The Barbarian Ascension - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: So What Should We Hunt? A Drake or a Wyvern?

I had an official chance to get off this damned island and see the outside world, to search for my… this body’s mother out there. However, it did have a catch—because nothing ever came too easy. If I wanted to go, I’d have to hunt a big monster. 

Not just any regular beast, but something that could kill me if I wasn’t careful. More dangerous than tigers and bears from back on earth. No pressure, right?

“Haah,” I let out a sigh. Letting the initial surprise pass, I sat down on a nearby rock to properly think things through. It was either this… or I had to do things my own way, which might not be the smarter choice. Because through this pilgrimage, when I leave for the outside world, other barbarians will leave with me. Even if they were dumb, as long as I was ‘Thorvyn,’ they’d protect me as their own in the outside world. 

That was what it meant to be a tribe, I guess.

I had no idea what type of world the outside world was. It could be a land filled with beasts and monsters far more powerful than me. Or worse… people. Humans were always the uglier animals in the food pyramid. I wouldn’t be too surprised if a human civilization hated foolish barbarians from an isolated island enough to hunt them actively.

There was power in numbers, and for better or worse, it might be easier to hunt a monster than make my own make-shift boat to leave this island.

I couldn’t help but feel slightly bothered by the threat of death from a beast stronger than anything I’ve known before, but then again, when I thought back to how I handled those direwolves, my fear decreased a little. They were huge, and out of pure instincts, I took them down like they were nothing. 

I wasn’t just some regular guy anymore. I was stronger, bigger… hell, that game system window said my [Race] was a damn barbarian now.

I think I can handle this.

I pulled myself out of my thoughts, allowing my surroundings to settle in. Around me, people were already forming teams. Even Draegan, the chieftain’s son, was gathering a group. I guess even these barbarians weren’t dumb enough to want to do this alone, which meant this task wasn’t something I could do on my own. But a team had its drawbacks too…

“Hah! You chose well!”

“Grako, you fool! Don’t slap me!”

“....” I watched as the tribespeople paired up, grunting and slapping each other on the back as if this was just another day at the beach. It wasn’t. I shook my head. This hunt could mean life or death.

Should I form a team? Going at it alone would be asking to get myself killed. 

“Ey, Thorvyn! Come join us!” Haldrek shouted at me, waving at me from a distance. I waved back, still sitting on my rock, as I looked at his group.

It seemed most of my group from yesterday had already teamed up. Following Haldrek, a few others invited me as well. I was fairly popular, although all the shouts calling my name made the chieftain’s son’s face darken with a scowl. He scoffed and looked away, making me hold back a chuckle. Stupid barbarians.

Almost all the teams that invited me were too big for my liking. Too many people in a group and it’d turn into a hassle—especially when it came time to decide who gets the game. After all, one would have to show one beast for themselves, not their entire team’s. Plus the level and experience thing, that’d be split too… If there was one thing I learned in my life, it was that splitting spoils among a big group was a pain in the ass.

The bigger the group, the smaller the cut. 

Never mind, should I just head out alone? It’s not as if this place’s totally new to me now that I have Thorvyn’s memories. Plus, from my memories, as well as my fight against the direwolves yesterday, I was confident that I was stronger than almost everyone here. 

Except for maybe the chieftain’s son, Draegan. But he had a team, I didn’t think I’d need one if I played carefully.

Deciding so, I was about to give up and head out on my own when I heard footsteps behind me.

“Thorvyn,” a familiar voice called.

I turned, scowling as Ragnar approached. Why was she alone? She was one of the few who hadn’t been reduced to all fours when the chieftain released her aura. She had been on two knees, not as strong as me and Draegan, but stronger than most. People would be dying to team up with her, why was she alone?

“You want team up?” she asked, her gaze steady. There was no hesitation in her offer. For a moment I stared, wondering what was going on. 

I glanced around. Most of the other teams were already set. I met Draegan’s gaze in the distance, he was looking at me with clenched jaws. Ah… it seems he made others not accept her. Isn’t Ragnar his sister? Why’d he do that? I wondered but got no answer. 

Regardless, Ragnar wasn’t a bad option. She was strong, a Level 21 from what I remembered, and she wielded a damn good club. While it wasn’t a big team, it didn’t have a big team’s disadvantages either. Two was often better than one. 

I didn’t care about Draegan’s glare. If we teamed up, I figured we could take down something big enough for both of us to get through the pilgrimage. 

I gave her a nod. “Fine. We’ll need two beasts, one for each of us.”

She brightened up hearing me, grinning ear to ear. She looked immensely grateful and delighted that I had accepted her offer. “We’ll hunt tow as you said!” She cheered. 

