STGB Chapter 734

Episode 734 Clown (3)

Unexpected situations arise.

That’s the only way to describe it, but giving up in despair? That wasn’t Abet Necrapeto’s style.

After all, why would he?

—

「Field Effect – Underworld is activated.」

This place is the Underworld.

Accessible only by using a staff that is essentially a graduation weapon for necromancers—

—

「All physical stats of non-living entities increase by 200%.」
「All physical stats of living entities decrease by 20%.」

—

A veritable paradise for necromancers.

「Undead in this area do not perish permanently.」

Undead summoned here, no matter how damaged or destroyed, would revive after a short time as if nothing had happened.

—

「The character possesses a symbol.」
「The character is blessed by the Underworld.」

—

A character wielding the Staff of the Underworld was classified as a “non-living entity,” making them effectively unkillable.

Sure, there were countermeasures against it, but they were irrelevant here.

—

“Pfft…”

So why would he need to feel fear now?

—

Step.

Though the approaching barbarian exuded the pressure of an unstoppable war machine,

Step.

And despite knowing that breaking through that absurd defense would be nearly impossible—

—

‘…If it’s just holding out, I can manage!’

Running away? That was entirely feasible.

The barbarian, after all, had monstrous defensive capabilities but lacked speed.

Abet had learned this the hard way during a recent chase.

Of course, his own lack of mobility had nearly gotten him caught back then…

But this time was different.

—

“Why are you laughing?”

—

Now, with his stats greatly enhanced and his summoned creatures significantly more powerful, he had no reason to be intimidated by this barbarian.

And so…

—

“Why, am I not allowed to laugh? Pfft.”

—

Confidence surged, and along with it came a newfound sense of calm.

—

“Well, it’s not that. It’s just surprising—you looked like you were at death’s door a moment ago.”

“Death’s door? No, just a little startled, that’s all. Pfft.”

—

As the saying goes, the body follows the mind. Abet’s previously hunched shoulders straightened out, and his courage blossomed.

Positive thinking had a way of snowballing.

—

‘24 hours… That’s all I need.’

—

If no one died for 24 hours, they would all be expelled from this zone and returned to their original locations.

But he wasn’t worried about that.

—

‘Until the captain arrives.’

—

He had received word that the captain stationed in Zone 4 was already en route to Zone 8 to intercept Bjorn Yandel.

Even if it took a while, the captain would inevitably arrive. And once he did, even this mysterious knight wouldn’t stand a chance.

—

Humans could defeat dungeon monsters.

But humans defeating the captain? That was near impossible.

If Abet could hold out and return to the original location, the knight would either be dead or fleeing, and his team would have established a formation to corner him.

Even the tenacious barbarian couldn’t survive such a situation—

—

Tat-tat-tat!

—

Really, could these barbarians not interrupt someone while they were thinking?

—

Whooosh!

A brutish and unrefined strike swung toward him without a shred of elegance.

“Pfft.”

Taking a casual step back, Abet easily dodged the blow.

“Too slow.”

—

The barbarian would likely be baffled.

How is he dodging so easily? That swing should have connected just moments ago…!

—

‘Hah, clearly he doesn’t understand.’

—

The barbarian knew nothing about the Underworld.

Factoring in the advantage of his superior knowledge, Abet’s position became even stronger.

So much so that…

—

‘Hmm… Maybe I should try fighting back?’

—

He had only dodged once, but that single success inflated Abet’s confidence and sparked a bit of greed.

—

Imagine it—Abet Necrapeto, corpse collector, taking down Bjorn Yandel the giant in a one-on-one fight.

What a tale that would be—

—

Fssssssss!

—

Suddenly, a green gas erupted from the ground between him and the barbarian, forcing the barbarian to retreat to avoid it.

—

At first, Abet didn’t think much of it.

Avoiding mysterious gas was the natural response.

But then—

—

“What’s the deal? Why doesn’t it affect you?”

“…Huh?”

—

Not understanding the question, Abet tilted his head.

“What are you talking about?”

—

“You don’t know? Oh, man. Explaining it just feels awkward now…”

The barbarian’s words suggested he knew something about the gas.

Feeling a vague sense of unease, Abet decided to press further.

—

“…You’re saying you know where we are?”

“Of course I do. This is the Underworld, the place you summoned with your staff. That gas curses me and strengthens you.”

—

“……”

—

The barbarian’s concise explanation left Abet speechless.

—

“What, you seriously didn’t know?”

—

It wasn’t that he was unaware.

What shocked him was how accurately the barbarian had grasped the mechanics of the Underworld.

Though momentarily stunned, Abet quickly recovered.

—

“…What nonsense. Anyone could know ‘a little’ about the Underworld—it’s famous.”

“Then let’s stop talking and fight again?”

—

The barbarian, uninterested in further conversation, let out an ear-splitting battle cry and charged once more.

—

[Grroooarrr!]

—

Abet responded by summoning his most formidable corpse from his dimensional storage.

Initially, he had planned to focus solely on dodging, but now he considered testing his strength to see if he could gain the upper hand.

However—

—

“Wow, so it has the [Barrier] trait? How much customization did you do?”

—

The barbarian immediately identified the trait of Corpse No. 3, a characteristic that had only appeared after thousands of modifications.

—

“And this guy’s weak point is here, so it’s easy.”

Crash!

The invincible No. 3—a prized construct immune to most damage—collapsed limply after its lone weakness was struck.

Thanks to the field effect, it would revive soon enough, but…

‘…How does he know this?’

Abet Necrapeto’s soaring confidence took a hit, while his unease grew stronger.

—

Even so, he clung to hope.

“…[Punisher] trait? I’ll let that one hit me directly.”

Crash!

