Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 119

The leaders of the caravan, under the escort of Logan and the Awakeneds, entered Neo Seoul passing through the slums.

The news of their arrival quickly spread throughout Neo Seoul.

“A caravan?”

“That’s right.”

John’s eyes sparkled at Kim Jae-kyung’s report.

Neo Seoul was in a festive mood upon hearing that a caravan had arrived after several years.

Not only Neo Seoul but also the people in the slums felt the same.

Caravans only ventured out with goods unique to their region. It was certain that the cargo hold would be full of items not seen in Neo Seoul.

“How much are the goods they’ve brought worth?”

“We haven’t assessed it yet. The mammoth halted their entry its Neo Seoul, so…”

“Because of the anti-magic barrier.”

“It’s fortunate that it was a large mammoth that approached the vicinity. If it was a smaller one, it would have stopped tens of kilometers away.”

“Hmm! That makes sense.”

John pushed up his glasses to the tip of his nose and looked out the window.

Beyond the high walls, the City Hall could be seen.

“They should be entering the City Hall by now.”

“Yes!”

“It’s a meeting happening after decades. A regular caravan wouldn’t have been able to find their way here. They must have brought valuable goods.”

A sinister gleam flashed in John’s eyes beyond his glasses.

Whatever goods the caravan brought, they wouldn’t be flowing into the slums.

Even if they did, it would be much later.

John wanted to confirm the goods they brought right away. If possible, he wanted to make them his own.

“Find a way to contact the caravan.”

“Understood.”

“If possible, brainwash those in charge.”

“Yes!”

Kim Jae-kyung nodded.

John muttered to himself.

“A variable has occurred at a completely unexpected moment.”

John liked situations that were firmly under control.

He extremely disliked unexpected variables like this.

“Other humans will be busy as well.”

It was a meeting with another colony after decades.

Not only the Mayor, Jin Geum-ho, but also the leaders in various districts of Neo Seoul would be busy.

The goods the caravan brought, their route, the situation in the desert, and the distribution of monsters, all the information would soon become power.

With that power, they could shake up the power structure of Neo Seoul.

The leaders within Neo Seoul would never miss this opportunity.

‘If I fall behind here, I’ll never be able to catch up with them. I must acquire the caravan at all costs to advance into Neo Seoul.’

***

The White Bear Caravan that entered Neo Seoul consisted of seven members.

They were all wearing robes with hats pulled low over their heads.

Because of this, their faces couldn’t be seen.

Logan tried to scrutinize their faces with a sidelong glance, but ultimately couldn’t gather any information.

Logan led the people from the White Bear Caravan into the City Hall.

Although he had been carrying out missions in Neo Seoul for a long time, it was Logan’s first time entering the City Hall.

That’s why Logan’s face was frozen like ice.

They may have heard that a caravan had entered, so he was able to pass through the main gate of the City Hall without any special procedures.

It was when they arrived at the first-floor lobby of the City Hall.

“The White Bear Caravan, from the Yakutsk Colony. Welcome. I’m Seo Tae-ran, the secretary of the Mayor.”

A beautiful woman in a snug-fitting red top and bottom greeted them.

Her neatly combed blonde hair without a strand out of place, the beautiful yet strong gaze and nose reminiscent of ancient Norse goddesses.

The woman was Seo Tae-ran, a Martial Artist Awakened and Mayor Jin Geum-ho’s secretary.

Although she maintained a polite demeanor, there was an inexplicable sense of confidence and coolness about her.

Gulp!

Logan swallowed dryly as soon as he saw her.

As fellow Awakeneds, he could sense her strength.

Although he couldn’t accurately gauge her level, he knew she was at least stronger than himself.

The goosebumps creeping up his back and neck confirmed that fact.

At that moment, a particularly large man among the people from the White Bear Caravan stepped forward and took off his hat. Then his real face was revealed.

He had a shaved head that went down to just below his crown, but his sturdy impression and gaze, deeply set eyes, were fierce like a grizzly bear, and determination emanated from his tightly closed lips.

He introduced himself.

“Nice to meet you. I am Alexandro Purchenko, the leader of the White Bear Caravan.”

“Mr. Purchenko. We sincerely welcome you to Neo Seoul.”

“Please feel free to call me Alexandro. Thank you for the welcome.”

“This is the first time guests have come in several years, it’s only natural we welcome them. Could you introduce the others?”

“Oh, these are the Awakeneds who protect our caraval. Everyone, take off your robes and greet them.”

“Yes!”

With the response, the Awakeneds all took off their hats attached to their robes.

Their atmosphere was as strong as Alexandro’s.

As Seo Tae-ran scanned each of them, her gaze stopped at the last man.

It was because his atmosphere was different from the others’.

While the others had solid builds and strong impressions reminiscent of white bears, the last man had a particularly slim figure and beautiful features.

He was more of a handsome youth than a manly man.

Seo Tae-ran expressed her curiosity.

“Is that person also an Awakened?”

“Yes. Personally, he’s my nephew.”

“I see. May I know your name?”

“My name is Damien.”

The Awakened pointed out by Seo Tae-ran introduced himself.

His voice was as pleasant to hear as his face.

Smiling, Seo Tae-ran responded.

“Then I’ll call you Damien.”

The Awakened pointed out by Seo Tae-ran introduced himself.

His voice was as pleasant to hear as his face.

Seo Tae-ran smiled and replied.

“Then I’ll call you Damian.”

“You can call me Damian comfortably.”

