Episode 14
“Huff! Huff!”
Jeon sat with his back against the wall, panting heavily.
He had vomited it all up.
Mana, physical energy, everything was spent.
He didn’t have the strength to so much as twitch a finger.
Deiodeun, on the other hand, showed not a single sign of fatigue.
Not even his breathing had grown ragged.
Once again, Jeon keenly felt just how inhuman a being Deiodeun was.
Jeon had killed quite a few wolf ants himself, but compared to Deiodeun, it wasn’t even a drop in the bucket.
Most of the wolf ants inside the nest had been killed by him. And yet, he was rummaging through the egg chamber without the slightest hint of fatigue.
Jeon wondered what nonsense that man was up to.
Crack!
What Deiodeun tore away was the stone slab where the queen wolf ant usually sat.
The massive slab was ripped away like a sheet of paper.
Beneath the slab lay an egg hidden away, the size of an adult’s fist.
“Hehe!”
Deiodeun lifted the egg and gazed at it.
A faint light flowed from the egg.
“Just as I thought!”
“What do you mean, just as you thought?”
“Eat it.”
“Huh?”
Deiodeun tossed the egg to Jeon.
Jeon caught it with a bewildered expression.
“What is this that you’re telling me to eat?”
“It’s the queen wolf ant’s egg.”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
“It’s no ordinary egg—it’s the one that will become the next queen. The essence of the queen wolf ant is dissolved within it.”
“Like the Sand Ogre’s gallbladder?”
“Even better than that. Eat it.”
“Ugh!”
Jeon held the egg and hesitated for a moment. But soon he squeezed his eyes shut and brought it to his mouth.
When he cracked the shell, the egg’s insides flowed out and into Jeon’s mouth.
The moment the egg traveled down his esophagus, Jeon felt an intense heat, as if his entire body were burning.
“Uaarggh!”
Writhing in excruciating pain, Jeon screamed and rolled across the floor.
The pain from eating the Sand Ogre’s gallbladder was child’s play compared to this.
It felt as if a sharp awl were endlessly stabbing his stomach.
This was not pain that could be endured while fully conscious.
Deiodeun merely watched Jeon thrash about without lifting a finger to help.
“You’d do well to get used to pain if you want to survive in this mad world.”
It was pain to become stronger.
This kind of pain couldn’t even be considered true pain.
At least, not by Deiodeun’s standards.
Deiodeun left Jeon alone and approached the queen wolf ant’s corpse.
Since he had cleanly cut where the neck met the body, the corpse was pristine, without a single wound.
Obtaining a queen wolf ant corpse this clean was no easy feat.
There wasn’t a single part of the queen wolf ant’s corpse that was useless.
Its pair of antennae were the best item for detecting Ghost-type magic beasts, and its six legs were extremely tough, making them suitable for crafting weapons.
And that wasn’t all.
Squish!
Deiodeun plunged his hand into the queen wolf ant’s body and rummaged around.
A moment later, his hand emerged holding a stone the size of a fist.
It was a Magic Stone.
One of extremely high purity at that.
Befitting a queen of the colony, she had harbored a Magic Stone.
Magic Stones were not something that could only be mined from deposits.
Occasionally, among magic beasts, there were those that harbored Magic Stones like this.
They had far higher purity than those mined from ore deposits, and some even contained the magic beast’s own energy, making them exceptionally useful.
The Titan-grade shell could be used to make top-quality armor, and the organs could serve as various materials as well.
Deiodeun summoned his subspace and stored the queen wolf ant’s corpse whole.
Jeon was still wracked with pain.
Perhaps no longer having the strength to even scream, he was curled up tightly like a shrimp, groaning.
Seeing him in that state, it seemed digesting the queen wolf ant’s egg would take quite some time.
Thud!
Deiodeun stabbed Kreion into the ground and sat down.
Tempered by the heart of a Flame Drake, Kreion boasted an even fiercer sharp aura.
Furthermore, its blade was enveloped in a faint red glow.
But such external changes were not particularly important to Deiodeun.
What truly mattered was Kreion’s essence.
“My friend….”
Humm!
As if answering, Kreion released a sword cry.
The sword cry continued for some time, and Deiodeun listened carefully.
After a long while, Deiodeun opened his mouth.
“Yes! I know that too. But it cannot be helped.”
Humm!
“The weak die, and that is simply his fate.”
Hummm!
“Do you not know? How little time we have left……. We absolutely need him.”
Humm!
“Yes! You are right. But…….”
The conversation between man and sword continued for a long while after that.
***
“Hah!”
Jeon opened his eyes with a sigh.
His whole body ached as if he had been bludgeoned with a hammer.
The fact that no strength entered his limbs was clearly an aftereffect of having eaten the queen wolf ant’s egg yesterday.
Having felt the pain of being stabbed in the stomach all night long, his limbs could not help but be weak.
He should simply be thankful that his limbs were still intact.
Jeon checked his mana and was startled.
Because the amount of mana he possessed had increased by at least three to four times.
“What?”
“You’ve probably moved past your mana premature ejaculation by now.”
Deiodeun’s voice rang out suddenly.
Turning his head to look, Jeon saw Deiodeun rising from his seat and putting Kreion away.
“Did the egg I ate increase my mana?”
“Indeed. Certain magic beasts’ eggs have the effect of increasing mana. Not all eggs, mind you—only special individuals like the one you swallowed have that effect.”
“Hmm!”
“If you’re done resting, get up. How long do you plan on lazing about?”
“Yes! Yes! I’m getting up.”
Jeon stood up on trembling legs.
He knew that no matter how much he complained about the pain, Deiodeun wouldn’t go easy on him.
Rather, it was better for his mental health to endure and get up even if his body ached.
