Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Chapter 209 Leader (2)

Leader (2)

Leader (2)

It’s a coincidence.

His laughter just sounds similar.

The world is vast, there’s no way there isn’t anyone else with similar habits, right?

I didn’t even consider that thought.

I accepted reality the moment I felt the sense of déjà vu.

‘Clown.’

One of the members of Watchers of the Round Table, and the one who seemed to know the most and be the most skilled.

‘I suspected he was from Noark, but I didn’t expect to meet him like this…’

The encounter with Clown, whom I’ve been curious about.

But I don’t feel any sense of welcome.

No, actually…

‘I’m screwed.’

What should I do?

He looks strong.

Would he let us go if I reveal that I’m Lion?

‘No way.’

I dismissed the weak thought that briefly crossed my mind.

It would be the same as coming out as an evil spirit…

And Clown respects Lion.

Not a weak barbarian like me.

The moment my identity is revealed, he’ll lose interest and be enraged.

Therefore, I shouted,

“Battle stations!”

Head-on confrontation.

It could be the best solution if I can just overcome my fear.

“Now you’re finally acting like a barbarian!”

He looks at me with an amused expression.

But did that make her snap out of it?

Raven immediately starts chanting.

“Derba Timunes.”

It’s the team voice spell.

It seems like she thought of activating this as soon as she heard the battle cry since our opponent is a human, not a monster.

“Tsk, how boring.”

Clown seemed displeased, as if he had lost something to enjoy.

It’s not something I should be concerned about.

“Everyone, get behind me!”

I quickly give the order and activate [Gigantification], blocking the passage.

It’s the advantage of the 1st-floor Crystal Cave.

Although the passages vary in size…

Clank.

…most of them are narrow.

Narrow enough for a giant barbarian to block.

“Behel—laaaaaaaaaa!!”

I shout the ancestor god’s name to shake off my fear.

And I raise my shield just enough so that it doesn’t block my vision, and focus all my senses on his movements.

Thump!

My warrior’s heart starts beating at just the right speed.

Warm blood circulates rapidly, energizing my body.

It feels like I won’t die easily.

“Mr. Yandel, we can’t attack like this!”

I firmly dismiss the mage’s concern.

“Don’t.”

“Yes?”

“We don’t know his identity. We need to figure out what abilities he has first. Don’t attack until then.”

Information is the most important thing in PvP.

What kind of character build he has, how he combined his five essences and items to create his class concept.

It’s difficult to respond properly without knowing that.

“But… he’s the monster who killed the knight. You’re saying you’ll figure it out alone?”

Then what am I supposed to do?

“This is the most efficient method.”

I’m a tank.

So I can endure even if I get hit by an unknown attack.

But they can’t.

There’s a much higher chance of them getting a game over if they’re hit by an unexpected attack.

“This is no fun since I don’t know what you’re saying.”

Clown speaks in a cold voice and extends his hand to the side before we can even discuss our strategy further.

A weapon is in his hand.

‘Mithril.’

A stiletto emitting a bluish light.

“Just die.”

His figure disappears before my eyes as soon as his low voice rings out.

The time I miss him is short.

After all, it’s just a straight passage.

‘Trying to play with my vision…’

I slightly lower my shield, and I see Clown moving in my blind spot. I quickly identify his attack point, honed by countless battles.

‘The thigh…’

Everything in battle becomes information.

We’re long past the level where we just swing our weapons mindlessly, and every movement has a reason and intention behind it.

Then why did he aim for the thigh?

‘As expected, is he an assassin type?’

He probably judged that it would be difficult to pierce my shield. After all, the first thing I upgraded with the money I earned after paying off my debt six months ago was my shield.

‘He would have known if he had a brain.’

A large shield made of 4th-tier Moonstone.

It’s durable enough to withstand even an Akro sword a few times.

In other words…

Clang!

…it’s impossible to pierce with a 5th-tier mithril weapon.

Clang!

