Chapter 148

Chapter 148
## Chapter 148

Hero Party (2)

“Sigh—”

Isea collapsed backward onto her mattress, letting out a heavy breath the moment she stepped back into her private quarters after the formal meeting concluded.

Mercifully, the Saint had shown deep empathy, accepting her regrets without hesitation once she laid bare the reality of her circumstances.

His benevolence was so profound that a pang of shame actually pricked at her conscience.

‘And besides… there is simply no way a man of the Saint’s perception missed the exact details I picked up on.’

She had also gained explicit assurance that the barbarian named Harley—who had been a lingering source of tension in her mind—posed no threat, which should have allowed her to depart for the imperial palace with a unburdened spirit…

Yet her thoughts felt far more tangled now than prior to her arrival at the grand cathedral.

“Could that really… have been Hahoe Mask?”

Her focus kept snapping back to the precise illustration of the facial covering the Saint had sketched and presented to her just before their dialogue drew to a close.

‘Or did it merely appear identical because it was rendered on paper? Could it be nothing more than a strange stroke of luck? If the authentic Hahoe Mask is truly out there, what business does it have existing in this domain?’

Then again, when she truly considered it, its presence here wasn’t entirely impossible.

She was hardly the sole individual pulled from her homeland into this realm of Auterica.

For the past eight winters, she had safely matured under the direct guardianship of the princess, but the raw data dictated that the likelihood of surviving an otherworldly transition hovered at a mere twenty percent.

Furthermore, because she had already fulfilled the criteria necessary to secure her own passage back home, a basic mathematical deduction meant at least four other souls must have perished across these lands.

‘Granted, statistical odds operate independently for each person, so it doesn’t guarantee that exact tally, but the baseline mathematical projection remains standard.’

Whether those displaced individuals were currently breathing or long gone, if a fellow countryman from Korea had been counted among them, the arrival of a Hahoe Mask in this world was entirely plausible.

Perhaps someone had carried the artifact across dimensions as a token of their birthplace only to lose track of it, or perhaps they had painstakingly carved a replica out of sheer homesickness.

It was equally possible they had passed it along as a token of friendship or bartered it away for currency.

‘…The individual possessing it might share a connection with the Immortal King. A figure of that caliber wouldn’t don a piece of headgear without deliberate intent.’

A distinct motivation must have guided that choice.

Perhaps he cut down an adversary who stood against him and claimed the prize, or perhaps an ally who facilitated his return to life offered it as a tribute.

Alternatively… what if the true persona of the Immortal King belonged to…

“Whew— speculation won’t solve anything right now. And regardless of the reality, it holds no bearing on my present path.”

Though the unmistakable markings of a fellow traveler from her native world had temporarily unsteadied her focus, dwelling on it was an empty exercise.

Besides, it wasn’t a comforting line of thought to linger on.

‘That reminds me, I wonder what the remaining Earthlings scattered across this realm are currently pursuing?’

Because her travels had been strictly limited, she hadn’t crossed paths with any others, but it was entirely possible they had brushed shoulders in passing without a single spark of recognition.

Without someone explicitly declaring their origin, identification was an impossible task, and she certainly wasn’t the sort of person to volunteer that information first.

‘I hope to at least exchange words with one of them before my final departure. It would be a stroke of luck if they happened to hail from the same country.’

Shifting her focus away from the labyrinth of unanswerable dilemmas, she let her eyelids close and drifted smoothly into a deep, centering meditation.

She needed to restore tranquility to her unsettled spirit.

—

Simultaneously, while Isea remained captured by her inner reflections,

Harley, who represented a completely different fragment of a Korean soul cast into the realm of Auterica, was slowly rubbing his jaw with an intense, calculated gaze, entirely consumed by his own line of reasoning.

‘Enemy of the world… Did the system even contain a milestone of that magnitude?’

The specific triumph that Hans had just triggered carried an immense weight, judging purely by its fundamental breakdown.

After all, rendering oneself an object of hatred to more than half of the breathing, sentient populations across an entire reality was no small feat.

It absolutely earned its status as a monumental milestone.

And the associated reward, “Extra Life”, had clearly been granted with that severe reality in mind.

