SFRW-Chapter 35

Ch. 35 Sword God From The Ruined World

From São Paulo to Belém, and then another 700 kilometers to Santarém.  

The distance traveled by Seo Do-jun’s group from Seoul alone already exceeded 20,000 kilometers.  

Even if you called it 20,000 kilometers, considering the time spent stuck on a plane, maintaining good condition was impossible—no matter how much of a Hero you were.  

“If we had transited through the U.S., we really wouldn’t even be able to stand right now.”  

At Jung In-joo’s exaggerated complaint, the guild members laughed.  

Normally, there were no direct flights from Seoul to São Paulo, but this time, thanks to special cooperation from the Hero Association and the government, a direct flight had been arranged. And the same went for all other countries departing from around the world.  

“Is it really okay to enter the rift zone like this?”  

Even when moving directly from São Paulo to Belém, they had been nervous.  

But now, from Belém to Santarém, and then heading straight to the rift zone without rest—wasn’t the Silk Flower Guild pushing themselves too hard? It was impossible not to worry.  

“It’ll be fine.”  

Jung In-joo reassured the concerned members.  

“Hyun Joo-yeon is obviously reliable, but… Can we really trust that newbie?”  

The guild members, who had neither verified Seo Do-jun’s skills nor heard much about him, couldn’t help but doubt him.  

“Newbie? Pfft!”  

At the guild member’s remark calling Seo Do-jun a rookie, Seo Doo-yun burst out laughing unintentionally.  

“There are newbies, and then there are newbies. Seo Do-jun… Is probably an all-time great rookie.”  

“That good?”  

Even Park Seung-ho spoke in a serious tone, making the guild members all the more curious as they stared at Seo Do-jun walking ahead.  

Seo Do-jun, who had suddenly made his presence known by receiving an S-rank rating one day.  

Not only Hyun Joo-yeon, who had high credibility, but even Jung In-joo, the guild leader they trusted and followed the most, acknowledged him. That’s why they could endure this grueling schedule.  

But relying solely on their stamina, drained from long-distance travel, and the bare minimum information provided by the Brazilian Hero Association to blindly head into the rift zone—it was only natural for anxiety to build.  

“Anyway, we’re just going to scout the area and see what it’s like. Nothing big will happen, right?”  

Someone spoke up to suppress the unease.  

“Right? It’s not like something will happen in the rift zone.”  

But they didn’t know.  

What kind of thoughts Seo Do-jun had as he headed toward the rift zone.  

“The rift zone is 800 meters from here.”  

At Hyun Joo-yeon’s words, checking the rift zone information provided by the Brazilian Hero Association on her smartphone, Seo Do-jun asked,  

“This is where the Blue Crocos come out, right?”  

“Yes. It’s one of the top three rift zones in Brazil with the highest population of Blue Crocos.”  

Satisfied with her answer, Seo Do-jun nodded.  

“Don’t tell me…”  

Hyun Joo-yeon, who had been speaking, turned around and lowered her voice.  

“You’re not planning to close the rift zone this time, are you?”  

Having seen him single-handedly take down a Casserian, she was certain that if he wanted to, he could easily shut down the rift zone.  

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”  

At Seo Do-jun’s reply, implying that was exactly why he was here, Hyun Joo-yeon silently stared at him before asking:  

“Now that you’re an S-rank Hero, do you want to become a star or something?”  

“Does it look that way?”  

“No.”  

At her firm headshake, Seo Do-jun looked at her as if asking why she brought it up.  

“If I close this place, it’ll be harder to get Blue Croco hearts. Why would I shut it down? I need to farm them as long as possible.”  

Hyun Joo-yeon shook her head vigorously at his words.  

How many Heroes in the world would treat a rift zone—not even a Gate—as a farming spot?  

The future situation was painfully clear.  

Seo Do-jun would try to claim every last Blue Croco heart without leaving a single one behind.  

“It’s the rift zone.”  

Jung In-joo announced this and began urging the guild members to be careful.  

Meanwhile, Seo Do-jun…  

“Keeping up will be tough.”  

At Seo Do-jun’s brisk, unhesitating steps toward the rift zone, Hyun Joo-yeon shook her head again.  

*** 

Characteristics of the Blue Croco:  

First, its color was so blue it was like one of the famous cartoons, The Smurfs. From head to tail, it was entirely blue, as if it had just emerged from a vat of blue paint.  

Their sizes varied, but the smallest was at least 20 meters, with the largest reaching up to 40 meters.  

Realistically, 70% of their length was their tail, so their actual body wasn’t overwhelmingly large.  

Their overall appearance closely resembled that of a Crocodile.  

However, there were a few differences: six eyes, eight legs, dozens of spines on their back, and a hard, blunt protrusion at the end of their tail.  

These were clear indicators of why they were classified as monsters.  

“…It looks even more monstrous than in the photos.”  

Park Seung-ho gulped dryly as he stared at the Blue Croco before him.  

Upon entering the rift zone, the first things to greet them were the sticky humidity, the suffocatingly heavy air, and the swamp that clung to their feet.  

Before they could even take a few steps, a massive Blue Croco over 30 meters long slowly emerged from the swamp, as if warning them that this was no easy place.  

An A-rank monster that even a group of ten A-rank Heroes would struggle to hunt.  

Facing the rare Blue Croco, a monster only found in Brazil, not just Park Seung-ho but most of the Silk Flower Guild members hesitated.  

In contrast…  

“Starting off with such luck.”  

Unlike the hesitant guild members, Seo Do-jun’s eyes held a faint smile.  

