Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

One of the fields in the 9th floor Star Grave, the Deadly Poison Lava Field.

As one of the highest floors, its danger level far surpasses the lower levels, and it has an irritating field effect.

'Poison resistance fixed at zero.'

Even if you raise your resistance enough to be immune to poison, it becomes useless here.

'No natural MP recovery.'

Well, not completely impossible, but...

With a 99% reduction, it's basically no MP recovery.

Of course, this can be dealt with using skills like my [Soul Diving] or certain methods inside the field...

But the real biggest headache is something else.

「Warning: Beware of explosions!」

Everything here explodes.

Like this.

"Uh... The ground is swelling...?"

"It's going to blow! Everyone, dodge!"

Pwoooom!

While walking, deadly poison lava bursts from the ground, exploding.

"W-Wait! That monster's body is swelling!"

"Stop talking and dodge!"

Sometimes monsters explode like bombs right in front of us during battle.

Pwoooom!

Explosions also happen randomly in midair with no signs.

And the biggest problem here is...

Chaaaaa—!!

When they explode, thick poison liquid sprays everywhere.

「Character has been moderately poisoned.」

It's not a high-level poison, just moderate, but it still doesn't matter.

Poison resistance is fixed at zero here.

Chiiiiiik-!

Ugh, it stings so bad I could die.

Normally, my resistance would adjust this to a lower grade, and it would wear off soon enough.

"Detox."

Without further talk, I said briefly, and the GM rushed over to cast a spell. Our only healer, Jaina, did the same.

"Heal."

"...Done."

As you can see, in the Deadly Poison Lava Field, the roles of mages and clerics are vital.

They have to regularly detox us to prevent poison levels rising, and manage the constant HP drain caused by poisoning.

But that causes another problem here.

"Oh! Yollam fruit! There's yollam fruit!!"

Yollam fruit.

Small trees found occasionally here with exactly three fruits.

Eating one restores the main resource.

"Jaina, Havelion, Old Man! Share them amongst yourselves!"

Of course, yollam fruit goes first to healers and mages.

"Uh... Baekho? My soul energy's running low and I can't use my ability..."

"So what?"

"C-Could I have just one? At this rate, I won't be any help in battle—"

"You'll just get hit anyway, greedy much?"

"......"

Since most yollam fruits went to the healers and mages, the other roles' MP was constantly drained.

Ah, but not me.

「Character cast [Soul Diving].」

「Soul energy regenerates proportionally to consumed soul energy.」

Thanks to the deep sea giant's active skill, I could recover MP periodically and maintain a certain amount.

Unlike Lek Aures, who picked [Giant's Blood].

"...I'm genuinely jealous, Baron Yandel."

You should have eaten green essence too.

MP is so important in this game.

"Well, the Baron handles main tanking anyway. You focus on sub-tanking in the back. Don't covet yollam fruit. Got it?"

"Got it..."

Aures sulked and stepped back.

But it wasn't only him who felt uneasy; everyone did.

"It's been so long since I've just shot normal arrows."

"Same here, so cut the whining, okay?"

"...Roger, roger."

"Look at your pronunciation. Are you pro-Japanese? It's 'okay,' not 'ryokai.' Got it?"

"Baekho... what's 'pro-Japanese'?"

"It exists."

Ibaekho and Briot fought monsters using only normal attacks to save MP.

It's like starting a chess game without rooks and cannons.

Funny enough, it still worked.

「Pophensis defeated. EXP +7」

From grade 3, things get really tough, and when grade 2 appears, fleeing is the only option.

'...Luckily, no grade 2 yet.'

Maybe because the dangerous northern part of Deadly Poison Lava Field is blocked.

Still, no sign of grade 2 monsters.

Thump—!

But I can't let my guard down.

"Baron, I think we should rest outside for a while."

"...Agreed."

While exploring the Deadly Poison Lava Field, we took breaks outside when it got overwhelming.

