#102
In the Northern Mountain Range (3)
His heart races excessively, and his senses sharpen infinitely.
A throbbing pain pierces his mind, scratching at his nerves, and a feeling of irritability rises for no reason.
-So annoying, so uncomfortable, I just want to smash it, should I get rid of it? Yeah, let’s kill!
The echo, like a hallucination, spreads in his head, trying to compel him to act.
In a violent direction, no less.
This sudden madness was what was happening in Harley’s insides in real-time.
It was a situation that anyone would find confusing, despite the disarray…
‘Mmm, this is infinitely weaker than when I accepted the Heart of the Undead King. I guess I don’t have to worry much about this?’
Naturally, it was not a significant issue for him, who had a “Mind Hub.”
Harley’s little insanity wasn’t a new occurrence.
Ignoring the abnormality attacking his mind, he carefully observed the changes in his body.
It wasn’t just that his heart was racing and blood flow had quickened.
An unidentifiable aura of ‘madness’ swirled within him, further activating all his physical abilities, including muscles and senses.
Yes, it’s just like…
‘Right now, like these orcs.’
Toughened skin, swollen muscles, heightened reflexes.
The downside? The loss of reason and recklessly charging forward based on instinct.
‘Of course, it doesn’t seem to have much effect on me.’
The amount of madness coursing through him was far too small to further enhance his monstrous physique.
To feel a meaningful enhancement, he would need to accept dozens of times this amount of madness.
‘But maybe it was because I absorbed it all at once with the magic stone. I couldn’t really feel it before, but now the madness that spreads everywhere is vividly sensed.’
It steadily accumulated within him with each breath, slowly inflating the madness already inside his body.
But even while gathering his thoughts and moving his body diligently, Harley noticed a key difference as he looked at the few remaining orcs.
‘The rate of madness absorbed through breathing is probably different for monsters, isn’t it?’
Thanks to his efforts, the battle with the orcs was entering the final stages, so he relaxed his body and examined it more closely.
‘…Monsters have the highest absorption rate, then I come next, and humans last.’
This difference was likely the cause of the monster frenzy (狂化) phase, and the reason Harley had felt something was off all this time.
‘Is it that madness matches well with monsters? It might be tapping into their wildness and instincts.’
Well, it would indeed be easier for someone less rational to manifest madness.
However, to gather more detailed information, he would have to take the risk of accumulating a lot more madness than now…
‘That shouldn’t be a problem for me. Well, should I give it a try as much as I can?’
For the barbarian warrior Harley, who was once an experiment subject, it was no issue.
“Grrr…”
Thud—
“…It’s done. Orcs usually have a strong fighting spirit, but they weren’t at this level.”
As the last orc fell and the battle concluded, the wizard Fabiella, who had maintained a protective barrier, let out a brief lament.
“Fighting them is already tricky; they don’t even flinch at considerable hits now. Honestly, if it weren’t for Harley, I would have given up and gone down long ago.”
Marcus, the guide who had been fighting in the back to protect the wizards and archers, hurriedly began tidying up what remained.
With the cleaning magical equipment provided, he wiped the blood splatters from his body and gear and layered on juice to cover the smell.
For now, the noise and blood scent were contained thanks to the protective barrier maintained by the wizard, but the moment that was lifted, monsters would start pouring in from all directions.
“Oh? The great Marcus is scared of just this level of orcs?”
“Sigh… Mikel. I think you’re forgetting something important.”
In response to Mikel’s provocation as she retrieved reusable bolts and wiped off the blood, Marcus quietly continued, trying to reason with her.
“This is the Northern Mountain Range, known as the monsters’ homeland. We’ve only just entered a day ago, and we still have a few more days to go to reach our destination.”
Moreover, the deeper they went, the denser and stronger the monsters became, that was common sense.
Even magical tools that suppressed presence had limits, so it was evident things would only get harder from here.
It seemed Mikel had nothing to retort, merely pouting.
Everyone was veterans, so the cleanup was swift.
“Ha!”
While his companions were busy, Harley emerged from a makeshift grave he had dug and dusted off his shoulder with a collapsible shovel.
Originally, the plan was to leave as quickly as possible before the scent of blood spread too far.
Digging up every monster’s corpse was too inefficient.
However, once Harley demonstrated his overwhelming physical ability by digging a large pit in just a few minutes, the situation changed.
Of course, that method, like with the orcs that had just chased them, wasn’t perfect, but without it, they would have had to face many more monsters.
With that, after inspecting the orc corpses tossed into the pit by the inspector Flora, Harley swiftly covered it with soil using his tremendous strength.
“…It’s always impressive. How do you do that without batting an eye? Don’t you get tired?”
‘What a perfect timing.’
Receiving his companions’ amazed glances after finishing the task in an instant, Harley disassembled the shovel to pack it away and casually brought up what he had been thinking.
“Oh, by the way. I’m running low on energy! Can I take my share of the magic stones first?”
“Hmm? What does that have to do with magic stones?”
“Ha ha ha—! It’s a tribal vision spell of ours. I eat the magic stones to absorb the energy contained within, but as you can see, ordinary meals can’t keep up!”
“Ahh…”
Given Harley’s spontaneous affirmation, his companions vaguely nodded, but obviously, not everyone felt the same.
“Oh, you eat magic stones? Barbarians do that… Ow!”
Thud!
Mikel said incredulously, only to get elbowed by Flora beside her and shot her a glare.
But as Flora defiantly met her gaze with a scrunched-up face, Mikel sighed softly, mumbling what she had intended to say.
“…I’ve never heard of southerners eating magic stones before…”
‘Even if they call me a barbarian, I don’t really care.’
