Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 344

The Soul Queens finally raised the white flag.

It seemed they had realized how foolish it was to try and gain an advantage over me…

‘Tsk, what a funny woman. She was so bold when revealing the GM’s identity, but she’s tucking her tail between her legs as soon as her own story comes up.’

The Queen endured the Clown’s mocking words without responding. Considering her status, built in a short time at the Round Table, she looked somewhat pitiful.

But…

‘It’d be a shame to end it like this.’

It would be foolish to just accept her surrender here.

The Soul Queens seemed sensitive to hierarchy.

It would be good to properly engrave it in her mind at this opportunity.

Just like I did to the goblin I met in the cave on the day I was summoned to this world.

Who is above.

And who is below.

“I…”

I tapped the chair with my index finger once more and said,

“Why should I?”

At my short question, the Soul Queens flinched, then answered in a small voice.

“…If we stop here, we won’t antagonize you, Mr. Lion.”

This meant that they wouldn’t ban me from the community, and they wouldn’t hold me accountable for revealing the GM’s identity earlier.

I chuckled coldly at her uncharacteristic, roundabout expression.

After all, it sounded like a proposal to an equal, didn’t it?

“You still haven’t learned.”

I said, tapping the chair’s armrest once more with my index finger.

The difference from before was that.

This time, I didn’t hide my displeasure.

“…If there’s anything you desire, please tell me.”

The Soul Queens looked at me cautiously and spoke earnestly.

Therefore…

“I don’t desire anything from you.”

I spoke clearly because she seemed unable to understand my words.

“Also, I’m not afraid of you.”

At least, that’s how it appears on the surface.

If I was even slightly uncomfortable with being at odds with the management, would I have gone this far without backing down? In their eyes, I must look like an uncontrollable madman.

So…

“I’ll ask one last time.”

I asked the Soul Queens again.

“Why should I?”

“Th-that’s…”

Of course, she couldn’t give a reason.

After all, everyone this woman had dealt with as a bargaining chip must have had their own desires. It was natural for her smooth tongue to freeze up when faced with a type she had never seen before.

But…

“I…”

She was a smart woman in many ways.

Threats didn’t work, and she didn’t even ask for compensation.

She was just trying to continue the punishment as if this moment was just another enjoyable game.

So, how should one persuade such an opponent?

After a long period of contemplation, she reached a solution.

Give up on trying to persuade.

And…

“I… was wrong…”

Beg for mercy.

The last resort of the weak who can’t offer anything to the strong.

“Please… forgive me…”

“That foolish woman finally seems to have realized her position. Tsk.”

Ignoring the Clown’s mockery, the Soul Queens lowered her posture, just as I had told the Deer Horn earlier.

And looking up at me, she struggled to speak.

“I will never… do anything to displease… Mr. Lion… again… So please, forgive my mistake today…”

Frankly, it was quite impressive.

I didn’t expect her to go this low, no matter what. Was it that shocking that I knew all their personal information?

“…”

“…”

Looking around, the members were silently glancing back and forth between me and the Soul Queens.

They were curious whether I would accept her apology.

‘The hierarchy is settled enough for now…’

I looked down at the Soul Queens and said,

“Much better.”

Yes, that’s what I wanted.

***

“The Queen’s nickname is Soul Queens. And I won’t reveal Soul Queens’ real name.”

I put my hand back on the Round Table, ending my turn, and received the green light.

“Hoo…”

At the same time, as if their tension had been released, the members who had been watching the situation closely took a deep breath.

The Soul Queens was no different.

“Thank… you…”

A thank you that must have felt like peeling off her own skin. I didn’t bother to answer, and a slightly awkward silence followed.

The one who carefully broke the silence was the Deer Horn.

“…What about the gathering? Are we going to continue?”

My turn marked the end of the second round.

Sometimes, we would go through four or five rounds, but this was a good time to end the gathering.

So, what decision would they make?

“I, I’ll stop here…”

The Soul Queens, who had been bold once and then severely scolded, said that while looking at me.

It felt like if I told her not to go, she would say ‘Yes…’ and stay…

But…

It wouldn’t change anything if she stayed.

“Then, I’ll stop here too…”

The Goblin, who had barely passed after receiving the red light twice in this round, declared his absence, and the gathering naturally flowed towards its conclusion.

