Trial of the Vampire Bats
“Ugh! What the hell?”
Levin rubbed the back of his head as he sat up.
He felt like he’d tumbled at least several dozen meters.
Good thing I’m an Awakener, he thought. If I were a regular person, I’d be dead or seriously hurt.
Come to think of it, Zeon probably wouldn’t have kicked him like that if he weren’t one.
“Why the fuck did hyung shove me into a place like this?”
Levin looked around.
But all he could see was pitch-black darkness.
Even with his Awakener eyes, the gloom was too thick to pierce.
Still, one thing was clear.
This underground space was pretty damn vast.
And Levin knew why he thought that: the wind.
A fairly strong breeze was blowing from somewhere deep below.
Carried on it was a musty stench and faint noises.
Whoooosh!
It sounded like a beast’s breathing—or maybe a weak flute.
The moment he heard the unidentified noise, chills erupted across Levin’s skin.
“What is that?”
Right then.
As if reacting to his voice, something opened its eyes in the darkness.
Glowing yellow eyes that lit up the black void.
But not just one pair.
Hundreds, thousands of pairs illuminated the shadows.
“Fuck! What the hell are those?!”
Whoooosh!
That same noise rang out again.
Only then did Levin realize it came from the owners of those eyes.
Flutter-flutter!
Wingbeats followed, and one pair of eyes shot toward him.
Levin urgently Ghostified, dodging the attack.
The thing passed harmlessly through his body.
In that instant, he got a good look at it.
“A… bat?”
It was definitely a bat.
A massive one, with wings over a meter long.
Its snout bore fangs as long and sharp as a Flame Wolf’s molars.
One glance told him everything.
Those were teeth perfectly evolved for sucking blood.
The underground was crawling with vampire bats.
If they got hold of him, they’d drain every drop, leaving him a dried-up mummy.
“Fuck!”
Cold sweat trickled down Levin’s back.
Thank god for his Ghostification ability.
Their attacks were useless against it.
That was when it happened.
Whoooosh!
The eerie noise from the bats swelled again.
Levin felt excruciating pain.
“Gah!”
With a groan, his body rematerialized.
It wasn’t on purpose.
He’d lost control for a split second.
“So the bats’ ultrasonic waves are disrupting my Ghostification?”
Everyone knew bats used echolocation to hunt in the dark. But interfering with Ghostification? That was news to him.
No one knew about it.
But Zeon clearly did.
Otherwise, why dump him here?
Whoooosh! Whooo-oooosh!
Hundreds, thousands of vampire bats unleashed their ultrasounds in unison.
“Shit!”
Levin’s face went pale.
He was as good as naked before thousands of them.
Right then, the vampire bats swarmed.
Levin desperately Ghostified again.
He barely broke through the ultrasound interference, but his focus didn’t hold.
After one wave passed through him, his concentration shattered, and he rematerialized.
Crunch!
A bat seized the opening and sank its fangs into his forearm.
“Argh!”
Levin screamed and unleashed Chain Lightning.
Kraka-boom!
The bat on his arm and a few nearby exploded from the surge.
Their blood and charred stench spread, driving the rest into a frenzy.
Flutter-flutter!
Wingbeats and ultrasounds mixed into a deafening echo.
All of it hammered at his Ghostification.
Levin dodged frantically, trying to Ghostify amid the onslaught.
Only now did he understand why Zeon had thrown him in here.
The best way for an Awakener to rank up was through endless experience.
These vampire bats were his natural predators.
Survive them, and he might climb ranks.
That realization ignited his fighting spirit.
“Fuck it! Fine, let’s do this. You die, or I do. Come on, you bat bastards!”
Flutter-rush!
As if answering his taunt, the vampire bats charged en masse.
＊＊＊
“It’s started.”
Zeon murmured softly at the sounds echoing from the sandstone crevice.
Levin’s ordeal was just beginning.
He probably had no idea.
The underground space was far bigger than he thought, and the bat swarm several times larger.
To survive, Levin would have to unleash his full potential.
Fail, and the endless bats would drain him dry like a mummy.
Zeon’s expression didn’t change, even after shoving Levin into bat hell.
To grow strong, you had to risk your life.
That’s how Dayton had raised him.
