Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 265

When I said it had been a while, he laughed.

“I can’t believe you’d remember me.”

He seemed surprised that I recognized him.

Well, it was a brief encounter.

We didn’t even properly introduce ourselves, and we were in no state of mind to have a proper conversation.

But…

“Those kinds of memories aren’t easily forgotten.”

How could I ever forget?

That time when I was dragging my mangled leg, dripping blood, crawling on all fours through that dark cave.

[Partsran. Could you give me a potion?]

[It’s for when I can’t use divine power, but?]

[You have plenty anyway. I’ll pay you back separately.]

[Tch.]

This guy, the swordsman from the team that saved me, tossed a potion with a disgruntled look at the leader’s words.

It was a rare experience.

How often in life do you feel humiliation and gratitude at the same time?

“You’re definitely a barbarian, so you’re good in this aspect. They say a warrior never forgets a favor, right?”

He took my words as he wanted to hear them and wore a satisfied smile.

I didn’t bother to correct him.

Well, it was true that I felt grateful.

“Still, it’s a bit strange. I never thought you’d still remember me.”

“There aren’t many guys who can crawl that far with that body.”

He said that, scanning me up and down.

“And to think you’re really that Bjorn Yandel.”

He had already deduced my identity from my appearance without needing to exchange names.

Tsk, I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

As I was chuckling, Raven approached from behind.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Partsran.”

“Who… Oh, Miss Raven?”

I was as surprised as the bewildered swordsman.

What, they knew each other?

“Yeah… right. I heard you joined that team a while ago.”

“It’s not a team anymore, it’s a clan. By the way, wow! I never thought Mr. Yandel and Mr. Partsran knew each other, is this fate?”

“Fate? We don’t even know each other’s names yet.”

When I cut into the conversation, the swordsman chuckled and revealed his name.

“Malmorn Partsran.”

“That pronunciation is weird.”

“It’s because we’re one of the few families that still insist on using the Central naming style. Just call me Partsran. Everyone does.”

“Family? Were you a noble?”

“Noble? Maybe at least thousands of years ago.”

I understood what he meant right away.

There were cases like this sometimes.

Those who were nobles or royals of a country before the world was destroyed. But after entering this city, they were reduced to commoners.

They had no titles, but they still maintained their legitimacy by appointing their own heads of the family.

“So, what were you doing in front of our ship?”

Once the introductions were over, Partsran got straight to the point.

Since we hadn’t done anything in particular, I told him honestly.

“We were just looking around the whole island.”

“I see.”

Partsran, who knew Raven and was aware of my reputation, accepted our words without any suspicion.

And then…

“Nervio Pertia.”

He activated the magic circle engraved on the ship and reverse-summoned the docked ship into the subspace.

It was a minor action, but it bothered me a lot.

“But where’s the team you were with back then?”

“They’re exploring the island.”

“Looks like they’re looking for something?”

“Well, I don’t think we’re close enough to talk about that.”

Geez, he’s already getting prickly after just that.

It was a curt answer, but I could still roughly guess the situation.

‘They docked at the shore and now they sent one person to put it away separately…’

They must be looking for something.

Most summoning engravings have a cooldown.

If they decided they weren’t going to find anything, they would have left on the ship right away.

‘The fact that they canceled the summon means they found what they were looking for.’

Then what could they be looking for?

There was one thing that came to mind.

I was aiming for that too, which is why I rushed to the 6th floor this time.

‘If that’s the case, my plan will be messed up…’

I unconsciously licked my lips while managing my expression so that my bitter feelings wouldn’t show.

But was the other side the same?

“Yandel, so how long are you guys going to stay on this island?”

Partsran asked me casually, trying to sound like it was nothing.

Trying to test me, huh?

“Probably going to stay for a while.”

“For a while? There’s nothing much here.”

“It’s our first time here, you see.”

“Hmm, still, it might be good to go to the next island… Well, never mind. You’ll figure it out yourself.”

Partsran, who was speaking with a lot of hope, changed his words, realizing he had crossed a line.

Yeah, who are you to decide where we go?

“Anyway, if you’re going to stay on this island, we might meet a few more times. See you later, Yandel.”

Partsran ended the conversation.

His intentions were obvious.

He probably wanted to tell his companions about our existence and discuss it.

“Wait a minute.”

When I muttered briefly, Partsran turned around.

He looked curious as to why I suddenly called him.

I couldn’t just let him go.

Actually, this had been bothering me since earlier…

“It’s not just Yandel, it’s Baron.”

“…What?”

Looking at him tilting his head as if he had misheard, I said it again properly.

“Bjorn, son of Yandel, I said Baron.”

Trying to become friends so casually.

Does he still think I’m that dirt-poor barbarian from back then?

***

“Then I’ll be going. Ahem! Hey, Baron Yandel…”

As Partsran quickly ran away and disappeared from our sight, Raven sighed.

“…Mr. Yandel, did you really have to do that?”

It was obvious what she was talking about.

That I was too harsh.

But I confidently straightened my shoulders.

“I didn’t even ask for honorifics.”

I didn’t make him call me ‘Lord Baron Yandel’ or use the formal ‘hao’ speech [a formal way of speaking in some cultures].

But why did she have to say that?

“Raven, I don’t understand you. Where in the world is there such a generous noble?”

“Well, if you put it that way, I have nothing to say… But you’ve never been like this before. What happened between you two in the past…”

Raven seemed to think it was a petty revenge, but it wasn’t really.

From the start, the gratitude for saving me was much greater.

But that’s that, and this is this, right?

