Barbarian in a Failed Game

The battlefield was divided into two main factions.

Simply put, demons and humans. The army of hell and the legions of the empire were engaged in a brutal clash.

Dozens of high-tier demons, each one so powerful that a single descent today would devastate the continent, had descended in their true forms. Their minions numbered in the tens of thousands, making it impossible to count.

Even for the current Khan, the prospects of survival were slim. No, it was certain death, a hopeless scenario.

Yet, the soldiers of the Empire were fighting the invading demons of Midland without an inch of retreat. It was almost unbelievable, but the forces were nearly equally matched.

『Hmm, a nostalgic sight.』

The miniature dragon-shaped Spirit of Resentment chuckled annoyingly, explaining the battlefield they found themselves in.

『When the demons invaded the ancient continent, sights like this were common everywhere. Perhaps, you might even be one of the demons that invaded the Empire.』

“Me? But I am a demonkin, not a full-fledged one…”

『Who knows? If you weren’t a fallen demon, it’s impossible to retain such memories deep within your mental world.』

Yoro fell silent, seemingly finding merit in the Spirit of Resentment’s words. His reaction suggested a strange mixture of nostalgia and introspection at the notion of his true identity being that of a demon.

‘Well, it wasn’t too long ago that this so-called weak demonkin was getting beaten around by Tulkan.’

“So, all these people are ancient humans?”

『Indeed.』

“Unbelievable.”

Khan’s exclamation was due to the astonishing martial prowess exhibited by the ancient imperial soldiers.

Demons descending in their true forms were insurmountable monsters. Each one possessed strength on the level of a transcendent being.

In game terms, they were entities surpassing level 40.

As for their hideous minions, the demon legions were so strong that even the Empire’s superhumans were driven to death by them. Some of these minions, while not quite transcendent, were formidable enough to be near that level.

The ancient imperial forces, however, were able to hold their ground and even match these horrific entities.

‘The average level of martial prowess is on a whole different dimension compared to the current age….’

Their minimum standard was near superhuman. Most of the common soldiers wielded strength comparable to upper-tier knights.

Moreover, there were armored superhumans presumed to be knights scattered throughout the battlefield. Their strength surpassed even the Bannerlords who served Emperor Friedrick. These were monsters projecting superhuman levels of power on the battlefield.

“Now I get it…”

Khan let out a wry laugh as he observed the Empire’s forces shattering his understanding of human potential. In an era when dragons and giants roamed, wreaking havoc, scholars of the current age debated how the Empire maintained its dominance across the continent.

There was a time many believed it was thanks to extraordinary figures like Karyan, mages, and the Council of Truth. But seeing it firsthand, Khan realized that wasn’t the case.

The ancient humans were just ridiculously strong. Strong enough to suppress even the wildest transcendent beings.

‘And among them, Karyan was a standout monster.’

Khan grimaced at the elevated stature of Karyan, imagining how smug the God would be if he read his current thoughts. The sheer arrogance would be unbearable.

“But we’re viewing my memories… Where am I in all this?”

『Patience. To directly manifest your memories, we need more time.』

The Spirit of Resentment’s explanation reminded Khan of the first time he wielded it.

Initially, it had shown him his old home on Earth, followed by more direct memories of Tilly later on.

“So, we just need to watch for now,” Khan acknowledged.

While the group conversed, the battle took a dramatic turn.

“Fresh specimens coming right to us!”

“Capture them alive!”

“Leave their limbs, just tear the nerves!”

“No, freeze them! Turn them into statues and bring them back!”

A group of maniacs—not quite distinguishable as either barbarian or deranged scientists—suddenly flanked the demons and attacked.

Boom──!!

『The Council of Truth.』

Khan didn’t need the Spirit of Resentment to tell him. Who else but the Council would be so excited at the prospect of using demons as experimental subjects? Among the ancient and modern wicked mages Khan knew of, only the Council of Truth fit that description across both eras.

Even if it was just a memory recreation, witnessing the Council of Truth’s power was exhilarating.

They dropped enormous boulders like meteors onto the demons’ heads, unleashed fiery spells that melted the ground in an instant, and then froze the demons they had weakened into solid ice.

Capturing a demon meticulously took them mere seconds. New spells filled the sky before the startled demons could regroup from the initial mages’ assault.

“Unbelievable….”

The magic circles they conjured layered dozens, even hundreds of times over. Then they expanded outward, seemingly extending to the horizon.

Rumble.

Transcendental spells, so potent that they outshone even the highest secrets of the Tower Lords, began to light up the sky, ready to unleash their power in a fraction of a second.

“Destroy all those hindrances!”

“Khehe! Destruction! Destruction! The most thrilling experimental site has appeared all by itself…!”

