Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 112

First, I gathered the trio’s equipment in one place.

Then, I let Caron choose first.

“Take whatever you need.”

“I’m not that shameless.”

“Don’t hesitate. You did take down one of them, didn’t you?”

“If you put it that way…”

It wasn’t that he didn’t want anything; Caron took a few items from the gathered loot.

A good-quality leather bag and a few potions.

And…

“A two-handed hammer? Is that all you’re taking?”

“It’s too small anyway; it probably won’t fit me.”

Well, that’s true.

Soon, Caron grinned, holding an axe and a large hammer in both hands.

“I can use this to kill the ones that are hard to kill with an axe!”

His phrasing wasn’t elegant, but the idea was sound enough.

Blunt weapons are more effective against monsters like stone golems.

More than anything…

‘Yeah, dual-wielding is the barbarian’s default setting.’

Seeing Caron’s barbarian look become even more convincing made me feel proud.

So, I handed over a few more pieces of equipment.

“Keep them even if you don’t need them, and sell them later.”

“But… !”

Geez, what’s with the ‘but’?

Why are barbarians so nice?

If they were humans, they would have shown their greedy eyes right away.

“Don’t forget that the stronger you become, the easier it will be for the young warriors.”

“…I understand. I will definitely sell these items and get equipment that will help me.”

The reason I pushed the equipment on him, even instilling a sense of duty, was simple.

Well, if I had kept it all for myself, I would have gained about 200,000 stones more…

But in the long run, this would be more beneficial for me.

“Become stronger, Caron, son of Tarson.”

“I will. Definitely, for the sake of my people.”

Among the six races, the barbarian race is the weakest. Their individual potential is high, but most of them die in the early stages.

Of course, one person changing won’t bring about immediate change…

But what if their numbers gradually increased, starting with him?

So that young warriors could survive a little longer and become high-ranking explorers, creating a virtuous cycle?

‘Then the barbarian’s power will gradually grow.’

Like it or not, I am a barbarian now.

The more influence my home clan has, the more I will benefit from the trickle-down effect.

Look at the mages. If they didn’t have the huge community called the Magic Tower, would they have been so arrogant?

“Then let’s move on. It could be troublesome if someone sees us.”

With that in mind, I escorted Caron to the first floor, giving him various pieces of advice during the remaining time.

When looking for a team, choose one that includes at least one member of a different race. If there’s someone who acts friendly, be even more wary, but don’t show it outwardly and show them an opening.

“I think I understand what you mean by hiding an axe in your innocence!”

Perhaps it was because of the excellent example I showed the trio today?

Caron accurately grasped the point of my words.

“It might be a good idea to deliberately get a human as a ‘night friend’ and then pretend to sleep. If they have ulterior motives, they’ll surely reveal them!”

Ah, uh, um…

I didn’t tell him that…

“…That’s a good idea too.”

Was today’s incident, where he was betrayed by his companions and treated like a monster, that shocking?

His ability to apply things was truly terrifying.

***

[23:49]

As the fifth day began.

After taking Caron to the first floor, the two of us returned to the Land of the Dead. And we picked up the pace a bit, focusing on the search.

We had unintentionally spent almost a whole day.

The second floor will be closed on the 10th day.

In other words, if we’re not going to end this exploration on the second floor, we need to move more quickly. We even have something to do before going to the third floor.

“Huh? You’re going to catch a Death Knight? Is that even possible? I heard they’re hard to find…”

A level 6 monster, the Death Knight.

The worst of the worst that you can encounter with a very low probability in the Land of the Dead on the second floor.

I had to create new characters several times before I figured out this guy’s appearance conditions.

“Don’t worry. Encountering it won’t be a big problem.”

Have we gotten used to this kind of conversation now?

Misha didn’t bother asking where I got that information.

She just expressed another concern.

“Hmm, but even if that’s the case, I don’t know if the two of us can catch it.”

It wasn’t an unreasonable worry.

We had occasionally encountered level 6 monsters on the fourth floor, but now we were separated from the full party, just the two of us.

‘Since we’ve only hunted level 8 monsters so far, she probably has no idea how strong she’s become.’

Misha had a history of operating on the fourth floor with just two essences before she met me.

Her specs were lacking, but she covered the gaps with martial arts skills gained through hard work.

And in the meantime, she contracted with the Soul Beast, which was her lifelong wish, and this time she obtained two essences.

One of them was even the Guardian’s.

‘And if you combine the synergy… it’s safe to say she’s several times stronger.’

I judged coldly from a gamer’s perspective.

