Chapter 620

Zeon visited Tesserina’s house for the first time in a long while.

“I heard something serious happened?”

Tesserina said as she placed a teacup in front of Zeon.

The tea she served had also been brought from World Tree Village.

Lifting the teacup with warm steam rising from it, Zeon answered.

“There was a bit of trouble because of drugs.”

“Did everything get resolved properly?”

“Fortunately, we were able to stop it before the drugs spread further.”

“Drugs? Why do humans always try to destroy themselves?”

“In this case, humans weren’t the main problem. It was a quarter-elf.”

“But seventy-five percent of their blood is human. Doesn’t that make them practically human?”

At Tesserina’s rebuttal, Zeon let out a faint chuckle as he replied.

“That doesn’t mean the elf blood disappears. Elves are just as faithful to their desires as humans are. What humans want, elves want too.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s how it is.”

“Tch! Somehow it feels like I lost.”

“You’re imagining things.”

“Anyway, the drugs have been eradicated, right? No one else is going to make more?”

“That could happen, but there’s nothing I can do about things that haven’t happened yet.”

“I suppose you’re not a god.”

“Right! Whatever happens in the future can be left to future generations.”

“Simple. I like it.”

Tesserina laughed and agreed with Zeon’s opinion.

As he drank his tea, Zeon looked around Tesserina’s residence.

Unlike Zeon’s home, which only had necessary items, Tesserina’s house was filled with all kinds of rare treasures.

Among them, what caught Zeon’s eye was the small tree standing tall in the center of her house.

“What’s with that tree? Don’t tell me it’s the World Tree.”

“No matter how much of a dragon I am, I wouldn’t do something that insane. It was a gift from the High Elves. They gave me a sapling that grows near the World Tree.”

“Then the reason you’ve been so quiet until now was because you were raising that tree.”

“Yeah! Since I’m growing it indoors, it needs delicate care. Even if I bring soil from World Tree Village, I still have to personally monitor sunlight and water levels to find the proper balance.”

“Sunlight? Sunlight gets into a completely enclosed building?”

“Did you forget where this is? This is a dragon’s lair.”

Snap!

When Tesserina snapped her fingers, the ceiling of the building opened wide like the mouth of a monster, and sunlight poured in.

“Well then...”

“A dragon’s lair isn’t just a treasure vault. It’s a space that embodies a dragon’s will. This place is already no different from one enormous living being. Of course, it’s a cute little one that only follows my will.”

Zeon nodded.

He understood very well what a lair meant to a dragon.

Tesserina had lost her original body.

Her chimera body was powerful too, but it couldn’t compare to her true form.

When someone originally strong loses their power, they tend to become even more anxious.

Tesserina was no different.

That was why she was obsessed with her lair.

She was trying to make up for her shortcomings through it.

Though he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Zeon knew enormous magic had been cast over this lair.

Not only was there a mana accumulation array installed that could supply Tesserina with mana rivaling her original body, but it was also layered with countless defensive spells.

Unless it was another dragon, it seemed impossible for anyone to neutralize Tesserina’s lair.

“Anyway, I’m glad you seem to be doing well.”

“I’m doing so well that it’s a problem. I keep hating the idea of leaving the house more and more.”

“A homebody dragon?”

“Well, something like that.”

Tesserina did not deny Zeon’s words.

When she first entered Neo Seoul, everything had fascinated her.

So she had wandered all over the city.

But once she became accustomed to it, it no longer felt as exciting as before.

So now, instead of Neo Seoul, she only visited the Primordial Forest, World Tree Village, or the underground city, and spent the rest of her time at home.

Even so, she never felt bored.

There was plenty to do inside the house.

Growing trees, developing new magic, cleaning—even just staying indoors made time fly by.

Setting down his teacup, Zeon said,

“Feels like I’ve taken up too much of your time. I should get going.”

“Already?”

“Unlike you, I have quite a few people to meet outside.”

“Where are you headed next?”

“I’m going to Steel Fortress. It’s about time I start paying attention to the survivors of El Harun.”

“Is it already time for them to arrive?”

“Not yet, but it’s about time we started preparing.”

“I see.”

Tesserina nodded slowly.

For Zeon and Neo Seoul’s leadership, this was likely one of their biggest concerns.

Steel Fortress was an important stronghold for Neo Seoul.

Countless people traveled in and out of Steel Fortress using the portal.

The corpses of monsters hunted near Steel Fortress and various goods flowed into Neo Seoul through the portal, while Neo Seoul’s advanced civilization enriched Steel Fortress in return.

Though separated by thousands of kilometers, they had effectively become one body through the portal.

A crisis for Steel Fortress was a crisis for Neo Seoul.

Neo Seoul had no intention of letting El Harun take Steel Fortress under any circumstances.

That was why they had accelerated fortification efforts, and it had truly been reborn as an iron fortress.

“Are you heading there right away?”

“Yeah.”

“Got it. If you need me, call anytime.”

“I will. Take care.”

Smiling, Zeon left Tesserina’s lair.

As soon as he stepped outside, the scorching sunlight greeted him.

Standing in the middle of the main road, Zeon basked in the sunlight for a moment.

For an ordinary person, it would have been hot enough to send them rushing into the shade, but to Zeon, this level of heat was nothing.

At that moment, he felt someone’s gaze.

Turning his head toward its owner, an unexpected sight entered his eyes.

Elves with pale white skin and pointed ears.

If they had been ordinary elves, he would have simply ignored them and passed by.

But this time, he couldn’t.

Because the ones looking at him were elves who had crossed over from El Harun.

At the front of the group stood Hera.

