The Academy's Barbarian

Chapter 88: Declaration of War (5)

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Don't forget to rate and review the novel on NovelUpdatesAfter the origin of the Frost Dragon was destroyed, the wyverns that filled the sky all fell to the ground at once, as if they had suddenly lost their wings.

That's not all.

Without exception, the fallen wyverns turned to ashes and scattered.

And at this moment.

The Frost Dragon also met the same end as its subjects. Its huge body turned to ashes, and all nine of its eyes lost their light.

Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!

The sky was filled with fragments of the Frost Dragon, falling like snow. Facing the scene of the whole world being dyed gray, Ulan fell back to the ground.

"Huff puff."

A feeble breath escaped from his lungs and soon, immense pain seized his body; pain that tore through bones and flesh, ripping through every part of his body. It was a price paid for using far more power than originally given.

However, he didn't scream wildly.

Because it wasn't the first time he experienced such pain.

Ulan had already suffered the same pain in his last life. In the final battle of his life, against Largtan, the Giant King

But there was one thing; there was a difference.

I......am alive.

Back then, when the battle ended, Ulan realized he was dying. His heart had slowed, and the strength in his body had rapidly faded away.

But now, it was different.

I survived.

Although he went to the brink of death, he did not cross the threshold; a vigorously throbbing heart, clear consciousness, and the remaining strength were evidence of that.

On the other hand, the Frost Dragon, his opponent, faced a definite end. Without leaving any last words or even a will, it turned into ashes and disappeared.

I won.

The moment he was sure of victory, even in the midst of the intense pain coursing through his body, Ulan chuckled softly. It was a smile tinged with a sense of accomplishment.

Then, a familiar presence suddenly felt.

[Grrrr].

It was none other than Bai Lang.

The wolf, who had reached Ulan's nose, suddenly spat out something he was holding in his mouth.

"That's.......?"

The only trace of the Frost Dragon.

It was the shattered origin.

Even though it was cracked in half, there was still a considerable amount of mana in the origin. As soon as he realized this, Ulan understood what the white wolf's intention was.

"You want me to eat it?"

[Grrr!]

Bai Lang nodded.

It was strange. It was strange that the wolf, who was crazy about mana, would give up the dragon's origin.

Ulan smiled, "I see. I'll eat it."

The heart of a prey was the hunter's share.

Though as cold and tough as ice, it wasn't inedible. Feeling a bit hungry at the moment, Ulan chewed and swallowed the origin without hesitation.

Chomp! Crunch!

It was a meal without any shred of dignity.

Suddenly, Ulan rubbed his temple, "This is the worst ...... meal I've ever had."

Of all the things he'd eaten so far, without a doubt, it was the worst.

But taste wasn't important. What was more important was the vast amount of mana infused in the origin.

Gulp!

Having swallowed the Frost Dragon's origin, Ulan closed his eyes; it was to convert the mana that entered his body into his own.

Abyss Mana.

As the Ruler of the Abyss, the Frost Dragon possessed pure abyss mana. It struck fear and despair at the mere touch of it, which was why mages shied away from it.

Ulan, on the other hand, felt differently.

Mana is mana, all the same.

He just needed to absorb it and digest it. Fear and despair? There was no way he was going to be intimidated by mere mana after destroying the Ruler of the Abyss, so Ulan quickly assimilated the Abyss mana.

After some time had passed, after he had finished absorbing all of it, Ulan's eyes widened.

"Amazing."

Just by consuming the origin of the Frost Dragon, he had increased his number of completed spirits by two.

Before the battle began, he was merely at tier-1, but now he had reached tier-3. Possessing three complete spirits was the evidence.

Already at tier-3.

In his past life, he had chewed and consumed the hearts of over a thousand demonic beasts and kin, struggling to create three spirits only in his late thirties.

Never thought he would reach tier-3 just by eating the origin.

A Ruler is a Ruler after all.

Ulan smiled in satisfaction.

At that moment.

"Ulan!"

He saw people running toward him from a distance.

Seoric, Noah, and Dilia.

Seeing the three approaching from afar, Ulan stood up, satisfied. To inform them about the Frost Dragon's demise and to greet the trio.

* * * * *

Meanwhile, around that time

when Ulan completely destroyed the Frost Dragon's origin, causing all the wyverns that filled the sky to crash to the ground as if they had suddenly lost their wings, Noah opened her eyes wide.

"......!"

The wyverns turned to ash and crumbled.

It was a familiar sight to Noah, even if it was a bit disconcerting for Seoric, who was dealing with a wyvern.

There was only one meaning to such a form of death, as she knew of only one.

When a Ruler faces its end.

Subjects are beings that are born from the strength, life, and power of their lord.

Therefore, when a Ruler dies, all of its subjects die the same death. It was their woe and their fate.

