Academy’s Barbarian

The mysteriously glowing crystals lost their light, dimming and darkening like a field at dusk, right in the middle of the underground cavern.

Suddenly, dozens of black holes formed, and all kinds of monsters poured out, roaring with murderous intent towards Damien, who stood silently holding the Holy Sword, and me standing beside him.

It wasn’t surprising. I had already anticipated this situation.

It was like this in the original too.

The monsters, suppressed by the power of the Holy Sword, all burst out and charged towards the owner of the Holy Sword, who stood dumbfounded, venting centuries of pent-up frustration in a battle event.

Until Damien was fully recognized as the master of the Holy Sword, the player had to control the party members they brought along to fend off the monsters.

What if Damien came alone without any party members?

Well, that’s obvious. Whether he’s the master of the Holy Sword or not, he’d just stand there dazed and end up as monster food.

The same goes if you neglected training other comrades while focusing solely on Damien’s growth.

No, actually, that might be an even worse ending. While Damien gets devoured by monsters, the comrades get devoured in a different sense.

“Kyaaaah!”

“Kireuk! Kirururuk!”

“Gruoooooh!”

In reality, among the monsters screaming at me, many seemed more interested in something other than murder, wriggling their tentacles or reproductive organs.

[What are these filthy things?]

Hersela expressed extreme disgust.

‘What do you think?’

I threw off the cumbersome fur leather cloak, placed my hand on the hilt at my waist, drew Durandal, and answered.

‘Enemies.’

The moment the silver blade, gleaming with golden runes, revealed itself to the world, hundreds, thousands of monsters charged at us simultaneously.

—

Fighting to protect someone is an incredibly tricky task.

You have to constantly keep in mind things you wouldn’t even need to worry about when fighting alone, which inevitably imposes significant restrictions on your tactics.

I couldn’t sweep away the minions into the World of Mortality because Damien might get caught up in it, and similarly, I had to avoid setting the entire place on fire and turning it into a fiery hell.

Unless I wanted to turn Damien into Damien stew or Damien roast.

So, like this—

– Kwaddddduk!

I had no choice but to swing my sword and cut them down one by one.

“Gruoooooh!”

A scream filled with pain.

The vacuum blade extending from the tip of the sword sliced dozens of small monsters in half, spilling their guts, while the medium-sized monsters that were grazed screamed as black blood poured from their severed limbs.

Not all monsters are the same.

The newly sealed novice monsters were strong enough to easily overwhelm a master-level knight, but the monsters that had tried to descend centuries ago and failed were surprisingly weak.

It’s like they aged backward.

It’s only natural. Back then, with the Heavenly Barrier intact, stronger monsters couldn’t even attempt to descend.

So, they’re just numerous but not much of a threat.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

With Durandal resting on my shoulder, I charged towards the tidal wave of monsters, showcasing the might of a warrior who had ascended to the realm of the superhuman.

Every time Durandal, drawing a blue arc, left afterimages in the air, the vacuum blade extended, tearing apart dozens of minions, and the rising crimson mist turned into spears, swords, and chains, sweeping through the area.

A river of black blood and floating chunks of flesh. Rotten flesh and animal guts scattered everywhere, transforming the once sacred crystal cave into a hellscape in an instant.

“Ahahahaha!”

My laughter mixed with heat.

The blood, chilled by the cold of the Sky Mountain Range, began to boil with the excitement of battle. Steam mixed with sweat rose like mist from my red-hot skin.

It felt good.

The murderous intent of the monsters stimulating my senses, the warmth of the black blood pouring over my body, the sensation of tearing flesh and crushing bones with the blade in my hand—it was so familiar, it felt like reuniting with an old friend.

Perhaps the frustration of flying around all day in the cold had built up without me realizing it.

“Kroooooooh!”

A bone and rotten flesh hand swung with a ferocious force, aiming to crush my entire body. Hook-like claws emitted a sinister sound.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

I stepped back a couple of steps, raising my right foot above my head, and as the massive spirit monster’s hand swept past my face, I brought it down.

