Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 43

‘Do I really need to find a companion?’

That was the first thought that popped into my head when Ainar talked about leaving the party.

It’s not like I’m the same person I was two months ago.

‘I think I can hunt a group of Deathspind on my own now.’

I consumed the essence of a corpse golem, a vampire, and even a guardian’s essence.

My base stats, including strength, have increased dramatically. Considering my regeneration-related skills, it’s safe to say that I’m virtually unmatched on the second floor.

‘I can definitely do it if I want to.’

No more night watch.

No more companions to rely on in case of emergency.

But I made an objective assessment.

Even considering all that, I can definitely handle solo play at my current level.

‘Well, it’s still impossible on the third floor, though.’

[Dungeon & Stone] is basically a game that forces party play. No matter how strong a character is, it’s impossible to go on a solo rampage due to the game’s structure.

The roles are so finely divided, and as you go up the floors, the absence of a specific role becomes fatal.

Like the Goblin Forest, where a scout was essential.

There’s a wall that a barbarian in the ‘tanker’ position can’t overcome alone.

‘From the third floor onwards, the scale of monsters appearing is different.’

After much deliberation, I made a decision.

I’ll find a new companion of a similar level.

If I can’t find one, I’ll join a team like that.

And together, we’ll hunt monsters on higher floors and aim for the top.

‘It’s more efficient than wasting time grinding alone on the second floor.’

Of course, this will also be quite a headache.

It’s not just about combat power or team composition; I also need to make sure they’re trustworthy.

‘Hoo, where the heck am I going to find those guys?’

It looks like this month will be quite busy too.

Aside from Erwen and Ainar, I don’t really have any acquaintances in this world.

“Kuhh……”

I finished the rest of my beer and was about to go up to my room when…

“Hey, you there, barbarian! What do you think?”

A group of explorers who had been boisterously drinking at the next table started talking to me.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, haven’t you heard? This young friend here is making some cute noises.”

Well, it doesn’t seem like they’re picking a fight.

I gestured that I’d listen, and an explorer in his mid-twenties explained the situation.

To summarize, it was like this.

Somehow, the topic of the Free Barbarian Guild came up. Naturally, the explorers were happily badmouthing the guild.

But then a young explorer came and said that they shouldn’t believe such nonsense rumors and praised the guild.

The explorers who were listening openly mocked and ridiculed him, and then they grabbed me, who was passing by.

“That’s why I wanted to hear your opinion. What do you think? Do you trust the guild guys?”

Shit, is that even a question?

“I’d trust a pile of shit more than those guys.”

“Hahahaha! I knew you’d say that! Just by looking at your eyes, I can tell you’re different from those mediocre guys!”

The man laughed, clearly enjoying himself.

A young boy who had been huddled in a corner stood up, his face flushed.

“Wait a minute! Why are you all acting like that? If there’s no guild, who will protect us in this city? You should be grateful!”

A brief silence followed.

Soon, everyone at the table burst out laughing.

“What? Be grateful? Hahahaha!”

“Kid! That’s why you’re treated like a newbie wherever you go!”

It seems that among explorers, there’s a culture of only recognizing someone as a proper explorer if they distrust the guild.

“Everyone, let’s stop here? He’ll realize it when he experiences it, right? That no one can protect you but yourself.”

“Kuhh, those are some profound words?”

“In that sense, let’s have a drink!”

After the short incident, the explorers started drinking again.

So, I was about to leave when the man who had spoken to me first approached me with a friendly expression.

“I’m Hans.”

“Hans…?”

“Haha! It’s a common name, right?”

I don’t know for sure, but it seems common.

The name of the first guy I killed in the labyrinth was also Hans.

“I’m Bjorn, son of Yandel.”

“I see! It’s fate that we met like this, so if you’re not tired, why don’t you have another drink? I’ll buy the drinks, of course!”

After a moment of thought, I nodded.

I’ve eavesdropped on many conversations between explorers, but I haven’t had many direct conversations with them.

“So, what’s bothering you that you were alone like that?”

Maybe I could get some unexpected advice, so I honestly told him my concerns.

“My team broke up, and I’m looking for a new companion. But I don’t know where to start.”

Hans, who had been listening seriously, tilted his head with a ‘huh?’ expression.

“If it’s that kind of problem, isn’t it easy to just go to the guild?”

“The guild?”

“Haha! It’s true that they’re untrustworthy bastards, but we should use what we can. How much money from our taxes goes to them!”

Well, that’s true.

No matter what, explorers can’t be separated from the guild.

In the game, you could easily find companions through the guild.

