Change of plans.
Originally, I was going to engage in a decent scuffle until it became unbearable, and then escape through summon release if necessary...
"Um, excuse me..."
An elf girl sought by the Elven Kingdom and the Divine Sect.
'Can I make use of this situation?'
In an instant, thoughts raced through my mind.
Elevating Halle's reputation, Heinrich had the opportunity to gain favor with the sect.
"Um! My name is Halle. By the way, miss, you want to get out of here, right?"
"Yes!"
The scent of dark magic grew stronger.
A massive number of enemies were pouring out from inside the cave.
"Well, excuse me for a moment!"
"Huh? Wha!"
With an axe hanging on one hand and Cecily on his hip,
Halle turned and ran, muscles bulging as his body accelerated explosively.
"Hoo!"
Cecily hung on Halle's hip, eyes tightly closed.
She still clutched branches in her arms.
"By the way, miss, what's that branch? Something precious?"
As they moved quickly toward the entrance, Halle took the opportunity to ask.
It didn't seem particularly special at first glance.
"Huh? Oh, this is... a branch from the World Tree. Thanks to it, I could safely escape from inside to here!"
She answered sincerely, even as the wind hit her face, wrinkling her expression.
In the midst of a ceremony, where Heinrich wondered how Halle managed to escape from the intense situation of a dark sorcerer's lair, it seemed the World Tree had played a role.
He didn't know how the branch, which was an offering, ended up in her hands.
'Come to think of it, the situation was urgent, so I overlooked it, but she obediently follows, quite submissive.'
From the first meeting until now, Cecily had been consistently friendly toward him, even in a situation where caution was necessary.
A muscular, bare-chested woman encountered in the lair of a dark sorcerer, with blood dripping from various parts of her body and a pair of axes in both hands.
'Phew, even I would be frightened.'
Of course, it was a style that personally satisfied me, but objectively, I was aware that it didn't look very aesthetically pleasing.
In that situation, she seemed a bit disheartened, and I recalled something about receiving guidance from the World Tree once she qualified as a High Elf.
It was said to show the way safely to wherever the World Tree was.
It seemed like the World Tree had deemed it Halle's only way out of this situation.
"If she cooperates like this, it'll be convenient for me. But that thing around Cecily's neck..."
Hans, the master of dark magic, quickly analyzed the situation again.
"A magical seal using dark magic. It's quite advanced. It would be dangerous to forcibly break it with strength. If it were Hans, he might have been able to undo it..."
Releasing the magical seal required delicate manipulation of magical energy, a skill Halle didn't possess.
"I understood it perfectly in my head, but I can't do it myself."
Perhaps due to that, the High Elf Lafori couldn't locate Cecily.
"When Halle came in, he immediately responded. It seems the World Tree was aware of Cecily's location."
Well, the World Tree wasn't a deity like the divine beings the elves worshipped, but it did receive some form of divine reverence from them.
There probably were other constraints preventing it from directly revealing information.
"Hahaha! At this point, it doesn't matter!"
Black magic surged like a tidal wave from behind, but they were already at the cave entrance.
With his monstrous stamina, Halle could easily evade pursuit outside.
Then, something approached rapidly from underground again, but this time, it felt like definite flesh, unlike before.
The issue was that it was heading towards the outer forest, where they were going...
Kwaang!
Suddenly, something of colossal proportions shot up from the cave entrance, blocking it entirely.
"Don't block my way!"
Nevertheless, Halle, unfazed, charged at the colossal earthworm blocking the entrance like a tsunami.
"Hiyeeek?!"
Twisting Cecily, who was hanging on his side, to shield her from the impact, he then swiftly lifted his body and delivered a dropkick to the colossal earthworm.
[Squuuirm!]
The earthworm writhed in response to the impact.
However, due to its hefty weight and the rest of its body anchored to the ground, there still wasn't much of an opening at the entrance.
Halle, who had been thrown back by the recoil, landed smoothly on the ground, letting out a chuckle.
"Hehe... Seems like things are getting resolved too easily."
It looked like it would take some time to break through the entrance, no matter how you looked at it.
And that meant they couldn't avoid a fight with the creatures coming from behind.
"Miss, snap out of it. It looks like we need to prepare for a fight now."
"Huh? Oh, okay..."
Even as she stumbled from the intense movements, Halle was already making preparations.
He gently set Cecily down and used his sharp claws to tear the leather connected to the black panther helmet like a cape.
He cut the center into two strands, then cut the upper parts of both sides to make them longer.
"Come over here!"
"Yes, okay!"
While holding Cecily in his arms, he tightly wound her with the two strands of leather like a cocoon, firmly securing her to his body.
The leather covering his back was so large that only small holes remained, allowing a limited view of the outside.
Like a baby swaddled to a large muscular figure, or rather, an elf girl.
