Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 497

Moderately steeped tea and formal refreshments.

An awkward silence lingered between us for a while, across the table that Auyen had set for guests.

Misha was the first to speak.

“This is…”

“Hm?”

“Pastries from Lubat Confectionery… It’s not bad here, but Nielon Confectionery is cheaper and would suit your taste better…”

Why is she suddenly talking about pastries?

It felt out of the blue, but I figured it was small talk to break the ice, so I answered casually.

“Is that so? Auyen buys these things, so I don’t really know. Oh, right. Auyen is—”

“I know. Auyen Locklove… the navigator.”

“…Is that so?”

“……”

For some reason, the conversation that had started didn’t last long.

‘Hoo, making me nervous for no reason.’

It’s better to get hit with the cane first, so I decided to get to the point.

“Misha, you coming here today means you’ve made up your mind, right?”

“…Yeah.”

“So, what’s your decision?”

When I asked directly, Misha hesitated for a long time before answering.

“I’ll join… the clan you created.”

“Really?”

“Uh-huh…”

I relaxed at her small nod.

I was preparing myself for a rejection because she kept fidgeting.

“If… if you and your companions are okay with it…”

I answered firmly at her following words.

“Why wouldn’t we be okay with it? Ah, you said you didn’t get along with Erwen, right? Don’t worry. You’ll be able to get along again like before. She’s much better now.”

“Ah… is that so…?”

“Since we’re on the topic, how about we call her down now?”

“Uh, uh…?”

“You didn’t even properly greet each other last time. Since we’ll be going into the labyrinth together, it would be good to have that time…”

Misha looked flustered for a moment, but soon nodded and agreed.

So, I left Misha there and went upstairs alone to bring Amelia and Erwen down.

And then…

“……”

“……”

As expected, a silence that was more uncomfortable than suffocating descended upon the living room.

And how much time had passed?

Amelia sighed and opened her mouth.

I had given her a look to do something, so she had no choice but to step up…

“Yandel. You go upstairs.”

…Huh?

“If you want a solution, just follow my words. You’ll only be a hindrance if you’re here.”

For some reason, I was kicked out from the start.

***

The conversation between Amelia, Erwen, and Misha ended about an hour later.

Amelia knocked on the door she had closed and allowed me to come down, and I quickly ran back down to the first floor.

The situation in the living room was completely different from what I had expected.

“……”

“……”

It wasn’t a harmonious atmosphere, nor was it a hostile one. It was just a mess, as if a storm had passed through.

“Hey… Emily? What happened here?”

I asked blankly, and Amelia answered as if it was nothing.

“After a long conversation, the three of us decided to get along.”

“Oh, that’s good, but… that’s not what I was asking. It looks like… a lot of things are broken?”

“Ah, that? Don’t worry about it. It was just a slip of the hand during the conversation.”

How could a slip of the hand turn the first-floor living room into such a mess?

As I was looking around, Erwen, who had made eye contact with me, looked away.

“…That’s right. It was a slip of the hand.”

Okay, so that’s how it’s going to be?

I stared at Misha, giving her a look of interrogation, but Misha just kept her mouth shut and didn’t give me any answers.

‘Well, it seems like no one got hurt, so I guess it’s fine…’

I decided to stop pursuing the current state of the living room.

I have that much sense.

‘There was a bit of trouble, but it seems like the talk went well.’

To be more specific, Misha and Erwen probably clashed, and Amelia mediated well.

“I’ll… go upstairs first.”

Soon, Erwen headed to her room as if running away, and Misha also got up from her seat.

“Then, I, I’ll… be going now…”

“Huh? Where are you going? Just stay here? There are plenty of empty rooms.”

“Well… I’ve been thinking, and I think it’s better for me to live separately… It’ll just be uncomfortable for each other… I heard Ainar lives like that too…?”

Oh, that’s true.

Ainar is having so much fun at the holy site these days that he’s been stuck there every day as the first elder.

“So… will you let go?”

I let go of her wrist, which I had grabbed.

Misha gently rubbed the area where I had grabbed her, as if it hurt a little.

“Th, then…”

Soon, Misha quickly opened the front door and left, and in the end, I couldn’t hold her back at her gesture of drawing a line.

“…What on earth did you three talk about?”

I asked Amelia out of frustration, but this time too, I couldn’t get a proper answer.

“It’s a secret between women, so you don’t need to know.”

No, this makes it even more confusing.

What did they really talk about?

***

The day after Misha left.

Another unexpected guest came early in the morning.

“…Raven?”

“Can I come in?”

“Ah, of course.”

Raven, who had been busy with state affairs after Erwen’s essence experiment, visited after a long time.

“The house is smaller than before, isn’t it?”

“Ah, is this your first time here?”

After giving her a brief tour of the house, we started a serious conversation while enjoying the refreshments that Auyen had brought out.

“You didn’t just come because you were bored, so what brings you here?”

“What brings me here? Is that even a question?!”

“It was about the Magic Tower, as I thought.”

“Haa…”

Raven just sighed deeply, but unexpectedly, she didn’t say much.

She also knows the situation after hearing about it.

Although the process was a bit extreme, I had just done what I had to do.

Above all, the incident itself was resolved smoothly.

So…

“What kind of magic did you use?”

Her real purpose for visiting must be this.

“For the Magic Tower Lord to concede that much, it doesn’t make sense. To be honest, I thought war was the only thing left…”

“So, you came because you were curious about that?”

“………Kind of.”

I hesitated for a moment and then confessed everything about the deal I had made with the Magic Tower Lord.

I wanted to hear her advice on this matter.

“Lurendel Galinbarrett… The Magic Tower Lord conceded so much to protect her?”

“Do you know anything about that woman?”

