Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 145

The Great Legacy (2)

The ancient evil god, Carui.

Unlike the world’s three remaining gods, he demands an eternal price from his followers.

He does not benevolently give everything away.

He merely grants one’s most fervent wishes.

Regardless of good or evil.

As long as the price is sufficient.

No more, no less.

[Permission granted.]

The moment Ludwig heard the voice of the evil god.

A demonic hand tore through space and ripped off Ludwig’s arm.

And when he recovered, he found himself standing where he had been staring.

It was indeed demonic strength and power.

Especially because it always came with a price.

“Me, thri… da!”

Even as he made up his mind, the battle was racing towards its conclusion.

Ludwig stretched out his hand in desperation.

And then…

[I will take it.]

That was enough.

There was no need to explain to the evil god what he wanted in return.

“Yo, you! Is this your doing?!”

The body of the dragon slayer, thrusting his sword at a barbarian warrior, was thrown back by a fierce resistance.

But as a consequence.

Zzzt-!

Both ears were torn off.

A permanent injury that no divine power or potion could heal, offered as a sacrifice to the evil god.

A pain incomparable even to fire.

Yet, Ludwig thought only of one thing.

Yes, even in such pain, they were fighting.

“Yo-you. Heal me.”

The dragon slayer, emitting dark energy from his eyes, gave the order.

Against his will, his body moved as if enchanted.

Apart from his grandson, whose soul was captured by him, it was because of one of his powers [Subjugation] that bound him.

As long as this cursed ability binded him, he could not refuse his commands.

But…

[Count to ten.]

As the giant demonic claw tore off his remaining arm, his body, moving independently of his will, stopped.

Yet, it was still not enough.

There was much more he desired,

And much more left to offer.

Legs, eyes, heart, lungs.

Anything was fine.

He was willing to offer the entirety of his miserable flesh.

If with his body he could support the path of young heroes,

He was even willing to give away his wish to end his tired life and rest in the embrace of that entity.

So…

“Give me the power to kill him.”

Ludwig said, and the evil god responded.

[It is not possible.]

Not a refusal, but an impossibility.

No matter how much the evil god valued ‘voluntary’ sacrifice above all, it meant the price was not sufficient enough.

Yet, Ludwig let go of all his regrets.

It was different from the resignation he had felt every day.

Hadn’t he just decided to give up unattainable hopes and do what he could?

The freedom granted by the evil god was only for 10 seconds.

There was no time to waste on despair.

“Then allow me to protect them.”

Ludwig spoke again, and the evil god laughed.

And then…

[Permission granted.]

A demonic hand stretching out from the darkness tore his body apart and devoured it.

***

The relief from dodging a crisis was short-lived.

Doubts began to blossom.

How did the priest of Carui manage to traverse a four-hour distance to reach here, and why would he do something that could harm the Dragon Slayer?

Could there be another plan in motion?

[Yo, you! Is this your doing?!]

Judging by the Dragon Slayer’s expression, that seemed to be the case. In simple terms, this situation was completely unexpected for Vagos as well.

But it was hard to view this as a positive variable.

[Yo-you. Heal me]

As Vagos collapsed backwards, losing his sword, a black light bloomed in his eyes.

It was clear what was happening without needing to see it.

[Subjugation].

A level 3 essence ability he possessed.

If used on the dead, it absorbed souls to increase stats, and although there were some usage conditions, if used on the living, it could manipulate the target like a slave.

It was an overpowered skill

Step.

The priest, as if enchanted, took a step forward.

But just when everything seemed to be over.

Crrrk.

One of the priest’s remaining arms is torn off.

Like some sort of sacrifice.

Step.

The priest stopped in his tracks.

His appearance was beyond horrendous.

His ears and arms look like they had been torn off by a beast.

Yet in that state, the priest spoke,

“Give me the power to kill him.”

Then, I fully grasped the situation.

Who this priest was talking to.

And what kind of deal he had made.

If all my assumptions are correct, the way to survive—

[It is not possible.]

The response to the priest’s request was a refusal.

A voice that resonated through the entire corridor, as if speaking to everyone present, briefly bringing a flicker of emotion to the dragon slayer’s eyes.

That moment.

“Then allow me to protect them.”

Without the slightest hesitation, the priest demanded.

A chuckle came from somewhere.

And…

[Permission granted.]

The priest collapsed to the ground.

It was inevitable.

The two legs that supported him had been torn off.

But the evil God is a contradicting being, giving hope and despair at the same time.

Whoosh-

In return, a portal opened.

A portal swirling with black light appeared in the center of the passage, resembling a dimensional gate.

The color of the light was different, but it was a portal.

A top-tier magic capable of opening a portal from the labyrinth to the city.

Whoosh-

Soon, the portal opened up with a huge surge of magic, revealing the other side.

It was not the familiar gray city of Raphdonia.

Instead, it was a gloomy, dark underground fortress.

“What do you think you’re doing, you fool…!”

As if pushed by an unseen whirlwind, the dragon slayer’s body slowly moved back.

Towards where the portal was.

“How dare you—”

“It’s something that should have been done long ago.”

The dragon slayer shouted something in anger, but the priest was too stubborn to respond.

“Damn it!!!”

He roared, and then his gaze shifted to me, as if he had finally accepted that there was nothing he could do to stop the priest’s determination.

