Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 258

The pillar of fire that shot up from the underground where Triox Five was housed tore through the floor of the level where Zeon’s group was imprisoned.

The blast shattered the door of their cell.

Thanks to that, Zeon and his group were able to step outside without any resistance.

“What the hell is going on?”

“Why was there an explosion underground…? I almost died just lying there.”

Levin and Brielle, shaken by the powerful explosion, made a fuss.

Though they hadn’t been directly harmed, the explosion had deafened them, leaving their ears ringing.

Mandy was also frowning in pain from the ringing in her ears.

Only Zeon remained calm, surveying the surroundings to assess the situation.

He looked at the large hole that had opened up in front of him.

The intense heat that had melted the metal plates around the hole made it sizzle and warp, as if a volcano had erupted.

This wasn’t something that could happen from a normal explosion.

Whatever had struck the underground levels of Mega Tower was no ordinary blast.

Zeon approached the hole and looked down.

It was like staring into a bottomless pit, similar to a vertical shaft in a mana stone mine.

At the source of the explosion, deep underground, someone was looking back up at him.

It was Kim Hyun-soo, the ruler of the Western District.

“Kim… Hyun-soo.”

Though it was his first time seeing the man, Zeon instinctively knew who he was.

“Zeon!”

There were dozens of meters and a layer of darkness between them. But that distance didn’t hinder their sight.

Kim Hyun-soo’s eyes gleamed menacingly in the darkness.

“What are you doing here, Zeon?”

“Why don’t you ask Triox Five? Thanks to him, I was having a nice rest in one of your district’s prisons.”

“Triox Five?”

—Zeon’s companion, Levin, committed murder in our district, so we detained them.

At Triox Five’s explanation, Kim Hyun-soo frowned.

“And why wasn’t I informed?”

—I was about to report it when researcher Lee Soo-myung infiltrated the bunker where my main body is located.

Meaning there wasn’t time to make a report.

Though Kim Hyun-soo accepted the explanation, a sense of unease lingered.

With Triox Five’s capabilities, it should have been able to handle Lee Soo-myung and Hyunmu while still reporting to him.

Still, it wasn’t the best time to interrogate further.

Kim Hyun-soo launched himself toward Zeon’s floor and issued a command to Triox Five.

“Seal off all underground levels and run another system check.”

—Understood, Master.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

As Triox Five responded, emergency bulkheads began to close in sequence, sealing off the underground floors.

In the meantime, Kim Hyun-soo quietly landed in front of Zeon.

Though he was a mechanized Awakened, Kim Hyun-soo’s appearance made him indistinguishable from an ordinary human. Yet, there was an unmistakable air of cold, mechanical precision about him that only mechanized Awakened carried.

“It seems I made a mistake, letting such an important guest stay in such a shabby place without realizing it.”

“It’s fine. I got plenty of rest, thanks to you.”

“It’s quite the coincidence. Just when you arrive, something like this happens.”

“Yes, it feels like I’ve seen something I wasn’t supposed to.”

“So, you know then.”

“That was Triox Five’s main body, wasn’t it?”

“I’m trying to decide what I should do—gouge out your eyes or cut off your tongue.”

Kim Hyun-soo’s eyes glowed a fierce red.

Just meeting his gaze would make the average Awakeneds tremble, so lethal was the look in his eyes.

But Zeon remained unfazed, replying casually.

“How about I just keep my mouth shut?”

“The fewer people who know a secret, the better.”

“Then I guess I’ll just have to struggle to survive.”

“Are you saying you’ll resist?”

“I value my life, after all.”

“You must be full of yourself after killing Lee Ji-ryeong. But I am not like him.”

“I’m aware.”

“And you’ll still challenge me?”

“I can’t just sit back and die, can I? You could call it a desperate struggle.”

“How insolent.”

“Well, I was born this way.”

Levin, Brielle, and Mandy swallowed hard as they listened to the conversation.

They knew Zeon was strong, but Kim Hyun-soo was the ruler of the Western District, a figure who had reigned for a long time.

His strength was on a completely different level.

Moreover, they were in the Western District.

At Kim Hyun-soo’s command, every Awakened in the district would attack Zeon.

No matter how powerful Zeon was, he couldn’t possibly defeat the entire district.

To make matters worse, they were inside Neo Seoul, where there was no sand.

Zeon couldn’t unleash his full power, whereas Kim Hyun-soo could easily use 100% of his strength, if not more.

It was an overwhelmingly unfavorable situation for Zeon. Yet, he remained unshaken.

Kim Hyun-soo studied Zeon for a long moment before speaking again.

“So, you’ll keep the secret?”

“Yes.”

“And what about them? Will they keep the secret like you?”

Kim Hyun-soo’s gaze shifted to Levin, Brielle, and Mandy.

The intense pressure turned their faces pale.

Even though Lee Ji-ryeong had been an S-rank Awakened, Kim Hyun-soo was on a completely different level.

Just locking eyes with him made it feel like their bodies were being torn apart. They had never experienced such oppressive force before.

At that moment, Zeon stepped in front of Kim Hyun-soo, and the suffocating pressure disappeared in an instant.

With a smile, Zeon spoke.

“They’ll keep the secret, too.”

“You’re sure?”

“I vouch for them. They’re trustworthy.”

“Have you eaten?”

“As you can see, we’ve been locked up all day, so we haven’t had the chance.”

“Then let me treat you to a meal.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

The suffocating tension in the air vanished as quickly as it had come.

Only then did Levin and Brielle breathe a sigh of relief.

‘Phew! We’re alive.’

‘Insane!’

Their hearts still raced, unable to calm down.