This was a common trick even during the 9th floor exploration.

Leaving the field removes the field effects.

'...Though it only works when exploring the southern edge.'

Anyway, after exploring quite a while and nearly finishing the map of Deadly Poison Lava Field, and thinking the Hans effect might be over—

"A monument! A monument!!"

We found a monument similar to the one in Primeval Land.

"...It has some unknown pictures drawn on it!"

"Those aren't pictures, they're letters."

"Haha! Even though I'm not well-educated, I wouldn't fall for that! How could this be letters?"

"......"

Though similar to the monument in Primeval Land, it had been so long since we found anything, so we stopped to examine it again.

But...

"The letters differ from those in Primeval Land, so we can't interpret them... no meaning. Other than being very sturdy, no new info."

Our previous failed investigations meant this one ended quickly.

"No new findings, then?"

"Yes, for now."

So, without wasting more time, we only recorded the monument's location on the map in detail and moved on.

We kept exploring to fill in the blank map areas.

And...

"In the end, nothing was found except that one monument."

Thus ended the Deadly Poison Lava Field exploration.

"So, what now?"

Briot, our archer and scout, asked as I chuckled.

What now?

There are still two unexplored areas left.

"We head to Dreamlike Waterfall."

I really don't want to go there, but there's no choice.

「Character entered special zone.」

「Field effect — Dreamlike Waterfall applied.」

Dreamlike Waterfall.

This field is basically the final trial of the 9th floor Star Grave.

Because the portal to the 10th floor is beyond here...

'What a nightmare.'

A concept and difficulty level that can only be described like that.

「Character periodically falls asleep.」

The single field effect described in just one line.

But nothing else is as annoying as this.

Ssssshhhhh.

A calm lake glowing like it holds the Milky Way.

We're sailing over it.

With three of our party asleep.

"This time, three fell asleep."

"Jaina, Old Man of Ruin, Havelion. The three most important are out."

"Let's hope no one else falls asleep until they wake."

"Assuming all three do wake up."

Upon entering the lake, characters periodically fall asleep.

Not just passively; inside, they have to fight visions alone and endure.

It's similar to the [Soul's Cage] skill of the special boss Kariadea from Ice Rock...

'The difference is that if you can't wake up alone, others can wake you up from outside.'

Like the yollam fruit in the Deadly Poison Lava Field, Dreamlike Waterfall has items to wake sleeping allies.

The problem is they're much harder to find.

Chaaaah.

A boat slowly sails over the beautiful lake as in the picture.

The boat belongs to Ibaekho.

I considered taking out my own, but last time I tried, his was a little better.

Though the difference was minimal and meaningless.

I didn't want to risk breaking my boat and paying repair fees, so I boarded quietly.

"Baekho, can you speed up?"

"What did you hear last time we passed here? Speeding up wakes monsters."

"Oh, right. Forgot."

One of Dreamlike Waterfall's annoying points.

Speeding up isn't impossible, but doing so wakes sleeping monsters underwater.

The only way is to quietly and quickly sail on a specially made boat...

'His boat isn't that either.'

Well, since we're not going to the 10th floor yet, we wouldn't visit Dreamlike Waterfall often.

And it's basically a matter of moving slowly here.

"Anyway, keep quiet. If you get noisy, monsters will appear and that'd be annoying."

"Got it..."

Aures lowered his voice, worried about getting yelled at by Ibaekho, while Briot quietly approached me.

"Baron, what will you do if we find nothing at Dragon Bone Mountain?"

"Then we'll have to investigate underwater here too."

"...The difficulty will be terrifying then."

"All we can do is hope that never happens."

"Yes..."

We slowly moved the boat forward without encountering monsters.

So peaceful I almost forgot this place is dangerous.

Ah, but only those awake could feel that.

"Phew... finally awake. Thought I was dead."

"Old Man of Ruin, why the sour face after a refreshing sleep?"

"Just... had a bad dream."

"Heh... now I'm curious."

