Chapter 700

People called that day the “Miracle Day.”

It was because a miracle occurred on Earth after the pure white light that had covered the entire planet disappeared.

The first miracle was the sea.

The sea that had been hidden beneath the sand had dramatically revealed itself.

When the sea that had completely evaporated during the Great Cataclysm appeared once again, people rejoiced with tears in their eyes.

The sea, which had not received sunlight for a long time, was a dead sea devoid of life. But once sunlight reached it, countless lives were born as if by a lie.

Seaweed grew, and small creatures, including plankton, first filled the sea.

Then small fish were born, and large fish that preyed on them appeared from somewhere as well.

Some of the monsters on land, targeting these fish, moved into the water and evolved.

The cycle of life had begun.

The second miracle occurred in the desert.

A considerable amount of the sand that had covered the entire Earth disappeared, turning into land where grass could grow.

Greenery formed here and there.

Water evaporated from the sea, forming clouds and bringing rain.

Thanks to this, the greenery was gradually expanding.

The places where greenery had appeared were still extremely limited. But if time continued to pass like this, it was certain that the entire Earth would regain its former greenness.

The third miracle was the enormous mountain created in the center of the continent.

A gigantic mountain and mountain range, over twenty thousand meters in height, had been created in a single day.

The mountain was so enormous that it could even be seen from Neo Seoul, thousands of kilometers away, and was utterly incomprehensible.

People called this mountain Sand Island.

The reason they called a gigantic mountain over twenty thousand meters high Sand Island was because a vast desert existed around the mountain.

The vast desert, as though all the sand on Earth had been gathered there, was a hell of scorching heat.

The temperature was several times hotter than in other regions, and countless monsters had made their homes there, so humans dared not enter.

Dozens of S-rank monsters, the appearance of even one of which would throw the world into chaos, inhabited this place.

There were even more A-rank monsters, and the number of monsters below them could not even be counted.

For some reason, the monsters in the desert where Sand Island was located could not leave the area.

Instead, humans and other races from outside also dared not enter the desert where Sand Island was located.

monsters existed outside Sand Island as well.

But they could not be compared to the monsters inhabiting the area around Sand Island.

That was because the monsters inhabiting the area around Sand Island were several times stronger and more ferocious than the monsters outside.

Since most of the powerful monsters lived around Sand Island, people no longer feared monsters as they had before.

People called this desert, which had confined the powerful monsters like a prison, the Great Demon Realm.

The fourth miracle was the appearance of a giant tree several kilometers in height.

The World Tree had grown so enormous that it pierced through the barrier.

Since it could no longer be hidden by the barrier, Latrisha publicly announced the existence of the World Tree Village to the world.

Along with it, the location of the Primordial Forest became widely known to humans as well.

It became possible to reach the World Tree Village and the Primordial Forest on foot without necessarily using a portal.

Connecting Neo Seoul, the World Tree Village, and the Primordial Forest formed a triangle.

Humans spread throughout this triangular region.

Some of the humans who had been living gathered together in Neo Seoul gathered up their courage and began living outside.

Neo Seoul actively encouraged and supported this.

They laid roads leading to the villages and built walls to prevent attacks from monsters.

Thanks to this, the areas where humans lived rapidly increased.

Even the monsters did not dare enter this triangular region.

The center of this triangular region was Neo Seoul.

Even now, countless humans and other races lived gathered together in Neo Seoul.

The outer slums of Neo Seoul, which had been destroyed after the Great monster Invasion, were rapidly rebuilt.

Countless people joined forces to construct buildings and lay the roads again.

Neo Seoul devoted all its efforts to supporting the reconstruction of the slums.

Thanks to this, the slums were reborn in a much more splendid form than before.

In particular, the area where the portal was installed had changed so thoroughly that it would not have been strange to call it an impregnable fortress.

Even during the Great Monster Invasion, the elves and Awakeneds who came through the portal to provide support had helped them overcome a great crisis.

Because of this, Neo Seoul paid special attention to the plaza where the portal was installed, erecting high walls and stationing various weapons and Awakeneds there.

The portal had now become an indispensable presence.

The locations of the World Tree Village and the Primordial Forest had been revealed, and roads and many villages had been established between them and Neo Seoul, but it was still far more efficient to use the portal to travel there.

“Phew!”

Seo Taeran let out a deep sigh.

The place where she was was the mayor's office that Jin Geumho had used.

Jin Geumho was publicly announced to have passed away during the invasion of the monsters.

This was because they feared that revealing that the ruler of the Eastern District, Seden Price, was responsible would cause great chaos.

Instead, severe punishment was imposed on Seden Price and the Eastern District.

Seden Price was restrained with a mana-sealing device and imprisoned, while countless penalties were imposed on the Eastern District.

