MAEPG: Episode 69

Episode 69 Tattoo (2)

"Hey, Hairy. Is this really human?"

The old woman, blinking repeatedly, pointed at Harley and asked the bearded man.

"Granny, are you senile? Saying that to a person! And Harley might have gone through a lot, but he's a proper human!"

The bearded man protested excitedly, as if he was foaming at the mouth, even though the words weren't directed at him.

In the fourth act, third scene of the eventful 'Harley's Great Adventure', there was a part where he was captured by the evil dark mage 'Hans' and experimented on before escaping.

He must have been concerned about him because of that.

'He's a thoughtful guy, unlike his appearance.'

Harley, who had inwardly flinched at the word 'monster', crossed his massive, muscular arms and nodded with satisfaction.

"Hmm... Anyway, you're saying he's really human?"

She examined him again, as if it didn't matter whether the bearded man was ranting or not.

"Well, I've seen a lot of warriors in my time, but this is a first."

"Old woman! Explain what the problem is! This is frustrating!"

And Harley, who couldn't just stand there, finally intervened at the sight of the old woman repeatedly expressing her amazement.

"It's not a problem. It's actually very good. Hehe..."

"Oh?"

"Ugh... It's cold outside. Let's talk inside. My bones ache because I'm old."

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

"Come to think of it, I haven't even thanked you. Thank you for helping me when I was in trouble. I'll make some tea, so sit down."

They entered the house, which was filled with all sorts of junk, and sat down, waiting. The old woman brought out tea made by boiling some unknown herbs.

"Drink up. It's good for you. You have to take care of yourself when you're old. I'm giving it to you as a thank you for helping me today."

Harley immediately picked up the teacup and gulped it down.

The steaming hot tea didn't harm his tough body in the slightest.

"Hahaha! It tastes healthy! Now, tell me the rest of the story!"

"Tsk... You young man, you're always so impatient."

The old woman, who leisurely took a sip of tea, slowly began to speak.

"You know that those who aren't qualified suffer severe side effects when they get a tattoo, right?"

"That's basic!"

"Tattoos generally consume a lot of the body's energy. Mana... well, the aura that warriors use also plays a big part, but life force is more important."

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

"I was flustered because I've never seen this much life force before. I've seen a few Great Warriors, but it's incomparable even to them."

"Harley was that much? Of course, he's at an incredible level even without using aura..."

"He's closer to a monster than a human. That's why I asked you earlier. If he was really human."

The overwhelming life force emanating from the body of a monster, which possessed physical abilities far superior to those of humans.

It was all contained in Harley's body, so it was only natural.

"Since tattoos forcibly draw out and use the life force flowing through the body, the more abundant it is, the stronger the tattoos you can get."

Since life force was continuously consumed from the moment a tattoo was engraved, the fiery energy emanating from a warrior's trained body was essential.

"But with this much, he could even get a Great Warrior's Tattoo, not just a Warrior's Tattoo."

"Oh! But is there a higher level?"

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

"Oh, King of War..."

Harley's eyes sparkled at the name he liked.

"Of course, I don't know how to do that. And it requires the assistance of several shamans under the leadership of a Great Shaman."

"Well, it's a shame, but it can't be helped. Then give me at least the Great Warrior's Tattoo for now. I should at least have that much! Hahaha—!"

"That's also a bit of a problem."

"Why not!"

The old woman ignored Harley's protest and leisurely sipped her tea, making him anxious.

"First of all, I don't have the materials. As you know, it's been a very long time since a southern warrior came here, so I'm not prepared at all."

She had been treating minor ailments and making a living, so the materials she had were only for that.

"I can get that much right away..."

"Ahem! Shamanism isn't something you can rush!"

Preparing each ingredient with care, taking time, and calming the mind were also part of shamanism.

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

Money didn't matter because he was very wealthy thanks to the expensive monster byproducts and Hubert's successful business.

"Can I get other tattoos at the same time? I want to do that if possible!"

"Tsk... You're always so impatient."

The old woman clicked her tongue and thought for a moment before answering.

"First of all, I'm not prepared at all right now, so it'll take a day to gather other materials and prepare. Come back the day after tomorrow."

"Tell me the materials, and I'll gather them quickly..."

"Ahem! Shamanism isn't something you can rush!"

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

The cost didn't matter because he was very wealthy thanks to the expensive monster byproducts and Hubert's successful business.

"Can I get other tattoos at the same time? I want to do that if possible!"

"Tsk... You're always so impatient."

The old woman clicked her tongue and thought for a moment before answering.

"First of all, I'm not prepared at all right now, so it'll take a day to gather other materials and prepare. Come back the day after tomorrow."

"Tell me the materials, and I'll gather them quickly..."

"Ahem! Shamanism isn't something you can rush!"

Preparing each ingredient with care, taking time, and calming the mind were also part of shamanism.

"And you need a week for your body to adapt after getting one tattoo. And I need to recover my stamina during that time. Do you think giving tattoos is easy?"

After finishing all their business, Harley and the bearded man got up and left the house, promising to meet the old woman again the day after tomorrow.

As they walked back through the alley,

"Ugh~! Now, shall we finish what we started?"

The bearded man looked puzzled at his words as he stretched refreshingly.

"Huh? Harley, did we have something to do before coming here?"

"Hahaha! What are you talking about, friend? We have something we didn't finish."

It seemed like his friend was a bit forgetful.

Harley kindly explained what they had to do.

"We need to take care of those guys."

"Huh?"

The bearded man made a blank expression again.

It seemed like he needed a more detailed explanation.

"In my experience, those kinds of guys always cause trouble later if you leave them alone! We need to take care of them in advance!"

Of course, the source of that experience was Earth's popular culture, which was full of clichéd content.

"Is… is that so? In my experience, if you scare them like that, they'll know their place and not even come near us."

"Ahem, you've been living a sheltered life, friend?"

The bearded man's words were incredibly naive from the perspective of a modern person who was steeped in all sorts of stimulating content.

Of course, he also thought that much was enough at first.

The opponent was just a group of thugs, and they were famous mercenaries with a muscular giant, and they even used “Wildness” to imprint fear on them.

They would probably know their place, as the bearded man said.

But the shaman was unexpectedly more capable.

And since the first tattoo was two days later, and he had to get a new one every week after that, he didn't know how long it would take…

‘That’s enough time for the fear to fade.’

So he needed to be more thorough.

“Oh… As expected of an indomitable warrior who survived all sorts of hardships. I’ve learned something, Harley. So how are we going to find them?”

The thugs had already run away and were nowhere to be seen, and they didn’t even know their base.

“Hehehe— They must be living around here, so wouldn’t they pop up if we beat up those related to them one by one?”

“I see! What if they hold a grudge and try to get revenge?”

“Then we didn’t step on them hard enough! We’re doing this to prevent that from happening! We need to step on them more thoroughly!”

“Indeed… Excellent! I’ve never seen a warrior as meticulous as you, Harley. You have both strength and intelligence!”

“It’s all thanks to experience. You can be like this too, Turaba. Wahahaha!”

The two of them disappeared into the alley, having a friendly conversation.

But the content of their conversation was ominous.

After several screams echoed through the streets until nightfall…

They were able to return home with light hearts, having cleanly finished their work.

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