‘Tch, it’s already over…’

It was a bit disappointing that the Round Table, which had returned after 2 years and 6 months, ended in two rounds, but it couldn’t be helped.

‘Still, I showed my face today, so they’ll bring something more interesting next month.’

“…Tsk, then let’s all prepare more diligently for next month. Ah, of course, that’s assuming Mr. Lion will visit this place again!”

The Clown glanced at me from time to time while pretending to talk to the other members.

It was a somewhat cute thing to see.

What he really wanted to say was whether I would come again next time.

Swoosh.

It didn’t feel cool to kindly answer, so I left the Round Table without answering the Clown’s question.

And…

“Haa…”

As soon as I returned to Lee Han-soo’s room, I took a deep breath and lay down on the bed.

I was quite tired from the aftereffects of the killing intent I had used earlier.

‘I’ll probably sleep like a log until tomorrow evening.’

Of course, that was for the future me, so the current me continued to do what I could without resting.

The first thing was to organize the information.

‘Now that I’ve made such a scene today, it seems unlikely that anyone would think I’m Bjorn Yandel right away…’

I reviewed the events that had happened at the Round Table.

The comeback stage seemed to have gone well, but it wasn’t perfect. After all, I couldn’t just pretend to be dead and live in the shadows forever.

‘As soon as my revival is known, the same suspicion will arise immediately.’

Of course, I had several ways to deal with this.

I had gained several cards to bluff with after traveling to the past.

‘I can think about this part later…’

What was really important was something else.

No, to be honest, I almost lost my mind because of it during the Round Table.

[The original source was Misha Karlstein, that woman, right?]

Misha Karlstein.

Why did she spread such rumors?

[Isn’t that the same thing? That woman is now one of Lee Baek-ho’s companions.]

And how did she become Lee Baek-ho’s companion?

No matter how much I used my imagination, the causal link didn’t easily come to mind.

However, if I were to make a guess.

[Lee Baek-ho has the Stone of Rebirth.]

This seems to be the key point.

For example, Misha might have had no choice but to join hands with Lee Baek-ho to save me.

‘…Is that just wishful thinking on my part?’

Ha, if only I had been sent back even a year earlier.

The 2 years and 6 months gap felt huge, and my frustration grew.

But what could I do? The situation was like this.

‘Anyway, if Misha’s goal is to save me… what is Lee Baek-ho’s goal?’

Well, I don’t know.

There was still too little information.

Aside from the fact that we were both Korean, I hadn’t even spent much time talking to Lee Baek-ho.

I hadn’t even had a sincere conversation with him.

‘…I’ll think about this again after learning more about Lee Baek-ho.’

I closed my eyes and continued to organize my thoughts.

GM, Auriel Gavis, Amelia, and Noahrc and the royal family, etc. There were countless things to think about, with no clear priority.

“…”

After a long time of letting my thoughts flow like a brainstorm, I sat back at the computer and spent time reading the posts I hadn’t checked earlier.

How much time had passed?

‘I thought the GM or the Soul Queens would send me a message, but there’s nothing.’

I moved the cursor without any regrets.

It didn’t seem like anything great would come out of looking at it more closely, and there wasn’t much time left before the community closed.

Click.

As I pressed the logout button, my vision flashed, and soon darkness fell.

The bedroom, where all the windows were blocked with boards, not a single ray of moonlight seeping in.

“Hehe, you’re awake…”

Erwen was looking down at me.

***

Erwen Fornacci di Tersia.

The owner of the pureblood of the era, and the contractor of the Spirit King.

As proof, she was granted the ‘Divine Wood Bow,’ a treasure of the fairies, and she played a major role in the war, earning the nickname Blood Spirit Marquis, one of the Seven Greats.

And…

[Tsk, what is that crazy woman trying to do?]

[I don’t know what it is, but there’s going to be another bloodbath.]

The only one among my companions who devoted everything to my revenge.

[No matter what anyone says, to me, you’re Bjorn Yandel.]

The woman who told me that it didn’t matter if I was a demon or not.

However, it was difficult to feel grateful and touched by her devotion.

It was too much.

So, why is she so obsessed with me?

At first, I thought it was because of her obsession stat.

