Surviving the Game as a Barbarian-Chapter 602: Third record (5)

Gripping Elwen tightly in preparation for the fall—

Boom—!

The ground beneath our feet collapsed, and a sensation of floating surged through my whole body. But it was distinctly different from the feeling of falling.

Whoooooosh—!

Defying gravity, my body rose above the crumbled earth.

It was a levitation spell.

“Everyone, are you alright?”

I quickly scanned around and saw Gahun and the Chief also floating in midair.

This time, I praised sincerely.

“Thanks to you, we survived. Well done.”

I was so flustered that I couldn’t even give orders properly, yet they reacted like this on their own.

“...It’s not something to be praised for.”

Ha, the old man is embarrassed.

Maybe because we were bickering just a moment ago and now he feels awkward?

I didn’t know, but first things first—I needed to confirm something.

“How long can the magic last?”

“It should be enough until we land safely.”

Alright, that means...

“Good. Then from now on, descend slowly... no, descend quickly enough not to get seriously hurt.”

I decided this because if something happened while levitating, proper resistance would be impossible.

Once I gave the order, Gahun finally regained his senses and began descending.

Ka-BOOM! Crash! Rumble rumble rumble...

The surroundings were literally like a hellscape.

Everything visible was collapsing and crumbling, with huge falling rocks threateningly rushing past us.

And then...

“Now it finally feels like an exploration.”

The Chief, while descending like falling, looked around with eyes full of curiosity.

It was probably the first time I’d seen such lively eyes on him.

That guy always seemed a bit off his rocker, but I had no time to care about him.

“What was that just now?”

The Hierarch had grabbed the Archbishop moments before a massive explosion and dove underground.

That guy, who I thought was our enemy, somehow acted like he was helping us...

“Elwen, did you control him? Tell him to hold the Archbishop and fall?”

The first possibility I checked was this, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the case.

“No. I tried, but it didn’t work.”

Huh, so the Hierarch acted on his own?

“Maybe that monster wasn’t our enemy after all.”

The Chief must have heard our conversation because he muttered something.

Well, it wasn’t entirely wrong.

When I saw the Hierarch, I thought he must be the boss monster.

But...

“Thinking back now, maybe he was an ally.”

Like the Hamshik we met in Chapter 2.

More than that, higher beings seemed to show favorable behavior toward Elwen, which was a hint.

Ka-BANG! Boom!

As I mulled over this during the descent—

Ka-Booooooooooom!

A giant boulder slammed down on Gahun’s head.

It was a dizzying situation, but thanks to the protective shield we’d spread out in preparation for falling rocks, not a scratch was made.

But the problem was...

“Ah...”

That ‘ah’ sounded so ominous.

Sure enough, bad feelings rarely miss.

“What happened?”

“Th-the levitation spell’s formula just broke.”

“The formula broke? Explain that in a way I can understand—”

Do it.

Just as I was about to say more—

“Ah...”

Our descent stopped, we briefly hovered—

“Kyaaaaaaah—!”

And we fell straight down.

My head aches.

My lungs feel stabbed by something, suffocating, and my spine won’t move properly.

But...

‘I’m alive.’

Then what about the others?

The last thing I remember was seeing the ground while falling, clutching Elwen, and taking the impact on my back...

“...Ah, ah... damn it! Damn it! My words... Riese...?”

Elwen’s urgent voice crackled like a broken radio inside my ringing ears.

I also heard the Chief’s voice.

“Don’t move... wait... I’ve given you potions, so soon...”

“Sir! Sir!”

“They’re not responding at all...”

Feeling voices gradually becoming clearer, I slowly lifted my eyelids.

“Sir...!”

“I’m... okay... stop.”

“Ah, ah! Sorry!”

Only then did Elwen get off me, making it a bit easier to breathe.

“Hold on a bit more. Judging from your recovery, you’ll be able to move soon.”

“How long was I out?”

“About five minutes.”

“And Gahun...?”

Trying to grasp the situation, I asked, and the Chief pointed somewhere.

Turning my stiff neck # Nоvеlight # sideways, I saw Gahun lying with broken legs.

“He’s not dead. Looks like he used magic at the end to slow the speed as much as possible. I gave him potions, but I don’t know when he’ll wake up.”

Right, that’s what I thought...

“And you?”

“I’m fine. Kept my senses until the end and minimized the impact properly.”

Lucky.

If only my defense stats had been intact, my body wouldn’t be this wrecked.

“...The enemies?”

“For now, no one’s around, so focus on recovering without worries.”

“Understood. But your tone...”

“Well, I’m older and higher rank anyway, aren’t I? We went through a life-or-death situation together, so I can speak comfortably.”

Well, that’s true.

Even if his tone changed suddenly, no one around would really suspect.

“Then I’ll rest a bit more...”

After that, I closed my eyes and lay down, and before long, I recovered enough to move on my own.

“Want some water?”

“Ah, thanks.”

I drank a glass and got up. The Chief asked like he’d been waiting.

“So what’s the plan now?”

Since the Halfwit Team days to the Anavada Clan, whenever something happened, that was the line.

People always ask me for answers. It used to be frustrating, but now I just see it as my fate.

I also don’t want to pass all responsibility to others and just follow orders.

“Will we wait until Sir Vesilrus wakes up?”

Well, I don’t know what’s best either.

It’s the first time this kind of rift has appeared.