And that’s how Zeon would raise Levin.
Rumble!
Zeon touched the sandstone, turning it to sand that collapsed and sealed the gap completely.
No escape for Levin now.
His only way out: slaughter every bat and break free on his own power.
Zeon decided to rest easy until then.
He pulled a few items from his subspace.
One was dung from an Ironclad Dung Beetle.
The beast lived far in the desert; its shit was rock-hard, odorless, and burned hot and long once lit.
Perfect for desert campfires.
Whoosh!
The dung caught fire easily.
Zeon hung a pot over the flames and dumped in prepped food.
Time didn’t pass in his subspace.
So he’d stocked it with plenty of Neo Seoul grub after arriving.
This way, it stayed fresh forever.
“Nice.”
Zeon warmed himself by the fire while the food bubbled.
Truth be told, he didn’t need it.
His robe perfectly regulated his body temperature.
But fire brought a strange comfort.
A feeling that no monster could cross into this warmth.
Zeon glanced at the sky.
The sun had set; darkness ruled.
Night was monster time.
They’d rampage soon.
Rooaaar!
A distant bellow from an unknown beast.
Zeon identified it from the roar alone.
“An Armored Great-Horned Bear? Expanding its territory this far?”
He tilted his head.
A B-rank monster, seven meters at the shoulder, covered in armor-thick hide.
Most attacks couldn’t pierce it.
And it wasn’t just tanky—vicious bite force, deadly claws, massive horns.
No C-rank or lower martial Awakener could scratch it.
It roamed solo except mating season, confident in its size and power.
Few monsters dared touch it.
Not even Flame Wolf packs or Sandworms.
They knew they’d regret it.
This wasn’t its territory, as far as Zeon knew.
It wandered, but only within its bounds.
“Expanding territory? All the way near Neo Seoul?”
Zeon’s eyes darkened.
Vroooom!
A roar pierced the night.
Zeon recognized it instantly: a car engine.
Soon, headlights appeared, and a vehicle pulled up.
People piled out of the battered ride.
“See? Told you. Campfire light.”
“Who the hell starts a fire in the middle of the desert?”
“Made it just before the engine totally crapped out.”
Four young men and women in heavy armor, around Zeon’s age.
All good-looking.
The strongest-looking guy approached Zeon.
“Hello. I’m party leader Kim Kyung-soo. Mind sharing your ID?”
“Zeon.”
“From Neo Seoul?”
“Not Neo Seoul. The slums.”
“Hm.”
Kim Kyung-soo frowned slightly at the unexpected answer, glancing at his crew.
They blinked in surprise too.
The sole woman recovered first.
“You came a long way. I’m Yoo Seung-hee. Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“Lee Jun-soo.”
“Choi Chang-sik.”
The others introduced themselves.
All Korean names.
First all-Korean party Zeon had seen.
“All friends?” he asked.
“Yeah. Grew up in the same neighborhood. Been tight over twenty years.”
“Out here at night—what’s the deal?”
“Engine blew. Got separated from the raid group.”
“Raid group?”
“Raid team. We were wrapping up a recent dungeon when it happened.”
When big dungeons popped up, Neo Seoul recruited raid teams.
Awakeners and parties from districts applied.
Neo Seoul picked the best to clear it.
Standard procedure.
But not everyone followed it.
Dungeons appeared randomly; Neo Seoul couldn’t manage them all.
Plenty sneaked in unreported for the big payout.
Riskier, though.
Up to the finder.
Kim Kyung-soo’s party wasn’t strong enough for solos.
Leader was C-rank; others mixed C and D.
They joined official raids for the rewards.
This time too.
Clear successful.
But their vehicle failed in the harsh terrain.
Left them stranded.
If Yoo Seung-hee hadn’t spotted Zeon’s fire, they’d be screwed.
“Pretty confident in your skills, huh? Lighting a fire like this. Saved our asses, though.”
“Just got cold. Had to.”
“Sure. Why not stay in your car, then? Oh, there it is.”
Yoo Seung-hee’s eyes gleamed at the compact buggy.
Kim Kyung-soo and the others’ eyes turned dangerous too.
Zeon sighed.
“Funny how people risk their lives over nothing.”