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[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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Chapter 336
"Shit! What the hell are you doing, losing the firepower battle? If the tanks go down, we're all dead!"
"We need backup here too!"
"How many more damn tentacles is that octopus hiding?!"
The expeditionary force was locked in a brutal battle with the Kraken.
And it wasn’t just the Kraken they had to fight—the beast had summoned hordes of monsters to aid it.
Between the S-rank monster Kraken and the countless beasts it controlled, the battlefield had turned into a wasteland.
Leading the entire operation was none other than Seo Tae-ran, secretary to Jin Geum-ho.
Even Jang Yongbeom and the other raid leaders followed Seo Tae-ran's command.
Seo Tae-ran didn't allow the raiding parties to act autonomously.
This was a state of emergency, and dividing their forces in such times was, in her view, the height of inefficiency.
Under normal circumstances, the raid parties might have resisted such centralized control. But after exhausting their strength battling the necromancer’s summons, they followed without complaint.
They understood well enough—it was better to conserve their power under a unified command.
Thanks to that, Seo Tae-ran easily seized command and exercised her authority.
Now, the hunt for the Kraken was reaching its climax.
As befitting an S-rank monster, the Kraken was powerful.
Its skills were strong enough to be called Authority-level.
One of them was the current attack—the "Corrupted Ink" it sprayed from its ten tentacles.
The name alone might not have sounded threatening, but once you faced it, there was no room for jokes.
Sssszzzt!
Anything the ink touched instantly melted away.
Even armor made in Neo Seoul was useless.
Even Aura Shields couldn't block it.
The pitch-black ink, like some corrosive acid, devoured everything it touched. Because of it, casualties among the Awakened were high.
Had the raid leaders not been at the forefront, using their skills to offset the attacks, the losses would have been catastrophic.
"Hyah! Wrath of the Earth!"
"Divine Slash!"
BOOM!
Various powerful skills crashed against the Kraken's massive body.
Stripped of its protective field by the raid leaders' attacks, the Kraken recoiled from the heavy impact.
Bang! Bam!
Its enormous tentacles slammed down like massive hammers, aiming for the Awakened.
The Awakened jumped around like grasshoppers, dodging the attacks while continuing to strike back.
It was at that moment that Zeon returned to camp.
"Wow!"
Zeon let out a soft exclamation as he watched the Awakened hunt the Kraken.
"Zeon!"
"Hyung!"
Brielle and Levin came running toward him.
As Zeon hugged them, he asked.
"What’s going on here?"
"What do you think? Hunting an S-rank monster, obviously."
"Where have you been, hyung?"
"Are you both okay?"
"Yeah!"
"What about you, hyung? Are you alright?"
Only after confirming each other’s safety did the three of them smile.
BOOM!
Kuwaaaaah!
Right then.
A deafening roar echoed across the wasteland—the Kraken's final cry.
The Mana Stone Mine expedition had finally succeeded in slaying the Kraken.
They watched as the massive body of the Kraken collapsed.
"Wooooahhh!"
"We did it!"
"We killed an S-rank monster!"
Cheers erupted across the battlefield.
With the Kraken’s fall, the monstrous beasts that had been attacking so viciously scattered and fled as if on cue.
Jang Yongbeom raised his claymore high and shouted.
"The Mana Stone Mine is secured! This land is ours now!"
"Wooooahhh!"
"A new Mana Stone Mine!"
"This land belongs to us!"
The people roared with excitement.
It wasn’t just the slaying of an S-rank monster or the securing of a Mana Stone Mine.
It was the historic moment where humanity’s territory expanded.
Zeon stood with Brielle and Levin, quietly watching the Awakened as they cheered.
---
The S-rank monster Kraken was a beast with nothing to waste.
The division of its remains would be handled later. For now, the focus shifted to stabilizing the Mana Stone Mine.
The surviving mechanics and Awakened banded together to erect buildings.
The buildings were made from the containers and work vehicles they had brought with them.
The workers' faces were bright with life.
Despite the heavy casualties, they had achieved their objective.
Those who participated in this expedition would undoubtedly receive great rewards.
Some would gain tremendous fame, others would become wealthy.
All just for having participated.
But no one thought of it as an undeserved reward.
They had all paid a price.
Zeon sat atop a vehicle, watching the people bustling about.
Someone approached him.
It was Seo Tae-ran.
"Zeon-nim!"
"You’re busy. What brings you here?"
"I'd like a word, if you have time."
Seo Tae-ran looked at Zeon intently.
Her gaze was a bit much, but Zeon answered calmly.
"What’s on your mind?"
Seo Tae-ran turned to look at the massive fissure in front of the Mana Stone Mine.
It was the rift created by the necromancer Pilgrim.
"That place..."
"What about it?"
"Is it safe now?"
Her question carried a lot of meaning.
Zeon looked at her face for a moment, then nodded.
"Yeah."
"Really?"
"Probably."
"And the necromancer?"
"He won’t be coming back."
"I see..."
"That’s right."
"Good. Then we can collapse that rift, right?"
"You’re planning to destroy it?"
