Barbarian in a Failed Game

Chapter 067: Homunculus (3)

My vision has dimmed. That was the first impression that came to mind as soon as Khan regained consciousness.

‘I feel strangely powerless… as if I’ve returned to my old body.’

For Khan, who had perfectly adapted to the barbarian’s body that was so overflowing with energy it felt like it could burst, this was a very unfamiliar sensation.

Especially since I couldn’t freely control my own body anymore.

‘What the hell is this situation…?’

[I am peering into memories.]

Damn, that startled me. Khan flinched at the androgynous voice ringing in his head.

Of course, it wasn’t that his body had moved, but that was the impression. That made sense since he had no control over his body.

‘Whose memories are these?’

At Khan’s question, Draupnir chuckled.

It sounded somewhat like he was mocking, causing Khan to furrow his brows. Why is this guy getting on my nerves suddenly?

[It’s the memories of the fake bastard you dealt with. You’re looking at fragments of that creature.]

‘Why?’

[You’re asking me? It’s you who are viewing these memories, not me.]

His words were cryptic. It was obvious that it was Khan himself observing these memories.

What Khan was curious about was how he was able to view these memories.

[You doubt me. To put it simply, I didn’t intervene in this. Just as I said before, it’s you who are looking at this, not me.]

Khan was about to demand a clearer explanation when he shut his mouth tight.

The reason was that the subject of the memory, the owner of the memories Khan was viewing, began to move.

Trudge- Trudge-

The journey of the presumed puppeteer began with a walk along a splendid corridor.

Khan decided to watch what would come out of it, wishing he had popcorn.

[…]

Draupnir seemed to have something to say, but when Khan kept silent, he seemed to decide to remain quiet as well.

The corridor was long. Even considering the stride it took several minutes to walk, and yet it didn’t end, indicating it was an immensely large space.

‘Not many places like this, I reckon.’

It was a shame not having enough discernment to accurately identify the location based on the architectural style or corridor decorations.

At the very least, it did not seem to be a place where civilization had not been established, such as the Southern Great Forest or the Land of Warriors.

Somewhere inside a kingdom’s castle…. That was Khan’s guess.

And before long, Khan was certain where this place was.

After walking some distance, the puppeteer arrived in front of a black iron door. By looking at the various patterns engraved on it, it was clear it wasn’t an ordinary craftsman’s work.

Above all, the coat of arms at the center of the iron door was conspicuous.

A warrior holding a shield and an axe, mounted on a horse.

‘The House of Marquis Deillon.’

The largest power in the northern region of Argon. It was the coat of arms representing Marquis Deillon. The memory’s puppeteer was currently walking within the inner citadel of the House of Daelon.

“You have arrived…… Inside……”

Next to the iron door, a space hidden from view existed, and suddenly, a soldier jumped out to greet the puppeteer.

“Regret…. is?”

“With his grace……”

‘It’s hard to hear.’

[It’s because the soul of the fake you dealt with isn’t a complete soul. Human. Your ‘eyes’ being abnormal might also be a reason.]

Ah, thanks for the kind explanation. Khan expressed his thanks to Draupnir’s kind explanation and focused back on the situation.

Anyway, the suddenly appearing soldier was treating the puppeteer with considerable respect.

Even though the words were choppy and hard to understand, the gestures and expressions made the hierarchy quite clear.

Clank- Clank-

‘We’re going in.’

Their conversation wasn’t long.

After a brief nod, the soldier fiddled with the handle of the iron door then stuck his hand into it. Then, the door opened with a heavy sound.

Khan carefully observed the soldier operating the iron door and memorized it.

“Then….”

“Enough time has passed…. make sure to vacate the spot……”

The space hidden behind the iron door was another corridor.

It wasn’t long. But considering the material of the walls and that not a single light was lit, it was quite dark.

‘Soundproofing seems to be a priority here. Must be sturdy enough not to collapse no matter how much ruckus there is…. The appearance of the walls also feels a bit clumsy. Could there be traps set up?’

The space beyond the black iron door must be an incredibly important and secretive place even for Marquis Deillon.

Immediately, everything that came into view served as potential clues for unfolding the story.To resolve the chaos in the north, it was inevitable that they would have to confront Marquis Deillon. The information they had now was sure to be of some help in one way or another at that time.

