Barbarian in a Failed Game

095. The Purge of Elpelland(5)

“Madman.”

Kal Elson was unable to hide his astonishment and dismay. When Khan charged alone towards the sudden appearance of a giant tentacled beast, Kal Elson’s body instinctively leaped forward, driven by a desire to fight with his still-functional left arm. However, he was unexpectedly held back by Pashantu, preventing him from doing so.

Rumors say the barbarian of the Hoarfrost Gorge gladly accept even a battle destined for death with a smile… Such rumors are half true and half false. Of course, the warriors of the Hoarfrost Gorge do not fear death. But, more than that, they despise actions unbecoming of a warrior. They considered it an unacceptable act to trample on the resolution of a warrior who sacrifices himself and to interfere in the fight just to prove their own bravery. It was deemed an unwarrior-like judgment.

“Damn it…” Without needing a detailed explanation from Pashantu, Kal Elson also decided to quietly observe Khan’s battle, keeping his drawn sword ready in hand, just in case.

However, the moment Kal Elson was waiting for, did not come. The force displayed was truly overwhelming. Not once did Khan backtrack in the face of an adversary as large as a sizable mansion. If Kal Elson’s eyes weren’t deceiving him, it seemed Khan had the upper hand in terms of strength. Moreover –

‘That blood mist. I’ve seen it before.’

Khan had invoked the blood mist when he fought Duke’s first knight. With each of Khan’s strikes, the massive body of the tentacled creature began to noticeably shrink. The once-massive beast was now only slightly larger than Pashantu.

But, ‘He’s also getting exhausted.’ Driving back the tentacled beast came at a significant toll. His movements became noticeably slower compared to before, and the number of open wounds inflicted by the tentacles’ attacks could not easily be counted with one hand. Of course, considering how much the creature had been pushed back, the price paid seemed small. What truly astounded Kal Elson was this aspect.

‘I knew he had monstrous strength…’ Movements like predicting the future. The blood mist that boosted his physique. The pure white shield that blocked the flame shot by the monster. Nothing was common. Possessing even one of these traits could transform a mediocre mercenary into an outstanding warrior, yet all these were concentrated in a single barbarian warrior. And now, he wielded a swordsmanship that was unfathomably advanced, further reinforcing any weaknesses at a pace that astonishingly surprised Kal Elson.

“That cowardly bastard… Indeed, blood does not lie.”

Pashantu muttered something beside him, but Kal Elson, not understanding the language of the Hoarfrost Gorge, merely tightened his grip, drenched in cold sweat, swallowing dryly.

‘Once I return alive from here, I’ll have to update all information about him.’ And if the guild headquarters took his advice seriously…

‘A new name would be listed in the guild’s records.’

***

It felt as if my head was burning. Not in the literal sense, even though I was enveloped in the excruciating pain from the ‘Blood Flower Technique’, but rather – it was as if I had reached some limit due to overly heightened concentration. The ‘feeling’ of using skills, Antares’ Sword Technique, had now seamlessly integrated into my movements. Each movement naturally carried a unique subtlety.

Without even looking back at the tentacle that changed direction to stab at the back of my head, I sliced it off. Continuing the motion, my sword drew a large semicircle, cutting off chunks of the tentacles. Immediately, I used a jump technique to move diagonally ───!

Shut it, you brat. The sphere of chaos, struck directly by a fist large as a person’s head, smashed into the ground. Khan’s body, which managed to flip upside-down to land head-downward over it, executed the movement fluidly. The sphere of chaos, now more agile due to its reduced size, managed to dodge even in its trembling state.

Again, its intentions were clear, but Khan responded by driving his magic sword into its eyeball. However, when Draupnir couldn’t penetrate the eyeball as expected, Khan frowned. The tentacles forming its body had turned unusually hard.

Consequently, Khan clenched his fist with the intent to smash it this time. And then – Danger. His battle premonition went off wildly, briefly disturbing his concentration. But thanks to that, he managed to deploy the pure white shield just in time, not a moment too late.

“It’s not enough…!”

But it was not enough. Due to the significant amount of energy drained by the effort of holding his breath, the pure white shield he had summoned flickered faintly, as if it would extinguish at any moment. While his face twisted in concentration, thinking of another plan, the danger foreseen by his combat precognition slammed into him.

Swish swish swish swish!

The sphere of chaos began to wildly fire its hardened tendrils in every direction. It was its last struggle. Sensing its imminent death, it decided to annihilate every threat in a determined bid to survive. This signaled that the outcome of the battle would decidedly tilt to one side based on this assault.

Thud thud thud thud…!

Clang!

However, only seconds after facing the barrage of tendrils, the pure white shield shattered completely. Khan was left without anything to protect him. Even if he possessed a swordsmanship close to a Swordsmaster, it would have been nearly impossible for Khan to deflect with a sword at that moment. Frankly, he thought it would be a difficult feat even for Kal Elson.

It would help to think of the slender darts as machine-gun fire.

Wait for the creature’s desperate attack to end by fending off all the tendrils, or forcefully break through and end it all. He had to choose one of the two, but neither option was easy.

“How did he do it before?”

