Surviving the Game as a Barbarian-Chapter 482: Big Fish (5)

The moment my teammates disappeared from view as the [Veil of Betrayal] reactivated…

Crack—

…the shell encasing Dreadfear shattered, and he reappeared.

His skin looked as if it were covered in wax.

A single, large eye sat in the middle of his featureless face, defying all proportions.

And a bone greatsword gripped in both hands.

He looked the same as before he used [Protective Shell], but the resemblance was fleeting.

「Hatred deepens.」

A new buff was added as soon as the groggy state ended.

And from this point on, luck played a crucial role…

「Memories etched in bone intensify.」

Phew, not bad.

Screech.

Sharp thorns started to sprout from Dreadfear's greatsword. It was the weapon buff, one of the five possible buffs in the 3rd phase.

‘I need to be more careful now.’

It was a damage amplification buff, so I adjusted my strategy.

Kwaaang!

I continued to focus on defense with my shield, but I avoided taking any unnecessary hits.

The weapon buff was dangerous, even for me.

Like this.

「Sharp thorns pierce the character's body.」

「Continuously drains the character's Soul Power.」

The buffed sword had an MP drain effect, and it stacked with each hit.

But there was one thing I had to be careful about.

「Dreadfear's Hatred increases proportionally to the drained MP.」

Whether it was the weapon, the armor, or the eye,

All the 3rd phase buffs increased his 'Hatred' stat. And when it reached its maximum, a very troublesome additional buff would activate.

‘If Hatred activates, the raid is as good as over.’

At that point, survival would be our main concern, not the raid.

Therefore…

Whooosh!

I dodged his attacks whenever I couldn't block them.

Ttadat.

But I didn't just retreat. I circled around him, keeping him in the center of the area.

「Dreadfear, the Lord of Terror, has cast [Inner Mirror].」

「Deals fixed damage proportional to the decreased Mental Power.」

I endured his unavoidable instant-kill skill, coughing up blood.

「Dreadfear, the Lord of Terror, has cast [Memories of the Dead].」

Bersil, the mage, helped me deal with the floating bombs.

「Bersil Gowland has cast the 6th-grade Summoning Magic [Dolls of Life].」

The decoys would absorb the damage.

[Kyiyeeeeeek!]

I continued to fight, following the strategy.

'It's almost time...'

I thought it was about time to move on to the next phase...

「The light of trust dispels the darkness of fear.」

「[Veil of Betrayal] temporarily deactivated.」

...when the white light filled the cave, and Dreadfear shrieked in pain, retreating into his shell again.

「Dreadfear, the Lord of Terror, has cast [Protective Shell].」

If we couldn't break through his shell this time, he would receive another buff, making the fight even more difficult.

But I wasn't worried.

"Erwen."

She was practically a graduate student now.

「Erwen Fornachi di Tersia summons [Dicloe, the Dark Spirit King].」

It was time for the final phase.

___________________

Dreadfear, the Lord of Terror.

An unfortunate Floor Lord, often targeted for clan promotion tests, as he didn't offer much in terms of rewards, even if you cleared it with a full raid team.

But he had a hidden piece.

Well, it wasn't exactly hidden. It was a well-known fact, thanks to the legends of old heroes.

[If you defeat him with five or fewer members, you receive a great reward.]

But there were two errors in that statement.

First, it wasn't about having exactly five members, but five or fewer.

'And the reward wasn't that 'great'.'

It was just a normal reward.

But the reason why the rumor had spread was probably because of this.

[If they succeed, it will be the tenth such feat in history, after the Last Sage!]

Five-man clears were extremely rare.

And those who had achieved it had all left their mark on history.

Rimenin, the Abyss Seeker.

Armella, the Fairy King.

Mulmarin, the Seadragon Slayer.

They were all legendary explorers.

And that was enough to inspire countless others to challenge Dreadfear.

Most of them never returned.

'Well, it's not like you can clear a boss on your first try.'

I had only succeeded because I had played the game countless times.

If I had challenged him blindly, I would have failed too.

Reality was different from the game.

You only had one chance.

And if you failed, it was game over.

'...I wonder how they did it.'

What strategies had they used?

Was it the same as mine?

Or did they just overpower him with their stats?

I didn't know.

The ten teams that had succeeded had all kept their strategies secret.

'That's also something I don't understand...'

It was common for explorers to keep valuable information to themselves.

But why had those legendary explorers, who had created the 6th-floor map and shared their knowledge about the 10th floor, kept this a secret?

'Well, it's not important right now.'

Hmm... was it?

I suddenly felt a strange sense of—

Kwaaang!

As I was pondering the source of the strange feeling...

「Dreadfear's [Protective Shell] has been deactivated.」

The shell shattered, and black smoke poured out.

I gave my teammates an order.

"Stop."

There was no point in attacking anymore.

We had to conserve our MP.

"Good work. You must be tired."

"Yes..."

"Gather around!"

I called my teammates to my side and prepared for the next phase.

[Kyiyeeeeeek!]

The black smoke shrieked as it poured out of the shell.

And then...

The smoke subsided, and two crimson eyes appeared in the gap.

'Those eyes are terrifying.'

I took a deep breath and stared back.

