#101
Northern Mountains (2)
The undead unrest in the four kingdoms on the western side of the continent was slowly calming down.
Of course, it wasn’t because they handled it well, but because the situation unfolded unexpectedly.
Immediately after the Immortal King openly displayed his power and sent a signal, the undead, who had been moving as they pleased, such as attacking humans or hiding in remote areas, all simultaneously began to move in the same manner.
The immortal army, which had learned each other’s location through the reply, began to avoid fighting as much as possible and group together in groups that were close to each other, as ordered by the king.
‘Of course, there were groups that clashed with humans or were completely subdued during that time.’
An army that had succeeded in gathering a certain amount of troops could grow to a size that would be burdensome to deal with with just the troops of a single territory.
The kingdoms were alert to the movements of the undead and made active movements such as gathering armies, but…
At some point, they disappeared without a trace.
The Immortal King Hans visited them in person, took them all in, and then disappeared.
So, even though the human side was free from the threat of the undead, they could not rest assured.
It is not that the enemy was completely defeated through suppression, but rather, the enemy gathered their scattered troops and retreated.
How can they be at ease when they don’t know when or where that many troops will attack them?
‘And now, even monsters are starting to cause trouble.’
This is not an ordinary chaos, but a turmoil on a continental scale.
Among them, the Kingdom of Tulk was located near the northern mountain range, which was known as the paradise of monsters, so it was bound to be even more of a headache.
We must do our best to defend the North, but we must also prepare for the Immortal King’s surprise attack.
The reason was that Tarak wanted to borrow their strength by promising them the best possible compensation.
‘Hans doesn’t really have any intention of going for the back of the head… There’s no way they’d know that.’
Meanwhile, a separate mission request came to Harley, who was about to head to the Steel Citadel.
So now he was at the central office of Tarak to meet his client.
Of course, the title of lord was burdensome, but it was not something he had no choice but to accept by submitting to power.
Just to give you a brief overview of the information provided first…
‘Because the area where the request was carried out was the northern mountain range.’
There was a high chance that he would be given a more dangerous mission than simply stopping monsters like the others, but he didn’t care about the risks.
‘Since the destination is the same and the reward is much more generous, and there’s no need to get on the bad side of the ruler of this area, I think it’s better to accept it. I’m also curious about what’s going on in this situation.’
After arriving at the government office and waiting for a while, Harley was finally able to face her client.
Of course, it wasn’t the lord himself.
Although he put the lord’s name on it to emphasize the importance of the request, would someone in that position have ever met a mere mercenary and entrusted the task to him?
“···I’ve heard the story before. It’s really big.”
The client he faced was a blunt-looking knight in his 30s.
“More than anything… it’s very unique.”
He, too, couldn’t help but say something after seeing Harley, and he expressed his thoughts with a trembling face.
‘Well, that kind of reaction is part of everyday life.’
He is a muscular giant over 2 meters tall, with a naked upper body and a demon’s head on his head. His body is covered in tattoos and one of his eyes is a strange green eye.
The knight was speechless for a moment at the sight that was unforgettable once seen, but soon continued speaking with a slight cough.
“Hmm, yeah. Are you that Harley? A very famous mercenary, huh?”
“Ahaha! This is so embarrassing! Well, it’s true that I’m famous!”
As expected from someone who had come to this city full of mercenaries to undertake a mission, he didn’t particularly care about Harley’s usual rude behavior.
“Let’s get to work. The reason I nominated you is because I need someone who knows a lot about the Northern Mountains.”
“Hmm… I’m not really good at finding directions. I can do it if I want to, but if you need a guide, it might be better to look for someone else.”
Rather than going into the mountains with a plan and examining the mountain path, he was more like hunting wherever his feet took him, tearing apart the monsters that blocked his path with his incredible mobility and force, and then returning.
I could probably find my way around the forest, but I wasn’t at the level where I could be hired as a guide and receive requests for directions.
“Oh, don’t worry about that. I’ve already sent out the request to not only you but also other mercenaries. I’ve already hired one of the best guides in Tarak.”
