Barbarian in a Failed Game

010. Dark Mages (4)

*Splosh* *Splosh*

The once well-kept path is defiled with filth. Blood of a dark crimson hue and the flesh of rotting corpses blanket it like a carpet, and the army of the dead starts its march.

“That should be enough.”

A number, difficult to comprehend with the naked eye, denotes violence. At its center, the number of dark mages stood at six.

“Ericson. That idiot finally kicked the bucket here. Always knew… he never had a clue.”

“Still, being dumb made him useful, didn’t it? Like in this case.”

“Hmph. I never liked the fact that he was considered a peer among us to begin with.”

The other dark mages let out small chuckles, seemingly in agreement with the imposing man’s words.

“That’s true. The fool could barely handle necromantic spells.”

“In that regard, Eliya did have some decent talent, aside from her unbearable pretense of aloofness.”

“Hmm. Speaking of which, I never heard who her target was. Any of you know?”

Silence.

It meant that none knew.

The man, carrying himself with authority, nodded as if he had expected as much.

Eliya never mingled with the other disciples, immersing herself only in the spells handed down by their master.

“It’s a pity. We should have placed a tracking spell on her like Ericson. It would have been a good opportunity to dispose of her.”

“Heh. Spending your days with corpses, have you developed a taste for it?”

“Fools! You all knew the master had a soft spot for her, whether openly or not.”

“Enough.”

The escalating voices suddenly muted.

The one at the forefront, a middle-aged man dressed in a black robe adorned with gold trim, spoke with a face void of any emotion.

“We’re approaching where the tracking spell went dead. Use any available tracking magic to search for beastly traces.”

As if the middle-aged man’s words were an absolute command, the arrogant dark mages began casting their spells.

“There are no traces of magic other than dark magic.”

“Life signatures are faint. It seems whoever was here has left some time ago.”

“…There are strong traces left by a warrior. It doesn’t seem like the party Ericson was targeting, more like a third party intervened.”

“Hmm.”

Even as he processed the influx of information, the middle-aged man didn’t stop moving. The trail left by his own tracking spell was exceedingly faint.

‘The spell dissipated too quickly. A third party’s interference during the conflict, maybe. A significant force, then. In that case…’

“First target is caught in the net. Looks like Ericson managed to hook a big fish at the end.”

“Is that true? Then, in the end, he served his purpose.”

The authoritative man cautiously shared his opinion in front of the middle-aged man, adopting a subservient demeanor.

And it made sense.

The middle-aged man, appearing no more than an ordinary scholar, was not only the longest-serving disciple under Darkin. His own achievements were also among the most notable in their ranks.

“What lies in the direction left by the life signature?”

“A small estate. A monastery where an old priest acts as a steward, a place where travelers frequently spend the night, from what I recall.”

Monastery, priest.

The dark mages’ shoulders weighed heavy at these words.

For dark mages, the church was a formidable adversary.

However, it was not the case for the middle-aged man.

“From the moment we targeted the church’s lackeys, it was expected. Besides, it’s not particularly surprising. Wherever people reside, worshippers of false gods are bound to mix in.”

Since becoming a disciple of Darkin Perayas.

No, even before his activities as a dark mage, the middle-aged man knew.

While the church’s power was indeed formidable, it was not absolute.

Especially with the master’s secret of ‘body snatching’, there was no concern of ever being caught by them.

“It’s merely the task of capturing the lackeys of false gods. With our current force, failure would be harder. So, don’t worry too much.”

Encouraged by his words, the dark mages raised their voices in agreement.

Using a spell to track life, they pursued the human presence that had just left this place, and confirmed that the trail ends inside the estate.

*Groooarrr*…

*Whoooo*…

The dark-mage-resurrected dead let out cries. Their screams of delight at the thought of consuming the many life forces emanating from the estate.

With corpses in human form and all manner of monstrous creatures exuding dark magic and advancing, the sight was truly overwhelming.

Anyone not accustomed to battle would faint on the spot.

“Undead! The filthy minions of demons have appeared!”

“Light the torches! Let us illuminate the flame so the gods of the pantheon may look down upon us!”

