The weather today was remarkably pleasant, with a gentle breeze sweeping through the sparsely visited park.
It felt as though something was brewing—Bul-Kathos, inside his smithy, sensed the presence of at least two hundred people gathering in the park.
He glanced briefly in their direction before returning to his forging.
Whatever was happening out there likely wouldn't affect him.
Unless, of course, it sparked his fury.
For instance, if a gang brawl erupted and harmed an innocent family.
For Bul-Kathos, such events felt abrupt.
Barbarians were never known for their swiftness.
Their only terrain-crossing technique was Whirlwind, and as for Charge?
That skill required every step to land solidly on the ground, accumulating power. It couldn't cross ravines or smash through walls.
Each leap or obstacle shattered the gathered force.
Between Bul-Kathos and the innocent family stood a wall and a ditch.
Thus, he couldn't reach the scene immediately.
This pained him deeply. For Bul-Kathos, whose eyes had witnessed only the cruelties of war, a happy, intact family was a cherished fantasy.
Now, seeing innocents perish right before him—
His rage became uncontainable.
"Ha!"
Battle Rage: Bloodshed!
The barbarian's most iconic war cry fused fury and bloodlust into his weapon, spreading that power through the blood of enemies to those nearby.
For Bul-Kathos, this cry signaled a fight to the death!
"If demons stir my hatred, you lot only fuel my killing intent!"
His voice thundered through the secluded park like an exploding cannonball, whipping up a gale.
He cared nothing for why these gang members were here or what sparked their firefight.
Scum who harmed innocents had no right to exist in this world—that was barbarian justice.
Bul-Kathos launched himself skyward like a cannonball.
Though he wore no armor, only ordinary work clothes, it didn't hinder his power.
Whirlwind: Death from Above!
In an instant, his body arced through the sky, plummeting toward the center of the damned thugs!
The ferocious wind pressure, coupled with his immense strength, ground the surrounding gangsters into bloody pulp!
"You won't even get the chance to become souls!"
Bul-Kathos's fury burned unabated. Killing wasn't a means to quell a barbarian's anger—it was a channel to sustain it.
In a flash, the thugs suffered catastrophic losses. The clustered group was reduced to a layer of dark red gore smeared across the ground.
He could sense whether the innocent family still lived, but that was precisely why his rage surged.
The mother, in her final moments, had shielded her children with her body. In an instant, she became a perforated ragdoll, collapsing lifelessly.
Her children, whom she'd fought to protect, succumbed to the relentless gunfire.
A human body, frail against technological weapons, was like paper torn to shreds.
Earth's humans couldn't withstand those rounded bullets.
A great mother sacrificed her life for her children, yet they, too, perished in this sudden assault.
"Monster!"
"Shoot him! Shoot!"
"Help! Save me!"
The thugs collapsed under the overwhelming pressure Bul-Kathos exuded.
Whether they fled or fought back, their fates were sealed.
Ground Stomp!
Bul-Kathos raised his right foot high and slammed it down with colossal force!
A tremor rippled outward, yanking the fleeing thugs toward him like marionettes on strings.
"No one leaves until I've dealt with this!"
He growled through gritted teeth, seizing a hapless thug's head.
With a brutal slam, he drove it into the ground!
Which was harder—human skulls or the earth?
This was Bul-Kathos's first time testing it.
Before, he'd used demons for such experiments.
He'd learned that demon skulls, infused with Hell's power, could shatter the hardest stone.
So he'd reinforced the ground with the earth's might to let those vile demon spawn paint it with crimson blooms.
How tough was a human skull?
Bul-Kathos was about to find out!
Though human bones were surely sturdier than the park's soft grass, the ground, hardened by his Whirlwind and Ground Stomp, was now a sunken slab.
Even without invoking the earth's power, it was solid enough to shatter these pathetic thugs' skulls.
And Bul-Kathos, in his rage, employed Cleave's technique!
The moment the unlucky thug's body hit the ground, it burst into a mix of blood and pulp. A shockwave radiated outward, turning the other thugs along its path into clouds of blood mist.
"Bul-Kathos, please calm yourself!"
The Ancient One's form suddenly appeared in the park, shouting at him.
"Ordinary people's matters are handled by their laws for justice!"
The instant Bul-Kathos had launched skyward, a watching mage urgently contacted her.
Without a moment to spare, she opened a portal and rushed to the scene.
From the moment she arrived, everything froze—except for her and Bul-Kathos.
"The power of time?"
He sensed a miraculous force in the frozen scene before him.
Such power wasn't unfamiliar.
Certain legendary items carried traces of temporal energy.
Take Yin's Blade, for instance—it could manipulate time internally. After slaying a powerful foe, it could shave off recovery time for energy-intensive skills within seconds.
This allowed warriors to chain short-cooldown abilities without pause.
"My disdain for mages isn't just about hating magic! I despise how you prattle about rules yet do nothing when the weak are harmed!"
Author's Note:
Thank you all for your support. I sincerely say, "Thank you."
Regarding this book, I've envisioned a vast world, so many places and characters will be altered to suit the story's needs.
I hope you'll forgive my secondary interpretations of these characters.
A reader previously noted that the Ancient One is the guardian of the time dimension, which I'm aware of. However, as you can tell from my portrayal of the Ancient One as female, I've chosen her cinematic depiction.
I've also nudged her character toward a more human direction.
The next few chapters will clarify Bul-Kathos's place in this world's hierarchy. After laying this groundwork, the plot will fully unfold.
As the Barbarian King, destined to inherit the title of "Immortal King," Bul-Kathos can't just drift aimlessly, right?
He needs a purpose, and the following chapters will plant the seeds for his goal while helping readers understand his strength and presence.
What's my vision for Bul-Kathos?
He's Tyrael, the Archangel of Justice.
He upholds barbarian justice in all he sees, serving as this world's hope in its darkest moments.
Reliable and worthy of trust.
Of course, I won't resort to describing him with levels or stats. While data is intuitive, it subtly diminishes a character's presence.
Besides, Diablo III's numbers are just too explosive…
Bul-Kathos is the protagonist, not a player, so he's consistently powerful, always fearless in battle…
(End of Chapter)