Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 162

From the early morning, a multitude of people gathered in the slum square.

“Wow!”

“Look at all the people.”

Brielle and Levin gaped at the crowd that had gathered in the square.

Today was the departure day for the Pegasus Raid Force.

While they expected a lot of people to come out to see the send-off ceremony, the sheer number of people in the square far exceeded their expectations.

In this era, there weren’t many forms of entertainment.

Even a send-off ceremony was something people could look forward to.

“There they come.”

“It’s the Pegasus Raid Force.”

With the crowd’s cheers, the Pegasus Raid Force made its appearance.

Ten desert buggies and twenty large transport vehicles followed by over two hundred Awakeneds—a colossal scale.

Many dungeon raiding teams existed in Neo Seoul, but few could mobilize such a large number of people for a single dungeon raid.

Leading the Pegasus Raid Force was Lee Ji-ryeong.

“Oooh!”

The crowd roared in excitement at the sight of Lee Ji-ryeong.

Despite having the option to ride in a buggy, Lee Ji-ryeong chose to walk, exuding a majestic aura akin to a lion.

Lee Ji-ryeong paused in the square, taking a moment to enjoy the crowd’s cheers.

A breeze blew, ruffling his hair like a lion’s mane, eliciting an even more frenzied reaction from the onlookers.

“Lee Ji-ryeong! Lee Ji-ryeong!”

“Wooow!”

After basking in the crowd’s admiration for a while, Lee Ji-ryeong approached Zeon.

He spoke to Zeon.

“You came.”

“I promised.”

“Are you ready to depart?”

“As you can see.”

Zeon glanced at Levin and Brielle.

Lee Ji-ryeong frowned slightly.

All their belongings seemed to be contained in the backpack Levin carried.

“Is that enough?”

“Everything we need is in here.”

“An enchanted subspace backpack? In that case, it’s fine.”

Lee Ji-ryeong didn’t ask where Zeon got the subspace backpack. He assumed that someone of Zeon’s caliber could easily acquire one.

At that moment, a woman in a gray robe approached Lee Ji-ryeong. Unusually, her hair and eyes were also gray.

She asked Lee Ji-ryeong.

“Is this, Mr. Zeon?”

“Yes, he’s the only Sand Mage in Neo Seoul. Introduce yourself.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Zeon! I’m Kelda, the Rescue Team Leader of the Pegasus Raid Force.”

“Nice to meet you too, Miss Kelda.”

Zeon slightly bowed his head in greeting.

Kelda scrutinized Zeon carefully.

Her gray eyes were almost emotionless, making them resemble gray glass beads.

“Please take care of the dungeon raid. If you have any issues during our journey, don’t hesitate to tell me. I can handle most matters.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“Then…”

After bowing, Kelda left.

Lee Ji-ryeong spoke.

“Let’s get going. You can ride in the last buggy. We’ve reserved it for you.”

“Thank you.”

At that moment, Levin raised his hand and spoke.

“Can I drive that vehicle?”

“You?”

“Yes! I’ve always wanted to drive one. Is it not allowed?”

Lee Ji-ryeong frowned at Levin’s bold request.

In the Pegasus Raid Force, Lee Ji-ryeong was a god.

No one dared to question or oppose his decisions. Once he decided, it was final.

The buggy meant for Zeon was already assigned a driver from the Pegasus Raid Force, who also served as a guard. If Levin were to drive, that person would need to be replaced.

As Lee Ji-ryeong hesitated, Zeon spoke.

“I’d prefer if we rode alone. It’s uncomfortable with others around.”

“Very well. Make it so.”

“Thank you. I’ll be careful not to damage the vehicle.”

Levin thanked Lee Ji-ryeong and ran towards the buggy.

Lee Ji-ryeong said to Zeon.

“We’ll meet again at the Mana Stone Mine.”

“Of course, you’re regrouping there.”

Zeon nodded.

The Mana Stone Mine, located a hundred kilometers from Neo Seoul, was a major supply depot.

Teams like the Pegasus Raid Force, which embarked on long expeditions, almost always stopped there to check their equipment and restock.

Once they left the Mana Stone Mine, there would be no safe shelters. They would face the desert heat and monsters head-on.

It wasn’t uncommon for people to decide to turn back at the Mana Stone Mine.

Zeon got into the buggy with Brielle.

Levin was already in the driver’s seat.

“Hehe!”

Levin kept laughing, touching the steering wheel as if he couldn’t believe it.

Brielle looked at Levin, who was drooling with joy, and commented.

“You look like a pervert.”

“You don’t understand.”

“What?”

“The heart of a man.”

“What nonsense is that?”

“Desert buggies are a man’s dream. Anyone would react like me if they got to drive one.”

Levin caressed the steering wheel like it was a precious treasure.

“Unbelievable!”

Brielle eventually turned her head away, but Levin didn’t care.

For a boy from the slums, getting the chance to drive a buggy was an impossibility.

Even the sturdiest vehicles tended to break down in the desert, so driving was never entrusted to just anyone.

Given the unique circumstances and because he was traveling with Zeon, Levin was allowed to drive. Normally, he would never have had such an opportunity.

Zeon gave the front seat to Brielle and sat in the back.

At that moment, the vehicles in front began to move. Levin hurriedly shifted the gear.