“Bring all the branches blessed by Priest Bethel! Intercept them from afar!”

However, the reaction inside the manor far exceeded the dark mages’ expectations.

Far from panicking, they moved in an orderly and well-prepared manner for battle, as if they had expected this. Their demeanor was like that of seasoned holy warriors.

“Tsk… This is not just some monastery. It’s filled to the brim with zealots.”

The middle-aged man clicked his tongue.

The manor’s combat power was clearly not remarkable. At the end of the day, they were mere townsman. They could not compare to warriors who honed their bodies with mana, or to mages who handled spells.

However, their mindset was different.

Even seasoned mercenaries would first think of running away in such a situation, but the stance of these zealots, who did not cower in fear or run away, was in itself an excellent weapon.

“Huh, is this what they call faith?”

The middle-aged man scoffed at the foolish zealots.

“Enhance the undead with dark magic in advance. It seems a priest capable of blessing is with them.”

At his command, the dark mages raised their dark magic.

The dark magic was so dense that Aries would have had to hold her nose if she were nearby.

The middle-aged man who issued the command did not stand idly by either. His single servant, a vassal, answered his master’s call.

“Ah… this is indeed it!”

“A dark knight created by corrupting a paladin. Indeed, it’s on a different level from ordinary dark knights!”

The middle-aged man’s shadow swirled like a mirage, soon taking form.

A colossal figure far surpassing the stature of an ordinary human. It was clad in dark armor, wielding a greatsword ablaze with flames of dark magic, and a cloak formed from shadows.

Among the minions a necromancer of his level could summon, this dark knight was considered one of the most formidable monsters.

“Ravage the enemy.”

The corner of the middle-aged man’s mouth lifted into a confident smile as he gave his order.

It was thanks to this dark knight’s presence that they could venture on the hunt despite knowing that the paladins were in pursuit.

“Begin as well.”

“Yes.”

The advance of the undead, resurrected with dark magic, was eerily quiet. Yet, their hollow eye sockets blazed with hatred for the living.

As the undead’s unceasing forces surrounded the manor.

“Fire the arrows──!”

Arrows imbued with the priest’s blessing drew arcs through the air towards the undead forces.

Though the undead, being merely reanimated corpses, should feel no pain, they began to scream wildly as the arrows struck them.

“There seem to be more of them than expected. Perhaps the monastery’s priest had a lot of time on his hands.”

“It’s but a hastily made thing anyway!”

At that moment, a man with an authoritative manner stepped forward confidently.

“Unless it’s an artifact blessed over a long time, it’s possible to inflict damage, but impossible to completely neutralize─!”

Centered around the man, dark magic spread like a wildfire.

The screams of the corpses at the forefront of the undead army abruptly stopped, and their bodies swelled even more than before.

“Hmm. Not bad at all.”

The middle-aged man leading the dark mages internally praised.

Although his conduct might be somewhat frivolous and arrogant, his skill in handling a multitude of undead at once was worthy of that arrogance.

“Hahaha! Wipe them out!”

With the arrogant man’s intervention, the rain of blessed arrows lost its stopping power almost instantly.

Thus, the defensive line began to collapse. The zealots’ spears and swords, though filled with determination, were no more powerful than those of ordinary townsman.

“It’s only a matter of time now.”

The zealots, shouting their holy wars, recklessly threw their lives into the clutches of the dead.

But their deaths were meaningless.

No matter how much they thrust their spears or swung their clubs, unless they killed the dark mages at the rear, the undead army, already dead once, would not fall.

“They’re… coming back to life…!”

From that point, emotions other than madness began to show in a few zealots’ eyes.

Fear. The authoritative man laughed maniacally, pulling more dark magic towards him like a conductor leading an orchestra.

Then, it happened.

Shoooooo──────!

A pure white radiance cut across the battlefield, mowing down the undead that were pushing forward against the church’s believers.

The wave of corpses was instantly swept away, vanishing. The dark mages froze, trembling at the overwhelmingly brilliant scene. They couldn’t not know what that light was.

