Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 271

The eastern coastline was dotted with reefs. It was the place where the rough waves had pushed us, wrecking our ship. “We’ve arrived.” The sandy beach, already half-submerged, was teeming with monsters. Lane Mutu warriors and shamans, typical sea monsters of the 6th floor. Sohragodong horns that spewed poison from a distance. Garvels, with the unique trait of multiplying up to three times when killed, and more. “Bjorn, I’ll help too.” Ainar, concerned by the nearly hundred-strong force, stepped forward. Hey, you just keep an eye on that guy. “It’s okay.” “What? But…” But what? What’s with the ‘but’? Ah, come to think of it, I haven’t shown this in front of him after eating this essence. “Don’t worry. This much is enough for me alone.” I gripped my mace like a batter holding a baseball bat, taking a stance. And then… “Erwen.” “Yes, what shall we do this time?” “Wind.” I activated Elemental Barbarian (Wind) mode. 「Erwen Fornachi di Tersia has cast [Elementalization].」 Sharp winds began to swirl around my body, dancing around my skin. 「The spirit of wind inhabits the character’s body.」 「Evasion bonus is granted to all damage.」 「Magic damage taken is doubled.」 「Strong bonus to penetration and cutting actions.」 「Agility stat greatly increased…」 The effect of this mode is simple. It increases movement speed and allows me to perform an evasion tank role. If I were a dealer instead of a tank, my DPS would just skyrocket. Ah, of course, the important thing is something else. 「All attack ranges are tripled.」 This is the biggest feature of Elibaba (Wind) mode. When this mode is activated, normal attacks turn into splash damage. In other words, even a blunt weapon warrior like me can deal area damage. “Gieeeek-!” Sensing the unusual aura, the surrounding monsters went into a frenzy and began to swarm towards me. However, I maintained my stance, waiting for the right moment. There’s no need to swing twice, right? Just once. One proper swing is enough. ‘Transcendence.’ Judging that they had gathered enough, I immediately used [Transcendence]. And then… 「The character has cast [Swing].」 Like a skilled swordsman drawing and swinging a sword, I swung my mace horizontally with precision. Whoosh-! The sound of wind tearing through the air was heard at the same time. Whoooom-! The mace I was holding lengthened like a staff, increasing in size proportionally. The effect of Transcendental Swing. 「The range of impact is tripled.」 This is why most characters in Dungeon & Stone can perform unbelievable plays as they progress to the later stages. Most of these are multiplicative. Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwaaaaaang-! Whew, what a refreshing sound. Having finished [Swing], I looked around with satisfaction. ‘Yeah, that’s it.’ There were no monsters left alive. *** “Bjorn! How did you do that just now! Teach me too!!” “You can ask Erwen to do it for you later.” “If I have Erwen, can I do it too!” “Yeah, something like that.” I gave a rough answer to Ainar, who was impressed by my new combo, and then checked the sea. The monsters on the coast were mostly cleared with one refreshing blow. “Mister, the waves! The waves are crashing in!” After waiting for a while on the temporarily empty beach, a wave rose high like a tsunami. 「The first wrath of the sea has begun.」 The effect that appeared when the mid-boss of the first wave appeared. “Siren! It’s the Siren Queen!” Seeing the monster riding the waves like surfing, the priestess Ershina shouted. As an explorer who had been active on the 6th floor for a long time, she seemed to know about this monster. “Why is a 4th-grade monster on this island…” Why else? Because someone among you triggered an event, that’s why it appeared. “Everyone, get behind me. Erwen, prepare to fight.” “Yes.” “What about me? Am I just going to watch again?” “For now. I’ll call you if I need you, so wait.” “Okay!” After briefly adjusting the formation once more, the Siren Queen finally arrived in front of us. “Kyaaaaaaak-!” The creature, letting out a sound that didn’t match its beautiful face, thrust its trident at us. Clang-! As befitting a 4th-grade monster, even its normal attack was quite heavy. Well, there’s a reason why it’s a 4th-grade, though. 