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Chapter 108

Yeon-woo adjusted his jaw as he gazed at the camel munching on grass with a mysterious expression. It was quite enchanting.

“I’ve never seen a camel before.”

[If it’s cute, then it’s cute, I guess.]

[Tae-oh thinks it’s adorable.]

I see, so Tae-oh is the type to find even this appearance cute. Nodding along with Tae-oh’s slightly excited voice, I could relate somewhat; after all, I had a modest fondness for alpacas.

But was it really necessary to go so far as to ride a camel? That thought crossed my mind, but I found myself swayed by Laguna’s argument: “It’s better than regretting not borrowing one.”

He had urged me to read the map properly, and it turned out it was actually quite a distance. It was wide—far too vast for a desert. The desert stretched endlessly, with ruins located right in its center.

Fortunately, there were a few oases on my way there.

Thus, after suitably preparing, Yeon-woo now stood before the camel.

The camel merchant introduced to me by Laguna graciously passed the reins of the camel over to me and vanished without even telling me his name.

“Let’s hold a contest for the camel’s name!!”

[Are you going to name the camel?]

“Yeah. At the very least, we should decide on a name for the traveling buddy we might be with for two days, or perhaps even longer.”

[Tae-oh suggests “Raksi.”]

“I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere… but whatever. Shar, don’t you have any suggestions?”

[Um… Eclipse?]

“That sounds too grand.”

It seemed even Shar didn’t have any other thoughts to offer, and with no alternatives, the camel was named Raksi. Only then did I remember where I had heard that name.

Wasn’t it the name of a horse from some Middle Eastern myth?

Now unexpectedly burdened with the name of a hero’s mount, the camel stared at me with a blank expression.

“Onward, Raksi!!”

As I confidently mounted Raksi, he emitted a sound that resembled a scream and took a step forward. I was startled; I had never heard a camel make such a noise before.

With each step forward, my body swayed up and down. At first, I thought I might get motion sickness, but as I adapted to the rhythm, it turned into a surprisingly enjoyable experience.

Raksi wasn’t exactly fast. Honestly speaking, I could have walked at a similar pace, but it was highly effective in conserving energy.

‘Tae-oh, anything unusual?’

[Negative.]

Naturally, this leisurely and peaceful journey was underpinned by a myriad of subtle vigilance.

Yeon-woo sensed the vastness of the surroundings, while Tae-oh explored through his shadow. Thus, they were avoiding monsters that weren’t the quest targets.

The fortunate fact was that Tae-oh was a spirit of darkness. Regardless of the distance showcased as proof of skill, Shar’s magic usage for scouting consumed mental energy. Even for a dragon, maintaining intense focus on one thing indefinitely wasn’t possible.

However, as the spirit of darkness, Tae-oh’s abilities were akin to a biological function. Like how humans breathe, spirits can naturally interfere with their own elements.

“I’m feeling a little nervous as we get down to business.”

In truth, this level of alertness required immense effort to achieve.

A great scout would search the environment so meticulously that it might appear ridiculous to others. Only after countless inspections could hunters safely traverse the field.

As I relaxed, I realized that losing the breathless sensation akin to walking on thin ice was dangerous. I was startled by my own thoughts and instinctively slapped my face.

No, I couldn’t get complacent.

A part of me felt a little guilty at Shar and Tae-oh’s cries infused with worries about me possibly losing my mind.

‘Anyway, be careful, and even more careful.’

[Understood. “Sandworm”… I will surely find it…!]

There was no need to ignite such passion yet. It felt a bit inappropriate to be reprimanding, but I figured a healthy flow of enthusiasm should be alright.

The target for both the gathering quest and monster extermination quest was the sandworm. Quite literally resembling a giant worm living in the desert. Aside from its larger size, its role wasn’t too different from that of a worm.

[Why of all things…?]

Shar’s gloomy voice echoed in my mind.

Last time it was a centipede; this time, it’s a worm.

It must have been horrific for Shar to recall how he couldn’t handle the Heukdong Ogong while easily defeating the Frost Alligator.

For a dragon with high pride, it was an unbearable reality to be powerless.

“Centipedes are scary because they have many legs, but worms aren’t like that. This will serve as excellent training for you to overcome your fear of insects, Shar.”

[W-Was that what you were thinking…! How touching…!]

Touching or not, I just made that up. Initially, if I called it training, I would genuinely have to punch a worm this time, and I wondered if I was prepared for that.

It was quite amusing to tease a nine-year-old who had only been born for four months.

*

“Brother, are we having dinner at home today?”

“Umm… I’m not sure. I’ll contact you when I can.”

“Okay, got it.”

Kim Yoo-min twiddled her fingers behind her back as she saw off her brother, Kim Hyun-soo, who left early in the morning. It was already the second week of vacation. Yet, this unbearably diligent brother left the house every day and returned late at night.