“…Not really. We were on different levels before, so I never had a chance to talk to her. After joining the military, I hardly did any Magic Tower activities.”

“Still, you’re a mage, so you must know more than I do. Anything is fine, just tell me.”

“Well…”

Raven hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.

“Lurendel Galinbarrett is the mage who has published the most papers on the Barbarian’s heart. The Triten School itself is also very interested in that research.”

“Hmm, so that’s why she wanted my heart.”

“Maybe. If it’s her, it’s highly likely that she put in that request because she genuinely wanted to study Yandel’s heart.”

“And that research is probably important enough for the Magic Tower Lord to be interested in it.”

“That’s probably right… Otherwise, there’s no reason for the Magic Tower Lord to go so far to protect her.”

“…Raven, could you perhaps look into it for me?”

“Hmm… Okay. I’m also a bit curious about this. If I find anything while investigating on my own, I’ll share it with you, Yandel.”

“Thank you.”

That was the end of the conversation on this topic.

Since Raven was here, I asked her about this too.

“Raven, by any chance, is it possible to gain ‘knowledge’ in the labyrinth?”

“Knowledge… you mean?”

“Yes, knowledge. For example, suddenly being able to write and read ancient languages that you couldn’t read before—”

At my example, Raven slammed the table and stood up.

“Ancient languages! You can read ancient languages now?!”

“Ah, no… ancient languages are just an example—”

“An example, my foot! That’s what it means!”

That’s why they say people with quick wits are like this.

It didn’t seem like she would believe me if I tried to make excuses, so I just admitted it.

“Yes, I can read ancient languages now.”

“To what extent…?”

“Well? I haven’t checked yet…”

When I trailed off, Raven took out a book written in ancient language from her subspace and made me read it.

But…

“Mahniarsus pleaded desperately for his wife to be returned, but Kaprakadah refused firmly. The reason was that he could love her more than him… No, what kind of book is this?”

“Never mind that, just keep going.”

“…was the reason. So, Mahniarsus drew his sword and stabbed it into his heart. Kaprakadah reached out his hand even as he bled. That was all he could do…”

The more I read aloud, the darker Raven’s expression became.

“Th, this is a book that even I can’t read properly without a dictionary…”

Hmm, is that so…

I know that she is one of the mages who has studied ancient languages diligently.

“Muten Abiyur Bukrathe.”

“…What did you just say?”

“I meant, ‘I can also speak in ancient language.'”

I shrugged my shoulders, and it took a while for her to react.

“………Yandel, do you want to get hit?”

Raven raised her small hand as if it wasn’t just a simple threat.

“Kkiathho kkikkihh kkueekh.”

“…?”

“Ah, that last one meant I don’t want to get hit—”

“Who do you think you’re fooling!!”

…In the end, I got hit.

Well, it was the one who hit me whose skin was swollen.

“Ah, really… Why are you like that, Yandel?”

“I’m sorry. Anyway, back to the original topic, have you ever heard of such a case?”

“…As far as I know, no. But… how did it happen to you, Yandel? Is it… the reward? Related to that achievement that was recorded on the Stone of Honor this time…”

“Well, something like that.”

“………Can you tell me about it?”

Raven asked carefully, and I readily told her about what had happened there.

We’re not comrades like before, but she’s still a woman who helped me even after knowing I was a demon.

I also needed a mage’s insight.

“The things you experienced there aren’t just made-up stories. No, they must have happened in the past! A clear causal relationship between the Layer Lord and the Witch!”

Raven couldn’t hide her excitement after hearing my story.

“This is a great discovery! This proves the hypothesis that the labyrinth is not another dimension! Perhaps the labyrinth’s dimensional coordinates use the time axis instead of space!”

Of course, I was indifferent.

Space or time, it didn’t really resonate with me.

“Is that so?”

“Bersil Gowland! What does she say? She’s a mage too! Surely, she’s also conducting research on this great discovery, right?”

“No, she didn’t seem very interested?”

“Whaaaaat?!”

Bersil is a player, so she doesn’t seem to have much interest in this kind of history.

However, could she not understand at all?

“Th, that can’t be… How can a mage be like that? If I were in her place…”

Raven, who had been raising her voice as if it was unbelievable, suddenly stopped talking.

“If you were?”

“…It’s nothing. It’s a meaningless story anyway.”

The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.

I felt like I had to change the topic, so I brought up news that Raven would be happy about.

“Ah, right! And I have another piece of news to tell you.”

“…News?”

“Misha is back.”

After that, I briefly told her about my reunion with Misha and how she had decided to rejoin the clan.

But what is this?

“………Is that so? That’s good.”

“I’ll give you her address, so go visit her sometime. Misha would be happy to see you—”

“Later.”

“…Huh?”

“I, I’ll be going now. I have things to do at the unit.”

Raven left the house as if running away, with an even darker expression.

***

Even after Raven left, busy days continued.

I visited the holy site to check if Rotmiller was adjusting well, went to the dwarf’s smithy to check on the progress, and had several discussions with all the clan members about the next exploration plan.

Most of them were routine tasks, but not every day was filled with such daily quests.

Just like today.

“We sincerely welcome you to the Gudrix Baron’s estate.”

Total of 31. No, now 32 families, one of the members of the interspecies noble alliance ‘Melves’, I visited the mansion after receiving an invitation from the Gudrix Baron’s family.

“Hahaha! Welcome, Baron. I am Baron Gudrix. I am truly grateful that you accepted my invitation despite your busy schedule!”

Baron Gudrix, who used a more cheerful tone than other nobles, befitting his dwarven lineage.

However, he was still a noble, so the introduction was long, and it was only after I gave him a look that we could get to the point.

“So, why did you call me?”

“On behalf of Melves, we have a request for Baron Yandel.”

It was the first Melves-exclusive quest.