「The Siren Queen has cast [Song of the Sea].」 「The character’s stats are reduced.」 An aura that reduces stats in proportion to the exposure time. 「The Siren Queen has cast [Whirlpool].」 Also, every time it attacks, it emits whirlpools in all directions that drain a certain amount of MP upon hit. And… 「The Siren Queen has cast [Proof of Loyalty].」 It periodically summons Siren, a 5th-grade monster, whenever the cooldown is up. Not just one or two, but a dozen or so at a time. ‘A typical debuff shaman-type boss monster.’ Indeed, no matter how you think about it, it’s not an easy monster. If we hadn’t met it right here. “Behel—laaaaaaaa!!” The Siren Queen’s difficulty lies in its numbers. Usually, hundreds of sirens surround and protect it. However, when we first arrived on this island, it was alone. Of course, it has the nature of multiplying on its own if left alone for a while… ‘Why did I come here, leaving everything else behind?’ I came here, giving up on finding my companions, to defeat it before it evolved into a raid boss. “I, I will help too, give me a weapon! A 4th-grade monster is too much for you alone!” Nevartze made such a suggestion, as if he didn’t trust us, but I just ignored it. And so did Ainar. “What are you talking about, Bjorn is a great warrior!” “No, great or not, that’s a monster that two or three people can handle—” “Bjorn, can I break this guy’s mouth?” “If he talks back one more time.” “Okay!” “…” Whether it was Ainar’s threat that was the main reason, Nevartze soon shut his mouth. Thanks to that, I didn’t have to worry about the back and could focus on the battle. A priest, the epitome of healing and blessings. An elemental archer. A tank barbarian. In fact, it was as if we were fighting with just these three, but the boss fight went smoothly. That’s because, after all, we had a dealer, a tank, and a healer, right? 「Lylin Ershina has cast [Blessing of the Sun].」 「Debuffs below 5th grade are removed, and additional stats are gained accordingly.」 The stat reduction was removed by the priest at regular intervals. Whoosh-! The [Whirlpool] that drains MP upon hit was easily avoided with control. ‘It’s really convenient since my agility stat has increased.’ The summoning pattern wasn’t too difficult either. Erwen, in [Elementalization] state, was dealing with them before more than ten could accumulate around me. “Behel—laaaaaa!!” Moreover, because my threat level was so high, there were no accidents of them ignoring me and rushing to the rear. Therefore… Crack! Crack! Crack! I just had to beat the queen as a tank and dealer, and it was over. “Kieeeeeeeek-!” That was about 20 minutes into the fight. 「The Siren Queen has been defeated. EXP +6.」 The Siren Queen, having been hit nearly thirty times on the crown of her head with [Swing], finally disappeared into light. There was no essence that I had been hoping for. ‘If a summoning skill had dropped, I could have sold it for a lot. Ah, but since there’s no mage anyway, it’s the same, isn’t it?’ I put down my mace, shaking off my disappointment. And I moved to where the group was with Erwen, who had deactivated [Elementalization]. “…To think that you could really defeat a 4th-grade monster with just three people.” The priestess Ershina still had an expression of disbelief. And so did Nevartze. “I was sure you said you were a 5th-grade explorer…” Nevartze, trailing off, looked at me with a strange gaze. “So, you were hiding your skills…” What is he talking about again? I chuckled as soon as I heard it, but I didn’t bother to explain. ‘Funny. It’s just that the grading standards here are incredibly lax.’ That was one of the things I realized after the game became reality. The explorer grades here are really just the bare minimum. The guild only grades based on the average grade of the essences, not considering the synergy of those essences. For example, Nevartze is a prime example. ‘He was a 4th-grade, right?’ This guy had a 4th-grade explorer badge. Since he’s from Noah Arc, it probably isn’t a real identification badge, but he must have earned the 4th-grade himself. But even so, he was defeated by me in 10 seconds. It’s also true that my training method is strong against PvP [Player versus Player], especially against ranged types… ‘Putting everything else aside, he’s just weak.’ In fact, most of the explorers here were like that. Even if their grade is high, it’s like they can’t perform to their full potential. ‘Looking back, the Dragon Slayer also felt like that.’ He had a high level and had eaten a lot of essences because he had been exploring for a long time, but that was all. There was no foundation to his essence combination. Frankly speaking, by my standards, he was a character that could be called a failure. ‘It was exactly like those guys who played for a few days, cursed the game, and quit.’ In this game, it was stronger to combine lower-grade skills to create synergy than to have five higher-grade skills. It was also the basics of this game to choose one core skill like [Gigantification] and evolve it in various ways to cheat. ‘The only one with a solid combination was that corpse collector bastard.’ I was organizing my thoughts when… “Hey, Yandel!” Huh? ‘No, wait, that voice is…’ I quickly turned my head in the direction of the sound. “Raven! Abman!!” “Partsran-nim, you’re safe!” Four men and women were emerging from the forest. Whew, now all that’s left is Misha. *** “Yandel, Erwen, Ainar. I’m glad you’re all safe.” “Urakburak! I’m glad you’re safe too!!” After quickly running to the familiar faces and sharing a reunion, we quickly shared information. “What happened?” “Ah, that?” What happened to Raven was simple. First, he started with Bear Uncle, and soon after, he encountered Partsran and his mage companion and moved to the center of the island together? After arriving, they saw the note I left in the center saying ‘Go east’ and turned in this direction. “But why did you arrive so late? We were waiting there for over two hours.” “I’m sorry. We got lost too much on the way there…” The reason for being late was absurd. To think that there wasn’t a single person who could find the way, even with four people gathered. ‘Well, there are two mages, and he doesn’t seem to be able to do anything other than use a sword…’ Bear Uncle goes without saying. Yeah, with this group, it’s natural that they can’t find their way. “But… what about Misha?” “Misha is still not here.” “What? Not yet…” “Don’t worry too much. You guys just met now, didn’t you? She’ll be fine somewhere on the island.” I tried to shake off my worries and shifted my gaze. Partsran, who had finished his reunion with his companion Ershina, was approaching me. “I heard from Ershina about what happened so far.” “Heard…?” “Ah, no, I heard… She said you protected her the whole time? Thank you.” “We should help each other when things are difficult. By the way, about the blonde… no, have you heard about the identity of that Drowes guy?” “Ah, about that… I did hear. That Drowes was from Noah Arc, it’s hard to believe. So, I was wondering if I could check a few things myself?” Soon, Partsran politely asked if he could talk to Nevartze, whom I had captured, and I readily agreed. “Use him well and return him.” “Of course, I’ll use him cleanly.” Okay, then that part is done. I approached Raven while eavesdropping on the conversation between Partsran and Nevartze. And I whispered quietly. “Raven, the answer is done, just listen.” “…?” “There’s someone among them who’s in league with the Noah Arc guys.” It’s the guy who betrayed the team and told Amelia that they would come to this island today. Only Amelia knows who that guy is, right? “I don’t think they’ll try to stab us in the back even in this situation, but still, be aware. If you find anything suspicious, let me know right away.” As soon as I finished speaking, Raven nodded with a stern face. Okay, then the information sharing is over. “Hey, mage. What’s your name?” I went to the mage who was sitting on the floor, exhausted, and asked for his name. I thought maybe I could find something suspicious if I talked to him. Oh, yeah, that’s what I was supposed to do… “Ah, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Aulock.” I froze, startled, as I saw the mage smiling kindly and reaching out his hand. The priestess Ershina, the swordsman Partsran, And the female archer who I haven’t met yet. I haven’t properly figured out who the traitor is among the many suspects… But a strange certainty was rising. “Hans Aulock. Please call me Hans.” Gotcha, you bastard.