Barbarian in a Failed Game

‘39 – 99%? Seriously?’

It was infuriating. Despite being in the midst of battle, Khan found himself stuck at 39.99% experience, just shy of hitting level 40. How could it be that after completely annihilating a transcendent, the experience points were so stingy?

And now that he thought about it, his Leap skill hadn’t leveled up either…

『Get lost─! You wretched husk, how dare you!』

Despite having a portion of its authority extracted by Esperus, the Blood King was fiercely pushing Kereaktu back. The battle between the gigantic centipede with a balloon-like swollen head and the enormous skeleton commanding dozens of liches was like a colossal monster showdown.

This wasn’t the time to be lamenting about experience points. Khan steadied his mind, reminding himself that the battle wasn’t over yet.

The amount of ash-gray power he could use was nearly depleted. If he squeezed out every last bit, he might be able to escape. Even then, it wouldn’t last long, but it wasn’t as if he couldn’t fight at all.

‘Chaos…’

He hadn’t even glanced at the chaos energy, leaving it untouched in its initial state. Trying to use it now felt off. There wasn’t a solid reason for this hesitation, but…

‘Maybe it’s because I’ve just witnessed a monster tainted by the void rampaging right in front of me.’

“H-hyungnim….”

From a distance, Tulkan, who had been carrying Esperus around, approached cautiously. Normally, he would never drop his bravado, but now he looked completely terrified.

“Did you… kill the demon? That demon…!”

“Heh, as expected of our king.”

Tulkan and Vess, who had been clinging to the Shield of the Blood King—Tenel—like it was their lifeline, were both missing an arm, indicating they had been using their bodies as makeshift shields.

Khan’s eyes now turned to Kurtank. Despite the fear in her eyes, there was a clear determination as she looked back at him.

“You’re already at your limits, aren’t it?”

“Well…”

She wasn’t wrong. Khan noticed Kurtank’s gaze flicker to her trembling fingers. He felt a sense of awkwardness but knew he couldn’t just give up here.

“Run away. You don’t have to solve everything—the demon, the Blood King… It’s not all on you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Rather than jumping into a fight you clearly can’t win…!”

“Why do you think we can’t win?”

Kurtank was speechless at Khan’s confident demeanor. He was visibly exhausted after defeating a demon, yet he was determined to claim victory amidst these monsters? Had he lost his mind?

Kurtank wished she could just control him with her powers and drag him out of there. She had followed, hoping to help, but all she and the others had managed to do was ensure Esperus stayed alive by running away.

This battlefield was never one they could interfere with. Knowing this, she couldn’t stop Khan from fighting again. This was his battle.

“Then… at least use us as meat shields. Or throw us like axes.”

Giving up on convincing Khan, Kurtank offered the remaining demon generals and powerful demons. Half of those who had come to protect Esperus were now gone, reduced to mere shadows of their former numbers.

“No, keep them safe. You’ll live comfortably if you have them around later.”

“You…?”

“I’m just going to fetch my axe.”

Axe? Didn’t the demon take that?

Kurtank cast a puzzled look at Khan. In response, he gave a playful grin and walked slowly into the fray of the monster battle.

『Die…! I said die!』

Rooooar…!

The battle itself had Kereaktu overwhelming the Blood King. The lich, using a variety of magical attacks, was pummeling the mindless creature. However, the tenacity of the Blood King, regenerating even after being frozen and shattered, had worn Kereaktu down.

“Give me back my axe, you bastard─!”

A new variable entered the balance. Khan’s slash, powered by the last remnants of his ash-gray energy, cleaved the crucified skeleton in half.

『What…?! How could you…!』

This was his final effort. He had exhausted all his ash-gray energy and could no longer resist authority. But with this, everything was in place. He was ready to bluff against the demon.

“Your friend is already gone. While you were fooling around with that monster.”

Khan smirked at Kereaktu’s shocked expression. The lich finally realized that Augrabes’s presence had vanished completely. For a transcendent, whose concept of death was tenuous, true death had arrived.

Crack.

Khan kicked the remaining crucifix frame, and it shattered easily. Destroying the skull, the conduit for authority, had made this inevitable. Kereaktu’s strength would undoubtedly diminish now. Yet, in this place, Kereaktu was still the dominant force.

‘Demons are such…’

Was it really that Kereaktu couldn’t help Augrabes? Khan scoffed internally. Of course not. He simply didn’t want to. He had no loyalty to carve off parts of himself to help. Their alliance, forged under the name of “revenge.” was temporary at best.

They were long-time rivals. Kereaktu must have conserved his strength, anticipating a backstab after they finished dealing with Khan. The result was Augrabes’s demise.

