Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 560

Destination (1)

The goddess delivered an oracle in the form of a prophetic dream.

It was about me dying in the near future, and it would be at the hands of the expedition I was starting to trust.

Thump-!

My warrior’s heart, sensing danger, pounded fiercely.

However, I calmly assessed the situation first.

“Are you sure?”

“…Yes?”

“I mean, are you sure *I* die in that dream?”

It was like a cliché in modern media.

Why aren’t there cases like that?

They stage a tearjerker as if someone died from a gunshot, but then they wake up wearing a bulletproof vest, leading to a happy ending.

“I’m not entirely sure.”

In a situation where certainty was paramount, he cautiously continued.

“No matter how many potions I poured on the Baron’s body with his eyes closed, the potions didn’t react.”

The potions didn’t work…

Ugh, this is a bit troublesome.

‘Am I… really going to die…?’

Frankly, it doesn’t feel real at all.

My head was just a mess.

‘What should I do?’

The first thing that came to mind was one method.

Like how I tricked Amelia’s sister, what about tricking this guy?

But there was a question here too.

‘If it’s a prophecy that can be avoided like that… would they have shown it as an oracle?’

No, in the first place, why did such a situation even arise?

Wasn’t the expedition’s goal to bring me back alive?

Ugh, what a bolt from the blue this morning—.

“…Baron!”

As I was racking my brain, he urgently shook my body.

“Didn’t you hear me? This isn’t the time to be doing this. You must escape quickly.”

“Escape…?”

“The goddess also said it. This is not a fixed destiny. What future we face depends on us.”

In other words, it means a future that can be avoided depending on our efforts…

“Why… are you telling me this now…?”

“Huh…? W-Well, you’re right…?”

Sigh, he should have said this first.

I feel like I know why he always gets scolded by others.

‘Anyway, that it’s not a fixed destiny must mean it’s not on the Record Stone [a magical artifact that records all events]…’

I quickly finished assessing the situation.

Leartlas is one of the three gods representing this world. And since it’s something said by such a being, the words that the future can be changed must be true.

If that’s the case, things are different.

‘What, it’s not that big of a deal after all.’

It’s like the ‘Fate Tracker’ has a red light on?

I know a negative event will occur, but if it’s something that can be changed, I can overcome it.

Yes, so…

“Thank you for the news. But, I will stay here.”

I politely declined Parav’s advice to escape immediately.

The reason was very simple.

“I’ll take care of this problem myself, so you just tell me. Everything you saw in the dream, in detail.”

Running away has never solved anything.

***

Soon, when I returned to where my companions were, Amelia spoke to me abruptly.

“You looked quite serious. Was it an important conversation?”

“Not really. It was nothing much.”

Amelia didn’t ask further at my vague answer.

She just pursed her lips, glared at me for a moment, and then turned her head away.

“……”

…Is she sulking?

It was consideration not to worry her unnecessarily until things were clear in my head.

I had no choice but to mention this matter as well.

In a way that was a bit roundabout for a barbarian.

“Emily, if I were in danger of being executed by the commander, what would you do?”

“……?”

At first, Amelia looked at me as if I was talking nonsense, but then she suddenly gritted her teeth.

“Those bastards… were they plotting something like that?”

“It’s not certain yet. So, what’s your answer?”

To my question, Amelia answered as if it was obvious.

“I will definitely stop it. Even if I have to risk everything.”

“There are over a hundred of them?”

“I told you, I’ll stop it even if I have to risk everything.”

I could even feel a firm resolve in Amelia’s voice.

‘Yeah, I knew I’d get this kind of answer…’

While I was grateful for her feelings, I felt bitter.

In the end, this problem wouldn’t end with just my death.

If such a situation were to occur, everyone around me would get caught up in it.

‘…Should I have just run away?’

I suddenly had that thought, but I shook off the weak feeling.

There was a possibility that things could get even more twisted if I did something like that.

‘Let’s observe the situation a bit more. There’s still time before that happens.’

The reason I thought there was time was based on two things.

I heard everything in detail from Parav about what he saw in the dream.

