Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 5

Give and Take (2)

[Dungeon & Stone] is a peculiar game.

Your NPC companions are essential for progressing, but you should never trust those bastards.

Especially if you’ve only just met them.

***

I’m walking through the cave.

Wobble, wobble.

Because I’m missing one shoe, my balance is off.

Even so, I’m happy.

This discomfort I’m feeling now is something I couldn’t even experience when I was crawling on all fours, right?

I’ve regained my human dignity.

Though I don’t know how long it will last.

“Hoo…”

I move forward, using my shield to protect my upper body.

I don’t need to scan the ground with my eyes like they’re about to fall out, like before.

Because there’s light here.

The crystals embedded in the walls and ceiling are emitting light, brightly illuminating the surroundings.

It feels like a dream that I was crawling through the darkness, bleeding.

I can say with certainty that being able to see is a blessing from God.

Definitely, in that it allows me to take down those wicked goblin bastards.

“Waaack!”

“Grrrk?!”

Startled by my shout, a goblin pops out from behind a rock.

I had already roughly figured out its hiding spot, so I used a skill as if I had been waiting for it.

“Smash! You bastard!”

Smash is a skill that doesn’t consume MP [Mana Points] and has decent attack power.

For the record, I just made it up.

Thwack-!

The goblin, which was leaping, was hit by the shield and fell to the ground. I quickly approached and stomped on the goblin’s upper body with my foot.

“Grr, grrrk?!”

It’s no use giving me those pitiful eyes.

I know how cunning and wicked these bastards are.

“Grr, grrrk!”

What, you’re saying you’re not one of them?

Then go argue with your friend who went first. That bastard is the reason I’m like this.

Crack-!

I slammed the edge of my shield into the goblin’s face with all my might.

It’s different from Smash, which only hits the enemy in front by swinging or pushing.

Its name is… Final Shield Attack.

I made that up just now too.

Swoooosh-!

The goblin, cleanly killed, disappears into light.

It means that evil has diminished, even if only slightly, and the world has become a little more beautiful.

I picked up the magic stone that came as a reward and roughly shoved it into my pocket.

The tenth magic stone I’ve obtained since entering the labyrinth.

“Hah, you weak bastards.”

After dying once and barely surviving, I’ve been constantly encountering goblins.

At first, I was nervous, but I quickly realized something.

The goblins I met in places where my vision was clear were not threatening at all.

They weren’t as smart as I thought they’d be either.

Just look at that trap they set up haphazardly over there.

‘They could have at least dug a hole and covered it with dirt. Do they even have a brain? If you put it right in the middle of the path like that, who’s going to step on it?’

The goblin traps were so crude that you could spot them from far away. And if you tried to pass by without stepping on the trap, most of them would jump out and attack first.

It seems like that thing of them grinning and following you like a pervert only happens when you step on the trap……

As I gradually figured out their habits, fighting them became easier and easier.

First of all, their main weapon is a short dagger, and their physical abilities are only at the level of an elementary school upperclassman.

On the other hand, I am now a muscular barbarian with a height of 2 meters. If we engage in a frontal battle, I can subdue a goblin in 3 seconds.

So, all I had to worry about was surprise attacks, but since I can know their ambush locations in advance through the traps…

‘Hmm, becoming a goblin slayer wouldn’t be so bad, would it?’

I immediately moved my hand and slapped my cheek hard.

Thwack-!

The pain made me snap out of it.

…What was I thinking just now?

I must be crazy.

Otherwise, there’s no way I’d be giggling while having such pathetic thoughts.

Don’t get cocky just because you killed a few goblins.

It hasn’t even been 2 hours since I came back to life, and I haven’t solved any of the new problems.

“Aish, I’m hungry…”

First of all, there’s the food problem.

The shield isn’t the only thing I lost while crawling through the darkness.

The food pouch the chieftain gave me had a hole in it, and I lost about 5 days’ worth of food out of the 7 days’ worth.

Of course, I couldn’t wander around in the dark to find it.

I’m not Hansel and Gretel [a reference to a German fairy tale].

Crunch, crunch.

On that note, I immediately opened my pouch and took out a piece of bread to eat.

The bread was hard and dry, probably for preservation, but as I slowly melted it with my saliva, the sweetness of the carbohydrates gradually reached my tongue.

Why does this taste so good?

It seems like my appetite has changed because of my barbarian body.

After a few bites, the bread, which was the size of my palm, disappeared.

I sighed, feeling a strange sense of regret and a dry feeling in my mouth.

I’m thirsty.

That’s the second problem.

…Damn it, where do I get water?

***

「You have defeated a goblin.」

「You have defeated a goblin.」

「You have defeated a goblin.」

「You have defeated a goblin.」

「Warning: Your body is dehydrated. Please secure drinking water immediately…」

***

[Dungeon & Stone] has a satiety system.

Of course, it’s only activated inside the labyrinth, and it was filled just by eating, so there was no need to carry drinking water.

But this isn’t inside a game.

If I had to say, it’s closer to another world that’s very similar to the game I know.

‘It was already a hardcore game, but now that it’s become reality, the difficulty is completely insane.’

Still, I’m not too worried.

It’s true that water is a more important resource than food, but the chieftain didn’t give me any water either.

It’s clear that self-sufficiency is possible within the labyrinth.

And it didn’t take long to find it.

“Smash!”

After wandering through the complex cave like an ant nest for an hour, while beating up goblins.