‘Then again, anyone capable of surviving the parameters to unlock such a trait isn’t bound to perish easily, and they would have amassed a mountain of Karma to fuel their departure anyway, so the practical necessity seems debatable.’

Then again, every single reward manifested up to this point followed that exact logic.

The “Interdimensional Transfer Formation Summon” became accessible only if one managed to navigate the journey back to their native reality through sheer personal capability.

The “Instant Death Immunity” trait was bestowed only upon achieving the status of the Immortal King, standing at the absolute apex of all unliving things.

The benefits were undeniably potent, yet they would prove incredibly clumsy to utilize for anyone who wasn’t a highly irregular entity like himself.

‘It makes little difference to me; profit is profit regardless of the delivery.’

The specific boon of “Extra Life” functioned precisely as its title implied—a mechanism ensuring a full return to the living world even after succumbing to fatal trauma.

It operated on a completely different level than “Instant Death Immunity”, which merely deflected demise under a strict set of conditions; this was a fundamental, unadulterated marvel that reconstructed the physical vessel in flawless health upon expiration.

Naturally, a power of this magnitude didn’t come with unrestricted usage.

‘The recovery interval is massive. A single activation per year. Though given the sheer scale of the phenomenon, that turnaround is remarkably forgiving.’

Measured by Earth standard time, it translated to a single use every ten winters due to his primary consciousness anchored on his home world, but it served as an impeccable safety net for his secondary vessels, who were already incredibly difficult to destroy.

‘Very well, that matter is settled. Now for the next order of business… ’

Shaking himself free from the web of calculations, Harley lifted his chin, and…

Heinrich simultaneously shifted his attention, fixing his eyes directly on the barbarian.

…In that instant, their lines of sight locked.

“………”

“………”

A peculiar, heavy stillness settled over the receiving chamber.

The two manifestations simply offered one another silent, contrasting expressions without uttering a single vocalization.

Heinrich projected a warm, gentle smile capable of comforting anyone who looked upon it, while Harley countered with a brutal, intimidating grin that sent an icy shiver straight down the spine.

They had deliberately structured separate consultation times to deflect the curiosity of outsiders, but with no external observers present in the room, there was no logical reason to hold a conversation with oneself, leaving them to simply sit in a mutual, vacant state.

‘Hold on.’

Heinrich’s focus drifted down to settle on Harley’s uncovered chest and torso, which were heavily decorated with intricate, vibrant markings.

That staggering physical framework, packed with swelling definition, possessed an internal density that far exceeded its external appearance. To an entity like Harley, who commanded raw vitality, that sheer mass was the literal embodiment of his lethal capability.

‘Now that I think about it, there haven’t been any direct confrontations between my manifestations aside from the clash involving Heinrich and Hans. Both of these current bodies are strictly optimized for physical combat, so what would the outcome look like if they pushed against one another?’

It was a sudden spark of whim, yet it simultaneously presented a highly functional prospect.

Squandering time by sitting around in absolute silence was a waste, and verifying the precise limits of their respective physical vessels could easily be categorized as a core component of the screening process.

Thud!

The very instant that conclusion crystallized, both physical forms rose to their feet in unison and made their way toward the open air.

Weaving through the expansive grounds of the cathedral, their synchronized strides eventually came to a halt…

Directly before a specialized combat arena situated along the perimeter of the main courtyard.

“Ah! Warmest tidings, Holy Saint. If I may inquire, what brings your presence to this quadrant…?”

The armored holy knight overseeing the training grounds registered Heinrich’s sudden arrival with visible astonishment and offered a respectful bow.

This particular dueling square, encircled by a sophisticated, heavy-grade defensive barrier, was explicitly constructed to absorb and neutralize kinetic shockwaves before they could ripple outward, making it an ideal setting where even high-ranking Paladins could engage in uninhibited, maximum-yield combat exercises.

Consequently, a more flawless stage for a confrontation between Heinrich and Harley did not exist.

“Be at ease— your dedication is noted. I require the use of this combat square for a brief duration. I intend to engage in a formal evaluation with this traveler.”

“Bwahaha! The intersection of raw muscle and unyielding spirit is the only true language between warriors! This is precisely how progress is forged! Bwahaha!”