“And, oh, the [Musician] trait? That one needs to go first.”

Crash!

—

The barbarian moved with unsettling precision, as though privy to all the truths of the world.

—

“Oh, ‘Underworld Fire’? Nice loot.”

The barbarian gleefully targeted specific field monsters, smashing those that temporarily increased darkness resistance upon defeat.

He even took aim at randomly protruding parts of the terrain.

‘…Why is he hitting that?’

“Don’t know? It boosts resistance stats when you break it.”

—

The hidden interactions of the Underworld, even unknown to seasoned necromancers, seemed like second nature to him.

—

Thud.

Testing it himself, Abet felt as if his skin had grown tougher, just slightly.

Thump.

The feeling of something being deeply wrong intensified.

—

Still, Abet refused to surrender. He bided his time, preparing his trump card.

—

“This… This will stop you!”

—

“Oh, time for a big summon?”

“…Excuse me?”

“What, weren’t you about to summon the Underworld King?”

“….”

—

He was right.

The Underworld Staff allowed its wielder to summon a field boss under specific conditions.

And that was exactly what Abet intended to do.

But…

Thump.

—

‘How does he even know about that?’

—

The barbarian acted as if he’d visited the Underworld countless times.

—

“Well, it doesn’t matter if you know! It can’t be stopped!”

—

Abet raised his staff high, designating the moon hanging in the dark sky as his target. Once again, he cast Underworld’s Call.

—

[The scent of the living reaches me.]

—

The transcendent voice echoed across the Underworld.

Even knowing the Underworld King was an ally, Abet felt a chill run down his spine.

The memory of the King effortlessly obliterating a challenger during Orqulis’s “Ranked Battle” was still vivid.

—

He wasn’t entirely confident, though.

Bjorn Yandel.

One of the strongest “Guardians” in Lafdonia’s history. Even the Underworld Staff couldn’t take him down in a single blow.

—

But…

—

‘At least it’ll deal significant damage.’

Abet decided to see how much damage the King could inflict before committing to a plan.

—

If the King could severely wound the barbarian, he would fight with all his might to finish the job.

If the damage was minimal, though…

—

‘Killing him would be impossible.’

—

In that case, he’d accept defeat and flee without looking back, stalling for time.

—

Whoosh!

So, what would the outcome be?

—

[Living one, I ask you this.]

—

The immense Underworld King loomed over them, more vast than words could describe.

No—he loomed over the planet itself.

—

[Why have you stepped into the land of the undying?]

—

For the King, the exchange was a mere formality.

Whatever the living one answered, the King would respond with wrath and a crushing blow—

—

Fssshhh!

—

…Right?

—

‘What?’

—

Suddenly, the barbarian stepped into a plume of green gas rising from the ground.

It was incomprehensible.

Why willingly walk into a gas cloud that would curse him?

—

The answer became clear soon enough.

—

[Ah, I must have been mistaken.]

—

With those words, the King’s form dissolved.

—

“Wait, no! My Lord King! The living one is right here! Please come back! Come ba—!”

—

Abet shouted at the sky, desperate for the King to return. But the Underworld King, once gone, did not reappear.

—

“……”

—

An oppressive silence fell.

The green gas stopped rising, and the barbarian emerged, grinning.

—

“You didn’t know that, huh?”

—

His nonchalant question was infuriatingly calm.

—

Abet felt his temples throb.

‘…How does he know all of this?!’

—

Knowing such obscure mechanics wasn’t normal.

Abet had never seen anyone evade the Underworld King like this—not in the writings of past necromancers nor in his own extensive experience.

—

“…How do you know all of this?”

—

His voice tinged with resignation, Abet asked.

The barbarian shrugged, his tone mocking.

—

“Why should I tell you?”

—

Then, leaning in, he delivered a parting blow of wisdom.

“Y’know, ignorance is the first step to learning.”

—

Thump.

This time, Abet didn’t feel like something was “slightly off.”

—

Thump.

This was utter, complete, catastrophic failure.

—

—

Under the green-hued sky.

—

Tat-tat-tat!

—

A barren plain stretched endlessly, and Abet Necrapeto fled atop a heavily modified quadrupedal chimera.

In pursuit was the barbarian, completely unhindered.

—

‘Maybe I overdid it?’

—

Combat had been laughably easy for the barbarian.

—

Buffed by the Underworld, the necromancer’s undead were plentiful but individually weak.

His reliance on quantity over quality was utterly ineffective against the barbarian’s mechanics, which only grew stronger the more damage he endured.

—

Moreover, the barbarian’s deep familiarity with both necromancers and the Underworld left no room for surprises.

—

「Accumulated damage has exceeded a certain threshold.」

—

After countering even the Underworld King, the necromancer’s will finally broke, and he fled.

—

‘Time to end this.’

—

How much had his stacks grown?

—

The barbarian didn’t know.

He had tanked waves of undead to build his power, and now it was time to find out.

—

「The character has activated [Aegis Dragonplate].」

—

With the activation of his armor’s ability, a massive spectral warrior materialized behind him and charged forward.

—

It wasn’t as enormous as the Underworld King, but its sheer size was still staggering.

—

Hearing the commotion, Abet turned and paled.

—

“…W-What is that?!”

—

Seriously, this guy!

Every time something happened, he demanded an explanation like a child.

—

‘Just learn by getting hit already.’

—

Whooosh!

The spectral warrior swung its colossal sword, effortlessly bridging the gap between them.

—

BOOM!

—

The ground shattered under the impact, and dust filled the air.

—

「Abet Necrapeto has cast [Momentary Immortality].」

—

The barbarian grinned.

—

“Got rid of your invincibility, huh? Next time, you’re dead.”