Surviving as a Barbarian in a Fantasy World

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Chapter 298: S-Rank Dungeon (4)

[What in the world...]

The Holy Sword was astonished.

It realized that until now, Ketal had been suppressing his power.

[Where on earth...]

What was the limit of this barbarian?

Where was his bottom?

The Holy Sword couldn’t even guess.

Boom!

Ketal pushed through and tore apart his enemies.

Monsters, who had no fear of death, were slowly starting to show fear on their faces.

Despite this, they were unable to flee due to the commands engraved in their minds and rushed toward him.

Ketal, with a delighted expression, crushed each monster by hand.

[Raaaargh!]

“Whoops.”

He dodged an incoming attack lightly.

But his clothes got caught.

His garments ripped with a loud tear.

"My clothes ripped,"

Ketal clicked his tongue.

Although the mystery enveloping his body also provided some protection for his clothes, it wasn't perfect.

Unlike his skin, his clothes were fragile and easily torn.

He had prepared plenty of spares, but they were starting to run out.

‘Do I need to get more clothes again?’

It was becoming annoying.

He wanted to find proper clothes.

Even as he thought this, his body continued to deal with the monsters.

Hundreds of monsters, powerful enough to burn the continent.

It took about an hour to finish them off.

And even that was only because Ketal responded leisurely.

If he had been more serious, it would have ended much sooner.

Finally, the stairs to the next floor opened.

Ketal slowly walked toward the 5th floor.

A vast cavern awaited him.

There was only one monster waiting for him there.

[Kaaaaaah!]

A dragon made of bones.

The Bone Dragon roared.

Ketal’s eyes lit up.

“Oh ho! A Bone Dragon!”

It was one of the most powerful monsters.

He had seen living dragons before, but seeing a dead one also had its own value.

[Kaaaa!]

The Bone Dragon spread its wings wide, decay swirling around it.

A powerful magic capable of rotting everything consumed the space.

The intense murderous aura and malice were palpable.

Ketal could tell.

The Bone Dragon before him was a hero-class monster.

It would have a good match against Karin.

But that was all.

“It’s weaker than the poison of the rat.”

[That’s true…]

There was a clear difference between it and the white rat.

‘In that case.’

It was the perfect opportunity for a test.

Ketal took a light step forward.

He pierced through the swirling decay and charged forward, instantly closing the distance and throwing a punch.

He started light, but with genuine force.

Boooom!

With a thunderous sound, the Bone Dragon skidded backward.

But there were no wounds on its body.

It had cast a defensive spell, which had managed to block Ketal's attack.

Though the shield had shattered, it successfully protected the Bone Dragon’s body.

“I expected that.”

Ketal muttered calmly.

He already knew that a hero-class existence could withstand his serious attack.

But what about his full power?

[Kaaaaah!]

The Bone Dragon attacked, but Ketal dodged swiftly and closed the gap again.

It raised its defenses.

But Ketal poured more power into his strike and swung at full strength.

It was the first time he used his full power against a ground-dwelling being.

BOOOOOM!

The defense was shattered.

And his punch struck the Bone Dragon.

Its ribcage shattered.

The Bone Dragon’s body tumbled across the ground.

[K-Kaaaah!]

Ketal nodded.

“As expected, even this level of opponent can’t withstand my full power.”

His full force had broken through the Bone Dragon’s defense and completely destroyed its ribcage.

But it didn’t fall.

The shattered ribs quickly restored themselves, and the Bone Dragon staggered as it stood back up.

Ketal whistled.

“You’re quite sturdy.”

[Y-You think so?]

The Holy Sword stuttered.

The Bone Dragon’s body was made from the bones of a dragon.

It was protected and animated by magic, so it couldn’t even be scratched through normal means.

Even Ignisia would have to invest significant effort to break those bones.

But Ketal had shattered them with just one punch.

The Holy Sword already knew Ketal was a monstrous existence, but the more it saw, the more astonishing his power became. Ketal’s thoughts crystallized.

Hero-class opponents could survive his full strength.

‘But just barely.’

They could endure one hit, but that was all.

If he attacked again, the problem would be solved.

At least against normal hero-class foes, he could defeat them without issue using his full strength.

Ketal wondered how earth’s hero-class beings would respond to his full power.

He had confirmed his test.

But Ketal didn’t move.

He squinted his eyes and scanned his surroundings.

The vast cavern.

He was inside the dungeon now, a space completely isolated from the outside world.

