Chapter 488: Pilgrim (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 488: Pilgrim (6)
Given the variety of skills available in the game, some were naturally 'seeing the future' themed. The primary example was Clock Hands of Regret, a rank-one skill that could be found on the ninth floor. The way it worked was simple. When a teammate died, the text "Memories of regret go backward in time" appeared on the screen, and you were sent back in time to the decisive moment right before their death took place.
Calling it a precognition skill didn't quite do it justice, as it did much more than let you see the future, but even though it might seem overpowered, it also had obvious cons. For one thing, it would only be triggered if you and the target were connected by a Binding spell. Plus, the skill had a months-long cooldown time—and that was months in the city, not the labyrinth. Not only that, but it could only be used a maximum of three times and never on yourself.
This clearly isn't that skill.
Ainar and I weren't currently Bound or we would have spawned in the same place when we first got here, and based on what she just said, she had used her skill at least twice already. So it couldn't possibly be Clock Hands of Regret.
Then the most plausible candidate is... Yeah, it must be that.
It didn't take long to narrow things down to the next viable contender: Prophet of Misfortune. It was a rare rank-six skill that was difficult to acquire, and when triggered, a text box appeared that randomly showed you information about the future. For example:
[A vision of misfortune has appeared before the Prophet. In the not-too-distant future, Bjorn Yandel will lose his life to the White Captain, Dreadfear. Don't grow complacent just because he is not in sight, as he will never stop chasing after you.]
I personally classified this skill as an information-gathering ability. I often used it to collect info around the middle of the game since it was great for revealing traps and telling you what types of monsters lay ahead when you entered unfamiliar territory.
But it must work differently in real life.
What was just a few lines of text in the game was being seen through someone's eyes.
Huff... Huff...
"...Ainar, did you see me die?"
Again, she didn't answer me, but the way she flinched spoke for itself.
So that's why she's not stopping...
I kept my mouth shut. No matter what I said at this point, it wouldn't change her mind. There was little I could do.
"Left."
Well, I could give her directions as she carried me on her back.
Grind.
I could clench my jaw too. It was the only part of me I could move.
"Behel—aaaaaah!"
Otherwise, I could only lay there, helpless and limp against Ainar's back, as she barreled through the soldiers without so much as a shield to protect her.
Stab!
An arrow sank into her leg.
"Die!"
Her skin was torn apart by spearheads and swords.
And all the while, all I could do was watch.
"C-Catch her! This is our chance...!"
"Ahhh!"
"...Wh-what strength!"
Ainar finally came to a stop only after another desperate charge. We still hadn't reached the exit—far from it—but she couldn't run anymore. Instead, she set me down and got ready to protect me.
Thud.
Her injuries had piled up with every group of soldiers we encountered and she had at last begun to slow down too much to outrun them. The soldiers on our tail had finally managed to catch up, and they were almost on top of us now. Ainar let out a breath and picked up her weapon.
"Don't...worry."
With that, she charged like a bull toward the soldiers as I sat there propped up against the wall, unable to tear my eyes away.
One, two, three, four, five, six...
After her seventh kill, an ax lodged into her arm.
Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen...
When she killed her eighteenth soldier, a spear sank into her collarbone.
Forty-three, forty-four, forty-five...
As the forty-sixth went down, an arrow skewered her left eye.
Seventy-one, seventy-two, seventy-three...
As time passed, the corpses on the ground continued to pile up, until—
One hundred.
A momentary silence fell over the cavern. She had arrows sticking out of every part of her body and blood gushing from her wounds. Yet she was still standing, an unyielding, immovable wall in the soldiers' way.
The silence didn't last long.
The soldiers ran at her again, weapons raised. "She's tiring as well! Don't back down!"
At one hundred and thirty, Ainar apologized to me.
"I'm sorry... My body can't..."
Then, she collapsed on top of me like a puppet without strings.
Cough! Khh!
She shouldn't sound like that, was all I could think. Those sounds shouldn't be coming out of my teammate's mouth.
