Chapter 340
Zeon paused for a moment and looked around.
A dark passageway with not even a sliver of light.
The feeling of wastewater splashing up to his ankles.
He was in the underground sewer, the Crocodile's Den.
After finishing their meal, Zeon had descended into the Crocodile's Den with Zetoya.
The foul stench assaulted his senses.
Perhaps because he had just eaten delicious food, the smell felt even worse than usual. But Zeon walked on without even a flicker of change in his expression.
Beside him, Zetoya walked along.
"Things have gotten a lot better since we got the mana generator running."
"Yeah?"
"People have been coming from other places after hearing the rumors. Thanks to that, the village population has tripled."
"If the number of people increased that much at once, you must be short on supplies."
"That's manageable. I find ways to get what we need."
Zetoya wiped his nose with a finger and smiled.
People usually assumed there was nothing valuable in the Crocodile’s Den. But if you dug through the muck, you could find quite a few things worth money.
There were items mixed in that had slipped past Neo Seoul’s recycling systems.
Of course, finding such items was no easy task.
Even those who had lived their whole lives in the Crocodile's Den found it hard to wade through that filth.
Fortunately, Zetoya had an extremely strong stomach and didn't shy away from getting dirty.
Thanks to that, he occasionally found real treasures, selling them to purchase necessary supplies for the village.
His survival skills were extraordinary.
The villagers trusted and followed him for good reason.
For such a young boy to be acknowledged as the leader of the village, it was due to all of this.
"You’re pretty amazing."
"It’s nothing."
"If you ever need help, just ask."
"Yes!"
Zetoya answered obediently.
He was a boy with a strong sense of pride, someone who would never show weakness to others—but Zeon was an exception.
In front of an absolute powerhouse like Zeon, showing weakness didn’t hurt his pride, nor did it feel shameful.
Even as he trudged through the filthy sewers, Zeon showed no signs of displeasure, which only made Zetoya trust him more.
"This way."
Zetoya led the way.
Though the underground was almost pitch-black, he could see every hidden path and turn.
Zeon simply had to follow without a care.
After walking for quite some time, they finally reached their destination.
"Here we are."
Zetoya introduced his village.
Zeon wasn’t particularly surprised, having been here once before.
The "village" was really just a large clearing where people had constructed makeshift homes out of whatever scraps they could find.
The only real difference now was that there was light where before it had been pitch-black.
Thanks to the mana generator.
Now that they had electricity, they no longer had to shiver in the cold, and life had become much more convenient.
The arrival of modern conveniences and the rumors that followed had caused the village to thrive.
"Hey, it’s Zetoya!"
"Zetoya’s back!"
People welcomed Zetoya’s return.
As he observed the villagers for a moment, Zetoya noticed something: Remura was nowhere to be seen.
"Huh? Where’s Remura?"
"Well…"
For some reason, people hesitated to answer.
"Heather Auntie isn't around either? What’s going on?"
"They… left."
"What? What do you mean?"
Zetoya blinked in confusion. A villager stepped up to explain.
"While you were up on the surface, Heather kept insisting that Remura deserved special treatment."
"Oh no…"
"We tried to understand. Remura really is a special child."
"And then?"
"We offered her the best house and promised special treatment. But that wasn’t enough for her."
"Not enough?"
"Yeah. She said her child was chosen by God and that Remura should rule the village."
"My god!"
"It made no sense. Everyone here knows who's really been protecting and providing for the village."
This village existed because of Zetoya.
He defended it from outside threats, secured supplies from the surface—everything.
The villagers were well aware of that. Naturally, they believed Zetoya should be the one to lead them.
No matter how special Remura was, she alone could not protect the village.
Someone like Zetoya, strong and capable, was needed to maintain their safety.
Because they knew this, the villagers refused Heather’s demand.
"So she said she couldn’t stand to live among filth anymore and left with Remura."
"Is that really true?"
"Everyone tried to stop her, but she wouldn't listen. She walked away without even looking back. Hard to believe someone could change so coldly, so fast."
The villagers had been stunned by Heather’s sudden turn.
Many had pleaded with her to wait until Zetoya returned, but Heather, blinded by greed, would not listen.
She had grabbed the reluctant Remura’s hand and disappeared into the darkness.
"So you just let them go?"
"What else could we do? We did everything we could. She wouldn't hear it."
"Sigh…"
Zetoya let out a heavy sigh.
He never imagined something like this would happen while he was away.
He felt ashamed to have dragged Zeon all the way down here.
"I'm sorry, Zeon-nim!"
"What are you sorry for? If there's blame, it’s Heather’s greed."
