Barbarian in a Failed Game

020: The Fallen One(3)

“This must be the pit of Aecharis.”

Aecharis was a demon with a physique similar to a goblin’s, dozens of small eyes, and a gaping maw taking up half of its face.

To be precise, it would be more accurate to describe Aecharis as a demon born from the fragments of an Arch Demon.

In any case, ‘The Pit of Aecharis’ was an advanced dark magic spell that partially replicated the lesser demon fragments’ powers.

It twisted Aecharis’s stomach, which devoured anything and stored its prey in a separate dimension endlessly, to produce an effect akin to spatial teleportation.

“To engrave high-level dark magic… Darkin’s capabilities are far beyond what I had anticipated… Surely he hasn’t made a contract with Aecharis.”

If his realm far exceeded what Khan had imagined… this place could very well be his grave.

It didn’t matter to him, though. Khan shrugged off unnecessary thoughts and, with a few kicks, woke Ron who had fainted from the aftermath of the spatial movement.

“Oh, my goodness! This is Necar Mountain!

In the meantime, ron, who had drooled in his unconscious state, woke up with a start, exclaiming his first words to which Khan grimaced.

‘I thought the scenery felt familiar. I must have seen it on the monitor.’

It was the location where Darkin made his last stand and where the climax of the fifth act’s last quest unfolds, after being defeated at the end of the war with the empire.

It wasn’t surprising that it felt familiar.

“Uh, ahem …!”

“Ah. Right, I forgot about this fellow.”

“Huh? Isn’t that the unlucky priest from the monastery? Why is he like this?”

“He’s also an underling of the dark mage.”

No matter the bizarre screams Ron let out, having heard nothing and being dragged here by Khan.

Khan picked up Deputy Abbot Norman with one hand from the ground beneath his feet.

It was certainly curious that an aged priest, who was not a paladin whose body transcended humanity, was still alive even now.

Especially since Khan had landed on Norman, using him as a cushion to break his fall after breaking through the ceiling.

What could it mean that he was still alive and breathing?

‘For a religious fanatic, he was too devout. He must indeed be a fallen one.’

Khan glared at Norman with eyes full of conviction.

It was needless to look any further. This man, like Nero, must have accepted Darkin’s physical modification.

Considering the situation before breaking the ceiling, it was clear he had engaged in a brawl with Aries, and still looking unscathed suggests he received even better treatment than Nero.

“Hey. Get up.”

“Guhhh!”

Khan roughly woke the comfortably unconscious Norman and immediately started an interrogation.

“You, barbaric savage…!”

“That warrants a beating.”

Norman’s audacious attitude, raising his eyes so brazenly after deceitfully using the innocent savage, made Khan clinch his fist.

It seemed they needed a truthful moment of persuasion before having a regular conversation.

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“Screaming!”

Indeed, the truth has a way of reaching out.

Seeing Norman’s much more docile demeanor brought a satisfied smile to Khan’s face.

“*Gagging*. Are you sure he’s still alive?”

“What are you saying? He’s clearly breathing.”

“That’s just it, he’s only breathing.”

What would a primitive fantasy native know? Khan dismissed Ron’s nonsense with a snort.

“Alright. deputy priest Norman. Exactly where are we?”

“This is the boundary of the inner region of Necar Mountain…”

“Gosh. The inner region?! The distance from the monastery here, even with powerful magic, would be…”

Despite his skeptical tone, ron sighed as if the answer was what he expected. He must have guessed based on the surrounding scenery.

However, the ‘spatial teleportation,’ a feat difficult to achieve even with high-ranking magic, noticeably surprised him.

“It’s more of a cheat using demonic power than magic. No need to be so shocked. After all, the idea of moving dead bodies around is absurd in the first place.”

“Uh, now that you mention it, that’s true.”

Ron didn’t fully understand but seemed to accept it as some necromancy that was possible through dark magic.

“So, you activated the spell, and what was your plan after that?”

“…”

“Choosing to remain silent, huh? Seems our persuasion wasn’t thorough enough.”

Seems more talking was needed. With Norman sealing his lips, Khan proceeded with yet another heartfelt session of persuasion.

