Back to the present, on the rattling military truck.

Darulma felt both admiration and disbelief as he looked at Yeomyeong, who had managed to fully digest the world tree's gemstone in just three days.

It wasn’t just that he carried the elixir inside his body; there was no doubt that this mercenary, Yeomyeong, had properly absorbed it.
Didn’t the duel right before their departure prove that?

How could a rookie who was only good at falsifying resumes cleanly sever the arms of a seasoned mercenary with over a decade of experience? It was hard to believe, even after seeing it with his own eyes.

‘Well, with skills like that, it’s no wonder the Saintess took an interest in him.’

Darulma clicked his tongue as he watched the Saintess chat away beside Yeomyeong.
Originally, the plan was for the world tree’s gemstone to be a bribe that would naturally flow to the upper echelons of the Sacred Nation through the Saintess.

That had been the intended use by the elders of the Dune family. But now, things had turned out this way due to Darulma’s own decision.

Yet...

Seeing the Saintess happily talking with Yeomyeong, Darulma didn’t feel too bad about his choice.
At least, he had given it to someone better than those stubborn old men from the Sacred Nation.

If the family elders found out, they would probably rant about a "yellow winter" and throw him into the pepper gas chamber, but he didn’t care about that.

Most importantly, he had his own faith to rely on.

In the very unlikely event that this guy really became the Saintess's lover...?

‘Then it would be a huge success.’

It wasn’t an entirely impossible scenario.
Just as the Saintess’s father had chosen love over duty, perhaps the Saintess would follow the same path.

And unlike the Holy Sword, the blessing couldn’t be taken away by the priests of the Sacred Nation.

Maybe giving the world tree’s gemstone to Yeomyeong would turn out to be the best investment of his life…?
‘But that’s a story for after we succeed in this expedition.’

As Darulma indulged in happy thoughts, he sighed and returned to reality.
The expedition had just begun, and there was still a long way to go before success.

He stood up and checked the back of the truck. Hyenas aiming for the dragon’s rib could be seen beyond the horizon, but the Manju base was no longer in sight.
This should be far enough. Now it was time to begin.

“Alright, alright, everyone, pay attention!”

Darulma’s thick dwarven voice drew the eyes of everyone inside the truck. Commander Kwon, Kim Mansu, the other mercenaries, the Saintess, and Yeomyeong all turned to him.

“First, I’ll start with an apology. This mission is not as simple as finding treasure, as we originally said.”

Darulma took a short breath and spoke in a meaningful tone.

“We are going to prevent the fall of Manju.”

Some of the mercenaries chuckled, thinking it was a joke, but the moment they saw Commander Kwon’s serious expression, they fell silent.

Seeing that he now had everyone’s attention, Darulma cleared his throat and continued.

“You may recall Stalin’s invasion of dwarf territory. He used poison gas, massacred those who refused to surrender, and dragged the survivors off to the gulags... It was a war of inhuman cruelty.”

Some had expressions wondering why he was bringing up a history lesson, but Yeomyeong listened intently.

“One dwarf who witnessed that war sought revenge against Stalin. An eye for an eye, hatred for hatred. It was a foolish thought, but he followed through on it.”

At this point in Darulma’s story, Tenlin raised his hand.
As the only Manju native among the mercenaries, he spoke with a confused expression.

“If he wanted revenge on Stalin, why would Manju be destroyed?”

“...Back then, the dwarves didn’t see much difference between humans. The UN turned a blind eye, and several communist states joined forces with the Soviets to pillage our lands, so it was a somewhat justified view.”

“Hah.”

Justified? Tenlin let out a hollow laugh, but Darulma continued.

“In any case, his revenge ultimately failed. The Soviet Union had already collapsed, and Stalin disappeared.”

Darulma stroked his chin as he remembered the time when the Soviet Union fell. The moment when countless dwarves stared at their TVs with their mouths hanging open.

Why had dwarves, so despised on Earth, worked tirelessly to grow their businesses? Revenge had been the sole purpose of many dwarves.
But the Soviet Union collapsed on its own, and Stalin vanished.
Many dwarves, including Darulma’s own father, despaired in the face of this empty victory. So there was no need to explain further...

"...So, how exactly does this lead to the destruction of Manju?"

It was Yeomyeong who interrupted Darulma’s thoughts.

"Dwarves don’t possess nuclear weapons, do they?"

“He didn’t have nuclear weapons, not even a napalm bomb. But he did have something similar to a nuclear weapon.”

“...Something similar to a nuclear weapon?”

“The Golden Seal.”

Yeomyeong crossed his arms, demanding further explanation. Darulma spoke in a serious tone.

“It’s a symbol of the ancient dwarven royal family. It was both the proof of leadership over all dwarves and one of the powerful magical artifacts they possessed.”

Magical artifact. The moment they heard that word, the mercenaries all frowned. It brought to mind one of the three great taboos in the mercenary world.

Never tamper with sealed magical artifacts.

But regardless of what the mercenaries were thinking, Darulma continued his explanation.