There was no resistance.

If Seden Price's actions were revealed, the Eastern District itself would collapse.

The penalties Seo Taeran imposed on the Eastern District were extremely harsh.

They lost their shares in the mana crystal mines, and their rights to use the portal were greatly reduced. Not only that, various business rights were also reclaimed.

The series of measures were carried out in an instant, without giving the Eastern District any time to react.

After instantly rendering the Eastern District powerless, Seo Taeran became mayor following Jin Geumho.

No one opposed it.

No, they could not.

It was obvious what would happen if they needlessly raised a rebellion.

And so Seo Taeran became the second mayor of Neo Seoul.

For the past several years, Seo Taeran had spent a busier time than anyone.

She had to work without a moment to catch her breath to deal with the aftermath.

Only after running breathlessly for several years did she finally have some room to rest.

“Haa!”

Seo Taeran brushed back her hair and looked up at the sky.

She could see a sea of stars shining brilliantly in the unusually dark night sky.

After Miracle Day, Earth had regained its clear skies.

Thanks to that, even inside Neo Seoul, it was possible to admire the star-filled night sky like this.

Seo Taeran stared intently at one particularly bright star among them.

At a glance, it looked exactly like the other stars, but Seo Taeran knew that it was not.

That small star was Divine Judgement, launched by City Hall.

The strategic weapon that had protected Neo Seoul during the Great Monster Invasion.

Even today, Divine Judgement was proudly looking down upon Earth from space.

Even so, Seo Taeran's expression was dark because communication with Divine Judgement had been cut off.

Divine Judgement, which had been hit by Krassias's breath, had repaired all of its damaged areas using its self-repair function.

There was clearly no problem with its communication function. Yet at some point, Jin Geumho stopped responding even when she called for him.

Because of that, she had not heard Jin Geumho's voice for a year.

Since Seo Taeran had trusted and relied on Jin Geumho more than anyone, she could not help but be deeply disheartened.

“You didn't have to go this far just to make me stop relying on you...”

Seo Taeran gave a bitter smile.

It was clear that Jin Geumho had cut off contact so that she could stand on her own after seeing how much she relied on him.

“Phew!”

She let out another quiet sigh.

Even now, whenever a monster approached near Neo Seoul, light would fall from the sky and strike it down.

It was proof that Jin Geumho was watching over Neo Seoul and her.

Seo Taeran found great comfort in that.

Knock! Knock!

Just then, someone entered the mayor's office with a knock.

The ones who entered the mayor's office were Levin and Brielle.

Over the past several years, the two children had grown beyond recognition.

Levin now had a distinctly adult air about him, and Brielle had also grown considerably, boasting dazzling beauty.

Brielle pouted her lips as she looked at Seo Taeran.

“Were you brooding all by yourself again?”

“Yeah! I was brooding a little. Why?”

“Seriously... Why don't you stop brooding and just get married?”

“Is that something you should say to your older sister?”

“Who says you're my older sister? How big is our age difference?”

“We're all growing old together anyway. What's with the age difference?”

“Oh my? Where did you sell your conscience?”

Brielle opened her eyes wide and stared at Seo Taeran.

Levin chuckled as he watched Brielle.

Brielle was the only person in Neo Seoul who could speak so casually with Seo Taeran.

If anyone else treated Seo Taeran like that, it would be a big problem.

Even afterward, Brielle and Seo Taeran picked at trivial things and bickered.

‘Who would believe that these two, arguing like children, are the highest authorities of Neo Seoul and the World Tree Village?’

Seo Taeran was the mayor of Neo Seoul, while Brielle was Lacricia's only daughter, the official ruler of the World Tree Village, and the greatest spirit master.

Their status in Neo Seoul and the World Tree Village was utterly unrivaled.

It was absurd to see the two of them bickering like children.

Levin smiled and stopped Brielle.

“Stop it! Brielle, we don't have time.”

“What do you mean? Time for what?”

“Ah, we have somewhere to go.”

“Where are you going?”

“Somewhere a little far away. I'll tell you when we get back.”

At Levin's words, Seo Taeran frowned without realizing it.

She was curious about Levin and Brielle's destination, but she could not question them as though interrogating them.

That sort of method would not work anyway, and she did not particularly want to find out their destination by force.

“You'll come back, right?”

“Of course. Neo Seoul is my home.”

“Okay! Have a good trip. I doubt there are any monsters that could put the two of you in danger, but still, be careful.”

“We will. Mayor, please take good care of yourself while we're gone.”

“Okay!”

Seo Taeran nodded in reply.

After briefly exchanging glances with her, Levin went outside first, while Brielle left City Hall after speaking with Seo Taeran a little longer.