It felt like I was trapped in a nightmare. My mind was blank. My ears were ringing. I wanted to throw up.
Cough! Khh!
And all the while, those horrific noises wouldn't stop. I was trapped in my own body, helpless to do anything but watch her slowly die on top of me.
Nudge.
Then, suddenly, the tips of my fingers twitched and I could finally move again.
[Your health has reached 30 percent. Status effect Paralysis has been lifted.]
My hand whipped out, grabbing a hold of the first weapon I touched. Pushing Ainar's limp form aside, I stumbled to my feet.
Fwoosh!
I swung my weapon. The soldiers jumped back on instinct, clearly taken by surprise. I took advantage of their hesitation to hoist Ainar onto my back, then immediately started running, carrying Ainar just as she had carried me.
"Ahhhhhh!"
I ran through the cave, barreling through any soldiers that got in our way.
"S-Stop them!"
They used every weapon at their disposal to stop me. With every step I took, injuries both big and small accumulated on my body. However, I didn't stop to block or avoid their attacks. I sacrificed my body to protect Ainar's as I brute-forced my way through them like the mindless tank I was, heedless of how many attacks came my way or how long I ran.
[Your health has dropped to less than 15%.]
My restored health had once again dropped, but that wouldn't stop me.
Thud.
Her injuries had piled up with every group of soldiers we encountered and she had at last begun to slow down too much to outrun them. The soldiers on our tail had finally managed to catch up, and they were almost on top of us now. Ainar let out a breath and picked up her weapon.
"Don't...worry."
With that, she charged like a bull toward the soldiers as I sat there propped up against the wall, unable to tear my eyes away.
One, two, three, four, five, six...
After her seventh kill, an ax lodged into her arm.
Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen...
When she killed her eighteenth soldier, a spear sank into her collarbone.
Forty-three, forty-four, forty-five...
As the forty-sixth went down, an arrow skewered her left eye.
Seventy-one, seventy-two, seventy-three...
As time passed, the corpses on the ground continued to pile up, until—
One hundred.
A momentary silence fell over the cavern. She had arrows sticking out of every part of her body and blood gushing from her wounds. Yet she was still standing, an unyielding, immovable wall in the soldiers' way.
The silence didn't last long.
The soldiers ran at her again, weapons raised. "She's tiring as well! Don't back down!"
At one hundred and thirty, Ainar apologized to me.
"I'm sorry... My body can't..."
Then, she collapsed on top of me like a puppet without strings.
Cough! Khh!
She shouldn't sound like that, was all I could think. Those sounds shouldn't be coming out of my teammate's mouth.
It felt like I was trapped in a nightmare. My mind was blank. My ears were ringing. I wanted to throw up.
Cough! Khh!
And all the while, those horrific noises wouldn't stop. I was trapped in my own body, helpless to do anything but watch her slowly die on top of me.
Nudge.
Then, suddenly, the tips of my fingers twitched and I could finally move again.
[Your health has reached 30 percent. Status effect Paralysis has been lifted.]
My hand whipped out, grabbing a hold of the first weapon I touched. Pushing Ainar's limp form aside, I stumbled to my feet.
Fwoosh!
I swung my weapon. The soldiers jumped back on instinct, clearly taken by surprise. I took advantage of their hesitation to hoist Ainar onto my back, then immediately started running, carrying Ainar just as she had carried me.
"Ahhhhhh!"
I ran through the cave, barreling through any soldiers that got in our way.
"S-Stop them!"
They used every weapon at their disposal to stop me. With every step I took, injuries both big and small accumulated on my body. However, I didn't stop to block or avoid their attacks. I sacrificed my body to protect Ainar's as I brute-forced my way through them like the mindless tank I was, heedless of how many attacks came my way or how long I ran.
[Your health has dropped to less than 15%.]
My restored health had once again dropped, but that wouldn't stop me.
Huff... Huff...
