Entry

One week later, even supply preparations were perfectly complete.

Thanks to a mage who could reduce object volume, they could pack far more supplies into storage boxes than expected.

“Hey! Hold it properly!”

“You’re already staggering and only a few went in!”

The one flaw—the weight remained unchanged.

Even physical enhancement mages staggered whenever they lifted the supply boxes.

“That’s enough for 200 people to eat for a month. Is it okay to proceed with the next supply in a month?”

“We’ll dispatch personnel to the mid-slope.”

“Will you send people down once a week?”

“Why?”

“I’ve heard above 7000 meters altitude is terrible hell. To respond to the constantly changing environment, we might need to adjust supplies too.”

Pernok nodded.

Meanwhile, 200 guild members lined up in the training grounds.

A sharp intensity dwelled in their eyes, honed over one year.

“From now on, we head to a summit no other mercenary corps has pioneered. I can’t guarantee we’ll conquer it immediately. However, this great journey will ultimately transform into our glory!”

Pernok raised his artifact transformed into a sword with all his might.

“Let’s seize the first place in history!”

The mercenaries erupted in cheers, and countless fighting spirits boiled from all directions.

“To the summit!”

Led by Pernok, 200 skilled mercenaries entered the mountain range.

* * *

“5000 meters altitude is nothing! Don’t dawdle, advance!”

Sallio’s vanguard took the lead, breaking through mid-grade demon beasts.

Though the slope steepened, their pace didn’t slow.

This was a place they’d always trained and run around like a playground.

Places that would have taken a week if moving as a single guild like before now broke through with a single step.

The other guild members were the same.

Everyone walked around 5000 meters altitude without signs of tension.

“Leave material processing to the supply team!”

Rio’s supply team finished what Named swept through.

Since threatening demon beasts took at least a full day to respawn, Named’s remaining guild members alone could reach this far.

“Assault team switches with vanguard! We break through to 6000 meters!”

Upon entering 5500 meters altitude, Hallam overtook Sallio and burst forward.

The assault team, with lighter equipment than the vanguard, demonstrated nimble movements even in sharply angled sections.

They especially showed specialization in hit-and-run tactics, swarming a single mid-grade demon beast and precisely targeting vital points before withdrawing.

By efficiently distributing stamina, they passed 5500 meters in less than half a day.

Then 6000 meters altitude.

The danger was just beginning.

“Enri, Sallio.”

Pernok gestured for the two to come forward.

“Just one.”

The two felt fierce demonic energy approaching from the north.

The assault team seemed sufficient, but their goal was reaching the summit.

Better to eliminate threats quickly and conserve stamina.

Whoosh!

As soon as pitch-black embers blazed, the assault team turned north.

“It’s a Demon Knight!”

Mid-grade demon beasts began swarming from everywhere.

“Hallam, you’ll catch its attention with me.”

“Rear support blocks approaching ones! Only unique-types follow me to take the Demon Knight’s rear!”

Sallio and Enri moved together.

Pernok quietly watched the three’s coordinated assault.

‘They’ve rarely fought above 6000 meters.’

Since Named’s founding, they’d prioritized training and hunted demon beasts around 5500 meters altitude.

Having climbed just 500 meters, the air felt incredibly sharp.

Even the three who’d shown smooth coordination on the ground were creaking somewhere.

‘From now on, mana and breathing roughen at 100-meter intervals. Advancing recklessly isn’t efficient. First, I’ll let them adapt to this air.’

Half of the originally estimated two months was time to adapt to the mountain range.

“Kugh!”

“The assault team is collapsing! Vanguard raise shields!”

Definitely sluggish movements.

If they climbed like this, someone might die unexpectedly.

Rustle!

When Pernok waved his hand from the rear, a charging demon beast was split in half and died.

A guild member approached belatedly, gasping for breath.

“Huff, huff. Guild leader, are you alright?”

“Tell the rear support to raise their mana more.”

“Huff… huff… understood.”

“Tired already?”

“No sir!”

Pernok surveyed the surroundings.

The more mana the rear support poured out, the paler their complexions became.

In contrast, the guards were only sweating with strength still remaining.

The difference between the two groups was mana density.

Guards who weren’t born with mana didn’t suffer from mana poisoning.