"This should provide better protection than carrying her on my back. Since it's made from a demon's leather, it should be fairly resilient."
Having finished his combat preparations, with an axe in each hand, Halle noticed that the earthworm remained motionless, guarding the entrance.
Its movements didn't resemble those of an instinctive creature; it clearly seemed to be manipulated by someone.
"Haha! Let's get started for real now! First, I'll take care of you!"
Halle released "Life Aura" throughout his entire body, conserving energy for breaking through the entrance before facing the other creatures.
***
"What? What did you say, Heinrich?"
The Saint seemed perplexed as she asked, and the reactions of those around her were no different.
It included Archbishop Latius, the paladins, and even the elves, including Lafori.
"That Cecily person. I think I know where she is right now."
But Heinrich persisted with his statement, unaffected by their expressions.
"Um... Do you have any blessing that can trace a specific target?"
Carefully inquiring, Archbishop Latius found it quite difficult to believe.
How could the High Elf from the Elven Kingdom have already found their target so quickly?
But now was not the time to engage in a confrontation like this.
"It's not a blessing, but I can definitely sense it. An elf with green hair and orange eyes, someone named Cecily. However, the situation is quite dangerous."
The expressions of those present changed at his words.
The elves, with anxious looks, turned their attention to the leaders of the sect, including the Saint.
As outsiders, they couldn't be sure how much they could trust the sudden words of someone who seemed like a practitioner.
The Saint, after quietly observing Heinrich, shifted her gaze towards the group of elves with a serious expression.
"Heinrich can be trusted. He is someone the gods take an interest in. If he felt that way, there must be a definite reason."
"We will follow the judgment of the sect."
With determined nods from the elves, she stood up, looked at Heinrich, and said, "Then let's move. Where is the location?"
Her eyes, meeting his directly, were filled with trust.
"We will trust Heinrich Landgard. If he sensed it, there must be a reason."
The elves nodded with stern faces, and she stood up, looking at Heinrich.
"Let's get moving. Where is the location?"
Even in the midst of this direct confrontation, her eyes held a full measure of trust.
"To the northwestern mountains near the border of the Tulk Kingdom, on the western side of the continent. If we use the gate and move to the Talarak Temple in the Aonia Baronry, it will significantly reduce the travel time."
"Let's talk while we're on the move."
They all rose from their seats and headed swiftly towards the location of the gate.
While holding her holy symbol and softly murmuring, the Saint turned to Heinrich during their movement.
"I've prepared the gate so that we can use it immediately. We should be able to move as soon as we arrive."
"Heinrich Landgard. Can you determine the exact location?"
"When we get closer, we should be able to move directly with my 'blessing.' Right now, I only know it's somewhere north of the Steel Fortress."
Everyone here was acting on the assumption that Heinrich's words were true.
The broad support of the Saint had likely influenced this.
Now, if he could reciprocate that trust, his credibility within the sect would greatly increase.
Hurriedly moving, they soon arrived at the location of the gate.
There was a brief, minor disagreement, though.
"Not you, Saint."
"Two paladins and one archbishop, plus a High Elf. Is it necessary for the Saint to come along?"
"Hahaha! Let the heretics yield to us!"
The Saint, who was naturally about to use the gate, was stopped by members of the sect.
Her cheeks slightly swelled, but she didn't offer any objections, possibly to maintain composure in front of the elves, who were outsiders.
It wasn't convenient to gather additional personnel for this hastily decided task, but even with just this group, their power was more than sufficient.
"If we know the location, we can handle it ourselves."
High Elf Lafori added confidently, forcing her to nod slightly and step back.
However, the Saint still had a role to play.
The distance between the central region and the Toolk Kingdom in the west wasn't as vast as the Talia Kingdom to the west, but it was still substantial.
Given the need for a significant amount of divine power based on the distance, the Saint's assistance was essential for an immediate transition.
"Well, everyone, be careful on your journey."
"Don't worry. There shouldn't be any major issues."
Responding with a serious nod, Heinrich assured the worried farewell from the Saint.
With their current capabilities, they should be able to complete the task without any significant harm.
"In fact, the only issue is whether we can meet the deadline."
Right now, Halle alone could handle it, but once they started pouring their full power, the outcome became unpredictable.
Signs of that were slowly becoming apparent.
***
"Hahaha!"
Halle laughed fiercely as he swung his axe, cutting down the head of the goblin monster, Gramlin, rushing toward him.
Around him, there was no room to step without tripping over various types of corpses.
From monsters they had already hunted in the forest to unfamiliar ones, and added to that, the minions of the dark sorcerer were nothing more than extras.
Although he dealt with those approaching, monsters kept swarming from all directions in the forest.
"It's good that we got out of the cave."
While he managed to break through the earthworm blocking the entrance, he was caught by the sorcerers in the process.
