Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 494

A declaration of war, held back for over 10 years.

“……!!!”

“……!!!”

Mages, citizens filling the square, and even the knights of Mozlan all stared, eyes wide with shock.

They wore the exact look of ‘Did I just hear that right?’

The old mage, mirroring their expression, barely regained his composure and spoke.

“…That’s too serious a statement to be a joke.”

A joke, huh….

Well, it’s common to deny something shocking when you first hear it.

I didn’t bother to reply, waiting a moment.

The barbarians also needed time to process.

About three seconds.

“…W-war!!”

The moment a warrior shouted, a fierce roar erupted from the crowd.

“It’s waaaaaaaar!!”

“Everyone, grab your weapons!!”

“Behel—laaaaaaaaaa!!”

When over a thousand warriors roared in unison, the mages guarding the magic tower visibly flinched.

Understandable.

Comparing the physical combat power of mages and warriors is absurd, but….

Still, the visual impact is significant.

“Uwaaaaaaaaah!”

“Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo!”

With muscular barbarians averaging 2.1 meters in height forming a massive force, it was natural to shrink back as if they were about to charge.

“Old man.”

I took a large step towards the group of over a hundred mages and asked.

“Does it still sound like a joke?”

“……”

The old mage didn’t answer, looking dazed, as if in a dream.

Hey, I’m talking to you.

Thud.

Just as I was about to take another step.

“Hey, Baron Yandel! Y-you can’t do this!”

A knight of Mozlan rushed over, agitated.

He had been mesmerized by the warriors’ fervor, but it seemed he belatedly remembered his duty.

“W-war, you say! First, l-let’s calm down and talk it over! For the sake of the royal family, at least…!”

For someone so agitated, his wording wasn’t bad.

If he had threatened me with something like, ‘Do you think the royal family will just stand by?’ the atmosphere would have become even more hostile.

“Talk, you say….”

“Yes, yes! Surely, we can find common ground through dialogue! Both the magic tower and the barbarians are pillars that maintain this city, aren’t they? For the sake of this city, please…!”

At the knight’s plea to buy time, I pretended to ponder before nodding.

“Alright!”

“R-really?!”

Okay, I think the show of force is enough for now.

I had no intention of actually storming the magic tower like this.

The entire city’s attention was already on us.

If I recklessly charged in here, the barbarian tribe would be painted as the villains.

Yes, so….

“Lewin Passtolm of the Egatil School!”

I began to call out names one by one.

“Lurendel Lungonerd of the Hulbunt School! Odwick Bertef of the Alters School! Elenel Dwainain of the Galatir School!”

As I, who had said I would talk, called out the names of the mages belonging to the magic tower, the citizens wondered what was going on, but they listened intently to my words.

“Tols Elin of the Evaund School! Ukla Trajig of the Orenstalt School! Of the Wiltom School….”

After mentioning the names of 21 mages, I asked the old mage.

“Old man, do you know who these people are?”

“Of course. Most of them are young and excellent mages who will lead the next era.”

“No, you’re wrong.”

I shook my head and said firmly.

“These are the mages who commissioned the black market rebels to obtain barbarian hearts!”

In any war, justification is important.

“Ah! So that’s why the barbarians are at the magic tower…!”

“I heard they rescued slaves from the black market, so it seems they got that information then!”

The citizens watching now understood why I had come to the magic tower and nodded. Some even agreed that they would have protested if they were in my shoes.

But….

‘If I were going to end it with just this, I wouldn’t have come.’

Appetizers are just appetizers; they can never be the main course.

“Master Lurendel Galinberret of the Triten School.”

I mentioned one more name and asked.

“Do you know who this person is?”

“……”

The old mage didn’t answer, like someone who had received advice from a lawyer.

Hey, it’s not like the truth will change if you do that.

“He is the one who commissioned the black market rebels. He wanted my heart.”

I dropped the bomb without hesitation.

“……!!”

“……!!”

Simply commissioning the acquisition of a barbarian’s heart was completely different from this.

The heart of a specific living person.

This commission was practically an assassination request.

“…Sir Guilen, if this is true, not only will that person’s head be taken, but the magic tower will also have to take responsibility.”

The knight of Mozlan, who had been worrying about how to stop me, also changed his expression and threatened the old man.

After all, Mozlan is not a knight of the mages.

The group called Mozlan was established to protect the authority of the ‘nobility’.

“…It is a point that has not been confirmed yet. But I promise you. If such a thing happened, it will be strictly investigated under the principles of the magic tower.”

The old mage gave an ambiguous promise like a slippery eel, and Mozlan couldn’t say anything more.

They acknowledged the seriousness of the matter, but since they didn’t have the authority to make a judgment on the spot, they took a step back.