Soon, he reached for the sword on his back.  

“No.”  

Muttering softly, Seo Do-jun let go of the sword’s hilt.  

There was only one way to obtain the best Blue Croco heart.  

Crack.  

Clenching his fist, Seo Do-jun kicked off the ground without a word and leaped forward.  

“What are you doing—?!”  

One guild member shouted in shock at Seo Do-jun charging toward the Blue Croco without any strategy, but something even more shocking happened.  

Wham!  

Before the Blue Croco could even react, Seo Do-jun drove his fist into its skull.  

Just one punch.  

That was enough.  

The 30-meter-long Blue Croco flipped onto its back, knocked out cold.  

“…Th-That’s impossible!”  

“Wh-What was that?”  

“Is this… Real?”  

The Silk Flower Guild members, who had never seen Seo Do-jun’s strength, all doubted their eyes.  

Only Jung In-joo, Hwang Jin-joo, Choi Do-yeon, and Park Seung-ho—who had a vague idea of his power—shook their heads in disbelief.  

“He did the same with the Casserian, right?”  

“Yeah. Even when it spotted us first and flew at us, he just punched it down like that.”  

“Definitely… Not a normal Hero.”  

Meanwhile…  

“Anyone have a dagger?”  

Seo Do-jun crouched on the unconscious Blue Croco’s belly, looking for a dagger.  

***  

Seo Do-jun’s actions were groundbreaking—so shocking they bordered on terrifying.  

He demonstrated firsthand why monsters were prey and why Heroes were hunters.  

With the Blue Croco, he showed not a hint of hesitation, flawlessly knocking it out, slicing its belly open, and extracting its heart.  

In just three hours, Seo Do-jun had collected seven perfectly intact Blue Croco hearts.  

The best preservation method was rapid freezing using liquid nitrogen at -200°C.  

This ensured the hearts would retain 100% of their effectiveness when later used for crafting weapons, so Seo Do-jun had personally brought a specially designed storage container made by Choi Cheol-gwan all the way to Brazil.  

It could hold up to 200 hearts—proof of just how determined Seo Do-jun was.  

Sizzle.  

As the large piece of meat cooked nicely, memories from the past surfaced in Seo Do-jun’s eyes.  

In the ruined world, five years after the monster invasion, the existing food sources for humans had dried up.  

Farming was impossible, and of course, there were no humans left to leisurely tend to crops. With no way to process natural foods, the only options were raw natural resources or what could be harvested from monster carcasses.  

Having survived longer than anyone as the last remaining human, Seo Do-jun had tasted almost every type of monster meat—it was no exaggeration.  

“Can you really eat this?”  

Hyun Joo-yeon looked at the meat over the fire with concern.  

“Blue Croco meat is edible.”  

To be more precise, it was one of the top ten most delicious monster meats Seo Do-jun had ever eaten.  

“There’s so much other food, why insist on this…”  

As Hyun Joo-yeon said, the Silk Flower Guild Guild had brought plenty of provisions—from common processed foods to military rations.  

Because of this, the guild members sat apart from Seo Do-jun, eating their own prepared meals.  

“If you don’t want to eat it, don’t.”  

Seo Do-jun replied bluntly, picking up a piece of the savory, juicy Blue Croco meat.  

From that moment, all eyes were on him.  

Just as they wondered if he’d really eat monster meat—  

Chomp!  

Seo Do-jun opened his mouth wide and tore into the meat.  

Chew, chew.  

The sight of him eating Blue Croco meat without hesitation left everyone horrified.  

Though there were rumors it was edible, South Korean Heroes assumed only Amazonian natives could stomach it.  

Seeing Seo Do-jun eat it so casually was grotesque.  

“With so much other food, why this…”  

Hwang Jin-joo stared at him, utterly baffled.  

“He’s really incomprehensible in every way.”  

His strength, his appetite—everything about him.  

The guild members, who knew nothing about Seo Do-jun, turned away, unable to hide their discomfort.  

But they quickly turned back at Jung In-joo’s voice.  

“Hyun Joo-yeon! Wh-Why are you—?!”  

Hyun Joo-yeon was now holding a piece of cooked Blue Croco meat.  

“…He said it’s edible.”  

Despite her words, her face was full of fear.  

Seo Do-jun, still chewing happily, watched her.  

Under his challenging gaze, as if daring her to try, Hyun Joo-yeon shut her eyes tightly and took a bite.  

The tender texture, the rich aroma, the melt-in-your-mouth quality, the burst of juices—  

“…It’s… Delicious.”  

It truly was.  

However.  

“No one will believe you if you say that with tears in your eyes! Spit it out!”  

Jung In-joo rushed over, snatched the meat from her hand, and threw it to the ground.  

“Sister!”  

“Spit it out now! Ptooey! Ptooey-ptooey! Hurry!”  

Jung In-joo even patted Hyun Joo-yeon’s back while glaring at Seo Do-jun.  

As if accusing him of toying with Hyun Joo-yeon’s feelings through such inhuman actions.  

Under her resentful gaze, Seo Do-jun simply clicked his tongue.  

In the end, Seo Do-jun was the only one who ate the Blue Croco meat.  

Hyun Joo-yeon had thought it tasted good, but she couldn’t shake the idea of it being monster meat and couldn’t swallow it.  

Of course, Jung In-joo’s murderous glare ensured she wouldn’t try again.  

And after the Blue Croco eating incident, the distance between the Silk Flower Guild members and Seo Do-jun grew even wider.