Chapter 318
Romina only looked startled for a moment before calmly speaking again.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“How long have you been inside Neo Seoul?”
“I have no idea what nonsense you’re spouting.”
“Come on. You know exactly what I mean.”
“If you’re just going to keep talking nonsense, I’ll be leaving now.”
“You still haven’t answered me.”
Zeon casually stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
Romina’s face stiffened.
“I’m disappointed.”
“In what?”
“The famous Sand Mage picking a fight with an ordinary elf? Aren’t you ashamed?”
“Because you’re not an ordinary elf.”
Zeon smirked.
Meanwhile, Romina’s face became expressionless, as though she had put on a mask.
“I never imagined the Odok Tribe had children with elves. And I especially never imagined that child had been living inside Neo Seoul all this time.”
“Haa…”
Romina let out a quiet sigh and lowered her head.
A moment later, when she lifted it again, her eyes, expression, and aura had completely changed.
“To ruin everything right at the end…”
“So you admit you’re part of the Odok Tribe?”
“There’s nothing to admit or deny. It’s true that I inherited their bloodline.”
“I thought so.”
“But there’s one thing you’ve misunderstood.”
“And what’s that?”
“I have no interest in the Odok Tribe’s wishes or revenge.”
“Really? That’s hard to believe.”
“My mother was captured by the Odok Tribe and forced to bear me. If you hadn’t wiped them out, I would’ve destroyed them with my own hands someday.”
“So that’s why you used Eli to raise Gu?”
“She was stupid. Very easy to use. Thanks to her, I was able to collect and raise Goquite comfortably.”
“Tch. She acted so clever, but in the end she was nothing but an empty shell.”
Zeon clicked his tongue.
It had also been Romina who introduced Eli to the existence of Gu.
It wasn’t difficult to manipulate Eli, who had always craved greater power.
Romina constantly fed her ambition, subtly encouraging her hunger for authority while emphasizing the necessity of Gu.
Eventually, Eli ordered Romina to raise them.
After that, everything progressed so smoothly it was almost absurd.
Using Eli’s name, they acquired slaves—
And those slaves were thrown in as food for the Gu.
Countless people died in the process, but Romina felt no guilt whatsoever.
Just as her mother had been violated by the Odok Tribe and forced to conceive her, this world belonged to the strong.
The strong possessed everything.
The actions of the strong were not sins.
They were simply acts of rule.
She was a half-elf.
And not just any half-elf—
A half-elf who had inherited the secret arts of the Odok Tribe.
She was destined to become the ruler of a new Odok Tribe.
If someone like her killed a few humans while using Eli, what of it?
She was entitled to do so.
Romina spoke.
“Let me go. If you do, I’ll forget the grudge between us.”
“A grudge?”
“No matter what, you slaughtered my tribe, didn’t you?”
“Does it really matter? Judging by your age, it seems like you left the Odok Tribe and entered Neo Seoul when you were very young.”
“That doesn’t change the fact that they were my tribe.”
“You really are convenient. You just say whatever suits you.”
“Stop changing the subject and answer me. What are you going to do?”
“If you hand over the barrel on your back, I’ll let you go.”
“I can’t do that.”
Romina answered firmly.
Zeon’s gaze turned cold.
“So the real Gu are inside that thing, huh? Not the defective scraps you’ve been using until now.”
“That’s right. The ones I released before were merely prototypes created for the sake of making these children. Once I breed them, nothing will ever be able to stop me.”
“How many people are you planning to kill? Breeding those things will require an enormous number of sacrifices.”
“As many as necessary.”
A cold smile spread across Romina’s lips.
Truthfully, Neo Seoul had been the perfect place.
There were endless prey there.
But if she openly raised Goin Neo Seoul, City Hall would wipe her out in the blink of an eye.
That was why she left Neo Seoul.
People still lived in the desert.
She only needed to find them and throw them in as food for the Gu.
The creatures would reproduce on their own afterward.
In other words, time itself would solve everything.
As long as she survived today.
Romina asked once more,
“So you really have no intention of letting me go?”
“I told you already. Hand over the box.”
Zeon extended his hand.
Romina stared at it indifferently.
“You crossed the line, Zeon.”
“You crossed it first.”
“Don’t regret this. You’re the one who forced me to go out of control.”
Srrrm!
The lid of the wooden box opened by itself.
Contrary to expectations, the inside wasn’t packed with Gu.
There was only pitch-black darkness.
Zeon instantly recognized what it was.
“Subspace?”
“Yes. It’s enchanted with subspace magic. My children have been resting inside. Though it seems they’ve all awakened now.”
Bzzzzzz!
Suddenly, accompanied by violent wingbeats, countless insects poured out from the subspace.
An insect swarm instantly filled the sky.
Romina spoke proudly.
“Allow me to introduce my children. The Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu. The ultimate Gu created through the secret arts of the Odok Tribe.”
The Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu beat their wings violently as they circled around Romina.
It looked as though a black storm was swirling around her.
Through a long process, she had selected seven Gu.
Each one was a monstrous survivor that had endured battles against thousands—tens of thousands—of other insects.
Each possessed unparalleled abilities in poison, durability, ferocity, aggression, stealth, loyalty, and flight capability.
Not only were their individual abilities extraordinary, but they also formed the perfect combination when absorbing one another’s powers.
