After the invasion of the capital (3)
Somewhere in the vast Northern Mountain Range, swarming with monsters.
There sat a figure, frowning as they stroked the fur of a bear-like creature the size of a house.
“…What the heck is going on?”
The leader of the Oath of Reversal, who had vanished after toppling the Rohan Principality, reflected seriously on the information relayed to him.
“A wager between the hero and the Undead King? A three-year deferment? What nonsense!”
In the end, he couldn’t trust the information relayed to him and went through the verification process again.
He thought there might have been issues with his information network due to going into hiding.
But no matter how many times he verified, the result was the same…
The Undead King was not focused on engulfing the continent in death; instead, he was simply enjoying a game for amusement.
And that was utterly absurd.
“I had my suspicions when he started acting strangely, deviating from the initial expectations…”
His face scrunched up tightly.
Until then, he thought the Undead King would devise a different method, but seeing how things were flowing now, it seemed that he had completely overcome the influence stemming from the Abyss.
“That’s impossible. There’s no one who can overcome the Abyss.”
It was a force that applied to all beings in this world, and if that being were, ‘a human,’ it would be as if there were unchangeable laws.
“Could it be that the Undead King wasn’t human in life? No, no. That’s not the real issue. Even if he were a different species, it wouldn’t make a big difference.”
There was one question that all beings in this world shared.
[Why do humans worship the Holy God?]
Of course, it wasn’t about denying the existence of the Holy God or belittling his authority.
It was merely a question in the truest sense.
Each race had their own religion.
The elves worshipped the ‘World Tree’ that rose in the center of the Enamel Continent, while the dwarves revered the ‘God of Fire and Metal.’
Beastmen had indigenous religions dedicated to animal gods representing each of them, but those were ultimately merely fragments of ‘the beast god.’
Of course, not all the races followed only their respective religions.
There were also a few minor sects that had spread among humans, such as the God of the Sea or the God of the Earth.
But even those had roots that originated from their own race deities.
But why didn’t humans have such a race deity?
It was undoubtedly a puzzling matter, yet few questioned it.
“It’s just how it’s always been… everyone thinks that way.”
The Creator, the Holy God, was almost a colossal concept or law that mortals could not dictate.
This meant that normally, he wouldn’t interfere with the world, bestowing holy power and blessings according to belief.
What he was doing now was merely to prevent errors from occurring in the world, simply taking over a task someone had previously performed.
Yes, there was certainly a god for humans too.
Although erased from history and even causality by the Holy God, remnants of its existence no longer remained.
He undoubtedly existed in this world.
“I have no choice. I feel bad for Balteon, but I’ll take the madness for myself. Now that death has escaped its fate, I can no longer leave it to others.”
The revolutionary clicked his tongue, thinking of the large warrior who would now be busy in the south.
In some ways, he was the one who had helped the Oath of Reversal the most, but now wasn’t the time to be sympathetic to anyone else.
He rose from the bear-like creature he had been sitting on and slowly made his way toward the nearby scar of the Abyss.
As he did, a blood-red light suddenly flared in the creature’s eyes, and with a fierce roar, it dashed off into the forest, disappearing.
“For the sake of humanity’s god.”
Leaving behind a quiet remark, he plunged his body into the scar.
He was the only apostle of the now non-existent ‘Human God’ and a revolutionary devoted to the restoration of the god exiled to the Abyss of Auterica.
*
The essence of what the secretary-general of the mercenary guild, Patrick, said to Harley was simple.
“In other words, you handle the rest yourself, and I just need to focus on my reputation. Like, widely throughout the entire continent.”
They discussed various topics, but in the end, that was the gist.
Right now, Harley wasn’t well-known for his skills, so he needed a boost in reputation.
Of course, during his time as a mercenary, he had handled several missions that could be called exceptional, and recently made a big splash during the monster madness incident…
But that fame was limited to the western continent, particularly the northern region of the Tulk Kingdom.
“Well, to be honest, Harley’s mercenary career hasn’t even lasted a year yet.”
Time was also a crucial factor in spreading fame.
