New World 2

There are dozens of materials required for the Immortality Imprint.

While most of them can be easily purchased from the market, the three core materials are different: they’re by-products of rare Level 3 monsters.

All three have high essence values, so very few people hunt them while using distortion magic.

That meant if I wanted the drops, I’d have to bring a mage myself and hunt the monsters while maintaining distortion on them.

But I wasn’t even able to give it a try. Noark had occupied more than half of the 7th floor for years, so I hadn’t been able to set foot there in quite some time.

Anyway—

“Hahahaha! Finally, an opponent worthy of showing off my skills!”

The moment the Level 3 monster appeared, Rex Aureus, the tank of Lee Baek-ho’s team, stepped forward.

And……

“Wooooooooo-!!”

His bones and muscles swelled rapidly, just as they do when I use Giantization.

「Rex Aureus has activated [Giant’s Blood].」

It was the active transformation skill possessed by the Deep Sea Giant

This skill is extremely similar to [Gigantification] in that it increases body size.

However, while [Gigantification] focuses on increasing ‘Threat Value,’ [Giant’s Blood] primarily inflates raw physical stats.

And since it is a Level-3 essence skill, the stat boosts were much higher.

However—

It has a fatal flaw.

Since the body grows larger, you cannot wear proper equipment.

This drawback also applies to Gigantification.

However, unlike [Gigantification], the [Unity] effect from the Immortal Engraving does not apply to [Giant’s Blood].

“So that’s why… the man who seemed to act as the team’s protector was always walking around shirtless.”

His build was quite similar to my own, so it didn’t take me long to recognize the familiar details.

Even though his body had grown so enormous, the underwear-style tights that reached down to his thighs remained intact.

‘Stretchy magic pants.’

I’d worn those myself once.

Before I got [Unity], my clothes would tear every time I activated [Gigantification], and even after, due to [Acidic Fluid], my underwear would keep anything.

‘As expected, he takes his gear out after transforming.’

Soon after, the giant Aures reached into thin air and drew out an oversized shield and mace. I couldn’t help but nod in approval.

‘Yeah, shield and mace are the way to go.’

For strength-focused fighters like us, these blunt weapons are far more efficient than bladed weapons.

“Uahahahahaha!!”

Perhaps to draw aggro, Aures charged straight in and smashed his mace into the monster’s head.

Thud!

From the sound and force of his swing alone, I could tell he was strong enough to kill a level-five monster in one blow.

But his opponent is a real Level-3 monster.

“Graaaaargh!”

Rather than dealing real damage, it only seemed to enrage the beast further.

Well, I expected as much.

Since he couldn’t wear armor, Aures must have focused his essence setup on stacking raw physical resistance and anti-magic power.

Anyway, that kind of output means he’s a pure tank.

So, just how good was he at tanking?

I got my answer immediately.

[Baiterion uses Bite.]

The monster’s clawed hand grew grotesquely large and clamped down on Aures’s shoulder.

But—

“Hahahah! Little Monster! That tickles!”

Unfazed, Aures laughed loudly and lifted Baiterion like a wrestler, slamming it to the ground.

Boooom!

That’s still a Level-3 monster.

Aures was strong enough to lift it over his head and tough enough to walk away with only a scratch after it bit him at full strength.

…Better than I expected.

It made sense, though.

He’d have to be at least this tough to stay with Lee Baek-ho.

Shhhhhhh—!

Even those small scratches were quickly healed by their healer, Jayna.

Then—

[Belbev Ruinzenes has cast Level 3 attack magic, Wind Moon.]

A crescent-shaped wind blade severed one of the monster’s arms.

「Layton Bright has cast [Arrow of Sealing].」

A translucent arrow appeared out of nowhere and struck the monster’s body and erupted into light.

Chichichik, chik.

The light that flowed out transformed into chains that wrapped around the monster, binding its entire body.

「All of Baiterion’s abilities are temporarily sealed.」

Wow, he got that Essence?