Of course, in my case, there was no need for that.

“The magic tower is suspected of colluding with the black market rebels. Therefore, your investigation cannot be trusted.”

“…Regardless of the baron’s trust, this is our authority. Besides, there is no evidence yet, is there?”

“Evidence, you say….”

Okay, I expected you to say that.

I pulled out a time-honored barbarian secret technique.

“I swear.”

“……?”

“I, Bjorn, son of Yandel, the chieftain of the barbarian tribe and baron of the Kingdom of Lapdonia, swear in the name of the royal family, and furthermore, in the name of the tribe! Everything I have said here today is true!”

Just an empty oath.

But that was enough.

To persuade all the crowds present here.

“To make a declaration in front of everyone, you must be quite confident.”

“Then, would the baron be lying?”

“You filthy mages! How dare you try to harm Baron Yandel!”

“Bring the criminals and punish them now!”

The heroic achievements I had made so far, my reputation, and the honest impression and favorability I had left in the city, combined with the aforementioned justification, swayed public opinion.

“Sir Guilen, now that the baron has said this much, you must also give an explanation.”

“I told you, we will investigate it ourselves.”

“That is your freedom, but do you really have to do it that way? It would be over if you just called them and asked them.”

“……”

“I guarantee that by tonight, Mozlan will also be granted the authority to investigate the mages of the magic tower. A conspiracy to assassinate a noble is that serious. Do you really want that?”

The moment Mozlan was granted the authority to investigate, the magic tower would be thoroughly investigated by public power.

And there would be quite a few shady things among them.

However, the old mage’s decision was a refusal.

“Thank you for your consideration, but we will take care of that part ourselves, so you don’t have to worry.”

“You’re taking a difficult path. It would be over if you just called them and asked, but you can’t do that easy thing.”

“……”

The old mage exercised his right to remain silent at the knight’s words, and with this, all public opinion was complete.

Silence can sometimes be a clearer answer than anything else.

“You filthy magic tower bastards! I knew it!”

“Are you going to protect the one who dared to harm the baron!”

The narrative was that the magic tower was clearly an evil force, and the barbarians’ anger was justified.

If that old man had called the mages I mentioned here, asked them about their crimes, and promised to punish them, things wouldn’t have escalated this far….

‘He must have judged that if he just gets through today, he can lobby or do whatever it takes to smooth things over.’

Thanks to that response, I was able to take another step forward.

“Listen, proud citizens of this city who believe in fair opportunities and pursue justice!”

When I shouted at the top of my lungs, the crowd that had been throwing accusations at the magic tower shut their mouths.

A perfect silence that was more suitable for incitement than ever before.

“The corrupt mages of the magic tower have no intention of admitting their crimes! They are still only busy protecting their own people! They could just call out those who are resting in their labs and verify it, but the fact that they are refusing that easy task is proof! Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right!”

Once again, I emphasized that our side was in the right.

“Perhaps they will destroy the evidence as soon as they return, and shamelessly come back with fabricated results. It’s obvious without even looking. We have watched such scenes far too many times. Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right—!!”

I awakened the anger that commoners couldn’t help but feel.

And at the same time.

“But I no longer intend to passively condone such evil.”

I told them.

That I would carry that old anger and go forward in their stead.

“I, Bjorn, son of Yandel!”

With my name on the line.

“I promise you! The justice of this city, established under the supreme royal law of Lapdonia, will be rightly established once again today!”

As soon as I swore, the highly excited citizens burst into enthusiastic cheers.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!”

Okay, it seems like the atmosphere is ripe enough.

If civilians are mixed in, the mage bastards won’t be able to respond properly.

Yes, the stage is now set.

Therefore….

“Hoo….”

After taking a long breath and composing myself, I shouted with all my might.

“Chaaaaaaarge!!”

After the war with the fairy race, I had endured and endured, hadn’t I?

It was time to remind this city what kind of race the barbarians were.

“Behel—laaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!”

We don’t talk it out.

***

Alex Halo, the deputy commander of the 3rd Magic Corps.

After finishing his regular report for the day, he secretly glanced at his superior before leaving the office.

A uniform that was neatly pressed despite the excessive workload.

Blue eyes full of spirit, despite the fatigue.

A small hand holding a pen….

“What are you doing? Not leaving?”

Startled by his superior’s words, he quickly opened his mouth as if to make an excuse.

“I-it seems you’ve been reading the newspaper a lot lately.”

“Ah… this?”

Indeed, several copies of newspapers from various companies were piled up on his superior’s desk.

However, when she pointed to them, his superior, who was always confident, avoided eye contact.

As if she were embarrassed.

“It’s just… a hobby. It’s stuffy to be stuck here every day, right? I need to know what’s going on in the world.”

