Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 435

Baek-ho Lee.

Twenty-three years old.

A freshly discharged soldier with a naive buzz cut and the innocent look of a country youth.

That guy called me ‘hyung’ [older brother or older male friend].

[Me? It’s been… like ten years.]

At least 10 years.

No, it’s been four years since he said that, so he’s a player who’s survived in this city for at least 14 years, yet.

At first, I thought he was an oddball.

But…….

[You are already one of us here.]

Through the words of Hans A, whom I met in the Cage of Punishment, I was finally able to realize.

The venom and obsession contained in his words from before.

[Hyung! Don’t talk such crap! I’m going back. So, you have to count my real age!]

Baek-ho Lee isn’t an oddball.

He’s just more desperate than anyone else.

That’s why it’s easier to read his true intentions.

[Hurry up and release the ban. Or you’ll really die here.]

His tone is frivolous.

[Hey, you punk. Who told you to set a fire without my permission?]

He acts like a thug, trusting in his absolute power.

[Wow, you were a real player?]

Even though he seems to move only according to his own desires.

In the end, there’s only one thing he wants.

[I don’t build any attachments in this world.]

To escape this damned world and return to his original one.

There’s no one easier to deal with than someone with a clear goal. However, I’ve been wary of revealing my identity to Baek-ho all this time.

But…….

‘There’s no need to do that anymore.’

After all, this guy doesn’t know that Bjorn Yandel is Han-soo Lee, but he knows I’m an evil spirit.

And more than anything.

“Wow, that’s amazing…….”

Because now, after time has passed, I have some.

Even if this monster is my opponent, I have the confidence that I can protect myself in the worst-case scenario.

“So… Hyung was really Bjorn Yandel. If Lee Hyun-soo is Bjorn Yandel, then the one I met in Atlante before was also Hyung?”

After repeatedly exclaiming in strange admiration after I revealed my identity, Baek-ho let out a sigh of relief.

“…It’s really a relief. That I found out even now.”

That part was a bit annoying.

“A relief……?”

“Ah… I think it’s better not to say that.”

“I think that’s something I should hear and decide.”

When I said that firmly, Baek-ho’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

“But, Hyung.”

“…….”

“Why are you talking to me so aggressively?”

His voice wasn’t angry, but rather as if he couldn’t understand. However, without me saying anything, he understood on his own.

“Ah… come to think of it, I was a bit like that…….”

It seems like he remembered what happened with Bjorn Yandel.

“Sorry, Hyung. It was before I knew you were Hyung, so you’ll understand, right?”

Before I could even decide whether to accept his apology, Baek-ho sighed again.

“Hyung, you too… you should have just told me back then. If you had, things wouldn’t have gotten so tangled up.”

Huh huh huh…….

This guy is really getting on my nerves.

“So, you’re saying it’s my fault?”

“No. I didn’t say that? It’s my fault in the end, though. Like you said, it’s because of me that Bjorn Yandel became known as an evil spirit.”

For a moment, I felt my anger flare up again at his calm voice, but I suppressed my emotions and focused on the conversation.

“Now that we’ve revealed our names, I’ll ask again, why did you do that?”

“I needed a symbolic figure for my plan. But I’ll say it again, if I had known it was you, I would never have used that method.”

Well, he says that, but I don’t trust him.

I know a little about this guy now.

“Even if I had really died?”

Would he really have chosen not to use me even then?

***

“…….”

The answer to my question was silence.

Is he the type who hates lying?

I think so, but it’s too early to be sure.

Maybe he just doesn’t lie when he knows he’ll be caught.

Baek-ho naturally changed the subject.

“But aren’t you curious about how I found out that you’re Bjorn Yandel? I honestly thought you’d ask that right away.”

The answer is simple.

I thought there was something else more important right now.

No matter how much I look for the reason, the result that has already passed won’t change.

Even if it means going back to the past—

“Ah, of course, I wouldn’t have answered even if you had asked.”

What is this guy trying to do?

“But if I had to say one thing, it wasn’t that certain. So, I decided to test the waters this time.”

There was no need to hear how he tested me.

He acted as usual while suspecting me of being Bjorn Yandel. Until I mentioned ‘Misha’ or ‘Bjorn Yandel’ first.

‘Maybe that’s why he acted so helpless in front of Hyun-byul. So that I would lower my guard a bit—’

“Ah, but Hyun-byul noona [older sister or older female friend] is really scary. How did you date someone like that? Wow, it’s been so long since I lost a battle of wills. I was just laughing in disbelief. It was so absurd.”

Hmm, was that real?

I don’t know, but it wasn’t a topic to think deeply about right now.

“Anyway, that’s enough about that.”

Ending the topic there, I asked directly.

“Why did you take Misha?”

“Of course, it’s for the labyrinth raid.”

Yeah, I knew it was for that reason.

I had a hunch, but hearing it directly gave me an unknown sense of relief.