Harley instantly stepped deep into his established persona, projecting his voice with booming intensity to satisfy the ears of the surrounding guards.

The attending holy knight’s features tightened slightly at such unpolished conduct in the direct presence of the Saint, yet he withheld any spoken reprimand, choosing to give ground quietly as Heinrich, maintaining a serene demeanor at the barbarian’s side, offered no objection.

The knight’s eyes dipped subtly, taking a measured look at the dense musculature framing Harley’s torso.

And with that—.

“Look there! Is the Holy Saint engaging in a duel?!”

“Who stands across from him? Is that a combatant out of Calcos? What an astonishing physical specimen.”

“Aha… he must be one of the prospects put forward for the grand march. In that case, this serves as a personal screening by the Saint. Let us see if his martial execution aligns with the promise of that massive frame.”

A steady stream of holy knights and consecrated soldiers began to drift toward the area, forming a loose perimeter around the combat square.

Because analyzing a high-tier exchange offered immense educational value to their own development, the architecture of this dueling arena was intentionally optimized to accommodate spectators.

To be sure, Heinrich, by virtue of his holy authority as the Saint, could have ordered the crowd to disperse instantly if he so desired…

‘But there is absolutely no gain in doing so.’

This scenario offered a perfect stage to demonstrate their combat viability directly before the frontline forces of the Main God Church.

It was the optimal moment to prove to these holy conditioning enthusiasts that Harley’s extraordinary physical development was forged for absolute destruction, not mere aesthetic display!

‘With that established, let the exchange commence.’

Though designated as a duel, because a single consciousness directed both physical vessels, deceptive strategies and psychological feints were completely off the table.

The flow of blows would inevitably mirror a flawlessly choreographed sequence, meaning the exercise would center entirely on testing the raw output of their respective traits.

Even so, such a trial promised to yield highly valuable baseline data.

On one side stood Heinrich, the chosen Saint of the Main God, the destined champion tasked with striking down the Immortal King, the literal embodiment of a knight of light.

On the other stood Harley, the untamed northern fighter, the altered Dragonborn hybrid, a raging berserker whose feet had never pressed into the southern soils.

The two forces drove forward into a direct collision.

—

The confrontation carried all the weight of a genuine life-and-death struggle, but given the presence of the surrounding gallery, Harley refrained from revealing his unrestricted mutation or tapping into his internal ‘madness’.

Unveiling those aspects so openly would stretch plausibility too far, even with Heinrich’s personal endorsement backing his reputation.

“Bwahaha—!”

Boom—!

Yet even without relying on those hidden reserves, Harley’s sheer combat presence defied standard comprehension.

His physical frame, which expanded with even greater mass than its previous state, was accented by deep crimson scales tracing along his limbs, while a pair of spectral, ghostly embers flickered deep within his sockets.

His right hand, tipped with elongated, lethal talons, mirrored the devastating claw of a true dragon, while the massive, dark-hued battleaxe gripped in his left hand—saturated with a dense coating of “Bio-Aura”—cut through the air with a whistling velocity that looked capable of cleaving a monolithic beast in two.

Concurrently, the raw vitality radiating from his peak physical vessel ignited the internal reserves of power dormant within him, causing the intricate markings across his skin to flare to life as a localized cyclone of mana whipped around his frame, imparting massive kinetic force to his every movement.

“By the gods… could that creature truly be… a Dragonborn?”

“…It defies easy categorization, given how infrequently that bloodline appears in the world. Yet if the entirety of their species commanded that tier of martial output, they would hardly be lingering on the brink of total erasure…”

“Just as the old sayings go, true muscle never betrays expectations.”

“Indubitably!”

The watching warriors murmured in collective agreement, thoroughly captivated by the sheer dominance radiating from the arena floor.

Harley’s hyper-aggressive style was wildly unorthodox and chaotic, yet it was explicitly anchored by a foundation of flawless technical discipline and deeply ingrained martial basics.

Boom—!

The heavy axe, radiating a thick, blood-red luminescence, crashed violently against the consecrated blade, and in that identical microsecond, the predatory talons of his right hand slashed low, targeting Heinrich’s lower stance.

