Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 246

Alchemist.

An existence capable of turning magic stones into matter.

Even in Lapdonia, there aren’t many people with this profession, so they are considered a crucial resource.

Needless to say, it was even more so in the much more impoverished Noark.

“Good morning, Ms. Marlene!”

“Are you on an errand for the alchemist? It looks heavy. Let me carry that for you.”

The reason why everyone in the city treated Marlene kindly was also because of that.

She was the only disciple of the alchemist.

Once she inherited all the knowledge, she would have to take responsibility for this city.

‘Grandfather also seems to be not as healthy as he used to be…’

To be honest, it would be a lie to say that this position wasn’t a burden.

However, there’s no one else to do it but her.

So, she had no choice but to take responsibility and cheer up.

It wasn’t just a position with obligations, was it?

“Grandfather!”

“I told you to call me master.”

“Okay, Master! So, about that item? Did it arrive?”

“Of course, it’s here. There were quite a few, so go find them yourself.”

The alchemist then tossed a two-way subspace [a storage space that can be accessed from two different locations], and Marlene received it, checking what was inside.

The things she had ordered were there.

“Please be sure to thank them!”

“Alright.”

Marlene whistled as she transferred the items into her personal bag.

It was a clear privilege.

If she weren’t the alchemist’s disciple, it would have been impossible to use the two-way subspace, a strategic item, for personal use, and…

In the first place, the infiltrators who went out to the city wouldn’t have listened to her request.

“Wow, Grandfather! Try this. This place makes amazing cookies!”

“I told you to call me master. Ah, the cookies are delicious.”

“But what is that? Its appearance is similar to an elixir, but that can’t be…”

“Haha, you have a good eye.”

“Huh? Is it really, an elixir?”

Marlene, who was absentmindedly eating a cookie, jumped up.

How could she not, it was an elixir?

It was something that even her master had only made five bottles of in his entire life, because the ingredients were so expensive and the production process was so difficult.

‘He said he already used two bottles…’

Now, there were only three elixirs left in Noark.

Yet, one of them was now in her master’s hand.

For what reason?

As Marlene’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, her master smiled and explained the situation.

“You need to follow along and learn, so you should know. Today, I will give the Dragonslayer Regal Bagos an elixir, and depending on the degree of recovery, I will attempt to restore his memories.”

“Regal Bagos, that old man…?”

Marlene frowned without realizing it.

“Why, don’t you like him?”

“…He just looks scary.”

“Don’t judge people by their appearance. Isn’t it because of his injuries? Before he was burned, he had quite a handsome face, they say. Well, aside from that, I don’t particularly like him either.”

“R-Right? It’s not just me, is it?”

“Hehe, you always pick and choose what you want to hear.”

“Well, it’s not just because of his looks. That old man is so rude. He even speaks informally to you, Grandfather…”

“That rascal.”

A brief awkward silence followed, and then Marlene heard the details from her master.

The reason why the precious elixir was given to that dragonkin was quite simple.

Well, at least on the surface.

“This time, the power of the Corpse Collector has greatly decreased, so there was a need to replenish it.”

“Is that old man that strong? I thought he was weakened by a curse.”

“Even so, his dragon words are special. He can’t use them freely, but… if he takes the elixir this time, it’s expected that he’ll be able to use them a couple more times.”

The leader of Orculius directly requested the elixir from the lord, and the lord granted it.

It was a one-sided request, but it couldn’t be helped.

They were also responsible for how the dragonkin ended up like that.

They tried to treat him, but for some reason, the dragonkin’s health worsened.

“Tsk, I still don’t know what happened. There was clearly no reason for that to happen.”

“In my opinion, it’s all an act, an act! They’re trying to pin the blame on us and gain the upper hand!”

“…It doesn’t seem like an act, but I understand what you mean. The lord shouldn’t be swayed by them forever.”

Orculius was like a poisoned chalice.

Especially in that they knew it was harmful but could never let go.

“Well, now that the preparations are done, let’s go quickly.”

After that, Marlene followed her master to the room where the dragonkin was.

“Ggrrr…”

Lying on the bed, he was unable to speak properly.

His limbs were stiff, and he could only roll his eyes.

“I guess your hearing is fine, so I’ll talk even if it’s just to myself. I have good news for you. The lord has bestowed an elixir for you.”

“Ggrrr…”

“Then let’s start right away.”

For reference, there wasn’t much to the treatment process.

How could there be, when an elixir wasn’t an ordinary item?

The entire process was carefully feeding him the elixir so that it wouldn’t spill.

“…”

After waiting for about ten minutes after the administration, the dragonkin was able to get up on his own and speak.