With our combined power, we could definitely succeed in the hunt.

But there’s no need to explain all of this in detail.

Barbarians have their own way of speaking.

“Misha, trust me.”

“If you say that… I can’t say no.”

“Then it’s settled.”

Having obtained Misha’s consent, we continued to search the area.

Death Fiends, Chimera Wolves, Ghoul Lords, etc.

We defeated level 8 monsters as we found them, expanding our search radius.

And…

“We should stop for today and set up camp.”

The fifth day ended without any results.

The next day, the sixth day, was the same.

[22:40]

With a little over an hour left until the start of the seventh day.

I let out a long sigh.

‘I didn’t expect that we wouldn’t be able to find it for more than two days.’

When a new dungeon opens, a tombstone is randomly generated at one point in the Land of the Dead. And on the seventh day, it summons a Death Knight.

In other words, if you find the tombstone, you can easily encounter the Death Knight by waiting in front of it.

But…

‘Sigh, that’s just like me.’

I had been wandering around like crazy for two days, even slacking off on hunting, but I couldn’t find even a fragment of the tombstone.

It was an unexpected situation.

Even if the second floor is large, we only needed to search the level 8 area, not the entire second floor.

I thought we would have found it in two days.

‘Tch, should I just give up on the Death Knight?’

As I was regretting the efforts of the past two days, Misha came up to me.

“Don’t be too upset. What book always has the right answer? A big tombstone in the Land of the Dead? I’ve never even heard of that.”

Well, I guess this is also considered comfort?

“So, instead of being cooped up in the library all the time, you should go out and play with me.”

“…Why does it turn out like that?”

“Th-that’s! Hiku-road also said that. Instead of reading a few books, it’s more helpful to have a few conversations with explorers at the bar!”

It seems that the dwarf taught Misha only bad things…

I couldn’t really scold her.

In fact, most explorers were like that.

They prefer to gain information by socializing in bars rather than reading books.

Some even say that drinking and playing is an extension of their work.

“…Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“I just didn’t have anything to say.”

“Why didn’t you have anything to say?”

“Let’s stop talking about this and keep moving.”

I didn’t want to waste time in meaningless arguments, so I resumed moving.

How much time had passed since then?

[23:59]

I checked the time and gave up my lingering attachment.

The seventh day is about to begin.

And since the Death Knight starts wandering around as soon as it’s summoned, it’s practically gone for this exploration.

‘Since the goal was experience in the first place…’

Leaving my disappointment behind, I took out my compass.

“Oh, are we finally going to the third floor?”

“Yes.”

Instead of aimlessly wandering around looking for the tombstone, I turned north.

It was at that moment.

“Huh? Bjorn?”

“Did you feel it too?”

“Yeah, something sent a chill down my spine.”

The air changed.

It was hard to describe, but it was a clear change that made my body react first.

‘Could it be?’

With one possibility in mind, I borrowed a knife from Misha and made a cut on the back of my hand.

Sizzle.

I pressed the blade down and scraped it, and acidic blood flowed down the open seam.

“Ack! What are you doing! Won’t the blade get damaged!”

Regardless of Misha’s grumbling.

I watched the wound and counted the time.

‘One, two, three, four, five, six…’

The more the numbers increased, the more my smile widened.

The wound that should have healed in a few seconds was still not healing.

That meant.

「Your character has been exposed to [Grudge].」

The Death Knight I had been searching for was nearby.

「Healing and regeneration effects are greatly reduced.」

And very close.

***

‘I wondered why it wasn’t there even though I had searched almost everywhere. It was really near here.’

While feeling a strange sense of emptiness, I pulled myself together.

It was because of one piece of information I realized.

‘[Grudge] has already been activated…’

The curse-type aura [Grudge] is an active skill.

It’s a skill that can be turned on and off at the will of a monster or a character who has acquired an essence.

In other words, there’s no reason to use it normally.

Unless you’re in battle.

[00:00]

The situation was very clear.

At this point, less than a minute after being summoned.

The Death Knight had entered battle as soon as it opened its eyes.

It’s not impossible that a passing explorer got caught up in it, but…

‘That’s unlikely.’

Rather than such a miraculous coincidence, it was much more reasonable to assume that someone unknown was waiting in front of the tombstone.

‘Could it be a player?’

That was the first thought that came to mind.

But other possibilities could not be ruled out.

The Dzarwi Clan, which was classified as a large clan, even knew how to summon the Orc Hero.

Perhaps information about the Death Knight wasn’t such high-level information.

‘Well, I’ll know for sure when I go there.’