Mages absorbed the mountain range’s dense mana to recover, consuming mental strength in the process of refining it.

Mages who had to guard against both monsters and mana poisoning were already exhausted.

‘In this state, advancing past 6500 meters is difficult.’

He couldn’t just take Sallio and Enri alone.

At minimum, he needed people to buy time against high-grade demon beasts up to 8000 meters altitude.

Feeling the guild’s combat power fluctuating rapidly in the changed environment, Pernok converted his artifact to a longsword.

“Tell them to set up base camp here and stay for a week.”

“Yes, guild leader!”

As gasping sounds came from everywhere, Pernok personally entered the battlefield.

The sword’s light reflecting off the sunset swept through mid-grade demon beasts in an instant and headed toward the Demon Knight.

Clang!

The Demon Knight deflected one strike and staggered.

The moment black flames burning inside the skull spread like an active volcano—

“Where are you looking!”

Enri and the unique-type mages struck the Demon Knight’s opening.

As its corroding body began crumbling, Sallio and Hallam launched a full offensive.

BOOM!

As soon as the Demon Knight fell, the demon beasts’ command structure scattered.

By the time Pernok returned his artifact to its original ring form, a dark and damp wind blew through the surroundings.

“Seems harder to adapt than expected.”

“We’re sorry, guild leader!”

Hallam bowed first.

Sallio and Enri also wore bitter smiles at the guild members’ lower-than-expected performance.

“We hunt demon beasts here for one week. I won’t allow more than that.”

“Yes!”

“Understood!”

“What’s a week? Five days is enough!”

Each unit commander reorganized their formations, and guild members with remaining stamina set up base camp near the Demon Knight’s corpse.

The corpse of a mid-to-high-grade demon beast killed recently prevents other lower-grade demon beasts from approaching.

Since Demon Knights need quite a long time to respawn, this wide-open location was optimal as a temporary base.

When things were roughly settled, Pernok gathered the unit commanders.

“I absolutely won’t intervene until 7000 meters altitude. If any guild members can’t adapt, quickly send them down the mountain.”

“We’re not bringing all 200 people?”

At Enri’s question, Pernok answered firmly.

“We’re not in a comfortable enough situation to break through to the summit dragging mana poisoning victims.”

“Tsk… should’ve trained above 6000 meters instead.”

This was Named’s early days.

Since they had to solidify requests first, around 5000 meters altitude was perfect for parallel training.

“No point thinking about the past. You monitor the guild members’ condition, and from tomorrow we hunt other mid-to-high-grade demon beasts. Make them adapt to high-density mana as quickly as possible, at a level where they don’t get hurt.”

“Everyone received harsh training from you, so they’ll shake it off and overcome quickly. Stop worrying.”

Enri grinned and headed toward the rear support.

“The assault team also learned something. Don’t worry.”

“The vanguard has no issues. However, we’ll refine tactics more so we don’t struggle like today.”

Hallam and Sallio returned to their respective units.

As if everyone felt something, they directly grabbed guild members and began explaining one by one.

The next day, they fully demonstrated their changed appearance.

“Move through the trees!”

“Vanguard hold position! Raise spears!”

“You guys refine mana during this gap!”

They executed new tactics Pernok hadn’t ordered.

The assault team carried out ambushes Enri used to do.

Sallio took on even the assault team’s role, holding enemies’ attention while simultaneously pressuring them.

Mages with relatively reduced burden supported with minimum output, then immediately sat down to refine mana.

At this time, Enri led the guards in dealing with demon beasts pushing in from all sides.

‘A method that places more burden on Sallio, who has relatively more capacity. Mages are deliberately lowering output and firing repeatedly so mana refining happens quickly. Enri focuses on perimeter security rather than ambushes so mages can concentrate.’

He felt their will to adapt to the mana density above 6000 meters as quickly as possible.

Pernok smiled.

He’d forgotten for a moment.

These were the masters of A-rank guilds that had dominated the mountain range before Pernok came.

‘Was I suppressing their rich experience by insisting only on my methods? Maybe I should reconsider being too efficiency-obsessed.’

Thinking about ways to increase their autonomy, he turned his gaze to Hallam.

‘His mana is fluctuating.’

The assault team drove demon beasts using combat techniques with minimum mana in their bodies.

