Aaaaargh!
Kyaaaah!
Horrifying screams echoed near the campsite—not once, but twice in quick succession. The clan lords attending the meeting, myself included, immediately halted the discussion and rushed toward the source of the cries. But by the time we arrived, a crowd of users who had gotten there ahead of us was already murmuring among themselves.
The situation was already over. The monsters had vanished—either they fled before the users arrived or had already retreated. Only the large pools of blood splattered across the ground bore witness to the violence that had just unfolded.
“If those were the users assigned to this perimeter… then probably…”
“Damn it!”
One man stomped the ground in frustration, his anger boiling over. He was one of the people who had run here with me. Seeing his clenched fists trembling, it was clear the victims were his subordinates—or perhaps just acquaintances.
“Damn it! What the hell happened here?”
“Calm down, Shin Haneuljigi, clan lord. I understand how you feel, but there are many eyes watching.”
“Damn it all! How can I calm down when my men were ambushed and killed?!”
“Right now, there’s nothing we can do without information.”
It was true. From the scene alone, nothing could be discerned. The only guess was that the monsters had ambushed the users guarding the outskirts, achieved their goal, and then quickly retreated.
Any user with half a brain could infer more: these monsters were aggressive enough to see users as prey, yet intelligent enough to restrain that aggression when necessary.
Shin Haneuljigi continued to rage, and the voices of those trying to calm him grew louder in response. Everyone gathered wore awkward expressions, watching the scene unfold. It was understandable, but given the circumstances, not the best behavior.
…Anyway, it seemed the meeting wouldn’t continue today.
After briefly surveying the area, I turned my back without hesitation and headed back to the tent. I needed to get some sleep if I was to function properly tomorrow.
The next day.
The sky was so clear and bright it almost felt like the previous night’s events were a bad dream.
I quickly washed up and prepared to depart as soon as morning came. After a brief, uneventful morning meeting, I stepped outside to find most of the campsite already packed up. The users had finished readying themselves according to their assigned squads.
“Ten minutes until departure. Everyone, finish your final checks.”
As I moved to the front to warm up, Jinsuhyeon approached briskly, looking somewhat downcast.
“Hyungnim, was there any important news at the meeting?”
I felt the eyes of all the clan members turn toward me. Stretching to shake off the stiffness, I shook my head.
“No, not really.”
“No talk about the monsters?”
“There was, but nothing new. Just that they see users as prey and are intelligent.”
“I see.”
Jinsuhyeon’s shoulders slumped. He sighed deeply, nodded weakly, and turned away. I watched him for a moment before scanning the entire expedition group.
“…”
Almost everyone wore blank expressions. They hadn’t been particularly lively from the start, but now the mood was so subdued it felt almost gloomy.
Still, that was fine. Considering everything that had happened, this tone wasn’t necessarily bad. It was only the beginning, but the atmosphere I wanted was slowly taking shape.
At Han Soyoung’s command, I stopped my observations and turned forward. Looking up, the towering mountain peaks pierced the sky. We hadn’t crossed them yesterday, but today, we had to.
And so, amid the slightly somber mood, the southern expedition began its march.
Time passed.
The heavy atmosphere that had settled since leaving the camp began to shift as we climbed the mountain range—replaced by tension.
Naturally, our pace slowed. The uphill climb was one reason, but more so because no one knew when or where the monsters might strike, heightening everyone’s vigilance.
But knowing the monsters’ nature, I doubted that even the most alert users could defend perfectly.
Was it a trap of habit or complacency?
These monsters were unlike those from the northern continent. For example, their presence couldn’t be detected by ordinary magic sensing.
So, we needed new strategies to counter them. But since we kept relying on old methods, it was no surprise they kept breaking through.
That wasn’t all. The terrain itself was a major factor in our disorientation. The rough, uneven slopes and dense forests made it hard to maintain direction or clear sightlines.
In other words, the monsters had the advantage of fighting on their home turf.
But since we were here to conquer, we had to accept that. I led the expedition onward, despite the growing unease.
The closer we got to the summit, the thicker the forest became, blocking our path. Then, a misty fog began to settle nearby, even causing me to tilt my head in slight confusion.
With about a hundred meters left to the peak, suddenly—
A magical presence flickered on my detection.
“Hmm?”
It was sudden. Hundreds of presences surged in from both sides, moving stealthily but at incredible speed.
And it was widespread. This wasn’t just a threat to the vanguard but to the center and rear as well.
A shiver ran through me. There was no time to think.
“Enemies approaching from both sides! Everyone, prepare for battle!”
