Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 187

I’m walking through the dark forest, endlessly following the direction where the doppelganger disappeared from the Shadow Altar.

“…….”

I move my feet in the stiff air. For reference, the formation is that I’m at the very front, and the others are following a few meters behind. It’s a bit of a distance for a typical formation, but… well, what can I do? This is the life of a carry-type tank.

“Prepare for battle!”

The moment I sensed a presence ahead, dozens of doppelgangers appeared from beyond the darkness where the light orbs couldn’t reach. This is a change that occurs when you enter the fourth chapter. After the doppelganger’s seal is broken, the number of clones scattered across the field increases exponentially.

And…

“Empire, the Empire’s… enemy…!”

“Kill… them!!”

They no longer transform into our appearances, at least not until we meet the main body directly. I don’t know why. It’s something I just accepted when playing the game. Well, now that I think about it, there must be some hidden background to this phenomenon… but that’s not what I should be thinking about right now.

[The character has cast [Leap].]

Before the distance could close further, I jumped right into the middle of them.

Kwaaaang-!

No sooner had I landed than the ground rippled, triggering the special terrain effect [Rebound]. Dozens of doppelgangers were simultaneously launched into the air.

Kwajik-!

I immediately swung at one of them like a baseball bat and cast [Wild Outburst].

“Behel—raaaaaaaa!!”

The threat level inflated threefold. The doppelgangers, disguised as soldiers, charged at me like crazed beasts. Being monsters, they couldn’t ignore taunts.

“For the Empire, for…!”

The doppelgangers disguised as soldiers didn’t have skills, but they were still quite challenging enemies. That’s because their base stats were extremely high. Just seeing the shield soldiers withstand my mace strikes shows that each one has stats at least comparable to Ainar. Also, the fact that they were composed of various classes such as archers, spearmen, swordsmen, mages, crossbowmen, and shield bearers also contributed to the increased difficulty of the battle.

But…

Kwajik! Kwajik!

I block what I can, but I never dodge. Dodging is meaningless in the first place because I was already surrounded by enemies. I had no choice but to act like a tank, taking hits while waiting for my allies’ support.

[Arua Raven has cast the 5th-grade attack magic [Lightning Strike].]

Soon, the magic I had been waiting for was completed. Lightning poured down over a wide area.

[Kyleman Parteian has cast the 5th-grade support magic [Spell Enhancement].]

Thanks to Parteian’s support, the power increased about twice as much as usual. Therefore, I paused to avoid being swept away by the magic.

Kwakwakwakwakwang-!

The ‘Lightning Strike,’ which was no different from a natural disaster, lasted for about 5 seconds, but it was enough to leave the doppelganger army in a half-destroyed state.

‘As expected, hunting is all about mobbing.’

The remaining stragglers were dealt with over time, along with my allies who had retreated some distance away. That was the end of one battle. The blunt weapon warrior shook the blood off his weapon and muttered.

“…Mr. Parteian, do you think Ms. Sarman is alright? I keep worrying about her.”

“Didn’t you see? The doppelgangers couldn’t even get near the altar. She should be fine as long as she doesn’t go outside.”

“Still, wouldn’t it have been better to bring her along….”

The blunt weapon warrior seemed to be constantly worried about the Indian woman left in the safe zone. But for me, it was an unavoidable choice. Given the nature of doppelgangers, there might be ways to use the Indian woman, but… that’s only if she’s used as a disposable pawn. If she’s with us as someone we need to protect, the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages.

“Enough. Ms. Sarman also agreed to it. If we fail, we’ll all die anyway.”

Parteian ended the conversation at this point, noticing my gaze, and I resumed the exploration without saying anything. There was no point in wasting time.

Drdrdrdr-!

After fighting a few more battles and moving through the dark forest, I felt a slight vibration beneath my feet. It meant the seal release rate had reached 20%. Well, it’s been about 1% every 10 minutes, so it was about time.

“Mr. Yandel, can we go a little faster?”

“Sure.”

I increased my movement speed as if being chased by time. And…

“We’ve arrived.”

We finally reached our destination: a sinkhole that I hadn’t seen when I was wandering through the forest looking for the mid-boss. Now, if we go down below, the boss fight will begin. However, before that, let’s do this first.

“Let’s search this area for a bit before moving on.”

Under Raven’s direction, we circled the sinkhole, searching for something. It didn’t take long.

“It’s just like the book said. There’s always one hidden near the entrance.”

A white tombstone emitting an eerie sound. In the game, it was called a ‘Seal Stone’. However, it’s not really a hidden piece in itself. It’s just something that spawns in clusters throughout the forest in the fourth chapter…

“The book said what?”

Information about the Seal Stone can be naturally obtained through the [Sacrificial Note] that is generated at the Shadow Altar after the third chapter ends. Well, it’s just information that tells you to find and activate it.

“There was no such content in the note.”

“Not the note, another book.”

Raven didn’t answer the mage Parteian’s question in detail and placed her hand on the Seal Stone.

Shwaaaaaaa-!

A black light shot up into the sky in the form of a pillar.

[The Seal Stone has been activated.]

[Seal release rate 10%.]

This reduced the doppelganger’s seal release rate by 10%. Of course, this number wouldn’t be very meaningful according to our strategy, but there’s no reason to skip it since we’re passing by anyway.

“Well, that’s all the preparation we can do here.”

Soon, we returned to the sinkhole.

“Is everyone ready?”

It was time for the boss fight.

***

[The character has entered the Raider’s Hideout.]

