Chapter 624

“Haah! Haah!”

Levin panted heavily as he looked down at his feet.

Below him, a black shadow lay sprawled out limply like a jellyfish washed onto land.

The jellyfish-like black shadow was none other than Osolo.

White smoke rose from Osolo’s entire body.

Because he was in his shadow form, it didn’t show clearly, but his whole body had been charred black.

Levin had fought Osolo in a fierce battle for nearly an hour.

Osolo was stronger than any enemy Levin had faced until now.

His shadow body, which was almost immune to physical attacks, and the Shadow Blade he wielded with shadow blades were terrifyingly powerful.

More than anything, Osolo could fly through the air just like Levin.

It was no easy task dealing with Osolo as he glided freely across the sky.

No matter how many skills he unleashed, it was meaningless if the opponent didn’t get hit.

Levin had to use his full power just to keep up with Osolo as he freely flew through the sky and evaded him. But in the end, he managed to land a decisive blow.

It was Hammer of Thunderer.

Hammer of Thunderer was the strongest skill Levin could currently use.

Even for Levin, using it once completely drained all his mana.

That was why he had to use it carefully.

Like a hawk snatching its prey at the decisive moment, he had to be patient. It required extreme concentration.

In the end, the victor was Levin.

At the crucial moment, both of them gambled everything, but ultimately Hammer of Thunderer, which possessed greater destructive power, exploded across Osolo’s entire body.

“Hrrngh!”

Osolo let out a grotesque groan as he lifted his head. There was no trace of vitality left on his face.

Levin looked down at Osolo and muttered,

“You’re persistent.”

“You… would’ve done the same.”

“What do you mean?”

“If… your clan’s fate was on the line, you would’ve done the same as me.”

“I probably would’ve.”

“Then let me go.”

“If I let you go, you’ll just come attacking again, won’t you?”

Levin looked at Osolo with an incredulous expression.

He understood Osolo’s position completely.

They had lost the land they had lived on for over a hundred years, so naturally they needed a new home.

The problem was that the place they coveted was Steel Fortress, and to obtain it they had tried to destroy the portal, Neo Seoul’s most important facility.

They had also attempted to force Serian, the queen of the Northern District, onto their side through foul means.

Even considering they were enemies, what Osolo had done had gone too far.

Most of all, if they let him live, there would be endless trouble later.

“If you kill me, you’ll regret it. Lord Del Loa will never forgive you.”

“When persuasion doesn’t work, now it’s threats? I really don’t understand why all of your reactions are exactly the same.”

“Do… not insult me. I am—”

“That’s enough.”

Levin waved his hand as if he didn’t want to hear any more.

Kwarrrng!

At that moment, a pure white bolt of lightning struck Osolo.

Still in the middle of threatening Levin, Osolo’s bones were burned away by the lightning.

Psssh!

Osolo’s black body, now turned to ash, scattered away like dust.

“Ha! I’m dead tired.”

Only then did Levin collapse onto the ground.

Not a single bit of strength remained in his body.

Ever since becoming S-rank, this was the first time he had exerted himself to this extent.

That was how difficult an opponent Osolo had been.

As a result, he was completely exhausted.

“Are you okay?”

At that moment, Brielle ran over to Levin.

“Ugh! I’m dying here.”

“Drink this.”

Brielle held out a potion to Levin.

Without even asking what kind of potion it was, Levin immediately drank it.

As soon as he did, he could feel his depleted mana and stamina gradually recovering.

“Thanks. I feel alive again now.”

“You worked hard.”

“Worked hard, my ass.”

“You really have gotten strong now. The Shadow Tribe is seriously difficult to deal with, and you actually took down their leader. Doesn’t that mean there’s no one left in Neo Seoul who can match you now?”

“Don’t go around saying stuff like that. Hyung Zeon is here, so how could I possibly?”

“Hehe! Still, you’re not completely denying it.”

Brielle giggled.

Levin made an awkward expression.

Zeon was never someone he could even dream of comparing himself to. But against the other S-ranks of Neo Seoul, he was confident he wouldn’t lose easily.

At that moment, Brielle noticed a strange object where Osolo’s body had been.

It was a small scale.

Despite Levin’s lightning attack, the scale hadn’t even been scorched, and an ominous aura flowed from it.

“A relic of an evil god.”

Brielle frowned.

She opened a subspace and stored Bark’s Scale inside.

“What are you going to do with that?”

“If I take it back to the village, they’ll seal it away.”

“Seal it?”

“Yeah! If it’s left in the world, someone will just misuse it again.”

A divine relic possessed power beyond comparison with ordinary items.

Power enough to shake the world itself.

There was a reason the world always fell into chaos whenever a divine relic appeared.

Especially the relics of the evil god Bark had caused countless disasters.

Not a single one had ever been created with good intentions, so the harm they caused was enormous.

That was why the correct answer was to seal every one of Bark’s relics the moment they were found.

“Yeah! Sealing that thing really is the right move. You’ll make sure nobody else gets their hands on it, right?”

“Of course.”

“Then that’s fine.”

Just then—

A commotion broke out near the portal.

When the two approached, countless people were gathering around the portal area.

Awakeners from City Hall and every district were assembling.

Among them, the Northern District awakeners were especially numerous.

