Episode 62
Three days had passed since Jeon arrived in the Magic Stone Mining City.
He hadn’t done much during that time.
Wandering the streets or sitting in alleys watching people pass by.
To anyone who saw, it was the daily life of an unemployed man with nothing to do.
It was the exact opposite of the busy, bustling scenery of the Magic Stone Mining City.
At first, there were people who looked at Jeon with displeasure. But knowing that Cha Dongseok’s subordinates had been smashed by him, they didn’t pick a fight rashly.
Neo Seoul at least had some semblance of order; the Magic Stone Mining City didn’t even have that.
A place where the strong trampled the weak and stealing everything was tolerated—that was the Magic Stone Mining City.
Jeon was recognized by the people as a strong individual.
No one knew the true extent of his strength, but at least it was clear he was stronger than Cha Dongseok.
An Awakened of the martial class, at least D-rank.
D-rank might not sound like much, but even scouring all of Neo Seoul, there were fewer than a thousand such valuable assets.
Considering most of the Awakened dispatched to the Magic Stone Mining City were E-rank or F-rank, one could see how precious they were.
Thanks to that, Jeon was able to pass his days comfortably.
“Did you rest well?”
On the third day, Mandy came to find him.
Perhaps because she had rested and eaten well during that time, Mandy’s face was full of vitality.
“Thanks to you……. You look well too.”
“I am too, thanks to you.”
“Seeing as you’ve come to find me, I suppose it’s time to leave.”
“Exactly. There’s an armored bus to Neo Seoul in thirty minutes. We’re taking that bus.”
“Is it carrying magic stones?”
“Yes! I heard they’re gathering all the magic stones to send to Neo Seoul.”
Magic stone was Neo Seoul’s most important resource.
All of Neo Seoul’s facilities ran on energy extracted from magic stones.
Because of that, they had to be supplied with magic stones regularly.
The place that played the biggest role in supplying magic stones was this very mining city. Once the magic stones mined by the miners risking their lives reached a certain quantity, they were loaded onto armored buses and sent to Neo Seoul.
Today happened to be the day they sent the accumulated magic stones to Neo Seoul.
Jeon nodded.
“That’s good.”
“If the timing hadn’t worked out, we would have had to wait at least another week. We’re rather lucky.”
Mandy couldn’t hide her excitement.
Jeon thought even the Magic Stone Mining City was part of the civilized world, but to Mandy, it wasn’t.
To her, accustomed to life in Neo Seoul, the Magic Stone Mining City was no different from a rural backwater.
She wanted to enter Neo Seoul as soon as possible and enjoy the comforts of civilization to her heart’s content.
“Take this.”
She held something out to Jeon.
“What is it?”
“A temporary pass.”
“A pass? So we can enter Neo Seoul?”
“Yes! It’s temporary, but it’ll let us in. It’s only for one month, though. After that, you’ll have to officially obtain citizenship or find another way.”
“Well, that’s enough.”
Jeon took the pass and inspected it closely.
The pass was made of an unidentified metal and had magic engraved upon it.
It was something Eloi had obtained by pressuring the head manager of the Magic Stone Mining City.
It would have been impossible for the well-mannered Mandy, but for Eloi, who was little more than an outlaw, it was nothing difficult.
Having recovered her energy, Eloi had caused a huge fuss, and the intimidated head manager had handed over the temporary pass.
Mandy said with a smile.
“Let’s go to the bus.”
“Let’s.”
Jeon rose from his spot and followed her.
The two walked side by side toward the vacant lot.
A large armored bus was waiting there.
To protect it from monster attacks, all sorts of armor had been patched onto the bus haphazardly, making it look like a quilt of scraps.
It was far from stylish, but it was an unavoidable choice for safety.
Railings and gun ports were installed on the roof of the armored bus, and five Awakened were riding there.
They were there to prepare for attacks by monsters and Scavengers.
The back of the armored bus was loaded with boxes full of magic stones, and the front was filled with miners trying to return to Neo Seoul.
The faces of the miners returning to Neo Seoul after a long time were full of excitement.
“Over here.”
