[Shuhōōōōō······.]
The eyes turned completely black, and the black wings sprouting from the shoulders, along with the several smooth tentacles extending from the sides, made it hard to utter words. This was clearly someone who had built a long-standing relationship with the two.
Pishuuugh──!
Cha-cha-cheng!!
Cha Mu-yeol lightly deflected the tentacle strands aimed at the barrier mages with his body.
“You bastard···! What the hell have you been through?!”
Cha Mu-yeol’s gaze flashed as a dazzling light emitted from his body.
Even the encroaching area beyond the gate seemed to quiver and withdraw, intimidated by his aura.
“Hah- damn it··· I thought I wouldn’t see you for a while, and now this…”
Kang Yeon-su wiped his face vigorously with his hand, recalling the unsettling memories he had been trying to ignore from the association.
‘Yoon-seul…’
It had already been several weeks since communication was cut off with the association’s “The One Who Shows the Way.”
During that time, Kang Yeon-su had conjured various scenarios, but he had never anticipated something this severe.
– Kki-hi-hi-ht!
– Here they come!!
Familiar faces began to emerge one by one from behind the mysterious black form, bursting into playful laughter.
They were individuals who had spoken with Kang Yeon-su at least once.
In that moment, Kang Yeon-su felt an instinctive realization.
Even when they were human, they were formidable beings who couldn’t be underestimated.
And now those beings had appeared, having gained unbelievable strength from another dimension.
Cold sweat trickled down her back, following the valley of her spine.
– Ihihihihit!!
– Kyaahhh, this fresh air! I can’t resist!!
– A woman!! It’s a woman!
– What was that slut’s name again···?
– Kim Yeon-su.
– Isn’t it Kang Yeon-su?
– Aahh! That cheeky bitch!!
The monsters emerging one by one, despite their intimidating aura, spoke in the most vulgar manner.
– Food! Kimchi stew! I want ramen too!
– Ah, I want to have sex~
– Panting like a dog from the back, thump, thump! Hee hee hee—
They laughed boisterously like middle schoolers who had never received a lesson in manners.
Something had definitely changed. Those spacey beings were not the individuals Kang Yeon-su used to know.
Yeon-su wanted to grab them by their collars immediately to find out what the hell they had experienced.
Where had gone the sense of responsibility and dignity that came from protecting a family, a guild, and countless citizens?
Yeon-su involuntarily averted her gaze from those who were slithering their tongues at her like snakes.
‘No, this can’t be…’
Despite being horrified by the transformations of her acquaintances, Yeon-su’s calculations had already concluded.
‘Each one of them is a Transcendent-grade monster.’
This was an insurmountable difference in power. The scene of one-sided slaughter that would take place in just a few minutes had formed vividly in her mind, prompting her to stretch out her arm toward the guild members and shout.
“Number 4!!”
───?!!
The barrier mages and over a hundred hunters sprang to attention at the retreat signal.
[Divine Transformation]
Goooooo───
Kang Yeon-su, whose nice physique everyone could see, swelled more than 1.5 times, quickly taking on the form of a demon.
Her magic power exploded, and her physical abilities soared correspondingly.
“Senior, urgghh···! P-please take care of the people—”
Her deep red eyes, not much different from those of the recently emerged black entities, looked desperately up at Cha Mu-yeol.
“······ It’s too much to do alone.”
Cha Mu-yeol entered combat stance, causing Kang Yeon-su’s brow to furrow greatly.
“It’s better than everyone dying!!!”
“······.”
Cha Mu-yeol was faster in calculating than he seemed.
The look in her eyes spoke of a determination to face death.
If they were going to throw a bait and run now, it would make the most sense for Yeon-su to take on that role.
She was the only one with even a 0.1% chance of survival.
“Chit!”
Having judged how the current situation was unfolding, he bit his lip and leaped backward.
Since their actions aligned perfectly with what Yeon-su desired, he moved without any hesitation.
The barrier mages and other hunters, who had a hard time abandoning her, had invested many hours training to ensure no hesitation would show, even in this situation.
Ultimately, the support team that had once numbered over a hundred began to swiftly retreat, clinging tightly behind Cha Mu-yeol.
[Heheh… Kill the barrier mages first.]
The black figures that had first appeared were still loosening up their bodies, but their expressions were steeped in confidence.