And before him was a hero-class monster.

Ketal made his decision.

“This is a good environment for testing.”

He began to channel his mystery.

It enveloped his entire body, protecting his flesh.

But he didn’t swing his fist.

He maintained the mystery, gathering it.

Then Ketal flexed his arm.

His muscles swelled.

Grrrriiiik!

The mystery that protected his arm started to gather all of his full strength.

* * *

From the moment Ketal had gained the mystery and could envelop his body with it, he had wondered:

What would happen if he channeled all his full power and swung with his body fully enveloped?

Until now, it had only been a thought.

The reason was simple.

Even Ketal had no idea what kind of fallout there would be.

When he had channeled the mystery to his legs and stomped on the ground with full force, an earthquake had occurred.

Not figuratively, but a literal earthquake.

When he had used his full strength, he created massive sinkholes or erased entire spaces.

What would happen if he combined both?

Even Ketal couldn’t calculate it.

If he recklessly used his strength, the fantasy world he loved so much might be destroyed. So he hadn’t dared to try.

But here he was in a dungeon.

A world completely separated from the outside.

No matter how much destruction occurred, it wouldn’t matter.

Here, he could experiment freely without worry.

Grrrriiiik!

The mystery was gathered into his arm, along with his full strength.

Up until now, Ketal’s body hadn’t been able to withstand his full power and would break down.

But now, it didn’t.

The mystery wrapped around his arm was preventing his body from being destroyed by the full force.

With no losses, he began to gather even more power.

It felt as if he had finally gained an authority befitting his strength.

[W-Wait a minute. You…]

The Holy Sword panicked.

Even the Bone Dragon sensed that something was off.

[K-Kaaaah?]

It had no intellect.

It was already a dead creature, forcibly animated by the dungeon’s magic.

A being that followed orders blindly, like a machine.

Yet, the Bone Dragon felt a shudder of fear.

An instinct long since forgotten stirred within it, and its remaining intellect crawled up to warn it.

It had to escape this place immediately.

That it couldn’t handle this.

[Kaaaaah!]

But it couldn’t retreat.

His orders were clear—to kill the intruder in the dungeon.

So, he moved as commanded, spreading his wings and charging towards Ketal.

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"Thank you,"

Ketal said, baring his teeth.

He gathered all his strength in his arm and unleashed it.

At that very moment...

BOOOOOM!

The guild leader waiting outside jolted violently.

The ground shook beneath him.

"Whaaaah!"

"What is happening?!"

His eyes widened in shock.

The earth in front of him had exploded.

It was as if a volcano had erupted, and debris shot into the sky.

Dirt rained down heavily.

"...Could it be? Did Ketal... do something inside the dungeon?"

"No... that's impossible,"

The fairy muttered in disbelief.

The events inside a dungeon shouldn't affect the outside world.

Yet, neither the guild leader nor the fairy could find words as they stared at the scene, stunned.

* * *

BOOOOOM!

The bones of the bone dragon shattered.

No, more than that—they disintegrated into near dust.

The force was so overwhelming that the bone dragon's entire body took the impact, rolling miserably on the ground.

Ketal let out a whistle.

"So strong!"

He admired his fist with a satisfied look.

"And intact!"

There wasn’t a single injury on his arm.

Not a single blood vessel had burst.

Protected by mystery, he had withstood the immense power.

With this, unlike before, he could now use his full strength without restraint.

And without his body breaking down, he could channel all his power into his attacks.

Ketal realized something.

This was the true strength he was meant to wield.

He gleefully threw another punch.

BOOOOOM!

The bone dragon's skeleton turned to dust, and the impact shattered the dungeon walls, creating a hole that allowed sunlight to stream in.

Ketal’s punch had destroyed the dungeon and even pierced a hole to the outside world.

[…..]

The Holy Sword couldn’t speak.

'This...'

Was this kind of power really coming directly from a human body without any preparation?

Was it not divine power, directly wielded by a god?

The Holy Sword shivered.

Ketal lightly stepped forward.

The dungeon floor crumbled as his body arrived before the bone dragon.

His fist moved.

The repeated attacks shook the very space, and the bone dragon, unable to defend itself, had its bones crushed and shattered entirely.

[Kaaah…]

Before long, the bone dragon collapsed.

It tried to get up, but its body, already broken, could no longer move.

As the immense power worked through it, the dragon began crumbling into dust.

