Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 457
C457: Raid (2)
“Whoa! What a strange—.”
Just as Aynar was about to bend over and reach out with her hand.
“Stop!!!”
I shouter, stopping Aynar in her tracks.
And only after I pushed a startled Aynar away did I breathe a sigh of relief.
“…Wh-What the hell? I didn’t do anything wrong!!”
Aynar, clueless about the situation, was quick to defend herself.
Of course, I wasn’t really planning to scold her.
“What the heck is this flower about?”
Ignorance isn’t a crime.
Well… at least not for a barbarian.
“No.9999 Beginner’s Luck.”
When I announced the item’s name, only one person reacted—Amelia.
“…We have acquired a rare item from the start.”
Of course, it’s rare.
It’s the kind of thing money can’t buy.
“So… what exactly is it?” Erwin asked
“Hmm… It’s one of the 109 Treasures of the Labyrinth. Didn’t you read any books when you were young?” Amelia Retorted
“…I wasn’t asking you,”
I also had no idea what the ‘109 Treasures’ Amelia mentioned were, but it seemed like they’d fight if I left them alone, so I jumped in and answered.
“Beginner’s luck is a talisman item.”
In the game, it’s listed under the English name ‘Charm.’
“A talisman…?”
Seeing that the word seemed unfamiliar, I explained the concept of talismans, and Erwin, who had some experience as an explorer, quickly understood.
“Ah, so you mean it’s a type of equipment that activates just by possessing it?”
“Exactly.”
Among the Numbers items, there are twelve in the talisman category, and owning multiple doesn’t stack their effects.
Only one can activate at any time.
“Also, beginner’s luck binds to its first owner.”
“…Like the ‘Fire Orb’ you mentioned before?”
“Right.”
“…No way! I-I swear I had no idea!! I’m telling the truth! You have to believe me!!”
The second Aynar heard it was a bound item, her face turned deathly pale, and she started making excuses. Naturally, we ignored her and continued our conversation.
“So, what effect does this flower have?”
Ah, that.
Simple.
This talisman item doesn’t help in combat. It doesn’t increase item level when equipped, nor does it improve attributes.
However…
“It increases the chance of essence appearing from the first monster you hunt.”
“Ah, I see… What a curious item!”
Erwin, surprisingly, seemed unimpressed, merely acknowledging it.
Aynar, on the other hand, seemed a little deflated.
“What kind of vague effect is that? It’s not guaranteed to produce essence, and it only works on the first monster!”
It wasn’t an unreasonable reaction.
They don’t know the specifics, after all.
According to my statistics(which I made up), beginner’s luck increases the drop rate by about 5%.
And this isn’t a multiplicative increase.
It simply adds a fixed percentage.
For instance, if the drop rate for a guardian’s essence is 33%, it’s increased by 5% to 38%.
Of course, if you just look at that, the effect might seem minimal… … .
“So how likely is it to work?”
But it is a completely different story against normal monsters.
You may not notice the difference between increasing the odds from 33% to 38%,
but going from 0.01% to 5.01%? It is so drastic that anyone is bound to notice it.
“About one in twenty”.
When I finally uttered the rough odds, Aynar, Erwin and Amelia all seemed shocked.
“Is that really true?! One out of twenty!”
It was a reaction I somewhat expected.
Though they don’t know the exact numbers, explorers learn from experience the notoriously low rates of essence drops.
I added more explanation.
“Ah, of course, it’s based on level 9 monsters, and from what I’ve heard, the higher the level of the monsters, the better the drop rate.”
As the monster’s level increases, the base drop rate slightly rises.
There are even 3rd level monsters with a drop rate of 5%.
Well, they are incredibly tricky to hunt, though.
“Indeed… worthy of being included in the 109 treasures.”
“Definitely. Even if it works on the first monster you kill, with such odds, just taking a mage along could earn you a fortune.”
“Bjorn… I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was so special, I shouldn’t have touched it carelessly…”
Suddenly, Aynar apologized.
Was she disheartened because I didn’t respond to her earlier excuses? Since I had nothing particular to say, I just ignored her and focused on the topic at hand: “So… who gets to take this?”
It was time to decide who would keep the item.
Since it was a bound item, selling it was out of the question.
“You said the person holding it doesn’t have to hunt the monsters themselves, so it should work for all of us as long as we’re bound by the binding spell, right?”
“In that case, giving it to someone who’s killed the fewest monsters amongst us will be best”
Amelia was right—if we consider pure efficiency, giving it to the lowest-rank member is best.
Currently, Amelia is Rank 8, while Erwin, Aynar, and I are Rank 7.