[But really? It’s obvious he’ll just resort to brute force to solve it.]

Who does one truly consider a barbarian? He easily dismissed such baseless sarcasm echoing in his head.

After all, regardless of what anyone else said, Khan was a modern individual who possessed both a sensitive soul and exceptional intelligence.

Therefore, he had a rough idea of what scene would unfold beyond this corridor.

‘It’s obvious why someone would keep such a gloomy space in their house.’

It must be a space needed to comfortably enjoy one’s secret pleasures.

Moreover, Marquis Deillon was a noble and a mage.

Even viewed separately, they were among the most sinister of folk, but Marquis Deillon was actually the personification of ultimate cunning.

‘What an exquisite taste.’

This thought intensified upon seeing the items hung on the corridor walls.

People… no, living corpses were hung on the walls as decorations.

The corpses, with papers attached to their foreheads akin to zombies, reminded one of meat at a butcher shop.

The paper stuck like talismans on the zombies seemed to detail the contents of experiments. Lacking magical knowledge, he couldn’t ascertain their exact meaning.

‘What would you know?’

[I am a sword, not a mage.]

‘Useless.’

[After all, aren’t you the one observing the memories! You madman. I merely peek into what you see!]

As expected.

While engaging in pointless arguments with the sword’s lingering resentment, the puppeteer entered a large cavern-like space.

It was hard to believe such a secret space existed within the castle, given its vastness.

Experimental apparatuses of unknown purpose, stacks of papers, and corpses seemingly used as test subjects.

The first impression strongly conveyed the vibe of a dark mage’s workshop.

[From ancient times, the difference between a demon’s minion and a mage depended on whether they used mana or dark magic.]

As the talkative cursed sword said, the scene inside the cavern perfectly matched that of a dark mage’s activities.

“Ashes. How goes the experiment….”

“Smoothly. We shall see the fruits shortly. The only problem is….”

“If it’s about securing more specimens, one of my puppets can….”

Ashes, the figure addressed as such, seemed to hold a position equal to that of the puppeteer.

He must be a Follower of Truth… Not a figure inferior even when compared to the puppeteer.

‘This won’t be easy.’

This was Marquis Deillon, who had conquered battlefields known as the Conqueror.

His private army was almost on par with the royal elite forces.

Added to this, there were two mages who could cast high-level spells and a significant number of knights. It would not be an easy task.

If one were to categorize the level of difficulty in capturing them, it would be near impossible.

‘A frontal assault for subjugation is out of the question…. Then should we prioritize achieving the objective? However, to rectify the turmoil in the north, stopping Marquis Deillon and eliminating the Followers of Truth is the only way….’

As Khan was agonizing over the overwhelmingly difficult challenge, the moment came.

“First, we must check the status of the alpha specimen….”

‘Alpha specimen?’

The term appeared to be significantly related to their goals.

Soon after. Ashes, who was deeply engaged in a complex discussion with the puppeteer, moved again.

Towards the deepest part of the large cavern.

As they moved deeper, the number of experimental apparatuses and densely written papers decreased.

Instead, the indiscernible golden lines increased. No, it wasn’t that they were increasing.

‘They’ve been the center of the cavern from the beginning.’

Even with limited visibility, it was evident that the golden lines were part of a magic circle.

And that these lines stretched from the walls of the cavern outwards.

It was an incomprehensible intuition, even for Khan, who lacked a magical eye.

[…….]

Draupnir, having undoubtedly heard Khan’s speculation, seemed to have something to say but remained silent.

It was apparent even to it that the upcoming scene from the puppeteer’s memory fragments was crucial.

“Still experiencing rejection…. The spiritual mass of the alpha specimen continues to decline…. You’ll understand once you see….”

Upon Ashes’s word, the puppeteer nodded, and Ashes infused mana into the magic circle.

The space in front of them rippled.

What was hidden behind the spell-blocking space then revealed itself.

‘This is…….’Leveraging the Puppeteer’s perspective to peer beyond the confines of space, Khan narrowed his eyes in scrutiny.

Gurgle— Gurgle—

Dozens of transparent tubes, cramped against the wall and teeming with a suspiciously colored liquid, were being infused.