But that was simply because he wasn’t a genuine southerner, so he didn’t say much to them.
As Harley’s significance grew within the party, receiving consideration even for these trivial details wasn’t an unpleasant feeling.
“If that’s the case, I don’t mind. Once we go back, I’ll ensure we’ll receive some compensation for the needed expenses.”
“Oooh—! As expected, the knight is quite generous!”
Once everyone had agreed, time passed, and a well-prepared campsite was set up.
‘Huh?’
Harley’s expression changed subtly as he looked at the magic stones he had gathered.
He naturally expected the orc magic stones to be filled with madness, but something about the quantity there seemed off.
It’s not completely absent, but…
“…Can I get my share mostly from the recent catches?”
“Hm? I suppose that’s fine. But is there a special reason?”
“Ah! Naturally, fresh ones taste better and have more potent effects! Ha ha ha!”
It appeared that, overall, there was significantly less madness contained within the orc magic stones than he initially felt.
Some even had nearly none left at all.
‘…Once the host dies, does its utility value dissipate and disperse back into the air?’
And then, it would presumably become seeds to generate new madness within other monsters.
“Well, that works.”
As soon as the distribution was completed, without hesitation, he grabbed a handful of magic stones and brought them straight to his mouth.
Creeeak, crunch—!
“Uh… ugh…!”
Ignoring the astonished gazes of everyone, Harley busily chewed on the magic stones with a thrilling gluttony.
The energy that had waned started to swell back up again…
Thump—!
New sprouts of madness began to shoot up within him like weeds in the rain.
*
In a space icy enough to freeze even souls dwelled an aura of chilling ghostliness.
Even though it was an ordinary mountain, not a graveyard, the atmosphere there was eerie enough to feel like a magic realm.
[…Girl, will you… pledge your loyalty to the King…?]
A woman’s sobbing, ghostly wail reverberated all around.
At the same time, the surrounding air trembled, and thousands of ghosts bowed in worship simultaneously.
Whooosh—
Phantoms, wraiths, specters, and other various types gathered in a semi-transparent form, emanating a sinister energy that, in their presence alone, could drop the temperature below freezing.
‘This is quite a spectacle.’
Ignoring the surreal situation, Hans calmly admired the view, gazing down upon them.
The one who stepped forward to represent the ghosts was the Banshee Queen, adorned with a neatly styled hair and a dark veiled hat, dressed in what resembled mourning apparel…
She was also someone who had once held a high-ranking position in the Undead Army.
[Well done, Olivia. You gathered much more than expected.]
[As per the King’s command… I focused on minimizing conflict with humans… and gathering the children together…]
Due to the nature of ghostly beings, they were overwhelmingly advantageous for stealthy movement.
They faced severe damage from energies like magical or holy power, but during situations like now, when avoiding conflict and clustering in one spot was necessary, those were remarkable advantages.
Hans observed the Banshee Queen Olivia who stood respectfully before him.
The pale-skinned lady clad in black mourning attire was a distinguished figure known for her beautiful features contrasted against her horrific powers.
Much like Entrasio and Karam, she was documented in historical texts.
‘She possesses skills specialized for mass slaughter. Any unprepared individual lacking spiritual defenses could die instantly just from hearing her curse-laden wails.’
Her notorious fame rose sharply when a city, unable to effectively prevent her infiltration, suffered the massacre of tens of thousands of citizens—a significant event heavily documented in records related to undead kings throughout history.
But her true worth did not solely lie in her battle capabilities.
[Olivia. There is something you must do.]
[My King… Whatever it may be… I shall fulfill it with utmost dedication…]
Hans casually glanced at a dazed group of humans who were drooling vacantly.
They stared blankly into space—members affiliated with the Oath of Reversal.
He had temporarily set aside gathering the undead army, knowing that once he truly set his mind to it, it would only be a matter of time before he located them.
An average-level barrier would not escape from the clutches of his overwhelming dark magic combined with the “Eye of the Abyss.”
The ones here were simply rounded up while he collected the undead.
‘It’s indeed a labor-intensive process, and the same goes for my lack of leisure time.’
He had only superficially organized the urgently needed area in the western continent; the undeads in other regions were still not fully gathered.
As the continent descended into chaos, the “undead” that were his would continue to diminish.
While he could manage the general members easily, losing high-ranking officers was far too lamentable a loss.
‘In such a situation, acquiring Olivia was a major gain.’
The ghosts were unbound by physical constraints, and they could freely traverse any unprotected area.
And Olivia, who commanded all those entities…
Was responsible for overseeing all the information needed for war against the continent, making her the information chief under the Undead King.
[This lot belongs here.]
Hans looked at the dark magicians and continued speaking.
Through a slight sensory check using the “Eye of the Abyss,” they had been lightly damaged, but he intentionally adjusted it, so their lives were unharmed.
[Extract all you can about them.]
[I shall obey… Set a definite objective… I will do my utmost to achieve it…]
[Hehehe— Of course… ]
Hans ominously chuckled as he spread his arms wide.
The surrounding air trembled violently, and darkness, like an abyss, seemed to swallow the world.
[Absolute obedience.]
What he desired was soldiers ready to act faithfully according to his commands.
Those who complied would gain a temporary reprieve, but for those who chose not to follow to the end, there would be nothing but death.
No mercy was needed for them.
[As the King wishes… ]
The overwhelming intimidation behind the Undead King’s declaration made Banshee Queen Olivia bow again respectfully.
And she slowly approached the still-dazed dark magicians to commence her task.
After some time, thousands of ghosts—silently spread out into the world.
