Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Chapter 357: Isolation (4)

Chapter 357: Isolation (4)

Orculus, the worst criminal organization in the labyrinth.

And among them, these four were quite infamous.

It made me feel a strange mix of emotions.

The changes from the past were becoming more and more apparent.

"Schuitz, what's the plan?"

What plan?

In the Goblin Forest battle on the 2nd floor, there were only three of them.

And it took over a thousand explorers to defeat them.

But...

I didn't feel as hopeless this time.

No, I was actually confident we could handle them.

And...

"I see. Okay."

Amelia's reaction suggested she agreed.

Erwen didn't seem interested in escaping anyway.

"...Abet Necrapheto."

As soon as the Corpse Collector appeared in the distance, Erwen's body started to exude killing intent.

I thought about warning her...

'But it's probably better this way.'

It was better for her to be focused than scared.

And she seemed to be in control, she wasn't charging at him or anything.

"What are you doing? The spell casting is interrupted."

She even reminded Raven, who was frozen in place, to continue chanting the teleportation spell. It seemed like she remembered my words about prioritizing survival.

'...I'm proud of her.'

"Ah... O-okay..."

Raven snapped out of her daze and resumed casting, after mumbling something about my back.

It seemed like she had decided not to bring up her suspicions about my identity.

'Well, she must have noticed something.'

I was worried about the consequences, but I also had a glimmer of hope.

The Corpse Collector had called me a 'fake', hadn't he?

"Heh heh, aren't you staring a bit too intensely, fairy? Even I feel a bit uncomfortable."

"..."

"Hmm, but I'm surprised! I heard you borrowed a lot of money from your tribe... Did you really spend it all on creating a fake like that?"

He didn't recognize me, even after seeing [Gigantification].

Well, he was convinced that I was dead.

And Erwen's obsession with me was well-known, so it was more believable that she had created a fake.

'I hope Raven thinks the same...'

Ah, whatever. If she's going to find out, she'll find out.

Would she really betray me after I just saved her life?

I decided not to worry about it.

It seemed like the enemy wouldn't give us much time anyway.

"Necrapheto, it seems like that woman is casting a Multiple Teleportation spell."

The enemy mage had noticed our escape plan.

"Heh heh, then we should get started. The dance of blood, bone, and screams—"

"Ah, seriously, can you stop with that? You suddenly started acting weird... wearing a mask every time we go on an expedition..."

"Uh... Vivienne, there are other people here..."

"That's why I'm telling you to stop! Ugh, why do you act so differently outside..."

"...It's a hobby. A hobby."

The Wailing Witch scolded him, but the delay was short-lived.

"Both of you, shut up and get to work."

The Lighthouse Keeper, a hulking figure in a robe, silenced them, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

So that's the end of our free teleportation gauge charging time?

"How much time is left until the teleportation spell is ready?"

"...About 10 minutes. The mana was scattered when the casting was interrupted."

"Can you cast other spells while chanting?"

"Yes, not high-level spells, but I can help."

Okay, that's a relief.

"Focus on completing the spell, and provide support when necessary."

"Yes, I underst— Wait, why are you giving orders?"

Seriously, what difference does it make now?

"That's a pointless question. Is that important now?"

I quickly changed the subject and continued giving orders.

"Erwen, Emily, you two focus on defense for now. We need to buy time until the spell is ready."

"Okay."

Erwen surprisingly agreed without any hesitation, and Amelia asked,

"...Wouldn't it be better to abandon the spell and fight them?"

She wasn't wrong.

But...

"We don't know when their reinforcements might arrive."

We couldn't rule out the possibility of reinforcements.

And I didn't want to risk a direct confrontation.

We could win, but it would be a tough fight.

And someone might get hurt or even die.

"...That's true. Okay, let's do as you say."

Amelia also agreed, and that was the end of the discussion.

Well, we didn't have time for further discussion anyway.

[Grooooan...!]

The surrounding corpses charged towards us, and the battle began.

____________________

The basic situation was simple.

The corpse horde attacked from all sides, and we defended in formation.

But there was a problem...

[Grooooan...!]

The corpses were much stronger now.

?Liranne Vivienne has cast the 5th-grade dark magic [Wrath of the Dead].?

?Liranne Vivienne has cast the 4th-grade dark magic [Dark Baptism].?

A necromancer and a dark mage.

It was a powerful combination, one I had favored in the past.

Dark magic had a lot of efficient buffs for undead.

They had good synergy.

?Liranne Vivienne has cast the 4th-grade dark magic [Lamp of the Underworld].?

Ugh, there it is.

I knew she would use it.

Whoosh!

A black flame appeared in the sky, and the corpses we had destroyed started to regenerate and rise again.

And to make matters worse...

?Liranne Vivienne has summoned [Erimyanne, Queen of Pain].?

A wraith covered in thousands of thorns flew through the air, screaming.

