#103
Escape from the Mountains (1)
Four days since Harley and his party entered the Northern Mountain Range.
After yet another battle, Harley brought the magic stone he had just acquired to his mouth.
“Smash everything, rip it apart, let’s kill them all!”
Crack! Munch, munch—
Ignoring the impulse of madness ringing in his head as usual, he diligently chewed and swallowed it.
Having steadily consumed magic stones over time, he was now seeing some significant results.
His metabolism had ramped up, and correspondingly, his physical abilities had increased.
As a side effect, his eyes were bloodshot and the veins on his body were swelling excessively, manifesting outwardly, but…
For Harley, who could control his entire body with “Physical Transformation,” such changes were nothing.
If he hadn’t had this ability, he would have been showing symptoms similar to the monsters scattered throughout the mountains by now.
“Damn, they really don’t give us a breather. How many times is this now?”
“Cah-hah! Sorry to complain while you’re grumbling, but another group is approaching! Thanks to the barrier, they don’t seem to have noticed us, but if we stay here, we’ll run into them soon.”
“…At this rate, there’s really no time to rest.”
The deeper they went, the higher the chance of encountering monsters, and their level was rising, making it increasingly difficult to move forward.
Once again, they hurriedly moved, only able to wash off the blood scent on their bodies with cleansing magical equipment.
Charlton, the ranger from the Steel Fortress, was doing his best to erase the traces of their movement from behind, but that was a pretty risky action…
Once the magic was lifted, they would be surrounded by the monsters swarming in from all directions, so it was unavoidable.
To avoid endless battles, the best course of action was to leave as quickly as possible.
“It seems there are quite a few in that direction. The distance…”
“…Then it’s better to go this way. Everyone, follow carefully.”
If it hadn’t been for Harley’s sensing ability and Marcus’s skilled guidance, they wouldn’t have made it this far.
“Marcus, are we still far from the destination? I think you said we were almost there earlier, but it’s getting dark.”
Fabiella, looking pale from continuous forced marches, was lamenting.
No matter how much he trained, as a wizard, he naturally had less stamina than others, and frequent use of magic had begun to drain his mana, so it was understandable.
Then, Marcus, who had been quietly leading the way, took out a magical device that looked like a pocket watch and checked inside, turning back to the party with a slightly brightened expression.
“We’re near. We’re almost there.”
Hoo… “Finally, I’ll get to see that famous face. Goodness, even for a dwarf, it’s quite a gathering to rescue one craftsman.”
Mikel whispered softly while keeping an eye on the surroundings with his crossbow.
As she said, even though only a few were mobilized due to the nature of the mission, those present were no cheap labor.
They were all top talents of the Tarak mercenary guild.
Yet, on top of that high price, various additional allowances were presented, and knights from the territory were mobilized as well.
‘Well, Robin is said to be commoner born.’
The party, having faced adversity together, had the chance to share various stories during their camping.
Though he didn’t go into detail, they managed to grasp a rough understanding of the situation thanks to him…
‘He said he was the head craftsman of the territory, which had ties with the previous lord. Well, if that’s the case, this amount of fees isn’t anything significant.’
Weapons tended to see their prices skyrocket as their class increased.
In that regard, he was a distinguished individual who couldn’t be compared to a mere amount of money or a commoner knight.
If monster prevention hadn’t been more urgent, there would have been a more extensive rescue operation planned.
It was the chaos that had initially caused the dwarf to become isolated.
“We have arrived. This is it.”
Finally, they could arrive at the location indicated by the magical device.
“Hmm…”
A brief silence followed.
The party cautiously tapped the ground around them.
“…There’s nothing here—no cave or anything. Where could it be? First, we need to find the entrance…”
In that moment.
Rustle, rustle—
The roots of a tree growing nearby began to tremble.
Boom!
“Oh! You’re here already! You came sooner than I expected.”
As the ground opened up, a hairy face popped out.
*
“I came to mine minerals, but suddenly all this chaos happened! I’ve been in and out of these mountains a few times, but this time it was absolutely impossible to escape by myself!”
Following the dwarf, the party entered the cave and couldn’t help but be surprised by the unexpectedly cozy underground space.
‘I heard he was only isolated for about a week.’
The ample space they all entered was well-kept, and several air holes dotted the ceiling interwoven with tree roots.
Plus, there were dirt beds and workbenches on one side, along with various knickknacks.
“Oh, this? I didn’t have anything to do while waiting, so I fiddled with a few things and it ended up like this! I’m glad I expanded it in advance! Ha-ha-ha—!”
The dwarf, Jaonick Steelstone, burst into cheerful laughter at the surprised expressions of the party.
Since the room was already protected by high-grade barriers set up with magical devices he had brought, they didn’t have to worry about being detected by monsters outside even if they made some noise.
‘If it can fool my senses, they must be quite expensive.’
Even knowing he was hiding nearby, Harley could only sense a slight oddness, but couldn’t pinpoint their exact location.
If he had been given a little more time, he might have figured it out, but the monsters that knew nothing at all would just stroll on by without noticing.
