Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 358
Isolation (5)
Height: about 190 cm.
Somehow, the Noark’s support type, the Lighthouse Keeper, had a physique more suited to a warrior than even the Blood Knight.
Looking at him, I smacked my lips.
“Sigh… It would’ve been much easier if I still had [Leap].“
The distance between us was about 130 meters.
A gap I could close with just two uses of this skill.
But…
“Well, nothing I can do about what’s lost.”
I tried to put the regrets behind me.
What’s the point in regretting something that’s already gone?
Without any movement skills, I had no choice but to move with my own two feet.
This also fits the spirit of the Barbarians better.
“Erwin, Emily, you two stay here and hold your positions.”
“…What about you, mister?”
“I’ll be back.”
“Back? Where are you—?”
Where else would I go?
「Character has used [Wild Burst].」
With a battle cry, I charged forward.
“Uwooooooo!”
Sure, it didn’t have the thrill of shouting out the ancestor’s name, but there was nothing I could do about it.
It’s still uncertain whether Raven has noticed me.
There’s a possibility that, like the Corpse Collector, she might have amplified her previous misunderstandings.
As soon as I broke formation for the first time, having only defended and protected my comrades, there was an immediate reaction.
It started with the Blood Knight.
“……”
He had been keeping his distance to avoid coming within teleportation range, but now he rushed toward me.
But…
Clang!
Did he really think that would work?
His flaming sword, a substitute for aura, could easily be blocked with a shield.
Tap tap.
Ignoring the Blood Knight, I dashed forward once more.
Of course, with my agility stats, it was hard to shake him off, so my back was left completely exposed…
Slash!
Well, it’s not like I have to block everything with my shield.
Even if I take the hit directly, it’s just a slightly deeper cut; it won’t result in serious injuries like losing a limb.
It’s just that, due to my lowered pain resistance, it hurts a lot.
“Ugh, did he sprinkle salt on his sword or something?”
The searing pain made me grimace, but it didn’t stop my stride.
If I were the type to stop doing what needs to be done just because it hurts, I wouldn’t have made it this far.
Tap tap.
Like a salmon swimming upstream, I firmly kicked off the ground once more.
And at that moment.
An exclamation burst from the Blood Knight’s mouth.
“What the…!”
He seemed impressed by the sight of me continuing to dash forward, regardless of him stabbing me from behind.
“Stop, you…!”
Compared to all the praise I’d received so far, it was a bit underwhelming, but the frustration in his voice was quite satisfying.
Yeah, when have you ever experienced something like this?
With aura, you’d have cut down any tank or whatever.
Slash!
He relentlessly stabbed me again.
Of course, nothing changed.
Whether my skin was slightly cut or not, I just kept charging forward like a runaway train.
And…
“……!”
In that process, there was nothing he could do.
Tap tap.
It was time for him to start understanding.
Thanks to aura, he’s lived comfortably and hasn’t realized until now.
Slash!
That in front of a tank, a dealer is powerless.
Whooooosh!
Just then, support fire came from behind.
It was an arrow fired by Erwin.
And…
Thud.
The arrow struck his arm.
He’d been so good at dodging when we were just defending, but did he really want to stop me that badly?
I wasn’t sure about the details.
But his mistake this time was critical.
“……!”
Just by looking at his already twisted expression.
Getting hit by one arrow might not be a big deal.
But the follow-up attack that comes after is a different story.
「Erwin Fornacci di Tersia has cast [Rupture]」
A skill that once shattered Amelia’s clone into pieces.
Crack!
As the skill activated, the Blood Knight’s arm split into dozens of pieces and crumbled.
Okay, now that the annoying mosquito is gone.
Tap tap.
I continue to run, leaving behind the blood knight who fell out due to the shock of his arm being blasted off.
Of course, soon enough, the next obstacle appeared.
“Wow, this guy is like an ogre!”
From tens of meters above, the dark mage Liranne Vivian watched my advance leisurely.
She giggled as she cast her spells.
「Liranne Vivian casts Level 4 dark magic [Corrupting Flames].」
It began with a widespread downpour of black flames, like heavy rain. But as with most A-O-E skills, the single-target damage is relatively low.
Using my shield like an umbrella to cover my head, I kicked off the ground.
Well, my shield might take some damage because of it…
“Nothing new.”
Has there ever been a time when my shield remained intact after a tough battle?
I can make up the repair costs with loot.
Tap tap.
With that in mind, I kicked off the ground again.
Perhaps the Screaming Witch decided it was time to change tactics.
「Liranne Vivian casts level 4 dark magic [Pillars of Agony].」
The rain of flames ceased, and instead, pitch-black mist rose and enveloped me from all directions.
“Judging by the effect, it’s that skill…”
If my guess is correct, this skill can’t be dodged except by enduring it with magic resistance.
Which means…
‘She can’t dodge it either.’
As the mist clung to my body, I quickly chanted a command.
「Character has used [Risk Burden].」
An active skill I recently obtained from a gacha.
The effect is simple.
