Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 315 – Clash! (4)

“Come here, Tara.”

“Okay!” Tayarana smiled brightly and spread her wings the moment Han-Yeol extended his hand and called out to her.

Shwooong…!

She floated into the air and hovered toward Han-Yeol like a cute little kitten. Though she was usually collected and cold, there were moments when she acted cute like this.

‘I’m so jealous…’ Mariam thought.

However, this time, jealousy consumed Mariam as Tayarana was able to be so close to Han-Yeol, who looked majestic and gorgeous.

‘W-What am I thinking?! How could I!’

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Mariam hurriedly shook her head, attempting to erase the thought from her mind.

Meanwhile, Tayarana grabbed Han-Yeol’s hand, completely unaware of Mariam’s thoughts.

“But what are you going to do?” she asked.

She had hovered over to him when he called her, but she had no clue about his current plans.

Heh.

Han-Yeol smiled and replied, “Look closely. We’re about to perform a miracle in the Bastro Dimension, and I wanted you to witness it by my side.”

It was an unexpectedly cringy thing for Han-Yeol to say. However, despite the cringe factor, Tayarana couldn't help but blush at his words.

‘T-That’s a bit…’ She felt shy after hearing his statement.

As Tayarana blushed beside him, Han-Yeol spread out his hands.

“Restore. Purification Light.”

Woooong…!

Han-Yeol uttered the names of his skills, an action he rarely took. Soon after, a radiant light emitted from his hands, extending toward the corrupted soldiers who wandered around in a dazed state.

Wooooong…!

“Gwuu Oooh…!”

“Gwuok…!”

“Ooooh…!”

The corrupted soldiers writhed in agony upon contact with the light emanating from Han-Yeol’s hands. Their cries grew louder, causing the Bastro Warriors to flinch at the distressing sounds.

Yet, the Jaguar Warriors were taken aback by something else entirely.

[W-What?]

[How is this possible…?]

The corrupted soldiers spread out and simultaneously cried out in agony, prompting astonished thoughts.

‘H-How can he affect this many corrupted soldiers at once…?’

‘T-This is amazing…!’

The sight of numerous corrupted soldiers being affected at once shocked the Bastro Warriors. Their reliance on close combat during the entire war made this unexpected turn understandably shocking.

While the Bastro Warriors did possess area of effect skills, sorcery was frowned upon among Bastrolings, resulting in few pursuing that path.

What followed next stunned every Bastro Warrior observing.

Thud…! Thud…! Thud…!

[W-What?!]

[C-Captain, look over there!]

Some Jaguar Warriors exclaimed, pointing at the corrupted soldiers.

[Hmm?]

Their captain glanced at them before following their gestures.

[Huh?]

He couldn’t help but be stunned by what he witnessed.

‘What…?’

He found himself surprised, almost detached from reality at the scene unfolding.

‘T-The corruption is being purified?!’

The corrupted soldiers collapsed one by one, yet the puzzling part was their colors returning and the dark wounds on their bodies healing themselves.

Those dark wounds were distinctive marks of the corrupted soldiers. Despite the Bastrolings trying various methods—eliminating sorcerers or targeting the corrupted soldiers—nothing had eradicated these marks.

However, the most startling development was...

[Oooh…]

One of the fallen corrupted soldiers moaned, a sound oddly normal.

[C-Captain!]

[Damn it! Jaguar Warriors! Listen up!]

[Yes, sir!]

[We’ll scour the battlefield and rescue any living Bastrolings without dark wounds! Move out!]

[Yes, sir!]

Tak! Tak! Tak! Tak!

The Jaguar Warriors sprang into action, but their numbers fell short. Despite nearly two thousand corrupted soldiers, only eighteen Jaguar Warriors remained after two casualties.

[Cheetahs!]

[What is it, Reannes?]

[Mobilize all able Cheetah Warriors. Check the fallen corrupted soldiers and rescue any surviving Bastrolings! Our Jaguars are out there, but we need more hands!]

[Rescue the fallen?]

Reanness sensed urgency but aimed to explain everything he noticed to the Cheetah Warriors clearly to ensure cooperation.

Upon hearing the explanation...

[What?! A-Alright!]

The Cheetah Warriors swiftly joined the rescue efforts.

Although they had entered the battle, their contribution on the battlefield was limited due to their speed outweighing their combat prowess.

[Understood? Our goal is rescuing our comrades!]

[Yes, captain!]

Tak!

The cheetahs sprinted at their maximum speed to search for survivors.

Woooong…! Thud…!

The last remaining corrupted soldier collapsed.

‘Phew… It’s challenging even without any sorcerers around… Guess this won’t be practical in battle…’ Han-Yeol pondered.

Despite performing what could be considered a miracle, he didn't seem particularly elated. While the Purification Light could have been a boon to reduce casualties among allies, he realized its effectiveness was limited to those not under the control of the Hyena Sorcerers.