Perhaps because of that, Kim Hyun-soo’s face, when he opened the front door, wasn’t all that bright. He wanted to talk; he really did, but standing face to face rendered him speechless. Despite being someone he could trust more than anyone, it was difficult to have an open conversation.

Thus, this sibling pair felt a bit shy about discussing things face to face. About themselves. About being a hunter. About their only younger sister.

Looking at the door through which her brother had just exited, Kim Yoo-min sighed.

“…I couldn’t do it again today.”

Maybe tomorrow would be the same. There were simply too many people seeking a brother who might be the strongest in Korea.

Even if someone offered a fortune, he would turn them down; what could she possibly give him?

“…What am I to him?”

Kim Yoo-min muttered out loud, caught up in her own thoughts, letting out a self-deprecating smile. What was she even saying?

“…Should I practice or something.”

Surely, there would come a day to talk. About the resolve to face weapons or whatever it may be.

For that day, Kim Yoo-min swung her fist at the training dummy. It was a special one with Choi Yeon-woo’s face photo stuck on it.

*

“Why does my ear itch?”

Did some sand get in? I thought that as I brushed my ear, but the effect was dramatic. Fortunately, it seemed the itch faded a little if I stayed still.

‘Five mana shards from the sandworm and the dentition of seven individuals, right?’

Recalling the quest details, Yeon-woo shifted his gaze straight ahead. He spotted sandworms enjoying sunbathing on the sandy plains.

Though they looked like dead worms on the road after a rain, they were undeniably alive.

Sandworms were actually not that aggressive of a monster. As mentioned, they lived by consuming sand. Strictly speaking, they didn’t eat organic matter like worms; they consumed the mana contained in the sand. The mana that had been digested would then emerge as excrement, spreading the mana once again.

While they weren’t as bad as worms, there was no harm in having sandworms around, but they needed to be exterminated due to the need for population control.

Once their numbers increased to a certain extent, they started to turn their gaze upwards towards the surface. Their sunbathing was considered a premonitory phenomenon.

The implication was that it wouldn’t be long before they began to target those wandering around in the desert. This was why sandworm extermination quests were issued regularly.

‘But what were the teeth for? What did they need seven massive ones for…?’

Well, the purpose of the quest must have been conveyed directly by the contractor to the Hunter Guild, so Yeon-woo didn’t have to concern himself with it. The important thing was to deal with the group of sandworms sprawled out over there.

‘I can see four of them… Let’s find the other three on the way back.’

Fortunately, these sandworms of the white desert weren’t that large in size. At most, they were about the size of a mid-sized vehicle, and with a length similar to connecting two mid-sized vehicles, they were smaller than sandworms from other Gates.

“Lately, it feels like I’ve been fighting large beasts a lot…”

Well, that wasn’t terrible. I could just fight using the great sword as I did before. Thinking that as I got up, I suddenly spoke to Shar.

“Can you handle it, Shar?”

[…Ugh, I-I’ll try… just one… let’s see!!]

Whirring, golden mana burst forth and took shape beside Yeon-woo.

Hastily pulling out and putting on some desert gear like a hood or shoe covers, the two of them charged forward together.

From beyond the winding sand dunes, Raksi looked at the two with a blank gaze.

When hunting all the sandworms, there was one rule that must be prioritized. Well, saying it was a rule was a bit ambiguous, but it was to pick the timing while they were sunbathing.

Sandworms are earth-burrowing monsters. They can crawl on the surface, but most of their mobility relies on digging into the ground.

In other words, if you time it right while they’re sunbathing, you can begin to fight with most of their movement abilities sealed.

So, how significant is the advantage gained from that?

As Yeon-woo dashed out swiftly, it seemed the sandworms, hidden somewhere, started to move. Yet, there wasn’t enough time for them to burrow before he arrived.

With a single slash, the aura coalesced into a long arc. The consumption of the aura was intense, but rapidly taking down at least one of the four he had to deal with was of utmost importance.

Squelch, a somewhat unpleasant sensation as a thin fracture marked the body of the sandworm.

『────!!』

Had they perhaps been family? The remaining sandworms began to wriggle fervently upon witnessing one of their kind ripped apart.

“Watch out for bodily fluids, Shar!”

“Isn’t it poisonous!? ”

“No! It’s just dirty!”

It seemed either the joke irritated Shar, or he puffed up his cheeks in anger; regardless, he plunged his adorable little fist into the body of the sandworm, which failed to fully burrow into the ground.

Boom!

With a sound reminiscent of a solid hit in a sporting event, the shell of the sandworm rippled from the impact of the blow.

‘H-Have I really mastered the Inner Family Heavy Hand Technique…!!’

How much did he despise the idea of bodily fluids splattering for him to have learned such a skill…!

With that brief thought, Yeon-woo pursued the remaining sandworms, but by then, the others had already burrowed into the ground.

An eerie silence fell over the desert.

“From here onwards, it gets tedious, so be careful, Shar.”

“Got it…!”

(To be continued in the next episode)

 

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