In a brief moment of respite where no soldiers appeared, I plowed forward and checked on Ainar. "Ainar! Are you all right?! Wake up! You can't fall asleep now! You need to wake—"
"B-Bjorn..." A faint voice brushed my ear. "You have to survive..."
"Y-You're alive! I know you must be tired, but you can't fall asleep! Just ten more minutes. No, eight. Just stay awake eight more minutes for me!" If she could just do that, then we'd be home free. That being said, there was no guarantee that leaving the cave would mean clearing the level. However, given that the difficulty of escaping from this cave was so high, there was also a high probability that doing so would come with some sort of healing effect attached. "You have to...!"
You just need to trust in me and hang in there, just a little while longer.
But before I could form the words, Ainar murmured, "...Let me go."
What was she saying? I had probably misheard her since we were both in rough shape, so—
"Let me...go..."
Never mind, I didn't mishear her. I was furious she'd even suggest that, but I couldn't bring myself to yell at her given the state she was in. Not now. Instead, I decided to ignore her. "Seems like the blood loss is making you loopy."
She was quiet.
"Just hang in there. That's all you need to do."
I didn't know if her silence meant agreement or if she simply didn't have the strength to argue. Either way, she didn't say another word.
...She's not dead, right?
I swallowed, trying to shove down the anxiety creeping up my throat, and kept on running even as my heart threatened to give out at any moment. As the cave's entrance appeared in the distance, I caught the scent of fresh air and foliage. Light leaked in through the opening, brightening the path ahead. Soon enough, the long-awaited entrance was right in front of us.
"Ainar! Ainar! Wake up! We're almost there! Answer me!"
"...B-Be careful."
What was she saying? Well, at least I knew she was still alive. Now we just needed to get out of here.
However, before I could barrel through the cave's entrance, I skidded to a stop. I wasn't sure how I knew, but... something was wrong. On instinct, I reached out a hand, my fingers bumping up against some kind of invisible barrier.
What's going on?
The entrance was completely blocked off.
"...You have got to be shitting me."
If the goal wasn't to escape outside, then what was it? It wasn't like we had any chance of beating a boss monster with impossibly high stats and overpowered abilities in a head-to-head fight.
"But then... what the hell were we supposed to do...?"
The hope I'd been clinging to crumbled away.
"B-Bjorn..."
Even so, I smiled for her sake. "A-Ainar? Don't worry! I'll break through this barrier and get us out of here in no time!"
When faced with a wall, you smashed it. That was the barbarian way.
Slam! Slam! Slam!
So I raised my fists and pounded them against the force field as hard as I could.
"B-Bjorn..."
Unfortunately, the barrier wouldn't budge. Thankfully, being a barbarian also meant not knowing when to give up.
Huff... Huff...
In a brief moment of respite where no soldiers appeared, I plowed forward and checked on Ainar. "Ainar! Are you all right?! Wake up! You can't fall asleep now! You need to wake—"
"B-Bjorn..." A faint voice brushed my ear. "You have to survive..."
"Y-You're alive! I know you must be tired, but you can't fall asleep! Just ten more minutes. No, eight. Just stay awake eight more minutes for me!" If she could just do that, then we'd be home free. That being said, there was no guarantee that leaving the cave would mean clearing the level. However, given that the difficulty of escaping from this cave was so high, there was also a high probability that doing so would come with some sort of healing effect attached. "You have to...!"
You just need to trust in me and hang in there, just a little while longer.
But before I could form the words, Ainar murmured, "...Let me go."
What was she saying? I had probably misheard her since we were both in rough shape, so—
"Let me...go..."
Never mind, I didn't mishear her. I was furious she'd even suggest that, but I couldn't bring myself to yell at her given the state she was in. Not now. Instead, I decided to ignore her. "Seems like the blood loss is making you loopy."
She was quiet.
"Just hang in there. That's all you need to do."
I didn't know if her silence meant agreement or if she simply didn't have the strength to argue. Either way, she didn't say another word.
...She's not dead, right?
