Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 733

An unexpected turn of events.

That’s the only way to describe it, but it’s not enough to make me give up and despair.

At least, that’s what Abet Necraphaeto thought.

Of course, wouldn’t it be?

「Field Effect – Netherworld is granted.」

This is the Netherworld.

A place that can only be entered by using a staff that is practically a graduation weapon for necromancers [a powerful, high-level item].

「All non-living entities within the area have their physical stats increased by 200%.」

「All living entities have their physical stats decreased by 20%.」

A place that is nothing short of a paradise for necromancers.

「Undead within the area will not be annihilated.」

Undead summoned here will revive as if nothing happened after a short time, even if they are hit and fall.

「The character possesses a symbol.」

「The character is granted the blessing of the Netherworld.」

A character possessing the ‘Netherworld Staff’ is considered a ‘non-living entity’ and will never die.

Well, there are ways to break this, though.

Anyway.

“Heh heh….”

Yeah, there’s no reason to be intimidated even here.

Thud.

Of course, the appearance of that giant coming closer exudes a force like a tank.

Thud.

In reality, it doesn’t seem like I can break through that ridiculous defense and inflict a critical hit….

‘…If it’s just about enduring!’

I decided that I could at least run away.

That’s because, unlike his monstrous defense, that barbarian lacks mobility.

I felt that clearly during the chase a while ago.

Of course, I also lack mobility, so I almost got caught in the end….

“Oh, are you smiling?”

The situation is different now than it was then.

My physical stats have greatly increased, and my summons are much stronger.

Analyzing the current situation calmly, there was no reason for me to be intimidated by that barbarian right now.

Therefore….

“Why, can’t I smile? Heh heh….”

As my confidence surged, it was only natural that I felt more at ease.

“Well, it’s not that you can’t… it’s just that you looked like you were about to die a moment ago, so it’s kind of amazing.”

“About to die? I was just a little surprised. Heh heh….”

As the saying goes, the body follows the mind, and his shoulders, which had been hunched over, were now wide open.

As they say, positivity breeds positivity.

Once I started thinking positively, I quickly realized my advantages.

‘24 hours… should be enough.’

If 24 hours pass without anyone dying, we will be kicked out of this place and return to where we were originally.

But there was nothing to worry about.

‘Until the Captain arrives.’

Before blocking Bjorn Yandel, I heard that the Captain, who was waiting in District 4, had departed for District 8.

No matter how late, the Captain would arrive by then, and that monstrous Captain would be able to handle that mysterious knight as well.

People can beat monsters in a labyrinth.

But it’s almost impossible for a person to beat the Captain.

If I can just endure and return, the knight would either be dead or have run away, and they would be waiting for me in a formation.

Then, no matter how persistent this barbarian is—.

Tap-!

Hey, I’m thinking here.

Those barbarians are so rude.

Whoosh!

A crude blow that doesn’t feel refined at all.

“Heh.”

He easily dodged it by slightly stepping back and chuckled as he muttered.

“You’re slow.”

From the barbarian’s perspective, it must have been quite embarrassing.

How could he dodge so easily? It was a blow that would have definitely hit me before…!

‘Heh heh, he really doesn’t know anything.’

That ignorant barbarian doesn’t know anything about the ‘Netherworld’.

Considering that information advantage, my advantage is doubled.

Yeah, so….

‘Hmm… maybe it wouldn’t be bad to try and catch him once?’

It was just one time, just one dodge, but that one time gave Abet Necraphaeto a great deal of confidence, and a little bit of greed.

That’s because….

Corpse collector, Abet Necraphaeto, defeating the giant, Bjorn Yandel, one-on-one?

What a wonderful story that would be—.

Pshoo-!

At that moment, green gas erupted from the ground between the man and the barbarian, and the barbarian stepped back to avoid the green gas.

Up to this point, I didn’t think much of it.

If an unidentified gas suddenly erupts from the floor, it’s normal to avoid it first.

But, what is this again?

“Hey, why aren’t you getting hit?”

…Huh?

