Surviving as a Barbarian in a Fantasy World

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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Chapter 346: Hero (2)

The gazes descending from the heavens—

The emotions emanating from them were varied: concern, discontent, expectation, anxiety, and more.

Every emotion imaginable to a living being was visible.

All the gods of the pantheon were staring down at Ketal.

A single god's gaze alone would be enough to crush a being of the earth.

Now, dozens of such divine eyes were focused on Ketal.

The pressure would overwhelm even those called heroes, breaking them completely.

Indeed, Ketal's body trembled faintly.

But it wasn’t due to the weight of the pressure.

It was the opposite.

What consumed Ketal was ecstasy.

"Ah..."

The pantheon was watching him.

These celestial beings, who observed the world, protected it, and cherished its children—the gods themselves were looking at him.

The overwhelming sense of awe made his mind feel like it was on fire.

His head spun, and he forced strength into his legs to keep them from giving out.

[You’re pleased, I see.]

Kalosia muttered knowingly.

At that voice, Ketal barely regained his composure.

The lofty gods were watching him from above.

In that case, the first thing he should do was greet them.

Ketal straightened his posture and bowed respectfully.

“It is an honor to meet you, gods. I am Ketal, the Barbarian of the White Snowfield.”

With a faint smile, Ketal gave a slight bow.

“I look forward to working with you for a long time to come.”

It was a polite and reasonable gesture.

The gods’ emotions shifted once more.

A wave of confusion and doubt rippled among them.

“Why’s that?”

Ketal asked.

[There are many gods here seeing you for the first time. It must be disorienting for them to see the so-called ‘monster’ behaving like a civilized person and lowering himself in greeting.]

Kalosia spoke nonchalantly, but even he had been momentarily stunned by Ketal’s actions.

For someone capable of opposing the Demon King to bow slightly before the gods—it was a shocking sight.

If even Kalosia, accustomed to Ketal, felt this way, it was needless to say how the other gods must feel.

Kalosia addressed the gods.

[You now have an idea of what Ketal is. That being the case, let’s leave it at this for now.]

“Hm? We’re not going to talk? I’d like to converse with each god individually.”

[Unfortunately, there isn’t enough time. We don’t know when the Demon King might break free from his seal.]

“I see. It sounds urgent. Very well. I’ll handle the rest when I ascend to the heavens myself,”

Ketal replied, clicking his tongue in disappointment.

Kalosia gave a faint chuckle and said,

[Suit yourself. Then let’s begin. Be prepared.]

“No ceremonial preparation needed?”

[Such preparations are only necessary if the subject of the ritual is likely to be overwhelmed by the power. They’re a kind of safety measure. But for you, there’s no need.]

“Ah, so that’s how it works. Understood.”

Ketal nodded, stepping forward before the gods.

Anxiety, concern, expectation—

He stood before all these emotions as Kalosia spoke softly.

[Let us begin.]

At those words, the air grew heavy.

The voices of the gods resonated, forming a harmony.

We are the lords of the heavens,

A part of order.

Krrrkk.

Space distorted.

From the other side of the rift, power began to seep through—a concentrated and condensed divine energy that stood opposed to the Demon King.

The power shall unite,

And descend upon this place.

With those words, a pillar of light descended from the heavens, striking Ketal.

Boom!

It was night, yet the sky was brighter than the noonday sun.

The pillar of light carried an intensity surpassing the sun itself.

If the gods had not perfectly controlled their power, this alone would have devastated the continent.

The earth trembled.

The very world seemed to quake in a way even infants could perceive.

“Eeeek!”

“O gods!”

People knelt, bowing their heads, closing their eyes, and clasping their hands in prayer.

They assumed this position because the gods had issued a warning to the earth.

When the light descends, bow your heads.

Should you raise your eyes to gaze upon it, your body will burn to ashes.

Following these instructions, all earthly beings bowed their heads and closed their eyes.

But not Helia.

Seated in her spot, Helia gazed at the descending light.

“…What is that?”

Staring at the light, Helia let out a faint laugh.

She carried the blood of the gods.

Helia was the sole bearer of the sacred bloodline the Sun God had sent to the earth as a contingency.

Thus, she had been granted permission from the Sun God: You may look.

And so she saw it.

The pillar of light descending from the heavens—

A force so overwhelming it could pierce the world.

It was a power so blinding it seemed impossible to merely gaze upon it without losing one’s sight.

One thing was certain: no one on this earth could contain that power.

No, not just the earth.

Not gods, not demons—no one.

If there was anyone who could contain it, it would be only one being:

A being from a place unknown to them, someone who loved this world—this fantasy—more than life itself.

The pillar of light bore down on Ketal, engulfing his body completely in its radiance.

[…Is he truly alright?]

The God of Swords, Elia, who had been silently observing, asked Kalosia with concern.

[I know his strength. But I find it hard to believe he can withstand the power of the entire pantheon.]

Even if Ketal were on par with the Demon King, enduring such concentrated force was no easy feat.