Brielle smiled brightly and said,

“We can finally go without worrying.”

“That's right!”

Levin nodded.

Over the past several years, the two had lived lives just as busy as Seo Taeran's.

Brielle was the official heir of the World Tree Village, while Levin was an S-rank Awakened and the ruler of Sinchon.

Eton, who had previously ruled Sinchon, had lost his life during the Great Monster Invasion. After that, Levin naturally took over Sinchon.

If he simply left it unattended and someone else became the ruler of Sinchon, an even more troublesome situation could arise, so he had unwillingly taken on Eton's vacant position.

There had been countless twists and turns before Sinchon could be put in order.

There had been several periods of chaos, and they had gone through major crises.

There were even outsiders and other races who looked down on young Levin and invaded.

Each time, Levin dealt with them decisively.

Levin was not alone.

There was Brielle, as well as his friends. And there were also Jetoya and Lemura, the rulers of the underground city.

Whenever Levin ran into major trouble, they stood together with him.

Jetoya, in particular, had been a great help to Levin.

Jetoya's martial prowess, which was on an entirely different level from that of any martial-type Awakened, was truly tremendous.

His martial prowess, comparable to that of an S-rank martial-type Awakened, instilled fear in every intruder.

So much so that despite his young age, he had been given the nickname Touma, the Fighting Demon.

The demon crazed by battle, Jetoya, was the dependable guardian of the underground city and Lemura.

Whenever it was a matter concerning Levin, he stepped forward without hesitation.

Thanks to that, after several years of effort, they were able to put the system in order, and now Levin could finally leave his post.

The two first traveled to the World Tree Village through the portal.

―It's Levin.

―Brielle!

―Waaah!

As soon as they entered the World Tree Village, spirits noisily welcomed them.

The World Tree Village was now teeming with so many spirits that it could be called a village of spirits.

However, spirits did not usually reveal themselves before ordinary people. They appeared only to special people like Brielle and Levin and excitedly chattered away.

Just then.

Rumble!

Dark clouds gathered in the previously clear night sky.

Brielle looked up at the sky and murmured,

“Looks like Arisedon is going to make it rain again.”

“As befits the guardian of the World Tree. Since he makes it rain whenever he has time like that, the area is fertile.”

“The farmers must like it.”

Brielle smiled faintly.

It was not only elves who lived in the World Tree Village.

Humans who had trickled in one by one had settled around the outskirts of the village and farmed the land. The High Elves did not reject the humans who had come to them with difficulty, but accepted them.

Thanks to that, many humans came to live around the outskirts of the World Tree Village.

Arisedon often made it rain like this for those who farmed.

Crackle!

When lightning struck, the silhouette of Arisedon swimming hidden within the clouds could be faintly seen.

Levin and Brielle watched the sight for a moment before remembering their original purpose.

Brielle shouted toward the sky.

“Gaia!”

―Pii!

An immediate response came from the night sky.

Gaia had descended to the ground through the darkness.

By now, Gaia's size was no longer inferior to Arisedon's. Rather, because of its volume, it looked even larger.

Even though a gigantic two-hundred-meter whale had descended to the ground, no one was surprised. It was a sight that could occasionally be seen in the World Tree Village.

Brielle stroked Gaia's head and said,

“Can you take us to him now?”

―Piiii!

“Thank you!”

When Gaia readily agreed, Brielle and Levin climbed onto its head.

Carrying them, Gaia immediately took off high into the sky.

When they rose through the clouds, Arisedon could be seen in the distance.

Brielle and Levin waved toward Arisedon. Lightning flashed near Gaia in response. It was Arisedon's answer.

Gaia flew rapidly through the night sky.

Normally, flying-type monsters would attack when one rose to this height. But the monsters crushed by Gaia's presence did not even dare approach and fled.

Thanks to that, Levin and Brielle could comfortably enjoy the scenery.

The surrounding landscape changed rapidly.

That was how fast Gaia was flying.

Thanks to this, they were able to reach their destination around the time the sun rose.

It was the vast desert called the Great Demon Realm.

―Kraaah!

―Kwoooargh!

The first thing to greet them was the terrifying cries of monsters.

Huge monsters on the ground roared at Gaia.

They were clearly A-rank or higher monsters at a glance.

No matter how high their rank, other monsters did not openly show hostility toward Gaia like this.

That was because Gaia was an existence beyond rank.

Only the monsters here in this world reacted like that.

The place they arrived at while riding Gaia was the desert surrounding Sand Island.

The monsters inhabiting this place were unusually ferocious, baring their teeth and remaining wary even toward Gaia.

But Gaia paid no attention to their reactions and leisurely headed toward its destination.

The place where Gaia landed was Sand Island in the center of the desert.

