Chapter 374

Chapter 374

“Well, now…”

A man in a hooded robe stood atop a tall dune, gazing forward.

The Black Forest came into view.

Though he had wandered the desert endlessly, it was the first time he had seen a forest preserved in carbonized form, its shape entirely intact. But what shocked him more than the forest itself was the enormous rocky crocodile—and the man who fought it: Zeon.

“A fusion of a crocodile and a golem? So that’s how some monsters are born. Fascinating.”

A smile crept across the lips hidden beneath his hood.

Acquiring new knowledge was always delightful. But what truly intrigued him was Zeon—summoning hundreds of Sand Soldiers to confront the sheer numbers of the rocky crocodiles.

“To think he can manipulate sand like that…”

Each individual Sand Soldier wasn’t especially powerful.

Compared to the rocky crocodiles, they were inferior in mass, size, strength, and durability.

BANG!

A rocky crocodile’s full-force strike could demolish a Sand Soldier instantly.

At first glance, the Sand Soldiers didn’t seem all that impressive.

What made them terrifying was that they could regenerate immediately upon destruction.

BOOM!

A Sand Soldier shattered into dust—but the dispersed grains of sand quickly reformed, as if by magic.

The regenerated Sand Soldier charged the rocky crocodile again. While they obstructed the monsters, the dark elves and Awakened attacked and destroyed them.

KWA-BOOM! BOOM!

All around, rocky crocodiles were being destroyed.

Unlike Sand Soldiers, the small rocky crocodiles could not regenerate once destroyed. But their numbers were vast—some managed to slip into the Black Forest.

The crocodiles that breached the line charged directly for the cocoon.

As if drawn by instinct, they sensed the birth of the spirit and charged.

Despite their stubby legs, their speed was surprising.

“Damn it!”

The dark elves tried to chase the intruders, but it was too late—they had vanished into the forest.

The rocky crocodiles that breached the perimeter arrived at the cocoon in an instant.

“So they broke through?”

Brielle bit her lip as she spotted one of the smaller rocky crocodiles.

The cocoon pulsed and radiated intense light.

The spirit was about to be born.

If interrupted now, no one knew what might happen.

SWISH!

Brielle unleashed a Wind Cutter at the crocodiles.

Though Wind Cutter was highly effective against humans, it barely scratched the crocodiles’ rocky hides.

They charged the cocoon without hesitation.

Among them, one stood out—massive and fast.

It opened its maw wide, aiming to swallow both Brielle and the cocoon.

BOOM!

At that moment, Zeon dropped down onto its head.

Just as he had taken down the wyvern, he used his entire body to strike.

The sheer impact staggered the crocodile.

Standing atop its back, Zeon muttered,

“So you were the main body.”

As with all golems, there had to be a core.

Unless the core was destroyed, it would endlessly regenerate.

That was why the other crocodiles did not regenerate once destroyed—the core remained with the main body.

Identifying the main body among hundreds of nearly identical monsters was nearly impossible.

So Zeon had deliberately loosened the Sand Soldiers’ line of defense.

Just enough for the true body to breach it and reach the cocoon.

As he suspected, a few made it in, including the core-bearing original.

Of them, the largest and most aggressive had to be the main body. No mere copy would be allowed to devour a spirit.

RAAAAAR!

Enraged at being interrupted at the crucial moment, the main body roared.

It bucked violently, trying to throw Zeon off, while its clones swarmed him.

Their reactions only confirmed it for Zeon.

This one was the original.

Zeon poured mana into his Scorching Gauntlet and slammed it into the creature’s back.

BOOM! KRAAACK! BANG!

After three consecutive blows, its back was completely torn open, revealing its insides.

Amid the shattered rock, a red gem glowed.

The core.

With the core exposed, the main body thrashed even harder. But no matter how it moved, it couldn’t dislodge Zeon.

He reached out and ripped the core from its body.

CRACK!

The gem, fused with the stone, was torn out, roots and all.

Suddenly, the rampaging main body came to an abrupt halt. The clones also froze, like statues.

CRUMBLE…

The disintegrating stone lost its cohesion and collapsed.

Without its core, it reverted to ordinary rock.

THUD, THUD.

The red gem in Zeon’s grasp pulsed like a beating heart.

He could feel its craving.

Even after losing its body, it still yearned for the spirit.

“No chance.”

Zeon muttered coldly and clenched his fist.

With the Scorching Gauntlet’s power, the solid gem shattered.

CRACKLE…

The golem’s core crumbled to powder in Zeon’s hand. But then—something unexpected happened.

The powder did not scatter—it was absorbed into Zeon.

Zeon furrowed his brow, startled by the unforeseen event.

He wanted to understand what just happened—but he didn’t have the time.

FWOOOOOSH!

The cocoon erupted in light, more brilliant than anything thus far.

The radiant glow forced Zeon to shut his eyes.

And then—

KYUUU!

A mystical sound echoed in Zeon’s ears.