I followed the sound of dripping water, and I found a small pond.

One explorer was already squatting down and drinking water. Aside from the blonde party, this was practically my first encounter, but…

“……”

There was no conversation.

He saw me from afar and silently gave up his spot, and I didn’t bother to approach him and talk.

The other explorers I met afterward were the same. They all just avoided me as soon as they saw me.

It seems like there’s an unwritten rule among explorers, like in the game, that they don’t contact each other unless absolutely necessary.

Well, it could just be that they didn’t want to get involved with a blood-soaked barbarian.

Anyway, I kept repeating the cycle of eating bread when I was hungry and drinking water when I was thirsty while catching goblins, and time flew by until now.

“One, two, three, four, five, six…”

Counting them, I’ve obtained a total of forty-four magic stones so far.

Converted into bread, that’s like getting 44 pieces of bread.

Thinking back to the time when I was dying, it’s truly a moving thing, but there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

In return, I’ve gained a deep sense of fatigue.

That was my third problem.

‘I’m getting sleepy…’

As a living being, I need to sleep.

That’s no different for this high-performance barbarian with high specs.

So, how do you sleep in a labyrinth where monsters actually exist?

There are two ways.

You can entrust your life to the heavens and take a light nap.

Or you can find companions to watch over each other.

The choice I was going to make was already decided.

Entrust my life to the heavens? Based on my experience, that’s not something to be trusted. At least, not for me.

‘Let’s find a companion.’

Of course, I don’t mean to form a formal party.

Everyone is probably tired right now, so I’m thinking of finding someone suitable and forming a temporary cooperative relationship.

That’s how most people spent the night in the game when their fatigue was high.

Thump, thump.

After making my decision, I focused on moving rather than fighting and wandered around the labyrinth. And just by doing that, unlike before, I saw groups of people everywhere.

Thump, thump.

Groups of two or three explorers were taking turns keeping watch while resting.

I focused on their appearance and demeanor, and I mustered the courage to approach a few groups, but I was rejected by all of them.

“I’m sorry, but we’ve already got all the people we need.”

That’s what they said, but seeing them wrinkle their noses and cover their faces when I approached, the reason was too obvious.

…You bastards.

How clean do they think they are?

I was grumbling inwardly when someone spoke to me.

“Hey there.”

It was a human man who looked to be about thirty years old.

He was about 180cm tall.

He had a rather kind and gentle face, but he was holding a hammer covered in goblin blood.

The man smiled and asked me.

“Are you perhaps looking for a night companion?”

What the hell, who is this guy?

I instinctively took a step back, and the man tilted his head.

“You weren’t looking for a night companion? I thought that since you’re a barbarian, it would be safe to trust you and rest comfortably, but that’s a shame.”

You should have said that from the start, mister…

It seems like ‘night companion’ is a slang term for the temporary cooperative relationship I was talking about.

In the game, it’s written as ‘Night Companion’.

I interpreted it as a comrade of the night, a companion of the night, but hearing it in person, it sounds very perverted.

“…No, I am looking for a night companion.”

“Is that so? That’s good. Then, will you join me?”

“I will.”

And so, I became night companions with the man.

“My name is Hans.”

“I’m Bjorn, son of Yandel.”

“Then, can I call you Bjorn?”

The man, who seemed experienced, naturally finished introducing himself and took the lead.

“It’s best to have three night companions, but it seems like it would be more of a waste of energy to go looking for one. Bjorn, what do you think?”

In short, he’s saying let’s sleep together, just the two of us.

Is this guy really not thinking something else? Maybe it’s because of his sly way of talking, but I keep feeling like I’m being taken advantage of.

“Sounds good.”

“That’s good. If someone asks to join us, then we’ll discuss it and decide whether to accept them or not.”

After a brief discussion, we decided to spend the first night together, just the two of us.

However, the problem is…

“Then, let’s play rock-paper-scissors to decide the order.”

Rock-paper-scissors seems to be the national rule here too.

Damn it, I’m not good at this…

I’ll say it again, I’m unlucky.

“Hmm, it’s rare that I won.”

Damn it.

“Then, I’ll be in your care. If a goblin or another explorer approaches, wake me up. Got it?”

“…Got it.”

“Here, take this.”

The man lent me a clock with numbers from 0 to 23 engraved on it and even kindly explained how to use it.

“When the short hand reaches here, wake me up then.”

This is probably how people here view barbarians.

“Don’t break it. It’s an expensive item.”

“…Got it.”

He’s so picky.

The man then took out a blanket, covered himself with it, and lay down using his backpack as a pillow. And soon, he started snoring.

Is this what experience is? He looks so comfortable.

I bet he wouldn’t lend it to me if I asked for it when it’s my turn.

“Hoo…”

Anyway, being on watch is so boring.

There are no goblins in sight, and no other explorers are passing through the passage. Is it because everyone is resting with their night companions?

The silence makes me feel sleepy.

Still, as I leaned against the wall and pondered about the future, time passed quickly.

“Hans, wake up.”

“…Was there anything?”

“No.”

“I see. Thanks for your hard work. Then, give me the clock and you should rest too. I’ll wake you up in 2 hours.”

Before I could even ask to borrow it, the man put the blanket away in his backpack and stood up.

Sigh.

I also gave up and went to the wall and leaned against it.

And I pretended to doze off.

Of course.

No matter how kind, intelligent, and harmless this man seems—

How can I trust someone I’ve just met?