“…I see.”

To say that, the newspapers on his superior’s desk always had the same content. No, to be precise, it wasn’t the content, but the protagonist of the articles was the same.

“I heard it’s been noisy lately. I heard that Baron Yandel recently had his name engraved on the Stone of Honor?”

“I know, right? When I first met him, it was just a joke, but now he’s really become a ‘great warrior’.”

A voice that seemed somewhat lonely.

Alex tilted his head at this.

“Aren’t you happy? Baron Yandel was also your former colleague, wasn’t he?”

“Former colleague… you say….”

“Ah….”

Alex, belatedly realizing his mistake, kept quiet.

And looking at his superior, who was looking down at the newspaper with a somewhat wistful gaze, he felt an unknown sense of frustration.

A subordinate who couldn’t even do his own job properly.

It was an expression that he could never create.

“……”

“……”

As if reminiscing about past memories, his superior silently rested her chin on her hand and looked out the window, and Alex blankly stared at his superior’s profile.

How long had that time passed?

“D-Deputy Commander! It’s an emergency dispatch order…!”

A member burst into the office, kicking the door open.

His superior, as if nothing had happened, came to her senses and quickly got up, grabbing her coat.

It was inevitable.

The 3rd Magic Corps was not the Public Security Bureau in charge of public order or Mozlan. An emergency dispatch order from the military directly under the royal family?

It meant that a situation beyond a simple riot had occurred in the city.

“Tell me the details.”

She asked her subordinate about various things as she headed to the parade ground where the assembly order had been issued, and soon grasped the situation. The situation was clear enough to be summarized in one sentence.

Baron Yandel is heading to the magic tower with his tribe members.

“There hasn’t been a clash yet, but the report is that it’s certain he’s heading to the magic tower.”

“Why? There must be a reason why he did that.”

“We’re investigating. However, since a force of over a thousand is moving, it seems the Public Security Bureau has also requested support from the military.”

“I see….”

As befitting a military group, all the troops of the corps had assembled at the parade ground within minutes of the emergency call, and they immediately boarded carriages and headed to the military platform.

“Deputy Commander, this seems like a really big deal? It seems that the dispatch order wasn’t just for our corps.”

Even excluding their corps, numerous military carriages were lined up on the road leading to the platform.

However, even at Alex’s words, his superior did not answer.

She was just biting her nails, which she usually never touched, with an anxious look.

“That person… what kind of trouble is he trying to cause this time….”

Seeing his superior’s anxiety, Alex tried to say something positive.

Baron Yandel is a smart person.

Also, since he has a lot to be responsible for, he must have just gone to the magic tower for a show of force.

There’s no need to worry too much.

It wasn’t just a comforting word, but what he truly thought, but his superior’s anxious expression showed no signs of fading.

“…Alex. I think you’re misunderstanding something, but the person I’m worried about right now isn’t Baron Yandel.”

“Yes…? B-but still, it’s the magic tower.”

Alex couldn’t understand at all.

He was also from the magic tower, so he knew better than anyone the power and authority the magic tower possessed.

But what was she so worried about?

While he was harboring such questions, her mouth opened again.

“Do you remember what happened to the Explorer’s Guild because of that person before?”

“Ah, you mean the frame-up incident….”

“Yes. At that time, a large-scale escape occurred, and the entire guild branch was destroyed. The regional manager was caught up in that and lost the next election.”

“Still… the guild and the magic tower are different.”

If you look at the entire Explorer’s Guild, it might be different.

But compared to the entire magic tower, the guild is like a small corner store.

But….

“I… also thought so at one time…. That the guild and the magic tower were clearly different. That it wasn’t a group that could be swayed by one barbarian….”

“Are you saying… it’s not now?”

Raven nodded without the slightest hesitation.

“Yes. Now that person isn’t just one barbarian anymore. When he single-handedly turned things upside down, he was just a barbarian who had become an adult two months ago. But what about now?”

Alex couldn’t say anything.

Several years had passed since then, and now he was the leader of a tribe and a baron of a kingdom.

“Above all… I know that person well.”

“……?”

“Alex, trust me. If that person did it, no matter how reckless it may seem, it doesn’t mean it’s a reckless act.”

Of course, even with those words, Alex still didn’t understand. However, it wasn’t polite to keep arguing with his superior, so he kept quiet.

Clatter, clatter.

As the carriage sped down the road, they finally arrived at the military platform.

Zzzzt, zzzzt-!

New information arrived through the message stone.

[Clash, it’s a clash situation. Baron Yandel and the barbarian warriors have entered the magic tower! Please send support quickly!]

Even at that shocking report, his superior just let out a long sigh.

As if she had been preparing herself.