I watched Draegan click his tongue in the distance before he turned around with the rest of his group. I ignored him and looked at Ragnar, “Let’s not waste any more time standing around.”

Weapons in hand, we left the village together, heading toward the dense forests deeper on the island. The air was thick with humidity, and the trees loomed overhead like silent watchers. My grip tightened on my ax. If we were going to do this, we needed a plan.

****

“So, what should we hunt?” Ragnar asked as we walked, pushing through a thick tree branch that was too low. “I think Draegan’s group is aiming for a Flame Drake. His team’s huge, so it makes sense.”

A Flame Drake, huh? I considered her words. “How’s it gonna be decided who gets the Drake?”

“Draegan, of course,” she shrugged. “He promised his group that he’d hunt strong beasts for each of them if they helped him get the drake.”

“Figures,” I muttered. That guy had strength and authority, but still, putting your fate in someone else’s hands… It was not for me. I’d have believed that these barbarians would be the same, but I guess even they knew how to bargain for a potentially smarter deal.

As we kept walking, I wondered about her question. What monster should we hunt? I’ve hunted an Ogre before, it was hard, but it was still an ogre. Would another ogre count? 

In the games I sometimes played during vacation, a character’s prior achievements often affected [Class] selections. If this was my life now, I had to aim for the best class I could get. Half-measures won’t be tolerated. In that case, an ogre wouldn’t do. I’ve already hunted one before. Should I go with something similarly strong… or even beyond?

“Should we hunt a drake too?” I asked, testing the waters.

Ragnar flinched, letting out a nervous laugh while quickly shaking her head. “No, no! Oh, Thorvyn, I admire your courage! But just the two of us? That is suicide! If… you want to hunt a dragon-type really much, how about a wyvern?”

A wyvern? That could work. Although calling a wyvern ‘a dragon subspecies’ to the face of a real dragon was apparently certain death, according to legends, it was true. A drake was the subspecies of a dragon, while a wyvern too was a subspecies of a dragon, but more far off. 

Dragons were the apex of the food chain, even a subspecies of it should be more than enough merit for any hunt. A wyvern it is, then.

I nodded. “Yeah, a wyvern could fit the bill. We’d still need two, though.”

Ragnar didn’t seem too worried. She was strong enough to hold her own, and I’d seen her fight yesterday. She didn’t swing a club around randomly—there was a method to her madness. She might just surprise me.

But before we went hunting, there was something I needed to check.

“Hold up a sec,” I said, opening my status panel. If I was going to hunt something dangerous to help my Class Selection, I wanted to see my current options at least. I wanted to know what I was working with.

Opening my Status, I clicked the [Choose Here] option. Not long after, four Class options appeared in front of me.

-

[Warrior] - Basic

Role: Melee Combatant

Description: The Warrior is a versatile melee fighter who specializes in using a wide range of weapons and combat techniques. They rely on physical strength, agility, and tactical prowess to excel in battle.

Abilities:

• Battle Cry

• Shield Bash

• Whirlwind Slash

• Weapon Mastery

-

[Berserker] - Advanced

Role: Frenzied Combatant

Description: The Berserker is a wild and relentless combatant who uses sheer rage to fuel their attacks. In the heat of battle, Berserkers become unstoppable forces of destruction.

Abilities:

• Bloodlust

• Rage Mode

• Frenzied Strikes

• Unstoppable Charge

-

[Beastmaster] - Advanced

Role: Commander of Beasts

Description: The Beastmaster is a warrior who forges a deep bond with the creatures of the wild, commanding beasts to fight by their side.

Abilities:

• Beast Bond

• Primal Roar

• Tactical Hunter

• Call of the Wild

-

[Giant Slayer] - Unique

Role: Slayer of Titans

Description: The Giant Slayer specializes in taking down massive foes, such as giants, dragons, and heavily armored opponents.

Abilities:

• Critical Strike

• Armorbreaker

• Titan’s Demise

• David’s Gambit

-

I whistled at Giant Slayer. That one stood out. My memories flashed to the time I’d taken down an Ogre a few years ago, who was much higher leveled than myself. That must’ve triggered this option.

“Not bad,” I muttered, closing the panel. But if we were about to hunt wyverns, maybe I could get something better. There was no harm in trying, right?

“Huh, what you doing with your Status?” Ragnar asked, tilting her head.

“I was just going through the Class options,” I said, and she frowned, tilting her head further.

“....?” She looked at me bewildered but didn’t say anything. She was so confused that it made me confused. Before I could ask what, she shrugged and said, “Anyways, ready?”

I hefted my ax onto my shoulder and nodded. “Let’s go hunt a wyvern.”

We pushed deeper into the island, the weight of the upcoming battle hanging over us like a storm cloud. But given the possible reward, this was something worth fighting for.

