Chapter 483

Chapter 483

Zeon gazed at the core of Kroanos, the Blood Crystal.

Wuuung!

The barrier within the house reacted violently. The Watching Eye was responding to the Blood Crystal.

“So, you dislike this thing too, huh.”

The Watching Eye despised things that disrupted harmony, false powers and twisted energies.

The Blood Crystal, imbued with a god’s curse, was exactly that sort of object; no wonder the Watching Eye reacted so sensitively to it.

Zeon placed the Blood Crystal back into his subspace. The moment he did, the Watching Eye quieted down.

Zeon turned his gaze toward City Hall.

Beyond the crimson neon glow, the building seemed taller than ever that night.

“What on earth are they making in there?”

There had been confirmed sightings of countless beast byproducts, starting with the heart of Moby Dick, being delivered into City Hall.

Jin Geumho and his administration tried their best to keep it secret, but even they couldn’t completely deceive Argos’s Eye.

That all-seeing eye had already detected the flow of those byproducts and was now keeping City Hall under close watch.

Many of the materials entering that building came from S-class monsters.

The accumulated value of the beast byproducts sent to City Hall by now was enough to purchase an entire district of Neo Seoul.

They weren’t collecting such things merely out of greed.

If it was Jin Geumho, then he was surely using those materials to create something, something of immense consequence.

No one yet knew what kind of picture he was painting, but one thing was certain, it was nothing ordinary.

“What are you preparing, Jin Geumho?”

Even the Numbers he’d kept hidden until now had been mobilized for this project.

The air reeked of danger.

Zeon muttered with a sigh.

“Too many things to worry about.”

Brielle, who had returned to the High Elf village. Tesserina, who had gone out to explore the slums. And the underground city below his feet.

None of them were matters he could afford to neglect. Yet his body was only one, and there was far too much to handle.

He sank onto the sofa.

“Phew.”

A dull ache pulsed in his head.

At least Tesserina was obedient to his instructions, that much was a relief.

She seemed determined to adapt fully to the human world, venturing out eagerly to explore every corner of it.

He wasn’t sure whether dragons were simply creatures of deep curiosity, or if her chimera nature made her even more so.

To Zeon, Tesserina was like a living nuclear bomb.

Even though she was only a chimera and not her true body, she possessed power on par with an S-class awakener.

If her real body ever manifested here, the destruction would be unimaginable.

Neo Seoul’s anti-magic defenses were formidable, but even they couldn’t restrain a dragon.

It was Zeon’s responsibility to keep Tesserina from losing control.

“Huuh…”

He exhaled again and folded an arm behind his head.

He was just about to close his eyes when,

“Hyung!”

The door burst open, and Levin rushed in.

‘So much for getting any sleep.’

He could tell from the boy’s voice alone, Levin was practically vibrating with excitement.

Zeon gave a faint, weary smile and sat up.

“You’re back?”

“When did you get here, hyung?”

“Just a little while ago.”

“Then why didn’t you come down to the underground city?”

“Did something happen?”

“Nothing serious. We just held a festival!”

“A festival?”

“Yeah, for community spirit! Everyone down there gathered to eat, drink, and have fun together. It would’ve been great if you’d been there too.”

“Well done. There’ll be other chances for me.”

“It was so much fun. Next time, you’ve got to come, promise?”

“All right, I promise.”

“Yes!”

Levin threw an uppercut into the air, his face bright with boyish delight.

At times like this, he was just a mischievous kid again.

“How’s the construction?”

“Perfectly finished! The subspace storage works fine, and the city’s awakeners have already begun clearing new dungeons.”

“What about the Solver Agency?”

“Hehe… we’re still, uh, waiting.”

Levin scratched his head.

The problem-solving office he had opened was still practically closed for lack of clients, too few people even knew it existed yet.

Still, he wasn’t discouraged. He believed that, someday, the requests would start coming in.

Just then, another figure pushed the door open.

Silver hair shimmering under the light, Tesserina.

Her hands were full of candy.

“Zeon! These are so good! Want one? Oh, Levin, you’re here too.”

“Tesserina noona! Where’d you get all those candies?”

“In Guro.”

“You went there alone? That district’s full of rough types. Nobody bothered you?”

“They were all very kind.”

“Really? Well… that’s good, then.”

Levin eyed her skeptically.

With a face and presence like hers, like a goddess, it was hard to believe that men in a place like Guro would just leave her alone.

But since she said so herself, it felt awkward to press further.

Tesserina held out a handful of sweets to Zeon.

“Don’t you want some?”

“I’ll pass.”

“Why?”

“I’m not fond of sweet things.”

“Really? Then I guess I’ll just have to eat them all myself.”

She beamed, delighted at her own good fortune.

‘Who would ever suspect this woman to be a dragon’s chimera?’

