#101
Northern Mountain Range (2)
The undead unrest in the four kingdoms of the western continent was gradually calming down.
Of course, it wasn’t because they handled it well, but rather, the situation had unexpectedly unfolded.
Soon after the Undead King openly revealed his presence and signaled, the undead, who had been moving haphazardly according to their leader’s tendencies—attacking humans or hiding in the wilderness—began to move in unison.
The undead army had determined each other’s locations through replies and, following the king’s orders, started to avoid battles as much as possible, gathering in groups that were close to each other.
‘Of course, there were instances of clashes with humans and even parties that got completely wiped out in the process.’
The army, which had managed to gather to some extent, could grow large enough to pose a burden for just the forces of a single territory.
Thus, the kingdoms remained on high alert regarding the movements of the undead, mobilizing their troops, but…
At some point, they vanished without a trace.
Undead King Hans had personally come to gather them all and disappeared.
So, even if humans were no longer threatened by the undead, they couldn’t relax.
They hadn’t completely defeated them; in fact, the enemy had withdrawn while gathering their scattered forces.
How could they let their guard down when that many troops could strike at any moment?
‘In such a situation, now monsters are starting to stir up trouble, too.’
And it wasn’t just any trouble; a continent-wide calamity was being foreshadowed.
Among them, the Tulck Kingdom was facing even more headaches as it bordered the Northern Mountain Range, known as the paradise for monsters.
They had to do their best to defend the north, but they had no choice but to prepare for the Undead King’s sudden attacks as well.
That was why they were promising mercenaries in Tarak the best rewards they could in an attempt to borrow their strength.
‘Hans isn’t planning any backstabbing… but they wouldn’t know that.’
Meanwhile, Harley received a special request while heading toward the Steel Fortress.
So now he found himself at the central government office of Tarak, waiting to meet his client.
Of course, the name of the lord was daunting, but he hadn’t accepted the task out of submission to power.
He simply thought about the information he received simply in advance…
‘The requested area was the Northern Mountain Range, after all.’
It was likely that he would be assigned a task more dangerous than just fighting monsters, but he didn’t care about the risks.
‘The destination is the same, and the rewards are far better, plus there’s no need to offend the ruler of this region, so it’s better to accept. I’m also curious about what’s going on in this situation.’
After arriving at the office and waiting for a while, Harley finally got to meet his client.
Naturally, it wasn’t the lord himself.
Though they emphasized the importance of the request by stating the lord’s name, someone in that position wouldn’t meet with a mere mercenary directly to assign a job.
“…I’ve heard quite a bit. Quite impressive, indeed.”
The client he faced was a stoic-looking knight in his 30s.
“Most importantly… quite unique.”
It seemed the knight couldn’t help but express his thoughts upon seeing Harley’s appearance, a slight frown crossing his face.
‘Well, such a reaction is just a part of life.’
With a muscular build exceeding two meters, his upper body was bare, wearing the head of a beast as a helmet, covered in tattoos, and one of his eyes glowing green with magic.
The unforgettable sight left the knight momentarily speechless, but he soon cleared his throat and continued.
“Ahem, right. So you are Harley? Quite the famous mercenary, I hear?”
“Ahaha! How embarrassing! Well, it’s true that I’m famous!”
Not minding Harley’s usual rudeness, as he was here for a job in a city full of mercenaries.
“Let’s get to the point. The reason for choosing you is that we need someone knowledgeable about the Northern Mountain Range.”
“Hmm… I’m not particularly good at navigation. If I have to, I can manage, but if you need a guide, it would be better to find someone else.”
He found himself not so much entering the mountains to scout but rather tearing through monsters blocking the way with his monstrous power and might, hunting at will.
He could navigate through the forest somewhat, but he wasn’t on the level of being hired as a guide for such a specific request.
“Oh, don’t worry about that. I’ve already hired another expert guide from among the mercenaries, one of the best in Tarak.”
“Oh! In that case… but wouldn’t I be unnecessary? Those others should be enough.”
“They have been navigating the Northern Mountain Range like it’s their home, frequently handling advanced requests that require delving deep, and they’re capable of taking down high-ranked monsters solo.”
After Harley’s teasing remarks, the knight looked at him thoughtfully before continuing.
“Is there anyone else in Tarak who fits this bill?”
“Indeed, there’s no one but me! Hahaha!”
Harley laughed heartily, but the knight seemed accustomed to it, continuing his speech undeterred.
“I’ve made it brief. The location is deep within the Northern Mountain Range, the timeframe is as soon as possible, type is hostage rescue, and the target is Jaonick Steelstone.”
“Jaonick Steelstone?”
‘Who is that?’
As if sensing his thoughts, the knight paused for a moment before speaking slowly.
“Notably, he is a blacksmith affiliated with the territory. His race is… a Dwarf.”
*
As expected for a request put forth by someone directly from the territory, things moved swiftly.
All the items necessary for the mission were already prepared, and fellow companions began to gather one by one.
It seemed the target for rescue was no ordinary person either, as he had immediately dug into a hole upon sensing danger and sent a magical communication for rescue.
Though they had enough emergency supplies to not be in immediate danger, no one could tell when something might happen in that hazardous area.
Soon, as soon as everything was prepared, Harley and his party of six set off into the Northern Mountain Range.
About a day later.
“Kaaak—Tsk! Dammit, did that guy really have to go up the mountain even in this situation?”
“Well, he probably didn’t think it would come to this. Dwarves have always loved rare minerals.”
Just after another battle concluded.
Mikkel, the female mercenary armed with a crossbow, spat on the ground in frustration, prompting the middle-aged man who was leading the group to chide her.