As Jeon and Mandy boarded the bus, Gim Sang-sik, who was sitting ahead, waved his hand.
Color had returned to Gim Sang-sik’s face just like Mandy’s.
He offered the two empty seats to them.
“You can sit here.”
“Thank you.”
“We’ll sit here.”
The two thanked him and took their seats.
Jeon sat by the window, Mandy by the aisle.
Once they boarded, the armored bus slowly began to move.
The massive gates of the Magic Stone Mining City opened, and finally the armored bus emerged into the desert.
The moment they exited the gates, the air itself changed.
Hotter, stuffier air pushed into the vehicle.
Inside the armored bus, which lacked even air conditioning, it quickly became sweltering. Still, not a single person complained.
The mere fact that they could travel by armored bus was enough to satisfy everyone.
It was that kind of era.
Things that had once been taken for granted were now enjoyed only by those with power and money.
To those living in the slums, air conditioning was an object of imagination.
Jeon rested his head against the window and looked outside.
Then Mandy spoke to him.
“By the way, do you have a place to stay?”
“There’s a house I used to live in.”
“If it’s been empty for a long time, other people might be living there.”
Empty houses didn’t exist in the slums.
The moment someone vacated a spot, another person would snatch it.
No matter how much one claimed it was theirs, it was useless.
There was no landlord, no deed.
Most of the buildings had been thrown together haphazardly from the start, and as the population grew, they expanded without regard for safety, resembling ant tunnels. Even so, housing was always in short supply.
Jeon smiled.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll just take it back.”
“Why not just come into Neo Seoul? You have a month to figure something out.”
“I’ll think about it slowly.”
“Okay!”
Mandy looked at the side of Jeon’s face.
‘Maybe it’s because he lived in the desert so long, but it seems he doesn’t want a noisy place.’
Somehow, she felt she could understand Jeon.
Mandy gave up on persuading Jeon and sank deep into her seat.
The ride was so rough that the vibrations from the floor were felt directly. Still, she was grateful.
If they went on without incident like this, they would arrive in Neo Seoul around evening.
Mandy closed her eyes just like that.
Since there was nothing to do anyway, she was going to sleep.
Before long, she had fallen into a deep sleep.
She didn’t know how long she had been asleep.
Thump-thump-thump-thump!
Mandy opened her eyes unconsciously at the faint vibrations she felt in her hips and back.
‘What is it?’
It was too strong to be the bus’s usual shaking.
At that moment, Jeon opened his mouth as if he had been waiting.
“You’re awake. I was about to wake you if you weren’t.”
“Why? Did something happen?”
“Look over there.”
Jeon pointed out the window with his finger.
Mandy opened her eyes wide and looked where Jeon pointed. But only the distant horizon stretched out, and she couldn’t see anything particularly strange.
Jeon spoke.
“Wait five minutes and you’ll see it.”
“What?”
Knowing Jeon was not one to talk nonsense, Mandy looked out the window with patience.
Exactly five minutes later, as Jeon had said, Mandy realized the source of the vibrations she had felt in her hips and back.
“What’s that?”
An enormous cloud of dust was rising beyond the horizon.
The dust cloud was rapidly approaching the armored bus.
Jeon said.
“It’s a monster. Looks like a pack of Flame Wolves.”
“Damn it!”
Mandy hurriedly rose from her seat.
If what Jeon said was true and that dust cloud was indeed raised by a pack of Flame Wolves, the armored bus was in danger.
Flame Wolves were the raiders of the desert.
They possessed the natures of both wolves and hyenas.
Once they targeted prey, they would chase it to the end, clinging until death.
More than anything, what made them dangerous was that they moved in packs.
Once they captured their prey, they gnawed the bones clean, so if caught by them, one would disappear without a trace.
That was why even high-ranking Awakened hesitated to face them—the Flame Wolves were such monsters.
Mandy shouted.
“It’s a Flame Wolf pack. Prepare yourselves quickly.”
At her shout, the Awakened who had been lounging leisurely on the bus roof sprang up in surprise.
“Flame Wolves?”
“Fuck!”
“It’s real. A pack of Flame Wolves is charging this way.”