That’s one of the hardest-to-obtain Level 2 essences!

‘They’re insane.’

Usually, anything Level-3 or higher is treated like a raid boss. But they’re dealing with a Level 3 monster so easily?

These guys are really skilled in..

“Baron.”

While I was quietly watching and evaluating their fight—

“Why don’t you finish it off?”

Baek-ho spoke with a teasing grin.

In other words: stop spectating and show us something too.

Fair enough.

Just as I was curious about them, he must have been curious about me.

“Fine.”

Knowing that, I still stepped forward calmly.

After all, we’d be traveling together for a while, so I couldn’t keep hiding my strength forever.

Besides, if I want a fair share of the loot, I need to contribute.

「The character has cast [Transcendence].」

「The next skill used will be enhanced.」

After linking [Transcendence] with [Gigantification]

“Step aside.”

“Ah, ah… y-yes, of course.”

Aureus, who seemed unfamiliar with looking up at someone, stepped back.

Hmmm, it seems like I’m a meter taller than him.

‘But that’s not the important part.’

Instead of some ordinary mace with no proper name, I held No.87 Crawl’s Demon-Crusher,
which had grown even larger through [Unity].

Raising it high over my shoulder—

「The character has used [Swing].」

I lifted it over my shoulder and used the move that had practically become my signature. It didn’t have any flashy lights or special effects, but it worked all the same.

Otherwise, it would be strange, right?

BOOOOOOM!

No matter that I’m a tank.

Or that this guy is a Level 3 monster.

Kwaaaaaang-!

With all these overpowered items and the target’s abilities sealed, I shouls…

“Grrrubble…….”

What, why didn’t it die in one hit?

Feeling slightly embarrassed, I hit it three or four more times with [Swing]. Only then did the drooling beast finally stop moving.

“Oh.”

The moment that brief, intense scene of violence ended, a meaningful exclamation came from behind.

“……Wow, a tank putting out that kind of damage?”

Thankfully, it seemed like praise, and the way Baekho teased his ally told me something else as well.

“It would have taken our warrior twenty more hits to kill it. Baron, want to join our team? I’ll kick him out. Okay?”

“Baek-ho! That’s not fair! I’ve followed you faithfully and even got branded a traitor by my lord!”

For all his size, Aures had a surprisingly soft heart.

He shouted like a wounded child.

They actually seem close.

I half-ignored their bickering and looked down at the fallen Baiterion.

This feels… strange.

In the labyrinth, monsters vanished into light when defeated.
But here, there was no such effect.

It didn’t feel like I’d killed it.

Like it might get up any moment.

I guess it’ll take time to get used to this.

Also, unlike in the labyrinth, it seems I’ll need to confirm the kill properly.

If I leave it thinking it’s dead, it might suddenly get up and attack.

In many ways, it’s more inconvenient than the labyrinth……

Honestly, that inconvenience is what makes it worthwhile.

“Havelion! You know how to butcher monsters, right?”

“Of course.”

“Then quickly gather the profitable byproducts. Extract the claws separately and give them to me.”

After the battle, I immediately asked GM to handle the butchering.

And by “claw,” I didn’t mean one of its regular claws—I meant the tooth embedded in its hand.

At that moment, Lee Baek-ho stopped teasing his ally and turned to me.

“Why are you taking the claws, Baron?”

Well, it’s because they’re one of the materials for the 8th stage Engraving…

I hesitated for a moment, reluctant to be honest. Lee Baek-ho answered with a sly smile.

“Ah, so it’s for your Imprint materials, huh? But those claws are only used for Berserker or Immortal path. You’re not taking the Berserker path, so…”

“…”

“Must be the Immortal Imprint. If you’re hunting for this, that means you’re still Stage-7. Oh wait—so you can wear armor while using [Gigantification] thanks to [Unity] effect, right? That’s from Stage-5!”

Hah. This is why I can’t stand the brats who came from the game.

***
Unfortunately, Lee Baek-ho’s rambling didn’t end there.

“Man… so that’s how you did it? Fascinating.”