“Oh! Well then… In that case, I wouldn’t be needed much, would I? They would be enough on their own.”
“Not only does he travel the Northern Mountains like it’s his home, he also frequently completes high-level quests that require him to venture deep into the area, and he’s strong enough to single-handedly take on high-level monsters that are difficult even for a party.”
At Harley’s seemingly tentative words, the knight continued slowly and looked at him quietly.
“Is there anyone more qualified than this one in Tarak?”
“I see, it’s just me! Hahaha—!”
Although Harley was smiling cheerfully, the knight seemed to have gotten used to that look and continued to say what he wanted to say without changing his expression.
“That was a long story. Let’s get to the point. The location is within the Northern Mountains, the deadline is as soon as possible, the type is to rescue the agent, and the target is Zaonic Steelstone.”
“Zaonic Steelstone?”
‘Who is that?’
As if his feelings had been conveyed, the knight paused for a moment and then slowly opened his mouth.
“As a special note, he is a blacksmith belonging to the territory. His race is… a dwarf.”
***
Since the request was made directly by Yeongji, the work progressed rapidly.
All the items needed for the mission were already prepared, and the companions who would go along began to gather one by one.
The target of the rescue was not an ordinary person, as it is said that as soon as he sensed something unusual, he dug a hole, hid, and then sent a message to the magic tool to request rescue.
Although there is ample emergency food and it is not an urgent situation, it is a situation where you never know what might happen in that dangerous area.
So, as soon as Harley was ready, he entered the Northern Mountains with six companions to carry out the mission together.
About a day passed like that.
“Kaaaak— Thud! Damn it, did that guy really have to climb the mountain in this situation?”
“Well, I didn’t know things would turn out like this back then. It’s not like dwarves have a thing for rare minerals.”
Just after another battle.
When the female mercenary Mikel, armed with a crossbow, spat on the ground and became irritated, the middle-aged man leading the group along the mountain path consoled her.
“But it definitely seems like something big is going on. I’ve been coming here for over ten years and this is the first time I’ve seen anything like this. All the monster boundary and habitat information I’ve collected so far has been trashed.”
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Marcus, a middle-aged mercenary who leads the group again, sighs softly.
Even though it had only been a day since they entered the mountain range, they were already keenly aware of the monsters’ anomalies.
Until now, the ecosystem had been maintained according to its own rules, but now there is no trace of it.
In order to hide his odor, he applied an unidentifiable juice all over his body, avoided combat as much as possible, and when he had no choice, dealt with it as secretly and quickly as possible. But now, even that was reaching its limit.
“Wait a minute, here it comes again.”
At that moment, everyone in the group held their breath as Harley quietly recited her words.
“some?”
“···Isn’t that a lot? I think there must be well over thirty···. Oh, they’re coming this way on purpose. It seems like they’ve detected traces of the previous battle.”
Everyone’s brows furrowed at his words.
Even though they were so careful, it seems they were not enough to fool those with more developed senses when something unusual happened.
“Do you know what kind it is?”
“Hmm, the size is roughly similar to that of an orc.”
At first, everyone was skeptical about Harley’s senses, but now everyone trusted them.
It can’t be helped.
This was expected, since it had happened several times during the day and his warnings had never been wrong.
Srrrrung—
“There’s nothing I can do. I have to deal with it as quickly as possible and then leave.”
Robin, a knight in leather armor, slowly drew his sword and opened his mouth with the same blunt expression as when delivering a request.
‘By the way, that gentleman is amazing. I thought he only knew how to relay requests, but he also participated in the operation himself.’
Of course, there was also a veteran ranger from the Steel Citadel who had joined the party, but I didn’t expect someone as high as a knight to join them, wearing leather armor.
And that too for such a dangerous operation.
The maddened monsters are extremely aggressive and do not die easily, and this is the northern mountain range, which is just like their home.
Up until now, we’ve been trying to deal with them as quickly as possible and get away, but…
As you enter the mountain range and the density of monsters increases, you will inevitably reach a limit.