“Still, something big seems to be happening. I’ve been coming here for over ten years, but I’ve never seen a situation like this. The boundaries and habitat information of the monsters I’ve sorted out over the years has turned to garbage.”
The middle-aged mercenary, Marcus, who was once again leading the group, let out a small lament.
It had barely been a day since they entered the mountain range, yet they were sharply aware of the monster disturbances.
Previously, there had been some order to maintain an ecosystem, but now, there was no trace of any semblance of it.
They were forced to conceal their scent using an unknown substance all over their bodies, avoiding combat as much as possible, and when they had no choice, they dealt with battles as secretly and swiftly as they could, but even that was nearing its limits now.
“Wait, more are coming.”
At that moment, Harley quietly murmured, and the group all held their breath.
“How many?”
“…There’re quite a few. It seems to be over thirty… Oh no, they seem to be coming this way deliberately. They must have picked up on the traces of our previous battle.”
Everyone frowned at his words.
Despite their carefulness, it appeared their attempts to deceive the newly sharper instincts of the monsters weren’t enough.
“Do you know what kind they are?”
“Hmm, they are roughly the size of an Orc.”
Harley’s sensing ability, which had initially raised doubts, was now trusted by everyone.
There was a good reason for that.
This was the umpteenth time it had happened over the past day, and each of his warnings had proven true without fail.
Swish—
“Well, there’s no choice. We have to deal with them as quickly as possible and leave.”
Sir Robin, wearing leather armor, slowly drew his sword and spoke with the same stoic expression he had displayed when relaying the request.
‘By the way, that guy is pretty impressive. I thought he was only here to relay the request, but he’s participating in the operation himself.’
Of course, one experienced ranger from the Steel Fortress had also joined the party, but he hadn’t expected that a knight would don leather armor and partake in a risky operation like this.
The madness-infused monsters were extremely aggressive, hard to kill, and the Northern Mountain Range was like their backyard.
So far, they had been proceeding by trying to eliminate the creatures quickly and get out of their way…
But that, too, would reach its limits as the density of monsters increased while they ventured deeper into the mountains.
“I will expand a barrier. Please deal with them as quickly as possible once they fully enter.”
It seemed the frequent use of magic was starting to take a toll on the magician, Fabiella, who frowned slightly.
Known for her high level of physical training despite being a mage, she was quite renowned in Tarak, and fittingly, she was handling the rugged terrain quite well.
“…They’re here!”
With Harley’s warning coming again, this time, everyone could understand without his words.
Thud thud thud—!
“Gurk—!”
“Gyaaaah!”
Without a thought to conceal their sound, the ground shook with roars from the frenzied monsters.
As the crazed Orcs entered the area of the barrier, the fight broke out immediately.
Whoosh—Smash!
It all started with bolts and arrows flying from the back.
Then, joined by Sir Robin and the taciturn swordswoman Flora, Harley as always…
“Hohoho—! Let’s have some fun!”
Boom!
Bursting out laughter that had been held back, he kicked off the ground and charged at the monsters head-on with his bare hands.
The explosive power surging from the glowing engravings and writhing muscles swiftly carried him to the face of the madness-infused Orcs…
Crack!
Snap!
That great strength was more than enough to snap the creatures’ necks.
Dodging the wildly attacking weapons of the Orcs, but still delivering precise strikes to their heads, his movements resembled scenes of sacred labor…
Or would it make sense to say that?
“Crash ha ha ha!”
The wild barbarian laughed maniacally, engaging in acts that were nothing more than scenes of one-sided violence.
“…Who’s the real monster here? Is this even possible?”
Even his comrades fighting alongside him wore expressions of shock at his display.
Harley was vividly demonstrating why he was known in Tarak’s mercenary circle as an ‘existence you absolutely should not provoke.’
Initially, he had started his method of combat to avoid giving off the scent of blood, but now it felt as significant as fighting with weapons thanks to his monstrous body.
Every single Orc that charged at him found themselves beaten and twisting their necks beyond their limits.
But he wasn’t just battling thoughtlessly.
‘This is strange. Lately, every time I fight monsters, I’ve been feeling something tickling me.’
Even enhanced senses through the Biotic Aura and engravings couldn’t catch hold of something that his instincts were brushing against.
Smash—!
“Graaah!”
While continuing to strike down the Orcs, Harley pondered and executed a string of deadly blows.
Then, at one moment.
Had he focused too much?
Fwoosh—!
In an instant, his sharpened fingertips plunged into the heart of one Orc.
“Ah.”
He’d been fighting barehanded to avoid splattering blood, but it seemed he’d instinctively performed the most fatal of attacks due to the ‘Wildness’ that activated without him realizing it.
Fortunately, he still had the tiniest amount of reason left, so his fingernails had only sharpened a little, preventing ‘Physical Transformation’ from being detected by those around him, but nonetheless, blood had splattered all over his arm, rendering his efforts moot.
“Tsk—.”
Harley clicked his tongue lightly as he withdrew his hand.
In his grip was the magical stone that had been lodged within the Orc’s heart.
‘What’s done is done. I can always clean up the blood later.’
More importantly, his energy was starting to run low.
Now that he had it in his hand, he might as well use it effectively.
Without much thought, Harley popped the magical stone into his mouth.
Crunch!
In that instant.
Thump—!
His heart raced violently.
The blood flow throughout his body surged wildly.
The energy he had been feeling tickling him became even more intense upon consuming the Orc’s magical stone.
‘What’s happening all of a sudden?’
As his senses expanded, he began realizing what he had couldn’t comprehend before.
‘Could it be? This is…’
Something that spread throughout the world, enveloping the skies, permeating the air, wrapping around them, and simmering within the eyes of the blood-red Orcs charging at them.
And… now it had begun to sprout within Harley’s body.
Yes, it was.
‘Madness.’