“By the way, are you okay? I didn’t think such a big friend would come, and I didn’t pay much attention to the entrance passage.”
“Hmm— Just a few scratches on the dirt wall; my skin isn’t that weak. Don’t worry about it! Ha-ha-ha—!”
Jaonick spoke to Harley with concern, but squeezing through the narrow passage was truly no big deal.
Instead, the firmly packed passage just got scratched up against his body.
“Ah! Bordeaux, Hans. You’re both alive!”
At that moment, Charlton, who had been quietly following them, brightened as he headed towards the dirt beds.
Naturally, Jaonick wasn’t in the mountains alone.
Two other rangers from the Steel Fortress who had accompanied him were also in this space.
“Ah! Charlton, you’re here!”
“Senpai….”
But one of them didn’t look too well…
Unlike the one who warmly greeted Charlton, the ranger wrapped in bandages was struggles to rise from the bed.
“Whew— I got a shoulder injury while responding and taking action first when the strange situation suddenly erupted.”
As the party looked towards the rangers, Jaonick scratched the back of his head and explained the situation.
“I gave him a potion and took immediate measures, so it isn’t too serious. He’ll be able to recover without any aftereffects in a few months.”
But that was premised on this being a safe location.
In the Northern Mountain Range, which could be considered the center of the monster frenzy, that was far from the case.
Considering the current situation, having injuries bad enough to limit movement was a grave threat to one’s life.
“Hans! Are you okay? Can you move?”
“Yes, it’s not my legs, so I have no problem with climbing the mountain. Don’t worry about me.”
With a resolution not to become a burden, the ranger Hans nodded sincerely.
And as he watched their demeanor, Harley… frowned deeply with his arms crossed, lost in thought.
‘Hans…’
Well, he knew it was a common name.
In fact, during his time in Auterica, he had run into several people sharing that name.
He looked at ‘Ordinary Soldier #1,’ Hans, who was sitting back down on his bed.
‘…This just won’t do.’
And he was once again convinced.
The name of the Undead King recorded in history must not be Hans!
The village youth, the village chief, the carpenter, the blacksmith, the farmer—he had encountered more than ten Hans so far.
Excluding the Undead King Hans, who could be considered the best output among them, the injured ranger Hans standing there could be said to be the second-most extraordinary situation available.
‘Becoming the best Hans among Hans isn’t bad either, but it still lacks impact.’
While Harley was deep in serious contemplation, trying to interpret the situation of the rangers, Jaonick raised his arm high and patted his waist.
“Well, Hans can move around, and he’s part of the elite rangers. Plus, such excellent warriors came to help as well, so it should work out somehow! Ha-ha-ha—!”
“Hmm? Aah! That’s right. If his name is Hans, he should be able to overcome this level of hardship! Ha-ha-ha—!”
“Ha-ha-ha… hm?”
“Ha-ha-ha-ha—!”
As their somewhat off-kilter conversation and laughter continued for a moment, they decided to rest for a day in this place and left the next day.
Being an underground cave protected by various high-grade barriers, only one lookout was needed at a time, unlike the usual camping arrangement.
‘Even if there is a barrier, you never know what might happen, so a lookout is a must.’
However, no one complained since it was a far better situation than when they had to set up shifts in pairs with one person being excluded, especially with the wizard, Fabiella.
The calm night passed, and finally, the day of the great escape dawned.
*
Talia Kingdom, Bright Duke’s Family.
Heinz II was, as usual, examining the documents that had come in from various places to grasp the situation on the continent.
With Hans acquiring the banshee queen Olivia, a new information-gathering route was added, but that didn’t mean Heinz’s work was reduced.
Low-level undead ghosts, inherently unable to engage in complex thoughts, followed orders without question, merely acting as directed.
While Olivia’s remarkable ability to compile high-level information from the fragmented facts gathered by her underlings was impressive enough, she still had her limitations.
She was exceptionally competent in tracking real-time information from the battlefield, troop movements, and the actions of shady factions, but for insights into national and political affairs, it was much easier to rely on the power of the Brokoslac Clan.
‘Well, each has its strengths and weaknesses. It’s my job to synthesize all the information.’
Cross-referencing facts coming in from various places for reliability was a fundamental aspect of the process.
While he was sorting through the newly acquired information, he heard a knock.
“Heinz-nim.”
With the knock came the voice of Mulo Brokoslac.
“Come in. What is it?”
When Heinz lifted his gaze from the paperwork, Mulo had already entered the office, bowing respectfully before speaking.
“A report just came in that the monsters have begun their movements.”
Hmm… “So it has come to this.”
Mulo was also coordinating with the vampires scattered across various locations with Blood Magic, informing them of urgent intel relayed from his end.
It seemed he’d received information from those dispatched to the Forest of Monsters.
“With two Truebloods present, it shouldn’t be too dangerous. Just relay to them to intervene without overexerting themselves, enough to keep the army guarding the forest from taking too much damage.”
“Yes, understood. But it’s not just there…”
Hmm?
Under Heinz’s questioning gaze, Mulo continued calmly.
“Monsters have also started moving down from the Northern Mountain Range in full force.”
The beginning of the anticipated chaos.
