My Alter Ego’s Path to Greatness

"Hey there, furry. Is this one really human?"

The old woman, blinking rapidly, pointed at Halli and asked Turbava.

"Hey, I think the old lady's lost it? Calling a person 'this'? Besides, Halli's been through a lot, but he's a proper human!"

Despite the comment not being directed at him, Turbava retorted with excitement, as if foaming at the mouth.

In the tumultuous 'Halli's Great Adventure', Act 4, Scene 3, it was mentioned that Halli had been captured by the evil black magician 'Hans' and had escaped after being subjected to biological experiments.

That must have been taken into consideration in caring for him.

'He's a considerate friend, despite appearances.'

Halli, who had flinched at being called a monster, crossed his muscular arms and nodded in satisfaction.

"Hmm... Anyway, you're really human?"

"I've seen many warriors in my time, but this is a first for me."

"Elder! Can you explain what the problem is? This is frustrating!"

Halli couldn't help but join in upon seeing the old woman's admiring expression.

"It's not exactly a problem. On the contrary, it's quite good. Hehe..."

"Oh?"

"Brr... Anyway, the outside air is chilly. Come inside and we'll talk. Getting old makes your bones ache."

She stood up from her chair, patting her back, and led them inside.

"Now that I think about it, I haven't even thanked you yet. Thank you for helping me out of a tight spot. I'll make some tea, so just sit anywhere you like."

After entering a room filled with various items and taking a seat, the old woman brought out tea brewed from an unidentified herb.

"Drink up; it's good for you. You need to take care of yourself as you get older. Consider it a thank you for today's help."

Halli immediately grabbed the teacup and gulped it down.

The steamy hot tea did no harm to his robust body.

"Ha ha! It tastes healthy! Now, let's continue our conversation!"

"Eh... Young man, you're too impatient."

The old woman leisurely sipped her tea and slowly began to speak.

"You know that when someone not worthy gets an engraving, the side effects can be severe?"

"Of course, that's basic knowledge!"

"Engraving fundamentally consumes a lot of the body's energy. Mana... well, warriors use aura, but life force is even more crucial."

She had the ability to see the life force flowing through a person's body.

"This is the first time I've been so startled by such a life force. I've seen great warriors a few times, but this was incomparable."

"Halli was at that level? Of course, he was remarkable even without using aura..."

"That's more like a monster than a human. That's why I asked earlier. Are you really human?"

The overwhelming life force emanating from a body with far superior physical abilities than a human.

It was natural, as it was fully contained in Halli's body.

"Engraving pulls up and uses the life force flowing through the body, so the more abundant it is, the stronger and more numerous the effects you can engrave."

Since life force is continuously consumed from the moment an engraving is made, the fiery energy emanating from a warrior's trained body was essential.

"With this level, not just a warrior's engraving, but even a great warrior's engraving would be sufficient."

"Oh! But is there a level above that?"

"Hehe... There is something called 'the King's Engraving', but no one has been able to engrave it for hundreds of years."

"Ho, the King, huh..."

Pleased with the name, Halli's eyes sparkled.

"Of course, I don't know how to do that either. Initially, it's a task that requires the assistance of several shamans under the leadership of a great shaman."

"Well, it's unfortunate, but it can't be helped. Then, at least give me the great warrior's engraving. At my level, I should have at least that much! Haha—!"

"That's a bit difficult too."

"Why not!"

Despite Halli's protest, the old woman leisurely sipped her tea, frustrating him.

"First off, we don't have the materials. As you know, it's been a very long time since a warrior from the south has come this far, so we're completely unprepared for that."

Having spent years healing minor ailments, the materials she had on hand were only those used in her own practices.

"I can quickly take care of that..."

"And second, to receive the great warrior's engraving, you need a deed worthy of it. It's not just about having a lot of life force or mana."

It seemed that the more advanced the engraving, the more stringent the conditions attached to it.

Ignoring these could lead to severe side effects for the person involved.

Muscle loss, hair loss, aging, diminished virility...

'No way!'

Faced with potentially fatal side effects, Halli resigned himself.

"So, what is this worthy deed you're talking about? Do I need to hunt a dragon or something?"

Still feeling disappointed, he asked her in a gruff tone.

"Hehehe... No need for something that extreme. Let's see... Yes, the northern mountains beyond the Steel Fortress. Hunting an ogre there, the predator of that place, on your own should suffice."

'Huh?'

"An ogre! Granny, do you even know what kind of monster that is?"

Turbava exclaimed in shock.

Ogres were top predators with nearly 5 meters of bulk, tremendous muscle density, and keen senses.

They were gluttons who, except for their sleeping hours, had to hunt all day long to sustain their massive bodies.

Even a group of high-ranking mercenaries attacking together could suffer great losses and still might not be able to kill one, yet she was asking him to hunt one alone.

"If you're challenging for the title of a great warrior, you should be able to do at least that. Actually, this is just the minimum requirement."

"Well... I guess a great warrior could do that, but..."

"And if you succeed in the hunt, those parts can be used for the engraving. High-level monsters make excellent materials for using in sorcery."

The old woman finished her leisurely speech and took another sip of tea.

And Halli silently rummaged through the spatial magic device in his pocket.

"So, receive other engravings and grow first, then slowly challenge... Pff—!"