I swallowed, trying to shove down the anxiety creeping up my throat, and kept on running even as my heart threatened to give out at any moment. As the cave's entrance appeared in the distance, I caught the scent of fresh air and foliage. Light leaked in through the opening, brightening the path ahead. Soon enough, the long-awaited entrance was right in front of us.
"Ainar! Ainar! Wake up! We're almost there! Answer me!"
"...B-Be careful."
What was she saying? Well, at least I knew she was still alive. Now we just needed to get out of here.
However, before I could barrel through the cave's entrance, I skidded to a stop. I wasn't sure how I knew, but... something was wrong. On instinct, I reached out a hand, my fingers bumping up against some kind of invisible barrier.
What's going on?
The entrance was completely blocked off.
"...You have got to be shitting me."
If the goal wasn't to escape outside, then what was it? It wasn't like we had any chance of beating a boss monster with impossibly high stats and overpowered abilities in a head-to-head fight.
"But then... what the hell were we supposed to do...?"
The hope I'd been clinging to crumbled away.
"B-Bjorn..."
Even so, I smiled for her sake. "A-Ainar? Don't worry! I'll break through this barrier and get us out of here in no time!"
When faced with a wall, you smashed it. That was the barbarian way.
Slam! Slam! Slam!
So I raised my fists and pounded them against the force field as hard as I could.
"B-Bjorn..."
Unfortunately, the barrier wouldn't budge. Thankfully, being a barbarian also meant not knowing when to give up.
"S-Stop..."
Fist. Foot. Head. I used everything I could, every ounce of strength I possessed, to break it. I lunged at it, threw my weight at it, rammed my shoulder into it...
Slam!
Was there something about this thing that made it impervious to physical attacks?
Fine, then I'll move on to Plan B.
I changed my strategy and targeted the wall next to the barrier instead. No matter how sturdy an iron door was, you could just break the stone wall surrounding it. That had to be what I needed to do.
"Stop..."
Slam!
"Go... Before he comes..."
I couldn't stand it any longer.
Slam!
I slammed my forehead against the wall in a fit of anger. It didn't make me feel the slightest bit better, though. In the end, I was still stuck inside this awful cave, drowning in a sea of frustration and despair.
"Over there...!"
Suddenly, soldiers appeared behind us. Already? I didn't think they'd be able to catch up so soon. Rather than overthinking it, however, I immediately turned and stampeded toward them.
Whack!
I slammed the man in front straight into the wall before grabbing his weapon.
And then I proceeded to slaughter them all.
"...D-Devil!"
"Don't stop attacking!"
"For the Empire...!"
One, two, three, four...
That's five of them.
Six, seven, eight...
...How many was that?
I didn't know. I had to start over. One, two, three...
Whack, whack, whack!
By the time I came to my senses, my surroundings were quiet. Not even the shallowest of breaths could be heard from the bodies littering the passageway. They were all dead.
Belatedly remembering what I had been fighting so hard to protect in the first place, I whipped around. "...Ainar." Thankfully, when I rushed to her side, she was still breathing. The sound, however, was faint and ragged, like it was stuttering to a stop.
"B-Bjorn..."
Somehow sensing my presence, she struggled to force her eyes open.
I couldn't speak.
Everything will be fine. Don't worry. We'll be home soon.
I should have been saying something like that.
"Bjorn... son of Yandel."
But all I could do was stare down at her, unable to form a proper thought.
Ainar's hazy eyes met mine, the corners of her mouth twitching up. "My... precious... friend..."
She may as well have driven a massive stake through my heart. How could she call me her precious friend now of all times?
"You will... become... a great... warrior..."
The dam inside me holding everything back began to crash down. Between the painful truth or a kind lie, it was obvious which one you should offer someone on their deathbed.
Precious friend...
Yet before I could even stop myself, my mouth opened on its own and out tumbled a mix of a confession and an apology. "I-I'm... I'm not ..."