At that moment—
Whirr! Whirr!
Sharp, tearing sounds sliced through the air.
Two tentacles shot toward me, the vanguard’s front line, from left and right. Reflexively, I drew my sword and deflected them, quickly scanning my surroundings.
Two seconds later, breaking the brief silence, dozens of tentacles exploded out of the bushes, attacking anything within reach.
But I wasn’t about to go down easily.
“Han-gyeol!”
Han-gyeol, who had been tense since the climb, responded immediately.
“Aegis system!”
“Gem amplification!”
Hanbyeol chimed in simultaneously.
Just as the tentacle barrage was about to crash down on the vanguard, a large hexagonal shield materialized in midair. As countless sparkling gems scattered, the shield multiplied rapidly, enveloping the entire vanguard just in time.
Tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tang!
The tentacles slammed against Han-gyeol’s shield, all blocked. Not only that, they bounced back in the direction they came from—likely due to a unique reflective ability.
“Oh! Ohhh!”
“We’re alive!”
Seeing the protective shield, the vanguard quickly regained their composure from near panic.
I issued further orders, swiftly reorganizing our formation: mercenaries to the front, warriors to the left, Jeoksim to the right. Another wave of tentacles came flying, but the priests, now alert, unleashed their protective magic indiscriminately, blocking the attack with no casualties.
After repelling two attacks, a brief lull finally arrived.
“Clan lord, awaiting your orders.”
“Archers, hold fire just before release. Mages, prepare earth magic. The rest, maintain current positions.”
I gave the commands quickly at Shin Jaeryong’s request, gripping my sword tightly and frowning slightly.
The hundreds of presences that had surrounded us began sliding backward, as if deciding we were no longer worth their attention. Their movement was incredibly swift.
“Ready to fire?”
“No. Hold for now.”
I thought I understood how they had infiltrated. I didn’t know exactly how, but they knew I could detect their presence and the form of the magic I used to sense them.
That’s why they avoided the front. They had been lying in wait far to the left and right, then struck quickly as we passed—so fast we couldn’t respond even if we knew.
…They knew we would pass through here today.
The monsters remained hidden.
Tension thickened as I slowly raised my hand, preparing to counterattack.
Then—
Boom!
A massive explosion erupted from the rear, and red flames suddenly filled the surroundings.
Startled, I turned to see bright crimson flames shooting up from the distant rear.
A sudden wave of numbness washed over me. They had cast fire magic in the dense forest?
“Idiots!”
The curse slipped out involuntarily.
“Clan lord?”
“Mages! Use the prepared spells on the rear!”
“Y-yes?”
“Damn it. Use earth magic on the bushes to the left and right of the rear unit! Then prepare water magic immediately!”
I shouted with all the power in my voice, filled with magical energy. The vanguard mages looked at me with some reluctance but began turning toward the rear one by one.
“───. ───. ───. Dig in the ground!”
“───. ───. ───. Earthquake!”
“───. ───. ───. Ground of Fury!”
“───. ───. ───. Rock Blaster!”
At last, the mages with enough spirit power unleashed their spells.
Rrrrrumble!
The earth cracked, shook, split open, and exploded. A deafening roar followed, shaking eardrums.
The effect was immediate. Not only did the enemies charging from the rear become clearly noticeable, but even those on the move suddenly revealed their presence. The once tightly coordinated foes now scrambled chaotically under the sudden barrage of magic.
“Archers, fire!”
Dozens of archers released their arrows in unison. The sharp whistling of countless arrows pierced the air, disappearing into the growing flames.
Moments later.
With a tremendous scream, the enemy’s presence began to fade, and soon they scattered rapidly in all directions. Everyone stopped moving and started to retreat.
Only after confirming that not a single one remained did I sheath my sword. All that was left was the raging fire greedily consuming the surrounding forest.
“User Shin Jaeryong. As soon as the water magic is ready, begin the evolution process.”
“Understood.”
Shin Jaeryong replied in a dazed voice. Everything had happened so fast that he still seemed a bit out of it.
“Hangeul, Hanbyul, you two can deactivate your spells now.”
“R-Really? Is that okay?”
The monsters had fled anyway. I simply nodded.
After confirming several streams of water dousing the flames, I stepped back toward the rear. No matter what, I had to know who had used the fire magic. This wasn’t just about enemy intel—it was common sense.
But—
Just as I was about to cross into the central unit, I abruptly stopped. More precisely, at the point where the rear of the vanguard met the front of the central force.
“Gah! My arm, my arm!”
“Ugh! Ugh!”
The area was a complete mess.