Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 513

In any world, there are tales that become legends. Lapdonia is no different. Stories of someone exploring a labyrinth and being saved by a mysterious being they could communicate with, or escaping before being eaten. Such stories have existed among explorers like folklore since ancient times. Of course, they have never been proven true. ‘If you’re an explorer, it’s the kind of fantasy you’d have at least once,’ Erwen said cynically. Most explorers have thought about it at least once. Could there be a rational being capable of communication in this labyrinth full of secrets? ‘Interesting… very interesting…’ Unlike Erwen, Amelia’s eyes lit up as soon as she heard the story about the ‘natives.’ ‘What happened to the corpses at the entrance? Did those ‘monsters’ do that too?’ The female explorer who received Amelia’s question tilted her head. ‘Corpses at the entrance… you mean?’ ‘Don’t you know? There were three of them.’ When Amelia described their appearances, the female explorer flinched. ‘McHoldin, Printon, Rick… They were the three who were kidnapped in the first attack… I didn’t see them in the village where we were captured, so I never imagined they would end up like that…’ ‘The first attack… Tell me from the beginning. In detail, without missing a single thing. Starting from when you split from the Hextz Clan.’ ‘Yes…? How did you know about that…?’ ‘They were the ones who told us about this island.’ ‘…I see.’ We should have followed them back then. The female explorer muttered in a small voice and continued. ‘After splitting from the Hextz Clan, we started exploring the inner part of the island.’ The first area discovered. And new types of monsters appearing in that area. Since there was no information, the battles were difficult, and there were many dangerous situations, but even then, they were still full of enthusiasm. ‘Tentaculan, Diamont, Gulda-ramji, Papagonas, Bailonta… Giving names to the new monsters we encountered made it feel like we were on a grand adventure from history.’ Papagonas, Bailonta. Monsters we haven’t discovered yet. However, let’s ask about these guys later… ‘As we were heading towards the center of the island, we discovered unusual traces.’ Footprints leading towards the center. The footprints were twice the size of a human’s, and there were many, as if several had moved together. But… ‘The shapes were all different. And they were flat. Like they were wearing shoes…’ Having discovered the traces, they were excited, believing they were new monsters, and followed the traces. The already lush forest became even denser. And the monsters that were occasionally seen completely disappeared. How much further did they go? ‘That’s when the first attack happened.’ The monsters that were lying in ambush attacked from all sides, and they fought desperately, but three were kidnapped. Among them was the clan leader’s lover. Naturally, the Silver Lion Clan went berserk and chased after them, thus venturing deeper inside. ‘But there was a limit to that. The second and third battles followed, and many died.’ The biggest problem was that despite such sacrifices, they couldn’t capture a single monster. ‘I don’t know why we realized it so late, but they were smart. They communicated in their own language and moved strategically.’ Realizing this, the Silver Lion Clan turned around and ran away. The leader, whose lover had been kidnapped, was furious, but he reluctantly nodded at the persuasion to return and seek help from Baron Yandel. But it was already too late. ‘There were traps set on the way back. We were definitely going back the way we came, but there was nothing like that when we came…’ They fell into the traps and were all captured, and with their eyes covered, they were taken to their village. ‘But how did you guys escape?’ ‘That’s… one of the monsters secretly came and released us…’ ‘Released you…?’ After listening to the details, it seemed to be a very small one compared to the other monsters. They said it seemed like a child… ‘Were you close?’ ‘No. We couldn’t even communicate, so how could we be?’ ‘Then why did it release you?’ ‘We don’t really… know. That monster came to the prison where we were held and just stared at us all day and said something, but that’s all.’ Hmm, I see. As I was nodding, Amelia spoke her mind without filtering it. ‘It must be sympathy.’ Erwen agreed, adding. ‘Come to think of it, my younger sibling was like that too. It was during the festival preparations, and they visited the barn every day, saying it was fascinating, and then released them all the day before.’ The explorers’ expressions hardened at the two’s words, but they didn’t argue. They were also feeling it inside. That they were treated like animals in a cage, and they were able to survive thanks to the sympathy of a child. ‘Haha… that’s how kids are…’ Anyway, that’s their story. After that, we focused on hearing about the ‘monsters.’ What they looked like, how strong they were. How many people were in the village, etc. We gathered as much information as possible beforehand and finished our assessment to some extent. ‘With this much, we can continue the exploration.’ Considering the size of the village, seven people were not enough, but the monsters they described had a large variation in individual strength. Like a society made up of people. Not all members are warriors. The problem is that since they are familiar with the geography here, they have a geographical advantage… Well, if it’s disadvantageous, we can just run away without looking back. ‘Now, guide us. To where the village is.’ ‘……Are you really going to go?’ ‘We came to explore, so we have to explore.’ ‘……’ As I said that and patted their shoulders, the explorers made faces like they had eaten shit. ‘We… we’ll tell you the location, so it would be better if you went by yourself, Baron…’ ‘Yes! We’ll only be a hindrance if we’re there!’ Their enthusiastic reaction showed their strong desire not to return to that place. But… ‘Do you have a ship?’ ‘Yes! Murton here has the summoning engraving for the ship.’ ‘Really? Then I understand. Now go.’ ‘……Yes?’ ‘What’s the problem? If you’re confident that you can reach the coast alive, take the ship, and return to that rocky island, then it’s the right thing to do.’ For reference, the average grade of the monsters we encountered on the way here was 3 to 4. Fortunately, since we were all explorers, we understood each other well. ‘……We will guide you to where the village was.’ ‘Good.’ It seemed like our relationship would be long, so we introduced ourselves. Marina, Chen, Krian, Dennis. Spearman Dennis was a member of a small team, and the other three were members of the Silver Lion Clan. Well, it seemed like the clan had already disbanded. ‘Yandel, from now on, I’ll take the lead.’ Somehow, we also ended up making some changes to the movement formation. ‘Emily, you?’ ‘They said there were traps in the forest, didn’t they?’ ‘But that’s why I should be in the lead—’ ‘Yandel, you are our leader. If you get hurt or captured, who can lead us?’ Amelia took the lead with such logic. She said she would be better at finding traps, so not to worry? In fact, Amelia was leading the team by finding traps in advance. It was a very strange feeling as a tank. ‘Being protected… might not be so bad…’ Anyway, after moving for about 2 hours, we arrived at our destination. But… ‘Here… it’s here. It was definitely under this tree… huh?’ There was no path leading underground under the tree roots where they said they had crawled out. ‘What happened?’ ‘I… I don’t know.’ ‘Did we come to the wrong place?’ ‘No! That can’t be. You saw it too, Baron! We found the shoe I dropped near here!’ They didn’t seem to be lying for sure… There was a possibility that they had mistaken another tree, so we checked all the trees around, but the entrance was still nowhere to be found. ‘Is the entrance opening and closing?’ I don’t know the exact principle yet, but it was clear that a village was hidden below. Swoosh. Seeing a child wandering around like this. ‘I’ll take the left.’ ‘Then I’ll take the right.’ As soon as they spotted it, Erwen and Amelia rushed in, blocking the escape routes. And they quickly subdued the target. Blue skin and large eyes. Towering fangs and a pointed crown of the head that jutted out like an alien. [Kiyaaaaaak-!] The subdued monster struggled violently and made beast-like noises. Of course, that time was extremely short. ‘Quiet.’ The moment Amelia held a dagger to its neck, worried about the noise. The monster stopped resisting and slowly looked up at me. [P, please save me…] It was ancient language. *** I can freely read and write ancient language. If I have that ability, it’s natural that I can speak it too. It feels a bit clumsy though. [Is it you? The kid who released four people here.] When I spoke in ancient language, the subdued monster looked at me with surprised eyes. Well, when did you say to save you? [Answer, are you not going to?] [Y, yes… I released them. Those four.] [Why?] [Because… they looked pitiful…] Hearing that, a common cliché came to mind. Why is there such a thing? That a kind-hearted child accidentally shows kindness and causes irreversible consequences. ‘Yandel, what is this guy saying?’ ‘He says he was the one who released those four, and the reason was because they looked pitiful.’ It was a remark to Amelia, but the four who heard my words next to me looked displeased again. ‘How dare a cursed monster…’ ‘Baron… can you tell him? That we’re not grateful at all. After killing our comrades so cruelly, did he think we’d be grateful?’ Of course, I didn’t translate it. Officially, isn’t this the first communicative being discovered in the labyrinth? I have to treat it as gently as possible to extract information. [What… what are they saying?] [They’re saying thank you for helping them.] [Is that… so…] Surprisingly, the little monster easily accepted my words. It seems that because of the different appearances and languages, it’s difficult to read emotions through expressions and voices. But, as if children are the same everywhere, the little monster showed curiosity even in this situation. [How can you speak our language? Even though you’re a monster?] [Monster…?] Its bold appearance was good, but it was a word that was difficult for a human to just listen to and move on. [Why are we monsters?] [Because… our appearances are different from yours. W, well, we can communicate, but…] Is this that? That if you go to a country of little people, even an ordinary person becomes a giant. [Okay, then if we’re monsters, what are you?] When I asked with a smirk, the little monster answered without hesitation, as if stating an obvious fact. [We are… humans.] Somehow, it became a very philosophical conversation.