Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 208

It’s a coincidence. It’s just that the laughter sounds similar. How vast is the world that there wouldn’t be even one person with similar habits? I didn’t even consider that. The moment I felt the déjà vu, I accepted reality. ‘The Jester.’ One of the members of the Round Table’s Watchers, and among them, the one who seemed to know the most and be the most skilled. That’s the identity of that man. ‘I guessed he was from Noahrc, but I never thought I’d meet him like this…’ The confrontation with the Jester that I was so curious about. However, I don’t feel any sense of welcome at all. Rather, it’s more like… ‘I’m screwed.’ What should I do? He looks incredibly strong at first glance. Should I just reveal that I’m the Lionheart and hope he lets me go? ‘No way.’ I threw away the weak thought that suddenly bloomed. That would be the same as coming out as a demon, and… The Jester respects the Lionheart. Not some weak barbarian like this. The moment my identity is revealed, the Jester will lose interest in me and become enraged. Therefore, I shouted. “Prepare for battle!” A frontal breakthrough. If you can overcome fear, it can be the best solution at any moment. “Now that’s more like a barbarian!” The guy looks at me with an amused gaze. But thanks to that, did he come to his senses too? Raven immediately began chanting. “Derba Timunes.” It’s a team voice magic. Since the opponent is a person, not a monster, it seems he thought of activating this as soon as he heard the call to prepare for battle. “Tsk, how boring.” The Jester, who lost his fun content, didn’t seem to like it. Not that it’s my problem to worry about. “Everyone, fall back behind me!” I quickly gave the order and used ‘Giant Form’ to block the passage. It’s an advantage of the first-floor crystal cave. Although there are differences in each passage… Clank. Most of them are narrow. Enough to be blocked by one giant barbarian. “Behel—raaaaaaaaaaa!!!” I shout the name of my ancestor god as if to shake off my fear. And after raising my shield just enough not to obstruct my vision, I focus all my attention on his movements. Thump-! The heart of a warrior, beating at just the right pace. The warm blood circulates rapidly, invigorating my body. At least, I don’t feel like I’ll die so easily. “Yandel, if you do that, we can’t attack either!” The mage’s concern was firmly dismissed. “Don’t.” “Huh?” “Isn’t he someone we don’t know? First, we need to figure out what kind of abilities he has. Until then, absolutely don’t step forward first.” The most important thing in a one-on-one battle is information. How they combined various abilities and items to develop their character into a certain concept class. If you don’t know that, it’s difficult to respond correctly. “That’s…! He’s the monster who killed the knight. But you’re going to figure it out alone, Yandel?” Then what else can I do? “This is the most efficient way.” I’m the tank. So, I can withstand unknown attacks. But, they can’t. The moment they get hit by an unexpected blow, the chances of the game being over are much higher. “It’s no fun if I can’t understand what you’re saying.” Before we could discuss the plan any further, the Jester extended his hand to the side with a cold voice. Somehow, a weapon was in his hand. ‘Mithril made.’ A cyan-colored spike emitting light. “Just die.” At the same time as the low voice echoed, the Jester’s figure disappeared from my sight. The time I lost him wasn’t long. After all, it’s just a straight passage. ‘Where is he trying to play with my vision?’ When I lowered my shield slightly, I could see the Jester making a move from the obscured angle of view. I, who have been honed through numerous real battles, quickly identified the attack point. ‘The thigh, huh…’ In battle, everything is connected to information. The level of swinging a weapon without thinking is long gone, and each movement has a basis and intention. Then, why did he aim for the thigh? ‘Is he an assassin type after all?’ In terms of compatibility, he would have thought it was troublesome to penetrate the shield. For the past seven months, the first thing I upgraded with the money I earned from paying off my debts was the shield. ‘If he had a brain, he would have known it at first glance.’ A large shield made of 4th-grade metal moonstone. It has enough durability to withstand even an Arcane Sword a few times. That means. Clack! It’s impossible to penetrate with a 5th-grade mithril weapon. Clack! Not only did I block it with my shield, but I also put strength into my arm. “……!” The guy’s body, being pushed back without any resistance. I entered one more piece of information into my head. Well, this is actually a given, but… ‘His strength is below mine.’ I’m starting to think it’s worth a try. Not like seven months ago. I have grown in many ways, starting with my equipment. Looking at it, he doesn’t seem to be a Dragon Slayer level. ‘Well, he hasn’t shown everything yet, either.’ I didn’t let my guard down and stared at the Jester who had retreated. I managed to block the first attack, but if I allow even one, it’s highly likely to be dangerous. After all, he confidently said, ‘Just die.’ It wasn’t a line to say while aiming for the thigh. ‘Then, is it poison after all?’ There’s a high possibility that the weapon is coated with poison. His ability might also be related to poison. However, since nothing has been confirmed yet, I kept all possibilities open while making assumptions. ‘It seems like it’s time to use it.’ I’ve only exchanged blows once with simple physical abilities. And since that was blocked, it’s time to use skills. “Ah, really! I wanted to save my MP as much as possible!” I couldn’t help but chuckle. Regardless of his unique exaggerated tone. “…Yandel! That person is a demon!” MP, huh. This crazy bastard has no intention of hiding that he’s a player. ‘Are all those from Noahrc like this?’ Well, they’re already at odds with the royal family, so there’s no reason to hide that they’re a demon… “No, wait a minute. If he’s a demon, then could he be…” At that, my body flinched for no reason. I felt like I knew what Raven was thinking. Someone from Noahrc. With enough skill to kill a knight alone. The most notorious player in this city. “The Corpse Collector…?” It was the moment Raven muttered blankly and spat out that name. “Kyaa!” I hurriedly turned my head to check behind me. 「Abet Necrapeto has cast [Puppet].」 The corpses of the knights and soldiers that were lying around behind me were rising and attacking Raven. ‘Damn it, it was real.’ There was no point in denying it any further. The Corpse Collector’s character concept is famous. It was a good job that I had played a few times myself. Specialized in curses and summons, with a significant emphasis on agility stats to prepare for weak close combat… ‘Agility Poison Necro.’ Agility Poison Necromancer. That was the job of the enemy I had to fight from now on. *** I thought he was an assassin because he was aiming for vital points with a spike-like weapon. ‘A necromancer, huh…’ It was a clear miscalculation. He was just trying to hit me with a normal attack because he underestimated me. His real specialty was something else. ‘He didn’t just happen to be nearby, he came looking for us.’ Now that I know his identity, the surroundings I was just standing in start to look different. He probably left the corpses there on purpose. The reason is simple. If you leave them as if they were corpses, you can use them like CCTV. Not that it matters now. ‘There’s no need for a probing battle.’ I decided to focus on the positive aspects. After the battle with the Dragon Slayer, I gathered information about Orculius, and I also know quite a bit about the ‘Corpse Collector’. ‘There are a total of 6 known essences [A magical power source].’ Of course, there will be 3 unconfirmed essences, and if we think about this guy’s notoriety, it will be nothing short of a disaster for us. However, at least the class identification is over. “Everyone, don’t fight and fall back!” I quickly gave the order. If it were a battle against a typical summoner, the standard would be to take out the summons first, but… “Don’t fight?” “The priority is to create distance!” Poison Necros are close to self-destructing weapons. Creating distance is the basis of the strategy. “Aruru, come here!” “Yes!” It was just as Ainar was preparing to retreat, taking care of Raven. Flash-! Gray eyes flashed from the gap in the mask. 「Abet Necrapeto has cast [Curse of Stone].」 The sensation of my nerves dulling from my feet. I knew what kind of skill it was as soon as I was hit. The essence of the 4th-grade monster, Medusa. Tap. As if he was going to kill me first, the guy runs at me again with the spike. It was definitely a fraudulent skill. ‘The reason there were no traces of battle around was probably because of this skill.’ Even if they were knights, it would have been difficult to withstand a 4th-grade essence. A regular knight is usually level 5. It’s inevitable that it’s difficult to secure magic resistance. ‘Well, not for me though.’ Manticore’s passive skill [Inheritance]. Over the past seven months, I have filled all 200 stats of this passive with magic resistance. Usually, junk stats also increase, but in the case of magic resistance, there is a trick. Anyway, as a result. “Behel—raaaaaaaaaaa!!” My battle cry has evolved to replace the ‘Indomitable’ skill. 「The character’s magic resistance is 400 or higher.」 +20 from the 2nd stage of the Undying Mark. +80 from the Ogre Essence. +200 from the Manticore’s passive skill [Inheritance]. The magic resistance increased by [Giant Form] and [Wild Outburst] is about 40. If you add the 20% additional increase from the blessing of the Earth Dragon… 「The character is granted immunity to suppression effects.」 Temporarily, my magic resistance exceeds 400, making me immune to suppression-type skills! 「The status ailment [Curse of Stone] is removed.」 The moment the paralysis sensation that started from my feet disappeared, I ran out with my shield. The opponent also looked flustered. Well, to be precise, was he dumbfounded? “Ha! Suppression immunity? How much did you invest in magic resistance!” Well, praise is… In the first place, the reason I ate the Manticore’s essence for that expensive price was all because of magic resistance. Regardless of whether the stats remain when deleted. Just +200 magic resistance is enough to get the most out of it until the late game. ‘By the way, he’s still damn fast.’ I pushed forward like a tank, but the guy easily created distance behind him, as expected of an agility poison necro. That’s what makes these guys tricky. Summoners are usually weak at their core, but these guys are very difficult to catch. Still, it’s a relief that he’s not an assassin. “Raven!! Freeze the corpses!” “Yes? Yes!!” “And Abman, when I give you the signal, fire a big one right away! To create an opening to escape!” “…Escape? Is that even possible?” Well, the odds are fifty-fifty. But I have to try. That’s much higher than the probability of winning by fighting. “I’ll have to pour everything into one shot. Understood!” Fortunately, Bear Uncle followed the order obediently. The moment he heard the name Corpse Collector, he must have had some intuition. The probability of winning by fighting is slim, and even then, sacrifices will inevitably follow. ‘Of all things, it had to be the Corpse Collector.’ He’s one of the top members of Orculius. Of course, he’s ranked higher than the Dragon Slayer. But… ‘There’s a chance now.’ Necromancers, by the nature of their job, are not very good at chasing. In addition, he is showing a tendency to save resources. ‘He’d want to reduce waste as much as possible since he’ll have to fight until the labyrinth closes.’ I was thinking that as I was quickly taking a back step. Whoosh-! I felt cold air from behind. It seems they used ice magic to freeze the corpses. “I froze them!” Okay, it’s confirmed. “Abman!” “Ah, just say the word anytime!” It seems Bear Uncle is ready too. After briefly reciting the surprise signal, I asked Raven for one thing. “Raven, turn off the voice control magic.” “Huh?” “Hurry.” “It’s off.” As soon as the team voice magic was deactivated, I looked at him and said. “Hey.” “Hooh?” The guy looks at me with a curious gaze. I continued to speak silently. “Do you know about the two ways to make people angry?” “Hmm? I’ve never heard of it?” That’s why foreigners are like this. I knew he wouldn’t know. “The first is to stop talking mid-sentence.” “I see. What’s the other one?” The Jester nods as if he understood. “That is…” I trailed off and deactivated [Giant Form]. And at that moment. 「Abman Urikprit has cast [Enhance].」 「Abman Urikprit has cast [Hazardous Material]…」 The arrow, which was the culmination of all of Bear Uncle’s skills, was fired across the widened passage. Kwaaaaaaaang-!! The cave shook as if there was an earthquake. Whoosh! Looking at the opposite side, which was blocked by the flames that rose in an instant, I shouted more passionately than ever. “What are you doing! Run, don’t just stand there!”