Surviving game as a barbarian Episode 541

Heavenly Giant Spear(3)

Rift Guardians spit out Guardian Essence.

They also drop Rift Stones and Numbers items.

On top of that, you can get bonus EXP for defeating them, so they’re more rewarding than any other monster.

The only problem is that they’re notoriously difficult to take down…

‘The difficulty of a typical Rift Guardian largely comes from the “field” effects.’

Take the 1st-floor rift, Glacier Cave, for example.

We had to fight under the field effect Hypothermia, and the same goes for the 3rd-floor rift, the White Temple.

Debuffs and other environmental effects add a lot of difficulty to the boss fights.

But this isn’t Kalheim, the City of Light.

‘Milayel, without the Celestial Magic Circle or Guardian Angels by his side?’

The conditions couldn’t be better, so I was disappointed we had to run last time. But to think that he’d follow us all the way here?

“BETHEL—RAAAAAAAAAAAH!!”

With a welcoming roar, I charged forward, thrusting out my shield.

Boom!

He tried to jab me with his spear to stop my charge, but that kind of half-baked effort wasn’t going to work. The impact from my shield sent him spinning through the air, crashing down near the water.

Okay, the battle formation is set.

Whoosh.

I didn’t bother chasing him down with my hammer. Sure, the damage would stack nicely if I added a swing from my Demon Crusher, but…

Well, it’s not like the DPS role exists for nothing.

「Myul Armin has cast [Hypersensitive Skin].」

「Myul Armin has cast [Eternal Debilitation].」

「Myul Armin has cast [Soul Suicide Bomber]…」

Starting with Myul Armin’s curses, the ranged dealers launched their barrage.

「Jackson Janville has cast [Moving Target].」

「Charlotte Emblett has cast Level 4 attack spell [Spiral Drill].」

「Nua Merbocci has cast [Precision Shot].」

「Garton Kultner has cast [Stone Cannon]…」

Mages, priests, support types, archers—

All sorts of projectiles rained down from different classes.

True to his nature as a high-level monster, he kept swinging his spear at me even while being bombarded from all sides. Meanwhile, I kept pushing him into the open to give the ranged attackers a clear shot.

After about a minute of this—

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Blessing of Light].」

His bullied body suddenly erupted with light. This marked the end of Phase 1, where he had only been using [Recall].

‘Without his Guardian Angels, this is ridiculously easy.’

Of course, in Phase 2, things get a little more complicated.

Aside from [Blessing of Light], which restores a large chunk of HP and significantly boosts durability and physical stats until cooldowns reset…

From Phase 2 onward, he starts using that combo.

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Recall]

In other words, he would start using his most broken skill.

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Comet Splitter].」

「All projectiles have been duplicated.」

A single spear launched into the sky splits into dozens, raining down like a storm.

A normally single-target throwing skill, now turned into a wide-area nuke with unavoidable damage.

But if the aggro is held properly, the skill plays out in a slightly different way.

Like this.

Whoooooosh—!

The dozens of spears home in on me like guided missiles.

Not that I need to be the least bit nervous.

Clang, clang, clang, clink—!

Just raising my shield overhead is enough to send those spears ricocheting like bullets.

「Defense successful.」

「Aegis’ Wall has absorbed all damage.」

This is why [Uhnion] and [Gigantification] are so important.

When the shield grows, so does its guard range.

The biggest weakness of any shield—even one as incredible as this—is that it can’t block attacks larger than itself.

‘Anyway, I have blocked the first skill properly…’

After that, the same pattern from Phase 1 repeated.

He picked up a spear stuck in the ground and charged at me, and I push him back.

And once he’s at a distance—

BOOM BOOM BOOM—!

The ranged dealers would unleash strikes at the perfect moment.

Normally, this kind of focused fire would be impossible due to the swarm of monsters and Guardian Angels surrounding Milayel, but…

This is an open field.

Whooosh—!

As we worked together to take him down, the spears scattered across the beach began disappearing.

This is why [Comet Splitter] is such a troublesome skill.

The “duplication” effect allows for all kinds of absurd mechanics.