Confidence that they could catch up even if they took their time adjusting to this world.
But when the leading black monster once again set its sights on their target, the dark beings surged forward like cannon fire.
However, a massive barrier of magical power swept toward them like a storm.
As if the world were repelling them, the tremendous pressure caused the propulsion of the black figures to soon falter.
“Groooaaahhh!!”
The gigantic barrier of magical power manifested through Kang Yeon-su’s empowered strike in Divine Transformation.
[Indeed… It’s a talent bestowed by the gods.]
Since receiving a “baptism” from the First Escalon, her resolve had been on a level so far beyond one’s imagination.
Of course, she had not revealed her hard work to others, so her advancement had remained unknown, but it had already been weeks since she had stepped into the domain of the Transcendent.
Kang Yeon-su, the once average hunter who had now become a powerhouse, stood before the black forms and denied them their intentions.
She had grown into an existence of that caliber, and the one who had ordered to eliminate the barrier mages shook his head in apparent resignation.
[Foolish Kang Yeon-su······.]
“Grrr…!!”
The battle was just beginning between someone who had shattered the walls and stepped into transcendence, and another who had inadvertently ascended to that same realm.
* * *
‘Hmm…?’
In an instant, a chilling aura swept past me, causing my body to tremble.
I instinctively searched through the waves of my senses for anything suspicious, but I found nothing special.
‘Is it my imagination?’
I absentmindedly rolled my throat as I checked the rewards obtained from defeating the ogre.
– You have acquired the artifact ‘Talisman of the Nature Guardian’!
– You have acquired the artifact ‘Emerald Bracelet of the Nature Guardian’!
– You have acquired the Rune of Vitality (Hero)!
– You have acquired the Rune of Resistance (Hero)!
Rewards gained from an intense battle with two Thunder Warrior Ogres, which far exceeded a mid-tier status, even in S-rank.
The fight hadn’t taken long, partly thanks to the quick arrival of the Orc Warriors who joined as “Warriors 1, 2, and 3” due to [Spirits of the Fallen].
‘Still, you worked the hardest.’
“Uooohhh!”
The Alpha Ogre, who had teamed up with me, nodded a few times before moving back to Yeon-hee.
‘A truly magnificent monster was created… It was said that forty ogres combined created such a being. I thought it might barely make it into S-rank, but I ended up being the one who received help.’
The Alpha Ogre was an abnormal creature with extraordinarily high stamina and recovery ability.
Its tenacity to withstand the combined assault of two ogres for over a minute was remarkable. Thanks to that, I could freely deal blows from the very beginning of the fight.
Nodding in satisfaction, I checked the artifact’s information and couldn’t help but smack my forehead.
‘Ugh… This time it’s ogre-exclusive.’
The newly acquired artifacts came with options to raise maximum health, health regeneration, and resistance.
‘Looks like I should make the Alpha Ogre wear this. If they keep coming out with species-exclusive items like this, it’s going to be troublesome.’
Still, it was a perfect artifact to improve the tanking capabilities of the ogre affectionately referred to as “Gomgom” by Yeon-hee.
At least the Rune of Vitality obtained this time replaced the existing rare rune and increased health by 50. The amassed Mana Stones were piling up in the space, hard to even comprehend, ensuring a feeling of abundance.
Piiing-
‘Ugh… Not again. Is something really happening?’
A sharp tingling sensation pricked at a corner of my heart.
But looking around, there were only the blood-soaked monsters and hunters, and no one I was concerned about.
Just then.
‘Huh?’
Above the sky, I saw an explosion of magical energy surging towards the moon.
It was well beyond dozens of kilometers away from the edge of my senses.
There wasn’t any specific stronghold, nor any area where someone connected to me was likely to be.
‘What…? If I can feel it from this distance, it must be the battle of at least a Transcendent.’
At first, the two colossal presences exchanged blows ferociously.
I keenly watched in that direction, steadily processing the oncoming orcs.
‘Strong··· both are beings of a much higher realm than I. Are they surpassing Krabe…?’
However, after about ten minutes, the presence of the red energy began to advance.
At some point, the black energy was pushed back without resistance.
‘That aura···.’
Despite the vast distance, it felt strangely familiar.
Shortly after, behind the retreated black energy, dozens of similarly existing magical powers exploded and surged up simultaneously.
‘Is it turning into a one versus many battle?’
