Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 397

To put it simply, the speedrun failed. When we arrived at our destination, the portal to the second floor was already open, so we missed the first opening achievement. Tsk, I thought this time might be it.

“How much of a difference was there between us and the team ahead?”

“About 10 minutes.”

What, 10 minutes? Actually, our arrival time would have been enough for a speedrun in a game. It feels like the overall level has gone up. ‘Still, 10 minutes… if I just increase my movement speed a bit more, it might be possible.’ If a speedrun becomes consistently possible, free experience points will accumulate with each exploration, so getting on that track is very important for growth. That’s probably why that Dragonkin woman requested individual activities. ‘I wonder if Lavienne, that woman, succeeded in the speedrun?’

Our team’s last member, the Dragonkin Lavienne. That woman only participated in the inauguration ceremony, didn’t enjoy the banquet, and left, entering the labyrinth separately. She said moving alone is several times faster, and we’d meet on the 6th floor anyway, so what’s the point… that was her logic. ‘If it weren’t for the Marquis back then, really…’

A way of thinking that clearly has a problem. I felt the need to correct her, but unfortunately, it failed due to the Marquis’s intervention. He said that since he made some personal promises with her, he should allow her that much autonomy? He also asked that while he wouldn’t stop me from trying to control her, I should refrain from suppressing her. In short, it meant don’t just beat her up… ‘It’s not like we brought a princess into the team.’ Of course, just because an easy and convenient method is blocked, I have no intention of giving up on holding the reins. I need to fix her bad habits so that things will be easier in the future. In any way possible.

「You have entered the 2nd floor, Goblin Forest.」

「You have entered the 3rd floor, Pilgrim’s Path.」

「You have entered the 4th floor, Sky Tower…」

Anyway, whether that woman was there or not, the exploration itself wasn’t difficult, so we proceeded with the schedule as planned without any problems. We went straight to the 4th floor quickly. From the 4th floor, where combat avoidance was impossible, we improved our understanding of each other by coordinating in actual battles. As a result, we naturally had many conversations.

“Hmm, so it’s true that the three of you were living in the same house…” There were many personal chats like this during the conversations, but no one said anything that crossed the line. For example, asking if the rumors about the relationship between Erwen and me were true, or being curious about my relationship with the Marquis, or asking why people like us could have remained unknown until now, and so on. Old man Didi occasionally showed curiosity about such things, but before they could come out of his mouth, the magician Ashd cut them off well.

“But, by any chance—”

“Mr. Raines, I had a question while watching the battle, can clones use aura?”

“No, that’s impossible.”

“Is that so? It seems like other abilities can be used by clones. Since it’s such a rare essence, my academic curiosity is piqued after a long time.”

At first, I thought it was a coincidence, but now I’m sure. This magician is changing the subject every time old man Didi tries to bring up uncomfortable topics. ‘He’s a very smart person.’ I don’t know why, but is it because he’s a male magician? Looking at Riard Ashd, I keep thinking of Dwalki. Of course, unlike that guy, Ashd had a soft voice, said everything he needed to say, and had much higher social skills. Should I say his temperament is different? He’s quick-witted and much more mature. But, rather because of that…

“Why are you looking at me like that, Mr. Shuitz?”

“I wasn’t looking.”

When I look at him, I suddenly get that thought. Liol Worb Dwalki. If that guy had also grown up over time, would he have given off this kind of feeling?

***

「You have entered the 6th floor, Great Sea.」

***

18 days into the labyrinth entry. The starting island of Lymia, which we reached by running almost the entire exploration period except for the 4th floor, was very quiet. Well, it’s only natural. We just arrived after running like this, so how many people would have come this far at this time? The reconnaissance team of the military, composed of fast-moving individuals. The elites of large clans waiting for the arrival of follow-up personnel. And…

“……” The other team of the expedition, who only makes eye contact from afar, considering the gazes of the people. Wow, there are two teams that arrived before us. I expected the dwarf lady’s team since they are composed of veteran explorers, but I didn’t expect that team 4, led by the paladin Jun, would be faster than us.

“…Ah, there she is.” Anyway, thanks to the quietness, it was easy to find one person. The Dragonkin Lavienne. A woman who was included in the team through a deal with the Chancellor, and a business partner whose full name I haven’t even heard yet.

