Barbarian in a Failed Game

045. Frontier town (5)

Ever since Wagner the dwarf handed me Draupnir’s scabbard, I had this imagination.

What if we combine the scabbard, which repels mana, with superhuman strength that exceeds human specs? Wouldn’t it then be possible to deflect magic as well?

Whoosh! Whaahaahaa—!

The experiment was a success. To be exact, it was a half-success.

As the scabbard swung through a mass of gentle mana, the sense of strike resonated while Firebird of Aelos was flung in the opposite direction of the barrier, falling into the moat and slowly vanishing.

Though it failed to extinguish the being in a single blow as initially intended, it succeeded in reversing its direction.

‘This actually works.’

The technique of deflecting or slicing through magic isn’t entirely rare.

Aura, Holy Power wielders like knights and paladins, including sword masters who have reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship, are known to perform miracles by slicing magic in half.

However, it was undoubtedly an incredible feat to accomplish this with just pure brute strength and a slightly special material of scabbard, without any special powers or peak-level skills.

“…Did you split magic?”

“Could it be that this barbarian has reached the extremes of swordsmanship, like the legendary swordsmen of the empire?”

“That’s impossible…”

Voices of shock burst out from both sides— the mercenaries of the border town who thought they were doomed to perish in flames, and the bandits who were certain their leader’s firebird would burn down the entire barrier.

“……”

The most startled was the bandit leader himself.

The Firebird of Aelos he had just unleashed was a spell engraved by a ‘real mage,’ on par with the magus of the mage tower.

Even if it wasn’t a high-class spell by comparison, it shouldn’t have been countered by a mana-less inferior barbarian.

‘Is that scabbard an artifact?’

The first possibility that came to mind was that the scabbard swung by the barbarian was an extremely special artifact—perhaps an ancient artifact or one of those legendary magic swords occasionally found in Dwarven treasure troves.

“Ha…”

If that were true, it would be utterly astounding. Who would bother putting so much effort into a scabbard? Unless a Dwarf artisan decided to create some bizarre object out of sheer boredom…

“Time to open your eyes. It seems the spell was forcefully interrupted, so take a moment to regroup.”

“Ah, yes sir.”

Khan, the one who had startled everyone, responded calmly. After all, such a technique would have been impossible without this scabbard.

Carefully setting down the town chief, whose complexion had turned ghastly as if he were on his deathbed, Khan dusted off the scabbard and leaped from the rampart of the barrier.

Clack.

With a light movement, Khan easily jumped over the moat and, turning his back on it, casually remarked to the mercenaries who had been fighting.

“Get inside. If you really must, stand guard at the bridge or something.”

“What about you…?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

I’ve got to deal with that guy. Grinning as if he were thoroughly enjoying the situation, Khan picked up his axe and confidently walked forward.

“A monster is coming!”

“Boss…!”

“These shitheads, now everyone they see is a monster.”

Where else would you find such a handsome monster? Muttering to himself, Khan placed his large, single-bladed axe on his shoulder and warned,

“Anyone who blocks my way from here on out dies. Only those who wish death should stand in my way. I’ll start counting to five now.”

The bandits entangled with the town’s mercenaries began to panic.

They didn’t have the confidence to fight the barbarian in front of them, and they were also afraid of their leader behind them.

The outcome was inevitable.

As soon as movements to flee the battlefield began among the infantry, Khan counted.

One, two, three…

“Five.”

“Shit! Run—!”

“This barbarian doesn’t even know numbers!”

“I know enough, bastard!”

Khan, shot forward like a cannonball, reached the front lines of infantry in the blink of an eye.

To the bandits, Khan’s already large stature seemed like a giant up close.

They had no thought of resisting and immediately turned to flee.

Swoosh! Thwack!

Khan’s axe mercilessly split the head of one bandit who had mocked his counting. It was the same guy.

“I’ve seen arithmetic of higher orders, asshole.”

The bandit couldn’t comprehend Khan’s retort even as he died, only wondering where “four” had vanished to.

After finishing his minor revenge, Khan rampaged like a wolf among sheep. The bandits, already no match in a fight, were mere targets while fleeing.

Whoosh—Thwack! Whoosh—Thwack!

By the time Khan had created around six corpses, the silently observing bandit leader finally made his move.

“Go. Just trample over him.”

“Yes!”

The cavalry finally entered the scene. Waiting for Khan to be sufficiently exposed away from the barrier was a definite tactic.

Thududu…!