"Remura's still young. She can't make good judgments yet. I'm afraid of what might happen."
"Yeah, me too."
Zeon wasn’t feeling easy either.
This wasn't just anyone—it was the emergence of an A-rank Healer.
And a young, easily manipulated girl at that.
Anyone with even a little sense of the world's flow would not leave her alone.
"Sigh…"
Zetoya let out another low sigh.
It was too much for a young boy like him to shoulder.
He was already burdened enough, and now Remura’s issue was added on top.
Zeon frowned slightly as he looked around.
He could feel the villagers’ overwhelming expectations directed at Zetoya.
It couldn’t be helped.
Right now, the entire fate of this village rested on Zetoya’s shoulders.
"Zetoya."
"Yes?"
"Let’s go."
"Where to?"
"You need to become stronger."
"How?"
"You’ll find out."
Zeon brought Zetoya back up to the surface.
Since Heather and Remura had left the village on their own, there was no reason for him to stay.
Instead, Zeon called Levin and Brielle over.
"Hyung, what’s up?"
"Introduce yourselves. This is Zetoya, from the Crocodile’s Den."
"Whoa, really?"
Levin was surprised, staring at Zetoya.
Unlike Brielle, who had met him before, this was Levin’s first time seeing Zetoya.
"Hey! Nice to meet you. I’m Levin."
"Uh, nice to meet you too."
"Talk casually. You can call me hyung if you want."
"Um…"
Zetoya looked flustered at Levin’s overly friendly tone.
"Hyung? You’re confusing him."
"Why? It’s good to be friendly right off the bat!"
Despite Brielle’s scolding, Levin remained firm.
His kind of friendliness was unfamiliar to Zetoya, but it wasn’t unpleasant either.
Zeon said to the two of them,
"Starting now, it’s the Zetoya power-up project."
"Really?"
"That thing?"
Though Zeon didn’t explain much, Levin and Brielle immediately understood.
They were already familiar with this sort of thing.
"Levin, you’re in charge of making Zetoya stronger. Brielle, you assist."
"Can we call in Aaron and Dominic too? They’ve been slacking lately…"
"Handle it as you see fit."
"Okay! Sounds good."
Levin pumped a fist into the air, while Brielle sighed.
"Seriously, boys. Always like this. Zeon, aren't you joining?"
"If I'm there, it’ll be hard to maintain a sense of danger. This needs to be your job."
"Got it. But can I bring Gaia?"
"Sure."
"Awesome!"
Brielle was thrilled at the idea of bringing Gaia along.
She could play freely in the desert with Gaia.
Zeon warned her,
"Just make sure Gaia doesn’t get spotted by others."
"Of course. I know."
"Good. Start by gradually luring lower-ranked monsters."
"Don’t worry. I’ll train him properly."
Brielle answered confidently.
Only Zetoya remained, looking completely confused.
Levin slung an arm around Zetoya’s shoulders.
"Ready?"
"Huh? Ready for what?"
"Ready? Good enough! Heh heh!"
"Um…"
"Let's go! We’ll call Aaron and Dominic later. You’re first!"
Zetoya turned to look at Zeon, but Zeon deliberately avoided his gaze.
At that moment, Zeon was lost in thought.
'First Zetoya awakened, now Remura. Coincidence? Or is there a factor at play?'
Just because someone lived in the sewers didn’t mean they couldn’t awaken.
In fact, there were plenty of awakened ones in the Crocodile's Den, though they kept a very low profile.
'Might not be a bad idea to investigate the underground movements now.'
Unlike the high-walled Neo Seoul and its slums, the Crocodile's Den was fully interconnected.
Though there were barriers like grates, iron doors, and magical seals in some places, they weren’t insurmountable obstacles.
Levin and Brielle had already dragged the reluctant Zetoya out of the slums.
Zetoya shot Zeon a pitiful look, but it was useless.
Zeon headed straight for Klexi's shop.
This time, he needed the resources of Argos' Eye that Klexi operated.
Klexi would undoubtedly demand a steep price, but Zeon was willing to pay it.
"First, I need a detailed map of all entrances to the Crocodile's Den."
Until now, he had simply chosen random entrances.
Finding one wasn't hard—a little searching around the slums would reveal a waste dumping area, which always led into the sewers.
But that was no longer enough.
The underground sewers were a labyrinth, a world unknown even to those born and raised in it.
Even Zetoya only knew his active area, not the broader layout.
Zeon sighed.
"Just when I thought I could finally relax, more trouble."
But he couldn’t just ignore it.
It was too closely tied to him.
"Hoo..."
He let out a heavy sigh as he walked onward.