'That, that means!'

that means the lord of the wyverns is dead.

Noah's gaze trembled intensely. She looked towards where Ulan had gone. Then, Noah's eyes grew much larger than before.

Saaah!

The ashy powder that scattered like snow.

At the same time, her mana, which had been frozen, regained its original flow. Realizing what this meant, Noah muttered in a daze.

"Did he really defeat......?"

The Ruler of the Abyss, all by himself?

Without the help of any of the warriors?

Noah felt goosebumps rise all over her body; this was too good to be true.

An absurd result.

It was a tremor of Ulan's achievement.

But the surprises weren't over yet.

You have unlocked a hidden achievement

You have unlocked a hidden achievement

A sudden message appeared before her eyes.

This was the system notification from the original story, <Arsene Continental War>, visible only to Noah.

"......?!"

Seeing this, Noah was thoroughly astonished.

It was understandable.

The last time she had encountered a system notification was about 8 years ago, shortly after entering the game.

A system notification appeared after a solid 8 years.

What was more surprising was the content.

Achievement: Dragon Slayer

Requirement: Slay the Frost Demon Dragon, Glesia.

Reward: Elixir

Noah's eyes widened again.

The Elixir, a universal potion, was undeniably the best among all consumables in the original story.

The reason was simple.

Upon consumption, any one of the user's attributes or traits could increase up to twice the maximum value, and it was permanent.

'Just.......'

It had a somewhat random nature.

The user wouldn't know which attribute or trait would increase until after drinking the Elixir. In other words, there was an element of randomness.

And one more thing.

Each attribute had a 'penalty.'

'If you're really unlucky, the penalty could also increase by two times.'

This has actually happened.

She'd seen posts where people had received elixirs at the last minute, taken them, and had their penalties doubled.

It was a double-edged sword.

Despite this, most people choose to consume the Elixir, as the potential benefits were worth the risk.

Just as she was wrapping up her thoughts, the following notification popped up.

Achievement: The One Who Defies the Abyss

Requirement: Defeat one Ruler of the Abyss before the time of destruction arrives and the Gates of the Abyss open.

Reward: Trial of the Eighth Warrior

'An incredibly challenging condition.'

Beyond challenging, it was outright impossible.

It was nearly impossible to encounter a Ruler of the Abyss before the Gates of the Abyss opened, let alone defeat it one step ahead?

It was a condition that was impossible to achieve even if one went beyond stagnant water and rotten water.

(T/L: Stagnant and Rotten water basically means veteran players who have spent years playing the same game, sometimes even a decade or so.)

Noah had a look of disbelief on her face; but the reward was as good as it could be, as absurd as the requirement was. The fact that her complexion hardened is proof.

'......Trial of the Eighth Warrior.

In the original <Arsene Continental War>, the warriors were fixed at seven, respectively, as a swordsman, a witch, a berserker, a sniper, a paladin, a saint, and a bard.

Occasionally, due to critical points of death, the number of warriors could decrease to six or five, or even fewer, but it never exceeded seven.

But now, a new warrior was added? It had never happened in the original story.

But it's not bad.

On the contrary, it was good.

If the number of warriors increased to eight, it meant that the progress would be easier.

'Maybe even I...'

Maybe even I could become a warrior. Noah Darshen was a named character, after all.

Just as expectations soared, her eyes widened.

She saw Ulan, who had defeated the Frost Dragon, staggered and collapsed to the ground.

"U-Ulan?!"

After seeing this scene, Noah, Dilia, and Seoric all rushed towards Ulan without a word.

After a while, as they reached the battlefield after the battle had ended, the faces of Noah and Dlia turned pale simultaneously; Ulan's body was covered in blood, truly resembling a battered warrior. However, upon seeing their expressions, Ulan spoke as if it were inconsequential.

"I'm fine."

"Fine? What do you mean, fine!"

Despite being severely injured, it was difficult to find an uninjured spot.

Dilia looked like she was about to burst into tears, and Ulan smiled at her, "At least I didn't die this time."

A sincere and honest answer; his claim of being fine was indeed true.

Although his body was battered, his mind was remarkably clear and sharp. Thanks to absorbing the Frost Dragon's origin, he was overflowing with strength.

Meanwhile, transparent dew dripped from Dilia's eyes. Worry for Ulan and relief that he was okay flowed down in the form of tears.

A moment later, Dilia, with her face buried in Ulan's chest, spoke as if sobbing, "......Never again, don't."

During the moment when he charged alone, Dilia's heart sank.

It was understandable. At that time, Ulan's actions seemed as if he regarded himself as bait to buy time for others to escape.

"If Ulan isn't here, I..."

