Barbarian in a Failed Game

It wasn’t just Tulkan who noticed Yoro’s strange behavior; Khan, keenly aware of his surroundings, noticed it too.

‘What the hell did that guy do?’

Khan, who had been directly facing the overwhelming presence emanated by the Blood King’s ‘eye’, found the current situation hard to comprehend.

Even though only a part of him had descended, the Blood King had laid bare his transcendental nature and had almost managed to crush Khan with his sovereign powers.

Yet suddenly, the Blood King’s eye exploded, and Yoro’s extended hand suggested he had done something. More notably, Yoro’s demeanor remained calm in the midst of an atmosphere thick with fear.

It meant that even an entity as transcendent as the Blood King had not stirred Yoro’s emotions.

‘I knew there was something about this guy….’

Whether it was his extensive knowledge of the Blood Domain’s history, despite his physically weak appearance, or his unflappable calm in any situation, it was clear now that Yoro had hidden depths. However, Khan hadn’t expected him to harbor such a monumental secret.

“Hey! Yoro! What the hell did you do?”

“…”

“Silently ignoring me, huh? Trying me, are you? Think I’ll back down?”

He looked scared to anyone watching. Khan couldn’t help but laugh at the tension-breaking sight of Tulkan throwing mock punches at the unresponsive Yoro.

Who Yoro really was, how he nullified the Blood King’s descent, and whether their initial encounter had been intentional… these were questions for another time.

‘Figuring him out will come later.’

For now, Khan knew what needed to be done.

“Tulkan!”

“Yes, hyungnim… this guy—”

“Forget it. Just keep an eye on him. Make sure he doesn’t disappear.”

“What? And what are you planning to do…?”

“What else?”

Whatever Keltor intended by risking his life to summon the Blood King, it was disruptive enough to change everything.

At least, if it had succeeded.

“With his master inexplicably gone, they’re probably in disarray. Wouldn’t it be a shame to just let them leave quietly?”

In this moment, the demonkins of the legion, who had come to crush the rebels at the first settlement, were nothing more than prey. And the wolf of Hoarfrost Gorge never lets prey slip from its jaws.

“Seems like a monster hunt.”

Khan grinned, showing his fangs, as he began to rampage through the throng of demonkins.

That day,

The demonkin legion of thirteen hundred lost half its number and retreated, while three Demonkin Generals fell under Kurtank’s control. And a new king’s name spread through the central Blood Domain.

From the massacre of hundreds of demonkins with a single axe and a crude great sword arose the name, the Butcher King.

***

The battle that began with the demonkin legion’s invasion of the first settlement ended in a victory for the Butcher King, the new ruler of the frontier, defying everyone’s expectations.

Surprisingly, most of the glory belonged to the Butcher King himself, though in the demonkin world, it wasn’t an unusual accomplishment. After all, the King of the Blood Domain was synonymous with the strongest demonkin in the Blood Domain.

“Still… the symbolic significance is profound. From now on, the central demonkins will have to acknowledge the Butcher King who emerged from the frontier. And a lesser demonkin challenging the Blood King will undoubtedly provoke many other minor demonkins in the Blood Domain.”

“That’s not really what I wanted.”

“For someone who says that, you certainly made quite a flashy display, didn’t you?”

Experience points were there for the taking, after all. Khan casually brushed off Kurtank’s subtly impertinent gaze. Becoming a king in order to draw out the Blood King had been his ultimate goal, and in a way, it had been accomplished from the very beginning.

Even Keltor’s ramblings, after his forced summoning, confirmed that the Blood King had the information Khan sought.

‘Judging from what I’ve gathered, it’s certain he took the powers of Esperus. If that’s the case, the traces of Esperus should be close to where he obtained those powers.’

Now, all that’s left is to meet the Blood King himself and, through some persuasive method, find out where the traces are…

‘That’s what should have happened.’

But an unexpected clue emerged from an unforeseen corner. Though it wasn’t entirely clear, there was definitely something suspicious about this individual.

“Kurtank.”

“What do you want to say now?”

“Bring Yoro here.”

“…”

Kurtank’s gaze, initially reproachful, turned serious as she nodded. Ever since the Blood King’s attempted descent, Kurtank had been deeply troubled over Yoro’s status. Then again, there was no real decision to make about it.

“I’ll be right back.”

Currently, Yoro was being watched by Tulkan, one of the so-called Four Heavenly Kings.

‘Well, it’s not so much watching as he’s the only one around to keep him company.’

Given the circumstances, it wasn’t feasible to let anyone other than Tulkan handle the one who had managed to thwart the Blood King’s descent in front of numerous demonkins. In reality, there was no more suitable guardian than Tulkan.

It made sense for Kurtank, second only to the Butcher King, to personally fetch Yoro.

Clack.

Not long after, Yoro entered, accompanied by Tulkan.

“Tulkan, step outside for a moment.”

“Yes? Can’t I just stay and listen…?”

“Do as you wish.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

“If you think you can handle whatever you hear, then stay.”

Yes, I’ll leave quietly.

After bowing with unprecedented speed and closing the door behind him, Tulkan left Khan and Yoro alone in an awkward silence. Yoro, having been brought in without explanation, stared blankly at Khan.