“In your sword, a radiant light.”

A clear voice pierced everyone’s ears.

A delicate figure, clad in holy armor, wielding a sword emitting a brilliance so pure it was worthy of being called a holy sword.

“To burn the unholy with sacred flames.”

Beneath the darkness, the platinum blonde hair that never lost its luster danced to the steps of the paladin, Aries. The devotees worshiping at the temple trembled with joy, while the dark mages gradually retreated.

“Not just an ordinary hound, huh…”

Only the middle-aged man, who had prior experience hunting paladins, managed to keep his composure.

‘If I could corrupt a body imbued with such a powerful blessing…’

“Adam. Spread the front line wide. We’re only up against one, at most accompanied by a single priest. They won’t be able to handle all of us.”

“Yes, yes!”

And with that, he calmly probed for the opponent’s weakness.

“To turn the tide of battle, that paladin will aim for a direct breakthrough. While my dark knight holds the paladin’s feet, you focus on killing as many as you can. Make sure she can’t focus solely on the fight.”

The paladin was undeniably strong. However, she also had a very clear weakness.

Could this noble being truly ignore the sight of numerous believers dying before her eyes?

No, absolutely not.

It was impossible for a paladin, traveling the border kingdoms for mere vengeance, to make such a cold judgment.

As the paladin, clad in divine light like armor, clashed with the dark knight created by dark magic,

Boom─! Crash!

True to being the natural enemy of dark magic, the paladin seemed to put the dark knight in danger from the start. But the middle-aged man smiled as if it were nothing.

‘Impressive indeed. But…’

His dark knight, receiving a supply of dark magic from its master, did not fall easily. At times, it even managed to push Aries back through counterattacks.

“Ah! Save me!”

“You’re not dying! How do you expect us to fight this?”

Faith is farther than the blade before one’s eyes. As the paladin got entangled with the dark knight, the hidden fear within the zealots’ facade rapidly spread.

The young paladin’s sword gradually began losing its inherent sharpness.

The screams from behind her made the end of her sword heavy.

“What a delightful sight…”

The middle-aged man’s voice trembled with pleasure.

The priest who should be in the monastery was nowhere to be seen, and the paladin was dulled by concern for the rear.

‘There are no more variables.’

The moment he was certain of it.

Boom─.

‘What’s that…?’

An unknown, heavy vibration shook the ground, its epicenter within the flaming estate, causing the middle-aged man to furrow his brow.

And then.

Something pierced through the battlefield’s sky.

Passing over the clash between the undead ravaging living beings, the paladin, the dark knight, and reaching all the way to the rear where the dark mages were,

“It’s a catapult!”

Someone who noticed the large gray mass exclaimed.

However, there was no time for defense.

The object, flying at high speed, plummeted right into the midst of the dark mages.

Boom─!

Blood splattered.

Some desperately rolled away, while others quickly cast protective spells.

Yet, still, two dark mages lost their lives.

Amidst the chaos, the middle-aged man who had perfectly shielded himself realized that what hit them was not a rock but a person.

As if he had just stepped out of a bathhouse, a giant with ash-colored skin, barely clothed in undergarments, growled with a twisted face like a sinister assassin.

“Mo, monster…!”

Someone murmured in terror, but it didn’t sound like nonsense.

The gigantic body, hard to believe as human, rather reminiscent of a creature created by a dark mage’s physical alteration, breathes hotly, spreading warmth in all directions.

Despite the distance, the dark mages struggled to open their eyes due to the heat.

Yet, they couldn’t take their eyes off the suddenly appeared giant.

Gulp… Someone nervously swallowed their saliva, the sound unusually loud, making them hastily cover their mouth.

“Just when I thought I had a proper wash. These damned creatures—”

The voice, clearly emanating killing intent, made everyone dizzy as though a giant wolf howled up close.

Before him, the dark mages, without exceptions, pondered the same question.

‘Who is this monster, exuding such killing intent toward us?’

The reason was quite simple.

Not in a game, but in reality, the barbarian warrior’s eyes twisted in rage, dressed in a look that promised nothing but the experienced hunt.