I don’t just block it with my shield, I put strength into my arm.

“…!”

His body is pushed back without much resistance.

I add another piece of information to my mind.

Well, it’s obvious, but…

‘His Strength is lower than mine.’

I’m starting to think that this might be manageable.

It would have been different six months ago.

I’ve grown in many aspects, starting with my equipment.

It seems like he’s not at the Dragonslayer’s level.

‘Well, he probably hasn’t shown us everything yet.’

I don’t let my guard down and stare at Clown, who has retreated.

Although I blocked his first attack, it would be dangerous if I let him hit me even once.

After all, he confidently said, ‘Just die’.

That’s not something you say while aiming for the thigh.

‘Then is it poison?’

There’s a high chance that his weapon is poisoned.

Or his ability might be poison-related.

However, I keep all possibilities open since nothing has been confirmed yet.

‘It’s about time.’

We’ve only exchanged a few blows.

And since this has been blocked, it’s time to use skills.

“Ah, seriously! I wanted to conserve MP…”

I can’t help but chuckle.

Regardless of his exaggerated tone…

“…Mr. Yandel! He’s an evil spirit!”

…MP?

This crazy bastard isn’t even trying to hide the fact that he’s a player.

‘Are they all like this in Noark?’

Well, there’s no reason for him to hide it since he’s already made an enemy of the royal family…

“Wait, if he’s an evil spirit, don’t tell me…”

My body involuntarily flinches at her words.

Because I know what Raven is thinking.

From Noark.

Strong enough to kill a knight alone.

And the most infamous player in this city.

“The Corpse Collector…?”

That’s when, as Raven mutters the name blankly…

“Kyaak!”

…I quickly turn my head and check behind me.

「Abet Nekrapetto has cast [Puppet].」

The corpses of the knight and soldiers, which were lying on the ground, are getting up and attacking Raven.

‘Damn it, it’s really him.’

There’s no point in denying it anymore.

The Corpse Collector’s character concept is famous.

It’s a good class that I’ve also played a few times.

Specialized in curses and summons, and with a high Agility stat to compensate for his weak close combat…

‘Agility Poison Necromancer.’

That’s the class of the enemy I have to fight now.

___________________

I thought he was an assassin because he was aiming for vital points with a stiletto-like weapon…

‘A Necromancer…’

…but I was clearly mistaken.

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, my surroundings start to look different.

He probably intentionally left the corpses behind.

The reason is simple.

He can use them like CCTV.

Well, it doesn’t really matter now.

‘There’s no need for reconnaissance.’

I decide to focus on the positive aspects.

I gathered information about Orculus after the battle with the Dragonslayer, so I know quite a bit about the ‘Corpse Collector’.

‘There are 6 known essences.’

Of course, there would be at least 3 unknown essences, and considering his notoriety, they would be a disaster for us.

But at least his class has been confirmed.

“Everyone, don’t fight and just retreat!”

I quickly give the order.

In a battle against an ordinary summoner, the standard strategy is to defeat the summons first…

“Don’t fight?”

“We need to create distance first!”

…but Poison Necromancers are different. Each of their summons is practically a suicide bomber.

In other words, creating distance is the foundation of the strategy.

“Aruru, come here!”

“Okay!”

That’s when, as Ainar takes Raven and prepares to retreat…

Flash!

…a gray light erupts from the slits of his mask.

「Abet Nekrapetto has cast [Stone Curse].」

My senses start to go numb from my feet.

I know what skill it is as soon as I’m hit.

The 4th-grade monster, Medusa’s essence.

Tadat.

He charges towards me with his stiletto, as if he’s going to kill me first.

It’s definitely an OP skill.

‘The reason why there were no signs of battle around the corpses must be because of this skill.’

Even knights would have a hard time enduring a 4th-grade essence.

The average level of an ordinary knight is 5.

It’s only natural that it’s difficult for them to invest in Magic Resistance.

‘Well, not me.’

