Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]

Chapter 297

“A labyrinth-type dungeon.”

Zeon’s eyes gleamed as he observed the interior of the dungeon.

Labyrinth-type dungeons were relatively common.

There was no better, cost-effective way to defend against intruders than a maze.

And if the maze was filled with traps, it became an upgraded death trap.

The dungeon Zeon and Brielle had entered was one of those places.

Boom!

The moment they stepped into the labyrinth, an explosion went off.

The floor was inscribed with a magic circle designed to trigger a mana explosion.

Fortunately, Zeon had stepped back just in time to avoid any damage.

Brielle and Gaia looked at him with worried expressions.

“Are you okay?”

―Beep?

“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

Zeon reassured them as he examined the floor.

“It looks like it’s triggered by weight.”

“Let me check it out.”

Brielle reached into the subspace within her pointed hat and pulled out a small metallic device.

“What’s that?”

“A new toy I made.”

“A toy?”

“Yeah! Just watch.”

Brielle pressed a button on the metal object, and suddenly, four legs extended from it.

―Beep?

Startled, Gaia jumped back. Brielle laughed and explained.

“It’s a toy I made with some metal I got from the Iron Fortress.”

―Beep?

“The metal’s so tough that it’s hard to shape into anything else. So I just added four legs to it.”

Originally, Brielle had planned to shape it into a cute dog, but her current skills weren’t sufficient to work with such a stubborn material.

She had settled for a basic body with four legs and abandoned the project.

After meeting Gaia, she had completely forgotten about the toy—it was far more enjoyable spending time with Gaia.

Now, she had a simple reason for pulling the toy out.

It could walk.

And it was incredibly tough.

There was nothing better for navigating a labyrinth riddled with explosive magic circles.

Boom!

When the toy stepped on a panel, the magic circle triggered an explosion.

Fortunately, the explosion radius was small.

The traps were designed to eliminate intruders without destroying the entire maze.

Luckily, the toy was sturdy enough to withstand the blasts.

Its surface was scratched, but its ability to walk was unaffected.

Boom!

Every twenty steps or so, another explosion erupted.

Though the blasts rocked the toy, it held up and kept moving.

Following the toy closely, Zeon remarked to Brielle.

“That’s impressive. Are you trying to make a golem?”

“Yeah! My goal is to create a golem that looks like a dog.”

“Why a dog?”

“Because they’re cute.”

“Fair enough.”

Zeon nodded.

Dogs were incredibly rare in this world.

In a time when even people struggled to survive, keeping a dog was a luxury few could afford.

Dogs were nearly nonexistent in the slums, and only a handful of wealthy individuals in Neo Seoul kept them as pets.

Owning a dog required enormous resources, which made it impossible for someone like Brielle.

That’s why she had come up with the idea of a dog-like golem.

“But is it okay to treat such a precious golem like that?”

“It’s fine!”

“Huh?”

“I scrapped that plan.”

“Why?”

“With Gaia here, why would I need a dog-like golem?”

Brielle hugged Gaia, who was flying beside her.

―Beep-beep!

Gaia wagged its tail fins as if agreeing with her.

“No matter how well I make it, nothing could be cuter than Gaia.”

“So are you just going to leave it as it is?”

“No! I’ll upgrade it into a combat golem later.”

“Is that even possible?”

“Why not? The Awakened in the Northern District use mechanical parts all the time. With the right materials and some reinforcement, it could work. The real issue is the ego...”

“Ego?”

“Yeah. For it to fight on its own, it needs an ego. Without that, all it can do is walk like it’s doing now.”

Before its fall, Kurayan had highly advanced magic.

They had created golems with egos to use in battle. However, much of that technology was lost when they came to Earth.

Some Kurayan-made golems still existed in certain dungeons, functioning perfectly in isolation.

In fact, the supercomputer known as the Triox Five in the Northern District was built from a dungeon-captured golem’s brain.

Brielle didn’t aspire to anything that sophisticated.

She just wanted a basic ego for her golem, something capable of simple independent thought.

Zeon smiled and said.

“You’ll get there someday.”

“Yeah! There’s no rush. I don’t need it right now.”

“For now, let’s focus on this dungeon.”

“Got it!”

At some point, the traps stopped triggering.

They must have passed through the section with explosive magic circles.

Even so, Brielle didn’t store the toy back in her subspace.

The labyrinth wasn’t over, and there was no telling what traps lay ahead.

The dog-like toy marched on tirelessly.

Various attacks targeted it along the way.

Sometimes, poison gas was released. Other times, the floor would collapse.

Though these were basic traps, the toy endured thanks to its durable construction.

A regular human, however, would have been in serious trouble.

