“But that wall…”
Upon closer inspection, the material of what I thought was a wall turned out to be wood.
A massive tree whose roots were firmly planted in the ground.
So enormous that it was beyond the grasp of my senses.
“Wow… Is this the World Tree or something?!”
– The Goddess of Water Irmana shakes her head slightly.
“No…”
I was contemplating whether to release [Transformation].
Sang-gun was said to be someone who rarely acknowledged any existence other than Beastmen and transcendent beings.
They said only the Hunters in the party to which Hyeon Joong-gil belongs would be good enough to share a meal, so I figured it would be better to show my true self than to meet him while being nerfed by my transformation.
However, not being able to speak wouldn’t be the most desirable thing for a first encounter.
If I stayed silent in response to Sang-gun’s question, I could end up with a broken head.
Still, showing my human form felt a bit off, so I donned a full-body armor made of bone.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Bang! Boom!!
As I got closer, I realized that the Beastmen were staring at a certain point.
The deafening roar was coming from that direction.
It was nothing but empty air, yet it was clear that someone was trying to force their way through a crack.
The crack hadn’t formed yet, so I couldn’t sense who it was, but I had an uneasy feeling.
As I neared within a hundred meters of the Beastmen,
– “You there! If you come any closer, I’ll split your head open!”
The booming roar of a tiger momentarily froze me in place.
I knew that this person’s warning was not just talk.
“Ugh, the presence is amazing.”
I raised both arms and slowly floated into the air as if swimming.
“Ah?! Alpha-sir!!”
“How did Alpha-sir end up here?!”
“It’s Alpha-sir!!”
A moment later, my companions, the Beastmen from the party I had briefly teamed up with, greeted me as if they had found an oasis in the desert.
“Looks like everyone made it out alive.”
That was truly my impression upon seeing them.
The state of other Beastmen was painfully severe, but at least the ones connected to me still had their limbs intact, so they were in a relatively better situation.
It was probably because they had been closer to Sang-gun, which spared them some damage.
As soon as the Tiger Beastman Nam Ho-yeol laid eyes on me, he approached Sang-gun and said something, and only then did Sang-gun’s fiercely raised eyebrows relax.
Nodding slightly, he signaled that it was alright to approach, so I carefully stepped forward and greeted him.
“Greetings. I am a Hunter operating under the name ‘Alpha.’ You might be curious as to how I got here; the deity I serve guided me to this place. I’m not here to confront the one trying to break in up ahead.”
I introduced myself as politely as possible—quickly, before Sang-gun lost his patience, even answering a potential follow-up question in advance.
I had heard that Sang-gun didn’t like asking questions multiple times.
Watching the once-silent me spit out words like a rapid-fire machine gun, Arang and Ho-yeol, who were still in the hole, looked at me in wonder.
“I don’t know what kind of divine being you are, but please convey my sincere thanks.”
Sang-gun carefully scrutinized me and responded quite politely.
Fortunately, it seemed he didn’t suspect that my sudden appearance was meant to help them.
Perhaps he sensed the presence of Irmana flowing through my body.
“Up close, this really is huge. Is this a person or an ogre?”
His fist was as large as my skull, so I couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief that he wasn’t suspicious of me.
But the magical power he possessed was surprisingly weak for his stature, and critically, there were clear marks of having been struck in the chest with a fist.
Crack-crack- crack-
Judging by the residual lightning energy still present in that area, the one who had struck Sang-gun was definitely a powerful lightning user.
That was not a good sign for me.
“Ugh… It really is that bastard.”
The moment I saw the fist imprint, I was sure of it.
I knew exactly who the beings of evil Irmana spoke of were.
“But why a group? Did they combine the Seven-headed Dragon into this?”
I tilted my head and climbed onto a wide branch extending from the tree.
Then I pulled out hundreds of brown bottles from my space and aligned them on the ground.
“First, I’ll have to treat the injuries of the Beastmen.”