“Alright, Damien! We sincerely welcome you to Neo Seoul. Now, let’s go meet the Mayor. The Mayor has been waiting for you to come up.”

Seo Tae-ran escorted Alexandro and his party to the elevator.

Humming!

The elevator quickly took them to the top floor of the City Hall.

Alexandro exclaimed in admiration.

“Hah! Neo Seoul surpasses pre-destruction technology. It’s truly remarkable.”

“It’s all thanks to the Mayor’s efforts.”

“He’s an impressive man.”

“Yes! He’s truly impressive. Without him, Neo Seoul wouldn’t exist as it does now.”

“We’re too busy defending against monster attacks in the Yakutsk Colony to even dream of such an advanced civilization. I can’t wait to meet the Mayor and hear his secrets.”

“It will happen soon. Just beyond this door.”

The elevator opened, and the door to the Mayor’s office appeared before them.

Seo Tae-ran gently tapped the door with her fist and said.

“I’ve brought the leader of the White Bear Caravan.”

“Let them in.”

“Yes!”

With Jin Geum-ho’s permission, Seo Tae-ran opened the door to the Mayor’s office.

Behind the door, Jin Geum-ho stood against the backdrop of the sunlight pouring in through the window.

Seo Tae-ran said to Alexandro.

“Please come in.”

“Thank you.”

After nodding his head, Alexandro entered the Mayor’s office.

As the Awakeneds tried to follow, Seo Tae-ran blocked their path.

“Only the leader of the caravan can enter the Mayor’s office. The rest of you will have to wait here.”

“We cannot allow that.”

“We are the ones who protect the leader. We cannot leave him alone.”

The Awakeneds became agitated and raised their voices.

Their threatening demeanor was like that of big bears roaring.

Despite their intimidating appearance, Seo Tae-ran’s expression remained unchanged.

She said, still smiling.

“These are the rules of the Mayor’s office. Only one person can face the Mayor at a time. If you’ve come to Neo Seoul, I hope you can respect its rules.”

“How can we trust Neo Seoul and leave our leader alone?”

“Then you can go back.”

“What?”

The Awakeneds became furious at Seo Tae-ran’s words.

They were on the verge of pushing Seo Tae-ran aside and barging into the Mayor’s office.

At that moment, Damien, the handsome young man, spoke up.

“Brothers!”

Then the Awakeneds stopped their threatening behavior as if it never happened.

Damien continued speaking.

“Surely the Mayor of Neo Seoul wouldn’t harm our leader, would he? Let’s just wait here for our leader to come out.”

“Hmm!”

“Alright, let’s do that.”

Seeing the fiercely aggressive Awakeneds suddenly calm down like that, Seo Tae-ran thought to herself.

‘So, this boy called Damien is the center of these individuals? No wonder he seemed different.’

***

The White Bear Caravan set up camp in the middle of the desert far from Neo Seoul.

The wagons that the Mammoth dragged from Yakutsk were made of a special material that was lightweight yet durable and tall.

Arranging the wagons in a circular formation and stacking them five layers high created a fortress of sorts.

This was one of the secrets to the caravan’s survival in the desert.

Building such a fortress allowed them to protect their members safely from attacks by desert monsters.

Since the wagons were so large and tall, it was impossible to see the inside from the outside.

As a result, everything inside, including the number of people and the Awakeneds, as well as the items carried in the wagons, remained thoroughly concealed.

Brielle, who had been looking at the camp for a while, asked Zeon.

“Has Zeon ever been to Yakutsk?”

“No.”

Zeon shook his head.

Over the past seven years, Zeon had traveled to quite a few colonies. However, his travels were mainly concentrated in the south and east of Neo Seoul.

He hadn’t had the opportunity to visit the west, and the north was too far away for him to venture.

Today was the first time he learned that there was a colony in Yakutsk.

Yakutsk was the capital of the former Sakha Republic of Russia in the far east and boasted extreme cold temperatures, dropping as low as minus fifty degrees Celsius in winter.

Although it was a harsh environment for humans to live in, ironically, it allowed them to survive and build colonies.

Russia and the Yakutsk region had also turned into deserts. However, there was a difference. Since it was much further north than Neo Seoul, the temperature was much colder.

Thanks to the lower temperatures, many people were able to survive and join forces to build a colony.

‘The Yakutsk Colony must have a great leader. Even though the environment may be better than Neo Seoul’s, building a colony couldn’t have been easy.’

Suddenly, Zeon became curious about the leader of Yakutsk Colony. But soon, he lost interest.

From his experience, he had never had a good memory of being too deeply involved with another colony.

It was always best to keep a certain distance from everything.

“Shall we go in now?”

“So soon?”

Brielle looked disappointed at Zeon’s words. Seeing her, Zeon smiled and said,

“If you’re curious, keep watching.”

“Is that okay?”

“Just don’t approach. They may seem gentle, but mammoths are ferocious monsters. If they go wild, the slum will be destroyed.”

“Okay!”

Brielle nodded vigorously.

Zeon glanced at her for a moment before turning away.

The streets were filled with people who had come to see the caravan.

The rare sight stimulated the curiosity of the slum dwellers who hadn’t seen it in a long time.

The eyes of the slum dwellers looking at the small fortress in the distance were filled with various desires.

Zeon clicked his tongue inwardly.

‘Brielle wasn’t the problem after all.’

Desire is the driving force behind people.

While good desires make people progress, wrong desires lead not only oneself but also those around them to destruction.

Zeon had seen countless cases like that.

This time, he hoped that such a thing would not happen.