I decided to postpone the final judgment and quickly moved with Misha.

It was pitch black all around, but it wasn’t difficult to find the direction.

Boom-!

Explosions were constantly heard, indicating that they were fighting quite fiercely.

But based on this situation alone, Misha seemed to have grasped the situation to some extent, and she pulled my wrist and asked.

“Bjorn, is it possible that the Death Knight has appeared? And is it already fighting someone?”

“Yes.”

“Wait a minute, stop! What are you going to do?”

What am I going to do? I’m going to get some experience by landing a normal attack.

“What? If you do that, you might get attacked!”

Misha was horrified when I translated my plan into this world’s terms.

It was a reasonable concern for her.

Even if they weren’t as bad as looters, barging into a fight or stealing a kill was considered extremely bad manners among explorers.

But…

“It’s okay. I don’t intend to claim any rights to the essence or magic stones, so I’ll just say I thought it was a dangerous situation.”

“Hmm, but…”

“Don’t worry. If anything happens, I’ll take full responsibility—”

“You idiot! Do you think I meant for you to take responsibility alone? Ugh, how did I get involved with someone like you… Fine, let’s go! I don’t know anymore!”

Well, I feel a bit wronged.

It’s not like I’m doing this just for my own benefit.

‘……Anyway, even if looting is not allowed, this much is within the acceptable range.’

I engraved the additional information I had obtained into my head and spurred my steps.

And about 10 seconds passed?

[Kyaaaaaaak!]

Beyond the back of the Death Knight swinging its sword, I could see four explorers.

“Huh?”

It seemed they had seen us too.

So, without giving them a chance to stop me, I hit the Death Knight with my mace.

Thwack-!

Okay, I’ll get experience with this.

I shouted the line I had prepared as if I had been waiting for it.

“Don’t worry! I will save you!”

That’s why barbarians are OP [overpowered].

Unless they’re human.

Would they really think it was intentional after seeing this?

***

The Death Knight staggered from the heavy blow.

[Kyaak?!]

It seemed that this guy was also flustered by my intrusion. Though not as much as the four-person party with their eyes wide open.

“What are you doing!!”

The human warrior closest to me belatedly grasped the situation and shouted.

Next was the elven archer in the rear.

“What do you mean by helping? If you don’t back off, we’ll attack you too.”

A voice that sounded calm yet endlessly sharp.

I pretended to be flustered and shouted.

“I, I was just trying to help!”

“Who asked for your help?”

“Huh? Wasn’t it? I thought I heard something…”

“…Enough, just back off! If you don’t want to get caught up in this and get hurt!”

“Ah, I understand!”

While talking, I deflected the Death Knight’s sword several times with my shield and retreated to where Misha was.

“Damn it, what the hell is going on!”

The human warrior, who was quite skilled, skillfully took over the Death Knight’s aggro while complaining.

And the battle naturally resumed.

I erased the clumsy barbarian persona and spoke to Misha so that only she could hear.

“How is it? I don’t think there will be any of the things you were worried about.”

I wanted to reassure Misha, who was worried about being branded as a bad-mannered explorer.

But the reaction I got was a bit unexpected.

“You are really…”

Misha couldn’t finish her sentence, perhaps impressed by my acting.

“Hah… Fine, what can I say? Other people need to know that you’re this kind of person.”

“What are you talking about? I only show this side of me to you.”

“Huh? Th-that’s also true? No, is it?”

Anyway, let’s end the small talk here and watch the ongoing battle.

How often would I get the chance to watch another team’s hunt this closely?

‘It’s not a full party, but the balance is pretty good.’

A human warrior who can tank well on his own.

“I’ll go for one more hit, so back off!”

The damage dealer line, consisting of a mage who was throwing fire magic and an elven archer.

And…

‘It seems like this is the first time I’ve seen a summoner here.’

A human male in a utility position who uses summoned creatures to deal damage or provide buffs.

“Bjorn, that man… doesn’t he look familiar?”

At Misha’s words, I checked the summoner again.

A small build, around 160 [centimeters].

It was difficult to see his face clearly because of the shadows cast by his hood, but…

Nevertheless, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

‘What is it? Where have I seen him? There’s no way I wouldn’t remember a summoner…’

It was at that moment when I was retracing the reason why he looked familiar.

“E-everyone, get out of the way! That attack I told you about, it’s c-coming!”

The summoner stuttered as he gave instructions.

Thanks to that, my hazy memory became clear.

I checked the face of the elf near the man once more and came to a conclusion.

‘Ah, that idiot from back then.’

It was definitely him.