“Isn’t that why you were raising her too, Hyung? It’s easier to have a dual-wielding ice swordsman in the late stages of the 9th floor.”

Of course, there were still questions about that answer.

“There must have been many other candidates, why Misha specifically?”

“I liked her devotion. I thought that if she promised to save you with the Stone of Rebirth, she would never betray me.”

“Is that all?”

“Well, there are other reasons, but… they’re all trivial. To be honest, my decision wasn’t without my own whims. I was a little curious. That even knowing she was an evil spirit, her heart wouldn’t change.”

It didn’t seem like a lie.

In fact, he didn’t seem to have much interest in Misha at all.

No, to be precise, he thought of her as an object?

“Oh, right! I’ll give her back if you want. I’ve raised her quite diligently for a few years, and I feel a bit guilty towards Hyun-byul noona, but…….”

The only thing this guy is interested in right now is me.

“It’s between you and me, right?”

Soon, he smiled and looked at me.

“I can handle that much. Of course?”

An overwhelming amount of goodwill.

Through this, I could clearly recognize.

That this guy is treating me well not simply because I’m ‘Korean’.

There’s something more to it.

Otherwise, there’s no way this guy, whose goal is ‘return’, would give up Misha so easily.

But…….

‘It’s better to pretend not to know for now.’

I didn’t even try to test him.

I judged that getting Misha back safely was the top priority, but…….

“Well, the cat problem is solved, so let’s talk about something else!”

“Something else?”

“I’m just curious about your story, Hyung. I wasn’t as strong as you were when I was your level. And I even ate the essence of the Deep Sea Giant recently. Just estimating from the confirmed facts, you must have at least four 3rd-grade essences…….”

Baek-ho started spewing out various questions about me, and I filtered out what I could and faithfully answered what I could.

The world is give and take.

Since he coolly said he’d send Misha back, I thought it was better to show this much sincerity.

However…….

“So, what’s it really like? Where were you for two and a half years?”

I thought a lot about this question.

Should I tell him about going to the past 20 years ago or not?

It didn’t take long to make a decision.

‘He already knows I’m Bjorn Yandel, so there’s no need to hide it. Maybe I can get some helpful information from him too.’

Auriel Gavis is a common enemy of the players.

So, it’s important to share information and discuss ways to confront him.

Therefore…….

“A Fragment of Records……? I’ve heard of it, but it really existed.”

The story of being sucked into the past on Parune Island.

And…….

“…You met Auriel Gavis?”

I mainly told him about entering the community 20 years ago. After all, he wouldn’t be curious about the story of saving Amelia.

“Oh, now that I see it, that guy created this community himself.”

“Ah, I know that. I heard it from that old man Ruinjenes… Oh? Wait a minute… That old man said that before the community collapsed, Auriel Gavis brought a strange guy… Could that have been you?”

“Probably.”

“Wow… this makes you seem like the main character. Tell me more. So, what happened?”

“Auriel Gavis was very interested in the fact that I was a player from the future.”

I explained the conversation I had with Auriel Gavis, except for the fact that I cleared the original mode.

Surprisingly, Baek-ho already knew most of the information.

After all, one of his current companions is a Destruction Scholar.

In the first place, the reason I told the story of the past was to get information about this.

“I know that the Earth Witch is alive. Well, I don’t know where she is, though.”

“That old man said she’s in the place where everyone’s wishes are directed. Do you have any idea?”

“Huh? Is that really what he said? It’s easy, isn’t it? Is there anything other than the end of the labyrinth?”

“But there wasn’t a final boss in the game.”

“That’s because it was a tutorial. You should know after being here this long, right? That this place is clearly different from the game. Maybe the Earth Witch will be the final boss. Hmm, then how should we prepare?”

Even if it wasn’t just about the Earth Witch, the conversation with Baek-ho was quite beneficial.

Rather, I was the one who released the information, but I ended up getting more information, you could say?

“Kagureas, you mean the barbarian who collected three Creation Artifacts?”

Oh, there were two when I went…….

No, more than that.

“That person was a barbarian……?”

“Didn’t you know? You have a deep connection with him. Little Vulcan… you were called by that name, right?”

…What?

“No way…….”

“Yes. Kagureas is Vulcan. Or rather, it’s presumed so based on the circumstances. April 2nd, year 136 of the Founding. After Vulcan died at the age of 55, all the Creation Artifacts that had disappeared returned to the races that had lost them.”

It was an amazing story.

That the legendary senior who was the original owner of my alias was an evil spirit.

“Do you know about the portal in the royal palace basement?”

“I’ve been investigating it for a while, but I haven’t found out much. Except that the portal there is an exit, not an entrance?”

“An exit?”

“It’s not that you can enter somewhere through the portal, but the opposite. If you take a portal somewhere, you can move to the place where the portal in the royal family’s basement is.”

Hmm, I see…….

It’s a very suspicious story at first glance.

