Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert Chapter 570

Chapter 570

Grrr! Grrr!

Deep rumbling noises echoed as a vast array of vehicles pressed onward.

These transports held the Awakened dispatched from within Neo Seoul.

Their designs varied wildly.

Some boasted heavy armor plating for maximum protection, while others bristled with mysterious gear.

All the vehicles crafted by City Hall to date had been deployed for this clash.

This showed just how gravely City Hall viewed the impending war.

Unsurprisingly, even the top Awakened summoned from every district felt their nerves tighten.

Neo Seoul's history held few instances of mobilizing so many Awakened at once.

Each such occasion had hinged on the city's very survival.

Victory in those battles had forged Neo Seoul into its current form.

Leading the convoy, Seong Hoyeon rode with the captains of each district's Awakened forces.

One man among them radiated an aura akin to Seong Hoyeon's own.

He was a rugged soldier with a bushy beard.

A hideous scar stretched from his forehead to his chin's end. It looked like he'd lost an eye in the wound, as one pupil refused to focus. Yet his good eye gleamed with razor sharpness.

That lone eye fixed on Seong Hoyeon.

“It’s been a while.”

“It has. About ten years?”

Seong Hoyeon answered casually.

The soldier rubbed his damaged eye while speaking,

“Yes! It was ten years ago that I lost this eye to you.”

“You’re not still sulking over that, are you? We clashed during a mission.”

“Yes! We clashed during a mission, and I was utterly defeated.”

The soldier's lip curled viciously.

Seong Hoyeon laughed at the killer's grin.

“That seems to be the case.”

“Because of that, I lost all my subordinates.”

“It was a tragedy.”

“You speak as if it were someone else’s affair. You’re the one who killed them all….”

“It was a mission. You’re not suggesting we settle our grudge now, are you?”

“I’m not so lacking in judgment. Protecting Neo Seoul comes first right now. But after that, you may look forward to it. The new ones I’ve raised won’t fall so futilely like before.”

“I’ll look forward to it, Mac Krieger.”

“I won’t disappoint.”

Mac Krieger, the soldier, intensified the glare from his single eye toward Seong Hoyeon.

He commanded the SRT Team, the Eastern District's elite strike unit.

Oddly, the SRT Team consisted solely of magic-type Awakened, not martial-types.

Usually, special ops teams for high-risk missions relied on martial-type Awakened, bolstered by a few magic-types in support roles.

Yet the Eastern District's SRT Team was all magic-types.

Their goal: unleash devastating power by blending magic with advanced weapons.

To achieve this, the magic-type Awakened endured training as brutal as any martial-type's.

Even their leader, Mac Krieger, was a magic-type Awakened.

Ten years prior, Mac Krieger and Seong Hoyeon had collided in battle.

Seong Hoyeon served City Hall's agenda, while Mac Krieger championed the Eastern District's priorities. Their conflict had exploded into savagery.

Ultimately, Seong Hoyeon emerged victorious.

In fights, he was a merciless slayer devoid of pity.

He dealt Mac Krieger a crippling injury and slaughtered his entire team.

That facial scar dated back to then.

Deep down, Mac Krieger yearned to crush Seong Hoyeon and drain his blood on the spot. Yet as a dutiful soldier, he buried his vengeful urges beneath his mission.

This wasn't the moment to avenge his past.

He shifted the subject.

“So this giant magical beast called Behemoth is heading toward Neo Seoul?”

“That’s right.”

“Estimated rank?”

“Impossible to estimate.”

“Impossible?”

“Yes. S-rank, or higher.”

“That’s insane. A magical beast like that exists? Couldn’t there be some mistake?”

“It’s information sent by Zeon. There’s no mistake.”

“Sand Mage Zeon?”

“Yes. He was the first to discover Behemoth and sent word to prepare.”

“If it’s information from Zeon….”

Mac Krieger let his words fade.

Though he'd never encountered Zeon personally, his reputation for reliability was solid.

“A magical beast whose rank cannot be estimated. It’s been a while since I’ve had a fight that makes my flesh tremble.”

“Remember this! If we fail to stop it, Neo Seoul will fall.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do my utmost to bring it down. But how are we going to find it? We don’t know from which direction it will come.”

Neo Seoul loomed amid the endless desert.

All sides lay exposed. Assault could strike from any angle.

Defending every direction fully was beyond physical limits.

They needed to pinpoint one approach and fortify it.

Seong Hoyeon gestured to their current vehicle in response to Mac Krieger.

“It’s a vehicle that embodies City Hall’s magi-engineering.”

“And what does that have to do with finding Behemoth?”

“The larger the magical beast, the stronger the mana it possesses. This vehicle is equipped with a device that can detect abnormal surges of mana.”

“A mana radar.”

“That’s right. A mana radar. The stronger the mana it holds, the more strongly it is detected. This one is three times more powerful than the previous version. With this, we’ll be able to detect Behemoth before it reaches Neo Seoul.”

“So City Hall has been using something this good for itself?”

“If you’re upset, develop one yourselves.”

“Damn it!”

Defeat flickered across Mac Krieger’s features.

The Eastern District had attempted such tech before, only to fail.

