dognovel Chapter 641
Chapter 641
Chapter 641
The portal rippled, and trucks came pouring out one after another.
The workers waiting in the plaza shouted.
“The byproducts have arrived. Move quickly!”
“Take this to the warehouse in the Northern District, and move what's loaded on the second truck to the warehouse in the Southern District.”
“Hurry up and move them before the byproducts spoil.”
The trucks were loaded to the brim with magical beast byproducts.
All of the magical beast byproducts were being transported from the Iron Fortress.
The war against El Harun's demi-human races had caused tremendous damage to the Iron Fortress, but it had also brought enormous benefits.
Namely, thanks to the magical beasts Del Roa had mobilized.
All the Awakeners had joined forces to hunt countless magical beasts, and the corpses of those beasts had remained near the Iron Fortress.
The Iron Fortress was collecting all of those corpses and sending them to Neo Seoul.
The magical beast corpses were distributed among the districts according to the amount of forces they had dispatched to the Iron Fortress.
Districts that had participated heavily and earned great merits received more corpses, while districts that had sent fewer personnel received proportionately fewer.
Since the distribution was handled this way, no one could complain that they had received too little.
The person overseeing all of this was none other than the Supervisor, Mandy.
Through prior investigations, Mandy had accurately determined how many forces each district had sent to the Iron Fortress.
Since it was based on portal usage records, there was virtually no chance of error in the calculations.
As a result, neither the Awakeners who had participated in the war nor the districts that had dispatched them held any complaints.
“This one was hunted by City Hall Awakeners. Send it to City Hall.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Send this one to the Goblin Market.”
“Yes!”
Mandy handled the work without hesitation.
The countless trucks that passed through the portal were immediately sent to warehouses and processing plants throughout the districts.
The warehouses and factories receiving the magical beast byproducts were also in emergency mode.
“Process the ones that spoil easily first. Hurry! If they spoil, their value drops.”
“Yes!”
“Send all the rare magical beast materials to Workshop Number One.”
The head of Workshop Number One was a dwarf.
Originally, he was someone who never left the Northern District, but this time he had been specially recruited with a huge sum of money.
The craftsmanship of dwarves was exceptionally special, allowing them to turn expensive materials into works of art or artifacts.
The war against El Harun had changed many things in Neo Seoul.
One of them was that large numbers of demi-humans, who rarely left the Northern District before, had begun engaging in outside activities.
Among them, the dwarves were by far the most active.
Simply because there were so many places that wanted them.
Ordinarily, Serian would never have allowed dwarves to go outside. To the Northern District, dwarves were practically strategic assets.
Yet she released them without imposing any conditions.
The reason Serian was able to make such a bold decision was largely due to the influence of the Primordial Forest and the World Tree Village.
After secretly visiting the World Tree Village, Serian became convinced that the world was about to change even more dramatically.
Through the portals, Neo Seoul, the Primordial Forest, the World Tree Village, and the Mana Stone Mine were all becoming connected.
It was impossible to keep the demi-humans confined to the narrow Northern District forever.
Allowing them to move freely was actually what benefited the Northern District the most.
Just as salmon raised in the sea eventually return to the river where they were born, the demi-humans born in the Northern District would inevitably return.
Among the demi-humans who had begun outside activities, the dwarves were the most popular.
Workshops and factories in every district recruited skilled dwarves and produced countless items.
As a result, the overall quality of items in every district rose significantly.
This caused Neo Seoul to grow at an explosive rate.
Helping this growth were the countless magical beast byproducts being brought from the Iron Fortress.
Corpses of magical beasts that were normally difficult to obtain were still scattered everywhere around the Iron Fortress.
Countless people were collecting them, yet many corpses still remained.
Once all those corpses were collected and distributed, Neo Seoul would undoubtedly grow even more rapidly.
Some people even claimed that Neo Seoul was currently experiencing the greatest boom in its history.
Indeed, Neo Seoul was more vibrant than ever before.
“Nice.”
Looking at the lively streets, Zeon smiled.
The slums of the past had been filled with a gloomy atmosphere.
There had been no vitality whatsoever, but now bright smiles adorned the faces of people walking through the streets.
It was thanks to the abundance of jobs.
There were many places in need of workers, such as the Mana Stone Mine and the Iron Fortress.
As a result, many people from the slums were traveling outside through portals for work.
Zeon also headed toward the location where the portal had been installed.
A large crowd had gathered around it.
Security was several times stricter than usual.
Standing in front of the portal were Jin Geumho, Serian, the rulers of the districts, and their elites.
Today was the day of an important event.
The Primordial Forest was being opened.
Everyone stared at the portal with expressions full of anticipation.
Thinking the atmosphere had reached the right level, Jin Geumho spoke to the portal administrator.
“Connect it to the Primordial Forest.”
“Yes, sir!”
The administrator immediately connected the portal to the Primordial Forest.
After confirming the connection was stable, he said,
“You may enter now.”
“Hmm.”
Jin Geumho nodded and stepped through the portal first.
The rulers of the districts and countless others followed behind him.
They had taken only a few steps, yet the scenery surrounding them completely changed.
“Wow!”
“Holy shit!”
“A forest. It's a huge forest!”
“No way!”
Those seeing the Primordial Forest for the first time wore expressions of disbelief.
Jin Geumho and Serian had already visited before, so they remained calm, but the others were different.
They had never seen such a vast forest in their lives.
There were forests in Neo Seoul as well, but they were tiny in comparison and access was strictly restricted.