The Manticore’s passive skill, [Inheritance].

I filled all 200 stat points of this passive with Magic Resistance. Normally, other stats also increase, but there’s a loophole for Magic Resistance.

Anyway, as a result…

“Behel—laaaaaaaaaa!!”

…my battle cry has evolved to the point where it can replace the ‘Indomitable’ skill.

「Character’s Magic Resistance is over 400.」

+20 from the 2nd stage of the Undying Engraving.

+80 from the Ogre essence.

+200 from the Manticore’s passive skill [Inheritance].

And about 40 from the Magic Resistance increase from [Gigantification] and [Wild Release]. Add the 20% increase from the Earth Dragon’s Blessing…

「Character is granted Suppression Immunity.」

…and my Magic Resistance temporarily exceeds 400, granting me immunity to suppression-type skills!

「Status effect [Stone Curse] has been removed.」

I charge forward with my shield as soon as the numbness in my feet disappears.

He also seems flustered.

Well, to be precise, he’s dumbfounded.

“Ha! Suppression Immunity? Just how much did you invest in Magic Resistance?!”

Geez, he’s praising me.

In the first place, the reason I absorbed the expensive Manticore essence was all for Magic Resistance.

Leaving aside the stat bonus after removing it…

…Magic Resistance +200 alone is enough to be worth it until the later stages of the game.

‘But he’s really fast.’

Although I pushed forward like a tank, he easily created distance, as expected of an Agility Poison Necromancer.

That’s what makes these guys tricky.

Summoners are usually weak in close combat, but it’s really hard to catch these guys.

Well, it’s a good thing he’s not an assassin.

“Raven!! Freeze the corpses!”

“Yes? Yes!!”

“And Avman, shoot something big when I give you the signal! To create an opening for us to escape!”

“…Escape? Do you think that’s possible?”

Well, it’s 50/50.

But we have to try.

It’s a much higher chance of success than fighting him.

“I have to put everything into one shot. Okay!”

Fortunately, the bear-like man follows my order.

He must have sensed it as soon as he heard the name ‘Corpse Collector’.

That the probability of winning in a fight is slim, and that even if we do win, there will be casualties.

‘Of all people, the Corpse Collector.’

He’s one of the top members of Orculus.

He’s definitely stronger than the Dragonslayer.

But…

‘There’s a chance now.’

Necromancers, due to their class characteristics, aren’t very good at chasing. And he’s also trying to conserve his resources.

‘He wants to minimize any waste since he’ll have to fight until the labyrinth closes.’

That’s when, as I’m quickly backpedaling with that thought…

Swaaa!

…I feel a chill from behind.

It seems like she used an ice spell to freeze the corpses.

“They’re frozen!”

Okay, confirmed.

“Avman!”

“Ah, just say the word!”

It seems like the bear-like man is ready.

I give him a brief signal and then ask Raven for one thing.

“Raven, deactivate the Voice Control spell.”

“Yes?”

“Quickly.”

“It’s off.”

As soon as the team voice magic is deactivated, I look at him and say,

“Hey.”

“Hoo?”

He looks at me with a questioning gaze.

This is why foreigners are…

As expected, he doesn’t know.

“Do you know the two ways to piss someone off?”

“Well? I’ve never heard of it.”

This is why foreigners are…

I knew he wouldn’t know.

“The first is to stop talking in the middle of a sentence.”

“I see. What’s the other one?”

Clown nods in understanding.

“That is…”

I trail off and deactivate [Gigantification].

And at that moment…

「Avman Urikfrit has cast [Enhancement].」

「Avman Urikfrit has cast [Dangerous Substance]….」

…an arrow imbued with all the bear-like man’s skills is shot, piercing through the widened passage.

Kwaaang!

The cave shakes as if there’s an earthquake.

Whoosh!

I shout with more enthusiasm than ever, looking at the other side of the passage, which is blocked by flames,

“What are you doing! Run!”