---

"Ohoh! Ohohoh!"

One man was sitting on the tree, spouting admiration.

Whenever the man put his hand on the Desire Tree and focused, the seed from above would blossom before eventually falling.

Cras.h.!.+

One of the seeds crashed into the ground after making a breaking sound. From that seed, a weapon came out.

"Oh no…"

Seeing one of the men go to pick up the weapon, the man, Dell Marcus shouted, "Hey! Take good care of it, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d! Don't you know how precious it is?!"

From those remarks, the running subordinate complained as he picked it up.

'd.a.m.n… It is precious. The problem is everything is yours.'

The subordinate, Ellonto, muttered as he picked up the fallen weapons.

It was the sword that was made using a bunch of essence from the large tree.

From the looks of it, the quality and performance of this sword was grand. About this much, it would be quite useful for the man, Dell Marcus, sitting over there.

However, like mentioned previously, it was useful.

'In the end… It's a fake.'

Dell Marcus stroked the sword with a pa.s.sionate look after receiving it from Ellonto.

"Ahahah. I wonder how envious Kangtae would be after seeing me have this weapon."

If one were to kill the opponent, it would absorb the blood.

Just by making a wound, it would automatically cause a bleeding effect.

With a fixed percentage, one could even activate the effect of lightning and poison clouds erupting and infecting the opponent.

Literally, it was the weapon that allowed Kangtae to be a gladiator.

[El Maha Slaughterer Sword]

He couldn't really measure just how envious he was when he saw that sword.

Even the options of that sword were random but even all of that was suitable to his taste.

'That guy's luck… is truly ridiculous.'

Whenever he saw him, he couldn't help but feel envious so having this copy at least made him feel good.

Though he might be a bit behind in ability, it couldn't be said that the sword was weak.

'This is all thanks to the tree.'

Dell Markus looked at the Desire Tree with a loving look.

It was all possible since he was able to use the Desire Tree alone when it was usually occupied by two or three people elsewhere.

"Hey. You annoyed?"

Ellonto frowned at the words said to him.

"... I am not annoyed. I just want to see you fight like a crazy dog while holding that thing."

"b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Look at who you're talking to."

Ddakkk!

"Uh, this d.a.m.ned person."

Ellonton glared at Dell Marcus. However, he had no complaints, for Dell Markus was an immature, unfair human being.

He would never share stuff that was good, and if the opportunity were to come, he was the person that would take the best items.

If his opponents were as strong as him and had nasty personalities, then he would allow some leeway. But, if they were as weak as him, then there was no generosity.

However, the reason why they followed Dell Marcus was for one reason only.

At least the man was fair in a particular way. He was only focused on his greed, and he breathes out the strength that he had gained in the frontlines.

Though he might be disqualified as a leader, in order to preserve one's life, there was no other man like him to follow in this d.a.m.ned world. It was because he would fight most valiantly at the very front, and he could confirm the creations of the Desire Tree.

Eres's s.h.i.+eld.

Keldian's Staff.

Kangtae's Sword.

Taehee's Spear.

Weapon, weapon, weapon, and even more weapons.

He would not make anything that wouldn't help him in his fight.

After wandering around this world for 20 years, it would not be strange for him to make some alcohol, a pack of cigarettes, or even a woman to fool around with. However, he had not made a single one.

This was the reason why everyone who had gathered here had followed Dell Markus.

Yet, something didn't feel right.

There was an eerie mood that was circulating around the whole forest a while ago.

An eerie aura that caused people in the vicinity to feel uneasy Everyone here knew what that meant. There was another existence here. It was an existence that had stimulated their survival instincts.

It would have been even more unpleasant if Marcus was fixated on ingratiating on what objects to make.

It was then…

Dell Marcus frowned as he looked at the forest far away.

'... What was that?'

The unusual reaction of Dell Marcus also heightened Ellonto's vision, who began to scour where Dell Marcus was looking at.

Soon…

Ruuuuuuuumble!

Rumble!

allowed him to amplify all of his senses, including light and sound as Ellonto began to concentrate in his surroundings.

'... They're fighting.'

A battle was occurring tens of kilometers away. If he wanted to see, he could go and see, and if he were to run over, the distance was close so that he could arrive at a moment's time.

Ellonto, whose hearing and vision was amplified, began to sweep against the figures of every single one of them.

There were two groups that were mindlessly fighting.

One group was very familiar, for there were people that they had eaten together with not long ago.

'Hosang… Karl Akus?'

Though they were weaker than Dell Marcus, they were two Transcendents that were much stronger than him.

They were fighting at a distance from the tree, but he wondered why they were engaged in combat there, to begin with.

Soon, Ellonto's face was full of displeasure.

'What the h.e.l.l are those?'

There were fiendish, distorted faces that were fighting the Hosang and Karl Akus's group like crazy.

They were like beasts and like humans at the same time. Their ident.i.ty was unknown. However, he instinctively knew one thing that made them so uneasy as to where did those existences came from.

'... Where did they appear from?'

It was when Ellonto was frowning, Dell Marcus from beside gave a quick remark.

"Hey, let's flee."

"... Run away?"

From Ellonto's reply, Dell Marcus nodded.

"That's not all. There's much more behind them."

Dell Marcus was able to see further due to being much stronger than Ellonto, which was why he was aware that the monsters over there was not the end.

The bloodl.u.s.t was becoming stronger as it seeped into the skin of others through the air.

It was a normal reaction to avoid such a fight, since it's a shortcut to longevity by avoiding unnecessary fights.

"... What do we do with those people over there?"

Ellonto carefully asked.

Although they were divided into dissension, they still fought with their backs together until recently.

"Ah, shut up. They had ran off to live as they please, so how does that concern me? I'm more concerned about you guys who followed me."

"Captain…"

"Hey, pack your stuff. If you have anything you want from the Desire Tree, make it quickly. I'll give you one minute…"

It was then…

Both Ellonto and Dell Marcus' expressions hardened.

Chhhhhhhhhhang!

The weapon that was latched on Dell Marcus' back emerged into his grasp as he rushed into the brushes.

Booooooooooom!

Four weapons that Dell Marcus had cherished struck against the bushes.

It was an attack that an ordinary Transcendent would faint and cough up blood from.

However, Dell Marcus' hardened expression as he pulled out El Maha Slaughterer Sword said it best.

Instantly, he took out Eres' s.h.i.+eld that was made from the Desire Tree and began to use its

, beginning to exhale all of his energy from his body.

"Captain… What?"

Ellonto had a perplexed look.

It had been a long time since he saw Dell Marcus be so anxious.

Then…

"Where do you think you're going? Do you think our side fighting over there is some voluntary work?"

Klang

A man with an eerie dark-red aura walked out from the bushes, throwing down the four weapons that were aimed at him.

He was holding an unknown beast's head with his left hand as thirteen shadows were ominously hanging behind the man.

The moment Ellonto saw the unknown bloodstains on the man's armor, he stood on edge.

Hansoo smiled as he walked out of the brushes.

"Do you want to come with me when we're talking? Or should I make sure that happens?"

"This d.a.m.ned world. Truly."

No matter how much he berated the world, there was no end to this.

Where the h.e.l.l did a guy like him come from?

Dell Marcus, who grasped El Maha Slaughterer Sword, looked on with a hollow expression.

---

Eres, who looked inside the hole, frowned.

Inside the hole, it was perfectly enclosed. It was a large white room with no entrance. There was no way that this would have been made if it was a residential place.

'What are these things?'

Eres frowned at the claw marks and nail marks full of rage all around the walls.