"Yuck! What are you doing, granny? Suddenly in someone's face... Eh?"

Halli clumsily pulled out monster parts.

Large bones, tendons, eyeballs, bottles filled with blood, a variety of types all laid out.

"Uh... this isn't possibly..."

Turbava looked back and forth between the items and Halli with a dumbfounded expression.

"Ogres! These are parts of an ogre! And they're fresh, not even a few days since the hunt!"

The old woman recognized them immediately and exclaimed in shock.

True to her words, these were very fresh.

He had gone beyond the Steel Fortress to hunt and had just returned yesterday.

'I got caught up hearing about the sorcerer and forgot to deal with these, which turned out to be lucky.'

I saved myself the trouble of having to go out and gather materials again.

"Just asking out of curiosity... but did you hunt these alone?"

Seeing him pull out the materials at this timing, she might have felt something.

As she closely examined the items Halli had brought out, she looked at him with a skeptical expression and blinked.

"Heh... Hahaha! That's obvious, old woman! An ogre is nothing to me! Hahah!"

He laughed confidently.

"Then, with this, there's no problem in getting the great warrior's engraving, right?"

"That's... right. Just to confirm again, you did catch it alone, right?"

"Of course! Knowing what the side effects could be, why would I lie about such a thing!"

The old woman slowly nodded and refilled her empty cup, taking another sip.

"But granny, if you're skilled enough to give a great warrior's engraving, why live like this here?"

Turbava, having wiped the tea from his face, asked in a nonchalant tone.

She paused with the teacup at her lips but then took a sip as if it was nothing and replied nonchalantly.

"What's wrong with here? I earn enough for my meals, and people here help each other out, don't they?"

"Even when you were in trouble, those humans didn't show their noses, did they?"

"Everyone has their own circumstances, don't they?"

Her words carried several meanings.

Seemingly not wanting to talk more about it, Halli quickly moved on to his own matters.

"So, when can I receive the engraving? And if possible, I'd like to receive other engravings as well..."

"Eh... You really are impatient, aren't you?"

The old woman tutted before answering after a moment's thought.

"Since there's no preparation done yet, gathering other materials and getting ready will take a day. Come back the day after tomorrow."

"If you tell me what materials are needed, I can gather them quickly..."

"Ah! Sorcery isn't something you rush!"

Taking the time to carefully prepare and attune one's mind was also part of the sorcery process.

"And half of the cost is upfront. As you see, I don't have much, so I can't even get the materials."

Thanks to the high-value monster parts and the prosperous trade with Hubert, the cost was not an issue.

"Can I receive other engravings at the same time? If possible, I'd like to do so!"

"After one engraving, you'll need about a week for your body to adapt. And during that time, I'll need to replenish my own strength. Do you think engraving is easy?"

Having finished their business, Halli and Turbava stood up, agreed to meet the old woman the day after tomorrow, and left her house.

On their way back through the alley.

"Alright~! Now, shall we go finish what we couldn't earlier?"

He stretched comfortably and spoke, leaving Turbava with a puzzled look.

"Huh? Halli, was there something you were doing before we came here?"

"Hahah! What are you talking about, buddy? We have something left to finish, don't we?"

It seemed my friend had a bit of a forgetful nature.

Halli gently explained to him what they needed to do.

"Those guys from earlier, we need to deal with them, right?"

"Huh?"

Turbava made a clueless face again.

It seemed a more detailed explanation was necessary.

"From my experience, if you leave those kinds of guys alone, they always end up causing trouble later! Better to take care of it beforehand!"

Of course, that experience came from the cliché-ridden popular culture of Earth.

"That's... really? In my experience, scaring them a bit makes them watch themselves and not dare to come close."

"Ah, you've lived a rather sheltered life, haven't you, buddy?"

From the perspective of someone marinated in all sorts of stimulating content of the modern world, Turbava's approach seemed naïvely optimistic.

Of course, I too initially thought that was enough.

The opponents were just a gang of ruffians, and they were up against a famous muscular mercenary who had also used "Wildness" to instill fear in them.

So, likely, as Turbava said, they would steer clear on their own.

But unexpectedly, the sorceress granny turned out to be more capable.

With the first engraving scheduled for two days later, and then one every week after that, it was uncertain how long it would all take...

'That would be enough time for the fear to dilute.'

So, there was a need to make things more certain.

"Oho... Truly, an indomitable warrior who has survived all kinds of adversities. I've learned something new, Halli. But how do you plan to find those guys?"

They had already fled, nowhere to be seen, and their hideout was unknown.

"Hehehe— They must be living around here anyway, so if we start knocking on the doors of those related, won't they pop out eventually?"

"That's smart! But what if they hold a grudge and seek revenge?"

"Then we haven't stepped on them hard enough! The point of taking care of this now is to prevent exactly that! We need to be more thorough and decisive!"

"Indeed... Impressive! I've never seen a warrior as meticulous as you, Halli. You've got both brawn and brains!"

"What can I say, it's all thanks to experience. You'll get there too, Turaba. Wahahaha!"

The two of them disappeared into the alley, exchanging words in high spirits.

Yet, the content of their conversation was rather ominous.

As the day turned to night, the streets echoed with several cries of distress...

After neatly wrapping up their business, they were able to return home with a sense of refreshment.

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