Barbarian in a Failed Game

Natrix tried desperately to find any trace of Khan. She was the one who insisted on their companionship, invoking the Oath of Protection.

However, an entire sub-dimension had vanished. Even for a transcendent being, surviving such a calamity was nearly impossible. Could Khan, a mere mortal, have survived?

Natrix, being a transcendent herself, knew the answer best.

“He’s alive.”

Returning to her human form, Natrix examined the ground affected by the spatial pressure closely, arriving at her conclusion. This wasn’t some irrational conclusion born of blind faith in Khan’s extraordinary feats.

Unlike other mortals, Khan possessed the means to protect himself from spatial pressure.

‘No, perhaps causing the dimension to collapse in the first place was….’

Natrix dismissed the endless thoughts with her expansive consciousness as a transcendent being. Instead of fretting over the unseen safety of Khan, she decided it was best to prioritize what needed to be done first.

Leaving the Land of Warriors, crossing the Potsral Mountains, and returning to the Argon Kingdom, Natrix sought out Khan’s comrade and space-wielding mage.

The witch of the Forest of Inverted Cross, Ludmilla. Fortunately, finding Ludmilla didn’t take long.

Her spells, operating on an entirely different, unique system from standard magic, left conspicuous traces akin to giant footprints for Natrix’s dragon sight.

Following these magical remnants, Natrix found Ludmilla waiting at the command tent and recounted the ordeals that had transpired at the Land of Warriors.

“A collapsing dimension…? And he got caught in it…?”

“Aecharis personally prepared that sub-dimension. It’s too late to do anything about it now.”

“…….”

Natrix reiterated to Ludmilla, who might act rashly, that there was nothing they could do. Ludmilla, as a wielder of spatial magic, probably understood this better than anyone….

“I must see for myself.”

No matter how rational a mage is, some matters defy rational judgment. For Ludmilla, Gordi Khan was precisely such a subject.

“You know it’s too late.”

Even Natrix’s words, despite being endowed with the dragon sight that was said to see through the principles of the world, didn’t sway her. Ludmilla, acting as if she couldn’t hear the surrounding voices, seemed entirely dazed.

Leaving her tent, she brought out the improved chick-shaped golem to cross the Potsral Mountains. Blocking her path was none other than Maya Eldreth, who prided herself on being Khan’s most loyal vassal.

“Lady Ludmilla, you mustn’t go.”

Maya Eldrette, a woman who claimed to be Khan’s faithful servant more than anyone else.

“…You.”

There was no emotion in Ludmilla’s gaze as she quietly stared at Maya. This made it all the more chilling. Although anger had clouded her judgment, Ludmilla maintained an outwardly composed demeanor, which only highlighted her exceptional talent as a mage.

“What do you mean by that?”

However, Maya Eldreth was no longer someone to be underestimated. Through her experiences in Hoarfrost Gorge, she had gained something similar to the swordmasters’ ability to cut through anything—a mastery of her own.

More importantly, she was the one who had closely observed and followed Khan, understanding his actions and psychology better than anyone.

“According to Natrix, if our lord has disappeared due to some incident, our duty isn’t to waste time searching for his trace.”

“…….”

“Until he returns, our task is to ensure that his plans are successfully carried out and stay on course. And…”

Maya’s unwavering eyes pierced through Ludmilla’s emotionless gaze.

“In my opinion, the person most qualified to understand and lead his plans is none other than you, lady Ludmilla.”

It was clear from Maya’s eyes that these were not just empty words, but genuine beliefs. However, Ludmilla still couldn’t quell her anger. She merely managed to demonstrate a shred of composure, acknowledging the gravity of the situation.

“…With the current strength of the Argon Kingdom, it’s impossible to handle the Land of Warriors. The proper extermination operation will have to wait until the Empire’s reinforcements arrive.”

She meant that after dealing with the onslaught of Greenskin warriors, she planned to head to the Land of Warriors to assess the situation firsthand.

“You have made the right decision.”

Maya nodded and stood beside Ludmilla, just as she had when she followed Khan. Ludmilla glanced at Maya, then closed and opened her eyes slowly, noticing her faintly trembling fingertips.

“Sisters! Someone from the Empire has arrived! The vanguard of the regular extermination force…”

***

The Empire’s vanguard consisted of three thousand elite soldiers selected from various elector families, including one hundred knights and fifty mages from the Mage Tower.

While some strategists of the Argon Kingdom expressed concerns that the vanguard’s strength might not meet expectations, those familiar with the Empire’s power took the opposite view.

“The Empire has honed its blade. The private soldiers of the electors are all known to be formidable, and half of the knightly forces are high-ranking knights….”

“And there are fifty mages from the Mage Tower, including five Maguses. With this current force, it wouldn’t be impossible to push the front lines to the Potsral Mountains…”

“Enough. Even though the vanguard has granted us field command, it doesn’t mean we should craft our strategies as we wish.”

The atmosphere in the command tent, which had been somewhat excited, was quickly subdued by the entrance of the Black Wing Duke, the strongest knight of the kingdom.

Attending the meeting with the armor on his right arm completely torn off, he addressed the imperial representatives present.