‘Well, perhaps it’s a useful wide-area debuff to halt their movements temporarily…’

Ultimately, he chose to find contentment in what he had, even if it didn't align with his initial expectations. With a bittersweet expression, Han-Yeol gazed downward.

He had tried hard to bury the twenty years he lived as Harkan, but now, faced with the devastating calamity befalling this once joyful dimension, ignoring his past seemed impossible.

Amidst his contemplation of the ground, Tayarana called out to him, “Han-Yeol.”

“Yes, Tara?”

For a moment, he forgot Tayarana was currently hovering beside him, hand in hand.

These two-winged individuals truly complemented each other, a sight that captivated any onlooker.

“It’s truly beautiful.”

“You think so?”

“Yes, the skill you just used is the most beautiful skill I’ve ever witnessed.”

Heh.

Han-Yeol beamed. Being praised by Tayarana felt quite pleasant.

“Let’s use this skill together again next time.”

“Sure!”

***

The battle between light and darkness concluded, marking the first victory for the felines against the Hyena Cleaners. However, they couldn’t afford to revel in this rare triumph.

[Bring me some water! Hurry!]

[Medic! I need a medic here!]

The urgency stemmed from the fact that half of the corrupted soldiers purified by Han-Yeol’s skill had survived. Essentially, they were the inaugural survivors of their kind within the Light Faction, with a significant number of felines among them.

[Ah…]

Regrettably, they remained unconscious.

[Hmm…]

Taichin determined they needed to expedite proceedings for these survivors' sake.

[Chierita!]

[Yes, sir!]

Chierita, the captain of the cheetahs, responded promptly to Taichin's call.

[Fetch the civilians as swiftly as possible. We can't linger. We'll utilize the carts they've brought to transport the survivors and depart from here.]

[Yes, lord!]

Tak! Whoosh!

Chierita selected her four fastest warriors and departed to notify the civilians.

The Bastrolings were bustling with activity.

‘Oh, right… He was quite remarkable…’ Taichin mused while observing the guest from another dimension.

The outcome of this battle would have significantly differed if Han-Yeol hadn't been present. Without him, the Bastro Warriors would have valiantly battled the corrupted soldiers until exhaustion, only to be overwhelmed by the Hyena Sorcerers' corruption.

As absurd as it sounded, that had been the recurring pattern of the Bastro Warriors' defeats until now.

While observing Han-Yeol, Taichin was struck by a sudden odd thought, ‘But…have I met that creature before…?’

This was undeniably their first encounter, and she was certain she had never met a creature resembling Han-Yeol from another dimension. Yet, there was an indescribable familiarity about him that eluded her.

‘Haha… I must be mistaken…’

Ultimately, she concluded she might have been imagining things, chalking up the sense of familiarity to her gratitude toward him.

***

Ziiing…!

Han-Yeol might have emerged victorious in the battle, yet he remained vigilant, continuously using Demon Eyes to scan his surroundings, wary of any lurking danger.

Fortunately, within a six-kilometer radius, he didn't detect any traces of mana associated with the hyenas.

Deciding to halt his scouting for the time being, he turned around, only to be surprised. “Hmm?”

“Ah…”

He found himself face to face with Mariam.

“What is it, Mariam?”

“Ah, th-that is…” Mariam extended a large black mana stone toward him.

“What’s this?”

“This emerged from the heart of the hyena that rode the giant monster you defeated, Han-Yeol-nim.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Tak…

Han-Yeol received the black mana stone.

Mariam bowed and quickly departed to where Tayarana was waiting.

‘Hmm? Is it just me, or was she blushing just now?’ Han-Yeol pondered.

He wasn't oblivious to women's signals, but he had refrained from paying much attention to Mariam, aware that Mujahid had set his sights on her.

‘Hmm… This black mana stone is quite peculiar…’

[Should I analyze it for you?]

‘Of course, go ahead.’

[Yes, I will analyze it now…]

Ding!

[Dragon of Destruction Mana Stone]

Rating: ???

Type: Jewel

Mana: ???

Description: A mana stone carrying faint traces of the Destruction Dragon's mana.

‘What the hell is this…?’

[This is absurd…]

Even Karvis was left speechless upon seeing the analysis results. Most of the information provided was already known to them, rendering the analysis utterly unhelpful.

‘Tsk… I suppose it might be useful later…’

[It… It probably will…]

Karvis seemed to agree, albeit with uncertainty evident in her stuttering.

‘Sigh… I can't really expect much…’ Han-Yeol sighed before stashing the mana stone in his dimensional storage.

He had recently discovered that the storage arranged its contents automatically after he closed it. While it might take time to find things later, it was still convenient not to manually organize less important items and waste time.

After handling his personal affairs, the civilians finally arrived at the ravine. They joined the Bastro Warriors in cleaning up the battlefield.