Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

The line between life and death.

Sometimes it's drawn slowly, sometimes in an instant.

For explorers, it's usually the latter.

Most injuries can be healed with potions or divine power. So unless you suffer a fatal blow or your entire team is wiped out, you usually survive.

Well, there are exceptions.

"Ugh, come on, wake up."

When potions and divine power don't work.

That happens sometimes.

Liol Wobu Dwarkey, the mage of Team Misfits.

He left a will for his companions as he faced certain death, and Misha and the others felt a deep sense of loss.

But there was a clear difference between then and now.

"Hey, miss, please..."

This wasn't a precious companion, but a stranger.

And it wasn't certain death like Dwarkey's case.

There was still a chance she could survive.

Whether she lived or died depended entirely on this red-haired woman and Misha.

"Wake up!"

Misha shouted, swinging her sword frantically.

Slash!

She cut down the monsters swarming from the shore.

But they kept coming.

She was reaching her limit.

If she didn't leave now, she might never see Bjorn again.

But she couldn't carry the woman and move.

Slash!

She couldn't carry her and fight through the monsters.

The woman had to wake up and at least be able to walk, even if it was slowly, for Misha to clear a path.

"I'm at my limit...!"

Misha shouted again, hoping her voice would reach the woman's unconscious mind.

That's when...

"You..."

The woman, who had been lying motionless, opened her eyes.

"You're awake! How are you feeling? Can you move?"

Misha asked excitedly, but the woman just mumbled, as if trying to process the situation.

"So you've been protecting me..."

"Yes! But I can't do this anymore! We have to get to a safe place. Can you walk?"

The woman's answer came after a brief pause.

"I can't move."

"What?!"

"But I can handle these monsters. Take out the item I told you about from my pocket."

She spoke calmly, as if she wasn't dying.

Misha stopped fighting and hurriedly retreated, opening the woman's expandable pouch.

And she took out the item the woman had mentioned.

"A scroll? What does this scroll do?"

"Declaration of Evil's End."

Misha was truly surprised.

Not just an ordinary magic scroll, but a divine scroll? How did this woman obtain such a rare item?

She had many questions, but they weren't important.

"Ugh, why didn't you tell me sooner...!"

Misha quickly tore the scroll, and a translucent barrier imbued with divine power blocked the monsters.

Finally, a moment of respite.

"Phew, I can finally breathe. Hey, so what's your relationship with Bjorn?"

Misha approached the woman and asked the question that had been on her mind.

But...

"I, I'm..."

"...So you and Bjorn...?"

"..."

"...Hey! You're not sleeping, are you? Wake up! Ugh!"

Misha shook the woman's shoulder, but then she realized she was injured and stopped.

And she sighed, collapsing to the ground.

Now that she had time to breathe, she started worrying about her companions again.

"...I hope they're all okay."

A cold wind blew from the sea.

It was humid and carried the salty scent of the ocean.

Swaaaaaaaaaa.

She felt unusually anxious today.

____________________

Injuries are common in battles.

Even if no one makes a mistake.

That's why explorers are superstitious.

They know.

That injuries are inevitable in battle, and sometimes the severity of those injuries depends on 'luck'.

"Yandel! Avman...!"

What happened to Avman today was similar.

The drake's claw broke Partslan's sword, which was blocking its attack.

And the broken blade flew towards Avman and pierced his body.

It wasn't his fault.

If he had been faster, he could have dodged it, but no one would call that a mistake.

He was just unlucky.

"Blood...! The bleeding won't stop...!"

Some people survive a 10-floor fall with a stroke of luck, while others die from a simple slip.

[Dungeon and Stone] faithfully reflected the absurdity of reality, and I had enjoyed that aspect of the game.

Until I woke up in this body.

"Priestess! Please heal him...!"

The problem was where the blade had pierced him.

It missed his heart, but the sharp shard had penetrated his lung and gone through.

A penetrating wound that caused the most bleeding.

And his internal organs were damaged.

「Lyrine Ersina has cast [Heal].」

The priestess used the last of her divine power to heal him, but it was useless.