Serian, the queen of the Northern District, had been attacked right inside Neo Seoul itself.

Fortunately, thanks to the help of Zeon, Hera, and others, Serian had been rescued, but the fact that their queen had nearly been taken by enemies right in the heart of their own territory enraged them.

So the moment they heard news that the enemy assault on Steel Fortress was imminent, they were the first to rush out.

Burning with fighting spirit, they waited for their turn to cross over to Steel Fortress.

Levin let out a quiet sigh.

“Whew! So it really is war.”

A war that would decide the survival of both El Harun and Neo Seoul.

Neither side could retreat.

Brielle spoke to Levin.

“Let’s head to Steel Fortress too. We should help Zeon.”

“Yeah, we should.”

Fighting spirit filled Levin’s face as he answered.

---

Immediately after Zeon returned, Steel Fortress was thrown into emergency mode.

Urtian, Seong Hoyeon, Riala, Seo Taeran, and the representatives dispatched from each district all gathered in one place.

The countermeasures had already been prepared.

They had started preparing ever since El Harun collapsed.

This meeting was merely to review the defense plans once more and carry out the procedures for execution.

However, there was one thing they had never anticipated.

The enemy using demonic beasts.

No one had imagined they would mentally dominate countless demonic beasts and use them at the front.

Small and medium demonic beasts wouldn’t pose a major threat to Steel Fortress, but large demonic beasts were different.

Their massive bodies themselves were practically weapons.

They could also serve as footholds for the smaller demonic beasts.

In every way, they were dangerous existences.

Because of that, Steel Fortress’s leadership was searching for an efficient way to strike down the large demonic beasts.

Zeon stood at the entrance of Steel Fortress, staring toward the horizon.

Even from here, the dust cloud could now be seen clearly.

That meant the enemy had drawn very close.

At that moment, someone approached Zeon.

The man dressed neatly in a suit from head to toe was none other than Jin Geumho, the mayor of Neo Seoul.

Zeon asked with a puzzled expression,

“Weren’t you attending the meeting?”

“It’s enough that I sent Taeran. Why would I go too and make everyone uncomfortable? Work should be left to the professionals.”

“But Seo Taeran isn’t exactly a specialist in large-scale warfare.”

“That’s true! But she knows how to place experts where they’re needed. It’s far better to leave it to her than for me to interfere and create confusion in the chain of command.”

This was one of the reasons Zeon thought Jin Geumho was remarkable.

He never tried to lead everything personally.

If there was someone suitable for the matter at hand, he handed over full authority and stepped back to supervise.

It sounded easy, but not everyone could do it.

Giving power held in one’s own hands to someone else was difficult even between parent and child.

In contrast, Jin Geumho entrusted the work to the person most capable of doing it and stepped back, giving them room to breathe.

Just like now.

Zeon asked him,

“Wouldn’t it be better for your safety to return to Neo Seoul?”

“If my safety is ever truly in danger, that would mean we’ve already lost the battle. But that won’t happen.”

“You sound confident.”

“Even if I’m not, I have to be. If I leave, what do you think the people fighting here directly will think? A leader must remain in place, even if he does nothing.”

“So you’re like a kind of totem?”

“Well, something like that.”

Jin Geumho answered calmly without showing even the slightest displeasure.

He was neither a martial-type awakener nor an ordinary mage-type awakener.

His uniqueness stemmed from his powerful mental strength and the skill Heavenly Eye.

Neither had anything to do with physical strength.

Though he was stronger than an ordinary person, compared to S-rank or A-rank awakeners, he was endlessly fragile.

With a single gesture from them, Jin Geumho’s life could disappear instantly. Yet not once had he ever withdrawn from a battlefield.

In Neo Seoul’s early days, he entrusted his life to Deioden, and after Neo Seoul stabilized, he entrusted it to Seo Taeran, Numbers, and the awakeners he personally selected.

Not just anyone could possess such courage.

This time as well, he intended to remain here, trusting those defending Steel Fortress.

Jin Geumho smiled as he spoke.

“Well, if things really start looking bad, I’ll just hide behind you.”

“Behind me?”

“At least in the desert, there’s no one stronger than you, so wouldn’t that be the safest place? Surely you won’t refuse?”

“Well…”

Zeon deliberately trailed off playfully.

Jin Geumho’s gaze turned toward the dust cloud rising beyond the horizon.

It had come even closer, and the dust cloud was clearer now.

“Looks like they’ll arrive by tomorrow.”

“Yes.”

“A fierce battle will break out. Many people will die.”

Jin Geumho’s expression darkened noticeably.

In the current age, awakeners were the most important resource.

Without them, Neo Seoul could not exist.

No matter who won, many awakeners would die.

For Neo Seoul, it would be a painful loss.

But even so, they could not hand Steel Fortress over to them.

Once a living being stole one thing successfully, it would start coveting more.

Humans had already lost Earth to demonic beasts because of the greed of others and had been forced to gather onto a tiny patch of land.

If they surrendered Steel Fortress, the enemy would surely start coveting Neo Seoul as well.

That was why they could never retreat.

They had to show them the resolve to never let go of what was in their hands.

“We have to show them that humans are the masters of this land. So they’ll never even dare covet it again.”

Naturally, there would be no concessions or negotiations whatsoever.

That was Jin Geumho’s resolve as he faced this battle.