****

The forest was thick. Every step we took was followed by crunching leaves and snapping twigs underfoot. The trees towered above us, their branches heavy with foliage, making the light feel distant and the air dense. We pushed through the undergrowth, forcing leaves and vines aside, keeping an ear out for anything that might try to sneak up. 

So far, we'd been lucky, but luck wouldn’t last forever. 

“Stay sharp,” I muttered, eyes scanning the area.

Ragnar walked beside me, her club slung over her shoulder like it weighed nothing. “You think I’m not?” she asked with a small grin. “They say I have better eyes than tribe’s best archer!”

I snorted. “Right. Just saying, neither of us don’t want to get shot in the back.”

She chuckled but didn’t say more. She was tense. So was I. The tension in the air was enough to kill conversations any longer than this. We moved through the plains at a steady pace, always alert, ears tuned to the slightest rustle of leaves. 

It was quiet, but not the peaceful kind. This was the kind of quiet that made your skin crawl. It was then… that I heard it.

A soft rustle, different from the wind. My instincts kicked in, but before I could react, Ragnar shouted, “Thorvyn!” and shoved me aside with surprising strength.

An arrow whizzed past my shoulder, close enough that I felt the wind of it against my skin.

“Shit!” I growled, spinning on my heels and gripping my ax tighter. That could’ve ended badly.

“There are goblins around us!” Ragnar said, already crouched low, scanning the area. I could see the shift in her, that same alertness I’d seen during the chieftain’s test.

I stayed low, too, my eyes darting around the dense underbrush. And then—there. My eyes narrowed as I observed a twitch in the leaves. I was already swinging my ax hard, feeling the familiar pull of my Skill, [Slam], activating on instinct. The blade cleaved through green flesh, followed by a splatter of red painting the nearby leaves.

The little green creature barely had time to scream before it hit the ground, its split body falling to either side. I looked at the humanoid little thing for a short second before looking at the screen that flashed before me.

[You’ve killed a Goblin – Level 13!]

Another arrow came flying through the air. This time, I saw it coming and deflected it with the flat of my ax. It sparked a flame. My blood was pumping now, the heat of battle taking over. I found myself growling low, the thrill of the fight buzzing under my skin. It was a weird thing to do, but my body found it natural. 

“Right there, Thorvyn!” Ragnar shouted, pointing at a tree branch. My eyes shot up, and I scowled. I focused, kicking the ground and calling up that same sensation of using Skill. I used [Leap]. My body responded instantly. Everything blurred as I shot forward, faster than I expected. I landed on a tree branch, staring down into the wide eyes of a goblin archer.

“Too slow,” I said when it tried to pull an arrow before slamming my ax straight through its skull.

The thing let out a cry before crumpling, blood dripping from the branch as I jumped down.

[You’ve killed a Goblin – Level 14!]

On the ground, Ragnar was suddenly caught in a mess of her own. A bunch of goblins had somehow surrounded her during the brief moment. She’d already crushed two goblins with her club, their broken bodies lying near her feet. But another one was coming at her from behind, and she hadn’t seen it yet.

I moved without thinking, my fist colliding with the goblin’s skull before it could even raise its weapon. The crunch of bone told me it wasn’t getting back up.

[You’ve killed a Goblin – Level 13!]

Ragnar turned, surprised. “T-thanks.”

I shrugged, glancing around. “We’re not done.”

From the shadows of the forest, more goblins rushed toward us. I locked eyes with Ragnar, and for a second, we just nodded at each other.

Then we got to work.

The forest exploded into chaos as we hacked and smashed our way through the goblin horde. I swung my ax in wide arcs, feeling [Slam] activate every time the blade met flesh. Rather than swinging an ax, I felt like I was swinging a hammer instead. The goblins screamed and screeched, but we were stronger. Faster. They didn’t stand a chance.

Ragnar’s club cracked against skulls, sending goblins flying while I buried my ax into anything that moved. The smell of blood filled the air, mixing with the earth and the leaves.

By the time the last goblin hit the ground, we were both panting, weapons dripping with blood. Ragnar grinned, her bloody body looking like she’d just come back from a good workout. “I Leveled up! Not bad, right?!”

I checked my Status but found nothing. I wiped blood from my face. “I didn’t.”

She let out a giggle, which somehow felt like an insult, but I didn’t comment.

“This is pretty dangerous,” I said, catching my breath.

She took that as a compliment. “I know, right? It’s fun! And we not even near the wyvern’s nest yet.”

I stared at her and then just shook my head. “Great.” Just great.

Without wasting any more time, we kept moving deeper into the woods. The shadows thickened around us, leading us to more trouble areas filled with more dangerous monsters.