“You guys rest here for a bit.” After having the team wait, I approached the woman who was sitting in the shade with a chair, staring blankly at the beach.

“18 days… you came earlier than I thought?” Lavienne said without even turning her head when I approached. What, does she have eyes on the back of her head?

“I thought the gathering place for the expedition was in the eastern part of the island?”

“The departure is on the 20th day anyway. Looking at it, the other teams that arrived first seem to be just resting nearby.”

Well, that’s true. Actually, I didn’t intend to say anything about that.

“When did you arrive?”

“Two days ago.”

“Two days ago…?” …Then she arrived on the 16th day? She came from the 1st floor to the 6th floor in almost half a month? Apart from not liking a team member who is caught up in individualism, I had to admit one thing. “…It’s understandable why you said you’d move alone.” At that speed, she must have succeeded in a speedrun from the 1st floor to the 6th floor. From this woman’s perspective, it’s understandable why she didn’t enter with us. If she had traveled with us, she would have had to give up a whopping 12 free experience points. ‘It’s going to be harder to persuade her if it’s like this.’ My worries deepen. It feels like being a *kkondae* [a condescending older person] to force her to move together from the 1st floor just because we’re a team.

“Anyway, get up.”

“Why?”

“We didn’t even get to talk in the city because we were busy.”

“Okay.” I wondered if she would just say she’d rest here until the gathering date, but surprisingly, Lavienne readily accepted the offer and headed to the eastern part of the island where the gathering place was located.

“Nice to meet you. It’s the first time since the inauguration ceremony, right?”

“I’m sorry about that. There was a situation within my clan. I’ll try to make time in the city as much as possible from now on.”

“Then I’d be grateful. Can I call you Lavienne from now on?”

“Yes. Call me whatever you’re comfortable with, Mr. Ashd.”

The conversation is going much more smoothly than I thought.

“May I call you Lavienne-yang?” Old man Didi cautiously asked, perhaps because he knew that the age of the Dragonkin was different from humans, and Lavienne replied without much thought. And…

“What about you two? What should I call you?” Lavienne turned her head towards Amelia and Erwen.

“Either Emily or Raines, whatever you want.”

“Call me Mr. Raines.”

“I’m Tersia.”

When Erwen drew a line with a prickly voice, Lavienne met her gaze with a strange look and then smiled. “Okay, Ms. Tersia.” Okay, so the honorifics are settled… ‘……But why do we have to settle the honorifics on the 6th floor?’ Can we really call this a team? While having such doubts, I went straight to the main point.

“We’ve coordinated in the city, and we’ve gotten to know each other by coming here together.”

“I know what you mean. You want to know about me too, right?”

“We need to know who we’re entrusting our backs to.”

“I understand.” After that, Lavienne drew the sword she was wearing on her waist and demonstrated some of her skills, explaining what role she could play in battle. Well, it seems like she didn’t mention a few things… Actually, it was a common occurrence in restricted jobs like magicians, priests, and ability users, so it was nothing new.

“Then, where should I stand when moving?”

“Rear.”

“What about in battle?”

“Emily will take my left rear, and you will take my right rear.”

“That’s classic.”

“We don’t know each other well enough to do anything complicated.”

Lavienne chuckled, as if she thought there was a bone in my words. “Are you going to keep doing that?”

“I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?” Well, let’s end the power struggle here. After that, the magician and the ability user also went through the process of explaining their positions to Lavienne. It didn’t take long, but it was annoying to watch. Why do we have to do something twice that could have been done once in the city? Perhaps individualism is synonymous with inefficiency.

“They’ve arrived.”

“The expedition leader has arrived, so we can’t just goof off on the beach, can we?” Soon, Akuraba’s team and the paladin team, who had been resting on the beach, moved to the eastern part of the island, which was designated as the gathering place. And how much more time passed?