But…

“I’m worried about whether I can trust the guys I meet there.”

“Hahaha! It seems like you haven’t used them properly yet? It’s changed a lot from the past. There have been so many betrayals that it’s now mandatory to wear video recording devices.”

Really?

There was no such thing in the game.

“Trust me and go. It’s unlikely that the things you’re worried about will happen.”

With him saying that, it wouldn’t be bad to go check it out.

***

The next morning.

I woke up with a slight hangover and headed straight to the magic tower.

“You can’t enter without a visitor’s pass.”

Shouldn’t you ask if I have one first?

I was annoyed by the blatant discrimination from the morning, but when I showed the pass Raven had given me, the staff let me in without a word.

Ding—!

I arrived at the 31st floor.

As I entered Raven’s personal lab, the interior, which was even more chaotic than two days ago, greeted me.

“Oh, you’re here?”

The books and documents that were scattered around seemed to have been mostly cleaned up, but in their place, the room was filled with terrifying-looking devices.

“…What are these for?”

I pointed to the most gruesome-looking object and asked what it was for.

“It’s nothing special, it’s a magic tool that makes it easier to collect blood.”

I was surprised twice by her answer.

First, that it wasn’t for smashing people’s skulls. And second, that this barbaric-looking device was a magic tool.

“So, are you ready?”

“…I don’t think I am yet.”

“Oh, stop being dramatic. Come here.”

“…Alright.”

At first, I was half-doubtful and half-worried, but surprisingly, all the tests using magic tools were quite humane.

The process was also very quick, so it didn’t take long to finish everything.

However, looking at the test results…

‘It’s no different from what I figured out on my own in prison.’

“First of all, there are no significant differences from other guardian essences. Oh, you know what I’m talking about, right?”

“I know.”

There are two characteristics of the essence dropped by a guardian.

First, the base stat is 1.5 times higher than a normal essence.

“Since you know, it’s better to just look at it yourself.”

She used various magic tools to show me the estimated stats of the vampire’s essence.

It didn’t really mean anything.

As expected, the paper only had rough numbers like (High), (Medium), and (Low)…

And anyway, I could calculate the exact numbers by multiplying the stats of a normal vampire by 1.5.

[Vampire]

Natural Regeneration +45 Strength +15 Agility +15 Magic Resistance +30 Physical Resistance +12 Spirit Power +21 Mana Sensitivity +30 Darkness Resistance +12 Sunlight Resistance -12

Some might think that the stats are low for a 5th-grade monster.

That’s not entirely wrong.

The essence of the corpse golem, which was only 7th grade, had high stats like pain resistance 70 and bone strength 55.

And these numbers were multiplied by 1.5.

But…

‘Natural regeneration, magic resistance, physical resistance, spirit power, and even mana sensitivity…’

The rarity of the stats is different.

Even in the game, these rare stats tended to be measured low.

Because if they were given out too much, a monster would be born.

“I feel it again, but Yandel, you’re really lucky. Everyone says that even normal vampire essences are rare and hard to get, but you got it from a guardian.”

Actually, lucky is an understatement.

The essence of a guardian of 5th grade or higher is good enough to be considered a graduation essence [an extremely powerful essence].

In many ways, it’s definitely not something you should get in the early stages.

“If you’ve seen it, look at this too. I’ve organized all the abilities in case you don’t know. There are four in total.”

My lips curled up again.

“Four, huh…”

That’s the second characteristic of a guardian’s essence.

Normal essences only have two skills, passive and active.

But a guardian’s essence is different.

(P) Origin of Darkness — Resists death when the heart is intact.

Of course, the basic passive skill.

(A) Sacrifice Imprint — Physical abilities temporarily increase depending on the number of creatures stained with blood.

(A) Eternal Life — Regeneration greatly increases temporarily in proportion to lost health.

(A) Master of Blood — Temporarily absorbs one of the target’s skills when directly sucking blood.

All the active skills that can be attached are attached.

Originally, to get [Sacrifice Imprint], you had to eat the yellow essence of a vampire, and to get [Master of Blood], you had to eat the red essence…

But there’s no such thing in a guardian’s essence.

That’s how difficult it is to obtain.

‘I got the Undying Imprint and this, so it’s safe to say that my regeneration setup is complete?’

A growth rate that even I, who has played this game for ten years, can’t believe.

As I was feeling satisfied, I heard her mutter to herself.

“Okay, that’s it for today. You’ve worked hard. Come anytime next week when it’s convenient for you. I’ll be here anyway.”

“But is there anything more to investigate here?”

