Episode 101 Northern Mountains (2)
The undead unrest in the four western kingdoms of the continent was gradually subsiding.
Of course, it wasn't because they handled the situation well, but rather because the situation unfolded unexpectedly.
Immediately after the Immortal King openly revealed his presence and sent a signal, the undead, who had been acting according to their leader's personality, attacking humans or hiding in remote areas, all started to move in unison.
The immortal army, who were able to identify each other's locations through replies, started to avoid fights as much as possible and gather with nearby groups, following the king's order.
'Of course, there were some clashes with humans and groups that were completely eliminated in the process.'
But the army that succeeded in gathering to some extent was able to grow to a size that was burdensome for a single territory's forces to handle.
The kingdoms were on high alert, watching the undead's movements, summoning their armies, and so on, but…
They disappeared without a trace.
Immortal King Hans personally visited and collected them all before disappearing.
So even though the humans were freed from the threat of the undead, they couldn't relax.
They hadn't been eliminated, and the enemy had retreated after gathering their scattered forces.
How could they let their guard down when they didn't know when or where that large army might target them?
'And now the monsters are causing trouble.'
And it wasn't just an ordinary commotion, but a continental-scale disaster.
And among them, the Tulk Kingdom was especially troubled because it bordered the northern mountains, which were even called the paradise of monsters.
They had to do their best to defend the north, but they also had to prepare for the Immortal King's surprise attack.
That was the reason why they were trying to borrow the power of mercenaries in Tarak, promising them the best rewards.
'Hans has no intention of backstabbing them… but they don't know that.'
And in the midst of that, Harley received a separate designated request.
So he was currently at Tarak's central government office to meet the client.
Of course, he didn't accept it just because he was pressured by the lord's name.
It was just that…
'The mission area was also the northern mountains.'
There was a high probability that he would be given a more dangerous task than just blocking monsters like the others, but he didn't care about the danger.
'The destination is the same, the reward is much better, and there's no need to offend the ruler of this region, so it's better to accept it. I'm also curious about what's going on in this situation.'
After waiting for a while at the government office, Harley was finally able to meet the client.
Of course, it wasn't the lord himself.
They had used the lord's name to emphasize the importance of the request, but there was no way someone in that position would personally meet a mere mercenary and entrust him with a task.
"…I've heard a lot about you. You're very, big."
The client he met was a knight in his thirties with a stoic expression.
"And above all… very unique."
He couldn't help but comment on Harley's appearance, seemingly dumbfounded.
'Well, I'm used to that reaction.'
A muscular giant over two meters tall, bare-chested, wearing a monster head helmet, covered in tattoos, and with one green glowing eye, heterochromia.
The knight was speechless for a moment at his unforgettable appearance, then cleared his throat and continued.
"Hmm, so you're Harley. You're a very famous mercenary, right?"
"Hahaha! This is embarrassing! Well, it's true that I'm famous!"
As someone who came for a request in this city full of mercenaries, he didn't seem to mind Harley's usual rude behavior.
"Let's get down to business. The reason I designated you is that we need someone who knows the northern mountains well."
"Hmm… I'm not very good at finding my way. I can do it if I have to, but if you need a guide, it would be better to find someone else."
He didn't plan his route through the mountains, but rather, he just tore apart the monsters blocking his path with his monstrous strength and power and hunted wherever he went.
He could find his way in the forest, but he wasn't at a level where he would be hired as a guide through a designated request.
"Ah, don't worry about that. We've already sent requests to other mercenaries as well. We've already hired one of the best guides in Tarak."
"Oh! If that's the case… But then wouldn't I be unnecessary? Wouldn't they be enough?"
"Someone who knows the northern mountains like the back of their hand, who frequently completes high-level requests that require going deep into the mountains, and who can even handle high-ranking monsters that are difficult for parties to handle alone."
The knight looked at Harley at his seemingly probing words and slowly continued.
"Is there anyone else in Tarak who's more qualified?"
"As expected, there's no one but me! Hahaha—!"
Harley laughed nonchalantly, but the knight continued speaking without changing his expression, as if he was used to it.
"That was a long introduction. To the point. Location: inside the northern mountains, deadline: as soon as possible, type: rescue mission, target: Zaonic Steelstone."
"Zaonic Steelstone?"
'Who's that?'
As if he could read his mind, the knight paused for a moment and then slowly opened his mouth.
"Special note: he's a blacksmith affiliated with the territory. And his race is… Dwarf."
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Since it was a request directly from the territory, things progressed rapidly.
The necessary items for the mission were already prepared, and his companions started to gather one by one.
The rescue target also seemed to be no ordinary person, as he had sent a message requesting rescue through a magic tool after digging a hole and hiding as soon as he sensed the anomaly.
It wasn't an urgent situation because he had enough emergency rations, but they didn't know what might happen in that dangerous area.
And so, Harley entered the northern mountains with a group of six companions as soon as the preparations were complete.
About a day passed.
"Ugh— Tsk! Damn it, did that guy really have to climb the mountain even in this situation?"
"Well, he didn't know things would turn out like this. It's not like it's the first time a Dwarf has been obsessed with rare minerals."
After another battle ended.
The female mercenary armed with a crossbow, Mikel, spat on the ground and complained, and the middle-aged man who was guiding them through the mountain path from the front soothed her.
"But something big is definitely happening. I've been coming and going here for over ten years, but I've never seen anything like this. All the information about monster boundaries and habitats I've gathered is useless now."