“…”

“I already know which essences you’ve got, so maybe I’ll find a tame barbarian later and raise him exactly like you.”

“Baek-ho…? You do realize I can hear you, right?”

“Yeah? Then plug your ears.”

“…”

He probably wasn’t serious about creating a replica of me, but it was still extremely irritating.

Essence combinations, or synergy between items—
People here treat those as ‘secret techniques.’

They’re valuable assets, not something you share lightly.

“Haha, I’m kidding, Baron. Take as many of those claws as you want.”

Well, regardless of how unpleasant it was, I made sure to take what I needed.

‘Anyway, now I just need two more, and I’ll have all the materials for the 8th stage Imprint.’

As for punishing Baek-ho, there’d be time for that later.

A time would come when he’d think twice before joking like that in front of me.

“All right, what’s everyone waiting for? Loot’s done—let’s move!”

We left the Noark settlement and kept heading northwest,

And we encountered monsters about once every hour or two.

They weren’t lying when they said there were fewer monsters here than in the labyrinth.

After several battles, I began to understand why Baek-ho said the monsters outside the fortress were smarter than those inside the labyrinth.

Each monster had its own hunting style.

They didn’t just charge blindly.

They used the terrain to their advantage and attacked when we were resting.

Some even tailed us for a while before giving up the ambush.

Group-type monsters even had leaders who coordinated their underlings strategically.

…Feels like a real wilderness out here.

It felt like each one of them was a named elite boss monster. Even those similar in size had distinct differences, and one was limping around, covered in wounds.

Completely unlike the uniform creatures of the labyrinth.

“Then let’s call it a day and rest here! Everyone can do whatever they want, but be back here by 7 AM! Okay?”

As we wrapped up today’s journey and prepared to camp a little distance away from Lee Baek-ho’s group, a noisy sound came from their direction.

“Wahahah! Jayna! Wahahahaha!”

“…Please stop, Aures.”

“Stop? After burning our dinner? Hahahahaha!”

Over the past few days, I’d noticed that Baek-ho’s team was surprisingly cheerful and close.

Well, that was mostly thanks to Aures, the warrior, who acted as the mood maker.

Baek-ho was laughing and smiling, too. Even though he said he wouldn’t get attached to his allies.

“…Huh? Where are you going?”

“There’s not much else for me to do.”

The GM quietly left my side and walked toward Baek-ho’s camp.
He blended in naturally.

“We made too much food. Would you like some?”

“Oh! Really? Thank you! Our chef had us starving to death! Hahaha!”

At first, it felt strange to see the introverted GM acting so sociable.

But after listening for a bit, I realized—

He was just gathering information.

“Ah, I see. I had no idea. I never would’ve guessed you were from Noark.”

“Haha, is that so?”

“Oh, but I think I’ve heard something about it. A story about a fearsome warrior guarding Noark’s gate.”

“Wahahah! That’s giving me too much credit!”

Even while keeping up the mood, the GM carefully took in every bit of information shared with him.

But that didn’t last long.

“I have something I’ve been curious about. May I ask?”

“Ask whatever you want!”

“Why is this team a five-person setup? Not six.”

The moment the GM asked that question, the atmosphere turned cold, and silence fell over the group.

“……”

“……”

‘What the? Did that question really deserve that kind of reaction?’

Just as I was straining my ears, still unable to figure out why—

“Huh? Why is everyone making such faces?”

Rex Aureus also tilted his head, as if he didn’t understand the situation. At that same moment…

“Right?”

“Yes, it seems so.”

Lee Baek-ho and the archer exchanged a brief conversation.

“It’s not a monster. It’s a person.”

……What in the world is going on now?

Continue reading more chapters at henprogressive.com

Please join here, I need supporters to help me continue translating Surviving game as a barbarian and Lee Gwak
If it doesn’t work support me here buymeacoffee.com/hennoveltranslations. There are advanced chapters for supporters as well.