While it’s active, the damage I receive is doubled, but the damage reflected by [Probability Counter] also increases.
But…
「The inherent ability of the skill has been unlocked due to the authority of the Transcendent One.」
When combined with [Transcendence], an interesting effect is added.
「The damage immunity effect from [Probability Counter] is removed, but the activation chance is fixed at 100%.」
In other words, a guaranteed gacha.
Whooooooong!
As the skill activated, the black mist clinging to my skin began to harden.
It’s the effect of [Pillars of Agony].
A temporary movement restriction.
And then…
Swoosh!
An unavoidable attack.
“Uwaaaaaaah!”
Shit, this really stings like hell.
Crack!
Letting out a battle cry and enduring for about two seconds, the hardened mist shattered like porcelain and fell to the ground.
The inner surfaces were filled with sharp protruding spikes.
Ha, what is this, some medieval torture device?
Still, I’m glad I’m not the only one affected.
「Normal Luck.」
As the damage calculation ended, [Probability Counter] activated.
Clatter, clatter.
A skeleton rose next to me, joints creaking.
There was no hearty sound effect, so it wasn’t a great success.
But…
「30% of the damage taken is reflected to the enemy.」
Not 15%, but 30%.
Moreover, since the damage I took was doubled, I could effectively return four times the usual reflected damage.
Well, honestly, even that feels a bit unfair from my perspective…
“What, what…?!”
But she’s a mage, the very definition of a fragile paper body, right?
Guess I’ll have to accept this kind of trade-off.
“What… what is this…?!”
As the skeleton extended its hand toward the sky, the black mist surrounded the witch riding her broomstick.
And…
Squelch-!
The chilling sound echoed all the way down to where I stood.
Wow, she’s got quite the lungs.
Is that why she was called the “Screaming Witch”?
Tap tap.
I resumed moving, dragging my body now riddled with large and small holes.
Even with the double damage of the spell, the damage wasn’t as deep as I had expected.
It hurt like hell, though.
‘Maybe that’s why she didn’t die either.’
Vivian, who had been screaming and plummeting as soon as the magic ended, managed to regain her senses midway and narrowly avoided crashing by using a floating spell.
‘Looking at her, the wounds don’t seem that deep…’
Tsk, I thought even with just 30% reflected damage, a mage might go down in one hit.
‘Did she use a mana shield to mitigate some of the damage in that brief moment?’
It’s a bit disappointing, but…
“Ugh…”
Still, I achieved my objective.
Seeing her groaning and twisting in pain, she probably won’t have the energy or focus to cast spells at me for a while.
Having dealt with the dark mage, I swiftly closed the distance to the rear.
[Grrrrrr—!]
The Corpse Collector blocked my path by summoning more corpses from his subspace.
Seven of them.
They were massive enough to put large monsters to shame—probably tank-type undead to stop me.
Even while in [Gigantification], I had to look up to see their faces.
‘What’s he like, seven meters?’
[Leap] would have made it easier, but again, it didn’t matter.
After all, I’m not just any tank.
What’s the problem with a wall in front of me?
No need to walk around it.
「Character has used [Swing].」
I’ll just remove the wall.
「Attack range increased by 3 times.」
Using my hammer, which extended like a staff, I struck down on the crown of the corpse giant.
Even though it was a tank-type undead, it was enough.
After all,the [Swing] skill’s damage scales with my strength stat.
On top of that, the Demon Crusher effect increased power by 500%. Since it was a downward strike, it even had 50% armor penetration…
Boooom-!
How could a mere summoned creature withstand this?
Splaaash-!
The corpse giant exploded into a fountain of rotten flesh and blood with a single hammer blow.
Whew, this one’s poison is pretty strong.
「Character is poisoned (High).」
「Poison resistance exceeds 100.」
「Poison status adjusted to ‘mild.’」
The poison seeped through my skin, causing internal pain.
But not enough to stop me.
Especially when the target is right in front of me.
‘Finally, I’m here.’
Quickly passing by the pulverized corpse giant, I looked straight ahead.
The distance to the target was about 30 meters.
But…
‘What the hell, why is this bastard standing out here?’
Did he come all the way here himself to summon the corpse giant?
About 5 meters ahead, I could see the Corpse Collector.
He looked visibly flustered at a glance…
It would be impolite to just pass him by.
「Character has used [Swing].」
「Attack range increases by 3 times.」
Without hesitation, I swung my hammer at him.
He chose to defend rather than evade.
Using that skill I hadn’t seen in a while.
「Abet Necrapheto has cast [Bone Armor].」
Huh, in the past, I had to strike several times to break it.
I wonder how it’ll go this time.
I soon found out.
Crack—!
The shell surrounding his body was peeled off with just one hammer strike, revealing his flesh.
And then…
「Abet Necrapheto has cast [Momentary Immortality].」
In an instant, his body was engulfed in flames and turned into bones.
A tier 3 essence skill that converts mental and magical stats into physical stats, granting 1 minute of complete damage immunity.
‘Wow, I didn’t expect to force out his invincibility skill with one hit.’
