Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 111

“I’m sorry. I failed the mission.”

Borin knelt with one knee and bowed her head.

In front of her was an elf woman sitting on a large wooden chair.

The elf woman’s name was Serian Oliana.

She was a rare pure-blood elf.

With skin as white as snow, platinum hair, and eyebrows, she looked like a white fairy from a distance.

At first glance, she appeared to be in her late thirties to early forties, but in fact, she was over three hundred years old.

When her homeland, Kurayan, was destroyed, she crossed over to Earth.

She came to Earth dreaming of a new paradise, but the reality she was met with was too harsh.

Earth, terraformed into a desert due to the terraforming failure, was the worst environment for living beings.

Many of her kin couldn’t withstand the harsh environment and died.

Those who survived banded together and moved somewhere to create their own city.

That place was El Harun.

Serian could have entered El Harun as well. But she didn’t.

It was because of the ones who had fallen behind.

To protect them, Serian willingly remained in the human world and became the ruler of the North District.

The large wooden chair she sat on was made from a fragment of the World Tree brought from Kurayan.

This wooden chair elevated her status and gave her the dignity of a ruler.

That was one of the reasons she became the queen of the otherworldly races who remained in Neo Seoul.

Serian spoke.

“Did he clearly say El Harun?”

“Yes.”

“Even though he’s obviously human?”

“Yes.”

“How could a human…?”

“What is El… Harun? Could you tell me?”

“That’s…”

At Borin’s cautious question, Serian hesitated for a moment.

In the North District, only two people knew of the existence of El Harun.

One was herself, and the other was Eli, the second-in-command of the North District.

The two of them kept the existence of El Harun a strict secret.

The city of El Harun, a city of otherworldly races from Kurayan, might be a beacon of hope for the otherworldly races of Neo Seoul. But revealing its location to humans could be dangerous.

Serian and Eli had waited for El Harun to contact them after they had grown enough to reveal themselves. But no matter how long they waited, El Harun did not contact them, and she eventually lost hope.

So when she unexpectedly heard the name El Harun through a human, it was surprising.

“I’m sorry. I can’t tell you yet.”

“That’s…”

“But if there comes a situation where I can tell you, I promise to tell Borin first.”

“Understood.”

Borin replied, hiding her disappointed expression.

Serian also saw through Borin’s emotions, but she pretended not to.

“By the way! What was his name?”

“Zeon.”

“Zeon from the slums. His estimated rank is at least B-rank, right?”

“Yes.”

“And there’s an elf who appears to be pureblood with him?”

“Yes!”

“Do you happen to know the elf’s name?”

“That’s…”

Borin stuttered.

“Are you saying you don’t know the name of another elf?”

“For some reason, she refused to reveal her name to me.”

“Is that so?”

A deep furrow formed on Serian’s forehead.

Elves are beings of communication.

Even if they were enemies, they had no hesitation in revealing their names.

For elves, communication was natural.

There were hardly any cases where a pure-blood elf refused to reveal their true name.

Because their name was the most certain proof of their identity.

Refusing to reveal their name meant refusing to communicate with other elves.

“A pure-blood elf refusing to communicate?”

It didn’t make sense to Serian’s common sense.

‘Or is she not a pure-blood elf? If that were the case, there’s no way that Borin wouldn’t have recognized her. Perhaps?’

At that moment, a thought crossed Serian’s mind.

Seeing the change in her expression, Borin cautiously asked.

“Why? Is there something strange?”

“No, it’s nothing. Borin! You’ve worked hard, so go rest now.”

“Huh? Ah, I understand.”

Borin bowed her head and stepped back.

Alone now, Serian muttered to herself,

“What if she’s a… High Elf?”

***

Crash!

The walls separating two houses collapsed like sandcastles.

“Hyah!”

As Brielle spread her hands wide, a strong wind arose, blowing away the debris of the collapsed walls, turning them into sand outside the window.

“Isn’t that amazing?”

“Eh, it’s a piece of cake for me.”

Smiling, Brielle flicked her finger against her nose in response to Levin’s praise.

As soon as Zeon mentioned expanding the house, Levin barged into the adjacent house and negotiated.

Fortunately, Zeon had quite a bit of money, and the landlord was planning to move anyway, so the negotiation was quickly settled.

The landlord moved to the new house that evening, and Brielle demolished the wall of the empty house.

Thus, Zeon’s house doubled in size in an instant.

Suddenly, the Mana Stone Generator emitted a “humming” sound.

The Watching Eye, a black gemstone serving as the core of the Mana Stone Generator, detected the expansion of the territory.

From the Watching Eye, crimson lines spread out like a net, covering the expanded area before disappearing without a trace.

Seeing this, Levin blinked in surprise.

“What’s that?”

“The Watching Eye? I never thought I’d actually see it.”

“What is it?”