“Auyen, what’s your rank again?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes! I’m Rank 6 right now…!”
So logically, it would also make sense to have Auyen use it, just dragging him around like a totem to get that effect.
‘But we can’t give such a precious item to a non-combatant member we won’t even bring on our real raids.’
Having decided, I gave my verdict:
“Aynar, you take it.”
Erwin already has experience fighting Bellarios, but Aynar does not.
“…Huh? Y-You want me to have it? Well, sure, that’s great, but wouldn’t it be better if you had it, Bjorn…?”
Didn’t I tell her already? You can only wear one talisman item at a time.
And I can’t be wasting a precious slot on something I can’t get rid of later.
“Trust me, it’ll be more useful for you than me. So just take it, Aynar”
“Bjorrrrn!!!!”
Fortunately, Aynar was happy.
[Luck from the flower seeps into Aynar Pheneline]
After clearing the Tomb of Steel, we headed straight to the Beast’s Den.
And…
“Aaaah! How long do we have to stay in this stinky place! This isn’t the kind of exploration I imagined!!”
We waited until the 8th day for any rift to open.
Sure, I considered delaying things until we brought a mage onto our team, especially now that we had Beginner’s Luck on our side, but…
‘Considering the cost of test tubes, selling the essences from this floor wouldn’t be worth it.’
In the end, the only thing really worth anything was the guardian’s essence, and I planned to feed it to Erwin, so there was no need to delay our plans any further. We could focus on making money with a mage next time.
“…Really? Are we seriously going to the higher floors after wasting all this time?!”
“Didn’t we decide it beforehand, so stop whining!”
As we started to head towards the portal on the 8th day, we started encountering several mid- to high- level explorers.
They were explorers doing ‘Rift runs,’ just like us.
After the 7th day, no more rifts would open on the second floor, so without hesitation, they moved to the higher floors.
[You have entered the Pilgrim’s Path on the third floor]
After reaching the third floor, we passed over Iron Rock Hills and headed directly for the Orc settlement to start our grind.
The monster we planned to hunt this time was the one I was quite familiar with.
It was the very monster that the Djzarwi Clan had hunted during the summoning of the Lord of Chaos.
The Orc Hero.
“Ohhh! So, [Gigantification]! Can I use [Gigantification] now too!!”
Although Aynar was thrilled to hear about the target of this route, the truth is, none of us are going to consume its essence.
Without the [Unity] of the Immortal Imprint, the penalty for [Gigantification] is too high.
So we’d planned to just collect some EXP or see if any Numbers Items dropped, and then leave.
However…
‘Given that we still have Beginner’s Luck, there’s a decent chance something might drop. And I can’t bear to just toss an Essence away.’
So, as I was farming the Orc Champion’s Magic Stones for the altar, I talked to every mage I met.
Thanks to that, I was able to find one.
“Test tube…? I do have one but…”
“Great. If an Essence drops, just put it in there. I’ll pay for the test tube on the spot.”
“W-What are you talking about? Who do you think you are—?”
“Lewis! Are you crazy? That’s Baron Jandel!”
“…!!!”
Perhaps due to my reputation, recruiting help went more smoothly than expected.
I also got some useful information.
Seems the 3rd floor still hasn’t opened any rifts?
‘Okay, then I’ll stay on the 3rd floor until Day 13 and leave afterward…’
Then, I resumed the grind of farming mana stones.
Since we all scattered to hunt, it didn’t even take a day before we had gathered all 777 mana stones, and after we collected them all, I instructed a nearby mage to stand by.
“Just to be clear, do not come near here until I arrive. If the Orc Lord appears, I won’t be able to take care of you too.”
“The Orc Lord…”
“A Level 2 monster.”
“Level 2!”
“But as long as you stay away, it will be safe, so don’t worry too much.”
“Understood, I will keep that in mind…”
That concluded the preparations.
After explaining what to do if the Orc Lord made an appearance, I offered the mana stones to the altar.
[The soul of a great warrior has been offered to the warrior’s vessel]
[The soul of a great warrior has been offered to the warrior’s vessel]
[The soul of a great warrior has been offered…]
One by one, each mana stone placed on the altar turned into light and vanished.
[Special Condition – The Rising Vessel has been satisfied.]
The statue behind the altar began shedding its outer shell, signaling the start of the boss fight.
Fortunately, the Orc Lord statue remained intact.
Well, considering the low probability of summoning the Orc Lord, it’s not too surprising…
‘Still, whenever there’s a chance of an impossible fight breaking out, it makes me tense’
“Everyone, get ready!”
As I called out to my teammates who had moved away from the altar.