The Goblin Archer, the Steel Hill Chaser, and the Cannibal.

All three essences that Erwen had consumed had the ‘obsession’ stat attached to them.

I thought that the death of another close person soon after her sister’s death might have been the trigger.

But…

“Master… if you’re done sleeping… shall we go for a walk? Oh, the moon is beautiful tonight…”

That was Erwen from 2 years and 6 months ago.

Erwen, who had received generous support from her clan, enough to make any noble’s child cry, had already changed most of her essences.

The problem was that the changed ones weren’t very positive either.

The Erthes patrolmen from the 6th floor Golem Island.

Here, the defense mechanism was +45.

The wolf beast Calvan, which was non-aggressive during the day but turned aggressive at night.

Here, impulse was +30 and distrust was +30.

The 4th-grade monster Metcrow had a possessiveness of +24, and two other essences added a control of -30 and a deficiency of +40.

If you look at each one individually, they weren’t stats that would cause major mental problems, but when they were all combined, it was natural that they would affect daily life.

So, after realizing this, I tried my best not to provoke Erwen.

I judged that if she went crazy, the situation could worsen beyond control.

Yes, that’s how it had been until now.

But…

“Oh, right…! I also bought a necklace… If you have this, you can know where you are anytime, anywhere–”

I couldn’t keep putting it off forever.

This wasn’t my taste either.

Thud.

I roughly slapped away Erwen’s hand that was touching my body without hesitation.

“………Huh?”

Erwen looked visibly flustered.

“M-Master… are you, are you angry? Why… why?”

Erwen, whose eyes were shaking as if she was confused, looked for the cause of my change outside.

“Come to think of it… there were some boards… torn off in the living room.”

I had been thinking of just tearing them off because I was suffocating, but I had stopped myself.

But did she take it differently?

“Amelia Rainweils. It’s that woman, isn’t it…? That woman came, didn’t she? So, Master…”

Erwen started to spin ridiculous fantasies and began to tremble.

Her eyes were already gleaming with killing intent.

To be honest, seeing her like that in the middle of the night made my legs tremble.

But…

“Amelia didn’t come.”

So what?

Running away because I was scared and uncomfortable went against my beliefs.

Even when I was falsely accused and imprisoned in the guild’s dungeon.

Even when I faced the Dragonslayer in the Larcaz Maze.

Even in the Noahrc battle where I gained the reputation of a giant.

I had always faced things head-on, and that’s why I was able to survive.

Therefore.

“Why… why do you still call that woman by her name?”

I answered without hesitation to that question.

“Because she’s my companion.”

Erwen’s reaction came after a brief pause.

“…Th-that’s! Ah, I’ll be here from now on, so I’ve told you repeatedly that you don’t need a woman like that…!”

Yes, she did say that.

But.

“Why do you get to decide that?”

“Th-that’s…”

Erwen was speechless.

I didn’t feel particularly sorry for her.

Perhaps because I had been wearing the Lion Mask just a few hours ago, my words flowed naturally.

“How rude.”

“…!”

Erwen’s eyes widened.

At that moment, I awakened my dormant muscles.

After all, what would a person with an already unstable mental state do now?

“…Who are you?”

“I’m Bjorn Yandel.”

“L-lie… you’re a demon…”

Soon, a dark aura began to surge from Erwen’s body.

It was the dark spirit that had become Erwen’s specialty.

Thump thump thump thump.

My heart, sensing the danger, was beating like crazy.

I was prepared, but the pressure was considerable when I actually stood in front of her.

However, the more it was like that, the more I remembered.

‘Who am I?’

A barbarian warrior who had overcome all sorts of adversities.

A giant, Bjorn, the son of Yandel.

The only user who cleared the original difficulty.

The absolute ruler of the Round Table with the heart of a lion.

Clench.

As soon as I remembered my identity, which I had forgotten for a moment, my chest swelled with courage.

Therefore, before this feeling faded.

“I-it’s not too late, so tell me now. You, you just made a mistake in your sleep–”

“Erwen Fornacci di Tersia.”

I said to her.

“There’s something wrong with your head right now.”

Yes, if there’s a problem, the only thing to do is fix it.

“Stop talking nonsense and come at me.”

In the way I do best.