Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 414

62nd day since entering the labyrinth, Dragon’s Depths.

When we were about 30 minutes away from the portal connected to the 8th floor.

「The ring has sensed the character’s destiny.」

The traffic light ring lit up.

“Mister, it’s… it’s a red light!”

So, it’s all negative events ahead.

I thought there would be at least some green mixed in.

Well, that’s disheartening.

‘…What should we do, shouldn’t we turn around now?’

Up until now, whenever the ring glowed red or Sven Parab’s intuition triggered, we immediately changed course to avoid the events.

But…

“Erwin, changing the destination now won’t change anything.”

“That’s… true, but still…”

The surroundings were already engulfed in crimson flames.

Even if we tried to escape to another location, the flames would close in and suffocate us.

There was only one way to escape the fire—go all in and push through it before it’s too late.

“Parab, what is it?”

The goblin beside me, looking embarrassed, hesitated before speaking.

“Well… I feel the safest next to you, Captain…”

“Safest,’ huh? It stings a bit, but I’ll let it go.”

After all, he’s been a great help until now.

“So, how do you feel now?”

“I feel suffocated. L-Like entering a burning forest.”

“Is that so? But it’s unusual for you not to say anything. You always wanted to run away to another place at times like this.”

“That’s… I do feel ominous, but I keep thinking this is the right path.”

I see, so that’s how it is.

“We’re almost at the portal. Everyone, pick up your pace!”

Then I kicked into a final sprint.

And after some time passed.

“The portal!”

In the distance, the portal shimmered, scattering multicolored light.

And then…

“……Enemies!”

In the light provided by the portal, we could see the enemies.

A detached unit of about 40 people.

They too were heading toward the portal.

“Those royal bastards!!”

“They really came this way!”

Just as we saw them, they also noticed us and shouted.

Phew, how did they know to come here?

As I wondered that, I saw a familiar face among the enemies.

“You…!!”

The Dragon Slayer, Regal Vargos.

“Yes, I knew you would come this way!”

Just as I know him, he knows a little about me.

Truly, it’s a persistent ill-fated relationship—

“This is where your escape ends!”

What’s he on about? They just got here, too.

Anyone listening would think they’d completely blocked the path.

‘Good thing we picked up the pace’

I praised myself for my judgment twenty minutes earlier.

If we had hesitated even a little when the ring emitted the red light, they would have blocked us by now.

We would have suffered great losses.

“What are you hesitating for? Run!”

Breaking into a full sprint, I pushed my legs to the limit.

The current situation is simple.

Our expedition is heading east toward the portal.

The Dragon Slayer and his friends—in short, the Dragon Slayer Squad—are running north toward the portal.

“Ruuuuuun!!”

Whoever arrives first will have a huge advantage.

But perhaps because they also know that.

The Dragon Slayer Squad also ran desperately, closing the distance to the portal.

But…

‘Good, we’re faster.’

It’s obvious at a glance that we’re closer to the portal.

“What the fuck are you guys doing, attack!”

To somehow keep us in check, the Dragon Slayer Squad began long-range bombardment.

It was a strategy made possible by their numbers.

The ranged attackers would provide suppressive fire while melee fighters tried to secure the portal.

Whoooosh— Boom—!

Ratatatatata.

Phew, this feels like we’re in a real battlefield.

Countless arrows and abilities pour down from the sky like rain.

“What are you doing? Move faster! If you fall behind, it’s over!”

“M-My legs have no strength…!”

“Damn it! Fine, get on my back!”

“But…”

“Just do it!”

I could withstand this kind of area damage and keep moving forward with my body alone, but not everyone in the group was as resilient.

“Gah!”

An arrow struck a squad member, wounding them.

“Hang in there! I’ll heal you soon!”

Another member picked up the wounded and continued on his way.

‘Damn it. At this rate, we’ll lose more people here…’

As I clenched my jaw at that thought.

A shadow with the outline of a woman loomed over us as we ran.

「Erwin Fornacci di Tersia summons [Di Cloe, the Dark Spirit King].」

The strongest summoned creature that earned her the nickname “Blood Spirit Queen.”

The Dark Spirit King, Di Cloe.

Immediately, Dichloé began to pour huge dark spheres onto the enemies.

Boom boom boom boom boom—!

An overwhelming firepower that even Akuraba, known for her burst damage, cannot produce.

However, its duration is short.

When pouring out full power, the available time is about five seconds.

But five seconds was enough.

“Run!!”

“We’re fine here, go in first!”

As the Dragon Slayer Squad faltered to defend against the onslaught, our vanguard began to dive through the portal one by one.