With it active, there was no point wasting any more effort, so I grabbed one of his arms and threw him far away.
And then…
Thud-!
I jumped high as if using [Leap].
I could see the stakes he’d planted around, firing off various skills like turrets in a defense game.
The tier 4 transformation skill, [Sacred Idol].
The Lighthouse Keeper’s core skill had this effect:
By planting totems on the ground, he could convert the skills he had. For example, single-target buffs or curses could transform into wide-range auras…
Seeing the totems spewing flames and firing magic bullets, it seems he quickly switched to attack mode, turning off support aura modes like [Acceleration] or [Soul Regeneration].
“… What a monster.”
Even as he saw me charging forward, enduring all the attacks, he didn’t try to run away.
Well, leaving the safety of the totems would be more dangerous, I guess.
Finally, he shouted in a desperate voice.
“Come on, then!”
What the hell? I had no intention of going inside.
「Character has used [Eye of the Storm].」
「By the power of the Transcendent, the skill’s innate abilities are unlocked.」
He must’ve been within range by now, so I used a grapple skill.
Whoooosh-!
A gust of wind surged toward me.
And then…
“Argh, aaaah!”
His body was caught in the whirlwind and flew toward me.
So even you scream like that when you’re desperate, huh?
I grabbed the guy by the neck with my shield-covered hand in midair. Though he struggled, a little squeeze was all it took to shut him up.
Landing on the ground, I looked down at him and spoke briefly.
“Your rings.”
“…?”
“Hope they’re expensive.”
It was hard work getting here, after all.
***
Crack!
Still gripping his neck, I slammed my forehead into his face.
The angle wasn’t good for swinging my hammer down, and up close, I noticed he was wearing a necklace.
If I used the hammer, everything would get smashed.
“……”
As I was about to headbutt him again, his body went limp.
Dead? Or just unconscious?
Hoping for the former, I headbutted him a couple more times.
Crack, crack!
Oh, gross. How can a person’s eyes…?
…Anyway, that’s enough for him. So, what should I do now?
Having achieved my first goal, it was time to think again.
Now that I’ve taken down the Lighthouse Keeper, I think we can handle the rest in a 4-on-3 fight…
Should I head back and use the teleport?
Or should I finish the fight and take them all down?
I didn’t have long to think about it.
Thud, thud!
Even now, the corpse giants were closing the distance toward me.
“Yeah, let’s retreat for now.”
On the way here, I’d been stabbed countless times, hit by magic, and even poisoned.
Such issues could be overcome with willpower.
But…
“My MP is running dangerously low.”
I had been continuously maintaining [Iron Fortress] to deal with their aura attacks, and I had even used [Gigantification].
And that’s not all.
I had been spamming various skills, linking them with [Transcendence].
If my MP hits zero, I won’t be able to defend against the aura attacks, and protecting my allies from the Blood Knight would become nearly impossible.
And if reinforcements arrive, that’ll be a big problem.
Having made my decision, I grabbed the loot in one hand and ran back the way I came.
But what was going on?
“Why isn’t anyone attacking?”
The corpse giants that seemed ready to pounce were standing like a wall, blocking one side, and there were no magic attacks flying at me.
“Necrapheto! What are you doing! Stop him! You won’t die anyway!”
The shouting made it seem like they were regaining their senses…
Why?
I soon found out the reason.
An undead, in relatively better condition compared to the bony Corpse Collector, yelled out in his place.
[Why don’t you stop him yourself, Vivian? Your magic seemed to work well!]
“What…? Didn’t you see? He reflected the magic earlier!”
Now I understood—they’d all been hit once and were hesitant to confront me recklessly.
Well, they didn’t have any intel on me.
They probably didn’t want to end up like the Lighthouse Keeper, grabbed by me and having their heads smashed.
As I ran across the open field, it happened.
“What’s this, you want to fight?”
The Blood Knight, now in one-armed mode, blocked my path and casually asked.
“…Your name.”
Huh?
“What’s your name?”
I wondered what he was up to, but he was just asking my name?
I had only one thing to say.
“If you’re going to fight, then fight. If not, get out of my way. I need to go back and eat.”
“……”
“What’s the matter, cat got your tongue?”
As I said that and started to run forward, the Blood Knight stepped aside.
“…I’ll find out soon enough anyway.”
Surprisingly, the Blood Knight didn’t try to stab me in the back and just let me go.
It seemed he’d learned from his earlier helplessness.
Yeah, even if he tried to slash at me, how could he stop me when I ignore it and keep running?
Tap tap tap tap.
Picking up speed for the final sprint, I soon arrived at my destination.
The magic circle drawn on the ground was glowing, ready to be activated at any moment.
But the mage herself was standing there blankly, frozen.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t we departing?”
When I urged her, Raven looked up at me.
For some reason, her eyes were trembling violently.
What is this?
Feeling puzzled, I looked around and saw that Erwin and Amelia had similar expressions.
“……”
“……”
“……”
I even brought back loot.
But they were looking at me as if I were some kind of monster.