– Bwoooosh!

The monster’s foreleg slammed into the ground with a loud crash. Shattered bones and flesh splattered everywhere.

Holding my breath to endure the stench of decay, I used the recoil from stomping on the monster’s hand to leap onto its shoulder.

“Kruaaaaaah!”

The monster’s skull, resembling a half-rotted whale’s, roared in pain and anger.

Dozens of eyes, clustered like frog eggs, rolled around in the sockets filled with pus, glaring at the human standing on its shoulder.

For something that looks like that.

“Shut your mouth.”

I stabbed Durandal into the monster’s shoulder, raised my right hand, and poured Life Force Technique into the Rune of Fire.

“The stench is vibrating.”

Whoosh, the Up-hwa ignited. A tiny flame, imbued with karma, grew into a crimson hand gripping the monster’s head.

“Kraaaaaaah!”

The rotten flesh and oozing pus boiled under the heat of the Up-hwa, bubbling and bursting. Dozens of eyes convulsed madly, swelling before popping with a squelch.

I glanced at the scene, pulled Durandal back, and leaped off the monster’s shoulder.

– Pwoooosh!

The monster’s shoulder, serving as my stepping stone, shattered under the pressure, and the torn-off arm flew back, crushing and exploding smaller monsters.

“Gwaaaaaah!”

The spirit monster, screaming as its head melted, collapsed.

The firepower that melted the brain inside the skull. It was undoubtedly a fatal wound.

The moment I sensed the monster’s death, I cut off the Life Force Technique maintaining the Up-hwa, extinguishing the flame, and accelerated my body further by spewing new Up-hwa from my back, charging like a comet.

While I was momentarily separated from Damien, a skeleton serpent, seeing its chance, charged towards Damien, tearing through the ground.

“Kyahyaaaaaah!”

The skeleton serpent, opening its jaw wide as if to swallow Damien whole. Inside the gaping jawbone were rows of sharp, spear-like teeth.

“You little snake!”

I pulled Durandal back over my shoulder and threw it like a javelin.

– Kwaaaaang!

With a sound like the air wall exploding, the blade shot out like a blue lightning bolt. The transcendent force within it pierced the serpent’s upper and lower jaws, pinning its skull to the ground.

“Kishaaaaaah!”

The skeleton serpent, pinned to the ground like a crucified figure, thrashed wildly, its spine and ribs writhing madly.

Well, it was just a final struggle. I was already within reach.

The moment I was a few steps away from its back.

“Kyaaaaah!”

I extinguished the Up-hwa on my back, raised my left arm, which hadn’t fully healed and was still blunt, and concentrated a full dose of Life Force Technique into it.

– Hwaaaaah!

The Life Force Technique burst out like a geyser, condensing into a clear form under my will. It looked like a massive mace attached to my severed arm.

If I had brought the Red Scale Saber, I would’ve drawn and swung it… but unfortunately, the only weapon I had now was Durandal.

The Black Iron Dagger I brought just in case had already been broken long ago after using it to test my strength, and all other weapons were left back at the mansion.

It couldn’t be helped. In the freezing cold where even breath froze, covering my body in metal wasn’t the wisest move.

So, I had no choice but to create a weapon like this and swing it.

“Crush—!”

I gripped the empty right hand like a hilt and brought the Life Force hammer down on the skeleton serpent’s back.

– Kwaaaaaaang!

A deafening explosion, followed by a fireworks display of white, red, and black fragments.

The moment of impact released a shockwave like a storm, shattering the Life Force hammer, the skeleton serpent’s bones, and the ground beneath into pieces, scattering everywhere.

“Ki, shaargruk…!”

The skeleton serpent, now just a head, slumped with a grotesque death rattle.

I grabbed the hilt of Durandal sticking out of its skull, swung it, and split the skull in half. With a quick glance to confirm Damien was still unharmed, I launched myself back towards the monsters.

In just a few minutes, I had already slaughtered over a hundred monsters, but the black holes filling the sky and earth were spewing out more than double that number endlessly.

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