Ordinary people could never enter them.
In contrast, the forest before them was incomparably more expansive than anything in Neo Seoul.
Moreover, part of the forest had been opened so that many people could enter.
At the sensation of touching a tree for the first time, many people burst into tears.
The rough texture beneath their fingertips and the crunching leaves beneath their feet.
The fresh air and the birdsong coming from somewhere in the distance completely captivated them.
“A forest this huge? Is Earth really coming back to life?”
“I can't believe a place like this existed.”
“This is insane. This place is truly insane.”
Some people even knelt on the ground and grabbed handfuls of soil.
The texture was entirely different from the dry sand of the desert, stimulating all their senses.
Moist earth overflowing with life and the fallen leaves mixed within it.
Everything filled their senses with ecstasy.
Even Kim Hyunsoo, whose entire body was made of machinery, stared blankly in amazement.
“The Primordial Forest. They really chose the perfect name.”
“Whew! I don't even have the energy to be surprised anymore.”
Xiaolun of the Southern District shook his head.
Like Jin Geumho, Xiaolun had lived for a very long time.
Before the world ended, this had been a common sight.
Back then, he had never thought it was particularly special.
He had regretted not appreciating it more, knowing he would go more than a hundred years without seeing such a scene again.
Leaning against a large tree, Xiaolun closed his eyes.
The old man, well over a hundred years old, spent a long while savoring the feel of the tree and the air around him.
At that moment, Floa and the Dark Elves emerged from the forest.
“We sincerely welcome your visit.”
“Thank you for your hospitality.”
Jin Geumho expressed his gratitude on behalf of everyone.
“As promised, we will open part of the forest to Neo Seoul.”
“Thank you for keeping your promise.”
“However, please ensure that no one approaches the areas protected by barriers. We will guard them on our side as well, but we need your cooperation.”
“Of course. Starting today, we will station Awakeners around the barrier zones.”
“Thank you.”
Although it had already been agreed upon beforehand, they deliberately spoke loudly so everyone could hear.
The reason the Primordial Forest was only now being opened was because the barriers had needed to be expanded.
The forest had grown so much that the original barriers could no longer cover the entire area.
That was why reinforcement work had been necessary before opening it.
Among the visitors were elves who had come along with Serian and Hera.
The elves' reactions upon seeing the forest firsthand were explosive.
“A real forest.”
“Even the air feels different.”
Unlike the leadership, ordinary elves were seeing the Primordial Forest for the first time.
The forest they had only heard about in stories completely mesmerized them.
From now on, elves would be able to travel freely between Neo Seoul, the Iron Fortress, and the Primordial Forest.
One of the elves who had followed Hera cautiously asked,
“Is there any chance we could enter the deeper parts of the Primordial Forest?”
“You'll have to prove your qualifications.”
“Qualifications?”
The elf looked puzzled by Hera's words.
“The qualifications to enter deeper into that forest. First, you'd need to earn recognition from the natives.”
“I suppose we'll have to work hard.”
“That's right. You have to work hard. Then you'll earn the right to enter not only the Primordial Forest but also the village of the High Elves.”
“Really... is the World Tree truly there, Lady Hera?”
“It is.”
She spoke quietly so others could not hear, but the nearby elves all caught her words.
The words World Tree carried a special resonance for elves.
Not only High Elves, but Dark Elves and ordinary elves as well all wished to live beneath the World Tree's shade.
Their relationship with it was inseparable.
Naturally, they could not help reacting with even greater enthusiasm when they heard it truly existed.
After exchanging a few more words with Floa, Jin Geumho addressed the Awakeners.
“As you can see, starting today, the Primordial Forest and Neo Seoul will officially begin full-scale exchanges. Each district is to construct buildings in its designated area and manage its Awakeners. If anyone causes trouble here, not only that individual but also the district they belong to will face penalties.”
Jin Geumho's words were essentially directed at the rulers of the districts.
Land had also been allocated to the slums, the Goblin Market, the Iron Fortress, and the Mana Stone Mine.
Since the distribution of territory had already been agreed upon in advance, there were no objections.
Once the areas for each group were determined, everyone immediately became busy.
“Let's begin.”
“Bring in the materials first.”
“Be careful not to approach the barriers, and let's move quickly.”
If they were going to operate in the Primordial Forest, the first priority was constructing buildings to serve as bases.
Large buildings were necessary to accommodate as many Awakeners as possible.
To that end, they had already prepared materials, manpower, and engineers in advance.
Personnel and supplies steadily poured through the portal.
The reactions of those who arrived later were not much different from those who had come first.
They were so astonished by the vast forest they had never seen before that they could hardly find words.
“What? Aren't you going to work?”
“Get started already! You can sightsee later.”
Only after being shouted at by the supervisors did they finally come to their senses.
The workers hurriedly began their tasks.
They dug into the ground and started laying foundations.
Construction projects sprang up simultaneously throughout the area, making the Primordial Forest bustling and noisy.
“Wow! So many people came.”
“They're building houses.”
Drawn by the commotion, children peeked out from the forest to watch.
Among them was Har.
Har spotted Zeon among the crowd and waved her hand.
“Hyung Zeon!”
Zeon saw her and waved back.
The Primordial Forest was the one Har had sprouted and nurtured.
The Dark Elves managed it now, but no matter what anyone said, she was the true owner of the forest.
Har welcomed the changes in the forest more than anyone.
There was nothing that made her happier than seeing the forest she loved become a home for everyone.