‘Even he didn’t expect Augrabes to be defeated by a mere mortal.’

Therefore, this bluff was bound to work.

“So now it’s your turn, bones.”

Khan’s smile deepened as Kereaktu chose silence. His mind must be racing. How could a mere mortal destroy a transcendent?

What about Esperus, who made the Blood King such a wreck?

Does Khan still have the strength to fight?

What’s the chance of victory?

And if he fought, what would he gain?

Utilizing authority while the domain’s restraints was active would take a long time to recover from…

These dilemmas were clear even without peering into his mind. Yes, from Kereaktu’s perspective, this was a losing battle. The odds were uncertain, and a single mistake could lead to his annihilation, just like Augrabes—a perilous gamble.

『Damn you, mortal…』

And the weakest in a gamble is the one with the most to lose.

Rip!

A sound like tearing layered paper came from the seemingly intact space, and Kereaktu’s body began to be drawn into it. He had prepared a means to return to his stronghold, just in case. Augrabes, the simple-minded fool, had died in combat without such precautions.

『Never leave the Blood Domain. If you do, you will taste true hell…』

Thunk.

“Eat shit.”

Khan flipped Kereaktu off as the demon left with a cliché villain’s warning. As soon as Kereaktu’s form completely disappeared, Khan felt his strength nearly leave him.

‘I’d love to just collapse right here…’

Struggling to bend his oddly trembling legs, he picked up Unyielding from the ground. Despite having killed one demon and deceived another, the horrifying truth was that the fight wasn’t over yet.

“Of course, it was impossible.”

At that moment, a presence began to dominate the area, one that made even Augrabes, Kereaktu, and the Blood King seem insignificant. Khan’s head snapped up instinctively. Esperus…!

『It’s true—having someone like that reduced to a mere mortal is unlikely.』

“Hey, Yoro…?”

『Haha. Tulkan, you knew my identity all along. No need to pretend anymore.』

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking about…!”

『I don’t plan on exacting revenge. Although, that hit to the back of my head did sting quite a bit….』

Tulkan fell on his rear in shock, and Esperus, finding it amusing, started walking towards the Blood King, spreading his transcendent voice that resonated with divine authority.

『Seeing my fragment reduced to such a pitiful state due to my own greed does not sit well with me. Is this what guilt feels like?』

“… I doubt it. It’s not an emotion I’d expect a transcendent to feel.”

『Haha! You think so too, Khan? Perhaps spending so long trapped in Yoro’s body has made me adopt some of his dull nature.』

Within the mortal body of Yoro, something immense was expanding. Khan, observing through Karyan’s Eyes, felt a shiver run down his spine. What the hell…?

Esperus harbored a small, fist-sized black orb. The energy within this orb was far more intense than the black energy Augrabes and Kereaktu possessed. Even more shocking was that this energy continued to grow in intensity.

It appeared Esperus had recovered part of his authority extracted from the Blood King. The thought that this was possible with only a fraction of his true power was chilling. If the Blood King could have used its full authority from the start, it would have been a massacre.

“…If you had this kind of power from the beginning, why did you bother with this charade?”

『Well… it’s a bit complicated to explain. There were reasons. I had no intention of regaining my full power. At least, not for the foreseeable future—or ever, really.』

“You didn’t want to regain your power? What kind of nonsense—”

『Hold on, let’s change the setting for this conversation.』

Esperus clapped his hands playfully. The surrounding scenery lost its color and form, dissolving away. The Blood King and the other companions were swept away by the collapsing landscape.

Splash.

The solid ground had transformed into a red lake. The sky vanished, replaced by a dome-like shell encasing them. In the center stood a man, staring at Khan.

“…That face!”

The man’s identity was undoubtedly Esperus. The human face hidden within the black egg encasing Yoro’s head had been revealed.

But that face was incredibly familiar. So familiar that the shocking fact that an arrogant entity like a Scion of the Arch Demon was masquerading as a human was almost forgotten.

“Karyan?!”

It was unmistakable. Except for the dark hair tinged with red and the blood-red eyes, he was the spitting image of Karyan. Unlike Karyan’s perpetually roguish expression, this man wore a gentle smile, making him look even more handsome.

『Yes, you are correct. Quite a likeness, don’t you think? Of course, it was inevitable. This body was created based on his blood.』

Khan barely had time to recover from the shock of seeing Karyan’s face emerge from the black egg before Esperus continued with another bombshell revelation.

『I wanted to become human. Not a mere tool shackled by the vague and unknown “laws of the world” but a true human with genuine freedom.』

TL’s Corner:
Damn, Esperus.