The middle-aged mercenary, Marcus, who was leading the group again, lamented softly.
They were acutely feeling the abnormality in the monsters, even though it had only been a day since they entered the mountains.
There used to be some rules and the ecosystem was maintained, but now there was no trace of that.
And they had been trying to avoid battles as much as possible by applying an unidentified juice all over their bodies to conceal their scent and dealing with them quickly and stealthily when it was unavoidable, but they were reaching their limit.
"Wait, they're coming again."
Everyone held their breath at Harley's quiet words.
"How many?"
"…Quite a lot? It seems like there are at least thirty… Oh no, they're coming straight towards us. It seems like they sensed the traces of the previous battle."
Everyone frowned at his words.
They had been careful, but it seemed like it wasn't enough to fool the monsters, whose senses had become even more developed due to the changes.
"Do you know what kind they are?"
"Hmm, their size is similar to Orcs."
Everyone now trusted Harley's detection ability, which they had initially been skeptical of.
It was only natural because…
It had already happened several times today, and his warnings had never been wrong.
Shing—
"It can't be helped. We have no choice but to eliminate them quickly and leave."
The knight, Robin, who was wearing leather armor, slowly drew his sword and spoke with a stoic expression, just like when he delivered the mission details.
'That guy is also amazing. I thought he was just going to deliver the request, but he's personally participating in the operation.'
Of course, there was also a veteran Ranger from the Iron Fortress in the group, but he didn't expect a knight to join them, even wearing leather armor.
And in such a dangerous operation.
Monsters consumed by madness were extremely aggressive and didn't die easily, and this was their home turf, the northern mountains.
They had been trying to eliminate them quickly and leave, but…
That would also reach its limit as they went deeper into the mountains and the monster density increased.
"I'll deploy a concealment barrier. Please eliminate them as quickly as possible once they're completely inside."
The mercenary mage, Fabiella, frowned, as if his magic power was starting to be strained from frequent use.
He was quite famous in Tarak because he had trained his body to a considerable level despite being a mage, and he was keeping up well with the rough mountain trek, living up to his reputation.
"…They're here!"
Harley's warning followed.
But this time, everyone could tell even without his words.
Thump, thump, thump—!
"Kuwooooh—!"
"Kraaaagh!"
The ground shook, and the roars of the monsters, who had lost their minds, echoed, without any attempt to conceal their sound.
The battle began as soon as the Orcs, consumed by madness, entered the concealment barrier's area.
Whoosh— Thud!
It started with bolts and arrows flying in from behind.
And Harley, who was standing at the front with the knight Robin and the taciturn swordsman Flora, as usual…
"Hahaha—! Let's play!"
Boom!
He kicked off the ground, laughing, and charged towards them head-on with his bare hands.
The explosive power emanating from his glowing tattoos and writhing muscles instantly brought him before the Orcs consumed by madness…
Crack!
Snap!
His monstrous strength was enough to snap their necks one by one.
His appearance, dodging the weapons of the madly charging Orcs, engaging in hand-to-hand combat, and carefully snapping their necks one by one, almost looked like a scene of sacred labor…
"Hahaha!"
The barbaric savage's ferocious laughter and actions were just a scene of one-sided violence.
"…I don't know who the real monster is. How is that even possible?"
"I've seen it several times, but I still can't get used to it."
Even his companions who were fighting alongside him were stunned by his appearance.
Harley was showing with his entire being why he was 'the untouchable' in Tarak's mercenary world.
At first, it was a fighting method he started to avoid emitting the scent of blood as much as possible, but combined with Harley's monstrous physique, it was no less effective than fighting with weapons.
The Orcs, who were hit by him and had their neck joints' range of motion exceeded one after another.
But he wasn't just fighting mindlessly.
'This is strange. I've been feeling something tickling me whenever I fight monsters lately.'
It was very distracting, the feeling of something scratching him that he couldn't detect even with his senses enhanced by bio-aura or tattoos, or even with his instincts engraved in his wildness.
Thump—!
"Kraaagh!"
Harley continued to smash the Orc's head, kick its abdomen, and strike its chin with his elbow while thinking.
And then, at some point,
Was it because he was too focused?
Stab—!
His fingertips, which had sharpened in an instant, dug into the heart of an Orc.
"Ah."
He had been fighting bare-handed to avoid splattering blood, but he instinctively delivered the most fatal attack, perhaps because of "Wildness" activating unconsciously.
Fortunately, he still had some rationality left, so only his fingertips had transformed slightly, and he didn't reveal "Physical Transformation" to the others, but his arms were covered in blood, making all his efforts meaningless.
"Tsk—"
Harley clicked his tongue and pulled his hand out.
He was already holding a magic stone that had been embedded in the Orc's heart.
'It can't be helped now that it's done. I can just wipe the blood off.'
More importantly, his energy was also gradually depleting.
He might as well use it since he already had it.
Harley casually put the magic stone in his mouth.
Crunch!
At that moment,
Thump—!
His heart pounded violently.
The blood flow throughout his body started to flow rapidly.
The energy he had been feeling ticklish, became clearer the moment he consumed the Orc's magic stone.
'What's this all of a sudden?'
As his senses expanded, he was able to understand what he hadn't been able to before.
'…Don't tell me? This is…'
What spread throughout the world and covered the sky, what melted into the air and enveloped their surroundings, what dwelled in the Orcs with bloodshot eyes charging at them.
And… what was starting to sprout in Harley's body now.
Yes, it was…
'Madness'.