Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 383

“The labyrinth has been closed.”

“The character is moving to Lapdonia.”

The sunlight of the city, which I’m experiencing for the first time in almost two months, felt intense. Perhaps because I spent my time in the dark underwater of Atlante until the very end, the light felt even more intense.

‘I really need to soak up the sun.’

Like other explorers, I glanced up at the gloomy city sky for a moment, then quickly moved to the checkpoint.

“Here I am!”

Erwen, who had arrived earlier, waved at me.

As we joined the line, Amelia arrived shortly after.

“You’re late.”

“It took a bit longer than expected to find him.”

Amelia replied, gesturing with her eyes to the navigator standing awkwardly to her right.

“So, it’s true that he came in through the same 7th District plaza as us.”

“This guy doesn’t lie.”

Hey, how long has it been since you met him to be so sure?

I was a bit dumbfounded, but I didn’t show it and asked.

“…But there weren’t any problems?”

“Not at all. He didn’t go anywhere else and waited in place for me to come.”

Amelia’s voice was full of pride.

Is she that happy that he listened so well?

On the other hand, the navigator, Nguyen Locrov, seemed to have a belated realization…

“Hehehe…”

As soon as he made eye contact with me, he smiled sheepishly, putting on a forced smile.

Well, seeing this makes me feel a bit sorry for him.

He was one of the guys who targeted us first, so I also think he deserves it.

“It’s our turn now.”

As we stood in line, it was soon our turn, and after exchanging all the magic stones we had collected for money, we passed through the checkpoint.

And then, a street full of crowds appeared.

Here, we changed our formation a bit as we moved.

Amelia was at the very back, and the navigator was right in front of her.

“Haha… Ah, you don’t have to do that, I won’t run away…”

“You might get lost following us.”

“I’ve lived in the 7th District for 20 years…”

The navigator muttered something quietly, but he didn’t leave the formation or do anything else until we arrived at our house, passing through the crowded street.

And…

“Is this the place…?”

Finally, the navigator, who had arrived at the three-story detached house, opened his mouth in admiration as he stepped into the garden after passing the high fence.

But perhaps he sensed something strange while looking around.

“But, why are all the windows…”

The navigator couldn’t finish his sentence and trailed off.

His gaze was fixed on the windows blocked by boards.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s a security measure.”

“Ah, yes…”

He didn’t say much, but the navigator’s eyes and expression showed a mixture of curiosity and fear towards us.

He seemed to be wondering what kind of people we were to live in such a house.

‘Come to think of it, he seems to have already figured out who Erwen is…’

I’ll have to check that later.

After passing through the garden and entering the house, we had a brief discussion and decided to assign one of the remaining rooms to the navigator.

It was a room located in the basement.

“…Basement? Did our house have a basement?”

I tilted my head and looked at Erwen, who blushed shyly.

“I deliberately chose a house with one. Just in case…”

Well, is that so…?

I’ve heard that wealthy houses have panic rooms for emergencies…

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

Feeling uneasy, I watched Erwen remove the carpet and operate a device to create stairs.

Going down, a space that seemed to be designed as a storage room appeared.

It was empty because nothing had been put in it yet, and at the deepest part of the wall, there was a thick iron door with a lock.

Click.

Erwen took out a key and opened the door, revealing a room with a large bed.

For some reason, there were restraints on the wall.

“This isn’t a room… it’s a prison…”

The navigator’s face turned pale as he checked the room he had been assigned.

Actually, I felt the same way.

For some reason, as soon as I saw the basement room, I felt a chill down my spine.

Well, it’s not a place that has anything to do with me anymore.

“…A prison? It’s just a normal room.”

“…”

“Look, there’s a toilet and a bathroom too. No one else will use it but you, so it’s good.”

“…”

“Ahem, well, I’ll go up first. I suddenly don’t feel well…”

Ugh, why is my heart beating so fast?

I don’t have claustrophobia.

As soon as we put the navigator in the room and closed the door, Erwen quickly locked it.

Click.

“Wait, just a minute! Just a minute!”

Bang, bang, bang! We could hear the navigator banging on the door, but we all pretended not to hear it.

“Can I keep the key?”

“Go ahead.”

With Amelia taking the key, the issue of the navigator’s residence was settled.

She’ll take care of feeding him from now on.

Actually, I’ve been curious about something else for a while.

“Emily, is there really such a poison? That you’ll die if you don’t take the antidote every day, I’ve never heard of it.”

It’s like the poison from a martial arts novel. It’s a typical cliché for the Demonic Cult to use this to threaten and control people from the righteous sects.

If it really exists, I thought it might be helpful in various fields in the future.

But…

“Schuitz, you have a naive side too.”

“…Huh?”

“There’s no such poison in the world. Fortunately, that guy didn’t seem to know much about poison.”

“Ah…”

So, it was a bluff after all.

I had a feeling that was a possibility, so I’m only confirming it now—

“Huh?”

At that moment, Erwen suddenly flinched.

“That poison… it doesn’t exist…?”

A voice that seemed to be filled with a deep sense of disappointment.

I couldn’t just ignore it, so I asked indirectly if there was something she needed it for, and Erwen avoided my eyes.