“I’ll put up a shield around the area. Once they’re fully inside, deal with them as quickly as possible.”
The mercenary magician Fabiella frowned, as if her magic power was starting to take a toll on her from the frequent use of magic.
As a wizard, he was quite well-known in Tarak for being physically fit to a considerable degree, and as befitting his reputation, he was able to follow the rough mountaineering quite well.
“···come!”
Harley’s warning continues again.
But this time, everyone knew without him saying anything.
Doo doo doo doo—!
“Kuuuuck—!”
“Kueeek!”
Because the cries of monsters who had lost their minds were heard, along with the vibrations that shook the ground without any intention of hiding the sound.
As soon as the maddened orcs entered the area of the shield, the fight began.
Shhh— pop!
It started with bolts and arrows flying in from behind.
And Harley, who stands in the vanguard with Knight Robin and the taciturn inspector Flora, is as usual···.
“Hahaha—! Let’s go play!”
Kwaaang!
I burst out in laughter that I had been holding back, kicked the ground, and ran towards them with my bare hands.
The explosive power that came out of his glowing imprint and twitching muscles instantly brought his body in front of the maddened orcs…
Boom!
Knock knock!
The sheer force was enough to break their balls off.
He continued to fight while avoiding the weapons of the orcs who were rushing at him like crazy, and the sight of him carefully breaking their heads one by one seemed like a scene of sacred labor… how could that be possible?
“Hahahaha!”
The act of the vicious savage laughing ferociously was nothing more than a scene of one-sided violence.
“···I don’t know who the monster is. Is that possible?”
“I’ve seen it so many times, but I still can’t get used to it.”
Even his comrades who were fighting alongside him looked disgusted when they saw him.
Harley was showing with her whole body why she was ‘a person not to be messed with’ in the Tarak mercenary world.
At first, it was a fighting method that started out to avoid the smell of blood as much as possible, but when combined with Harley’s monstrous body, it became no different from fighting with a weapon.
Orcs who were hit by him as soon as they rushed in, and whose neck joints were limited in their range of motion.
But he wasn’t just fighting without thinking.
‘It’s strange. I’ve been feeling something ticklish every time I fight a monster for a while now.’
Even though he had greatly enhanced his senses with bio-auras and imprints, he still couldn’t help but feel something gently scratching him, even though it was the wildness engraved in his instincts that made him uneasy.
Phew!
“Kueeek!”
Even as Harley continued to think, he continued to bang the orc’s head, kick its stomach, and turn its chin with his elbow.
Then at one moment.
Was being too absorbed in it the problem?
Phew—!
His fingertips, sharpened in an instant, dug into the heart of an orc.
“ah.”
I was fighting with my bare hands, trying to avoid getting bloody, but perhaps because of my “wildness” that was activated unconsciously, I ended up instinctively using the most lethal attack.
Fortunately, he still had some sanity left, and only the tips of his fingernails became slightly sharper, so the “physical mutation” was not detected by those around him, but his previous efforts were in vain as blood spurted out all over his arm.
“Tsk—.”
Harley clicked her tongue lightly and pulled her hand away.
In his hand he was holding a magic stone that had been embedded in the orc’s heart.
‘There’s nothing we can do about what’s already been done. It’s just a matter of wiping the blood off.’
Besides, my energy level was starting to drop a little bit at that time.
Now that I have it, I might as well use it.
Harley thoughtlessly put the magic stone into her mouth.
Crack!
That moment.
Thump—!
My heart is pounding wildly.
The blood flow throughout my body began to flow roughly.
The energy that I had been feeling faintly for a while became more vivid the moment I consumed the orc’s magic stone.
‘What’s going on all of a sudden?’
As my senses expanded in this way, I was able to know things I had not known before.
‘···No way? This···.’
That which spread across the world and covered the sky, that which melted into the air and enveloped them, that which inhabited the orcs who charged at them with their eyes red.
And… now something has begun to sprout inside Harley’s body.
Yeah, that’s it.
It was ‘madness’.
