Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 831

Eternal Hole(3)

[Dragon Fear]

The signature skill of the dragon race and a symbol of draconic authority.

“Hehehe…”

There were only two ways to obtain it.

Either consume a Dragon Essence or receive a dragon’s blessing.

No matter which blessing path was chosen, the second stage always granted the Majesty of Dragons.

Of course, compared to the original, this version was merely a weaker imitation.

[The character has cast Dragon Fear.]

Unlike the innate ability possessed by true dragons, it was an active skill rather than a passive one.

It even had a cooldown.

[Penalties are applied according to the gap in status between the user and the target.]

And its effects were significantly weaker.

At my current level, Level 3 monsters—roughly equivalent to Level 7—would suffer five seconds of paralysis.

Level 4 monsters would be petrified for five seconds.

Level 5 monsters and below would suffer ten seconds of petrification along with fear.

No matter how overwhelming the level difference became, I would never gain the instant-kill effect possessed by the original Dragon Fear.

Still—

That didn’t make it a bad skill.

There was a reason adventurers went crazy over numbered items, elixirs, and magical artifacts.

Any method of becoming stronger without consuming an essence slot was priceless.

And the real reward of the Dragon’s Blessing lay in its third stage.

Of course, that was a goal for the distant future.

Right now, I had more immediate concerns.

Specifically, the final obstacle standing in front of me.

[The essence of the earth weakens significantly.]

[The Primordial Spirit is enraged.]

The earth itself trembled with fury.

And the consequences of provoking the Primordial Spirit appeared immediately.

Shwooo—

A chilling sound echoed through the wasteland as the ground began to react.

The path that had faithfully guided me toward the exit vanished the moment the Primordial Spirit’s mood turned hostile.

Of course, that wasn’t a major problem.

I already knew where the exit was.

I’d made sure to confirm its location myself.

The path had merely been a convenience, a way to return without having to think too hard.

[The vision restriction returns.]

Still, I couldn’t deny that the darkness was irritating.

[The character’s natural affinity decreases by 50.]

[The character’s earth resistance decreases by 50.]

Naturally, the stingy bastard took back every blessing it had granted me.

Well, it didn’t matter.

I had gained something far more valuable.

Suppressing the faint sense of betrayal I felt from a “friend” who had immediately turned against me, I pushed forward.

After all, I would never see it again.

Thud!

A barbarian does not fear loss.

***

An uneasy silence settled over the explorers stranded within the muddy current.

About five seconds had passed since the kingdom’s hero, the idol of explorers, and the famous tribe chief of the barbarians had boldly thrown himself into the mouth of a Level 1 monster to buy them time.

At first, everyone thought they were witnessing some new form of suicide.

Yet the moment he descended into the pit, the vortex had stopped.

“…H-He’ll come back, right?”

Someone finally broke the silence.

It was Maize Rayner, the first passenger of the Barbarian Tank.

Although it was little more than a muttered question, everyone realized they had been thinking the exact same thing.

“…H-He will.”

“He’s survived countless disasters to reach his current position. This time won’t be any different.”

Even as they tried to reassure one another, the tremors in their voices betrayed their true feelings.

No one was truly confident.

“Let’s wait a little longer…”

“He told us to wait at least a minute, no matter what happened…”

In the end, they chose to remain where they were.

Not because of loyalty.

Not because of respect.

But because they had no better alternative.

If the man who had thrown himself into the jaws of a Rank 1 monster failed to return…

Then their own chances of survival would be close to zero.

They made that choice despite the doubt in their hearts.

However, it was not born from loyalty or respect.

The spell simply had not been completed yet. With nothing else they could do, they had no choice but to wait.

“Haah…”

But the situation changed the moment the wizard released the breath he had been holding.

“The spell! Is it complete?”

“It is… Wait, where is the Viscount?”

“He told us to wait one minute, then jumped into the hole alone!”

The wizard could not grasp every detail, but he understood enough.

These bastards are already thinking of abandoning him.

They had not said it outright, of course.

But their words, their eyes, and even the way their bodies shifted made their intentions obvious to him.

“I have no intention of casting the spell before Viscount Yandel returns, so stay where you are,” Elvain said.

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“The Viscount told us to leave once a minute passed!”

Strictly speaking, the order had been to wait no matter what happened for at least one minute. But since the wizard had not heard that part, he rested a hand on his chin and thought for a moment.

“Hmm. Is that so?”

“That’s right! And it’s already been thirty seconds since he went in!”

“My decision remains the same. Unless something dangerous happens, we will wait for the Viscount, even if it takes a few more minutes. That is the bare minimum gratitude we owe the man who saved us. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“Th-that is true…”

The priestess was slightly startled by the wizard’s loyal declaration.

However, the mage had not said those words because he was a particularly good person.

How could I possibly trust this bunch of scum?

No matter how he looked at it, their chances of surviving without Bjorn Jandel were virtually nonexistent.

The one who had stepped forward to deal with this crisis was that barbarian warrior.

Just as it had been every other time.

To weather the catastrophe known as the dimensional collapse, they needed the shelter that was Bjorn Jandel.

Fufu. Once he hears about everything I said, he’ll surely think more highly of me.

Having finished his calculations, the wizard maintained his position, ready to cast Mass Teleport the moment it became necessary, while continuing to watch the pit at the center.

Time passed.

Rumble!

The earth suddenly shook.

The whirlpool began spinning once more, and the hole at its center reopened.

Everyone immediately realized that something had happened.

“Has he…?”