Like this:

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Recall]

「Until the battle ends, the power of [Recursion] slightly increases.」

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Recall]

「Until the battle ends, the power of [Recursion] slightly increases…」

「…」

「…」

Dozens of stacks accumulate in an instant from a single skill.

Soon, he hurled another spear into the sky.

The combo is now at least twice as powerful as before.

But in my current state, it doesn’t matter.

So what if it’s stronger?

「Defense successful.」

「Aegis’ Wall has absorbed all damage.」

Against the Supreme Shield, skills like this are meaningless no matter how much they’re buffed.

‘Honestly… gear really does make a difference.’

In a pattern where you’d normally reduce threat levels and spread out damage, I’m handling it all by myself.

In short, I’ve nullified the core mechanics of Phase 2.

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Comet Splitter].」

「All projectiles are duplicated.」

By the time he attempted his 3rd combo, we’ve entered Phase 3.

‘It’s taken four minutes to get here…’

At this rate, we might even clear it in under six minutes.

***

Milayel’s pattern in Phase 3 is simple.

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel has cast [Descent].」

The classic “berserk” pattern.

SHWAAAAAA!

As he crouched and erupted with light, radiant wings sprouted from his back.

They resemble Aynar’s [Wings of Greed], but with one crucial difference.

They actually let him fly.

“Whoa! Wings!”

While Aynar looked up at him with admiration, the boss took to the skies.

Is it because this is an island field?

“Feels kinda underwhelming.”

Normally, the walls would crumble, and hordes of light spirits would swarm in from all sides—

「Light spirits, drawn by the divine energy, begin to gather.」

Huh?

Even in this field?

I thought that was just a Kalheim gimmick.

“Do Rift Guardians have their own unique features?”

Since regular Titanus don’t summon spirits when they use [Descent], I assumed it was just a field effect unique to Kalheim.

I don’t know, but it’s a good thing I kept the melee DPS in the back. I didn’t exactly anticipate this, but I placed them there to ensure our concentrated fire wouldn’t be obstructed.

“Everyone, hold your positions!”

“We just need to hold the line, so don’t overdo it!”

Either way, Versil seems to have the rear under control, so I didn’t need to worry about it.

I looked up at the figure rising high above us.

[…The hour of judgment has arrived.]

He sure talks big for someone who got wrecked in 4 minutes, but hey, what could he do. He could only repeat the lines he was given.

But really, what are these guys anyway?

A fundamental question popped into my head.

What exactly is this world?

Countless people in the cities live their lives with their own stories, yet the monsters in the labyrinth all behave like AI in a game—

‘Ugh, annoying.’

While I was lost in thought, Milayel—now high in the sky—hurled his spear down.

Time to stop zoning out.

“Erwin, how long?”

I called out to Erwin, knowing it was time to wrap things up.

There’s a reason I’ve been saving her for last.

“Erwin, get ready!”

“Yes!”

As soon as his Phase 3 began, I made sure to prep Erwin’s ultimate combo. Once airborne, this guy’s evasion rate skyrockets.

So the best way to deal with him is—

「Erwin Fornacci di Tercia has summoned [Dark Spirit King Dichloe].」

To fill the sky with explosions until there’s no room to dodge.

BOOM BOOM BOOM—!

Dark balls shot into the sky, exploding like fireworks.

It was a destructive, yet strangely beautiful, sight.

In the midst of the display, Erwin pulled her bowstring and charged [Focused Shot].

And after some time had passed –

「The accumulated energy has been fully expended.」

Right around the time [Chaos Circuit] should have activated.

“Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has cast [Molting].”

Cracks spread across his body as his outer shell shattered, revealing pure white flesh underneath.

Well, “flesh” might not be the right word.

A radiant, glowing body, like staring into a fluorescent light.

Whoooooosh—

Wrapped in blinding light, he slowly descends, flapping his wings, a massive spear in his hand.

From this angle, he looks like some absolute entity.

Not that it matters—he’s about to die anyway.

[Mortals.]

Completely ignoring the situation he is in, he continued.