I had around two thousand brown bottles filled with water from Irmana.
Thanks to the lesson from my three-week absence, I had been diligently stockpiling them, but I hadn’t anticipated needing to use them this quickly.
“Such a useful item.”
I never expected that the artifact connected to the lake water of the ancient empire would be this handy, making me chuckle slightly.
“Arang, can you distribute this water to our companions one by one? It will help with their internal healing and mana recovery.”
“Sure thing, Alpha-sir!!”
Arang swiftly emerged from the cave-like hole and climbed the wooden wall with agility.
Her cheeks were already flushed.
Gulp-
“Whoa… The Goddess of Water Irmana… It’s my first time hearing about this deity, but the aura is indeed extraordinary.”
Even Sang-gun, who drank the water handed over by Arang, showed surprise at its effects.
Feeling a strange pride at Sang-gun’s assessment, I turned to Arang, who was looking at me with a curious gaze, and asked,
“More importantly, could you give me a brief explanation of what’s going on?”
I needed to know what was happening to muster my strength for the fight.
Especially if there was a high chance that the one currently breaking through was that detestable guy.
“Do you remember the last time I mentioned the Beastmen’s nest?”
“Ah, I remember. So this is the place?”
“Yes, that’s right. Actually… I tried to contact you several times before we left, but you didn’t respond…”
There was a hint of disappointment in her gaze as she looked at me.
“So while I was at the archaeologist’s ruins, I got messages… huh?”
I hadn’t actually checked the messages. That was my mistake.
“I see now.”
“Anyway, finding the initial nest of the Beastmen wasn’t an easy task. A huge unknown presence was a significant hindrance. However, we managed to pinpoint this place through the unique senses of Beastmen; it was at the end of our maze-jumping when we realized.”
“What… what did you realize?”
“There was someone quietly following us.”
Was it some kind of stealth ability? Jo Gi-man’s child had all sorts of skills, it seems.
“Did you happen to see that presence?”
“As soon as we noticed, that thing attacked us. Even though Sang-gun blocked it, the damage was as you can see, quite significant. It felt like the god of lightning had descended upon us… everyone was trembling like they were electrified. Just when I thought we were done for, I opened my eyes to find we had been relocated here, and the quest from the Goddess of Water ‘Ryun’ came to mind.”
“To protect this tree, or something?”
“Y-yes! I thought we were done for, but here we are. By the way, is Alpha-sir also on the same quest?”
“Well, in a way, yes.”
“Heh… how intriguing. Is this perhaps destiny…?”
“Hm?”
“Oh, never mind…”
I diverted my attention from Arang and focused on the condition of the Beastmen within the area of sensation.
Beastmen, whose lives were at stake, were quickly recovering as they absorbed Irmana’s water.
But as I watched, the speed was a bit excessive.
Why was that?
‘It didn’t have such a good effect last time. Is it related to the high concentration of mana, or maybe thanks to the Goddess of Water ‘Ryun’?’
I didn’t know the reason, but it was fortunate for me, as I was seriously considering whether to pull out a Life Potion.
“Alpha-sir, do you have any idea who was chasing us?”
Even Sang-gun, who had been attacked directly, didn’t know their identity, yet she was asking me?
Of course, I knew, but I couldn’t help but think she was a bit dense.
As I silently stared at her, Arang continued, tapping her head.
“No, I thought maybe Alpha-sir might know… I’m sorry. I was rude to someone who just arrived.”
“I think I might know who’s trying to open that door.”
───?!!
“Who is it? That bastard who put me into the damned regime.”
Sang-gun, who had been looking off into the distance as if ignoring me, quietly stepped closer and cast a shadow over me.
Honestly, it would be weird if I didn’t know.
The technique that Sang-gun had suffered from was the [Heavenly Thunder Cloak] alongside that bastard’s signature skill.
Despite that, it was understandable that the Beastmen didn’t know.