As he pressed the accelerator, the car jolted forward.

Levin exclaimed excitedly.

“Here we go!”

“You do know how to drive, right?”

“Of course, just trust your brother.”

“That’s not very reassuring.”

Brielle muttered, looking uneasy.

It had been years since she was captured by human hunters and brought into Neo Seoul. Initially, it felt like hell, and all Brielle could think about was escaping. But now, thinking about leaving Neo Seoul, even temporarily for the dungeon raid, felt strange.

They were only leaving temporarily for the dungeon raid, not for good. Yet she already missed their current home.

“Geez, I’m getting sentimental.”

Brielle pouted.

* * *

[Translator – Peptobismol]

The Pegasus Raid Force was organized into four main teams.

The first was the Exploration Team.

Their mission was to explore dungeons—finding hidden ones, assessing their size, and gathering information.

The dungeon discovered this time was found by them.

The second team was the Base Team.

They set up bases inside the dungeon, making it easier for the raid force to carry out the raid.

The third team was the Raid Team.

They were the core of the dungeon raiding party.

They created and executed plans based on the information gathered by the Exploration Team.

The fourth and final team was the Rescue Team.

They stayed at the base, ready to rescue the Raid Team if they found themselves in danger.

Naturally, the Rescue Team consisted of highly skilled Awakeneds.

The leader of the Rescue Team was the gray-haired woman, Kelda.

In the Pegasus Raid Force, she was known as the Gray Witch.

Kelda was seated next to Lee Ji-ryeong.

Though she was the Rescue Team leader, she was also Lee Ji-ryeong’s secretary.

In fact, her primary duty was more of a secretary than a Rescue Team leader. Hence, she was always by Lee Ji-ryeong’s side during dungeon raids.

In a calm voice, she reported.

“We have a total of three hundred Awakeneds deployed for this mission. Two hundred of them are from Pegasus, and the remaining one hundred are mercenaries. The mercenaries are all in the transport vehicles.”

The transport vehicles varied in quality.

The better ones had facilities to cook simple meals and take showers. These vehicles were assigned to the Pegasus Raid Force Awakeneds.

The old transport vehicles were, of course, for the mercenaries.

These vehicles, intended to carry dungeon byproducts, lacked convenience facilities and had poor ride quality.

Despite this, the mercenaries did not complain.

They rarely got the chance to participate in such significant dungeon raids.

Even participating like this added to their experience.

Accumulating such experiences would eventually lead to opportunities to raid larger dungeons in the future.

That’s why they silently endured the discomfort, being crammed into the transport vehicles.

“We have ten days’ worth of food supplies, and we plan to purchase another ten days’ worth at the Mana Stone Mine.”

“That’s a total of twenty days’ worth of supplies?”

“Yes! While we’ve never spent more than ten days on a dungeon raid, we prepared double the amount due to the anticipated difficulty of this dungeon.”

“Is the food stored in subspace items?”

“Yes! We’ve distributed the supplies between two subspace items, and the additional supplies we’ll get at the Mana Stone Mine will be stored in other items.”

“Perfect.”

Lee Ji-ryeong smiled with satisfaction.

Kelda’s meticulous work always pleased him.

Suddenly remembering something, Lee Ji-ryeong asked.

“Why aren’t the Awakeneds from the West District here?”

“They will join us at the Mana Stone Mine.”

“They are already there?”

“Yes! The supervisor dispatched by the City Hall will also join us at the Mana Stone Mine.”

“Everyone does as they please.”

Lee Ji-ryeong frowned.

Even though they discovered and planned to raid the dungeon, not all items found in the dungeon belonged solely to the raiding party.

To raid a dungeon, they had to get permission from the City Hall.

If they raided a dungeon without permission and were caught, they would be expelled from Neo Seoul entirely.

They couldn’t deceive the City Hall either.

Raiding large dungeons typically required numerous Awakeneds and significant supplies. Moving all of this required substantial funds.

The City Hall monitored all these financial transactions closely.

Therefore, deceiving the City Hall was virtually impossible.

Once a dungeon raid application was submitted, the City Hall dispatched a supervisor.

The supervisor monitored the raid to ensure no items were being stolen.

It was nearly impossible to smuggle items past these supervisors.

They inspected the items found by the raiding party and reported to the City Hall, which then levied taxes based on the report.

In essence, the supervisor was a tax collector for the dungeon raid.

Naturally, no raiding party welcomed the presence of a supervisor.

“Do we know who the supervisor is?”

Lee Ji-ryeong asked.

“Sorry, but we’ll identify and assess them for potential recruitment as soon as they join us.”

“Handle it well.”

“Yes! And about Mr. Zeon.”

“What about Zeon?”

Lee Ji-ryeong looked at Kelda.

“Mr. Zeon, Isn’t he the one who killed the Captain’s younger brother…”

“That’s right.”

“And you’re still bringing him along?”

“Are you asking why I haven’t killed him?”

“Yes!”

A cold smile appeared on Lee Ji-ryeong’s lips.

“I made a promise.”

“Yes?”

“To forget the grudge of him killing that bastard.”

“Do you intend to keep that promise?”

“What do you think?”

Lee Ji-ryeong countered with a question.

[Translator – Peptobismol]