Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 711

I picked up one of the pictures attached to the bookshelf and examined it. The picture was thin and unframed. However, it was as if it had been magically treated, with a thin, protective film, like a coating. It was almost like looking at a modern photograph. Anyway, that’s not important right now…….

‘……Who is this?’ The woman in the lifelike picture was wearing a luxurious dress. While she wasn’t a breathtaking beauty, her bright smile was very charming. A unique feature was that she had black hair and black eyes, which are rare in this world.

‘By the way, she looks strangely familiar…….’ It was like I’d seen her face often somewhere. I stared at the picture for a long time, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, until I saw another picture of her in an outfit that emphasized her figure, and I realized why I felt that way.

‘…She looks exactly like Ragna?’ Black hair and black eyes. If you take away those two features, her facial features and everything else were very similar to Ragna.

‘Then… is this woman Ragna’s biological mother?’ There wasn’t any clear evidence or anything, but it was a situation where such a suspicion was unavoidable. Isn’t that right? The ‘Ritanyel’ in Ragna’s middle name is the name of the nanny who raised her, not her biological mother.

[Then what about her mother? Do you know what happened to her?]

[I heard she passed away on the day I was born.] And Ragna is the marquis’s illegitimate child. And a woman who looks exactly like her was found in the marquis’s secret study.

‘But to make a room like this… he must have really loved Ragna’s biological mother…….’ After looking around at the pictures in the room once more, I turned my attention away from them and searched other areas. There was nothing to see on the desk except for writing tools, so I focused on the bookshelves…….

[Royal Council Minutes 17~18]

[Explorers’ Status Report for the Year 02]

[The 11th Tribal Council Minutes]

[Draft IV of the 117th Year Labyrinth Progress Plan]

[The 217th Dimensional Collapse…….]

[…….] What are these books? They don’t look like ordinary books at all…….

When I actually opened and read them, they didn’t feel like books made for publication, but rather like public records. The minutes of the meetings were filled with who said what, and the plans and reports were in the format that working-level employees would submit to their superiors.

‘But why did the marquis collect these here?’ I didn’t know, but as I flipped through the books, I noticed that there were parts that were underlined. For example, in ‘The 11th Tribal Council Minutes’.

[In the presence of the Immortal King’s majesty, the leaders of all races prostrated themselves and kissed the ground.] This part was underlined.

[The current growth trend of explorers is much steeper than expected, so the labyrinth management department should prepare separate alternatives.] In ‘Draft IV of the 117th Year Labyrinth Progress Plan,’ that part was underlined.

“Hmm…….” As I was roughly reading the books and checking only the underlined parts, I noticed small-sized books at the bottom of the desk.

‘…Are these diaries?’ The reason why I immediately thought of diaries was simple. First of all, they were very small compared to other books, there were a lot of them, and…… Most of all, the year was written on the books.

‘If they’re really diaries, that’s a jackpot…….’ With a pounding heart, I took out the diary from the earliest year and opened it. But, what in the world was this?

“……?” Even though the first page was filled with writing, I couldn’t read the contents at all. It wasn’t just a matter of bad handwriting.

‘This isn’t Lapdonian or ancient language……?’ It was a script I was seeing for the first time. It wasn’t Korean or English either. What language is this? As those questions filled my head, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

‘Ah, is it some kind of code?’ Even in modern times, it’s said that each country used its own code during World War II. I’ve also heard that within the Lapdonian army, there are units that use their own ‘code’.

‘Let’s take it with me for now.’ I quickly put it in my subspace bag, planning to decode it later. And…….

‘There’s nothing else to see.’ After confirming that there was nothing else to take, I approached the only framed picture in the room. There, a woman’s name was written.

[Maylin Hwinbenia —————.] For some reason, the last name, which corresponded to the family name, was scratched out with something sharp and unreadable, and below the name were numbers that seemed to be her date of birth and date of death. And…….

‘What is this symbol?’ In the lower left corner of the picture, there was a symbol similar to the ‘Taegeuk symbol’ [a Korean symbol representing balance]. A sphere shape combining red and blue.

‘……Could it be that the marquis is also an evil spirit?’ That thought suddenly crossed my mind, but I thought the possibility was very low. After all, it was just that the color composition was the same, and it was a bit different from the Taegeuk symbol I knew.

“Hoo…….” Anyway, it seems like I’ve seen everything now. I was about to turn around and leave when it happened.

Kwaaaang-! What was that sound? Could it be that the marquis heard the news and already sent the military? I didn’t know, but I definitely heard it.

“Aaaah!” A scream. And that sound meant that something was wrong upstairs.

Tadatadat-! I quickly left the secret space and went up the stairs. And…….

Tat-! The moment I kicked off the last step and went up. I could see a dozen people confronting the special forces members who were facing away from the secret space. Surprisingly, there were quite a few familiar faces among them.

“I wondered where the variable came from.” A man with indifferent eyes, looking at me and speaking in a monotonous voice.