However…

“Damn it, what the hell did you guys do before?”

That was the first thing he said.

“No, what kind of crap did you do that I’m in this state after receiving treatment?!”

Marlene wanted to say something, but she barely held back, remembering what her master had said before they came.

“Hehe, that’s why I brought this elixir. Please be generous.”

“Ha, if you weren’t an alchemist…”

“Well, it seems like your body is mostly healed, so let’s move on to the next step.”

“Next?”

“What we were going to do back then. We couldn’t do it because you suddenly collapsed, but now we should try to regain your lost memories.”

“That, is there no problem with that…?”

“We might fail, but it won’t cause any problems with your body.”

“…I’ll trust you.”

The dragonkin nodded as if he were a superior. Marlene was displeased, but she couldn’t say anything when her master was staying still.

“Take this. It’s a potion called ‘Lethe’s Curse.’ Ah, and it might hurt a little, but your body is strong enough to handle it, so don’t worry too much.”

The dragonkin took the medicine with a suspicious look and gulped it down.

“…It’s bitter.”

“The pain will come soon, so lie down here.”

The dragonkin obediently followed the instructions and lay back down on the bed.

And how much time had passed?

“…!”

The dragonkin, who was sweating profusely and groaning, opened his eyes again.

“How is it? Have your memories returned?”

“…I don’t know. It feels like they’re coming back.”

“It might take some time.”

“It’s a very strange feeling. Things that happened when I was young are coming back clearly.”

“That’s the kind of medicine it is.”

“More than that, do you have anything sweet? It would be nice to have something to cleanse my palate…”

At the dragonkin’s request, the master looked at Marlene.

It was a sign to bring something if she had it.

“…I’ll go get it.”

Marlene quickly returned to her room and brought the cookies she had left behind.

However, when she returned, her master was gone.

“Your master was called by the lord and went for a while. So, what about the food?”

“Here…”

Marlene handed over the few remaining cookies.

She didn’t want to, but what could she do?

‘These were given to me by Amelia…’

This dragonkin was so greedy that he wasn’t satisfied with one and gobbled down several.

And how much time had passed again?

“Ugh… My head!!”

Suddenly, the dragonkin grabbed his forehead.

As if he was remembering ‘that day’s memory’ that he had forgotten.

“Th-That’s right…! Th-That guy…!!”

The dragonkin then deeply rejoiced, looking at the air.

However, that moment of joy could not last long.

“Cough, cough!”

The dragonkin coughed heavily with a painful expression.

It was clear that it wasn’t something stuck in his throat.

The dragonkin’s skin, which was red and blotchy from burns, was swelling up strangely.

‘G-Grandfather didn’t say there were side effects like this?’

Marlene’s mind went blank at the unexpected situation.

And at that moment.

“You!!”

Suddenly, the dragonkin reached out his hand towards Marlene.

A hand clearly filled with hostility.

Marlene, who had only learned alchemy her whole life, couldn’t even react to the movement.

However…

“Kuh!”

That hand didn’t touch her body.

It was because the dragonkin, who had suddenly gotten up, lost his balance and fell off the bed.

“Cough!”

Saliva was dripping from his wide-open mouth.

If she wasn’t mistaken, it seemed to be mixed with blood.

Then, what the hell was going on?

“You… What did you mix in the cookies…?”

“W-What? They’re just normal cookies…”

Marlene answered in confusion, and at that point, the dragonkin completely collapsed to the floor.

“…D-Damn you.”

Even in that state, the dragonkin was looking up, veins popping out of his neck.

Of course, this didn’t last long either.

Thud.

The dragonkin then dropped his head weakly.

“Dragon blood… cinnamon is… incompatible…”

It was a cinnamon allergy.

***

「The activation condition for the Blessing of the Stars has been met.」

***

The third vine disappeared.

I don’t know why.

If I had to guess, it would be that he was setting up another evil plan without getting tired, and divine punishment was handed down.

Because it’s a sacred object with the power of God.

Anyway, what I need to pay attention to is not the reason.

‘Damn it.’

Now, that Dragonslayer bastard can target me at any time.

It means that I have to be even more vigilant.

‘It’s only been last month since the second vine was severed.’

How did it come to this?

I can’t help but sigh.

That’s because I can’t say that I’ve made enough preparations yet.

‘I think I could handle him well if it’s just him alone…’

The problem is that there’s no guarantee that he’ll come to take revenge on me alone.

What if he comes with that clown?

Even if not, what if he comes with a lot of subordinates?

‘It looks like the barrier will be broken soon too.’

Even the royal family has obtained a means to destroy Noark’s barrier.