“I’ve only heard about it from the adults, and it’s my first time seeing it, so I’m not entirely sure, but it’s a barrier used in royal palaces or treasuries. It’s said to ignore most physical and magical attacks. To think such a thing was hidden in a Mana Stone Generator. Where did Zeon get this thing?”

“Is it that valuable?”

“Among the elves I know, nobody has something like this.”

“It must be extremely valuable.”

“Yeah!”

Brielle eyed the Mana Stone Generator, or rather, the Watching Eye installed within it.

Her heart was filled with a longing to study the Watching Eye.

Seeing this, Levin shook his head.

He knew Brielle would obsess over the Watching Eye for a while, even without confirming it visually.

“Anyway, it’s a welcome change that the house has expanded like this.”

Zeon’s house had now doubled in size.

Brielle reinforced the collapsed walls and pillars with magic, so there was no danger of collapse.

Brielle immediately moved her belongings to the adjacent space that was once the neighboring house. She claimed the largest room.

“This is my laboratory. Don’t come in.”

“Suit yourself. I’m satisfied with just a small room.”

Levin chuckled.

At that moment, Zeon emerged wearing a robe.

“Where are you going?”

“To the butcher’s. Your coming too”

“Me too?”

“Yeah!”

“Alright.”

Levin followed Zeon as they headed out.

“Levin!”

“Where were you? You disappeared for a while.”

As they reached the street, other kids recognized Levin and approached him.

Levin greeted them with fist bumps.

“How have you been?”

“I have some things to take care of, so I’ll be staying at a friend’s house from now on.”

Zeon chuckled at Levin’s appearance.

‘He’s quite popular.’

Wherever you go, there are people who attract attention, becoming leaders. Levin seemed to belong to that category.

After a while, the two of them arrived at the street where the butcher’s shop was located.

The street was quite crowded.

It was always bustling, but it had become even more active recently.

This meant that there were more people looking for things and more items being sold.

“Those shop owners must be raking in the cash.”

“Are you jealous?”

“Yeah!”

Levin replied without a moment’s hesitation.

In the slums, no one could escape poverty.

The slums were where one had to constantly struggle to feed themselves.

A place devoid of dreams and hope.

To Levin, the slums were just that kind of place.

The only thing that had kept him going was his family, but they were all lost to the murderer.

If he had lived anywhere other than the slums in Neo Seoul, perhaps such a thing wouldn’t have happened.

“Once I finish my revenge, I’ll earn a lot of money. So that I can live in Neo Seoul.”

“That’s not a bad idea.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“You could live in Neo Seoul if you wanted to, right now. Why are you in the slums?”

“I feel much more comfortable in the slums than in Neo Seoul.”

“Really?”

“Everyone has their own comfort zone, so you should do what feels right for you.”

“Okay!”

Amidst such conversations, they arrived at their destination, the butcher’s shop.

Inside, a burly man was butchering a large piece of meat of unknown origin.

It was Will, the owner of the butcher’s shop.

When Will spotted Zeon, he bowed his head in greeting.

“Welcome.”

“Where’s Old Man Klexi?”

“He went to Goblin Market for some business.”

“No wonder I haven’t seen him.”

“Do you need anything?”

“I need a vehicle.”

“The only thing I can offer you right away is a small buggy.”

“That’ll do.”

“I’ll have it prepared immediately.”

Without asking why Zeon needed a vehicle, Will said he would get it ready.

Instead, Levin asked about the reason.

“Why do you need a vehicle?”

“To go out into the desert.”

“Why the desert?”

“I have something to find.”

“What is it?”

“You’ll find out soon enough without having to ask so many questions.”

“Really?”

Zeon flashed Levin a meaningful smile, leaving Levin feeling a strange chill.

After a while, the buggy was ready.

It had no armor and only had its structural appearance, like a skeleton.

Fortunately, it had a roof to shield from the sun.

As Zeon took the driver’s seat, he said to Levin.

“Let’s go!”

“Okay!”

The buggy carrying the two of them left the slums and ventured into the desert.

“Woah!”

Levin exclaimed in awe.

Although he had seen the desert from the slums many times, it was his first time seeing it up close like this.

Levin felt excitement and fear simultaneously.

Part of him wondered where Zeon was taking him.

Zeon drove the vehicle several kilometers away from Neo Seoul.

When Neo Seoul was no longer visible, he closed his eyes and heightened his senses.

His senses extended endlessly through the sand.

After a while, he opened his eyes and said.

“I found it.”

“What?”

Instead of answering, Zeon drove the vehicle.

After a long drive, they arrived at a small area of solidified sandstone in the desert.

There was barely enough room for one person to enter the sandstone area.

Zeon said to Levin.

“Go in.”

“Huh?”

At Zeon’s unexpected words, Levin’s eyes widened in surprise, but before he could react, Zeon kicked him in.

Thud!

“Argh!”

With a scream, Levin tumbled into the crevice in the sandstone.

Watching Levin disappear into the darkness, Zeon muttered to himself.

“If you don’t want to die, you’ll have to do your best.”