From its unusual progression to the Hierarch priest Karui...

Honestly, it’s headache-inducing.

But...

“No, first I’ll take care of Gahun and start searching the surroundings.”

Let’s do what we can.

If we drag things out, the situation might get worse.

“I’ll take care of Elwen and Gahun, Count, you lead the way.”

“That I will.”

Though it was the most dangerous mission, the Chief obediently followed my order.

Not because he thought he was most suitable for the task.

“Keep your promise.”

For helping in this rift, I promised to bring ‘Karui’s Heart’ to the city.

“Don’t worry. I have no intention of breaking my promise.”

“That’s a relief. Also, if things go wrong later, check your notebook.”

“Notebook?”

“I put it in your backpack when I gave it to you. It has everything you might be curious about, so it will help on the journey.”

I didn’t know there was a notebook.

I got the backpack just before entering the rift. I even left it outside because the Chief suggested, just in case.

‘I’ll check the notebook as soon as we get out of here...’

We moved for quite some time over the broken ruins.

“...”

“...”

At some point, the sounds ceased, and silence arrived.

Now, no one was unaware of the reason for this phenomenon.

“The character has entered the [Silent Curse]’s range.”

“All essence skills are sealed.”

A Hierarch is nearby.

Should we avoid it then?

I didn’t know the answer, but I gave a signal to the Chief, who seemed to be waiting for orders.

‘Continue.’

Since I knew nothing about this chapter, we had to get information by direct encounter...

‘It might even be an ally.’

Even if an enemy, it was unlikely normal after hugging the Archbishop right before the explosion and falling.

“...”

After continuing straight without changing direction, we found the Lord of Silence, Silierat.

“...”

“...”

In the suffocating silence, the creature was half-buried in rock.

As expected, it was not in good condition.

Of its three exposed arms, two had bones showing, and it had no strength to move, blinking its eyelids weakly while buried in the debris.

“...”

Relieved that it posed no threat, yet a chill ran down my spine.

I already knew its power, but to have a Hierarch reduced to such a state with one blow...

If we’d been caught in that explosion head-on, what would have happened?

“The Archbishop... isn’t here.”

I scanned the area, then gently put Elwen down and slowly approached it.

Lord of Silence, Silierat.

It didn’t move even as I neared.

It just looked at me with tired eyes.

“...”

Reaching out cautiously, I touched its face.

It remained quiet even on contact.

As if it had no reason to be hostile.

‘Why did you help us?’

I wanted to ask, but no voice came out.

Even if I could speak, I doubted it would give a proper answer.

So I answered myself.

‘...Yeah, you must have your reasons too.’

Now I know something about this labyrinth.

Rift guardians, Hierarchs, were real beings with their own stories.

Maybe not just them, but all monsters here are the same.

In a way, they’re even more pitiful than me, dragged into this strange world and causing havoc.

I withdrew my hand and stepped back; the Chief gave me a signal.

‘Kill it.’

A simple gesture with that meaning.

I quietly shook my head and made a gesture to step back.

“...?”

The Chief looked puzzled but obeyed, perhaps because of our promise.

As soon as we left its territory—

“Why didn’t you kill it?”

The Chief asked.

“Seeing it like that, it didn’t seem dangerous.”

I’m not sure.

Why did I make that choice?

“Because it helped us for now. Killing it hastily might cause problems. We can kill it after getting more info.”

What I told the Chief wasn’t a complete lie.

But...

“Hmm, that could be true.”

Unlike the Chief who accepted easily, I was confused.

The Hierarch’s essence.

The Hierarch’s relic.

The Hierarch’s stone used to open rifts.

Maybe killing it would have given us those rewards easily.

But I didn’t.

‘It’s definitely not sympathy...’

Hard to explain.

I can only say it was an impulsive decision—

[Come here...]

Then, once again, an unknown voice echoed, ending my thoughts.

The sound came from the exact opposite direction from where the Hierarch was.

So one thing was clear.

‘That sound wasn’t from it...’

The weird dialogue that called us like a pervert to lure us wasn’t from the Hierarch.

Well, it was odd since the in-game character had no lines.

“Then we just head toward where the sound is coming from?”

I nodded; the Chief took the lead.

Following with Elwen at some distance, soon we saw the source of the voice directly.

[Right...]

[Yes, come here and hold me...]

It was a completely unexpected existence.

“Soul Eater...?”

A Grade 5 rare species.

Only one spawns in the Great Demon Mirror when the labyrinth opens, granting between 100 to 200 experience randomly when defeated.

[I will grant you the wish you desire...]

What is this?

Wasn’t this supposed to be the boss monster or something?

“Soul Eater has summoned [Soul Cavalry].”

It seemed the skill was basically the same as the original...

[Kyaaaaaaah—!!]

The Soul Eater was cut in half by the Chief’s roughly swung sword and defeated immediately.

“Soul Eater defeated.”

Up to here, it was surprising but no problem.

Like a MacGuffin in a novel.

Something that looks important but actually is just a normal mob.

You could interpret it that way and move on.

But...

‘What the hell is this now?’

The following scene left me dumbfounded again.

[Guardian Defeat Bonus. EXP +3]

A rainbow-colored essence meaning ‘guardian’ floated in the air where it had been.

Whoooosh—!

A portal appeared, indicating the rift was cleared.

Red and blue.

For some reason, there were two of them.