Thud- Thud- Thud-

Amidst the descending darkness in the forest, a monotonous sound of impacts resonated throughout.”

Your arrogance ends here! You’ll both die by His hand, you uncivilized brute and insolent mercenary…!”

“You haven’t been hit enough.”

Or maybe too much. As the nearly dead man began to stir, Khan’s lips twisted in irritation.

Considering that monsters could be attracted by the scent of blood, and not wanting to take that risk, Khan’s fist hesitated just as he was about to seriously beat the man down.

“Did someone come to meet us?”

“Hehehe. Too late, barbarian!”

The indications on his search skill were increasing. Though not particularly fast, the direct approach was ominously clear.

‘A dark mage?’

Khan, with his foot still pressed against the laughing Norman’s neck, fell into thought.

‘Everything started to move rapidly after Norman returned to the city.’

The first to act was Nero.

He deceived mercenaries who hadn’t heard of Khan, ambushed them, and then appeared claiming Khan had attacked the city’s mercenaries, using it as a pretext to attack Khan.

However, the fight was interrupted by the sudden arrival of Aries, and Nero retreated when Norman, infuriated, gave the order.

At this stage, one could think Nero and Norman were at odds.

‘But it turns out, both had received Darkin’s treatment?’

Competing for achievements despite being on the same side? Or was it a dispute between those genuinely following Darkin and those who followed due to circumstances?

‘I’m not sure.’

What was clear, however, was that from the start, he planned to kidnap Khan and his party, considering their possible arrival in Nordic. Otherwise, the timely provision of equipment engraved with high-level dark magic would make no sense.

‘No different from the game. It demands caution.’

And meticulous.

Instead of hiding from the pursuers, he planned to capture them, enhancing his own forces.

In a way, that was a masterstroke of necromancy.

But if Aries went missing in Nordic, the possibility of the Temple of All Gods deploying their full might there couldn’t be dismissed…

‘Does he believe he can manage the aftermath if the church storms in?’

How he planned to manage, Khan couldn’t easily envision. Whatever the case… escaping seemed the best option.

“You’re of no use anymore.”

“Wait…!”

Pressing down harder with his foot on Norman’s neck, a chilling crack sounded, accompanied by an increase in experience points.

Perhaps due to the combination of Darkin’s body modification and the sacred power, the experience points gained felt significantly higher than the actual combat power could justify.

‘With this guy, I finally hit 70%.’

The joy was short-lived.

“Hey, guide. Lead the way out of here. Unless you want to be surrounded by dark mages, we best hurry.”

“I’m not a guide, but Ron Ironhammer! This way!”

Sensing the presence of enemies due to Khan’s actions, ron took off without looking back.

Yet, the direction he chose was unexpected.

Instead of running away from the enemy, he began moving along the deep forest’s boundary.

“If you head down blindly, you’ll be surrounded by beasts! The broken branches around here indicate that rat-skulls are nearby!”

A typical barbarian would have required a lengthy explanation to understand, but not Khan. His vast knowledge of monsters, accumulated over numerous game plays, surpassed that of many veteran mercenaries.

‘Rat-skulls.’

“Eek!”

Ron, running with sweat on his brows, suddenly felt weightless. A familiar situation and sensation. This was unmistakably…!

“Be careful not to bite your tongue.”

“Lord…!”

No argument was heard. Khan, carrying Ron on his shoulders like luggage, powerfully stomped the ground.

Boom!

The heavy thud was enough to awaken animals from deep sleep, spreading far and wide, and Ron’s face went pale, realizing Khan’s intention.

Rat-skulls, unusually intelligent for monsters, lived in packs and could kill even veterans if underestimated.

Typically, they slept underground, and when hunting, they seamlessly traversed tree branches, making their territory a no-go zone for other monsters.

And now. Khan’s action was simple. He woke up all the rat-skulls sleeping underground.

To make matters worse.

“Capture them!”

“Over there! The one with ash-gray skin, looks like an orc! The barbarian rumored to travel with a paladin!”