「The target is currently designated as a [Dragon's Sacrifice].」

「All regeneration effects are nullified.」

The 5th-grade monster Drake's active skill.

That damn summoner had cast it as soon as she saw Avman's injury.

"Where are you looking, barbarian?"

Damn it.

Kwaaang!

I wanted to run over and check on Avman, but I couldn't.

And neither could they.

"I'll take care of Avman, so everyone focus on fighting!"

They realized they couldn't do anything for Avman, so they left him with Erwen and resumed the battle.

But the situation wasn't good.

"..."

Hans J, the mage, was gone.

And Partslan, who was trying to fill his shoes, had lost his weapon.

And then misfortune struck again.

The shard from the broken sword had pierced Avman, further reducing our numbers.

"Nebarche, was it?"

"Yes..."

"Here's your bow. You should fight too."

"...Are you sure?"

"You don't want to die here, do you?"

Erwen gave Nebarche his bow, but it didn't change the situation.

"Let's go, Yongyong! Just a little longer!"

A 5th-grade drake.

And a summoner who had stacked buff and support essences on top of that.

This was a high-difficulty battle.

It was practically the same as fighting a 4th-grade monster, and we were in terrible condition.

Erwen was out of MP and spirit power, and the priestess had run out of divine power.

And Partslan, our main tank, had lost his sword.

Adding one archer wouldn't make a difference.

'It's impossible to rely on them.'

I had to admit it.

The situation had changed.

And we had to change our strategy.

I was originally planning to play it safe, figure out their essences, and drag out the fight...

'But we don't have time.'

Avman wouldn't last long.

We had to end the battle quickly and dispel the drake's skill.

And to do that...

'I have to make a sacrifice.'

I had to make a decision.

What to discard and what to gain.

I had already made my calculations.

Then what about the enemy?

"Your companion is down, you must be desperate, barbarian!"

That arrogant bastard, already celebrating his victory, what would he sacrifice to stop me?

'I'll find out soon.'

I shouted and charged forward.

"Behel—laaaaaaaaaa!!"

I didn't feel the usual surge of energy. I didn't have enough MP to use [Wild Release].

But the ancestor god would still be with me.

He favors warriors who charge with wild abandon.

Well, maybe not.

Whiiiiiish!

He thrust his sword at me as I closed the distance.

It was a familiar pattern.

He thrusts, I block.

That used up my turn, and he would stab me in the arm or leg and then retreat.

That was how the fight had been going.

But...

'I'm not blocking this time.'

I ignored his sword and swung my mace.

Now it was his turn to make a decision.

What would he do?

"..."

He was surprised by the sudden change in the fight and hurriedly retreated.

Damn, he's not playing along.

'I knew you would do that.'

I had anticipated this, so as soon as he retreated, I changed direction and charged towards the drake.

'Leap.'

I used [Leap], spending the little MP I had recovered.

Kaboom!

A cloud of dust erupted from the landing point.

I wasn't in [Gigantification] state, so there was no [Recoil].

But that wasn't important.

[Groooowl?]

The drake looked at me with its mouth wide open.

Try spitting venom at me, you bastard.

Thwack!

I smashed its snout with my mace.

[Gwaaaark!]

Its head snapped back, but it wasn't a significant blow to a large monster like a drake.

But that wasn't my goal.

I was aiming for the woman riding on its back.

"Damn it! You can't even block one attack?!"

The summoner shouted in frustration.

I pushed off the ground again, like a spring.

And at that moment...

Thud.

A sword pierced my back.

It was that bastard.

He had caught up already?

"Why are you so late?!"

The summoner whined as I froze, the sword embedded in my back.

I was confused.

"Why."

You think I can't move?

It's not like I was stabbed in the neck.

Swoosh.

I took a step forward, the sword still embedded in my back.

And at the same time...

Whooosh!

I swung my mace down.

My target was the summoner's head.

Thud!

The sword was pulled out, and my body flinched, but my arm didn't stop.