The Awakened also discovered the Flame Wolf pack shortly after.
Far in the distance, the pack was truly charging like mad.
There were so many that they couldn’t be counted in time. At this scale, there seemed to be at least several thousand.
Mandy had never seen a Flame Wolf pack of this scale before.
The Awakened couldn’t help but show fear at the charge of the Flame Wolf pack, which felt almost frenzied.
“Crazy!”
“Drive at full speed!”
“Fuck!”
Sensing the danger, the bus driver floored the accelerator.
The armored bus tore through the desert at tremendous speed. However, the distance to the Flame Wolf pack didn’t widen at all; instead, it closed rapidly.
Jeon muttered.
“They’ll catch up soon.”
Having marked the armored bus as prey, the Flame Wolf pack wouldn’t give up on their own.
Jeon knew full well how tenacious they were, having faced them before.
“Damn it! I was finally going home and now monsters?”
“Ugh!”
As the miners fell into panic, Mandy shouted.
“If you want to live, everyone grab a pickaxe. Smash the ones that stick their heads in!”
Even at her shout, the miners couldn’t come to their senses.
In an instant, Mandy’s eyes changed.
“Tch! Useless things.”
Eloi, Mandy’s other personality, burst forth.
She glanced at Jeon and spoke.
“Don’t say anything to Mandy. It’s a crisis right now. If you’ve got a problem, you step up.”
“Did anyone say anything?”
“Tch! What a pain.”
Eloi pouted and drew the Mad Gumiho she wore at her waist.
Roaaar!
At that moment, a loud howl of a Flame Wolf was heard.
The Flame Wolf pack had drawn near before anyone knew it.
Flames flickered at the snouts and tails of the Flame Wolves. That was how they got their name.
The Flame Wolves that had approached the rear of the armored bus opened their mouths wide. Then streams of flame flew out.
“Block it!”
“Ha!”
The Awakened on the roof unleashed skills to block the Flame Wolves’ attacks. But there were so many Flame Wolves that it was impossible to block every attack.
In the end, flames detonated against the armored bus.
Boom!
The armored bus shook violently with the explosion.
It only endured because thick armor had been patched all over it; a normal bus would have already melted from the extreme heat.
“These bastards……”
“Die!”
The Awakened poured skills down.
Crack!
Whine!
The Flame Wolves struck by the skills collapsed with screams. But the moment a gap opened, other Flame Wolves filled it.
Then Eloi climbed onto the roof of the bus.
“Bastards! I’ll kill you all.”
Without delay, she swung the Mad Gumiho.
Boom!
Dozens of Flame Wolves died from a single swing of her attack. But because there were so many, it barely made a dent.
“Damn it! What the hell was Neo Seoul doing while the Flame Wolves were gathering in a pack this size? You fucking morons!”
Eloi cursed Neo Seoul while rampaging like mad. But it was impossible for her and the Awakened alone to block all the Flame Wolves.
The Flame Wolves latched onto the armored bus.
They stuck their heads through small windows, trying to bite people. Indeed, several people were snatched by the Flame Wolves without a chance to resist and disappeared.
“Kraaack!”
“Save me!”
Their screams were heard from outside the windows before vanishing shortly after.
A Flame Wolf’s head poked into where Jeon was sitting.
“Tch!”
Bam!
Jeon clicked his tongue and threw a light punch.
The Flame Wolf’s head that had been clinging desperately to the armored bus burst apart.
Jeon looked out the window.
Far in the distance, he saw a massive existence looking this way.
A monster as large as ten Flame Wolves combined. It was clearly the Flame Wolf leader.
It radiated a presence on a different dimension from the other Flame Wolves.
The fearsome heat radiating from the leader made the air in the area burn hot. The heat haze rising above its shoulders proved as much.
Awooooo!
It unleashed its fear.
The fear distorted space and shook the bus Jeon was riding.
“Keuk!”
“Ugh!”
The miners aboard the bus screamed and collapsed.
Their eardrums had burst, and blood was flowing.
Jeon furrowed his brow as he watched the scene.
“Bastard! My ears…….”