Then he stretched out his hand.

Swoosh.

The masterless Arc Steel Sword scraped against the ground. Like drawn by magnetism, the sword moved towards him.

What he intended was all too clear.

Even if he were to leave, he’d take this with him.

‘Freaking sword fanatic.’

Forcing strength into my staggering legs, I threw myself forward.

Not like that heartless dragon slayer.

Boom.

My body, battered and bruised, crashed to the ground, dizziness overwhelming me, but I reached out and grasped the sword.

Fizz-!

As if marked by its owner, the moment my hand touched it, the sword emitted a fierce heat.

Thanks to my pain resistance, the pain was bearable.

I could feel the sensation of my hand becoming numb in real time.

Holding it for a few more minutes might render my arm useless forever.

Did that bastard always use the sword in this state?

I immediately dismissed the unnecessary question that crossed my mind.

That’s not what I should be thinking about right now.

“Hold on!”

I endured.

Putting my weight on the ground, even if I had to dig my teeth into it.

To ensure that the blade, which might one day be turned against me, would not return to his hand.

To protect my companion.

Crack!

Suddenly, the pulling force intensified dramatically.

My body began to slide as if it had lost all friction. At this rate, it wouldn’t be surprising if I were sucked into the portal along with the sword.

Damn it, should I let go now?

Just as that thought began to surface,

“Cough, cough!”

The dragon slayer coughed up blood, and the resistance disappeared.

Yeah, this is too much for you, too.

“Barbaria…”

Then he called me and muttered briefly.

“We’ll meet again.”

Like a third-rate villain fleeing the scene, he uttered something so cringeworthy that even Misha would be embarrassed to hear it.

He didn’t even say what he would do next.

But…

Thump-!

That single phrase made my heart pound.

The spike embedded in his shoulder.

The half-crushed jaw.

A killing intent so intense that it made my skin tingle.

His right arm, blackened and steaming as if beyond red hot, was telling me.

If that day comes, there will be no such luck as today.

But what am I supposed to do about it?

Crunch.

A member of Orcules?

A ninth-floor explorer known as the dragon slayer?

Next time, there won’t be a ‘Guardian of Balance’?

I’m aware of that.

Yes, right now, I can’t beat him.

If he plays his tricks again, I’ll have to struggle desperately just like today.

But…

Whoosh!

I will survive.

Because that’s what I do best.

Because it’s what I’ve always done.

Because it’s what I need to continue doing.

I will stubbornly survive and become stronger.

So that one day, when I don’t need luck anymore.

“We’ll meet again, Vagos.”

I will seek him out.

Because you’re not the only one who lost something today.

****

Whoosh!

The portal, greedily opened, swallowed him whole and vanished. Simultaneously, a warm light began to infuse my body.

Not just mine, but all of my companions’.

‘…Divine power?’

I stared blankly at my hand.

Slowly but surely, my wounds were healing.

Unlike with potions, there was no pain, only a sense of warmth.

Swoosh.

Finally coming to my senses, I looked behind me.

The priest’s body was torn to shreds.

No, can it even be called a body anymore?

No arms, no legs.

Dark blood flowed from his gouged eyes, and his nose was sliced off like a corpse on a battlefield.

In addition, the vertically slit abdomen was missing things that should be there.

“Why…”

I murmured unknowingly.

What did this old man sacrifice so much for?

And for us, whom he didn’t even know.

“A letter… in my robe…”

Then I faintly heard a voice.

It was the priest speaking.

Though unbelievable, I quickly searched through his robe.

A crumpled and worn letter emerged.

“Lea, tl…”

“Don’t worry, rest. I will make sure this letter reaches the Leatlas Order.”

“Thank you…”

Then the priest closed his eyes.

Despite the blood everywhere, his face, full of wrinkles, looked incredibly clean and peaceful.

It was as if he was dreaming.

How could he possibly speak in this state?

Unable to hold back, I asked.

If I missed this moment, I might never have another chance.

“…Why did you save us?”

Because it was the right thing to do?

Well, if he had such determination, he would have had the chance to be freed long ago.

But why today of all days?

It couldn’t have been just a coincidence, and I was terribly curious about the reason.

“…”

No answer came back.

Could it be that he had already died?

With that thought, as I was about to stand up, the priest’s lips slightly parted.

“Ma, ge…”

The sentence was incomplete.

But that was enough.

“I see, thank you for telling me.”

I got up without hesitation.

There was much I wanted to ask, but somehow, I felt like the old man had already left this world.

“…”

I paused for a moment, listening.

An awkwardly foreign silence.

I murmured to myself, as if enjoying the aftertaste of this silence.

‘I survived.’

We survived.

Dwarf, Misha, Rotmiller.

None of us had died.

But…

‘I can’t say I kept the promise like this.’

I looked at the corpse of a companion visible beyond the corridor and smiled bitterly.

[Can we win?]

[Don’t worry. I’ll make sure everyone survives and returns.]

Despite my bold words.

It was he who had actually protected us.

It was thanks to him that we were all able to return alive.

A miracle that seemed too insufficient to be merely called luck, as if bestowed by a god.

[Ma, ge…]

A mage who fought to his last.

Leor Wuerv Dwalki.

That was the legacy he left for us.

TL/n- RIp Dwalki