Barbarian Quest

Chapter 290

The Fire of the Empire had turned the sewer into a boiling hell, making it as hard to breathe as in a desert under the scorching sun. The evaporated stench clung to the body, and the flames burning on the filth barely subsided.

"The barbarians are coming again, hit them one more time!"

The imperial soldiers were pouring black liquid into the metal cylinder. Seeing that, Urich didn't hesitate and rushed forward.

Splash, splash.

Urich leaped high and vaulted over the cylinder. His sword and axe crossed in an instant, and a soldier's head fell to the ground.

"You sons of bitcheeeees!” Urich shouted as he hurled his axe, splitting the back of a fleeing soldier.

"Ooooooh!"

The soldier drew his sword and charged, deciding that it was too late for him to run. Urich swung his sword broadly, striking down the soldier's blade.

"Kaaagh!"

The soldier screamed as his fingers broke under Urich’s overwhelming strength.

Crunch!

Urich grabbed the soldier's head and smashed it against the wall. The helmet crushed, and brain matter and eyes spilled out.

‘How did they know we were coming?’

Urich ground his teeth as he realized that the plan that he thought was perfect had gone awry. They encountered the Imperial Army and engaged in battle even before reaching the surface.

"The barbarians are comiiiiiing!"

The shout of a soldier who managed to get away echoed through the sewer.

"Urich!"

The warriors awaited Urich's command.

‘Should we retreat here? Or should we continue trying to find the passage to the surface?’

Urich looked at the scorched corpses to see the charred bodies of a dozen warriors, including Katagi’s, who had burned to death in the narrow passage. Including the injured, their damage was in the dozens.

‘Is this a new weapon of the empire...?’

The image of the pouring flames was still vivid in his mind. It was like the fire breathed by dragons from the northern legends.

"We keep going. Don't we, Great Chief!"

A warrior spewing charred smoke shouted. The warriors, being the elite of the west who never fled from their enemies, didn’t allow their morale to falter despite the new threat. The fear of death was trivial to them.

"There is no way they were completely sure that we would come this way. If they were, we would have already been wiped out by now. They just have a small guard set up."

Urich’s stopped mind quickly resumed. The empire’s response was too lax to think they were fully prepared.

‘Then we just need to break through faster than they can respond.’

Urich gestured to the warriors to follow.

"Georg! Tell us which way to go!"

"W-we have to go r-right," Georg said in a trembling voice as he lifted his blackened face.

"We move right away, run!"

Urich led the way. They were now in a race against time.

‘If we retreat here, we won’t have another way to attack Hammel.’

The warriors hurried. There was no time to tend to the wounded brothers, and those who were severely injured by the Fire of the Empire were as good as dead.

"We're almost there," Georg spoke as he was carried by another warrior. He found the surface entrance he used when he had infiltrated Hamel as a spy.

"Go out there and turn right, and we’ll reach Hammel's square! The city gates are straight ahead from there!”

Urich listened intently and nodded as Georg laid out the path. Having stayed in Hamel for quite a while, Urich was able to quickly grasp the city's outline.

"I'll go first, Urich."

An old warrior grabbed Urich's shoulder and stepped forward.

"No matter what happens, you must survive. I know there are many who oppose you, but I see you, our young Great Chief, as our future."

Several old warriors climbed the ladder first and opened the entrance to the surface, and then pushed aside a metal disc and looked up.

"Ah...

The old warrior's mouth dropped open. He turned and shouted, "Run awa...!"

But the old warrior was interrupted by the spear that pierced his head. Then, a sticky black liquid flowed endlessly into the sewer.

Sizzle!

Then, it was followed by the sound of ignition.

"Go back the way we came!"

The warriors intuitively understood what the Imperial Army was planning—they were about to be bombarded with flames again.

Though there were only about two hundred warriors left, it was a large number in the sewers. No matter how agile the warriors were, it was hard to move quickly with their bodies and feet entangled in the tight space.

Fwooooosh!

Flames chased after the warriors, riding the spilled flame oil.

"Kaaagh!"

The warriors at the back were the first to be engulfed in the flames, screaming in agony.

"What, are they using fire sorcery or something?"

The warriors looked back in horror to see the passageway filled with flames. The fire only spread with no signs of going out.

"The fire doesn't go out even on water... this has to be fire sorcery."

The flames spread through the oil floating on the surface of the sewage water.

'Fire powder.'

Urich panted, recalling what he had seen long ago. When he first met Harvald, the Sun Warrior, Harvald had shown him fire powder, which was a trophy he got from killing a wizard.

The fire powder exploded into colorful flames as soon as it touched fire.

'Is that black liquid similar to fire powder?'

It was just a physical phenomenon that anyone could pull off with the right tools, not magic or sorcery that only magicians or shamans could cast. What influenced this world was not divine power but always human power.

"Urich! Don't come this way!"

A warrior running at the front shouted as he spotted a wooden barrel rolling toward him. Black liquid was flowing out of the hole in the barrel.

Thwip!

A dot of flame appeared in the distance. A fire arrow flew and hit the barrel.

Boooooom!

Oil and flames splattered everywhere as the wooden barrel exploded. Warriors caught in the fire screamed in pain and ran wildly.