And those tubes stretched all the way to the center of a magical circle, inserting into a massive box made of redwood.

‘It looks exactly like a coffin for a corpse.’

Considering what was inside, this wasn’t an entirely incorrect description. After all, the entity with over a dozen tubes attached was none other than a human.

Who could it be? Khan closely observed the middle-aged man entering the red tube, and then he realized.

Though it bore the appearance of a human, it was not; it was something far more dreadful…

‘…!’

Khan’s thought process halted abruptly when the entity in the red tube suddenly opened its eyes wide and locked gazes with him.

It was no illusion.

‘That thing’ was fully aware of Khan’s presence, peering in through the puppeteer’s vision.

A strange intuition confirmed this realization to him.

Once he composed himself, he found that the flow of memories had also ceased, evidence of this being the puppeteer and Ashes frozen stiff like statues. Draupnir’s voice had also cut off, suggesting that only Khan and ‘that thing’ were exceptions to whatever was occurring.

The situation was anything but ordinary. However, trapped within the body of the puppeteer, Khan had no choice but to silently observe ‘that thing’s’ actions to the end.

Contrary to his expectations, ‘that thing’ did nothing but stare blatantly back at him without taking any distinct action.

Just like a doll devoid of self…

‘What in the world…?’

Panic setting in only briefly, Khan soon regained his composure and glared back at ‘that thing’, as if deciding to watch whatever it might attempt to do.

However, no such anticipated event unfolded.

With a swish— as when their eyes first met— its eyes suddenly closed. It was as if it momentarily woke due to the surrounding commotion only to fall back asleep like a child.

And then, in the next moment.

The face of a middle-aged man, made messy by an untrimmed, bushy mustache giving off a disheveled air, was suddenly before him.

Close enough for their breaths to mingle. The distinct foul stench typical of medieval folk was palpably present.

“Eek!”

Instinctively pushing away the unpleasant face, Khan got up. His body was moving again. The scenery had also changed.

“Why are you hitting me all of a sudden!”

At that unjustly aggrieved voice, Khan turned to see Ron, who had fallen flat on his backside, and the faces of the entire party gathered around.

‘I’m back.’

As if in response to his thought, Draupnir’s androgynous voice echoed.

[It seems the fragment’s power has been exhausted. What a shame. It seemed like an important scene was about to unfold.]

‘Didn’t you see it?’

[What do you mean, what didn’t I see? Madman.]

‘You didn’t see, then.’

[So, what is it that I didn’t see!]

The incident of locking eyes with ‘that thing’ during the pause in the memory flow was an experience solely for Khan, almost like a dream. An independent event occurring while he was peeking into someone else’s memories…

Ignoring Draupnir’s increasing demands for an explanation, Khan licked his lips, wondering how he could possibly explain this.

“Are you still not feeling well? Changing expressions so suddenly… Have you hit your head, by any chance? Didn’t you say you didn’t injure your head, miss?”

“…Save the nonsense for later. We’re in a critical situation, aren’t we?”

“Ah, right!”

“Critical situation?”

Shaking off his reverie in response to Khan’s inquiry, Ron hastily stood up.

It seemed as if he had already forgotten about being unjustly hit.

“Yes! The situation has gotten quite dire; we were even trying to somehow wake you up because of it. Thankfully, you’ve opened your eyes now but…”

Khan furrowed his brows.

How long had he been unconscious? The duration spent viewing the puppeteer’s memories felt less than an hour to him. Surely not enough for such an overly dramatic tone—

“Wait. How many days have passed since the fight with the puppeteer?”

The question cut off Ron mid-sentence, leading to a markedly uneasy reaction that caused Khan to harden his expression. What, had a day or two passed? What exactly had happened in the meantime…?

“Ten days.”

What? Khan’s bewildered voice filled the room.

“It’s been ten days since the fight with that mage, and since you lost consciousness.”

“…”

“And…”

Elena, looking as if her spirit had left her, observed Khan’s stupefied face, sighing deeply.

Although worried about how Khan might react upon hearing what trantowerd during his unconscious state, she knew she had to convey the vital information as the spokesperson.

“The majority of the remaining cities in the north have simultaneously. They have declared their independence, rebelling against the royal family.”

TL’s Corner:

Khan had been fainting more and more these past few chapters. And longer too.