When their eyes met, Hera approached him.

“So this is where you were.”

“Were you looking for me?”

“No. We were simply touring Neo Seoul.”

“Did the mayor permit that?”

“We were granted permission to look around the slums.”

“I see.”

Zeon nodded.

Mayor Jin Geum-ho had not yet fully opened Neo Seoul to them.

Because Hera and the elves came from El Harun.

Though they had joined Neo Seoul for now, there was still the possibility that they could change sides during a war with El Harun.

That was why Jin Geum-ho had only opened the slums to them.

Hera and the elves were satisfied even with that.

They had never expected to win humanity’s trust from the start.

More than anything, they had completely fallen for the Primordial Forest.

For now, only Hera and some of the elves traveled back and forth, but once more time passed and both sides understood each other better, they had decided to all migrate to the Primordial Forest. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The reason they had come to the slums was to better understand humans.

As they toured the slums, they became even more deeply aware of humanity’s terrifying potential.

They were to the point of feeling awe toward humans who had built such an enormous city in the middle of the desert.

Even the slums were dazzling enough—there was no imagining how incredible Neo Seoul inside the walls must be.

While wandering around in fascination, they had ended up here and unexpectedly discovered Zeon standing in the middle of the street.

“So this is where you live?”

“My home is not far from here.”

“You live in a good place. But I still prefer the Primordial Forest more.”

“Most elves would probably think the same.”

“Do you have no intention of moving to the Primordial Forest?”

“I like it here.”

“May I ask why?”

“Because this is my hometown. I’ve traveled to many places in the world, but I still haven’t seen anywhere better than here. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m belittling the Primordial Forest. It simply means humans should live among humans.”

“I understand.”

Hera nodded.

“Is there somewhere you’d like to visit?”

“Why? Are you offering to guide us personally?”

“If you’d like.”

“I appreciate the thought, but I’ll decline. I’ve been here too long already, and my head aches. It’s time for us to return to Steel Fortress.”

“Is it better there?”

“At least better than here.”

“I see. Then I’ll escort you to the portal.”

“I heard the portal is also your creation?”

“I was lucky enough to obtain it.”

“I’m sorry.”

Hera suddenly apologized.

With a puzzled expression, Zeon asked,

“For what?”

“For opposing you when you came to El Harun, for El Harun’s people luring Behemoth to Steel Fortress, and for turning Earth into this state. I apologize for all of it. It may not ease your heart, but we will do our best so that your people and humanity may one day forgive us.”

At Hera’s sincere words, Zeon nodded.

“What’s already happened cannot be undone, but depending on our efforts, relations between humans and other races may improve. Though I don’t know when that day will come.”

“Then we must strive to make that day come as quickly as possible.”

“That would truly be for the best.”

A smile rose on Zeon’s lips.

He and Hera walked through the slums side by side.

The elves quietly followed behind them.

Since the elves were so strikingly beautiful, they attracted attention the entire way.

But no one approached them.

Because Zeon was beside them.

People assumed the elves were Zeon’s guests, so they did not interfere.

The closer they got to the portal, the more crowded it became.

Now, the area surrounding the portal was nearly as bustling as Neo Seoul itself.

Tall buildings that would once have been unimaginable surrounded the portal like walls, and countless shops and restaurants had opened.

Even Goblin Market had quickly established a branch here.

That was how much trade was taking place in this location.

At a glance, one might mistake it for being inside Neo Seoul itself.

Looking at the glowing portal in the distance, Hera muttered,

“That portal truly deserves to be called revolutionary. It transcends time and space to connect separate domains as one.”

“Thanks to it, both Steel Fortress and the Primordial Forest can now be reached instantly.”

“If Neo Seoul and El Harun had been connected by a portal while El Harun was still intact, what would have happened? Would the hostility between us have softened, even slightly?”

“As long as Del Roa remained strong, that would never have happened.”

“That’s true. Hah...”

Hera sighed.

Thinking of Del Roa and El Harun’s other races made her chest feel tight.

Whether she liked it or not, they had spent over a hundred years clashing and living together in the same space.

Though circumstances had forced her to side with humanity, there was no way her heart could feel at ease.

“Thank you for escorting us this far. We can go on our own now.”

“Actually, I’m heading to Steel Fortress as well.”

“Is it because of... war?”

“Yes.”

Zeon answered honestly, without hiding it.

Hera answered honestly as well.

“If war breaks out, we too will do our utmost to help.”

“I’ll trust you.”

“Then let us cross together.”

Zeon and the elves walked toward the portal side by side.

Though countless people were waiting to use it, Zeon had no need to wait in line.

Under any circumstances, he had top priority access.

Then it happened.

The portal shone brightly, and a group emerged.

They were transporting the corpse of a Crown Lizard on a transport vehicle.

“A monster hunting team.”

“They hunted quite a large one.”

People weren’t particularly surprised by the Crown Lizard’s corpse.

monster hunting teams brought back beasts on transport vehicles several times a day.

The hunting team that had slain the Crown Lizard pushed through the crowd and leisurely disappeared.

Now that people had come through the portal, it was time for others to depart.

As Hera approached the portal, her expression changed.

“Wait!”

“Why?”

“I smell something familiar.”

“A smell?”

“It belongs to the Shadow Tribe.”

“The Shadow Tribe? You mean the Shadow Tribe from El Harun?”

“Yes. They have a distinct scent. Why would their scent be near the portal?”

“Then...?”

Zeon immediately thought of the monster hunting team that had just emerged from the portal.

Hera seemed to have reached the same conclusion, as she urgently said,

“We need to track those who just came through the portal.”