“What are you talking about? If this essence is to be adopted as official data by the academy, we have to do at least ten more reaction tests.”

…Oh, right.

“I was just asking because I didn’t know, so don’t get angry.”

“I’m not angry. Anyway, if you have time, I’m thinking of looking at the corpse golem essence too, so don’t even think about running away in the middle.”

“…Okay.”

I, who was almost naked because of the tests, put on my clothes.

And before leaving, I asked her.

“Raven, do you have any plans to go into the labyrinth in the future?”

“Hmm? I probably won’t for a while… Why do you ask?”

“Ahem! It’d be nice to go with someone you know!”

I was embarrassed myself, so she must have seen right through me.

She laughed as if she was dumbfounded.

“Hey, we’re not that kind of relationship, are we?”

“Forget it, pretend you didn’t hear that.”

“I don’t want to?”

Her voice suddenly became prickly.

Come to think of it, she was always like this.

She’s usually quiet, but sometimes when she gets annoyed, she becomes endlessly rude.

“No, how could you think of asking a mage to join a team with only two barbarians?”

To be precise, it’s not even two.

One left yesterday.

I thought the atmosphere would get even more tense if I said that.

“…That’s why I said to pretend you didn’t hear it!”

“How can I pretend I didn’t hear something I already heard?”

No, is this something to raise your voice about?

As I was wondering how to react to her sudden outburst…

“Haa……”

She sighed deeply, as if engraving the word patience in her heart.

“Yandel, if you’re going to make such an offer to a mage, even if it’s not me, at least form a proper team. Hmm… It’d be nice if all the team members were 6th grade or higher, and if there was even a priest.”

Damn it, do you think I don’t know that?

If the situation was that good, I wouldn’t have made such an offer to you.

“Y-yes, I will.”

Anyway, mages are known for their high noses.

***

“Then I’ll be going now.”

“Ah! Wait a minute!”

Raven stopped Bjorn, who was about to leave.

She had belatedly remembered something she hadn’t asked.

“That time! What was that thing you shoved into the mouth of the unconscious vampire? I felt a divine power from it…”

It was a question that arose while she was recording the past events to pass on to her teacher.

What the heck was that?

No matter how she looked at it, it wasn’t something a 9th-grade explorer would carry around.

“Hmm, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Huh?”

“Aren’t you mistaken? It was a chaotic situation.”

“Mistaken? There’s no way. I clearly felt it—”

“I’ll be going now. I have somewhere to be.”

“Hey! Wait! Wait—”

Bang!

Bjorn closed the door and left before she could say anything more.

‘So, he’s hiding something?’

She frowned as she looked at the place he had left and headed to the study.

And she took out a thick book.

[Rift Compendium III]

A record of information about rifts.

Like the simple title, the author’s name was not even written on the old book.

Surprisingly, this book, which she had accidentally bought at the free market when she was young, contained knowledge that was not even recorded in the academy.

“What page was the Crimson Fortress on…”

She stopped at one place as she turned the pages.

A map of the underground prison.

The exact location of the hidden passage.

Pages with advanced information about the Crimson Fortress, such as how to obtain the ‘Necronomicon’ in the demon worship room.

Unfortunately, there were also parts that she couldn’t read.

Two of them.

[Tears of the Goddess]

Acquisition Location: ——————.

[Golden Mask]

——— : ——— —.

Two items whose acquisition methods had been erased by the weathering of time and disappeared into the unknown.

She had tried to find them herself, but in the end, she couldn’t find them.

She clicked her tongue in disappointment and tilted her head.

‘Wait, I think I’ve heard of the Tears of the Goddess somewhere…’

Where was it?

She flipped through a few religious books, quickly turning the pages, trying to recall the hazy memory.

And how long had it been?

Finally, her hand stopped as she turned a page.

[Tears of the Goddess]

A consumable relic of unknown origin.

It has the effect of spreading a powerful ‘grace’ to the location when destroyed.

It disappeared from the world 150 years ago when Cardinal Androne used all three to save the Pope during the dimensional collapse.

“A relic?”

She was startled and checked the picture on the next page.

It was too early to be sure since she had only seen it from afar, but the shape and size seemed similar.

Even the method of use and the effect.

“……”

Raven became confused.

No matter how she looked at it, it didn’t feel like a simple coincidence.

But if it wasn’t a coincidence.

How could a barbarian who had just become an adult know the hidden location of the [Tears of the Goddess] and even think of using it right away?

‘Could it be that Yandel…’

At one possibility that came to her mind, she held the book and her eyes lit up.

‘I need to check it out.’

No matter how long it takes.

It would be worth it.