“J-just in case, you know…”

Just in case what?

I wanted to ask in detail, but I gave up because I didn’t think I’d get a proper answer anyway.

***

The first day after returning from the labyrinth was spent resting in our respective rooms. And from the next day, we moved busily.

We had a lot of loot this time.

“Erwen, you come with us too.”

“Huh? Me? You’re capable enough on your own—”

“Can’t you do that much for Schuitz?”

“…That’s not what I meant.”

From the second day, Erwen and Amelia went out all the time to exchange the loot for cash, and I spent most of my time guarding the house.

“Schuitz, I’ve prepared the food to be given in order on the table, so please make sure to take care of your meals while I’m gone.”

Except for going to the basement every morning, noon, and evening, there was nothing much to do in my daily routine.

However, on the third day, a guest came.

“Raven.”

“I was going to come yesterday, but I was a bit busy. Can I come in?”

“Of course.”

As soon as I let him in, Raven looked around and asked me.

“Where are the other two?”

“They went out because of the loot.”

“Hmm…”

A murmur that gave off a slightly strange feeling.

When I asked if there was a problem, Raven said it was nothing.

“I was just thinking that the two of them are doing the work that I used to do.”

“I’m sorry about that. You were the only one I could trust to handle those things.”

“I didn’t say that to get an apology. Besides… it’s not something to apologize for.”

“I’m grateful that you think that way.”

I led Raven to the living room and sat facing him.

Then, we briefly talked about each other’s recent situations.

“How was it on your side?”

“It just went well here and there. How about you guys?”

“It’s the same here. It’s not a war that will end in a day or two.”

“I see.”

“…”

A sense of distance that I didn’t feel when we were colleagues before.

I guess he feels the same way.

We’ve been in the labyrinth, so it’s like seeing each other for the first time in almost two months.

Thump, thump, thump!

At that moment, I felt a vibration from below.

“It sounds like something’s happening in the basement…”

Ah, come to think of it, it’s been a while since lunchtime.

“They did some sewer work recently, so it must be because of that. Don’t worry about it.”

I couldn’t honestly say that I was holding someone captive, so I just made up an excuse.

Fortunately, Raven didn’t seem suspicious.

Anyway, after that, we naturally had a conversation, and in the process, I was able to hear what happened during this expedition.

Well, the important information came out at the very end.

“Oh, and about that thing that Yandel… no, Schuitz asked about.”

“What thing?”

“The ethnic incorporation proposal.”

“Did you find out who brought up that topic?”

“Yes. It was Countess Febrok.”

“Febrok…?”

As soon as I heard it, I wondered what it was.

Because it was the surname of someone I was close to.

Ragna Ritaniel Febrok.

I wondered if it was just the same surname, but this question didn’t go away.

When I checked before, there was no noble family named Febrok anywhere in Lapdonia.

“Raven, what’s the countess’s name?”

“Ragna Febrok, it was definitely that name.”

“…What?”

Is it really her?

It’s missing the middle name, though…

“…Do you know her?”

“Maybe. Can you explain a bit more about what kind of family the Febroks are?”

“It’s a common fallen noble family. They disappeared from the royal noble department and were reinstated a year ago without anyone knowing.”

What, so it was natural that I couldn’t find it when I checked.

Could the countess really be Ragna?

While I was pondering this in my mind.

“That part was so unconvincing that I did more research. It’s rare for a fallen noble to be reinstated, but how did she establish a position to participate in the royal council in such a short period of time?”

Raven lowered his voice and continued.

“The answer was simple. She had a backer.”

“Who was it?”

“The Prime Minister of Lapdonia, Marquis Terserion.”

“…What?”

My head suddenly becomes complicated.

Whether Countess Febrok is the same person as Ragna is secondary, but if Raven’s words are true, it means that the countess is a member of the Prime Minister’s faction.

“Then… it means that the Prime Minister was the one who advocated for the ethnic incorporation proposal…”

I unknowingly spoke my thoughts, and Raven shook his head slightly.

“No. That’s a bit ambiguous. When the ethnic incorporation proposal was brought up, the Prime Minister himself immediately shouted that it was nonsense. Other nobles were surprised by this and it was immediately dropped.”

“Perhaps it was just a performance.”

“Performance…?”

“It means it might have been a staged play. By showing anger, he prevented other nobles from thinking differently.”

“Ah…”

Raven opened his mouth as if he had never thought of that.

“You seem to have some knowledge of politics…?”

“Rather than that, I’m just interested in people.”

Of course, this is just a guess, and I don’t know what it’s really like.

I still have too little information.

“Raven, can you investigate Countess Febrok a bit more?”

“I will. I also feel like there are many suspicious points.”

“Thank you as always.”

“Then, I’ll be going now.”

“Okay, go carefully.”

That day’s meeting with Raven ended there.

And time passed, and a week later.

On a sunny afternoon when Erwen and Amelia headed to the commercial city to receive payment for the sale of the loot.

Crash-!

Knights with the royal crest on their chests broke down the front door and stormed into the mansion.

“Richen Schuitz, you are under arrest for conspiring with Noark.”

Well, yeah.

Finally, it’s here.”