“The current situation at the front line has reached a standoff. After the monster presumed to be their leader suddenly disappeared, their offensive has faltered.”

“I’ve been informed about that.”

The one who responded to the Black Wing Duke was the heir of an elector family, a person whose status and skills were perfectly suited for the role of a commander. However, contrary to the Black Wing Duke’s assumption, he shook his head, denying his command.

“However, I’m not the commander of the vanguard.”

“What? If an heir to an elector family and a high-ranking knight like you isn’t the commander, then who is?”

“Well, someone more suitable has arrived. I had no choice.”

The Black Wing Duke tilted his head in confusion, but the heir simply shrugged as if he also found it amusing. Then, someone barged into the tent without hesitation.

“Ah, perfect timing. This is the current commander of the vanguard, and the force dispatched to subdue the ‘king’ who has united the Greenskins.”

The person who forcefully barged in had hair that flared like flames.

‘A woman…?’

Though her sharp eyes gave an overall harsh impression, she was clearly a beauty. She furrowed her brow as she promptly took the vacant seat reserved for King Orion.

Despite her light, battle-inappropriate attire and a broken sword at her waist, the infuriated strategists attempted to step forward.

“… If we’re talking about a swordswoman with flame-red hair who could take the commander’s position over the heir of an elector family, there’s only one.”

Stopping the strategists was none other than the Black Wing Duke. Even though the woman didn’t introduce herself, the Black Wing Duke seemed to recognize her identity immediately. He stood up cautiously and gave a slight nod.

“You are the Sword Master’s disciple, the Sword Demon Leniyar, correct?”

“My identity doesn’t matter. What matters is the fact that you’re still dithering here.”

“Your intent is becoming curious.”

Despite her rude manner of speaking, the Black Wing Duke remained calm. However, the woman, Leniyar, continued her harsh demeanor, refusing to make eye contact or engage in proper conversation.

“Enough talk. Get everyone who can move ready. We’re crossing the Potsral Mountains immediately.”

“Mm. Sword Demon, even so, wouldn’t it be wiser to wait for the main force…”

“Would you shut up, young lord? If you want to end up crippled like your friend, keep talking.”

At Leniyar’s sharp retort, the young heir of the elector family quickly shook his head and stepped back, making it clear there were no further objections. Leniyar, her eyes flashing dangerously, delivered the final ultimatum.

“If you won’t go, I’ll go alone. Do what you want, weaklings.”

Bang!

Pushing her chair back roughly, Leniyar stormed out of the command tent.

‘That damn bastard… just vanished like that?’

Before barging into the tent, Leniyar recalled what she had heard from Ludmilla. That Khan had fallen into a trap laid by the Scion of the Arch Demon. That no trace of him could be found due to the collapse of the dimension.

‘To hell with that.’

Leniyar hadn’t taken any of that nonsensical talk to heart from the beginning. She wouldn’t believe anything until she saw it with her own eyes. Because—

‘That bastard wouldn’t go down so easily.’

***

『It’s about time you woke up.』

The now oddly familiar cold voice roused his consciousness. And as soon as he awoke, a searing pain like he had been beaten coursed through his entire body.

‘Is my body intact?’

Even that pain was a welcome sign for Khan. Despite having performed the reckless act of opening Aecharis’s pouch inside the Little Giant’s maw connected to Aecharis’s stomach to destroy the sub-dimension, he had survived with all his limbs intact.

‘Hiss. Maybe not entirely intact…’

However, as he attempted to move to get up, he felt an unusual weight on his left arm. Opening his eyes, Khan frowned.

‘What the hell is this?’

At first, he thought something was wrong with his left arm, but it turned out someone was actually lying on it. A bizarre-looking creature was using his arm as a pillow, sound asleep.

‘It has the shape of a human, but its appearance is…’

Where a human’s head should have been, there was no skin or facial features. Instead, black smoke encircled its head like a helmet, making it look anything but human. It appeared more like an undead.

Yet, below the neck, it had the appearance of normal human skin, making it even more baffling.

『After you lost consciousness from spatial pressure, it brought you here and fell asleep from exhaustion.』

“Brought me…?”

Khan’s face scrunched up as the familiar voice provided its cryptic explanation without further context. What connection was there between enduring spatial pressure and an unidentified creature appearing in place of the Greenskins that littered the Land of Warriors?

“Ugh…”

At that moment, sensing Khan’s presence, the strange creature stirred and woke up, lifting its head to meet Khan’s gaze. Or rather, it gave that impression since it had no eyes.

“You’re awake!”

Its greeting was friendly, contrary to its bizarre appearance. Even through Karyan’s Eye, Khan couldn’t detect any suspicious signs from it.

Turning his gaze from the creature, Khan’s trembling eyes began to survey his surroundings for the first time. The sight before him was hard to believe, even after seeing it with his own eyes.

“… Why is the sky red?”

The entire sky was red, as if soaked in blood. Unable to comprehend what he saw, Khan blinked in confusion. The creature responded as if amused by an interesting joke.

“Oh, come now. The sky has always been red, hasn’t it? It’s red because it’s made from the blood of the Great Arch Demon!”

TL’s Corner:
To Hell we go!!!