Though they should tire quickly from the physical burden, the assault team’s vitality didn’t fade over time.

Especially, Hallam’s endurance was abnormally high.

‘Mana stimulates his body, and as the body tries to exceed limits, this in turn empowers his enhancement magic. Hallam will reach level 6 soon.’

If he overcame danger a few times, Hallam’s achievements would grow dramatically.

Their changed tactics seemed to work positively, as they cleared demon beasts faster than when facing the Demon Knight.

Returning to camp before sunset, they each reviewed their formations anew.

By the time four days passed, they moved organically without signs of exhaustion even against surging demon beasts.

“Faster than expected.”

They grinned.

“Break camp. From now on, there won’t be time to adapt.”

“Yes!”

With a resounding shout, they began climbing the mountain again.

* * *

7000 meters altitude.

Mana clung viscously like mucus, and magic activation slowed as if weighted down.

Having climbed just 100 meters from 6900 meters altitude, they felt eeriness constricting their hearts everywhere.

“The demon beasts inhabiting this place emit high-density mana like nature-type magic.”

A lawless zone where even Demon Knight-class demon beasts couldn’t struggle for territory.

“Lower-grade ones can’t survive. That goes for us too.”

Pernok transformed his artifact into glove form.

It’s coming.

A massive life form wriggling through the ground, craving the smell of blood visiting after a long time!

“Everyone to positions!”

The moment they sensed that demon beast, Pernok’s composure vanished.

Thinking he couldn’t lose even a single guild member from now on, his mana blazed like flames.

Fierce hostility manifested as powerful mana before the approaching danger.

“King Snake appearing from the north!”

A level 3 unique-type mage.

His searching magic detected dangers swarming from the surroundings.

Because he wasn’t greatly constrained by mana domination, he could join the expedition despite being a level 3 mage.

“Join after collision.”

“Yes!”

As soon as Sallio began gathering waves in his hammer, Pernok burst out.

The rear support’s magic soaring skyward fell in a parabola into the northern forest.

Massive scales washed away all magic.

That was a mana barrier surpassing even Sanmok’s luster.

RUMBLE!

Just raising its body made the mountain shake.

An alien snake with a gigantic body and bright red pupils.

The high-grade demon beast King Snake, said to corrode life forms with its breath alone, opened its mouth wide.

Wooooong!

Massive poison inside its mouth gathered high-density mana, trying to coalesce into one.

That speed overwhelmed the casting of any nature-type mages Pernok had seen.

In the blink of an eye, dark green breath was completed, and Pernok swung his charged artifact forward.

BANG!

An intense shockwave swept through a 100-meter radius.

Landing on the ground, Pernok brushed off green residue clinging to his artifact.

The King Snake’s bright red pupils dilated.

Because the human who should have corroded wore an utterly calm expression while completing another charge.

“Not frail enough to melt from that breath.”

Pernok immediately entered successive strikes.

He lightly jumped over the tail the King Snake swung and soared again.

But the King Snake couldn’t prepare another breath.

Because Pernok’s Over Impact was two moves ahead of the instant it gathered high-density mana.

BANG!

Bursting flashes engulfed the King Snake.

The King Snake retreated, emitting burning smoke from its entire body.

Its mana barrier had shattered.

“The tail and belly!”

Sallio and Hallam rushed at the collapsed King Snake.

Nature-type magic poured down above, and Enri moved with unique-type mages toward the tail, blocking its movements.

RUMBLE!

The torrential offensive gave the King Snake no breathing room.

They relentlessly pressed from all sides so the King Snake’s terrifying strengths listed in the bestiary couldn’t manifest.

A blood-like red aura began dwelling in the King Snake’s pupils.

The process of shedding its skin, streamlining its body, and entering high-speed form to weave through enemies.

But something forcing its way through its maw didn’t even allow a final struggle.

Bang!

A massive explosion occurred inside its belly, and the King Snake’s body split cleanly in half.

Pernok, covered in dark green blood, walked out trampling the King Snake’s innards.

Synchronization Rate – 23%

Having devoured even the King Snake’s massive spiritual power, Pernok clenched his fist and looked at the forest teeming with high-grade demon beasts.

Without passing through there, they could never enter 8000 meters altitude.

Pernok shook off the blood and headed in that direction.

“We break through.”