The first thing that came to mind was the astonishing single stroke demonstrated by Kal Elson, that had cut through a barrage of spells in an instant. Impossible. Of course, his swordsmanship was embarrassingly inferior compared to that of the Swordsmaster.

What about deflecting with Antares’s Sword Technique?

“Impossible.”

The strength of Antares’ Sword Technique was undeniable. However, it was useless in the current situation. Perhaps if the skill level was higher…

Using the throwing skill to create an opening and then diving through? Impossible, since there was no time to charge for maximum power. Rising power. Impossible. Growing stronger here was meaningless.

Escaping by leap? The tendrils were firing indiscriminately; escaping was impossible. Opening Aecharis’s pouch to shove the tendrils inside? Opening a passage wide enough to cover his body was impossible.

Then, next, next…

“Impossible.”

Finally, he admitted. No matter what he tried, there was no way Khan could counter or avoid the barrage of tendrils. However, he found a way at the very end. He realized what he was best at—something he had even before possessing this monstrous body. It was neither to counter nor to evade.

“To endure.”

And to push forward. Khan, wrapping the “Snow Mountain White Wolf’s Fur” over his shoulder like a shield, stepped toward the barrage of tendrils.

─ Blessing of Projectile Block: Grants average resistance against projectiles.

Immediately, a dull impact pierced through the Snow Mountain White Wolf’s Fur and battered his body. He had not expected it to serve as a proper shield in the first place. If it could reduce the impact on his body even slightly, that was enough.

“Forward.”

With each step, the impact from the hardened tendrils intensified. But he could not stop. If he slowed down even a bit, he would surely be pushed back. So, he stepped forward again. The pain wasn’t severe. After all, his body was already under the agonizing burn of the “Blood Flower Technique.”

However, the physical burden was accumulating in full, and at that moment, his knee struck by a tendril buckled involuntarily.

Thump.

Eventually, he was brought down to one knee.

[Leap]

Instead of the injured leg, he kicked off the ground with his other, relatively intact leg. But due to the relentless storm of tendrils, he couldn’t advance far before landing. Regardless, Khan kicked off the ground with his right leg as if pushing it away.

During this, the Snow Mountain White Wolf’s Fur, which had slightly lessened the impacts, slipped from his grasp. Now truly left to face the onslaught with his bare body, he leaped again.

[Leap]

At some point, he stopped hearing anything, struck in the wrong way. The reason didn’t matter; he just leaped again.

[Leap]

Blood loss made it hard to see, but the location of the creature was fixed, so he didn’t care.

─────!

The creature launched a psychic wave, ridden with a complex mix of emotions too difficult to comprehend. However, he understood one thing clearly.

“It fears me.”

[Leap]

And when he leaped up again with his right foot…

[Unyielding Will]

All his senses returned.

Through his vision tinted with blood, he could now see the creature, shrunk to the size of a dwarf. Khan checked the distance to the creature – it was less than ten steps away. However, he did not advance but stood in place, striking a stance.

[Throw]

Neria’s magic awl, empowered by the mana absorbed from the magic stone, carved its path wrapped in spells. Of course, it couldn’t withstand the pouring shock and was flung away somewhere immediately –

But that was enough to close the remaining distance in an instant.

Thud.

“Caught you,” Khan grinned, revealing his teeth. Indeed, when the body is strong, the mind need not suffer. If one can reckon with sheer force, there’s no need for complex strategies.

───.

A very faint psychic wave tingled in his head. Khan did not bother to understand it. He had to finish the creature off before the effect of the skill ended. Just as he was about to thrust Draupnir into the creature, now small enough to fit snugly in his grasp, several translucent windows popped up before Khan’s eyes.

Messages of leveling up and his throwing skill reaching grade A.

What, I haven’t even stabbed it yet…?

As he felt puzzled, the creature he struggled against suddenly dropped dead, and at the same moment, the demonic realm began to collapse completely. The death of the creature, which harbored the core of the demonic realm, meant that the dimension could no longer be sustained and was entering a state of dissolution.

As evidence, an unknown force began pulling at Khan’s exhausted body, now free from the Unyielding Will, and the same happened to his companions. They were returning to their home dimension. If they waited a bit, they would be expelled back through the entrance of the demonic realm they had come from.

‘Those guys should have taken control of the situation by now.’

It wasn’t the plan he had in mind for the demonic realm, but, one way or another, having made arrangements in advance meant there would be no fighting after clearing the demonic realm. Not that he was in any condition to fight.

Khan simply closed his eyes, hoping to wake up on the soft bed of the grand fortress…

And as his consciousness faded, a psychic wave, which should not be heard any longer, seeped in.

‘What…!’

The clear telepathy hitting his mind directly made Khan try to respond, but his overburdened body forcibly turned off the switch of consciousness. The last telepathy thrown by Alpha, who became a servant of the Void, was…

‘A welcome…?’

***

[Level Up!]

[Level 26 -> 28]

[Strength: 62 -> 66] +1

[Agility: 34 -> 36] +2

[Stamina: 36 -> 38] +6

[Intelligence: 2]

─Throwing (B) grade increased. Dragon Fang (A) acquired.

[You have cleared the Dungeon: Silent Wails of the Tormented.]

─Success Reward: Core of the Demonic Realm x1