“Team 3 has arrived now too.” Since the eastern part of the island was located on a slightly higher ground, the expedition’s entry into the 6th floor was visible in real-time. It was the team led by James Kala, the vice-captain of the Sawtooth Clan… “That team is a mess.” “It seems they pushed themselves to increase their speed.” I understand the psychology. The gathering date is the 20th, but if they are the last among the teams, they would think it looks like a measure of their ability. This is also a kind of power struggle. ‘This is like a Tang Dynasty army.’ Competition within a group? It’s one of the good means of leadership, but that only works positively after a sense of belonging to the group has been established. In the current situation, competing with each other is just perfect for causing internal strife. ‘How can I unite these guys?’ While spending time pondering the inevitable worries of a leader, the day was over. It was also at that time that Team 5, that is, the team led by the knight Kaislan, arrived.

“Damn it…!” The guy clenched his fist in frustration when he realized that he was the last, even though he had arrived two days earlier than the scheduled date. Heh, has his control device broken down again? “What are you doing there? Come here quickly.” “…Ah, I understand.” When I gestured, he flinched and approached me. Yeah, getting angry like that will only give you wrinkles, you know? Pat pat. I patted him on the shoulder as if to encourage him, and then used it as a support to get up.

“There are two more days left than scheduled, but since everyone is gathered, there’s no reason to waste time unnecessarily.”

“Oh my, are we finally going to hear what kind of mission we’re going to do?”

“Ah, in that case, wouldn’t it be better to move the other members back?”

“It’s okay, it’s not like there’s anything to hide anyway. Even if you hear it, it’s not like you can tell anyone else now.” At my words, the members who had been looking around awkwardly moved closer to the center. They seemed to think that they could listen confidently since I had given permission.

“Okay, tell me. What are you trying to hide so much? You’re the only one, the expedition leader, who knows about this mission, right?” Akuraba’s curious eyes are visible through the flickering bonfire. Please, I wish the dwarves wouldn’t sit on chairs. Look, their faces aren’t even visible properly because of the bonfire. It’s not even a big fire. Anyway, that’s not the important thing.

“Ahem.” I cleared my throat once, thinking about the dignity of the leader. “Everyone must have been curious. If the Noark guys are coming to the Dark Continent through the portal, where is that area?”

“Yes. If there’s a starting point like the Crystal Cave, then that place will definitely be used as their base.”

“Could it be that the royal family has finally found out where it is?”

“Yes.” When I revealed the top-secret information I had heard from the Marquis, everyone was in an uproar. Hey, it’s not even the time to be surprised yet.

“Our mission is to strike their base.” In terms of military units, we’re a mobile strike force. While the main force draws attention on the battlefield, we destroy the enemy’s core units or facilities.

“…Um, there’s one part I don’t understand. If that’s our mission, why did you set the schedule so tight?”

“Are you perhaps trying to make us break through the Gorge of the Wailing Spirits on our own?”

“…That’s insane! Unless we join the main force and advance together, we can’t cross that gorge with just one ship!” Heh, I haven’t even finished talking yet. If there’s one characteristic of the Tang Dynasty army, it’s that a local broadcast turns on every time someone says a word. Before the misunderstanding gets bigger, I quickly said this. “We are not crossing the Gorge of the Wailing Spirits.”

“What? You said we’re striking the base on the Dark Continent, what does that mean…?”

“Last warning. Don’t interrupt me again.”

“……” Whew, it’s nice that it’s quiet now. In a more calm atmosphere, I explained our mission in detail. “The Gorge of the Wailing Spirits isn’t the only way to the Dark Continent.”

“Ah! Could it be…!” Yeah, they seem to have noticed now. What else would be the reason for gathering in the eastern part of the island in the first place? “We are heading to the Ice Rock in the east.” Just as the four fields classified as the 2nd floor, Goblin Forest, Beast Lair, Rocky Desert, and Land of the Dead, are all connected to the 3rd floor, Pilgrim’s Path. The 7th floor also doesn’t just have the Dark Continent. So, to put it simply…

“Then, we’ll enter the Dark Continent via the 8th floor, and smack the back of the heads of the careless guys.” It’s a mission like eating a frozen cake. It’s hard to chew. Sometimes it makes your teeth ache. The question of whether we really have to eat it like this will constantly linger in our minds.

“If there’s anyone who doesn’t understand, come forward.”

“……”

“It’s a relief that there doesn’t seem to be any cowards.” Nevertheless, the aftertaste will be sweet.