And then…

BOOM!

After casting her final dark sphere, Di Cloe was unsummoned, and Erwin staggered.

“Mister, you’re still here…”

“Would I leave you behind?”

“…No, you wouldn’t.”

“Good work.”

By now, all team members except the two of us had gone up to the eighth floor.

I picked up the exhausted Erwin and quickly ran towards the portal.

And how much time had passed?

“You think I’ll let you go!”

From right behind me, I heard his voice.

Indeed, being agility-based, he’s fast.

When did he get here?

Well, even so, he’s already too late.

Tap.

The light of the portal enveloped me as I slid through it.

[You have entered the eighth floor: Land of Dawn]

When I rolled on the ground and opened my eyes, I saw the team members waiting in front of the portal.

“C-Captain.”

Seeing my face, the team members lowered their weapons, their tension easing considerably.

But only briefly.

“The portal’s glowing!”

Their relief turned to urgency as they raised their weapons again.

Since all of our expedition members had already entered.

It’s obvious who would be coming through the portal now.

‘Huh, I didn’t expect they’d follow us all the way here.’

Are they fearless, or have they just lost their minds?

Either way, there’s no need to be scared.

Why did we run ourselves to death?

“Prepare for battle!”

“Kill anyone who comes through!”

“Th-they’re coming.”

“Kill them…!!”

Blocking the entrance is unbeatable.

Entrance blockers are invincible.

***

I stand in front of the portal.

No, to be precise, I’m guarding it.

Holding a hammer in one hand and a shield in the other.

“……”

Together with team members ready to cast skills and swing their weapons at any moment.

“It’s so quiet that it’s making me anxious instead.”

It’s been over an hour since we blocked the portal.

During that time, the portal spat out enemies only once.

Right after I entered the eighth floor, the Dragon Slayer and his subordinates came in simultaneously.

‘If only we could’ve killed him then.’

We killed eight of his subordinates, but unfortunately, the Dragon got away.

Experiencing entrance-blocking for the first time, he got beaten up and fled back to the seventh floor, abandoning his subordinates and all.

Since then, this stalemate has continued.

It’s like the calm before the storm.

‘They’ll probably try to rush in all at once when they’ve gathered enough troops.

By then, entrance-blocking or not, we won’t be able to defend this place. Well, I never intended to block the entrance forever in the first place.

All I wanted was time to regroup.

Just like this.

“Schuiz, all the injured have recovered.”

“What about food and supplies?”

“We’ve gathered everything we have and need, and loaded them onto the sleds.”

In other words, we can enter Ice Rock anytime we want.

But I decided to push a little more.

“We’ll watch over here, so let everyone rest a bit in turns.”

“…Understood.”

Kaislan began to rotate the troops, giving priority to those in the worst condition, and seeing this, Akuraba approached me.

“We should really get moving. Staying here is dangerous.”

Despite the calm, Akuraba’s expression was grim.

Her gaze kept turning backward, revealing her anxious heart.

It’s obvious what she’s worried about.

“…Schuiz, as you know, we don’t know when they will return.”

Right now, the elites of Noark must be inside the eighth-floor rift.

If they clear the rift and come out, we’ll be surrounded on both sides.

‘But for now, luck is on our side.’

Actually, what I feared most was the possibility that when we entered the eighth floor, those elites would be waiting.

The problem is, we have no idea when they’ll come back…

It’s like lying in the middle of a probability-based instant-kill zone.

If luck turns against us, they’ll emerge right now and drag us into a dead end.

But…

“We’ve been on a forced march for days without proper sleep. If we enter Ice Rock like this, we won’t last long before we’re wiped out.”

There’s no other choice.

Perhaps understanding this, Akuraba agreed and left.

And about twelve hours later.

Whoosh—!

The portal shimmered and spat out a Noark explorer. Poorly equipped and completely unprepared, the explorer was quickly taken down by our side.

“Only one person…?”

“…A scout, perhaps.”

A very Noark-like response.

If the sacrificial pawn dies, it means we’re still blocking the entrance; if not, he can return alive and report.

‘But even Noark wouldn’t keep sending people recklessly.’

After thinking for a moment, I made a decision.

The next scout would likely appear in an hour or three.

If the next scout comes, it would be in one to three hours anyway.

And we’d had just enough time to rest.

“Everyone, pack your gear and suit up!”

Thirteen days remain until the labyrinth closes.

“We’re entering Ice Rock!”

It’s time to head toward the final chapter.

***

Eighth floor, Land of Dawn.