***

The boss fight is like a flower blooming from a crack. However, the boss fight in the ‘Doppelganger Forest’ proceeds in a slightly unique format. First, the expedition team must be divided into two. One team fights the boss, and the other team searches for Seal Stones in the forest filled with doppelganger soldiers to manage the seal release rate. It’s the standard strategy written in the [Sacrificial Note].

‘The concept is so annoying.’

Here, you can only clear it if you trust each other and do your part. We probably would have split into two teams with two or three members each to fight the boss if that landmine hadn’t exploded.

[We can’t use that method anymore. We’re only seven people now.]

The expedition team was halved, and things went wrong. There were absolutely not enough people to split into teams. So, what should we do? After checking the spoils left by the dwarves and the HansG team, I had already come to a conclusion, and I gave Raven a hint to guide her to the same conclusion.

All-in.

Instead of dividing the already small number of people into two and becoming neither here nor there, we would concentrate all our forces in one place and aim for a short battle. In other words, a high-level player’s strategy.

[It might be a little dangerous, but is everyone okay with it?]

[There’s no other way.]

That’s how the foundation of the strategy was laid. The success rate I predicted was 90%. Of course, probability is just a number, so we’ll only know if it works by trying it out. Life isn’t just about Plan A, is it?

Kooong-!

Like a barbarian, I jumped down the hole first to check for safety. And when I sent a signal up, the rest of the team came down one by one.

“The air is chilly.”

A cold cave.

[Kiyaaaaaaaaaak-!!]

As if sensing our presence inside, it let out a bizarre howl. I chuckled. This is one of the barbarian’s roles: to encourage the team members.

“What are you frozen for? Let’s go get ’em.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, I took the lead and went straight down the passage, and some of those who had been intimidated regained their senses and followed behind.

Turbuk, turbuk.

After walking about forty steps, the fog that had been scattered throughout the cave cleared, revealing the boss room: a hollow with a huge magic circle drawn on it, Truth Stones scattered on the floor like toys, and something human-shaped sitting crouched with its back to us in the center. And, a sobbing sound.

“You, too… did you come to kill me…?”

The thing turned its head and stared at us. The face that was revealed was not of any of us. It was just an ordinary child, if only the eyes, nose, and mouth weren’t inverted.

“I, didn’t do, anything, wrong….”

The child glared at us as if feeling wronged. Soon, the emotion in its eyes turned to anger. It was a common intro to a boss fight.

“I’m, just like you—!”

Therefore, skip the next line.

“Behel—raaaaaaaa!!”

It wasn’t a good environment to use ‘Leap’, so I just dashed and swung my mace.

Peok-!

The child’s head was crushed as it sat there, but it didn’t feel the same as usual. It felt like hitting a sandbag filled with water.

[Kiyeeeeeeeeek!!]

A scream, from an unknown source, filled the entire cave, and at the same time, the child transformed into a black, slimy substance.

Boogulboogulboogul!

Something black that repeatedly contracted and expanded like sea urchin spines.

‘Is it my turn to start?’

When the process was over, another me was standing in that spot. Mimicry: a unique skill of doppelgangers that cannot be obtained even by taking essences. However, it was a little different from the ones in the field.

“Kiyeeeeeeeeek!!”

It no longer followed my words and actions. And…

[The Nameless Raider has cast [Swing].]

It didn’t just end with imitation; it became stronger than before. It’s easy to think of it as the stats and skills of the mimicked target being added to the abilities of a 5th-grade monster. It’s not for nothing that it’s rated as a 4th-grade monster.

Hoo-oong-!

I retreated to test it out. At the same time, its mace slammed into the ground.

Kwaaaaaaaang-!

It left a crater and shook the entire cave. The power was so great that I thought it would take at least 200 more strength to achieve that. If I thought of it as my future self, I felt a little proud. However…

‘I can block this much.’

The lacking abilities can be covered with item buffs. I held up my shield to prevent the guy, who was swinging his mace wildly, from approaching my allies.

Kwaaang-!

The clear sound I expected didn’t come. The weight I felt from the shield was also beyond imagination. Is this the 50% reduced impact?

“Raven!!”

Like a cowardly explorer, I pinged for support. Magic flew in immediately. Since we were facing a high-grade monster, the start was not with attack magic but with curse magic.

Kwang-!

The monster’s attacks became a little easier to withstand. However, this was just the first premise for the strategy being met. The real first phase starts now.

[The Nameless Raider has cast [Self-Replication].]

Black slime splattered indiscriminately from the doppelganger’s body, falling to the floor: small grains that were too numerous to count.

“Iherno Haindar!”

Raven’s staff spewed flames and melted the grains, but it was impossible to deal with all of them. The grains that stubbornly crawled on the floor and clumped together began to mimic our appearances through a series of transformations.

“There are four in total!”

Raven calmly relayed the information to me, and I made a quick decision. Since they were clones, they wouldn’t have the same performance as the main body. Therefore, the plan would proceed.

“Don’t worry about me, take care of them first!”

I was about to leave the clones to my allies and focus on dealing with the main body when it happened.

“They’re all Hans Krisen!”

My body froze at Raven’s additional briefing.

‘What?’

I doubted my ears and checked my surroundings even though I was in the middle of a battle. It goes without saying, but Raven never gave me wrong information.

‘…Damn it.’

How could they all be HansG? Whether he was dead or alive, wasn’t the pattern to transform into one of the 15 people? Then what’s the probability?

Unaware of my feelings, Raven shouted.

“It’s a relief that there’s no Yandel among the clones! Let’s take care of them quickly!”

A voice as if delivering good news. It’s not that I don’t understand her feelings. HansG is relatively weaker in combat among us, and having four summoners is a bad combination. Certainly, it’s a good thing for us. But…

Thump.

My heart started beating like crazy.