"If we leave it, someone’s going to poke their nose where it doesn’t belong."
"Fair enough."
Zeon nodded, agreeing with her judgment.
The underground rift had been the necromancer’s domain.
Normally, when a dungeon boss is killed, the dungeon itself disappears. But this one remained.
Zeon figured the reason was the gem hidden within Pilgrim’s chest—the same gem that had drawn Nigel.
Though no items or undead remained, there could still be lingering traces of the necromancer’s malice.
If ordinary people or lower-level Awakened approached it, they could be corrupted.
The best solution was to eliminate the risk altogether.
Seo Tae-ran preferred to remove all potential threats at the root.
Thus, she ordered the rift destroyed.
It was easy.
The rock walls had already been weakened from the fierce battles.
A few high-ranking Awakened used their skills, and the massive cliffs crumbled effortlessly.
The rift disappeared without a trace, and so did all remnants of the necromancer.
Now, all that remained was allocating the mine's shares based on contribution and building a fortress.
The landscape was nothing but wide-open flatlands.
Nothing but golden sand as far as the eye could see.
There wasn’t even a single natural barricade to stop a monster attack.
If they left it as it was, any future monster raids would wipe out the workers.
Neo Seoul had already planned to send a second team to build a fortress and secure the area.
There was nothing left for Zeon to do.
While others scrambled to secure their stakes, Zeon rested comfortably under a large tent.
Seated in a chair under the shade, Zeon looked incredibly relaxed.
But inside, he was more troubled than ever.
‘Nigel.’
It had been over ten days since the battle with the half-dragon Nigel.
Every day since, Zeon replayed the fight in his mind.
He still didn’t know Nigel’s true intentions.
But just the fact that he had once been a dragon made him an enormous threat to humanity.
If Nigel chose to attack Neo Seoul, the city would suffer catastrophic damage.
Even with all their countermeasures, humans had no way of dealing with a being like a dragon.
Inside Zeon’s head, the battle replayed over and over.
And every time it ended, he was so drained he could barely move a finger.
But no one else knew that.
To everyone else, Zeon simply looked like he was lounging around with nothing to do.
Still, no one begrudged him.
He had made the greatest contribution in the battle against the necromancer.
Without him, half the survivors wouldn’t be breathing right now.
Everyone understood that—and no one dared disturb his rest.
"Haa."
Zeon sighed and rose from his chair.
After replaying the fight with Nigel again, he was drenched in sweat.
As he debated whether to go take a shower, he heard shouting from outside.
"Wooooah! The second wave is here!"
"Fuck yes! The second unit's here! We can finally go home!"
"Hahaha!"
Surprised by the sudden commotion, Zeon stepped out of the tent.
He saw countless vehicles rolling into the open Mana Stone Mine.
It was the second expedition force from Neo Seoul.
Since the first force had secured the mine, the second wave was being sent to build a fortress and stabilize the area.
With the second force’s arrival, the first force could finally return to Neo Seoul.
Naturally, the people were overjoyed.
There were no entertainment facilities, no conveniences—nothing.
After over ten days here, some were on the verge of going mad from boredom.
Now that the second wave had arrived, they could leave the hard labor behind and return to civilization.
Levin and Brielle rushed over to Zeon.
"Hyung! The second wave is here!"
"What are you going to do, Zeon?"
Their faces were full of hope.
Though they hadn’t shown it, they were getting pretty sick of this place too.
Zeon didn’t betray their hopes.
"Yeah. Let’s go home."
"Really?!"
"Hurray!"
They jumped up and down with joy.
As Zeon chuckled at their excitement, Seo Tae-ran approached—alongside a man Zeon didn’t recognize.
A middle-aged man in his mid-forties wearing a formal uniform, ill-suited for the desert.
The man radiated an oppressive, stifling air.
Seo Tae-ran stopped in front of Zeon and introduced him.
"This is Sadoski. He will oversee the stabilization and management of the Mana Stone Mine. He’s a B-rank Awakened and highly trusted by Jin Geum-ho."
"Nice to meet you. I’m Sadoski. From now on, the mine's management is my responsibility. You don't have to worry about a thing."
Sadoski folded his arms and looked down his nose at Zeon.
Zeon looked at him silently for a moment.
Sadoski didn’t even blink.
‘Hmph. Just a musclehead. A mining city needs a professional like me to run it properly.’
Sadoski was full of confidence.
His mission was to stabilize the mine and maximize profits for Neo Seoul.
And to do that, he intended to mercilessly cut down any previous stakeholders.
It was critical to establish dominance from the start.
He glared at Zeon with all his might.
Unfortunately for him, it had no effect.
"Handle the mine however you want. I don't care."
Tap, tap.
Zeon patted Sadoski’s shoulder casually as he passed by.
"Kuhuk!"
At that moment, Sadoski coughed up blood from the overwhelming shock.
It felt like he had been struck by a massive mace.
A mere B-rank Awakened couldn’t withstand it.
"Guh... Kuhuk!"
Sadoski continued to writhe in pain for a long while afterward.
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[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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