His competitors, other candidates for the Mercenary King title, had all steadily built their names over a long period to reach their current status.
Their strength also reached master level, sufficient for them to be called idols of mercenaries, so from an objective standpoint, the experience gap felt considerable.
“If it comes to fighting directly, I’m confident I could smash them all!”
But with such reckless methods, the public sentiment he could earn would come at a great cost.
No matter how much might mattered in certain factions, becoming the head of a guild that wasn’t a small entity, but rather a continent-wide organization, needed a more refined approach.
While it was true that the age-old tradition of “crashing dojos” appealed to him, there was, fortunately for Harley, a better alternative.
Kwaaaang—!
An explosive sound erupted, accompanied by a rising black pillar of fire.
“Uaaagh!”
“W-What are those bastards thinking, attacking here of all places?!”
The notorious and merciless ruling family of the Sharotti Kingdom, the Beowin Count family, was engulfed in flames from an unknown group’s sudden attack.
Thousands of undead troops poured in on all sides, surrounding the lord’s castle like a flood.
“Krheeheeek! Everything is according to his will! Through death, I shall purify this world!”
The attackers, leading the assault, were igniting their own life force with surging black magic.
Their intentions, seemingly without regard for survival from the start, precipitated chaos throughout the domain.
In fact, such attacks were not limited to this area.
For some reason, the dark forces that had gone missing for a while began to emerge one by one from a certain moment onward.
Their power, cultivated through years of living in the shadows, was no joke.
Especially since the current situation was already chaotic due to the monsters.
In such a scenario, those who used their very lives as tools to attack with cunning did considerable harm.
Pah!
However, even amidst this chaos, there were those actively resisting the terrorist acts—
“Phew, this time we arrived all at once. Thankfully, it doesn’t seem too late.”
“You seem to be getting more skilled. No matter how great a great sorcerer is, moving such a number over long distances isn’t easy.”
“That just means I’ve been using it often, which isn’t a good sign. It indicates just how dire the situation is.”
The four figures who appeared with a bright halo of light were indeed those individuals.
“Hahaha! How long are we going to keep chatting? I’ll be the first to jump in!”
“…I’ll go too.”
A muscular giant wielding a massive axe and a grim-faced middle-aged man with a spear were the first to drive into enemy lines like lightning.
“C-Cut them down first!”
“W-What the heck?! Their magic doesn’t work?! What kind of monsters are these?!”
“Krhhaha! Where do you think you’re running off to? Get over here!”
The first to charge, Harley, disregarded every attack with his powerful anti-magic drawn from dragon scales, swinging the enormous axe repeatedly…
Swish— Swish!
“Puhihit! Just die already… Cough!”
“Uaaagh! Save me… huh? I-I’m alive?”
The spear-wielding gray-haired man quickly maneuvered through space, rescuing those in peril.
“We need to reduce the number of undead for now. To lead such a large assault suggests that the Undead King intervened directly.”
Woosh—! Kaaang!
Then, an enormous mana erupted from Isea, manifesting a mystery that swiftly swept away hundreds of undead in one go.
“C-Could it be that they have foresight? To arrive this quickly!”
The dark sorcerer, their leader, gritted his teeth at the sight of over a hundred followers and thousands of undead soldiers melting away like snow in real-time.
He had both expected their arrival from the start and had no plans to live, but their display exceeded his expectations, leaving him anxious.
“Is this my grave then?”
But no matter what, he couldn’t just die like this without leaving a trace of his existence in this world!
Gooooo—
He immediately ignited his life force and forced a surge of power from his heart, preparing a great spell he wouldn’t normally be able to use.
To taint everything in this area with death, trading his own soul for it.
“Krheehee! You filthy entitled scum. Remember this well! Our resistance does not end here. Death is a value that knows no distinctions! I will create a world of equality without discrimination…”
“I’m well aware of your ideology, but—”
However, his curses toward the world as he prepared his magic were cut short unexpectedly…
Fwoosh—
“Hack—!”
“Stop with the pointless chatter.”