[Your greed has sown the seeds of destruction.]

Wait, was that the line?

[Your arrogance will bring about the end of this world.]

The usual line is just “I shall judge you”—

[I shall judge you.]

Yeah, that’s the one.

‘…Well, it’s not like the game’s the only thing that’s different.’

I didn’t dwell too much on his dialogue.

Instead, I focus on his transformation.

Or, more precisely, the reddish-colored thing he was holding.

「The Heavenly Spear heeds the call of the Final Spear Guardian, Milayel, and returns to its original form.」

Just as he shed his outer shell upon entering his final phase, the spear also sheds its shell, revealing its true form.

A grand spear woven from intense emerald light.

Crackle, crackle—

Sparks dance along its length, exuding an overwhelming pressure that no weapon could hope to match.

And to be fair, that’s not entirely wrong.

All piercing damage dealt by the user with this spear is increased by 1200%

Natural Regeneration increases in proportion to the time spent in combat.

Immunity to holy damage and top-tier indestructibility.

When you used a skill while holding the spear, you could recover half of any resource consumed over the next minute.

And when hit by mental skills, it doesn’t just resist—it reflects them.

Activating its innate active skill adds three more lines:

All spear damage tripled.

All healing effects tripled.

And finally—

‘You’ve top tier piercing damage .’

The spear that pierces all.

If such a thing exists in this world, the Heavenly Spear would be the first to come to mind.

But here’s the question.

Zzt—! Crackle—!

What happens when the spear that pierces all meets the shield that blocks all?

[…Disappear!]

I already know the answer.

「Defense successful.」

「Aegis’ Wall has absorbed all damage.」

The shield wins.

With that in mind, I ask Milayel, whose finishing move ended up doing nothing

“Do you know what the most creative weapon in the world is?”

As expected, he doesn’t respond. But that’s fine.

I continue anyway.

“The answer is…”

[….]

“A shield.”

Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to explain why.

“Oops , Erwin has finished her casting.”

Swoosh

I can’t exactly call it a sound, but a feeling of something slicing through air grazed my ears.

FLASH!

A white explosion consumed my vision.

“Let’s see… time…”

6 minutes, 17 seconds.

Dang. Just missed a sub-6 clear.

「Heavenly Spear Guardian, Milayel, has been defeated. EXP +8」

「Bonus for defeating a high-level guardian. EXP +5」

SHWAAAAAA—!

A burst of light signaled the monster’s death.

Everyone stared, swallowing hard.

I had warned them in advance.

This wasn’t just a normal monster—it was a Guardian from the 8th-floor rift.

‘Now then.’

What did it drop?

Everyone held their breath in anticipation as the light faded.

Tap.

 

No Rift Stone, one of the rift guardians standard loot.

And…

“Tch…”

No Rainbow Essence either.

I was really hoping for [Comet Splitter], since it’d be perfect for Erwin.

Even with the beginner’s luck bonus, it didn’t drop.

A bit disappointing, but that didn’t mean it dropped nothing.

To be honest, even I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

“…Huh? That’s—!”

As Milayel disappeared into the light, he left behind a Numbers item.

Here’s the key part—

‘The drop rate for a Numbers item from a Guardian is 33%.’

And if one does drop, there’s about a 3% chance for this specific item to appear.

“It’s the spear he was using earlier…!”

No.7 – Milayel’s Divine Spear.

But instead of joy, my first reaction is unease.

No, to be precise, it is fear.

I mean, come on. I just got Aegis’ Wall, and now another single-digit Numbers item?

‘…Is luck really on my side this much?’

I’d hoped for it, but now that it’s happened, an inexplicable fear crept in.

It was the finely honed instinct of someone too used to bad luck.

But humans are creatures of both logic and emotion.

While my heart was pounding with anxiety, my brain was already making happy calculations.

‘The Heavenly Spear, huh…’

Problem is, no one in our party uses spears.

Still, loot is loot—and in Dungeon & Stone, the fun comes from tailoring your builds to what drops.

“Hmmm…”

Who should I give this to to show off my impeccable judgment?

 

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