From the magic circles filling the sky, projected spells formed into something massive—a dragon’s head. The Spirit of Resentment, perched on Khan’s shoulder, clicked its tongue.

『To think I’d witness that dreadful spell here.』

“What is that spell, exactly?”

『The Council of Truth delves into dissecting transcendent beings and reconstructing their body parts through magic. That foul spell is the culmination of such experiments. It manifests the body of a dragon through magic, replicating its powers.』

Oh, my God.

As Yoro let out a groan of realization, the madmen’s spells reached their peak.

The magical dragon opened its mouth, and a golden aura began to heat the battlefield’s air, devastating both demons and humans indiscriminately—a true testament to the chaotic nature of the mages.

『Insolent wretches—!!』

The demons, suddenly being treated as experimental subjects, didn’t take it lying down. A demon resembling a giant bipedal bat with two pairs of wings surged through the air towards the dragon.

The black energy gathered in the demon’s hand elongated like a whip and struck the dragon’s temple.

Rippp!

The impact made the dragon’s head sway significantly, and the demon raised its arm.

The manifestation of power.

Swish!

Blood, which had soaked the ground and pooled like rivers, surged into the air. Considering the sheer number of minions and humans mixed into the battlefield, the amount of blood gathering into the demon’s grasp was enough to form several massive lakes.

Khan observed closely.

-The power to manipulate blood belonged to Esperus, the Monarch of Blood Domain, and naturally, the Blood King—whom Khan would eventually face—would possess similar power.

-Screeeeech!

Blood, manipulated by the demon’s power, engulfed the dragon’s head. The dragon screeched, and as the demon cackled and clenched its fist, the giant magic circle slowly dissipated with a faint pop.

『Insects…! Perish before my great power!』

The spell, capable of devastating the entire area, crumbled before the might of a single demon’s power—a clear demonstration of the gap between mages wielding near-transcendent power and actual transcendent beings.

“Hm… It seems more refinement is needed.”

“Still, there’s some success. A spell that requires a power to stop it signifies its potency.”

“We’ve captured a specimen, so let’s start studying the demon’s power right away!”

Contrary to the demon’s intent of sowing despair among the mages, the mages of the Council of Truth simply discussed their next experiment with smiles and promptly withdrew from the battlefield.

“They’re completely insane.”

Was it someone on the battlefield who muttered that, or was it the demon watching the mages retreat who said it? The baffling behavior of the mad mages seemed to momentarily freeze time on the battlefield.

『These… these vermin…!』

Ultimately, the mages of the Council of Truth had halted one demon, but at the same time, they had provoked the demons’ wrath, bringing those who had been enjoying the rear lines to the forefront.

‘They’re a perfect example of chaotic disruptors.’

As more and more enraged demons unleashed their powers, the battlefield, previously slightly in favor of the Empire, tipped dramatically.

Even Khan, who knew little about warfare, could see the outcome becoming clear.

“I can already see how this ends, so how much longer will we remain in this memory?”

『Who knows. That’s up to the owner of this mental world, not me.』

“Me? But…”

Yoro still remembered nothing. He had just realized that such memories were hidden within his mind, yet he had no idea how they were connected to him.

“Wait a moment. I think I feel something…”

It was then. Yoro’s head snapped to the side as if drawn by an invisible force as he spoke in a suddenly grave voice. Just as Khan turned to look, his expression hardened.

『Indeed, he reacts to it… This one is more interesting than I thought.』

The Spirit of Resentment chuckled. But neither Khan nor Yoro were in any condition to respond, so the Spirit of Resentment continued speaking to itself with a tone of amusement.

『How fascinating, truly…』

For there, appearing out of nowhere, was ‘something’.

At first, they thought it was a ‘red egg’.

The surface was covered with bulging red veins, making it clear it was no ordinary egg. Then they noticed the eyelid-like wrinkles in the middle of the ‘egg’ and the grotesquely thin legs protruding from its bottom.

Moreover, it was far too enormous to be simply called an egg. It reminded Khan of the giant’s arm he had seen in Paradise. The Spirit of Resentment seemed to recognize it as it chuckled. And Khan and Yoro, naturally, began to ‘understand’ its nature.

A transcendent being. One of such towering stature that even the High Gods of the Pantheon, like the Goddess of Justice, would be at its feet.

“A Scion of the Arch Demon. It looks terrifyingly powerful.”

At that moment, a man spoke lightly, almost jokingly, about the identity of the red egg. Just like the red egg, no one noticed the man’s sudden appearance on the battlefield, and Khan’s eyes widened as he recognized the intruder.

His noble appearance, exuding an air of innate dignity, contrasted starkly with his insolent expression and slouched posture.

“Karyan…?”

It was Karyan, in his human form.