「Dreadfear, the Lord of Terror, senses a great threat from your party.」

The 4th phase had begun.

It was the turning point of the raid.

Step, step.

Dreadfear emerged from his shell.

He had been covered in maggots...

Then black smoke...

And then a wax-like shell.

But now...

Step.

...he looked human.

Pale skin with blue veins.

Ribs protruding from his thin chest.

Long, gray hair.

And a face with eyes, a nose, and a mouth.

Unfortunately, they weren't in the right places.

He was a humanoid monster, technically.

Roll.

An eyeball beneath his chin rolled around.

Drip.

Blood dripped from his nose, which was where his right eye should have been.

Screech.

His bone greatsword dragged across the ground, producing a grating sound.

Step, step.

He was covered in a viscous liquid, as if he had just been pulled out of amniotic fluid.

Thud.

He stopped and looked at us.

[Kyiyeeeeeek!]

He roared, his mouth, which was where his nose should have been, wide open.

「There are five or fewer characters within range.」

「Special Condition - Ancient Memories has been met.」

「The terror within Dreadfear awakens.」

The conditions for a 5-man clear had already been met.

「Fragments of memory distort the surrounding space.」

Now we just had to enter the special map and finish the raid—

Flash!

A blinding flash of light filled the cave.

"..."

And I froze.

"...Where am I?"

I was in a place I had never seen before.

___________________

「Character is poisoned by [Goblin Paralyzing Poison].」

「Special Condition - Distorted Memories has been met.」

「Character is being transferred to the Pilgrim's Cave.」

___________________

Hans... Hans Delbein...

Amelia paused her interrogation, her mind racing as she repeated the name.

It was an ominous name.

But she quickly dismissed her worries.

'...He'll be fine.'

He had absorbed the Tranquility Essence from the leader of Orculus over 300 times.

He had said he wouldn't be affected.

'Let's focus on the task at hand.'

She resumed the interrogation.

She had finally gotten him to talk, and she couldn't let him clam up again.

"Where do you live?"

"...9th District."

"Have you ever met Count Alminus?"

"...No."

She continued her questions, punishing him whenever she sensed a lie.

And after a while...

"I-I swear... I just received a request from the black market... I don't know who the client is..."

She realized instinctively.

That he was telling the truth, and that she wouldn't be able to get any more information from him.

'...I couldn't find any connection to Count Alminus.'

He would be disappointed.

She felt a pang of sadness, but she quickly suppressed it.

She was a professional.

She couldn't afford to dwell on her emotions.

"..."

She checked his belongings again, just in case she had missed something.

And then she noticed something strange.

'...Paralyzing poison?'

The weapon she had used to stab him was coated in poison.

It tasted like a low-grade poison based on goblin venom...

'Why would he use this...?'

It didn't make sense.

A high-level Guardian like him wouldn't be affected by such a weak poison.

And there were much stronger poisons available.

"Why did you use Goblin Paralyzing Poison?"

"Paralyzing poison...?"

The man's confused response only made her more suspicious.

"I... I've never used paralyzing poison... Why would I...?"

She looked at the other captive. He was still silent, his eyes fixed on the empty space before him.

"..."

She checked his weapon.

Foll𝑜w current novℯls on ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm.

It was also coated in paralyzing poison.

And at that moment...

Flash!

A bright light erupted from the central area, followed by silence.

Her companions had moved on to the next phase.

She summoned a clone and sent it to the empty chamber.

Four corpses.

Their weapons were also coated in goblin poison.

Was this a coincidence?

No, it couldn't be.

'Something...'

Something bad was happening.

She grabbed the other captive by the collar.

"...Tell me. Why did you coat your weapons in goblin poison?"

"..."

He didn't answer.

He hadn't even groaned when she had tortured him.

Swoosh-!

She drew her dagger and pressed it against his throat.

A thin line of blood appeared.

But his expression didn't change.

He had seemed resigned before... but now he looked different.

"Who... are you?"

He finally spoke.

"Who knows?"

His answer was casual.

She pressed the dagger deeper.

And then...

Clang!

The dagger bounced off his skin, as if it had hit an invisible wall.

Thud, thud.

The captive stood up, brushing the dust off his knees.

"He has a good woman by his side. To think she would notice something like this... Her perceptiveness will be a great asset in his journey."

His words were nonsensical.

Amelia's killing intent intensified.

"...Who are you? What's your purpose?"

"You're worried about him, even in this situation... You seem loyal..."

He looked down at her, a smirk on his face.

"Don't worry. I'm just here to guide him on the right path."

"..."

"Bjorn Yandel has a fascinating destiny. He grows stronger through adversity."

He patted her shoulder.

"For example, what if the mage hadn't died in the labyrinth? Do you think he would have become the hero he is today? He was always prioritizing his own survival."

He chuckled.

"So don't worry. He'll be fine."

Amelia clenched her remaining dagger.

"Why are you telling me this?"

Her eyes darted around, searching for an opening.

But...

"The reason is simple."

...she couldn't find one.

"Amelia Rainwales."

His voice was clear and distinct.

"You were always susceptible to illusions, weren't you?"

"...!"

"Rest now."

His finger touched her forehead.