I was not the real Bjorn Yandel. I was just an evil spirit that took over his body, one of the very same evil spirits whose skulls you were supposed to crack open the moment you spotted them. That... that was who I really was. As I gazed down at Ainar, her eyes gradually losing focus, my lips moved, forming words I could barely hear.
At some point, I returned to my senses and had to face the truth.
Ainar was no longer breathing. Her eyes were still open, staring out at me, but there was no denying it.
[The third Pilgrim has died.]
Ainar was dead.
[The surviving Pilgrim's stats have all increased by +400.]
My stats rose again, and at long last, I knew what I had to do.
[Special Condition – Unbreakable Bond has been met. All stats have increased by 3x.]
[Defeat the White Captain, Dreadfear.]
The objective of this secret level was finally clear to me.
"S-Stop..."
Fist. Foot. Head. I used everything I could, every ounce of strength I possessed, to break it. I lunged at it, threw my weight at it, rammed my shoulder into it...
Slam!
Was there something about this thing that made it impervious to physical attacks?
Fine, then I'll move on to Plan B.
I changed my strategy and targeted the wall next to the barrier instead. No matter how sturdy an iron door was, you could just break the stone wall surrounding it. That had to be what I needed to do.
"Stop..."
Slam!
"Go... Before he comes..."
I couldn't stand it any longer.
Slam!
I slammed my forehead against the wall in a fit of anger. It didn't make me feel the slightest bit better, though. In the end, I was still stuck inside this awful cave, drowning in a sea of frustration and despair.
"Over there...!"
Suddenly, soldiers appeared behind us. Already? I didn't think they'd be able to catch up so soon. Rather than overthinking it, however, I immediately turned and stampeded toward them.
Whack!
I slammed the man in front straight into the wall before grabbing his weapon.
And then I proceeded to slaughter them all.
"...D-Devil!"
"Don't stop attacking!"
"For the Empire...!"
One, two, three, four...
That's five of them.
Six, seven, eight...
...How many was that?
I didn't know. I had to start over. One, two, three...
Whack, whack, whack!
By the time I came to my senses, my surroundings were quiet. Not even the shallowest of breaths could be heard from the bodies littering the passageway. They were all dead.
Belatedly remembering what I had been fighting so hard to protect in the first place, I whipped around. "...Ainar." Thankfully, when I rushed to her side, she was still breathing. The sound, however, was faint and ragged, like it was stuttering to a stop.
"B-Bjorn..."
Somehow sensing my presence, she struggled to force her eyes open.
I couldn't speak.
Everything will be fine. Don't worry. We'll be home soon.
I should have been saying something like that.
"Bjorn... son of Yandel."
But all I could do was stare down at her, unable to form a proper thought.
Ainar's hazy eyes met mine, the corners of her mouth twitching up. "My... precious... friend..."
She may as well have driven a massive stake through my heart. How could she call me her precious friend now of all times?
"You will... become... a great... warrior..."
The dam inside me holding everything back began to crash down. Between the painful truth or a kind lie, it was obvious which one you should offer someone on their deathbed.
Precious friend...
Yet before I could even stop myself, my mouth opened on its own and out tumbled a mix of a confession and an apology. "I-I'm... I'm not ..."
I was not the real Bjorn Yandel. I was just an evil spirit that took over his body, one of the very same evil spirits whose skulls you were supposed to crack open the moment you spotted them. That... that was who I really was. As I gazed down at Ainar, her eyes gradually losing focus, my lips moved, forming words I could barely hear.
At some point, I returned to my senses and had to face the truth.
Ainar was no longer breathing. Her eyes were still open, staring out at me, but there was no denying it.
[The third Pilgrim has died.]
Ainar was dead.
[The surviving Pilgrim's stats have all increased by +400.]
My stats rose again, and at long last, I knew what I had to do.
[Special Condition – Unbreakable Bond has been met. All stats have increased by 3x.]
[Defeat the White Captain, Dreadfear.]
The objective of this secret level was finally clear to me.