“Raven, there’s a big difference between me telling you to speak casually and someone dropping the formalities without being told to.”

Even after I became a noble, the way I spoke to my companions and acquaintances didn’t change.

Because I told them not to.

But what about Partsran?

It’s not like I, a barbarian, should be saying this, but he dropped the formalities as soon as he saw me.

“Sigh, so you did that for the dignity of a noble? You’ve really become a noble now, haven’t you?”

What is she even saying?

“Not a noble, a clan leader.”

“…Huh?”

“Wherever we go, I represent you all now. But should I have just smiled and let it go because I was being considerate to an explorer I don’t even know well? Just because he’s someone you know?”

“That’s…”

Above all, that team seemed to have the same goal as us, so we would probably encounter them again.

That’s why I activated the Noble Barbarian mode.

I judged that being looked down upon from the start was not good in the long run.

“…I’m sorry for being sarcastic. I was short-sighted this time.”

Raven bowed her head and apologized.

That was one of her strengths.

If she was sure she had made a mistake, she would just admit it and apologize honestly.

“That’s enough. I’ve forgotten about it.”

I, like a barbarian, passed over the matter and asked what I was curious about.

“But I didn’t know, Raven, do you dislike nobles?”

“No? Not at all?”

Um, really?

She was being quite sarcastic.

Ah, maybe she was close friends with that guy from earlier?

So she got angry when she saw me scolding him?

I thought it was a plausible guess, but Raven shook her head again when I asked again.

“Oh, that’s definitely not it. I’ve only met Mr. Partsran a few times at banquets…”

“Hmm, but then why were you so angry?”

“I wasn’t angry…”

“But it’s true that you were different from usual.”

Raven couldn’t answer my question easily.

It wasn’t that she was reluctant to speak, but it was closer to the feeling that she didn’t know the reason herself.

“I just felt a little… I wish Mr. Yandel wouldn’t be like that, even if everyone else is… No, what am I even saying? Ah, I don’t know either.”

Raven looked confused.

I chuckled.

I felt like I knew what she wanted to say.

Even I would feel uneasy if Ainar suddenly changed and showed an authoritarian side. Yes, a pure brain like a stone is the charm of a barbarian.

“Aaaah, both of you stop it! What’s with that weird atmosphere!”

Misha cut into the conversation, as if she didn’t like the awkward air, and the topic naturally changed.

“So, what are we going to do now? We still have a lot of the island to explore.”

“Ah, I’m thinking of ending the island tour now.”

At this point, I had roughly finished measuring the size of the island, and…

I also confirmed that there were other people besides us.

They might be rivals who came to this island for the same purpose.

“Then what are you going to do now?”

I answered Raven’s question briefly.

“We’re going into the island.”

I can’t be an explorer if I just back down because there are rivals.

***

Parune Island.

Located closest to the Starting Island, this island is a popular hunting ground.

The monsters are all 8th grade or lower, but…

There is a significant profit advantage in that insect-type monsters appear in large numbers.

Yes, if you only look at the profit.

“Erwen, fire! Fire! Fire! Quickly!!”

“Ye, yes!”

“Ptoo, ptoo, ptoo! Ugh! I think it got in my mouth!!”

“Mr. Ainar! A magic stone just came out of your mouth! Did you kill it by chewing it?!”

‘Krungbi’, an 8th-grade insect-type monster with a body larger than a person’s face.

And the swarms of bugs it summons.

Fwoooosh-!

Every time Erwen, who controls the fire spirits, or Raven’s wide-area skills were unleashed, magic stones poured out, but no one had a bright expression.

I was no different.

‘It’s more disgusting than I thought.’

Even though I thought I had a strong stomach, it was hard.

The sticky fluid covering my whole body.

The nauseating smell of bugs being roasted in the flames.

Sigh, I didn’t want to know that such a smell existed in the world.

“I didn’t hear that there were this many monsters, but since there’s no one around… Kyaaak!”

“Don’t say that! It got in my mouth… Ugh!”

My companions were updating their worst moments in real-time, but they didn’t say they wanted to go back.

There was a simple reason.

“It seems like you’re right, Bjorn.”

“Yes. There’s definitely something on the island. Otherwise, people with good ships wouldn’t have come to this island.”

Of course, it’s not like we’re going to follow them and find out what it is.

I already know what it is, and…

From the start, there’s no one in our clan who is so ignorant of morality that they would agree to such a plan.

So, we decided to search hard ourselves.

Under the assumption that something was hidden on this island.

‘Thanks to that, it won’t look strange even if we find it later…’

The problem is Partsran’s team.

The hidden piece of this island is a type of event that targets the entire island.

‘If there are no other people besides us, then there are 11 people in total.’

We haven’t reached the 15 people required for the highest difficulty yet, but 11 people is still a considerable burden.

‘That’s probably why he tried to drive us away. If we’re not there, they can proceed with the event much more easily.’

I’m a little curious.

How did he know about this hidden piece?

Is there a player among his team members?

Or is he a player himself?

‘I’ll get a feel for it when I meet him later—’

I was moving while thinking about this and that.

“Mister.”

Erwen stopped the group.

“Someone is fighting over there.”

The direction she pointed was the center of the forest.

She has hearing several times better than ours, so she couldn’t have misheard.

“It seems like Mr. Partsran’s team is hunting. Hmm, if we run into them here, they might misunderstand that we followed them—”

“No. They’re not hunting.”

“Huh? They’re not hunting, what do you mean—”

Erwen said sharply, her eyes shining.

“It’s the sound of people fighting each other.”

It meant that a PK [Player Killing] was happening.