"You did well. You have my gratitude."

And with that, farewell.

Ketal brought his fist down on the bone dragon’s head.

THUD!

A massive crater appeared.

The bone dragon's head had completely vanished.

The headless body slumped to the ground.

[One... minute.]

It had taken less than a minute to finish off a hero-class monster.

Even though it was a mindless, broken monster, the power was still unbelievable.

Ketal whistled again.

"It’s really strong. It was the right decision not to use this on the surface."

The power was beyond his expectations.

But it wasn’t without problems.

‘The consumption of mystery is quite intense.’

He had only used the power for less than a minute, and yet almost half of his mystery was gone.

It was not a power that could be used without risk.

Moreover, the mental strain was significant.

Moving his body at full power while controlling the mystic energy placed a burden on him too.

His head throbbed painfully.

But the benefits were worth it.

The fact that using his full power no longer destroyed his body was a significant improvement.

And unlike summoning the mystic beast, there were no conditions to meet.

As long as he had enough time, he could use it freely.

‘If I train a bit more, it’ll become very useful.’

Ketal smiled contentedly.

At the same time, the bone dragon’s headless body began to float in midair.

Slowly, it compressed into a single form.

Plop.

The compressed object fell into Ketal’s hand.

It was a bone, pure white and glowing like a gemstone.

[Dragon Bone…]

The Holy Sword muttered.

Ketal grinned.

"Nice."

Ketal’s body was transported to the entrance of the dungeon.

With the dungeon’s boss defeated, the dungeon itself had disappeared.

When Ketal returned to the entrance, he found the guild leader and the fairy, holding each other, staring at him.

"You’ve been waiting. It’s over."

"…Ah, yes,"

The guild leader nodded, still dazed.

* * *

Back at the guild’s headquarters, the guild leader, who had finally come to his senses, cautiously asked,

"What... did you do?"

"I had an experiment to carry out. It was a satisfactory result."

"I-I see..."

What kind of experiment would cause such chaos?

The guild leader swallowed hard but didn’t dare to ask further.

Instead, he asked another question.

"We’ve confirmed that the dungeon has been cleared."

The S-rank dungeon.

The entrance to the nest of monsters had disappeared.

It meant the dungeon was cleared.

"May I ask what was inside?"

Ketal replied,

"You already know about the first to third floors, so let’s skip that. There was a fourth floor. There were monsters like basilisks and hydras—about a hundred of them. Each one was beyond superhuman."

"I-I see."

"And on the fifth floor, there was the bone dragon."

"The bone dragon!"

The guild leader was horrified.

The bone dragon—a legendary creature, said to be impossible to defeat without a hero-class fighter.

"And for the reward…"

"I received this,"

Ketal said, showing the pure white bone.

The guild leader groaned.

"A dragon bone…"

"Do you know what it is?"

"I’ve only heard of it in legends. It's never been publicly circulated. There’s only a myth that a part of it was used to create the magic tower."

"I see."

Satisfied with the answer, Ketal smiled.

"...So the boss of the S-rank dungeon was a bone dragon."

The guild leader now knew that clearing an S-rank dungeon required more than a hero-class fighter.

It was invaluable information—worth more than gold.

The guild leader bowed deeply.

"Thank you for sharing the dungeon’s details! I’d love to give you a reward immediately, but given our current situation…"

"It’s fine. If you really want to give one, take your time."

"Thank you! Then, I’ll guide you to your lodging. You must be exhausted. Please rest well!"

"That sounds good."

Ketal followed the guild leader to his room and was shown to a bed.

The guild leader hurried back, eager to compile the information he had just learned.

"Hmm."

Lying on the bed, Ketal pulled out the white bone with a satisfied expression.

The dragon bone.

But it was more than just a bone.

It shone with the luster of a gemstone, containing immense mystery within.

With anticipation, Ketal asked,

"From your perspective, what grade of material is this?"

[Well… if it were just a regular dragon bone, it wouldn’t be of a very high grade. It’s strong and conducts magic well, but that’s it. However, what you’re holding isn’t a regular dragon bone.]

The Holy Sword explained slowly.

[This is the bone of a bone dragon, a reward from the dungeon, containing all of its power compressed into one. It’s a material in itself.]

"How does it compare to a dragon heart?"

[…As a material, I’d say there’s little difference.]

"As expected."

Ketal smiled.

It was clear now.

He had obtained the final material to unlock the mystery he sought.

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