Her appearance, her behavior, everything seemed so human.

Zeon couldn’t help but think what a flawless chimera she was.

Levin tried to stop her.

“Noona, you’ll rot your teeth that way.”

“Rot?”

“Yeah! You’ll get cavities!”

“It’s fine. That kind of thing doesn’t happen to me.”

“How can you be so sure? Better to save them now than regret it later when you’ve got a toothache. From today, just one piece a day, okay?”

“I told you, I’ll be fine.”

“Noona!”

As the two squabbled over candy, Zeon could only shake his head, smiling faintly.

Then it happened.

He suddenly sensed a familiar presence.

Startled yet thrilled, he lifted his head.

A second later, Tesserina tensed up.

“Something powerful is approaching.”

“What? You mean, wait… could it be?”

Levin, the last to notice, finally realized what it was.

He couldn’t possibly mistake that distinct mana flow, warm, gentle, and alive.

“Gaia?”

“Yeah. It’s Gaia.”

Both Zeon and Levin looked out the window.

Far beyond the slum district, something enormous was gliding through the air, a vast creature, moving its giant pectoral fins as if swimming through the sky like an ocean.

It was unmistakably Gaia, who had left with Brielle for the High Elf village.

―Piiiii!

As if answering their call, Gaia’s distinctive cry echoed through the sky.

From beyond Neo Seoul’s walls, she was calling to them.

“My gods… I can feel spirit energy from a living creature.”

Tesserina whispered, trembling.

When Kurayan fell, all spirits had perished.

She had lost her dearest spirit friend back then.

Never had she imagined she would sense that fragrance of spirit again, yet now, it drifted from the great whale soaring in the heavens.

Drawn as if enchanted, Tesserina ran toward Gaia.

Gaia was hovering far outside the slum’s outer rim, she had grown so massive that she couldn’t approach any closer without drawing attention.

So instead, she emitted her mana waves, summoning Zeon and Levin to her.

When they arrived, Gaia slowly descended toward the ground.

“Gaia!”

―Piiiii!

Like a child showing affection, Gaia rubbed her face against Zeon’s body.

“You’ve gotten even bigger.”

Zeon stroked her head, murmuring softly. She now measured nearly twenty meters in length, twice her size before she’d left with Brielle.

Levin threw his arms around her face.

“What took you so long?”

―Piiii!

“I can never understand what you’re saying… Brielle gets it just fine.

Come to think of it, where is Brielle? Don’t tell me you came back alone?”

―Pii!

Levin’s face froze at that short reply.

He wasn’t an idiot, he could guess what her tone meant.

“Something happened, didn’t it?”

―Piii!

“Hyung, what’s Gaia saying?”

Levin looked to Zeon, whose own expression had hardened just as much.

“She says there’s a problem.”

“What kind of problem?”

―Piiiii! Pipipii! Piiiii!

Gaia cried, explaining urgently.

“So Brielle sent you, to ask for our help?”

―Pii!

Gaia nodded in affirmation.

Zeon gently patted her head.

“You’ve done well, coming all this way to bring us her message.”

―Pii!

“You seem exhausted. Rest for tonight. We’ll leave together tomorrow, Gaia.”

―Piiii!

“You’re saying it’s urgent? Half a day’s delay won’t change Brielle’s fate. She’s smart, she’ll manage until we get there.”

Brielle, tempered by life among humans, was far more resourceful than most pureblood elves.

Zeon trusted her completely.

Then Tesserina approached Gaia.

“So you are a child of the spirits. Such pure spirit scent… it’s almost unbelievable.”

―Pii?

Only then did Gaia notice her presence, and step back warily.

She could sense the faint yet unmistakable aura of a dragon from Tesserina.

Even as the first spirit-born life of this world, Gaia still could not yet oppose a dragon.

Sensing Gaia’s fear, Tesserina raised both hands gently.

“I’m not your enemy.”

―Pii?

“You don’t believe me? Then Zeon will vouch for me.”

The moment she said it, Gaia turned her great eyes toward Zeon.

He nodded.

“She’s right. She’s not our enemy.”

―Pii?

“Her name is Tesserina, the Silver Dragon.”

―Pii? Piiii?

“She doesn’t seem that powerful for a dragon? You’re right, this isn’t her true body. She’s a chimera, communicating with us through it.”

―Pii!

Gaia nodded, understanding at last.

Tesserina took a step closer.

“May I hold you for a moment?”

―Pii?

“I swear on my honor as a dragon, I will not harm you.”

―Piiii!

“Thank you, for trusting me.”

Tesserina gently wrapped her arms around Gaia’s head.

The scent of pure spirit energy washed over her.

For the first time since coming to Earth, she breathed in the fragrance of a living spirit.

Tears welled in her eyes.

“Thank you… for being born. Truly, thank you.”