Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 455

[Dungeon & Stone] is a farming game where the core fun comes from strengthening your character by gathering experience, consuming essences, and acquiring equipment. Typically, you level up by consuming essences and gaining experience, which is only granted upon the first hunt of a monster. If you don’t enhance your character with essences, it becomes impossible to gain more experience. ‘How did I reach level 7 without any roadblocks?’ It’s largely because I consumed the essences of a level 7 Corpse Golem, a level 5 Vampire, and an Orc Hero early on. That alone boosted my stats enough to breeze through the lower levels. In the mid-game, consuming the Ogre essence with ‘Restrained Desire’ was also significant. Oh, and the fact that the royal family was at war helped too. The [Transcendence] of ‘Bayon,’ which I obtained through war contributions, was an essence I would have started farming for around this time. ‘So, is this the first time my growth has been blocked…?’ Ah, of course, my growth isn’t blocked due to a lack of ability. It’s just that to get stronger, I need to go above the 7th floor, but I can’t because it’s a battlefield. In fact, if I reinforce the clan a bit more, I’d be ready to start grinding Bellarios right away. Therefore… “Bjorn, how much longer do we have to wait? The monsters here are too weak, and it’s not fun!” The main focus of this exploration was set on lower raids. Looking back, it was the best choice. While gathering experience from monsters we’ll eventually have to hunt, we can also coordinate with the team and even consume essences if they drop during the raid. Currently, all four of us have one essence slot left. “Just wait patiently. As I said before, the essence that drops here is necessary for you.” The monster we’re about to hunt has an essence that Ainar can use effectively. It’s not the best graduation essence, but if he consumes it now, he’ll get 30% stronger. “Well, even so…” However, Ainar didn’t seem too impressed. It’s hard to believe that an essence from the 2nd floor would be helpful to him now—. “It’s just a level 5! Can’t we just keep going up? Stronger enemies need to appear so I can show you how much stronger I’ve become!” Ah… so that was the problem. I mostly tuned him out and focused on chewing my jerky. How much time had passed? “Yandel.” Amelia, who was resting while her summoned clone was auto-hunting the mobs, called out to me. At the same time, Erwen said, “There are people approaching again.” “Yeah, just like she said, someone is coming this way. The number is—.” “Twelve people.” “…” Ugh, how annoying to listen to… I really hope they don’t start competing over this. “They’ll arrive in about two minutes.” “I see.” After that, we waited for a bit, and a team of twelve explorers emerged from the darkness. Well, should I call them a clan instead of a team? Their equipment was quite good for explorers on the 2nd floor. “…” “…” A brief encounter where we sized each other up. Soon, a man who seemed to be the leader of the group looked at us and spoke first. “…Looks like there were guests already.” It was a single sentence that made it clear that their goal was the same as ours. Well, the monster we were trying to catch was quite well-known. Since our goals were the same, the solution was simple. “Yeah, since there are guests, you guys should leave now.” In professional terms, ‘We called dibs.’ “…” When I claimed ownership of the hunting ground we had secured, the other leader clicked his tongue and looked us over. In the past, that gaze would have immediately triggered my caution. But now, it didn’t bother me at all. “That’s a shame.” Well, what can he do if he’s disappointed? “You should consider yourselves lucky to have met such a famous person. May the blessing of Lapdonia be with you, Baron Yandel.” Just like the three teams we had encountered before, they turned around and left without a word. How much time had passed? 「Your character has defeated a Sandworm.」 「Your character has defeated a Sandworm.」 「Your character has defeated a Sandworm…」 「…」 After camping out and killing Sandworms, which only appear in certain areas of the rocky desert, the conditions were finally met. “Oh, the ground is shaking!” The desert shook as if an earthquake had struck. Whoosh-! A sandstorm blew in, cutting off our retreat. Soon, a giant worm emerged from the ground, opening its maw. 「A Deathworm has appeared.」 A level 5 monster, the Deathworm. It always appears as a superior variant in the lower levels, so it was often placed at the front of the ‘experience run’ route. [Kieeeeeeeeeeeek-!] The creature, with only its upper body above ground, let out a chilling roar and glared down at us. “Behel—raaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!” Ainar shouted back, jumping high into the air. However, sadly, he was a step too late. 「Amelia Rainwales has cast [Abyssal Power].」 「Erwen Fornachi di Tersia has cast [Rupture].」 Before Ainar could even swing his greatsword, the Deathworm was pierced by an arrow and a sword, collapsing onto the sand. 「You have defeated the Deathworm. EXP +5」 「Superior variant kill bonus. EXP +1」 I didn’t expect it to be a one-second kill. “It’s weaker than I thought?” “Mister! I defeated it!” “What are you talking about? Didn’t you see my sword cut the monster in half before the arrow?” “But my arrow blew its head off.” “Uwaaaaaaaaaaa! What is this! I waited so long!!” Ah, no essence dropped. *** After defeating the Deathworm, we left the rocky desert and returned to the Crystal Cave on the 1st floor. The reason was simple. It had been three months since we visited the ‘Green Mine.’ Now, we could enter the 1st floor rift again. ‘Come to think of it, I haven’t explored all the other floors either.’ Actually, when I think about it, I haven’t explored all the other floors either. Since I mostly skipped the lower floors, the only places I’ve been to so far are the White Temple on the 3rd floor and the Doppelganger Forest on the 4th floor. I haven’t even experienced the rift opening effect on the 2nd floor because I spent so little time there. ‘I wonder if I can go this time…’ Well, I’m not sure. Entering the 2nd floor rift is included in this exploration plan, but a rift isn’t a place you can just enter whenever you want. “Hahaha! It’s been a while since I’ve been here! It feels strangely nostalgic! Don’t you think so, Bjorn?” Ainar said as soon as we arrived at the Great Sage Monument in the center of the Crystal Cave. Well, I guess he might feel that way. I had similar feelings when I came here three months ago. Ainar and I opened the rift here for the first time, and we met Raven and the dwarf there for the first time. Separately, this was also the place where we were surrounded by the Noark guys and suffered for days. ‘That was already more than three years ago…’ A considerable amount of time has been lost from going back to the past, but even considering that, a lot of time has passed. It feels like it happened just recently. Thud. I placed the level 8 magic stone we had mined from the rocky desert on the altar, and a portal opened. We quickly stepped inside. 「Your character has entered the 1st floor rift.」 The last rift on the 1st floor that I haven’t cleared yet. “So this is the ‘Steel Tomb’….” As Erwen lit the way with her spirit, a claustrophobic corridor unfolded before us. It felt like we had entered the inside of a pyramid from a documentary. Of course, there were clear differences from a pyramid. The walls of the corridor, which were engraved with mural-like patterns, were all made of metal. “Mister, what language is this?” “I don’t know either.” “Hahaha, I think Aruru would have liked to see this, don’t you think?” “Stop the chatter and let’s move.” There was no reason to waste time, so we started exploring the rift. Ah, Ainar took the lead. It was because he insisted on doing it himself… Amelia and Erwen were also curious about Ainar’s skills, so I just let him do it. Actually, I wanted to see it too. “Behel—raaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!” Ainar, who was in the lead, began clearing the rift in an instant. Originally, the ‘Steel Tomb’ was meant to be explored by disarming traps and carefully finding the way to the final chapter, the tomb chamber, but that was meaningless for Ainar. Traps are more efficient to step on and destroy than to disarm. As long as you’re strong enough. “Ainar, it’s to the left there!” “Uooooooo!!” I just told him the way from behind, and Ainar ran forward, stepping on traps and smashing monsters with his greatsword. Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! As expected of a greatsword warrior specialized in one-sided battles, his performance was impressive. 「Ainar Fnellin has cast [Repeated Slash].」 「Same area hit.」 「[Explosive Scar] is activated.」 A basic combo that synergizes with [Repeated Slash]. However, his growth over the past few years was clearly evident. 「[Mendle Oil] doubles the power of [Explosive Scar].」 The essence of the level 5 monster Smurg, which is activated when a fire-type ‘passive skill’ is used. And… 「[Afterburn] is activated.」 「Deals additional damage proportional to the damage inflicted.」 A level 4 essence that deals 50% reduced damage one more time when dealing fire damage to multiple targets in a short period. Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! When Ainar swung his sword once, explosions followed up to dozens of times, and I watched him proudly from behind. ‘I didn’t expect him to have gathered all the essences I told him about.’ It felt like watching a student who had done their homework perfectly. I had recommended essences with good resistance stats, so he was fine even if he stepped on traps or was hit directly by the monsters’ abilities. Well, he’d heal quickly even if he got hurt anyway. 「Ainar Fnellin has cast [Wings of Greed].」 「Natural regeneration is greatly increased.」 Ainar’s build is passive-based, so it doesn’t consume much spirit power. Aside from his basic attack, [Repeated Slash], he only has one ultimate skill. Therefore, he can keep his healing skill active without much burden, and… 「You have defeated a level 8 monster.」 「Recovers spirit power proportional to the level.」 Thanks to the 3rd stage effect of the Slaughterer’s Engraving, [Devour], both his MP and HP are restored just by fighting. It even looked like he had reached the 6th stage of the engraving. 「You are in combat with a level 8 monster.」 「Physical stats continuously increase proportional to the level.」 Wow, I didn’t expect him to have even learned [Combat Learning]. The fact that he gets stronger and stronger as he fights is exactly the form of a barbarian warrior I wanted. ‘…It would be fun to fight like that.’ Watching his exhilarating combat, I felt a strange sense of deprivation, but I quickly let go of that feeling. A shield barbarian has its own charm. In the first place, [Dungeon & Stone] is a game where you can’t do anything if the main tank doesn’t support you properly. Raids are possible without priests, mages, or archers, but the main tank is irreplaceable. “Behel—raaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!” Anyway, we just followed behind Ainar without doing anything else, and as time passed, we steadily accumulated our first hunting experience. 「You have defeated a Mummy. EXP +1」 「You have defeated an Iron Soldier. EXP +3」 「You have defeated a Buried One. EXP +2」 「You have defeated a Guardian’s Eye. EXP +2」 「You have defeated an Iron Lizardman. EXP +3」 「You have defeated a Mysterious Gatekeeper…」 「…」 Also, we found two hidden pieces in the middle and shared them. 「Your character has consumed Mercurial Liquid.」 「Magic resistance permanently increased by +3.」 「This effect does not stack.」 「Your character has received the Blessing of Iron.」 「Physical resistance permanently increased by +3.」 「This effect does not stack.」 The stat increases are small in the 1st floor rift, but they become quite significant when accumulated. 「Your character has entered the Steel Tomb.」 Even though we did everything we could, it didn’t take long to reach the boss room. Well, it probably took about three hours. ‘Three hours solo is definitely fast hunting.’ It seemed like he had proven his abilities enough, but Ainar, not satisfied, insisted on fighting the boss alone. And… 「You have defeated the Iron Ildium. EXP +4」 「Superior variant kill bonus. EXP +1」 「Guardian kill bonus. EXP +3」 The short boss fight ended. Like explorers who are the epitome of greed, everyone’s eyes were drawn to the corpse that was starting to disappear into a cloud of light. Whoosh- There was no essence. The rift stone, which sells for a decent price, was also absent. But… “…A flower?” “Huh? Were there flowers among the Numbers items?” A Numbers item dropped. No.9999 Beginner’s Luck. And it was incredibly rare.