Harley rotated his left shoulder with fluid precision, tracking Heinrich as the Saint evaded the heavy blade and executed a nimble backward pivot.

It was an exhibition of overwhelming martial supremacy, balancing savage physical output with elite technical execution that defied any attempt at criticism, and…

Even the consciousness navigating the opposing vessel was forced to respect the sheer pressure.

‘My initial assessment was off. I anticipated this would unfold as a standard, predictable sequence of exchanges, but experiencing the kinetic feedback firsthand, Harley’s mechanical execution is far more… ’

Ungovernable.

Predicting the trajectory of the incoming strikes proved remarkably difficult, despite his own mind initiating the physical commands.

The “Frenzied Beast” attribute—the advanced evolution of his basic “Wildness” trait—didn’t merely streamline his management of internal rage.

It effectively pushed nearly the entirety of his physical execution down into the deepest levels of his subconscious mind, bypassing the delay of analytical reasoning entirely and executing instinctive strikes against the minor vulnerabilities in Heinrich’s positioning.

Because they operated on a shared mental frequency, Harley was actively capitalizing on structural gaps that Heinrich hadn’t even consciously registered yet.

‘…This presents an incredibly potent avenue for personal refinement.’

Could there be a more flawless method for identifying and correcting the subtle flaws in his form that eluded his own awareness?

It was an intensely aggressive style of training, but the practical returns were undeniable. Fascinated by the immediate benefits, Heinrich progressively entered a hyper-focused state of execution, directing his entire concentration toward the battle against his own reflection, his original objective fading from his thoughts.

Crackle!

Boom—!

The violent exchange intensified in scale, with Harley executing progressively more destructive sequences as if intent on burning through every drop of his internal energy stores.

However…

Despite the escalating fury…

Not a single one of his strikes managed to breach Heinrich’s guard.

The edge of the battleaxe, tracing a lethal path toward a vital target, was systematically swept aside by the consecrated sword.

The tip of a boot, snapping upward in a sudden ambush to seize a brief opening, lost its kinetic advantage before it could bridge the final distance to its mark.

A palm bathed in concentrated sword ki and celestial energy smoothly parried the advance of the razor-sharp talons.

Meanwhile, the edge of the weapon glowing with divine radiance sliced cleanly through the dense, protective scales, painting the barbarian’s physical form in deep red streaks.

“…The mechanical execution of that swordplay is breathtaking. It possesses a precision unlike anything I have witnessed…”

“Though is the Holy Saint perhaps pushing the intensity a fraction too high? Should we intervene to de-escalate the bout?”

“There is no cause for alarm. The warrior from the southern frontier is shedding blood, yes, but the lacerations along his flesh are already knitting back together. Fascinating—is that extraordinary recovery another innate property of the Dragonborn lineage?”

In terms of raw, unadulterated physical parameters, Harley held a distinct advantage.

His physical vessel felt akin to a condensed, high-density monstrous entity, and the volatile current of energy pulsing from his core served to multiply an already spectacular degree of destructive power.

His offensive maneuvers arrived with immense velocity, crushing weight, and absolute unpredictability.

Yet that very pressure—relentlessly provoked an awakening in a dormant aspect of Heinrich’s capabilities.

‘Ah, so this is the breakthrough point.’

The passive traits of “Grand Blessing: Knight of Light” alongside an array of developmental multipliers facilitated his internal realization.

Simultaneously, the foundational forms of “Logia Holy Combat”—a style polished and refined across successive generations of martial prodigies specifically to counter diverse monstrous threats—was being integrated into his muscle memory at an accelerated rate.

He was suddenly executing high-tier techniques that he understood theoretically but had previously lacked the physical precision to manifest, triggering an immediate surge in his overall combat efficacy.

And in that defining moment,

《The subject achieves a profound realization through persistent, high-intensity application. The physical trait “Martial Bones” undergoes an evolutionary breakthrough, transforming into the specialized capability “Path of Martial Arts”.》

Heinrich’s “Martial Bones” attribute, which had remained entirely locked in place ever since he laid claim to the holy sword and attained his current plateau, finally shattered its limitations and advanced.