City Hall alone mastered this level of precision.

At least, they shared such gear generously, offering some solace.

Then it happened.

—Beeeeep!

A chilling alarm blared within the vehicle.

An Awakened monitoring the mana radar yelled out.

“Abnormal mana amplification detected.”

“Direction?”

“Fifty kilometers west. The mana is continuing to amplify.”

“Move all units in that direction. Inform the other vehicles as well.”

“Yes! Understood.”

The transports ferrying Neo Seoul’s Awakened veered sharply toward the mana anomaly.

The hulking machines hurtled forward at breakneck speeds, kicking up towering sand clouds.

The nearer they drew, the more rigid the Awakened's faces grew.

Kwooooom!

Dark clouds swallowed the sky like apocalypse, the air twisting with menace.

Ferocious winds sliced like blades in a tempest, thick sand whipping through to blind all.

“What the hell is this?”

“Damn it! Where is it?”

The Awakened strained their eyes hunting for Behemoth, spotting nothing.

Mac Krieger scowled deeply.

“Why can’t we see it? Is the mana radar wrong?”

“No! This is the exact location. It will appear here. Without a doubt!”

Seong Hoyeon pierced the storm's heart with fierce eyes.

Hairs bristled on his arms. Chills raced down his spine.

An overwhelming dread crushed him.

Never before had danger loomed so fiercely in his instincts.

To the Awakened, Seong Hoyeon bellowed,

“Prepare for battle!”

The foe remained hidden, leaving them baffled at the order. Still, they complied instantly.

No matter their inner doubts, commander's words were absolute.

All Awakened leaped from vehicles, readying for war.

Tension etched their visages.

Suddenly.

Kiiiiing!

Heavy mechanisms whirred, vehicle roofs parting to reveal massive cylinders rising.

“That is?”

“It’s the new mana particle cannon. Developed by City Hall.”

This weapon anticipated colossal magical beasts threatening Neo Seoul.

Awakened alone couldn't guarantee the city's defense.

Thus, City Hall forged this ultimate counter to giant foes.

The new mana particle cannon packed far greater punch than predecessors, with broader kill zones.

One blast could erase typical magical beasts.

Yet it guzzled mana voraciously, needing dedicated mana stone generators stocked for months of Neo Seoul's needs.

Expending such reserves strained even City Hall.

Hence, it stayed dormant outside crises.

Ten units now activated.

City Hall wagered fortunes built over years to halt Behemoth.

Such was their resolve.

Awakened whispered,

“They’re really splurging.”

“Only City Hall could do something like this. Still, it’s reassuring since they’re on our side.”

Foes made City Hall a nightmare, but allies gained boundless backing—profoundly comforting now.

Kwoooom!

The storm raged fiercer still.

Darkness cloaked vision mere inches ahead, winds howling stronger.

Unawakened would shred or scatter in those razor gales.

Anxiety gripped Seong Hoyeon and his comrades.

Awakened senses screamed of imminent doom.

Squeeze!

Weapons clenched tighter in Awakened fists.

Veins throbbed boldly on hands.

Jjeeeong!

From storm's core, shattering rang out; pent-up mana exploded outward.

“Ugh!”

“Cough!”

Mana blasts hurled some Awakened back.

Soft sands spared injury, but shock painted their faces.

Usually, others would jeer the fallen. Here, silence reigned.

Gazes locked on the storm's midst.

A colossal rift tore open there.

A monstrous gash soared a hundred meters high.

Through it, a shadowy form flickered.

Crimson filled the rift's span, freezing every Awakened.

Quickly, twin lights atop marked the beast's eyes.

“That’s Be…hemoth?”

“Insane!”

Just the outline hammered hearts, parched mouths.

Far beyond imagined foes.

As if the storm birthed a beastly incarnation.

“I had a bad feeling from the moment Zeon sent word….”

“Hoo! We have to fight something like that?”

Even Numbers sighed at the silhouette.

Yet despair held no sway.

Failure doomed Neo Seoul.

Duty to safeguard it fueled their resolve.

Seong Hoyeon clutched his weapon, murmuring,

“Does it possess teleportation ability? Even so, for that massive body to cross space. Hard to believe.”

Larger forms drained mana exponentially for teleportation.

Rare Blink users fatigued after short hops. This behemoth, spanning hundreds of meters, bridged voids.

Unfathomable mana expenditure.

Kwoooom!

Behemoth emerged fully from the rift.

Its form, unveiled to Awakened, had evolved dramatically.

Red scales sparkled like diamond blades. A gigantic horn protruded from its brow, vast wings unfurled from its back.

En route, it had consumed myriad magical beasts, claiming their powers.

This amplified its teleportation prowess.

As Behemoth appeared, Seong Hoyeon roared,

“Fire!”

Kwakwa-kwa-boom!

Mana particle cannons thundered, unleashing blasts.

No precise aiming required.

Its bulk ensured hits regardless.

Strikes landed, yet Behemoth stood unmoved.

A force field shielded it utterly.

Now Behemoth retaliated.

—Burn, all of you.

Flash! Kwarurur!

Behemoth's grand voice boomed as lightning deluged the Awakened's position.