“N-No… there was a barrier…”
Suddenly, Heinrich had approached and plunged a holy sword deep into his heart.
Of course, he had indeed set up various defenses, but with his level, he couldn’t hope to withstand the anti-black magic of the “Blessing: Radiant Blade.”
Subsequently, the light injected through the holy sword embedded in his heart engulfed the wicked magic swirling within the dark sorcerer, ultimately reducing him to ash without any resistance.
And after a brief moment…
“Waaaa—!”
“I-I’m alive!”
Though they were only four, it didn’t take long for them to eliminate thousands of foes.
Regrettably, by the time the whole situation came to an end, most of the ruling family had lost their lives during the surprise attack.
“May the Holy God’s kindness be with them.”
Heinrich offered a brief moment of silence before pretending not to see the citizens quietly looting the lord’s castle, hurriedly tending to the injured.
“Oh~ Holy one, you’ve saved us and even healing us. Thank you so much!”
“Thank you! Thank you!”
“It’s nothing. Helping those in need is a duty for those who follow the Holy God.”
“That’s quite the noble mindset! Just as expected of the Holy Church’s Heinrich!”
“Oh, I’m embarrassed. You’ve worked hard too, Harley.”
Thus, they accumulated recognition among the locals, utilizing Harley to finish the task of engraving their names, before regrouping to move to another location.
Such elite personnel could hardly afford to spend too much time in one place.
‘By the way, he really is quite capable. His abilities and character checked out when he was selected. …And considering those circumstances too.’
Heinrich glanced at the gray-haired man with blue eyes holding a spear, Geos Kalchin, nodding slightly.
Geos was a powerful figure who had voluntarily come to join after hearing news about the hero party, and a few reasons guided his selection for the party.
First and foremost, his abilities.
The fact that a pure aura user, who hadn’t even reached transcendence, could strike attacks that surpassed spatial boundaries meant that the techniques he mastered were exceptionally unique.
…Temptingly so.
He had established his own system and perfected his energy, standing at the pinnacle of that path.
In other dimensions, he would be referred to as a Sword Master or someone who reached a transformative state, with his natural energy activation vastly enhancing all abilities, especially in direct application.
The density of the energy he inherently possessed was so distinct that it could not be imitated.
And at the end of that growth, he had finally broken through his limits as a being and transcended.
He could tear through space with a sword, instigate phenomena with sheer will, and read even causality effortlessly.
As everyone transcended in different ways, it couldn’t be defined precisely in one word.
For instance, Cornwell, the captain of the Imperial Guard, possessed the ability to cut through everything, even the energy of the Abyss like chopping straw.
‘In that sense, it’s an incredibly appealing technique. I should find a way to casually bring it up someday.’
Perhaps that wouldn’t be too difficult.
The second reason for accepting Geos was due to his personal history.
‘He was caught up in the sacrificial incident that’s believed to have been triggered by the Undead King’s actions in opening the Abyss…’
He was a noble of the Resk Kingdom, but much like Isea, had obtained that status entirely through merit.
Being a commoner and orphan, he had harbored deep affection for his wife and children, but tragically, they had fallen victim to fate.
Thus, his motivation to join the hero party was driven not by a sense of duty but purely by a desire for vengeance against the Undead King.
Heinrich simply couldn’t refuse him, seeing a desperate plea in his eyes that had lost the will to live, seeking an opportunity for revenge.
‘…It’s oddly similar to my own situation.’
Of course, he would assuredly aid him to exact that vengeance.
Among those he had just slain, many belonged to the Oath of Reversal, and he wouldn’t cease until the orchestras of that tragedy were eliminated.
“Now, let’s move. Please resist against the magic.”
Woouuung—!
The endless flow of Isea’s mana enveloped their surroundings.
And finally, they vanished from the Beowin Count territory of the Sharotti Kingdom.
The smaller-scale skirmishes were handled with foresight, allowing for preparations, and even though only the hero party took direct action against large-scale invasions, the situation remained frenetic.
However, proportionally, the fame of Hero Heinrich and his comrades was gradually spreading throughout the continent.