‘It’s good that a clue has emerged close by, but this is the problem…’

The issue was evident: Yoro remembered nothing about what he had done.

From the moment the Blood King attempted to descend to the time Khan slaughtered the legion’s demonkins and earned the title of the Butcher King, Yoro seemed to have erased all memory from his mind.

‘I’ve been putting this off because I wasn’t sure what might come out if I pushed too hard… but it’s time now.’

Khan was fully prepared.

The “Essence of the Five-Colored Bird” used during the hunt against the legion’s demonkins, had fully recharged over the past few days, and Khan’s stamina had not just recovered but was brimming beyond full.

Given this, even if a transcendent being above level 40 appeared, he felt ready to handle it.

“Oh, um. Should I sit?”

“Sit wherever. This conversation won’t be short.”

“Haha… I suppose this is about the ‘memory gap’ I have?”

Khan confirmed with silence, and Yoro responded with an awkward smile.

“Honestly, even if you ask me, it’s a bit hard to answer… I don’t remember anything, as I’ve said.”

“Don’t worry about that. We have a specialist here.”

“Excuse me…?”

It was peculiar how he felt like he saw an expression of fear on Yoro’s featureless face as Khan drew out a blunt, broad sword. Draupnir was a nearly indestructible, semi-legendary item, but the malice inhabiting it had consumed various things and nearly regained its original performance.

『Using me so conveniently isn’t totally agreeable.』

The Spirit of Resentment laughed softly but without any real displeasure.

『I am quite intrigued by this one’s true nature myself. For this once, I will assist you, you deranged human.』

“Why… this…?”

Yoro’s body trembled, sensing the ominous aura of Draupnir, though he couldn’t hear the Spirit of Resentment’s voice.

“It’s fine, just hold onto it. Despite its looks, it’s quite effective.”

“That’s not reassuring at all…”

Yoro gulped uneasily, staring at the hilt extended by Khan. Steeling himself, he accepted Draupnir.

“Is this good enough?”

“Yes. The rest, this guy will handle.”

“Excuse me? What do you mean by ‘this guy’…”

“It’s the parasite that decided to squat in my head.”

『Impertinent.』

Ignoring the Spirit of Resentment’s grumbling, Khan placed a thick hand over Yoro’s on the hilt and signaled to the Spirit of Resentment.

“Let’s find out what you really are.”

Then, darkness engulfed his vision.

***

When he opened his eyes again, Khan found himself in the form of Han. Both Unyielding and Draupnir were attached to his waist, but there was one notable difference from before.

“What the hell is this…?”

The suit he had worn for years, which had become as comfortable as an old uniform, was now bulging as if it were about to burst apart.

While gaining weight and having his waistline expand due to frequent gatherings and late-night snacks was common, this situation was entirely different.

Bulging.

Not with fat, but with muscles. Not just any muscle, but muscles that were so pumped they threatened to tear apart his clothing.

‘People at work would freak out.’

If the paunchy man suddenly appeared as a human weapon, it would undoubtedly cause quite a stir. Hadn’t the sorceress once said that one’s spiritual form takes the shape most familiar to them?

Back then, his spiritual form had manifested with an axe in his hands, resembling his earthly self, but now it appeared like a barbarian’s muscular physique. Perhaps the balance of the scales had further tipped toward the Midland side.

‘At this rate, will I fully take on my Midland form?’

Even if that were the case, it wouldn’t be overly surprising. Considering he had spent a deeply impactful decade here, enough to overshadow thirty years of his previous life.

“Huh? Where exactly… Oh my! Could it be, Lord Khan? That appearance…? And what is this place?”

『It is inside your mind, peculiar being.』

Startled by the sudden voice, Yoro fell onto his backside. Noticing Yoro’s gaze fixed on his shoulder, Khan turned his head and was similarly startled by the strange creature perched there.

‘A dragon?’

“…Why do you look like that?”

『Roaming around in my true form is quite inconvenient, so I shrank myself.』

That wasn’t what he meant. The creature resembled a miniature dragon, with scales as red as blood and two pairs of horns, though notably, the horns were bent in the middle.

‘The Dragon-Slaying Sword looks just like a dragon too.’

Given their mental connection, the Spirit of Resentment should have sensed Khan’s curiosity, but it chose not to answer, instead flapping its tiny wings and speaking.

『With my current power, accurately pinpointing and extracting specific memories is difficult. Generally, I can only show the memories that the owner of the mind recalls most vividly.』

The method Khan had prepared to uncover Yoro’s secret involved using the Spirit of Resentment’s ability, ‘Resentment Invasion’, to pull out memories.

Specifically, it was meant to extract something Yoro couldn’t consciously recall.

“But… how can you draw out memories that I don’t even remember?”

Yoro’s question was entirely reasonable. Instead of providing a detailed explanation, the Spirit of Resentment left an ominous warning that experiencing it firsthand would make things clear.

In the very next moment—

“Arghhh—!!”

“Kill the demonkins!”

“Drive them all out of Midland—!”

They found themselves in the midst of a battlefield.