He tilted his head, unable to understand the last words.

“What are you talking about?”

“What, you don’t know? Well, it’s kind of awkward for me to say it….”

It was as if he knew something about that gas.

The man felt like something was wrong, but he asked again to confirm.

“…Could it be that you know where this place is?”

“Then why wouldn’t I know? It’s the place you summoned with your staff. The Netherworld. If I get hit by that gas, I get cursed, and if you get hit, your blessing gets stronger.”

“…….”

Abet Necraphaeto was speechless at the barbarian’s concise explanation.

“What? You really didn’t know?”

It’s not that he didn’t know the fact.

However, he was just surprised that the barbarian knew it so accurately.

So, he was momentarily speechless, but when he thought about it, there was no reason to be happy or sad about it.

“…W, why wouldn’t I know? I might know ‘a little’ about the Netherworld. It’s so famous.”

“Oh, so shall we start again?”

As if he didn’t want to talk for long, the barbarian let out a battle cry that seemed like he was going to get neurosis and charged again.

And….

[Grrrrrr-!]

Abet Necraphaeto also took out the most confident corpse among the corpses stored in the subspace.

When he first saw that barbarian, he thought of running away first, but he planned to try and see if he could fight him by dividing the numbers a little.

But….

“Wow, [Barrier] trait? How much did you modify it?”

The barbarian recognized the No.3’s trait, which had only appeared once after being [Modified] tens of thousands of times, as soon as he saw it.

And….

“This one’s weak point is here, so it’s easy.”

Crack-!

No.3, who had immunity to damage, was hit in his only weak point and collapsed powerlessly.

Of course, thanks to the field effect, he would revive again in a short time, but….

‘…H, how does he know?’

Abet Necraphaeto’s soaring confidence decreased slightly, and his anxiety increased slightly.

Of course, even so, he tried to have as much hope as possible, but….

“…[Punisher] trait, I can just take that hit.”

Crack-!

“Yeah, the [Musician] trait should be dealt with first.”

Crack-!

That barbarian moved efficiently like a person who had mastered all the truths in the world.

“Oh, ‘Netherworld Fire’? Sweet.”

The barbarian hit every field monster that temporarily increased dark resistance when killed with his hammer.

He also hit the ground that suddenly bulged out.

‘…Why is he hitting that?’

“Ah, you don’t know? If you hit this, your resistance stat goes up.”

A hidden piece that even he, who had visited the Netherworld countless times, didn’t know.

Thump-!

When I tried it myself, it felt like my skin had actually gotten a little tougher….

Thump-!

The feeling that ‘something is wrong’ is getting stronger and stronger.

However, he did not give up and waited for the right time, and then he took out his trump card.

“B, but you won’t be able to stop this!”

“Oh, so it’s time to summon, huh?”

“……Huh?”

“What, weren’t you trying to summon the Netherworld King just now?”

“…….”

That’s right.

A field boss that can be summoned when a person holding the Netherworld Staff enters the Netherworld and meets certain conditions.

He was planning to summon it now.

But….

Thump-!

But how does this barbarian know even this?

Like someone who has been to the Netherworld countless times….

“Ah, it doesn’t matter even if you know! You can’t stop it like that!”

Soon, he raised his staff high.

And he ‘designated’ the moon high in the sky and cast ‘Netherworld’s Call’ once again.

And….

[I smell the scent of the living.]

The voice of a transcendent being echoed throughout the Netherworld.

Even though he knew it was an ally, Necraphaeto’s spine tingled as soon as he heard that voice.

That’s because he clearly remembered the Netherworld King who had instantly killed the guy who had dared to challenge him in Orculius’s ‘Ranking Battle’ before.

But even so, he wasn’t completely sure.

Bjorn Yandel.

A ‘Guardian’ whose skills are among the best in the history of Lapdonia [a fictional place].

Even with the ‘Netherworld Staff’, it was impossible to kill such a guy in one blow.

But….

‘I can inflict a big blow.’

Necraphaeto decided to check this one blow and make a final decision.