The initial shock was from regular cavalry not wearing heavy armor, apparently planning to crush by escalating their force sequentially.

‘This is more like it.’

Khan greeted them with a bright smile of welcome.

The ferocious cavalry surged forward, swords raised high, as Khan gripped his axe tightly.

“Let’s go this way!”At Khan’s cry, the cavalrymen, who had been calculating the moment of collision, widened their eyes in shock. It was because Khan, instead of preparing to defend his position, had charged towards the cavalrymen instead. It was an insane act that not even a knight, who could protect their body with armor and aura, would attempt, yet it was tried by a barbarian wielding only an axe.

“Crush them…!”

Crunch! Crack! Thud─!

Several horses and the axe-wielding barbarian tangled together. Khan brought his axe down on the chest of the foremost rider, pushing him off with force. The riderless horse passed by Khan’s side. Even then, Khan did not relax his power. With the axe still lodged in a corpse, he swung it towards another rider charging at him.

“Argh…!”

Thump! A rider who had struck down his own ally in surprise was hit by the body swung with the axe and tumbled down in a mess. The subsequent horse trampled over him, and amidst its terrified neighing, another rider hit the ground, his neck broken.

“Die, you monster!”

The bandit at the very back, sensing an opportunity, gleamed cunningly in his eyes. It seemed he intended to ram into Khan with his horse, bracing himself for the impact. Smart kid. An average-sized horse easily weighs over 400kg. A collision with a horse charging at full speed would undoubtedly crush a human body. But Khan was no ordinary human. The bandit should have remembered that fact until the end. Khan, putting all his strength into the hand holding the axe, swung it down diagonally. Screech─! Thud! An immense resistance tingled his hand through the axe. Yet, that was all. The horse’s upper body was slammed into the ground, turning into pulp.

“Spare me…!”

Thud-.

Due to Khan forcibly halting the horse, the bandit still stuck in the saddle, alive, was struck by a massive fist and died instantly with his skull shattered.

“Spare you, I think not.” Khan, brushing off the sticky saliva and flesh on his hand, raised his head. This time, it was the armored pretenders who were coming at him. The heavy cavalry, the ‘elites’ of the bandit group as described by the town leader.

“Finally, they show themselves.”

At the very back, the figure of the bandit leader was also visible. Planning to exhaust Khan with the riffraff before killing him with a combined attack with the heavy cavalry, the real force. Khan checked his physical condition. His stamina was fine, the axe still had plenty of use left, and the shield of the deep had recharged. And his opponents? All seven were mounted knights in heavy armor. With the ‘Firebird of Aelos’ marked sword wielded by the leader, who knew what kind of magical inscriptions they possessed. To any onlooker, it would seem like a grave disadvantage. Surely, this barbarian couldn’t withstand them this time…

Khan, however, lifted the corners of his mouth in defiance of such speculations. Ever since being possessed by this damned body in Midland, relying solely on his robust physique for survival was all too natural for Khan.

‘Let’s see, bring it on.’

It was just another situation to prove. That for a barbarian warrior, an axe and a sturdy body were all that was needed.

* * *

‘Is that even human?’ The bandit leader, Jose, had overseen a cavalry unit in a city. Though now he wore the guise of a bandit, he was recognized as an expert in mounted combat even in the North. To Jose, that barbarian seemed to defy all common sense. Even if splitting the ‘Firebird of Aelos’ with his scabbard could be attributed to some special artifact, how to explain his divine might in facing the cavalry head-on with just an axe? Another artifact? Or perhaps his body was the subject of some dark mage’s experiment?

‘Damn it-.’

Jose gathered his thoughts.

‘After all, he is human.’

Stab him with a sword, and he dies all the same. Unless he is a troll, he will eventually tire, for there is a limit to handling everything alone. Even that noble knight from the domain felt different, but in the end, he died with a sword stuck in his neck, becoming a cold corpse.

Click─.

As he pulled down the faceplate of his helmet, his view narrowed, but Jose’s senses sharpened even further, empowered by the magic inscribed in his armor.

“Let’s finish this quickly and complete our mission.”

“Yes─! Charge!”

Like a disaster on the battlefield, the heavy cavalry charged towards the lone warrior. Initially, their pace was such that it could be outrun by human feet. However, as the distance closed, they steadily gained speed. The rumbling grew louder and louder. Even if it carried just an ordinary human rather than a knight, its power could not be underestimated. The combination of the armor’s weight and velocity was enough to turn any frail human body into dust.

“Haaaah!”