No matter how exceptional Ketal was, it seemed implausible to believe he could endure this.

[I refrained from objecting because I trust you, but… isn’t this dangerous?]

[Dangerous?]

Kalosia chuckled as if he had heard something amusing.

[You’re underestimating him far too much.]

[And I think you’re overestimating him far too much.]

[We’ll see soon enough.]n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

[If you say so…]

Though the God of Swords replied, she wasn’t convinced.

She was prepared to intervene if the situation turned perilous.

But as she watched, the God of Swords realized something.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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Rumble!

The pillar of light was shrinking.

The power was being absorbed into Ketal.

As a result, Ketal’s figure became visible.

[…Wait a moment.]

[Is that…?]

Ketal was smiling.

He showed no signs of strain or discomfort from the divine power filling him.

Nor was he overexcited.

He was simply enjoying it.

That was all.

[…Hold on.]

[That can’t be.]

The other gods realized belatedly.

To an existence like Ketal, there was no bottom.

More precisely, their power couldn’t even reach the bottom.

In shock, Kalosia murmured softly.

[No matter how brilliant or valuable a painting is, in the end, it's just a flat surface.]

From the perspective of spatial concepts, it was nothing more than a mere painting.

To Ketal, the divine powers of the gods were just that—insignificant.

Even if dozens of paintings were stacked within a room, it would hold no meaning.

The dimensions were purely different.

Kalosia wasn’t the only one to realize this; the other gods came to understand one by one.

The gods were horrified, showing disbelief and trying to deny it.

But even as they struggled, the power of the Pantheon was slowly being absorbed into Ketal.

And finally—

RUMBLE…

The last fragment of light was drawn into Ketal.

In the ensuing silence, Kalosia asked,

[How do you feel?]

“…Pleasant.”

Ketal murmured softly.

His voice, except for a slight tremor of excitement, was the same as usual.

And that fact made the gods shudder all the more.

For it meant the power of the Pantheon had little effect on Ketal as an entity.

Ketal smirked.

“Thank you, gods. You placed your faith in me. Now, it’s time to show you the result of that faith.”

Ketal gripped his axe.

* * *

HELL.

The site of the half-ruined Demon King's castle.

There was no one there.

Every demon of rank had been sacrificed, and the surviving demons had hidden themselves within Hell.

The once-radiant Demon King's castle was now a desolate sight.

CRACK!

Amidst the silence, the space began to shatter.

Cracks spread in an instant, and soon, a hand burst forth.

KAANG!

The hand violently tore through space.

A man, as dark as night, emerged, breaking through the fabric of reality.

The man murmured softly,

[Well done, God of Sealing. You sealed me for four days. Be satisfied and die.]

He was the Demon King.

The god who had given his life to perform the seal had managed to hold him for only four days.

[Now then.]

The Demon King immediately drew upon his power.

During those four days he had been sealed, the gods would not have sat idly by.

Surely, they had descended one by one to the mortal realm, surrounded his location, and prepared traps.

[Come, gods. I am here.]

The Demon King declared boldly, his posture fitting for a ruler of demons.

But no response came to his declaration.

Hell remained silent.

For the first time, the Demon King's gaze wavered.

[…What is this?]

Did the gods do nothing while he was sealed?

That made no sense.

If so, the God of Sealing would have died in vain.

The gods must have prepared something.

Yet here, he could feel nothing.

[…Are they waiting on the mortal realm?]

For a moment, the thought crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

If he and the gods fought on the mortal realm, it would result in half the world burning, as in the past during the Great War of Gods and Demons.

The gods, whose purpose was to protect the world, had no reason to allow such destruction.

So why were they nowhere to be seen?

Perplexed, the Demon King extended his senses.

In an instant, all of Hell became clear to him.

And as a result, he realized one thing.

[Something’s here.]

Something imbued with divinity was slowly approaching him.

The Demon King couldn’t help but feel confused.

The divine power emanating from this entity wasn’t particularly impressive.

For someone like him to notice only after extending his senses meant it was merely akin to a follower of a god.

[…No.]

But as he continued to sense it, he realized that wasn’t the case.

The divine power was weak, akin to that of a believer.

But within it, countless divine authorities were intertwined.

The Demon King's expression twisted.

[No way!]

And finally, the entity revealed itself before him.

“We meet again, Demon King.”

Ketal greeted him with a smirk, radiance shining above his head.

The Demon King, his face contorted, growled,

[The divinity I sense from you… No way. The gods granted you their power!]

“It seems I’ve received quite a bit. No one could sense the monstrousness within me, yet they immediately recognize the divinity bestowed upon me. It’s magnificent power, truly.”

[Gods! Have you fallen so far? Rather than face me yourselves in the end, you hand over your strength to an outsider!]

“That’s how it turned out! Demon King! Tough luck!”

As the Demon King lamented, Ketal ignored him, grinning brightly as he stepped forward.

“Now then, let’s have some fun!”

Ketal raised his axe high.

The Demon King, filled with rage, thrust his fist forward.

Axe and fist collided.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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