She couldn't finish the sentence; her voice was muffled by tears, and she couldn't get it out anymore. But then, Ulan's large hand patted her head gently, "I understand. I'll remember."

A voice as firm as a rock.

Hearing his usual tone of voice, a sense of relief washed over her, and she nodded wordlessly.

Around that time, she suddenly heard a bizarre sound.

"The abyssal rift......!"

The gaping rift slowly began to close.

This was a phenomenon caused by the depletion of the mana that was maintaining the rift. Now that the battle was over, Noah breathed a wordless sigh of relief.

However, at that moment

Seoric, who was gazing at the rift in the abyss, suddenly opened his eyes wide. Not only that, but his hand, which was gripping his sword, began to tremble; as if he had seen something terrifying.

Noah asked with a puzzled expression, "Lord Seoric, what's wrong?"

"Don't ...... look."

"What? What do you mean.......?"

"You must never look in there!" He shouted as if squeezing out the words.

Despite his strong warning, Noah peered into the gap of the abyss. It would be more accurate to say that she had already turned her gaze before his warning rang out.

However, there was nothing particular to see; there was nothing but pitch-black darkness on the other side of the abyss.

What could he see? Noah wondered.

And then, at that moment, the reason why Seoric warned her not to look into the abyss became clear.

Noah Darshen.

A voice echoed from beyond the rift in the abyss; it was a dark, heavy, and ominous voice. The shivers that ran through her entire body were more intense than when she saw the pure abyss mana.

Stranger, Yoo Min-ah

The second message resonated.

Noah's eyes widened.

Since entering the game, her real name, which she hadn't shared with anyone, was mentioned.

One who lives on the boundaries of two worlds.

Blessed by Mana.

I remember your existence.

The voices of the abyss continued and soon, a horrifying warning reached her.

The day the door opens,

I will come to find you.

A pallor spread across Noah's face. It was more frightening than any warning she had heard before.

The abyss spoke again.

No matter where you run, where you hide,

Even if you escape to another world,

You will never

Escape from the Abyss.

And at that moment, countless pupils gleamed; the bottom of the profound darkness, where the five Rulers and their subjects resided in the Abyss.

The moment their eyes met.

"...........!"

She felt a sensation as if her heart stopped, making it hard to breathe; like a tiny ant facing a colossal beast.

She wanted to avert her gaze, but she couldn't.

She was overwhelmed by the abyss and her body was immobilized; a pressure that suppressed her very existence, just before she lost consciousness.

"Noah?"

Ulan's voice reached her.

He stood up and walked over to Noah, who was still frozen in place.

"What are you doing standing still?"

Footsteps that grew closer.

Noah wanted to shout for him not to come any closer.

That he should never look into the abyss.

But.......

No words came out.

Meanwhile, Ulan had already arrived by her side.

Just as Noah did before, he turned his gaze toward the rift of the abyss.

And in that moment.

Ulan Bator

The Abyss spoke again; a voice even far more ominous and chilling than the one she heard first. It reached Noah with the same clarity, as if standing next to Ulan.

The One who has surpassed the Trial

The Heir to Kazan Ludric

The Slayer of Glesia

Merely meeting their gaze, the abyss delved into Ulan's essence.

The day the gates open,

When two worlds merge into one,

I will be the first to come find you.

It followed with an eerie warning; just as it had done with Noah.

Facing the abyss, Ulan just stood there, gazing at it.

Even if it's Ulan...

In front of the essence of the abyss and the gaze of the five Rulers, there was nothing he could do. Noah thought so.

But it didn't take long for her to realize that it was a misconception.

"The sea I yearned for!"

A resounding declaration echoed across the battlefield.

Noah and Seoric's bodies flinched.

Thanks to the loud voice, they finally escaped the overwhelming pressure brought by the abyss.

At the same time, Noah turned her head.

She was afraid to make eye contact with the Abyss again. Seoric had a similar reaction.

Ulan, on the other hand, was different.

"I'm here!"

Pounding his chest with a fist, he continued to stare at the abyss.

"I'm not going to run! I'm not going to hide!"

A gaze that was terrifying to meet.

Despite the overwhelming presence of the Rulers of the Abyss and the myriad malice they exuded, Ulan was not the least bit intimidated.

"Come, then"

Instead, he stepped forward.

Grasping the shrinking rift with both hands, he pressed his face to the edge of the abyss.

"One day, when the gates open, I will split your heads off before anyone else!"

He glared into countless pairs of eyes and roared with murderous intent.

"Every last one of you!"

The powerful voice shook the abyss.

It was a cry of proof, a roar of warning from one who had already slain a Ruler.

And in the distant future.

To a hell that would color the world

It was a barbarian's declaration of war.

End of Chapter. . . . . . . .Thanks for Reading. . . . . . . . .

Translator's Notes:-

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