Anyway, after that, we talked as allies for the first time in a long time, and that’s how we got to that story.

[Auriel Gavis, do you feel even a little bit of remorse for the countless ‘evil spirits’ who were dragged here and died because of your greed?]

That very question that ended up decorating the end of the truth game.

As soon as he heard this, Baek-ho burst into laughter.

“Puhaha! Pfft, ahahahaha! Really? You asked that old man that question?”

“Why are you laughing?”

“Just because. I’d say it was a question that was like you…… But you’re still naive…….”

What? I’m naive?

I was dumbfounded even as I heard it, but Baek-ho seemed to genuinely think so.

“So? What did that old man answer?”

I conveyed the answer I heard back then, word for word.

[How can I be at peace? Of course, I feel sorry. I also feel responsible. I will probably live with this feeling for the rest of my life, atoning for it.]

He said that while looking straight into my eyes.

[How is that for an answer?]

Even the part where the red light came on in the jewel.

“Hmm…….”

Baek-ho, who I thought would curse the old man as a psychopath, had a strange expression.

“This is a bit ambiguous.”

“Ambiguous?”

“He spoke at length, and he even exaggerated it on purpose.”

“Huh?”

“It’s a typical pattern used when hiding a lie within the truth. And he was in a situation where he could only answer yes or no, right?”

Baek-ho was suspicious of Auriel Gavis’s intentions.

But the problem is, when I think about it, it’s not entirely unreasonable.

“Hmm, but why did that old man do that? Was it just a coincidence? What do you think, Hyung?”

“Well… how would we know what’s going on in that old man’s head?”

“That’s… true.”

The discussion about Auriel Gavis’s answer ended neatly there.

Baek-ho seemed to have something more he was curious about.

“Hey, Hyung…….”

“Speak. If you suddenly do that, I’ll just get more anxious.”

“Ah, but I think it might be a bit rude.”

“Enough, just do it.”

“Then I will?”

“Yeah.”

Once he got permission again, Baek-ho carefully asked.

“What’s your goal, Hyung?”

It wasn’t a sudden question.

But I asked back as if I had heard something unexpected.

“Goal?”

“Whether you want to go back to Earth or not.”

Yeah, I knew that’s what he was curious about.

“When we met at the Gnome Tree, you clearly said you weren’t sure.”

Yeah, I did.

For reference, when I gave that answer, this guy asked if it was because of that cat-like beastkin. And when I answered with silence, he even gave me advice, not advice, saying that he was seeing his old self and not to expect too much from NPCs.

‘…The reason he got over it so coolly back then must have been because he didn’t place much value on ‘Bjorn Yandel’.’

“Are you still not sure?”

“Well…….”

“Then think about it seriously now. The time when your goal was just to survive has long passed.”

Baek-ho’s intentions were obvious, but I pretended to think about it seriously. But is it because it’s a concern I’ve been having often recently?

“A goal…….”

I was just trying to pretend, but all sorts of thoughts are swirling in my mind.

What is my goal?

“If it’s difficult, think about it like this. There’s a button here. And if you just press that button, you can immediately return to the world you were in.”

Baek-ho’s advice was more helpful than I thought.

Even though I can’t know what decision the future me will make.

“So, what will you do?”

At least I could know my current state.

“…….”

If there really was such a button, I would have hesitated in front of the button for a long time.

And I would have thought endlessly in my head.

If I go back home, what is there?

There were a lot of things that came to mind right away.

“…….”

Hamburgers, cola, games.

Entertaining media and the convenience of countless modern devices.

I don’t have to kill anything, and I don’t have to bleed or suffer every day.

I worry about life, but I don’t worry about survival.

Yes, the kind of peaceful life I want is beyond that.

But.

“…….”

Clearly, this world in the game is a damned place, and that thought hasn’t changed, but.

‘Maybe… the result won’t change.’

In the end, I wouldn’t have been able to press the button.

No, I wouldn’t have pressed it.

Because that’s not the kind of life I want right now.

“It seems like you’ve finished thinking to some extent?”

“Yeah.”

The conclusion has been reached.

My goal is to survive.

In this place full of all sorts of threats, like walking on thin ice.

With me, and with the countless people I’ve met here.

That’s my honest desire.

Therefore…….

“Can you tell me? What you’re going to do.”

I looked him in the eye and answered.

“I’ll press it, that button.”

It was a judgment that it was necessary to match him for now without revealing my true intentions.

Because it was obvious.

What kind of answer this guy was waiting for.

“…….”

After hearing my answer, Baek-ho stared at me without saying anything.

A moment of silence flowed like that.

A silence that felt somehow heavy.

“Tsk.”

What ended that short time was the sound of Baek-ho clicking his tongue.

“Geez, you’re making me feel bad. It’s not like I’m treating you like a cripple because you can’t use skills here.”

The guy who always laughed frivolously and spoke playfully was looking at me.

“You’re lying while looking me in the eye.”

With a cold look that I had never seen before.