As the pursuers, likely boosted by dark magic, closed in enough to be seen, the enraged rat-skulls’ burrowing noise sent Ron into a panic, pounding on Khan’s back.

“Let’s go, hurry!”

“Jumping. Hold on tight.”

“Oh, ahh! Waaah!”[Leap (C) – 98.1%]

─C Grade Effect, charging Leap :: Leaps forward with great vigour. Effectiveness increases with strength.

─D Grade Effect, safe Landing :: Greatly reduces fall damage.

Crash───!!

A leap enhanced by an impressive 59 points of strength propels Khan far from the ground. In some ways, it was less of a leap and more akin to takeoff.

Amidst nearing B grade in skill proficiency and overwhelming muscular strength, an extraordinary feat was born.

“Woaaaah!”

“I, I’m flying!”

“Did he use an artifact?! What in the world!”

Black mages, who couldn’t enhance their bodies with mana or cast spells, looked up in vain at the barbarian soaring through the air.

“Kheeeek!”

“It’s a rat! Summon the minions!”

“What kind of magic is this barbarian playing at…!”

Finally, hundreds of rats bearing fierce teeth emerged above the tunnels, waking up to the humans who disrupted their slumber.

The chaos that ensued among the dark mages and countless monsters was all thanks to Khan, who had Ron hitching a ride on his shoulder, who then screamed out in terror.

“We’re gonna, gonna fall!”

No, we’re not falling. Khan murmured quietly as his hand axe flew towards a distant giant tree.

The hand axe, growing distant, was followed by a gray line that wove through the air, made from the ‘Silent Thread of Arachne’ taken from Eliya, which Khan had previously tied to the axe.

Boom──.

Soon, the hand axe lodged itself precisely into the giant tree, a distance that was visibly vast. Achieving such accuracy while carrying a person on one shoulder and throwing with the other arm seemed unbelievable.

[Throwing (B) – 90.1%]

─D Grade Effect, bullseye : Accuracy increases.

The ‘Silent Thread of Arachne’ trembled as if overwhelmed, threatening to break the enchanted ring itself. Yet, Khan did not hesitate for a moment.

Swisshhhh!

Utilizing the retraction feature of the ring, he boldly snapped his waist mid-air and pulled on the Silent Thread with all his might.

Instantly, the tension in the thread catapulted Khan’s body towards the tree where the axe had struck.

Black mages, who had been watching the barbarian’s reckless method of exiting the battle with a sense of emptiness, snapped back to reality.

Because of a certain rude human, the rats, baring their savage teeth, had been awakened.

“Kheee!”

“Kiiieek!”

“Damn it─!”

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Thump! Crash!

“Ouch…. I’m gonna die!”

“Quit your whining. Get up.”

“First time flying into a tree like that. Well, it happens.”

It was a gamble akin to an acrobatic stunt, yet Khan managed to shake off his pursuers and dusted himself off, preparing to move on.

“We’ve bought some time, but we’re not safe yet. We need to move now.”

“You think… we’ll be followed through all those rats?”

Without hesitation, Khan nodded affirmatively.

“Half-hearted forces won’t work on a necromancer. The dead only add to their power. Plus…”

“Plus?”

“Never mind. I’ll tell you when I’m sure.”

Khan, pondering over the amulet, the ‘Pit of Aecharis’, dismissed the notion as he thought about the now useless obsidian necklace.

‘No need to scare with uncertain information. Our course of action won’t change anyway.’

Though it was unintended to land in enemy territory, Khan saw it positively. In fact, he genuinely believed it wasn’t a bad situation.

After all.

Reaching this place through normal means would have required breaking through endless monsters and dark mages hindering their way.

‘In a way… isn’t this like being dropped right into the enemy’s front yard?’

Unintentionally yet result-wise, it seemed so.

Meaning, this was an opportunity.

‘Worried about the kid left in the city… but.’

Khan decided not to worry.

‘She’s no fool. She’ll manage just fine.’

More importantly.

The time had come for the collaborator Khan had pooled through the rat priest, bethel, to arrive in Nordic. A collaborator so formidable and finicky, convincing them would have been impossible if not for Khan’s possession.