A peaceful place with green meadows and hills.

However, the atmosphere there was far from peaceful.

Because the bodies of the explorers filling the surroundings reeked of blood.

“Say that again. Kael Elvad Jeneger. What did you just say to me?”

“Give it up, Lord Vargos. We have already lost them.”

“What!”

The Dragon Slayer rushed and grabbed his collar, but the man didn’t keep his mouth shut.

“No matter what you do, nothing changes. Following them into Ice Rock without any preparation is suicide.”

“What do you mean! We have several times their numbers; you think we can’t do what they did?”

“You say that because you don’t know Ice Rock. No matter how many people we have, in Ice Rock, numbers only get in the way.”

“……”

“If you’re about to ask whether we can just send an elite team, I’ll tell you in advance: it’s also dangerous. The reason they’ve been running away until now is that enemies were everywhere.”

“You’re saying that if we go by ourselves… we’ll be counterattacked? Is that what you’re saying now?”

“Yes. Especially their leader—he’s a monster—”

Despite the Dragon Slayer’s angry question, Kael responded firmly, only to have his neck grabbed immediately.

“Gurk…!”

“You worthless scum.”

Even as the Dragon Slayer throttled him, Kael kept struggling to explain.

“If… If the commander finds out about this—”

“That damn commander.”

“Gahk—!”

“Between you and me, who do you think the commander would choose? You think he’d kill me for killing you?”

“N-No…”

The blood flow to his head was soon cut off, and Kael’s strangled body went limp. A few more seconds here, and he would surely die.

“Tch.”

The Dragon Slayer threw him to the ground, spitting in disgust.

He was pissed that the man kept climbing up on him, but he couldn’t kill him.

‘Apart from his talkativeness, he’s a useful guy’

And the commander has a soft spot for him.

“Damn it.”

Even after venting his anger, the Dragon Slayer clenched his fist tightly, his rage still hadn’t subsided.

The other subordinates all glared at him, but his mind was cold.

‘…What he said isn’t wrong.’

If numbers weren’t an option, following them like this was dangerous.

If everyone were on his level, it might work, but the so-called elites were barely competent.

The one who was slightly better was that guy who just fainted.

If things went sideways and he had to use his Dragon Speech, his barely-recovered body might collapse, leaving him incapacitated for months.

The commander would raise hell.

It was a situation where losses seemed inevitable.

But…

So I’m just supposed to let that bastard go without doing anything?

The thought alone was infuriating.

It wasn’t just about pride—it came from bitter experience. Looking back, it had been the same in Larkaz’s Maze.

[Do you want to know why you keep losing money every time? You just bet enough to get by each time, even when you need to make a decisive move.]

In an attempt to avoid losses, he gave up things one by one, and eventually, it came to that point. His body was ruined, and because he lost his memory, he had to live as half a cripple for over a year.

And now, he was supposed to just let the root of all this walk away?

The more he calmly organized his thoughts, the more his mind leaned toward not letting it happen.

Because now, it wasn’t simply a matter of revenge.

“He’s someone who became this strong in such a short time.”

What will he be like the next time we meet?

He even destroyed the Eye of the Sky; if he just returns, the royal family will surely grant him a great reward.

If he becomes even stronger here…

Will I be able to defeat him then?

Soon, Regal Vargos made up his mind.

“…I have to do it now.”

He couldn’t give him any more time.

No matter what losses he had to bear, he had to end this ill-fated relationship with him.

That was the wise choice.

Clench.

At the moment he made that decision.

As if the heavens were cheering on his resolve.

Whooshhhh—!

A warm spring breeze blew fiercely, swirling into one place and forming a ring of light.

It could only mean one thing.

“…A rift! A rift is opening!”

The most elite force secretly cultivated by Noark—a group so selective they refused to absorb any essence below Level 4.

There’s even talk within Noark that once they start their full-scale activities, a generational shift will occur even within Orcules…

Lucky bastards born in the right era.

After all, while others clawed their way up from the first floor through grueling effort, these chosen few had been lavished with resources for their so-called potential and empty essence slots.

Well, no matter.

Setting aside his envy, Vargos smirked and stepped forward.

Soon, the portal opened, revealing the raiding party.

They looked worn out, as if they had been through a tough battle.

“You are… Regal Vargos? What brings you here?”

At the raiding party’s question, the Dragon Slayer grinned and answered.

“The Eye of the Sky has been destroyed.”

“…What? The Eye of the Sky?”

“And the ones who broke it fled to Ice Rock over there.”

“But why are we…?”

“The commander’s order is to lead you in pursuit.”