It felt like one power was colliding against dozens of others.
– Uoooooh…
– What, what is it?
The sheer intensity was so profound that the orcs and hunters fighting for their lives instinctively pulled back and entered a truce.
‘······ It’s about to reach a conclusion. I am curious about who it is, but there’s no time to spare… I can finally see a glimmer of hope of wiping them out.’
It was just past midnight.
The supreme magical circuit was reinitialized, and the environment was shaping up for hunters like me with limited skill usages per day to regain their strength, yet I couldn’t afford to leave just to satisfy my curiosity.
Just as I was making that decision, a creepy feeling urged me to recall the map.
Suddenly, a 3D map unfolded in my mind, and astonishingly, there was a single point marked in the area where the battle was taking place.
‘Hmm? Why is the Flame Mark there?’
There was a being marked with the Flame Mark in the area where the previously exploded presence had been.
Jo Gi-man was still near the Giant’s Dungeon, so it couldn’t have been Liu Xiao-Wo.
Then, the remaining possibility was…
A bad feeling crawled up my legs.
‘······.’
I briefly surveyed my surroundings.
The orcs were still pressing our base with thousands of their numbers, but the momentum of the Orc Legion, which had lost all of its S-rank orcs and ogres, was clearly waning.
However, our power was not intact either.
Just within today alone, dozens of Awakened Ones had lost their lives, and when including the seriously injured, the power loss was significantly greater.
Even Yeon-hee and the others seemed to have reached a state of exhaustion, collapsing on the front yard, gasping for breath.
‘······.’
The newly set options for the sanctuary were ‘Entry Restriction’ and ‘Reality of the Unreal.’
Could the fixed sanctuary that would serve as the walls while I was absent hold on?
‘Still, with these guys here, it should be alright.’
[Spirits of the Fallen]
I gathered the remaining magic power and raised the fallen orcs one by one.
The total number exceeded 2,000, and among them were four “Thunder Warrior Ogres” and two “Improved Rough Tooth” included from the minions.
– The supreme magical circuit is activating.
Eventually, my magical power dropped to an alarming level, triggering the circuit’s options.
It refilled my magic power, yet using this option just after midnight hurt a bit.
There would be no choice but to bear the burden of using significant skills for the remainder of the day.
‘Still, I should be able to hold out for half a day.’
Thinking back to the unexpected absence when going to the archaeologist’s ruins, this level of preparedness, while uneasy, fueled a forward momentum due to the fresh winds of apprehension.
The contemplation didn’t last long.
I quickly darted toward Yeon-hee to take a brief leave of absence.
But Yeon-hee’s expression was troubling.
In her hands, a few sheets of notes were scattered in the air.
Not many people gave Yeon-hee such notes of concern.
‘Kang Yeon-su······.’
Her gaze, laden with droplets, was directed toward where I’d intended to reach her.
“Il-wol, what should I do… my sister… h-hic…”
Yeon-hee looked up at me, her eyes trembling with anxiety.
A mix of helplessness and sadness, anger, and despair—an expression I never wanted to see again.
I wanted to wash away her concerns quickly.
“Clap, clap, clap!!”
I wanted to say not to worry, but all I could do was clack my canine teeth together.
As I made that noise, I soared into the sky.
Was Yeon-su really where I was heading?
There was a high probability, and she might be in a critical situation or already beyond saving.
[Sneak]
[Dark Illusion]
Despite the urgent scenario, I did not forget to hide my body first.
Whether for evading attacks or to strike first, maximizing my advantage was essential.
About six minutes into high-speed flight?
Kwahahaha──!!
A sticky and vile laughter twisted in my ears.
Striving to ignore that sinister sound, I assumed a poised stance.
‘Calm down- calm down-‘
Yet that mindset shattered upon arriving at the scene.
Seeing black-formed monsters tearing apart Kang Yeon-su’s clothes lying on the ground made my blood boil.
‘······ Those bastards?!’
I spotted several familiar faces amid the chaos.
Among them, the one sporting the Flame Mark on his shoulder was definitely someone I knew.
He was the one who had ranked up with Yeon-hee and had set out with us to hunt the Great Beast, “Devouring Creeper.”
‘Maeng Seong-yong······.’
His appearance, filled with a level of excitement unlike any I had ever seen, felt incredibly alien.
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