It was called Sand Island for the sake of convenience, but it was actually a gigantic mountain over twenty thousand meters high.

The enormous mountain that had never existed on Earth before boasted truly overwhelming majesty.

Gaia landed at the crater at the summit of the mountain.

There was a huge cave on one side of the crater.

Brielle asked Gaia,

“Here?”

―Pii!

“He's inside?”

―Pii!

“Okay! I'll go inside. Thank you for bringing us all the way here!”

Brielle stroked Gaia's head and thanked it.

Gaia rose into the sky again, while Levin and Brielle entered the enormous cave.

“You've finally come.”

As soon as they entered the cave, a beautiful woman welcomed them.

Silver hair that fell to her waist, even silver eyebrows, and a silver sheen in her eyes.

The woman, with pale skin and a face as beautiful as a goddess, welcomed the two with a smile.

“Big sister Tesserina!”

“Come in. I've been waiting.”

The goddess-like woman was none other than Tesserina.

Just as Brielle and Levin had grown over the past several years, Tesserina had also become even more beautiful.

Brielle asked Tesserina with an excited expression,

“What about Zeon?”

“He's inside. Go on in!”

Before Tesserina could even finish speaking, Brielle ran toward the inside of the cave.

At the end of the long passage was a huge chamber.

In the center of the chamber stood the person Brielle had wanted so badly to see.

“Zeon!”

Brielle called his name and threw herself into his arms.

The man holding her smiled and said,

“You've grown a lot, Brielle!”

“Zeon hasn't changed at all.”

“Really?”

The man smiling warmly was Zeon.

“You're okay, right?”

“As you can see, I'm perfectly fine.”

“Thank goodness.”

As Brielle let out a sigh of relief, Levin entered the chamber.

“Hyung!”

“You've become a young man now, Levin!”

“Haa!”

Upon hearing Zeon's voice, Levin's legs lost their strength, and he nearly collapsed.

Zeon gently embraced Levin.

“You've been well?”

“Yes! Hyung.”

Levin's eyes were reddened as though they might shed tears at any moment.

Zeon playfully ruffled Levin's hair and said,

“I heard you've been doing well.”

“Hyung, weren't you frustrated?”

“It's bearable. Sometimes the fellow up there talks to me, and Tesserina is here too.”

Zeon pointed toward the sky with a playful expression.

Somehow, perhaps because of the powers he had gained in space, Divine Judgement had become capable of directly conveying its thoughts to Zeon.

Thanks to that, he occasionally spent time talking with it.

Rumble!

At that moment, Sand Island shook violently as though it might explode at any moment. But Zeon was not surprised.

It was something that happened routinely for him.

On that miraculous day, Krassias had detonated its Dragon Heart.

Zeon had used all his powers to suppress the explosion. But it was impossible for Zeon alone to bear the entire explosion.

Then Damho stepped forward.

Damho redirected the power Zeon had been unable to suppress toward himself and dispersed it. Then he used the explosion energy to activate the Teleport Gem.

Along with a brilliant light, Damho disappeared, and because a considerable portion of the energy had been dispersed through the Teleport Gem, Zeon was able to suppress the explosion with minimal damage.

However, because of that, the ground became unstable, and occasionally it shook like this as though the volcano were about to erupt.

Zeon did not know whether Damho had returned to his homeland. But because he had a feeling that Damho was alive and well somewhere, he did not worry.

What had been created by suppressing the explosion as much as possible was Sand Island.

A strong residue of the powers Krassias had possessed in life remained on Sand Island.

Drawn by Krassias's lingering presence, powerful monsters from all over the world gathered around Sand Island. The already powerful monsters grew explosively stronger here.

Someone had to control the monsters here.

There was only Zeon.

The one who could confine and control the monsters in the prison called the desert.

That was why Zeon was on Sand Island.

He was controlling the monsters here for the sake of the world.

Even so, he was not lonely.

Someone occasionally spoke to him from space, and Tesserina was with him as well. And he was satisfied simply by being able to meet Brielle and Levin like this.

Someday, when more time had passed, he would be able to call the others here as well.

Zeon said to Brielle and Levin,

“Let's go inside. I have a lot to tell you.”

“Okay!”

“Us too, hyung!”

They all headed toward the table together.

Tesserina had prepared food on the table.

Once seated together, their conversation continued without pause.

Zeon laughed and talked with Levin, Brielle, and Tesserina throughout the night.

* * *

There were occasionally people who lost their way and entered the Great Demon Realm.

Just before being devoured by the monsters, they were all saved by a sandstorm.

A thick sandstorm wrapped around them and sent them outside the desert in an instant.

Those who had been saved in this way said,

A god lived in that desert teeming with monsters.

The Sand God, Zeon.

- The End