A more significant issue was that the sorcerers specialized in commanding monsters, making it a considerable synergy with the overflowing monsters in the northern mountains.
"He must have considered that from the beginning!"
Not only the monsters called from the forest but also the creatures specially summoned by the sorcerers were problematic. These beings had various unique characteristics.
One fortunate aspect was that, intentionally or not, they did not attack Cecily, possibly avoiding harm to their sacrificial offering.
Certainly, using her as a shield wasn't an option.
There was no guarantee that the monsters attacking would obediently follow their commands like robots.
An implicit agreement to be cautious with each other had been reached, but continuing in this manner would pose difficulties.
Halle's strength lay in his durability to withstand attacks without worrying about his body.
However, in his current state, movement restrictions were inevitable.
Cecily couldn't be left alone to fight; the creatures might grab her and retreat.
Yet, if they persisted in this condition, Halle would dry up and die when his energy ran out.
Heinrich and his group had arrived in Tarak through the gate, aided by the wind spirit summoned by the High Elf, but they still needed some time to reach this location.
"All right, it's now or never."
A black sorcerer, constantly manipulating monsters on one side, appeared at just the right moment.
Although he had deployed a defensive shield and surrounded himself with monsters, the Ora, condensed around the blade of his right-hand axe, created a dense cluster.
His waist swirled as he spun in place, tracing a large and beautiful circle through centrifugal force.
With a swoosh, a thick Ora projectile shot out, shattered the defensive shield, and embedded itself in the sorcerer's body.
Together, they flew through the air, disappearing from Halle's sight.
Momentarily losing control, the monsters hesitated.
Seizing the opportunity, Halle exploded back into action, breaking through the creatures' defenses.
With his left axe, he skillfully carved graceful lines, relentlessly attacking the enemies.
Meanwhile, his right hand, transformed into a monstrous form, ripped out hearts from the monsters, along with their mana crystals, voraciously devouring them.
Unceasingly replenishing energy and overflowing vitality, he could endure this for an entire day.
Of course, the enemies wouldn't leave him alone for that long.
Suddenly, a flying spear was blocked by Ora-infused claws.
"Lycansrope? No, something different... a mutation?"
A voice from one side, but...
Thud!
An arrow from the opposite direction bounced off his axe surface.
"It seems our control doesn't reach them at all. It doesn't appear to be tainted by demonic blood either."
The voice continued, accompanied by yet another incoming attack from a different direction.
Certainly, amidst all this, the monsters kept charging relentlessly, and it was a frantic situation.
"Ah, these damn creatures fight dirty."
Praising his opponent, Halle moved his body tirelessly, not sparing a moment to catch his breath.
As the battle intensified, he had to use even the "Physical Transformation" without hesitation.
"Hehehehe."
His entire body swelled ferociously, with muscles bulging like a shark's teeth and a well-developed jaw.
His eyes, nose, and ears had long departed from the human form.
"Is this okay? She's already a bit of a concern."
As the fight continued, Halle felt his body becoming steeped in madness.
Laughter erupted sporadically, and although he could control it at any moment, he wanted to avoid becoming like Hans, unable to step forward in front of others.
During a brief moment of contemplation, his senses suddenly flipped.
"The entity has achieved enlightenment and gains the skill 'Wilderness.'"
In an instant, everything changed.
Feeling an abrupt sense of disconnection, Halle's body moved purely on instinct.
His head turned swiftly to the side.
Clang!
A flying sword aimed at him was intercepted by the saw-like teeth.
Without any delay, his left-handed axe swung around and cut down the attacker's body, allowing him to grasp the essence of "Wilderness."
It was a skill that maximized aggressiveness, moving solely on instinct.
Yet, the techniques engraved in his body were not forgotten, based on the axe and martial arts he had used so far.
Although freer and more rugged, they were undoubtedly rooted in the techniques he had employed until now.
For a moment, Halle lowered his body, and his nose and ears wriggled without rest.
Thud!
Taking advantage of the opportunity, he twisted the neck of the man wielding the spear, who had flown in between the monsters.
'Is this okay?'
The method using "Wilderness" differed significantly from the combat style he had used until now.
His greatest strength lay in evaluating and calculating situations coldly, regardless of circumstances.
Playing the role of a third party, comprehending all variables with overwhelming mental strength and responding accordingly.
However, this method didn't suit Halle.
The information that he had casually dismissed as trivial, the intuition did not overlook.
'...Maybe this is okay?'
To fully harness the body evolved by devouring countless monsters, a new combat style was needed, one that was not human.
Right now. And above all, being able to control the activation!
Halle could adjust his frenzy entirely to "Wilderness."
This meant he could unleash his madness only in the necessary battles, like a berserker leaping into action!
'If I can keep this up until reinforcements arrive, that should be enough.'
The unknown time limit was steadily approaching.