One by one, starting with the GM, people regained consciousness, and soon others fell asleep.

"This time it's Briot, Aures, and Ibaekho."

Ibaekho collapsed, overcome by the field effect.

Watching him sleep deeply, an impulse arose.

I wondered if just throwing him off the boat would be an easy fix.

'...First we have to get out of here.'

Shaking my head, I pushed the thought away and took over steering.

"How nasty this is every time we get hit."

"Yes... at 4th floor it was a fantasy, but this is no fantasy here."

Starting with Ibaekho, everyone else woke up, then others fell asleep.

And...

'What the hell?'

Everyone but me kept falling asleep.

Well, since sleep is random, it's not impossible...

'Isn't it for the best?'

I told myself it was luck, but—

Thump—!

No, now I feel like this is a dangerous situation.

After that thought hit me, I grew anxious about being the only one not falling asleep.

And that anxiety only grew.

Because surprisingly, I kept being the only one awake.

Almost until we reached the map's edge.

"Baron, why do you look like that?"

"...Nothing."

Saying something only makes it worse.

"Anyway, we should arrive soon."

Deciding to stop worrying, I focused on something else.

Chaaaaa—!

After some time, the faint sound of water grew louder.

Soon the reason this place is called Dreamlike Waterfall appeared before us.

"Wow, always spectacular."

The end of the world as ancient people imagined it.

Water poured down a massive hole in the lake's center, forming a huge waterfall.

Note the ash boundary cuts across the waterfall, freezing two-thirds of it...

"Don't just watch. Increase the propulsion. It's okay if it gets loud. If we get sucked down, it's over."

"Roger."

From here, we sail through the lake, revealing the whole map.

We planned to move this way.

Then suddenly—

"...Something's coming from below."

Replacing the sleeping Briot, Old Man of Ruin muttered urgently.

At first, I barely heard him due to the waterfall's noise, but—

"Turn the bow!"

The tone and look clearly indicated danger.

At the same time...

[Kyaaaaaaaa—!!]

A giant snake-shaped monster appeared, swimming upstream against the waterfall.

Even the GM, usually the first to explain, was asleep, but his absence wasn't felt much.

Because this guy is famous.

"...Dryzen."

A grade 1 illusion type, Dryzen.

A special boss appearing only in this area, like Kariadea the glacial mage.

"We're screwed..."

This time, I didn't need to shout fiercely first.

Vroooom!

As soon as it appeared, Ibaekho pushed the propulsion to max.

The noise grew huge, but now was no time for such trivialities.

「Long-dormant monsters awaken.」

Whether or not mobs come at us, staying here is instantly fatal.

「Character entered [Dreaming Pond] range.」

「All harmful effects and damage against Dryzen are nullified.」

This monster can't be killed by us alone.

Even as a grade 1, it's on a different level than 'Kashan' we caught in the library.

This is its home ground.

We can hardly say we can run away in one piece...

'Could this be the delayed activation of the Hans effect...?'

Weak thoughts started dominating my mind as I spotted Dryzen.

"...No way."

Hans or whatever, I don't care.

"Phew..."

Calming my breath, I gathered my resolve.

From now on, I have to stay sharp.

Only then can I survive this crisis.

Just as I resolved this—

"...Huh?"

Suddenly my head feels foggy as if drugged.

At the same time—

「Field effect — Dreamlike Waterfall activated.」

My vision spins and blurs.

It was the same feeling I had when we circled Dreamlike Waterfall last time.

"I... run... fu—ck..."

I knew why nothing had triggered before.

"Why... now...?"

After saying this, my unbalanced body pitched forward.

Was it the rocking of the boat speeding along?

Thud.

To make things worse, I was flung off the railing and fell outside.

"Baron...!"

Sounds around dimmed.

Splash!

My body sank fast beneath the water.

But in that urgent moment, there was nothing I could do.

「Character has fallen asleep.」

...Damn it.