"Uuuuuwaaaah!"

A warrior, despite his entire body being caught on fire, ran toward the direction from which the arrow had come, but soon fell to his knees and collapsed forward before reaching the enemy.

"It’s a dead-end here too!"

The warriors shouted as they saw barrels full of flame oil rolling toward them from all directions wherever they went.

Boom!

There was another explosion following the sound of arrows.

"Dammit!"

Urich shouted, shaking off the flames on his arm. Smoke rose from his half-cooked forearm.

"Get the Great Chief out of here!" A warrior engulfed in flames shouted.

'Beware of fire.'

Olga remembered Six-Fingered's words as he watched the flames closing in from all sides. At first, he thought the fire referred to the Great Chief Urich.

'Six-Fingered said my fate would be decided by fire.'

Olga looked at Urich who was busy leading the warriors and finding a way out in front of him.

'If I thrust my spear now, I can take him down.'

It was a vile thought, but how many warriors would make it out of this situation alive? Olga's dark desire stirred.

'The heavens have given me a sign. They've given me a chance to become the Great Chief.'

Olga closed his eyes and opened them again. Despite everything being blurred out by the chaos, Urich was clear in his vision.

Boom!

The flames surged long, and the black liquid stuck to the warriors' feet. Knowing that the sticky black liquid was the medium for the fire, the warriors hurriedly fled from the flowing liquid.

'But if the heavens are urging me to do something so cowardly and dishonorable...'

Olga grinned. Was the will of the heavens so despicable because Six-Fingered, who spoke of it, was despicable?

'...I will not follow their will.'

How could he attack Urich, who was desperately seeking a way to survive? Olga was a warrior who valued honor as much as his life, and he would rather die than do such a thing.

The empire's response was swift. Urich and the warriors were cornered as if they were being hunted by a group.

Urich was sweating profusely from the pouring flames.

‘They must have expected us to come through the sewers. They didn’t know we were coming today, but they knew where we would come through.’

Urich smirked as only one person came to mind.

‘Emperor Yanchinus.’

He was the only person capable of such a response. Yanchinus knew that Urich had used the sewers when he was following the Serpentines.

‘I’m not the only one who knows my enemy. Yanchinus knows me too, and he can anticipate what I might think.’

Urich blamed himself. He should have tried to throw off Yanchinus to keep him from reading his moves, but it was difficult to outwit an emperor who had lived his entire life amidst plots, especially so for Urich, who was not an exceptional strategist or schemer.

“Survive, Urich,” a warrior said, looking back at Urich. As soon as the warrior finished speaking, a huge explosion occurred and a burning barrel full of flame oil fell right above the warriors.

Booooom!

The explosion was akin to thunder. Urich's vision shook. His ears were ringing, and his unbalanced body fell into the sewage.

‘I need to get up and move.’

Urich wiggled his fingers.

If he stayed still, the flames would consume his body. The only reason he was still alive was because another warrior had pushed and covered him with their own body.

The number of warriors had drastically decreased to less than half of what they started the operation with. The sewer was engulfed in flames, and in their rush, they got themselves lost in the maze-like waterways. Urich and the warriors were practically waiting for the enemy's attack in a labyrinth. When they tried to climb up to the surface, spears and black liquid would pour down.

“Gag, ugh.”

Georg was also alive, but he was barely breathing from the terror. Rational decisions were off the table.

“W-we need to go that way, Urich!” Georg shouted, pointing blindly behind him.

“Are you sure? Georg?”

Urich grabbed Georg by the collar and looked into his eyes. Georg finally calmed down and looked around.

“I-I don’t know where to go, I don’t know where we are on the map,” Georg mumbled as he regained his senses.

“We have to get away from the fire. As long as we’re alive, we'll find a way.”

Urich led the warriors who could still move.

“The heavens have finally abandoned us, Great Chief. We are paying the price for not following their will,” a warrior, his face blackened by soot, spoke.

“To be exact, it’s the Great Chief who didn’t follow the heavens.”

Now that they were somewhat far away from the flames, old complaints resurfaced.

Urich glanced at Olga. He was the one who had more to say than anyone, but he followed Urich without a word.

“More enemies? Damn, is this a dead-end, too?”

A warrior at the front drew his bow at the sound of footsteps.

“...Are you the plunderers from the west?”

The warrior, who was about to shoot, hesitated at the voice and waited for Urich's command. In the infiltration unit, Urich and Georg were the only ones who could speak Hamelian.

“I’ll ask again, are you those plunderers? Is your leader named Urich?”

A man with his hood pulled low appeared. Urich frowned and took a step forward.

“I am Urich.”

“So you are the rumored Beast of the Apocalypse. If you want to live, follow me.”

“...Serpentines.”

Urich recognized the man’s affiliation. Serpentism still lived beneath Hamel, only now more secretive and likely grown amidst the chaos.

“Where is Trikee?”

Urich asked as he ran after the man. The man, pushing back his hood, frowned, seemingly upset at Urich’s casual use of the sacred name of the Ark.

“You will meet him soon. He is waiting for you.”

The warriors followed Urich without question. Even those who opposed Urich's reforms believed in the miracles he created.