“The Golden Seal is a magical artifact from the legend of the first dwarven king, who dug underground tunnels through mountains. When mana is infused into it, it automatically excavates the earth.”

Dig the earth? Was there a way to destroy Manju by digging?

The mercenaries tilted their heads in confusion, but the next words made them frown.

“What do you think would happen if an underground passage was dug into a volcano? Or if several volcanoes were connected?”

“...”

“The dwarf who swore revenge planned to dig a massive tunnel connecting every volcano in Manju. From the Great Xing'an Mountains to Baekdu Mountain. A gigantic chain reaction of explosions.”

At last, the mercenaries understood the seriousness of the situation, and their expressions turned grim.

“...Is that even possible?”

“It could be, or it could be impossible. No one has ever attempted such a thing before, not even with a powerful magical artifact like the Golden Seal.”

“Then…”

Before the mercenary could suggest leaving it alone, Darulma interrupted.

“What if it is possible? The dwarf brought the Golden Seal to this land decades ago. If Baekdu Mountain and the Xing'an Mountains erupt tomorrow, it wouldn’t be surprising.”

Though it seemed like an unrealistic scenario, that only made it easier to imagine.
What if all the dormant volcanoes in Manju and the surrounding area erupted simultaneously?

Everyone in the truck fell silent, as if on cue.

 

“It won’t erupt tomorrow.”

In the silence that filled the truck, the Saintess whispered confidently. It was the certainty of someone blessed with foresight.

Yeomyeong frowned slightly and responded.

“...That sounds like it’s definitely going to erupt, just not tomorrow.”

“Of course it will erupt. But it won’t be the end of the world. It’ll just kill a few million people in Manju and cause astronomical economic damage to Korea and Japan because of the volcanic ash.”

“...”

“After that, Korea will lose control over Manju and block the Yalu River. Manju will become a hunting ground for superhumans.”

Her words blatantly revealed her foresight abilities. Yeomyeong narrowed his eyes and glanced at the other mercenaries.
Fortunately, no one else seemed to have heard her whisper.

“...Sounds like a plausible story. Did the gods tell you that?”

Yeomyeong pretended not to know about the Saintess’s foresight abilities and responded indifferently.
Was it just a careless slip-up? He didn’t know why she had revealed her foresight to him, but he decided it was best to act like he didn’t notice.

But...

“It’s something like that. I can see the future, though only in fragments.”

“...”

No way, is this woman for real?

“...You don’t seem very surprised. Did you already figure it out?”

Yeomyeong barely resisted the urge to flick the Saintess on her wide forehead. Why did she live so carelessly?

“No. I’m just so shocked that I can’t speak.”

“...Really? Doesn’t seem like it.”

As their pointless conversation dragged on, Darulma Dune and Commander Kwon spread out a map and gathered the mercenaries.
Yeomyeong started to follow the others but then remembered he didn’t know how to read maps, so he sat back down.

The Saintess, watching him, tilted her head in curiosity.

“Why are they using a map instead of a smartphone?”

Embarrassed, Yeomyeong rummaged through his bag and answered.

“GPS doesn’t work around Northern Manju, so we need to study the map.”

“Oh, that makes sense. But Yeomyeong, why aren’t you looking at the map?”

Obviously because I don’t know how to read it. Yeomyeong didn’t bother responding.

Maybe she was disappointed that the conversation had ended, but the Saintess turned her gaze back to him. Once again, she whispered in a low voice so the mercenaries couldn’t hear.

“Are you illiterate?”

“...I just can’t read maps.”

“That’s even worse. How does a mercenary not know that?”

Yeomyeong unconsciously curled his fingers into a flicking motion, just like the one Kahal Magdu had shown him.
If I flick her forehead with this, maybe she’ll finally shut that mouth of hers.

Just as he raised his hand, the Saintess giggled.

“Don’t worry too much. If we really get lost, I’ll use my foresight to find the way.”

“...You’re going to use foresight instead of a map? How many times can you even use it?”

“Normally twice a day? If I squeeze out all my mana, maybe up to five times.”

“...”

Not as often as I thought. Well, it made sense. Powerful abilities always came with a high mana cost.

While Yeomyeong was lost in thought, the Saintess stared at him intently.
Even though her eyes were covered by an eyepatch, it felt like she was making direct eye contact with him.

No way...

“Are you using foresight right now?”

“Uh…”

“Hey, why are you wasting one of your limited foresight abilities on something like this...”

Just as he was about to scold her, the Saintess interrupted.

“Yeomyeong, get your weapon ready.”

She calmly pulled out her automatic rifle and began loading it.
Confused but sensing the urgency, Yeomyeong retrieved his Remington MH750 and his iron sword from his bag.

“...What did you foresee?”

“An ambush. Weird guys wearing pig heads...”

Pig heads? There was no need for further explanation. Yeomyeong gathered all his grenades as well and asked.

“How much time do we have?”

“Five...”

“Damn it.”

“Four...”

Yeomyeong sprang to his feet and shouted to the mercenaries.

“Ambush! We’re under attack! Get your weapons ready!”