controlling the ghouls.”
“So that’s how it was. You were the connection.”
Zeon nodded.
He had wondered how the Odok Tribe became connected to Ely.
Now he knew Hashim had been the intermediary.
Shing!
Hashim drew his kukri.
“Knowing that won’t help you. You’re going to die here.”
“So you seem to have something you’re relying on.”
“There is. The elevator you rode down in.”
“Huh?”
“We installed the ‘Sun-Devouring Hound’ inside it.”
Crack!
At that moment, a blinding light burst from inside the elevator.
The light stretched outward in curved lines before solidifying into crystal.
In an instant, the entire interior of the elevator transformed into something resembling a giant crystal—just like the Moss used by scavengers.
Zeon froze in the exact posture he had been standing in while talking to Hashim.
Like a mosquito trapped in amber, preserved perfectly for millions of years.
Tap! Tap!
Hashim knocked on the crystal with the back of his hand and smiled in satisfaction.
“As expected of the Sun-Devouring Hound.”
“What a waste, though. It’s a one-of-a-kind item in this world. Tch!”
Etli, standing beside him, clicked his tongue regretfully.
The Sun-Devouring Hound was the core of a dungeon they had discovered by chance.
If the Watching Eye in Zeon’s house was an item that outright rejected intruders, then the Sun-Devouring Hound was a far more vicious item that permanently sealed intruders inside crystal.
Once crystallized, the prison could never be broken from within.
The crystal compressed the victim so tightly they couldn’t move even a finger, while also interfering with the flow of mana, preventing Awakened from using their powers.
The only way to escape the Sun-Devouring Hound was for an S-rank Awakened to shatter the crystal from the outside with overwhelming force.
But there were no S-rank Awakened here.
And even if there were, they had no reason to free Zeon.
Buckshire rubbed his nose and muttered,
“Tch! What a shame. If he’d been fine, I could’ve shown him the true power of a lycanthrope.”
“Heh-heh! Don’t make me laugh. If he were fine, you’d be tucking your tail and running away, you stupid mutt!”
“What did you call me?”
“Yeah! Try using that thing called a brain for once. Why do you think the boss used the item he’d been saving all this time? That monster can’t be dealt with by normal means.”
“Is he really… that dangerous?”
“Dumb dog.”
Etli shook his head with a sigh.
At that moment, Hashim spoke.
“Enough talking. Store this properly. It’ll make a fine trophy later.”
“Heh-heh! A crystal containing the Sand Mage should sell for quite a price.”
Etli grinned.
Hashim nodded.
“Make it look impressive. Let me see a dwarf’s craftsmanship for the first time in a while.”
“Gladly, heh-heh!”
Then—
Crack!
A sound that absolutely should not have been heard echoed from the crystal.
“What?”
“No way…”
The two men stared at the crystal in shock.
Craaack!
Right before their eyes, tiny fractures began spreading across the crystal.
The cracks quickly spread like a spiderweb over the entire surface.
The very Sun-Devouring Hound they had trusted so completely was breaking apart.
Hashim ground his teeth.
“Don’t tell me even the Sun-Devouring Hound doesn’t work on him?”
“He really is a ridiculous monster!”
Even Etli couldn’t hide his disbelief.
Buckshire transformed into a werewolf and roared,
“Grrrrah! Enough talking and prepare for battle. He’s getting out any second now.”
“Everyone, battle positions!”
At Hashim’s shout, the scavengers hurriedly scrambled back into formation.
Crack! Craaack!
Even then, the fractures covering the crystal imprisoning Zeon continued growing larger.
The sound of cracking crystal hammered painfully against the scavengers’ hearts like a warhammer.
“Fuck!”
“Goddammit…”
The scavengers clenched their teeth and stared at the crystal.
Just as their tension reached its peak—
KRAAAANG!
The crystal imprisoning Zeon finally shattered before their eyes.
At that instant, Hashim roared,
“Attack!”
“Raaaah!”
“Die!”
The scavengers unleashed a full assault.
All kinds of skills rained down into the elevator.
The scavengers were certain that even if they couldn’t kill Zeon, they would at least inflict serious injuries.
Fwoosh!
At that moment, a single streak of flame flew out from inside the elevator and landed among the scavengers.
“……”
The scavengers blinked for a moment.
The flickering flame between them was simply too beautiful.
Like a flower blooming in the desert, its beauty captivated their minds.
And then—
BOOOOM!
The flame that had briefly displayed its dazzling beauty suddenly exploded.
The scattering sparks immediately clung to the scavengers.
It was the beginning of hell.
“GAAAAAH!”
“It’s too hot!”
“Save me!”
The scavengers rolled across the floor screaming in agony.
But no matter how much they rolled, the fire wouldn’t go out.
A flame that would never extinguish until it had burned its target completely.
“It’s called White Phosphorus Flame.”
Zeon muttered as he stepped out of the elevator.