Kim Hyun-soo’s lingering presence and overwhelming pressure were beyond anything they had ever felt.

The four of them stepped into the elevator that led to the top of Mega Tower.

The elevator stopped just below Kim Hyun-soo’s residence.

Kim Hyun-soo addressed Levin, Brielle, and Mandy.

“I’ll have a separate meal with Zeon. You three will dine here. Wait a little while, and someone will bring your food.”

“But…”

Brielle started to protest, but she fell silent when she saw Zeon’s look.

Zeon was subtly signaling her to stay quiet.

In the end, the three of them got off the elevator while Zeon and Kim Hyun-soo continued to the top floor.

As they stepped out, Kim Hyun-soo spoke.

“You’re the first outsider to ever set foot here.”

“I’m honored.”

“Enough flattery. Sit down.”

“Yes.”

Zeon didn’t hesitate as he took a seat.

Kim Hyun-soo sat across from him and spoke.

“Triox Five!”

—Yes, Master.

“How is the recovery going?”

—The underground bulkheads are over 90% restored. The remaining repairs will be completed by tomorrow morning.

“Any other issues?”

—A thorough inspection revealed no problems with the other auxiliary AIs.

“And you?”

—A self-diagnosis shows no issues.

“You’re sure?”

—I’m sure.

Kim Hyun-soo’s tense expression finally relaxed a little.

“I’ll be dining with Zeon. Prepare the meal.”

—I’m already preparing it.

Kim Hyun-soo felt a quiet sense of relief at Triox Five’s familiar voice.

If anything happened to Triox Five, the entire Western District would grind to a halt.

With millions of people living in the district, it would become uncontrollable.

Thankfully, Triox Five was still functioning properly, with no signs of any issues.

At that moment, Zeon spoke.

“You seem to rely on Triox Five quite a bit.”

“Triox Five is like my other half.”

“You trust it that much?”

“It’s not trust. We are one. I exist because Triox Five exists, and Triox Five exists because I do.”

His voice carried an unwavering confidence in Triox Five.

Zeon frowned slightly.

By nature, he didn’t trust machines.

“Is that why you replaced your body with machinery? Because you trust Triox Five?”

“Are you curious?”

“Honestly, yes. How does someone cut off their own limbs and replace them with machines?”

Among all the residents of Neo Seoul, Zeon found the mechanized Awakeneds of the Western District the most difficult to understand.

Even though they had abilities suited for mechanization, how could they so easily discard their human bodies and choose to become machines?

At least high-ranking Awakeneds like Kim Hyun-soo still retained bodies that resembled humans, but most lower-ranking mechanized Awakened were little more than crude, machine-like tools.

Many had more mechanical parts than human ones.

Could they even still be called human?

Furthermore, Kim Hyun-soo prided himself on being pure Korean.

Most of the residents of the Western District were of pure Korean descent, and they spared no expense to preserve their pure bloodline.

Yet, despite his obsession with purity, Kim Hyun-soo had a mechanical body.

It was a contradiction that Zeon couldn’t easily understand.

Suddenly, Kim Hyun-soo’s eyes changed.

“If someone were to cut off all your limbs.”

“What?”

“Your arms and legs are severed, a sword is thrust into your heart, and you’re dying. Your breathing becomes labored, your vision blurs, and death creeps closer. Scattered around you are junk parts. That’s when, as if by fate, you awaken.”

“……”

“Do you know what happens next? The severed arms and legs, the broken heart—they’re replaced by machines. And just like that, you become a machine. What do you think that machine feels? Would it be glad to be a machine? Happy to be stronger? What do you think?”

“……”

“That’s how it started. The first mechanized Awakened was born that way. It’s rare for the first of something to appear, but once it does, others will follow.”

Kim Hyun-soo didn’t need to say it aloud for Zeon to understand.

The first mechanized Awakened was none other than Kim Hyun-soo himself.

In other words, he was telling his own story.

“There was no choice to be made from the start. But I have no regrets about what I’ve become. Do you know why?”

Zeon shook his head.

Kim Hyun-soo gave him a cold smile.

“Because I have a conviction. A conviction to protect my people and my land. Neo Seoul is the land where our people have lived for generations. For thousands of years, in fact. But what’s the situation now? People who aren’t Korean claim to be the owners of this land. Even non-humans boldly occupy entire districts. We’re surrounded by enemies on all sides. To protect my people from these enemies, I need strength. Even if my body is no longer purely human, my soul and spirit remain Korean.”

Kim Hyun-soo’s voice was filled with strong conviction.

He had fought, and fought again, to protect the Korean people.

When he was wounded, he replaced his damaged body parts with machinery and kept fighting. Eventually, even the remaining parts of his human body were replaced with machines.

“I call it evolution. It’s difficult to create the first evolved being, but once that being appears, it triggers the evolution of others.”

Those influenced by Kim Hyun-soo had begun awakening as mechanized Awakened.

Though Kim Hyun-soo had no choice, they chose of their own will to sever their limbs and replace their entire bodies with machines.

That was how the Western District came to be.

To protect their people, to protect pure humans, they fought fiercely.

After decades of such battles, no one dared to challenge the Western District anymore.

People had been frightened by the sight of mechanized Awakened, constantly replacing their broken parts and fighting on.

“After acquiring Triox Five, our progress accelerated. But the foundation of our success was laid by those who, like me, abandoned their human bodies to protect pure humans. Those who gave up their humanity to protect humanity. Who dares to criticize us? Who can call us traitors to humanity?”

“……”

“We are the shields. We have sacrificed ourselves to become the last shield that protects pure humans. Even so, do you still condemn us? Do you dare criticize us? You, the first Sand Mage?”