The two leading heavy cavalrymen roared as they charged.Among the city’s cavalry, aside from Jose, these were the ones boasting the highest skills. They were the ones to be trusted with the most crucial first clash.

At that moment, the distance to the barbarian seemed to be more than twenty steps. Leading the charge, two heavily armored cavalrymen veered off slightly, splitting apart to directly flank the barbarian.

“Dieee…!”

Swoooosh─!

As the two heavily armored cavalrymen swung down their swords, a noise like the air being ripped apart erupted. Then a deafening roar consumed all other sounds.

Boom──!!

The sound was so loud that for a moment, everything seemed to blur. Jose could feel blood oozing from his ears. Soon his senses returned, and another explosion of sound thundered.

─────!!!

Ugh. Jose groaned within his helmet, clenching his teeth. The spell-amplified senses were more of a curse. It was as if thunder was striking right in front of him.

Jose clenched his teeth again.

Blood was not only flowing from his ears but also from his mouth. It seemed he had bitten his tongue, leaving him no choice but to act.

He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly.

Then, a sensation returned as if reviving from numbness. The energy drained from wearing armor returned.

No, it was more than before. The armor that felt as heavy as a thousand pounds now seemed as light as a feather.

Bang!

Only then could Jose properly perceive the source of the deafening sound.

The barbarian’s axe moved like lightning, shattering swords and crushing armor whole.

Crash─!

The most rearward running heavily armored cavalryman, out of fear, tried to turn his horse around but was struck by the barbarian’s thrown axe and tumbled to the ground.

Now it was Jose’s turn.

‘Monstrous creature…!’

Only after exchanging blood for power did he realize.

This barbarian was not a being that could be judged as a mere human. It was an entity beyond the realm of knights or paladins, stepping out of the pure human category.

‘But now, I’m no different too!’

Something within him screamed.

Kill this barbarian! Slay him and take his blood! Jose’s eyes, bloodshot, flickered with a murderous glare. Simultaneously, flames ignited along his sword.

Firebird of Aelos-.

A firebird, crafted from burning mana, feasted upon Jose’s life force as it materialized.

“This is madness.”

Swiftly wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand, the barbarian muttered as Jose let out a manic laughter.

“You──!”

The firebirds wrapped around the sword, blazing intensely. The black armor heated violently, and flesh began to melt, akin to a candle with its wick lit at both ends.

Then, as Jose charged, Khan raised his sword as well.

[Let go, you madman! You don’t really plan to clash with this sword…!]

The red blade of Draupnir trembled as if throwing a tantrum.

‘It won’t break.’

[I melt! I will melt!]

Well, it’s okay. Khan retorted inwardly to Draupnir, who had been silent until now but then took his stance.

Holding a sword after so long, the feel and weight were somewhat unfamiliar, but he quickly adjusted.

Complicated swordsmanship was unnecessary. He had never learned such techniques, and what he needed now was not skill, but power.

[Leap]

As he forcefully stepped forward, a semi-transparent window appeared before him. The leap that had been over 90% complete for a while now had finally reached B-grade.

Khan smirked at the newly added effect.

Normally, when using Leap to charge at a low height, one had no choice but to control the power.

If too much strength was applied, the leap would become too high, drawing a parabola, thus killing the speed and power.

But if the newly added effect worked as imagined…

‘Perfect timing for a test run.’

Turning his gaze away from the translucent window, Khan set his eyes forward once more.

Unaware of his own body melting away. The figure of the cavalryman, swinging the flames wildly, resembled that of a demon’s army.

A madness that could only instigate an instinctual fear if one were human was palpable.

“What. It’s too late to start getting cold feet.”

“Die─!”

Slowly lifting his foot forward.

An irresistible force erupted from beneath, and as he planted his foot down firmly, cracks spread through the ground.

And then.

He leaped forward with a sensation of pushing off the ground.

Crrrrrrack……

Crash──!

Gray flash and flame-wrapped magic clashed.

In a blink of an eye, the confrontation unfolded.

Jose remained frozen in his sword-lifting stance. The firebirds that had blazed like a small sun had now vanished, its lifeforce consumed and extinguished.

The hand that had been gripping the sword now rolled on the ground.

On the other hand, appearing from a distance behind Jose as if having leaped through space itself, Khan nonchalantly shook his sword.

[Aaaargh…! You madman…! Bring ice quickly! Before my body completely melts! Hurry─!]

‘All this fuss over a scratch.’

[Aaaargh……!]