Thanks to Deiodeun, his mana had increased several times over; pain of this degree was nothing.
Jeon followed Deiodeun out of the ant nest.
“Whew!”
He hadn’t known the blazing sun could be so welcome.
While Jeon savored the sunlight and the fresh air, Deiodeun was already walking far ahead.
Jeon urgently spread his Sand Steps to follow behind Deiodeun.
Whoosh!
His body slid across the sand, moving forward.
With ample mana, he could now control the sand freely without even moving his legs.
Thanks to that, following Deiodeun was no longer so difficult.
Jeon pulled his robe deep over his head.
During the fierce battle with the wolf ants, the outer surface of the robe had sustained many scratches. There were even places with holes. But as time passed, it gradually recovered to its original state.
It was the unique restorative power of the Sand Ogre leather taking effect.
After about half a day, the robe returned to a state without a single scratch thanks to that.
Its ability to block heat remained intact as well.
With the robe’s ability added to his Sand Steps, walking in the desert no longer felt arduous.
Jeon pulled a strip of jerky from his bosom and bit into it.
Chewing slowly, he thought.
‘Where is his final destination?’
He was truly driven mad with curiosity about what Deiodeun was seeking in this vast desert and where he was going.
If he hadn’t been with him from the start, he might not have cared, but now he had to accompany him if only to find out his true destination.
It was then.
A thick sandstorm blew in.
An unusually strong wind swept up the sand.
Jeon pulled his robe down deep and opened his eyes narrowly.
An ordinary person would have lost their bearings in the sandstorm, or had their vision severely restricted. But to Jeon, it was only a slight inconvenience and not any real hindrance.
Jeon raised his control to prevent sand from reaching his face. The rest of his body was fine, protected by the robe.
Whoooosh!
The strong sandstorm swallowed the world.
All that could be seen was a curtain of sand; Deiodeun’s figure was nowhere to be found.
Even so, Jeon was not flustered.
Because as his mana had increased, his sensory domain had expanded greatly.
He could feel Deiodeun’s presence walking on the sand dozens of meters ahead. Whenever he stepped on the sand, his presence was felt vividly.
It was as if the sand itself was relaying information about Deiodeun.
‘So this is what advancing in rank feels like.’
He looked at his rank badge.
Two lines were glowing.
The deep orange color proved that he was an E-rank Awakened. But that was only what could be seen on the outside.
In reality, he was far stronger than an ordinary E-rank, and he had more mana too.
It was all thanks to Deiodeun pushing him so harshly.
Thanks to that, Jeon was able to develop at a rapid pace.
He could also increase his ability’s utility without being constrained by common sense or preconceptions.
‘What’s important is imagination.’
He had felt it keenly while fighting the wolf ants.
That fighting only with predetermined skills was a foolish thing.
Even the same skill could differ greatly in power depending on how it was applied and utilized.
Imagining infinitely and realizing it in reality.
That was the true strength in Jeon’s mind.
It was also a truth he would never have known if he had not been so harshly drilled by Deiodeun.
‘But the fact that he’s a dog-like old man remains unchanged……’
He always pushed Jeon to his limits, expecting him to survive on his own.
If Jeon failed to meet his expectations, he would be ruthlessly abandoned.
By now, Jeon wouldn’t have minded being abandoned, but even so, he wanted to follow Deiodeun to the end.
Because he believed that if he followed to the end, he could become stronger.
He no longer wanted to repeat the cycle of hiding because he lacked strength and being chased because he was weak.
He did not know where this road ended, but if he followed Deiodeun, he would one day be able to attain strength similar to his.
Lost in thought as he walked, the sandstorm passed before he knew it, and his view opened wide.
He could see Deiodeun’s back walking ahead.
He was still looking only forward.
Sand was piled thickly on his head and shoulders, yet he walked without even brushing it off.
Then Deiodeun, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.
‘Why?’
It was still a long time before sunset.
It was not yet time for Deiodeun to rest.
Jeon approached Deiodeun.
Even though he stood beside him, Deiodeun did not react and only looked forward.
Naturally, Jeon’s gaze turned to where he was looking.
‘What is there?’
Jeon’s eyes, which had been looking forward, soon went wide.
It was because something massive was moving at the horizon where sky and desert met.
Thud! Thud!
The moment he confirmed the identity of the massive object approaching with dull, heavy sounds, Jeon nearly screamed.
It was a giant turtle.
The only differences from a normal turtle were that its size was thousands of times greater, and its shell was shaped like a fortress.
Moreover, a blue force field—a characteristic of B-rank and above—shrouded its entire body.
“What…… is that?”
“A mobile fortress, an Archelon.”
“Archelon?”
“Yes! A turtle-shaped magic beast. Its rank is merely B-grade, but its defense is A-grade or above. Because of that, they remodel the shell into a fortress and ride it.”
“Are you saying humans tame and ride such a massive magic beast?”
Jeon’s face was filled with disbelief.
It was a story he simply could not believe. But with a turtle-shaped magic beast carrying a fortress on its back right before his eyes, he had no choice but to believe.
The Archelon was coming straight toward where Jeon and Deiodeun stood.
It seemed to be walking slowly, but because the Archelon was so massive, it arrived before them in no time.
Seen up close, the Archelon was even more overwhelming.
Its size was almost that of an entire village.
The fact that humans tamed and rode such a huge magic beast was unbelievable.
Thud!
Finally, the Archelon stopped before the two of them.
The fortress’s door opened, and someone revealed themselves.
It was an old man with a face full of wrinkles.
He pushed up his slipping glasses with his index finger and looked at Deiodeun.
“I wondered if it was you from afar, but as expected, it was you, Deiodeun.”