Just hearing it brought peace to mind and body.

It wasn’t his imagination.

The fatigue from fighting the rocky crocodiles was gone, and his mana fully restored.

Cautiously, Zeon opened his eyes to find a small orb of light fluttering like a butterfly.

“A… spirit?”

“That’s right. A child with incredible vitality.”

Brielle replied.

She gazed in awe at the spirit floating gently through the air.

The spirit circled around a beautiful woman who looked to be in her early twenties.

Zeon recognized her instantly.

“Hahr…”

“It’s been a while.”

Hahr answered with a smile.

Eight years had matured her.

Having birthed a spirit, she now radiated an indescribable, mystical aura.

If a goddess were to exist, she would look like this—such was the thought that crossed Zeon’s mind.

Hahr reached out her hand, and the spirit gently landed upon it.

“Her name is Yuri.”

“Yuri?”

“That’s her name. Isn’t it beautiful?”

“It is.”

“Thanks to you, she was born safely. Thank you. And Brielle too—thanks to you, I was able to stay strong.”

Hahr offered Brielle a bright smile.

Brielle reached out and took her hand.

“You’ve done something incredible—bringing such a beautiful child into the world. You’ve done something great, Hahr.”

“I didn’t do it alone. It was only possible because everyone helped. Would you like to greet Yuri?”

“Can I?”

“Of course. You’re a noble being.”

No sooner had Hahr finished speaking than Yuri floated onto Brielle’s hand.

“Hello, Yuri. I’m Brielle.”

FLUTTER!

At her greeting, Yuri shivered slightly.

“Nice to meet you. What a beautiful child. Please take good care of Hahr.”

As if delighted, Yuri twirled around Brielle, scattering glimmering particles of light.

“Huh?”

“Oh my…”

The dark elves and Awakened who had arrived late were stunned.

Even without being told, they instinctively knew—that glowing being was a spirit.

But the true miracle had only just begun.

Where the spirit’s light touched, the parched soil darkened to rich, fertile earth.

Sand was transformed into life-rich soil.

From the changed ground, green leaves sprouted.

New buds bloomed.

Witnessing the sudden transformation, Floa and the dark elves wept.

Being highly attuned to spirits, they knew just how monumental this was.

Yuri, excited by the new visitors, flitted around the dark elves.

Each time she passed by, they trembled with overwhelming joy.

It felt like something they should’ve always had.

As if something long-lost had been restored.

“Huuuuh…”

“This… this is a spirit…”

The dark elves wept openly in awe.

Even though it wasn’t their contracted spirit, just seeing and feeling one so close brought a sense of completeness.

It was a sensation they had never experienced before.

Meanwhile, the Awakened were stunned in a different way.

What they saw were sprouts rising from the earth.

Not from the carbonized trees.

These were unnamed blades of grass.

The green shoots, quickly growing up to their ankles, left them in reverent silence.

Everyone was overwhelmed by the birth of the first spirit on this land.

Zeon’s eyes followed the spirit’s movements.

Yuri, curious about the forest, fluttered about to every corner.

Then she noticed Zeon and flew over to circle around him.

Seeing this, Hahr spoke.

“Yuri says she wants to see ‘the child.’”

“The child?”

“She says someone is connected to you.”

“You mean Gaia? Yuri knows about Gaia?”

“Yes. She says Gaia is both like her and different.”

“Is that so…”

Zeon looked troubled.

Gaia was currently in deep slumber, digesting the Scythe of the Reaper. Until she awakened on her own, there was no way to bring her out of subspace.

“Yuri, Gaia is—”

Just as Zeon began to speak, his gaze turned toward the edge of the forest.

An immense presence approached.

Far beyond that of the S-rank rocky crocodile.

An overwhelming presence was drawing near the Black Forest.

FLUTTER…

Yuri shivered and darted into Hahr’s arms.

“What’s wrong?”

Instead of replying, Yuri burrowed deeper into her embrace.

Hahr looked around in confusion.

Then, a man in a robe stepped into the forest.

Until that moment, not even Zeon had sensed his approach.

Not even Levin, floating in midair, noticed.

The man had simply appeared—without warning.

He looked at the spirit cradled in Hahr’s arms and spoke.

“A… spirit? So one has finally been born on this land.”

His voice trembled with emotion.

It was the first time in decades he had shown such feeling.

That’s how monumental the spirit’s birth was—even to him.

Then Zeon stepped forward to block the man’s path.

At Zeon’s appearance, the man’s expression turned cold.

“Hey, Sand Mage. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t get in my way. You’re ruining a perfectly good mood.”

“Sorry, but I can’t do that. Yuri is wary of you.”

“Yuri? So it already has a name? That means the contract is complete. Seems I’m late. Still, I suppose it doesn’t matter. Breaking a freshly made contract is nothing to me.”

His voice was cold, and with it came a chill that seemed to drop the very air temperature.

It was no illusion.