If travel between the surface and the underground becomes possible, it means that it’s possible to meet the Dragonslayer in this city, not just in the labyrinth.

Of course, even this wasn’t an immediate problem to worry about.

‘Why here of all places…’

I let out a silent sigh and scanned my surroundings.

“Bjorn, that’s surely…!!”

Misha, who knew what this vine ring meant, was just in shock.

On the other hand, the knight?

“…?”

He just seemed to be wondering what kind of strange thing this was.

However, the paladin was different.

“…It’s a sacred object of the main church. And it’s a form I’ve never seen before.”

Sven Parav.

His eyes narrowed, he was the vice-commander of the 2nd Paladin Order of Leatlas.

As a religious person, he noticed that this was a sacred object.

“Could it be that the oracle that came down last time…”

“Stop.”

“Ah… I’m sorry.”

When I cut him off, the paladin realized his mistake and shut his mouth.

But, it was already too late.

“Then the protagonist of that oracle is…”

“…The basic of escort duty is to maintain confidentiality, so don’t worry too much.”

Don’t worry my ass.

Even if it’s a secret, they’ll tell their superiors everything.

‘…Ha, annoying.’

Three knights and one vice-commander.

The secret was only known to four people, but it was obvious that the number would increase in the future.

How long will it take for it to reach the chief’s ears?

‘…They wouldn’t really kick me out of the tribe, would they?’

Well, I don’t know about that.

But it was clear that troublesome things would happen.

The chief didn’t seem to like the fact that I became a noble either. It would be a task to persuade him with the excuse of it being for the tribe.

‘…It’ll take a long time to reach the 9th stage engraving.’

It’s frustrating.

Especially the fact that there’s nothing I can do right now.

Even if I ask them to keep it a secret, they’ll all say they will in front of me.

“Then I’ll be going now.”

So, I just left the grand temple without saying anything.

What can I do about what’s already happened?

‘I have no choice but to take over the tribe as soon as possible.’

If I become the chief and change the tribe’s traditions, all the problems will be solved.

And in that sense…

“Misha, you should go home now.”

There was something I had to do.

“Huh?”

“I’m going to stop by the sacred grounds for a bit.”

Strike while the iron is hot.

I immediately parted ways with Misha and headed to the sacred grounds.

The knights only accompanied me to the entrance of the sacred grounds and didn’t come inside.

It was because the barbarian tribe still kept the tradition of prohibiting other races from entering.

“Then we’ll wait here.”

“I’ll be out by evening, so rest nearby.”

“Yes.”

As I stepped through the opened sacred gate, a forest terrain that was hard to see in the city appeared.

But, was it a remnant left in the body of a warrior?

For some reason, this place felt more like home than Lee Han-soo’s room that I go to whenever the community opens.

‘The air is better here after all.’

As I walked along a path overgrown with weeds, not even a paved road, I soon arrived at the residential area of the sacred grounds.

Huts that were built haphazardly without any standards.

“Bjorn, the son of Yandel, is a warrior blessed by the ancestral gods and is invincible!”

“He is a god and invincible!”

“Now, I will tell you the story of how Bjorn defeated the most evil spirit corpse collector in the world, so listen carefully!”

“L-Listen carefully? What does that mean!”

“It means open your ears and listen!”

In a nearby open space, there were young warriors receiving early education.

For reference, the instructor was…

‘Ainar.’

Ainar was a little different from how he was outside.

His shoulders, which never seemed to straighten in front of Misha, were wide open, and his expression was full of confidence.

And he was carrying four backpacks.

Because now, in the barbarian tribe, the number of backpacks was a symbol of success.

He probably wanted to show off a bit in front of his juniors.

He seemed to like that position, and these days, it was his daily routine to go to the sacred grounds every morning.

‘…Let’s pass by quickly.’

I thought about greeting Ainar, but I stopped because I felt like he would drain all my energy.

I had a different reason for coming to the sacred grounds today.

I had to save my strength.

Swish.

Soon, I arrived at the chief’s house, and I flung open the tent and stepped inside.

That was one of the advantages of being a barbarian.

There was no need to knock.

“Oh, it seems like you’ve fully recovered?”

“That’s right.”

“What’s the matter that you came for?”

The chief, as a man at the pinnacle of the barbarian tribe, went straight to the point without long words.

It was always refreshing here.

I had nothing to hold back either.

“I have something to say.”

“Say it.”

A society of barbarians where honesty was considered a virtue.

“I’ve come to inherit the position of chief.”

I just said it without hesitation.

“Inherit…”

The chief took out an axe that was leaning against a corner and answered.

“Don’t use difficult words, come at me.”