Had the Viscount returned safely?

As the survivors held onto that hope—

“ROOOOOOAR!”

A horrifying roar erupted from the depths of the pit.

It sounded as though it had risen from the very core of the earth itself.

The survivors froze.

The cry belonged to no known language and carried no discernible words.

Yet everyone understood the emotion behind it.

Rage.

A creature powerful enough to tear them apart in an instant was roaring in fury.

And then—

“ROOOOOOAR!”

Their suspicions were confirmed.

“Th-That thing is…?!”

“It’s coming this way!”

The roar was growing louder.

Closer.

Closer with every passing second.

Realizing what was happening, the wizard shouted in panic, “W-We need to leave! Everyone, gather around me!”

“But you said we should wait…”

“I said that only if nothing dangerous happened!”

The survivors immediately nodded.

“Th-Then let’s go!”

“The promised minute has already passed too…!”

The priestess did not seem entirely convinced, but after being overwhelmed by that monstrous roar, she could not bring herself to object.

Then, just as light poured from the mage’s staff and illuminated the magic circle drawn in the air—

“Huh?”

Something massive shot out of the hole like a cannonball.

Vwoong!

A gigantic arm burst forth and reached after them.

Its outstretched hand came crashing down as though trying to swat a fly.

At that exact moment—

[Elvain Cutter has cast Rank 4 Space Magic: Mass Teleport.]

The spell was completed.

***

The moment I felt solid ground beneath me instead of slimy mud, I opened my eyes.

The others were all staring down at me.

“V-Viscount…?”

“You made it out just in time…!”

“We were waiting for you…!”

Ah, so we’re lying shamelessly now?

I clearly saw the magic circle activate before I had fully crawled out.

“B-But shouldn’t we leave this place as quickly as possible?”

“Yes…! That Primordial Spirit… I don’t know why, but it seemed furious.”

As I pushed myself up, questions and concerns immediately poured in from every direction.

I ignored them.

Primordial Spirits were not the type of monsters that wandered around. Like plant-type monsters, they remained rooted to their territory, devouring anything unfortunate enough to enter their domain.

Now that we were outside Saturnus’s range, we had secured the bare minimum level of safety.

“Please, make a decision…!”

“Quiet.”

“…Pardon?”

“I’m thinking. Stop talking.”

The real issue was what came next.

What should we do from here?

There were two possible choices.

The first was to stay put and endure until the next dimensional collapse began.

It was the safer option, at least in the short term.

But it offered no rewards.

No, I’m not interested in that.

There was another problem.

Our numbers were awkward.

We had too many people to continue using our previous strategy of constantly moving and simply enduring.

At the same time, we still lacked the strength to form a proper raid group and safely fight the incoming waves.

After weighing everything, the answer became obvious.

“Prepare to move.”

“Pardon…?”

“We’re going to keep moving and search for survivors.”

Unlike the members of the Anabada Clan, these people did not share the same trust in me.

The moment I gave the order, dissatisfaction flashed across several faces.

Their thoughts were practically written across their expressions.

We’re in a field filled with Rank 1 monsters.

We barely survived the last encounter.

And now you want us to risk our lives searching for even more people?

“U-Um… Viscount? I understand your intentions, but…” one of them began hesitantly.

This time, however, I chose to be far more forceful than usual.

Not because I was angry.

Because it was the most practical approach.

No matter what organization you belonged to, if the leader could not properly direct his subordinates, problems would inevitably arise from every direction.

“I’m not interested in hearing objections. If you disagree, you’re free to leave.”

Silence fell over the group.

“I’ll take that as agreement.”

Naturally, nobody challenged me.

Even so, I decided to explain my reasoning.

“I know where we are. As long as we move carefully, we shouldn’t run into another threat like that. Primordial Spirits, at least according to what I know, do not leave their territories.”

“Ah…”

“And if something does happen, I’ll deal with it myself. So stop worrying.”

“I-I’ll trust your judgment!”

Authority alone could only carry you so far.

If I wanted to avoid unnecessary friction, I needed them to believe that following my orders was the most rational choice.

“But how do you know all of this…? A Primordial Spirit… I’ve never even heard of such a thing.”

“When you become a noble, you learn many things.”

“Ah…!”

That was probably the greatest advantage of my noble title.

Most people accepted that explanation without further questions.

Of course, not everyone was so easily convinced.

“Hm… The nobles I’ve met never seemed to know things like that.”

Occasionally, someone with a little knowledge would ask a follow-up question.

Fortunately, those were easy to handle.

“They’re nobles, not adventurers. Why would they care about the things I do?”

“Ah…! That makes sense. My apologies. That was a foolish question.”

“If you understand, then let’s get moving.”

“…Yes!”

With that settled, I led the survivors onward.

“Your reputation is impressive, Viscount, but I never imagined it was all true. You really are extraordinary.”

I noticed a subtle change in the way the priestess looked at me.

I chose to ignore it.

“To risk your life in a situation like that just to save even one more person…”

She had completely misunderstood.

My decision had not been motivated by some noble desire to rescue strangers.

Strengthening our group by gathering more survivors was merely a practical benefit.

And even that wasn’t the real reason.

Honestly, rescuing survivors was just a side objective.

The true reason was much simpler.

I knew exactly where we were.

The Eternal Hole.

A hidden field on the ninth floor that I had never personally visited before.

“Aah… May the Moon’s Light protect us…”

“Ahem…”

This place was filled with valuable opportunities.

And I had no intention of leaving empty-handed.

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