Most people who witnessed Jo Gi-man’s [Lightning Strike] likely died.
Moreover, it would make even more sense for Sang-gun, one of the crazed hunters engrossed in the hunt for the Great Beasts far from civilization, to be unaware.
“That’s a skill called [Lightning Strike]. Only one person in this world possesses it.”
“Lightning Strike?! Could it be…?”
“Yes. S-rank Hunter Jo Gi-man. He’s practically regarded as one of the strongest among transcendent beings.”
“Jo Gi-man…!! That chick’s son has the audacity!!”
Though it would have been fair to point out that you just recognized that little chick too late, I chose to remain silent to protect my own life and waited for his anger to cool.
Cree-crack──
Bang!!
In that time, noticeable cracks appeared, and a faint energy from the entity attacking this place seeped through.
“Hmm… They really are the forces of evil.”
As expected, it was indeed Jo Gi-man who had assaulted the Beastmen.
But surprisingly, he was breaking through the rift with his clones.
There were as many as six of them.
Each of those clones carried a unique flow of mana.
As if they were independent entities.
One of them had even clashed with me before.
‘That bastard… He really is still alive.’
That was the clone that had transformed into a two-headed dragon at the headquarters of the Ilseom Guild.
Remarkably, it possessed the strongest presence among the clones.
‘If I include the clone that died during the Necrosquall battle, that’s a total of seven? I hope there aren’t more.’
Measuring the strength of the clone that transformed into a two-headed dragon, it was even stronger than I had seen it last time.
To put it simply, I could think of each of the clones as possessing power equivalent to that of Sang-gun standing next to me.
And if they underwent dragonification and all transformed into two-headed dragons…
‘That would be terrifying.’
“Hah— I have to defend this place no matter what. This is where everything we hold dear is asleep.”
“What on earth is this place?”
“That is…”
Finally, would I learn the secret regarding the species of the Beastmen? I perked my ears up in anticipation.
“I don’t even know.”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s just instinct! We know in our bones that we awakened to protect this place!”
What in the world does that even mean…
“Thanks to that, I’ve regained some strength, so at least I should be able to take one of them down.”
Though I called Jo Gi-man a chick, Sang-gun already understood.
Even just one clone would not be easy to face.
“Let’s start with a fist!!”
Sang-gun jumped down under the tree, gathering all his magical power into his fist.
‘Looks like he plans to land a hit right off the bat.’
The wild energy radiating from him seemed like it could not be stopped by anything in the world.
I couldn’t afford to lose either.
Since it had come to this, I would unleash all my abilities as well.
‘It seems I can manage without help from the Goddess Irmana.’
It was similar to learning to ride a bicycle.
Once you succeed, you can do it on your own without needing someone to hold you up.
Especially after training and merging the energies of water and ice thousands of times through spatial slicing.
I would merge the attributes of fire, water, and lightning into one.
After days of trying to remember the memories of the assistance I received from Goddess Irmana, I was finally beginning to materialize the fruits of my efforts.
Ku-ru-ru-ru-ru──
As the masses of fire and water that floated in the air swirled violently and began to form a small circle, the eyes of the Beastmen in the area widened in shock, and they stepped back cautiously.
– So this is… what Arang lauded, was it not for nothing.
– I’ve never seen such a ferocious aura… Everyone, stay away from here!!
“Alpha-sir… what on earth happened in between?”
“You’ve gotten significantly stronger. No, is this the unveiling of your true abilities?”
‘…’
As Sang-gun pulled his fist back, the ground trembled with a loud bang.
“Sang-gun! Support him!!”
That seemed to serve as a signal, as the Beastmen, who had been trembling in fear from the unknown entity, sprang into action.
The Hunters at S-rank, who were in relatively good condition, began to prepare for direct combat, while the other Beastmen supported me, Sang-gun, and the combat forces with their respective abilities.
In this final battle, which might be the last for the Beastmen, I found myself at the center.
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