But in that instant...

Whiiiish.

He thrust his sword again.

Thud!

It pierced my elbow.

The joint shattered, and my grip loosened.

This bastard, he's good at PvP.

'Flesh Explosion.'

I gave up on my useless arm.

Boom!

He knew about [Acidic Fluid], but he didn't expect this.

Sizzle!

"Aaaaaaargh!!"

He screamed and retreated, covered in my flesh and blood.

This is why the Corpse Golem essence is so good.

It's a rare essence, so most people don't know about it.

And it uses HP as a cost, which is useful in situations like this.

Clank.

My mace fell to the ground.

It didn't matter.

My shield was also a weapon.

Thwack!

The summoner screamed and fell off the drake, rolling on the ground.

Her arm was bent at a strange angle.

I was a bit disappointed.

If I had hit her head, she would have died instantly.

But the drake was thrashing around, preventing me from finishing her off.

'...I can just do it again.'

I jumped down from the drake, remembering the barbarian spirit of getting back up after falling down.

But then...

Whooosh!

My falling body was suddenly thrown upwards.

The drake had grabbed me by the neck and tossed me.

The summoner was quickly getting further away, but it wasn't all bad.

Thud!

Partslan took the opportunity and stabbed the drake in the chest with his broken sword.

[Kyaaaaaaaaaaaak!]

Did he hit its heart?

The drake thrashed violently and then disappeared into particles of light.

It had been unsummoned.

The status effect was also gone, so Avman could finally be healed with divine power.

I had achieved the first part of my plan.

Kwaaang!

I landed on the ground and quickly got up.

And at that moment...

Swoosh!

A cold blade touched my neck.

"You monster."

I didn't have the energy to block or dodge.

But there was a silver lining.

He couldn't kill me.

"Everyone, stop! If you don't want to see him die!"

He shouted at my companions, and they pointed their weapons at the unconscious summoner.

"You put down your sword, if you don't want to see this woman die."

It was like a hostage exchange.

And as a strange silence fell...

Step.

Two women emerged from the forest.

"Bjorn...? What's going on?!"

One was Misha, whom I had been searching for.

"You're in quite a predicament, barbarian."

And the other was Amelia Rainwales.

Why were they together?

What happened?

I had many questions, but I focused on one thing.

Was their appearance a positive or negative variable?

"Amelia Rainwales. You're alive."

The man holding his sword to my neck spoke to Amelia.

"It's good to see you. Please help us."

"You're asking for my help after doing that? You must have a reason."

"Of course. I hid that item somewhere on this island. If we die here, it will be lost forever. Do you really want that?"

Amelia frowned at his words.

I had met this woman several times, so I knew.

'Damn it.'

That was her thinking face.

Our fate depended on her decision. I stared at Amelia, unable to even speak.

"Belverson Erfner. Do you know the two ways to piss someone off?"

"...What?"

The swordsman was confused by my out-of-place question.

But Amelia continued.

"The first is to stop talking in the middle of a sentence. But unfortunately, you didn't get to hear the second one. But if I had to guess..."

"...Guess?"

The swordsman, intrigued, couldn't help but ask.

And I felt the same way.

Did she know the answer?

"..."

A strange silence fell as everyone's attention focused on her, and Amelia continued.

"It's..."

"..."

"To backstab someone while you're talking to them."

Ah.

Thud.

The moment she finished speaking, I heard footsteps from behind.

I knew what it meant.

「Amelia Rainwales has cast [Self-Replication].」

The swordsman, realizing what was happening, pushed me away and turned around.

But...

「Amelia Rainwales has cast [ Asura's Fury ].」

It was too late.

Kaboom!!

Amelia's clone, appearing from behind, landed a kick on the swordsman's temple.

Thud.

The swordsman collapsed, his eyes losing focus.

"Wh, why... You, that item..."

"Yes, I've been wanting it for a long time."

Amelia approached him and stepped on his head.

"You can keep it a secret. I'll just ask your sister. She won't be able to endure interrogation."

She was a truly rational woman.

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