She had gathered them together once again and forced them to devour each other.
The final victor of that hellish battle was the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu now circling Romina.
“Hoho! What do you think of the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu, born from the Odok Tribe’s secret arts passed down for over a thousand years? Aren’t they magnificent?”
“They’re impressive.”
“Then you must understand now just how grave a mistake you’ve made.”
“How many people did you feed to those monsters to raise them?”
“Well… over a thousand, I think. I stopped counting after that. Why? Do you pity the people who became feed? You’ve killed plenty of people yourself, haven’t you? Yet you react this strongly over a mere thousand deaths?”
Romina mocked what she saw as Zeon’s weakness.
At that moment, Zeon brushed back his hair and replied,
“You’re right. I’ve killed many people too. I can’t claim every single one deserved it, but most of them did. And now one more person is about to join them.”
“Hoho! You’ve really gone insane. Everyone praises you as the Sand Mage, so now you actually think you’re something special, don’t you? Let me tell you something—these children won’t be torn apart by mere sand. They’re my life’s masterpiece.”
“But you know something? There were others who said the exact same thing as you.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“They said the same thing. That they had completed the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu. That my attacks would never work against it.”
“What?”
Romina’s face filled with disbelief.
Ignoring her reaction, Zeon continued speaking.
“Yes. The original owners of the secret arts you stole—the Odok Tribe. They too were certain they had perfected the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu. But in the end, their bloodline was wiped out by my hands.”
“Y-You defeated the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu created by the Odok Tribe?”
“It was nothing special. Just like those mutant insects you created.”
“Don’t insult my greatest masterpiece.”
“What pisses me off is how many innocent people were sacrificed just to create those pathetic monsters. A thousand new hopes disappeared… all to end up inside the stomachs of worthless insects like those…….”
“Shut up! Aaaaargh!”
The moment Romina let out a shriek, the Gu swarmed toward Zeon all at once.
Wooooong!
The Gu horde beat their wings violently as they charged toward him.
It was like a massive black typhoon crashing forward.
The Gu had been trapped inside subspace for a long time without food.
Their hunger had reached its peak, making them several times more vicious than usual.
The swarm surged forward as though determined to gnaw even Zeon’s bones clean.
Fwoooosh!
At that moment, a sandstorm rose up before Zeon.
The sand transformed into a gigantic tempest that engulfed the Gu swarm.
Gaaaaang!
The sandstorm spun violently.
“I told you it’s useless. My children are so durable that mere sand could never grind them apart.”
“I already told you. Your tribe said the exact same thing. But the result was no different…….”
Gaaaaaaaaang!
At that instant, the sand began rotating even more ferociously.
Pakakang!
Sparks erupted within the storm as the Gu began exploding apart.
The moment she saw that, Romina’s eyes widened.
“That’s impossible! My children have shells as hard as diamonds!”
“My sand grinds even diamonds into dust. So no matter how many bugs like those you gather, it’s meaningless.”
Pakakakakang!
Even at that very moment, the sandstorm was shredding the Goat terrifying speed.
Already, nearly half of them had been pulverized into dust.
The surviving Gu desperately tried to break through the sand and reach Zeon.
A few actually managed to come close.
Kagagak!
Their massive jaws clattered as they lunged to bite him.
They were grotesque lifeforms born from the dark desires of a half-elf.
If even a single one escaped, they would reproduce uncontrollably throughout the desert and devour countless people.
Not one of them could be allowed to leave this place alive.
“Sand Gehenna.”
A blazing hell made of sand unfolded.
The overwhelming heat melted the sand itself into lava.
The molten sand rotated violently, melting the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu in an instant.
Seeing that sight, Romina screamed desperately.
“N-No!”
But her cries could not save the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu.
Kwaaaaaak!
The superheated sand and lava melted every last one of the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu without leaving a single survivor behind.
“This can’t be!”
Faced with such an unbelievable outcome, Romina unknowingly collapsed to her knees.
An unbearable despair crushed down upon her shoulders.
“This can’t be happening. Do you know how much effort I put into raising those children…?”
Romina bit her lip.
She was neither fully human nor a perfect elf.
Unable to completely belong to either world, she had nurtured resentment within herself.
The result of that resentment was the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu.
She had believed that with the Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Gu, she could become truly free and lead a new race—
But her wings had been broken.
All because of that cursed Sand Mage.
Her fury turned toward Zeon.
“Aaaah! Die!”
Shrieking madly, Romina charged at Zeon.
Her bloodshot eyes and the rapier she swung wildly made her look like something out of a nightmare.
But Zeon’s expression remained indifferent.
“I’ll send you to join the children you cherished so dearly.”
At that moment, the Sand Gehenna that had melted the countless Heavenly Venom Seven Insect Goswallowed Romina whole.
The infernal heat, as hot as the fires of hell itself, tore a horrific scream from her throat.
“Kyaaaagh!”
Her entire body engulfed in flames, Romina thrashed around wildly.
For a moment, it almost looked as though she were dancing.
But her dance did not last long.
Chiiiiii!
A moment later, her body disappeared into the molten lava.
Only after erasing Romina from the world completely did Zeon let out a faint sigh.
“Hoo…”
A bitter taste lingered in his mouth.
The world was vast, and there were far too many people who had lost their minds.
Most of those who had died by Zeon’s hand had been exactly that kind of person.