An ordinary Awakened entering this dungeon without preparation might not have survived.

Eventually, after overcoming countless traps, they reached the dungeon’s core.

“What is this?”

Brielle looked disappointed as they entered the central chamber.

There was no boss monster to be found, which was unusual for a dungeon core.

The room contained only an assortment of ordinary weapons mounted on the walls.

When they checked, none of the items had any special power.

What stood out was the type of weapons displayed.

Batons, handcuffs, and ropes, equipment you’d expect prison guards to use.

“This must’ve been part of a prison.”

“Part of it? Aren’t dungeons usually isolated in their entirety?”

“Yeah. This is the first time I’ve seen something like this.”

It was clear this room had been used to store guard equipment.

The maze could also be explained as a means to stop intruders or escapees.

What was puzzling was the absence of any cells to hold prisoners.

This was an anomaly, even for Zeon.

“Ugh, what a letdown. This dungeon’s a dud.”

Brielle made no effort to hide her frustration.

Zeon chuckled and said.

“Not every dungeon has amazing treasures. Just think of it as a fun experience.”

“Fine.”

―Beep!

Zeon’s gaze shifted to the dungeon’s core item.

It was a book.

It appeared to be the journal of a prison guard.

When Zeon opened it, the text was written in Kurayan script. He couldn’t read it, so he showed it to Brielle.

“This looks like Kurayan’s old language. I can’t read it.”

“Old language? Like ancient script?”

“Yeah, something from a long time ago.”

“Then almost no one can read it?”

“Probably not. Even in my village, there’s almost no one who can.”

“Then destroying it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Nope!”

Brielle’s interest in the dungeon had already faded.

Whether the guard’s journal was destroyed or not didn’t matter to her.

Zeon waved his hand, summoning blue flames.

The flames engulfed the guard’s journal, burning it to ash.

Rumble!

As the core item burned, the entire dungeon began to shake.

It was collapsing.

Shhhh!

A path to the outside appeared before them.

Brielle said.

“Let’s get out of here.”

“Right.”

The moment Zeon responded, Brielle and Gaia exited the dungeon.

Zeon was about to follow when something caught his eye.

Clink!

Amid the ashes of the journal lay a key.

Zeon picked it up.

“A cell key?”

Judging by its size and shape, it looked like a key.

Whether it truly opened a cell remained unknown, but there wasn’t time to find out.

Zeon stored the key in his subspace and exited the dungeon.

Crash!

The dungeon collapsed completely the moment Zeon stepped out.

Outside, Brielle and Gaia were waiting for him.

“You’re late. Did something happen?”

“No. Let’s keep moving.”

“Okay!”

―Beep!

They hadn’t accomplished much, but they’d spent a significant amount of time in the dungeon.

The sun was already sinking in the west.

Darkness would soon blanket the desert.

They needed to find shelter quickly.

Fortunately, none of them had expended much energy inside the dungeon, so Zeon, Brielle, and Gaia were all in good shape.

Most importantly, the journey together was anything but dull.

Brielle and Gaia chattered excitedly as they followed Zeon.

―Beep?

“Why make a combat golem? To protect us, of course.”

―Beep?

“Can’t I do it myself? Sorry, but I’m not great at fighting. I know a bit of magic, but it’s not much help.”

―Beep―beep―beep!

“Thanks for the encouragement! You’re the best, Gaia!”

The two continued their lively conversation, while Zeon tuned out their chatter and focused on walking.

After some time, Zeon caught a strange scent in the air.

‘Smoke?’

It smelled like something burning.

All he could see was sand.

Normally, sand didn’t give off such a scent.

Zeon climbed the tallest dune nearby and surveyed the area.

Something caught his eye.

In the distance, black smoke billowed into the sky.

“Something’s burning over there.”

―Beep!

Brielle and Gaia, who had followed him up the dune, were also surprised by the smoke.

Zeon turned to them and said.

“Let’s check it out.”

“Okay!”

―Beep!

The three of them descended the dune and raced toward the source of the smoke.

When they arrived, Zeon frowned.

The black smoke was rising from beneath the sand.

“Is something burning underground?”

Zeon waved his hand, causing the sand to part like receding water. Beneath the sand, a large underground space was revealed.

Black smoke poured out of the space below.

Zeon took a deep breath.

The moment he saw the underground area, he knew instinctively what it was.

“A survivor settlement.”

“A settlement? So there are people down there?”

“There were.”

Zeon and Brielle descended into the smoky underground space. What they found was a scene of devastation.

Amid the ruins of a collapsed settlement, the bodies of its inhabitants lay scattered.

“Looks like scavengers attacked this place.”

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]