[The ancient hero Danish is awakening.]
[The ancient hero Belta is awakening.]
[The ancient hero Tarugas is awakening.]
The three Orc Heroes broke free from their statues and immediately began the battle.
[Groooaaaarrr!!!]
“Betheeeeel—Raaaa!!!”
An axe, a hammer, a sword.
Each wielding a different weapon, the three Orc Heroes charged at me. Thanks to linking [Transcendence] with [Gigantification], I didn’t feel outmatched in size.
Kooong-!
Also, even if I couldn’t block their attacks and got hit, it wasn’t painful.
It was just a slight bone ache.
Honestly, even if I just stood there taking hits, I could probably endure it for a whole day.
But…
‘This is perfect for practicing our teamwork.’
Since I wasn’t doing anything but taking hits, the fight dragged on.
For a very obvious reason.
They may only be three Level-5 monsters…
But in terms of difficulty, they require a fairly challenging strategy.
Fsssssh-!!!
As soon as the raid started, waves of Level-7-or-lower Orcs from the forest came rushing in nonstop.
Boom! Boom! Booooom—!
Following the briefing, Aynar was fending them off, but that meant one of our damage dealers was missing from the boss fight.
In other words, Erwin and Amelia had to kill all three bosses on their own.
Sure, these two had previously one-shotted a Deathworm in the Rocky Desert…
[The Ancient Hero Denish casts [Torment].”
But these guys are a higher variant of Level 5 monsters, each holding a Level 4 Essence.
And each of the three has a different Essence.
[The Ancient Hero Belta casts [Sacred Battleground].”
[The Ancient Hero Tarugas casts [Guardian Shield].”
A combination of Essences that complement their weaknesses and maximize their strengths.
But that’s not all—there’s another headache:
[Erwin Fornacci di Tercia casts [Focused Fire]
[Denish uses [Sword of Control]
[The trajectory of the ranged attack is altered]
They use Numbers Items.
[The Orc Shaman casts [Frenzy]
[Denish’s physical resistance triples for 10 seconds]
And even if they do get hit, the incoming damage is greatly reduced…
Not to mention the heal they receive in real time. A display of power that ordinary field Orc Heroes could never hope to replicate.
If it weren’t for the “Numbers Item Drop” as an additional bonus for killing these high-variant monsters, there would be absolutely no reason to tackle this raid.
“You guys, what are you doing?! Hurry up and kill them!! You took down that worm so easily before!” Aynar shouted
“It’s not as simple as you think, okay?!”
“Just focus on your job, barbarian.”
As they fell into a challenging situation, discord began, but…
Everyone was a professional.
“Aynar! Could you prioritize taking down the shaman first?”
“Tersia. Aim for the one with the hammer first. I’ll block the one with the sword.”
“Bethel—raaaaaaaaa!”
Over time, they realised they weren’t getting anywhere, so they started giving each other feedback, collaborating and creating opportunities.
“Aaaaaaaah!”
Despite being just at Rank 6, Auyen diligently swung his weapon near Erwin, helping with the mob control.
And finally.
[The ancient hero Belta has been defeated. EXP +5]
[Superior mutant elimination bonus. EXP +1]
They managed to bring down one of the three heroes, and this quickly shifted the momentum in our favor, and the fight came to an end.
[The ancient hero Danish has been defeated]
[Superior mutant elimination bonus. EXP +1]
[The ancient hero Tarugas has been defeated]
[Superior mutant elimination bonus. EXP +1]
Checking the time, the total duration of the battle was about 35 minutes. Considering there were only four of us, that was fairly quick…
“Nothing dropped… We went through all that trouble for nothing…”
Zero loot.
No Essences, no Numbers Items.
But what can you do?
This kind of disappointment is all too common when playing [Dungeon & Stone].
“Okay, let’s quickly collect the mana stones and move on. Oh, Emily, you can tell the mage over there that they can leave now.”
Soon after, we manually farmed the altar stones and left the orc settlements.
Up to here, there were no problems.
However…
“Mister…?”
We were waiting near the Witch’s Forest, hoping for a rift to open before Day 13. That’s when the ominous signs began.
[A fifth sacrifice has been offered to the cabin]
[A sixth sacrifice has been offered to the cabin]
[A seventh sacrifice has been offe—]
The surroundings had grown so bright that we no longer needed torches.
When we looked up, a blazing red light was scattered across the ceiling.
[Special Condition – The Seven Sacrifices has been met]
Tsk, just my luck, some bastard is starting shit again.
Whoever it was…
[The Lord of Chaos, Riakis, has begun roaming the floor]
This just got complicated.