If he takes a lot of damage, then he will be more actively involved in the battle and try to kill him.

But if it ends with minor damage….

‘How can I kill such a guy?’

He would admit that it was impossible from the beginning, and he would cleanly run away without looking back and just buy time.

Whoosh-!

Then, what will the result be?

[Living one, I ask.]

The Netherworld King, who is more than just huge, looks down….

No, he looks down at the planet and asks.

[Why have you set foot on the land of immortality?]

To him, it was a useless event.

No matter what answer the living one gives there, the Netherworld King will be angry and slam his palm down—.

Pshoo-!

…Or not?

‘What is it?’

At that moment, the barbarian suddenly thrust his body into the green gas erupting from the ground.

It was an incomprehensible action.

Knowing that he would be cursed if he went in there, why would he go there on his own…?

It didn’t take long to solve that question.

[Have I seen wrong?]

With those words, the Netherworld King disappeared.

“N, no! Netherworld King! H, here I am! There is a living one here, so please come back quickly! Come back…!!”

Necraphaeto, who belatedly came to his senses, shouted at the sky, but the Netherworld King, who had already disappeared, did not reappear.

“…….”

The silence of emptiness that came.

Pshoo-!

Soon, the eruption of gas from the ground stopped, and the barbarian, who had been hiding in it, appeared with a smirk.

“Didn’t you know?”

A question that was too calm.

Necraphaeto was so dumbfounded that his head throbbed.

‘…Then how does he know this!’

It’s more strange if he knows.

I’ve never seen a guy avoid it like this when summoning the Netherworld King, and….

The same goes for the notes of a necromancer who was known to have the ‘Netherworld Staff’ before.

There was no such story written there.

“……H, how do you know everything?”

Necraphaeto asked resignedly, and the barbarian shrugged and muttered.

“Why would I tell you?”

A way of speaking that barbarians often use to tease people.

“You learn what you don’t know by getting hit.”

However, Necraphaeto intuitively realized what he said next.

Thump-!

It’s not just a feeling that something is wrong.

This is….

Thump-!

It’s just that it’s already way too wrong.

***

Under the green sky.

Tadadadad-!

I’m running across the dry field.

Tadadad-!

In front of me, a modified four-legged chimera is running away from me with the corpse collector on its back.

‘Tsk, did I push him too hard?’

First of all, the battle itself was very easy.

No matter what kind of corpse it is with the Netherworld buff, the necromancer is a position that does a quantity battle [focuses on summoning many weaker units].

Of course, even if they are the elite, the attack power of each individual is bound to be low, and with that type, they can never catch me.

The shield barbarian has a mechanism that gets stronger the more he gets hit by normal attacks.

Also, I had played the necromancer directly, so I had a high understanding of the job, and I had been to the Netherworld countless times, so there were no variables.

「The accumulated damage has exceeded a certain level.」

The problem is that he started running away as soon as I countered the Netherworld King, as if he had lost his spirit.

‘Shall I… try it?’

Of course, I don’t know how much the stack has accumulated.

I’ve been running while getting hit by the corpse army that’s been blocking me, so I think it’s accumulated quite a bit….

‘Well, I’ll know when I check.’

「The character has used [Aegis Armor].」

As soon as I used the active effect of the armor, a soul warrior that appeared behind my back ran forward.

It’s nothing compared to the Netherworld King I saw a little while ago, but it’s still big enough to make me lose my sense of reality.

The guy who happened to turn his head started to freak out.

“……W, what is that!”

Seriously, he’s not even a kid.

Why does he keep asking me to spoon-feed him every time he does something?

‘I told you to learn by getting hit.’

Whoooosh-!

Soon, the soul warrior takes a step and swings his huge greatsword.

For that greatsword of overwhelming size, the distance between the guy and me was not a problem at all.

Kwaaaaaaang-!

With a roar that sounded like the ground was collapsing, thick smoke rose.

「Abet Necraphaeto has cast [Fleeting Immortality].」

Okay, so I’ve taken away his invincibility skill with this….

Smirk.

I can kill him next time.