“It’s Bjorn Yandel again.” The vice-commander of Orculius. The Evil Eye, Roland Banozant. And next to him.

“It’s really amazing. How did Baron know we were hiding here?” A member of Orculius. The Screaming Witch, Lilan Vivian. And standing awkwardly above them.

“This is quite troublesome.” A member and also a member of the Round Table. “Pshshsh…….” The Corpse Collector, Abet Necrapeto.

‘It seems like the others are also members of Orculius…….’ I had ordered the marquis’s mansion to be razed to the ground in order to find any Noahrcs [a type of enemy] hiding there, so I couldn’t help but be genuinely surprised.

‘No, why are these guys here?’ Is this really happening?

***

The confrontation, which had been at a standstill, was broken by my appearance. “Aaaah…….” Except for the scream of one of our members who had lost an arm while I was downstairs, it was too quiet.

“Raven.” As I whispered briefly, Raven quickly finished explaining the situation. “While you were downstairs, we were investigating the room and found a hidden groove in the floor. As soon as we opened it, those guys who were hiding underneath appeared.”

Okay, so that’s what happened…… I can now picture the events that occurred while I was away, but it still doesn’t feel real. I just thought I could legally(?) search the marquis’s mansion, but I didn’t really expect to find these guys. Well, they seem just as flustered as I am.

“Randolph, didn’t you say that the marquis’s mansion would be safe from the search?” The vice-commander said, as if questioning him, and the bespectacled man next to him scratched the back of his head awkwardly while laughing.

“Hahaha… yes, that’s right. I’m sure when I calculated it, the possibility of this situation happening was 0%…….” Come on, 0% my ass. Isn’t he old enough to know that there’s no such thing?

As I was thinking that. “This is…….” The vice-commander shifted his gaze from us to his own comrades and emitted a murderous aura. “It can only be seen as information being leaked from within.”

Uh…… Is that how it works? “Death is the only punishment for a traitor.” While the current situation felt bewildering, I, who had overcome many adversities with improvisation, saw an opening.

So, before I could even organize my thoughts, the words came out of my mouth first. “What are you doing? Necrapeto.”

“……Pshsh?” “Come here quickly, we’ll protect you from now on.” Even then, he didn’t seem to understand what I was saying at all. But…….

“It was really the right information. Thanks to you, we were able to find them. With this merit, you can get a new identity in the city—.” The moment I quickly continued my words.

“W, w, w, w, w, what are you talking about!!” Only then did he realize the situation and start waving his hands in great panic. “N, no! I’m……! Vice-commander! That guy is just talking nonsense! S, surely you don’t believe him, do you? You have the Evil Eye that sees the truth?”

But when the vice-commander didn’t answer, he became even more desperate. “I, I’ve wanted to tear that guy to pieces several times! R, right……? Y, you don’t really, believe him, do you……?”

“…Of course, I don’t believe him.” “Whew…….” “But seeing you so flustered and rambling, it makes me wonder if there’s something to it.”

Those words were not empty, they were full of meaning. “Yes, if someone hadn’t leaked information, the current situation wouldn’t be explained.” The bespectacled man next to the vice-commander added, and Necrapeto’s eyes widened.

And…… “I’ll say it in advance, I have nothing to do with Mr. Necrapeto.” Even Vivian, who usually called him ‘oppa’ [older brother], drew a clear line, and Necrapeto looked like he was about to jump up and down in madness. He looked like he was going to die from injustice. Of course, that wasn’t my concern.

‘Well, he should have lived well in the first place.’ Yeah, that’s right. Even if the Noahrcs said such a thing, would our comrades even bat an eye? Yeah, so…….

“What are you doing? Come here quickly.” “W, why would I go there?” “Why are you doing this? There’s no need to hide it anymore.” “That’s why I’m telling you not to talk nonsense!”

“Ah, are you worried about betraying your comrades in front of your eyes?” “W… what!” He was agitated by the repeated accusations and took a step forward as if he was going to rush at me. However, I didn’t even need to stop him.

That’s because there was someone who stepped forward faster. Chachachat. The bespectacled man next to the vice-commander. He moved quickly and blocked the path of the man who was approaching me.

“……Huh?” The man seemed quite flustered by his comrade’s obstruction. Looking at him, the bespectacled man continued in a businesslike voice. “Please stop your impulsive actions. If you suddenly do that, it might naturally look like you’re trying to defect.”

“Uh… no, that’s, that’s not it…… I went forward because…….” “If it’s for battle, there’s even less reason for Mr. Necrapeto to approach the enemies.” “T, that’s not what I meant…….”

“Ah… you didn’t intend to fight, is that what you’re saying?” “No, that’s not what I meant either…….” “Vice-commander?” The bespectacled man asked briefly, as if seeking an opinion, and the vice-commander nodded solemnly.

“It’s better than fighting with someone suspicious behind us. Arrest Abet Necrapeto. So he can’t do anything else.” “Did you hear that? So, come here willingly. Anyway, it’s not a big problem even if Mr. Necrapeto is missing, right?” Okay, so is one person down for now?