It was Liranne Vivienne's signature summon, the one that earned her the nickname 'Wailing Witch'.

So its effect must be...

?Character's Pain Resistance decreased by -200.?

Pain amplification.

And...

?When a target affected by the scream takes damage, the summoner's Dark Power is partially restored.?

Mana recovery, a mage's most important resource.

'Well, as long as we don't get hit, it's not a big deal.'

It wasn't a particularly troublesome summon in a small-scale battle like this.

But...

?Liranne Vivienne has cast the 3rd-grade dark magic [Voodoo Doll].?

?Accuracy of curse-type magic targeting the character is increased to 100%, and its power is greatly amplified.?

After buffing the corpses and summoning her signature wraith, the Wailing Witch started unleashing her magic.

?[Advanced Decay] is active.?

?Wound recovery speed is greatly reduced.?

?[Enervation] is active.?

?Strength greatly decreased.?

?[Invisible Threat] is active.?

?Chance of failing to detect enemy attacks increased...?

Why is she targeting me with all her curses?

This reminded me of Elisa, the priest from Karui, and I almost got PTSD.

But what could I do?

I had to endure.

Even if it meant resorting to evil.

"Uwaaaaaaaaah!"

I roared and swung my hammer.

That was all a warrior could do in this situation.

Crack!

I focused on protecting my companions, leaving the ranged attacks to Erwen.

Thankfully, she was exceeding expectations.

?Erwen Fornachi di Tersia has cast [Elemental Fusion].?

A single powerful shot to keep the enemy at bay.

?Erwen Fornachi di Tersia has cast [Rapid Fire].?

A rain of arrows from the sky.

And...

?Erwen Fornachi di Tersia has summoned [Dicloe, the Dark Spirit King].?

Even Dicloe, the Dark Spirit King, the one that earned her the nickname 'Blood Spirit Marquis'.

Kaboom! Kaboom! Kaboom!

The Spirit King was only summoned for about five seconds, but in that short time, half of the corpse horde was obliterated.

Yes, literally obliterated.

Not even [Lamp of the Underworld] could revive those who had vanished without a trace.

"No! My precious collection...!"

Even the Corpse Collector was shocked by the overwhelming power.

But the Spirit King came at a cost. Erwen's Spirit Power was depleted.

She could still use her other abilities, which consumed Soul Power, but she couldn't summon spirits anymore.

"...Good work."

"It... was nothing."

Our trump card was gone, but the situation wasn't that bad.

The gap in the corpse horde gave us some breathing room.

Well, it didn't last long.

"Schuitz, he's coming."

"I'll take care of him, you two stay back."

The Blood Knight, who had been recovering in the rear, finally rejoined the battle after receiving healing from the Lighthouse Keeper.

'So he also has healing skills...'

It was a bit frustrating.

Erwen's left arm had just been severed by [Rupture], and it was already healed?

Even with the best potions, that kind of injury would leave lasting damage...

Slice!

Huh?

"Ugh."

He aimed for the gaps in my armor again, so I tried to tank it and counterattack... but my body froze.

My Pain Resistance had been reduced by 200, so even a small scratch was excruciating.

"It... cuts now."

The wound was much deeper than before.

But there wasn't much bleeding, and it smelled burnt.

Then why?

The reason was clear.

'It's not Aura.'

His sword was still covered in a red glow, but it was different from before.

Intense heat emanated from the blade.

'Did he enchant it with fire?'

It must have been the Lighthouse Keeper's doing.

He must have used the information about my weakness to magic and changed the Blood Knight's attacks to fire damage.

'Clever bastard.'

But it didn't matter.

Even with fire damage, it was still a slashing attack. And I had [Iron Hide].

'This should be enough to hold him off.'

As expected, a battle of attrition ensued.

There were a few close calls, but we managed to hold our ground.

And...

"It's done!"

Raven finally finished casting the Multiple Teleportation spell.

We could finally escape.

Okay, insurance acquired.

"Don't use it yet, wait."

"Yes?"

'Yes' what 'yes'?

I've been getting beaten up this whole time, I'm not leaving empty-handed.

'Who should I take?'

The target was quickly decided.

"Guys! Their spell is ready!"

The mage was flying on a broomstick, so she was out.

"Vivienne! Do something! I'll be the only one who loses out if we let them escape!!"

The Corpse Collector was too agile and had an invincibility skill, so he was difficult to catch.

Whoosh!

The Blood Knight was also a bad matchup.

He was too fast and agile for me to catch alone, even when we were fighting 4v1.

I would need a closed space to have a chance.

"...We'll meet again."

The Blood Knight, sensing our imminent escape, spoke confidently.

Hey, who said we were leaving?

'Yeah, he's the one.'

The Lighthouse Keeper, name unknown.

He was one of the few support ability users in Noark.

And...

'Support classes usually have expensive accessories.'

He was wearing ten rings on his fingers.