1. The place was an island.

From the description, it seems like Chief’s Island.

Since we haven’t arrived at the island yet, that event won’t happen.

2. It wasn’t during the rainy season.

In short, my safety is guaranteed for the next few days, and…

3. For some reason, Erwen’s hair was short.

In other words, I was able to know the deadline in advance.

Therefore, running away wouldn’t be too late after enough consideration.

“Board the ship!”

After that, we left the Library Island and boarded the ship according to the expedition’s schedule.

For reference, our temporary Team 4 boarded three warships instead of our usual ship.

This was much better for withstanding the peak of the rainy season.

‘It’s the third day, so it’s quite intense.’

Monsters were literally pouring down from the sky.

Of course, the ship itself was engraved with defensive magic circles, and dozens of mages were pouring magic power into them, so the ship wasn’t taking any damage.

Crash-! Crack-! Boom!

Monsters collided with the barrier and fell into the sea, and monster blood flowed down the barrier.

“It’s not as difficult as I thought. Evost! What’s the hourly magic power consumption? Is it as expected?”

“Yes! There are no problems at the moment!”

The three ships began to cut through the silver waves in earnest.

Most of the monsters crashed into the barrier and fell into the sea, but not all of them.

Sea monsters persistently followed, and flying monsters interfered with navigation from the air.

[Groooooooaaaaaaar-!]

There were even instances where a Hyphramant [a large sea monster] appeared from underwater and grabbed the ship.

“It’s a Mobilhaus!”

A second-class sea monster, classified as super-large, appeared.

But none of them were a big problem.

Warships were made to be capable of combat.

Bang-! Bang-! Bang-!

The dozens of magic cannons on the ship fired explosive sounds, clearing the way.

Also, the military magic engineering propulsion device, which was of a different class than the one on our ship, was rotating at maximum output, increasing the ship’s speed.

“Imaize Nulla Kini Pitia!” [a magic incantation]

Mages poured out attack magic using the magic circles engraved on the ship itself.

And in the midst of all that.

Clack! Clack! Clackclackclack-!

The icebreaker on the lower front was rotating to break through the frozen sea, grinding up the small fry blocking the way.

‘……How much would a ship like this cost?’

It was on a different level from the warship I rode on when I went on the Dark Continent expedition before.

Should I say that the purpose of the ship was different from the start?

Back then, it was a ship to transport as many people as possible, but this ship was made purely for naval combat.

6 hours, 12 hours, 18 hours…

It was a little over a day since we left Library Island.

“Commander! The destination is in sight!”

The destination came into view.

***

Day 118 of entering the labyrinth.

We actually arrived at Chief’s Island through the peak of the rainy season.

Without a single casualty.

Therefore, the only thing we had to worry about now was one thing.

“Count Saintred, what are we going to do now? Are we going to disembark and enter the island?”

There were still 3 days left until the end of the rainy season.

Well, it seems like the rainy season is slowly reaching its peak, and the frequency of monster appearances is decreasing…

“No, we will wait here until just before the end of the rainy season.”

Jerome chose to stay on the ship.

After experiencing the rainy season firsthand, he seemed to have decided that going to the ground like this was very dangerous.

Seriously, people don’t believe it when you say it.

“See, wouldn’t it have been better if we had come out after the rainy season ended?”

“There’s no telling how long our journey here will continue? If we ever have to go through the rainy season, I thought it would be good to experience it when we are prepared.”

Well, if that’s the case, there was nothing to say.

Since he experienced it firsthand, he would be able to make the most accurate judgment in an emergency.

“Besides, one of our expedition’s missions is to investigate this level. We must gain as much experience as possible and return to report this record to the royal family. Including all the strange phenomena that occurred after the rainy season ended.”

No matter how much he says that, it seems like unnecessary hardship from my point of view, but the military’s perspective must be different. There’s even a knight in charge of filming during combat.

‘So, we’ll be holding out on the ship until the end of the rainy season…’

Thanks to that, Erwen became important.

Even if the rainy season ends, if her hair is fine, the prophetic dream won’t come true.

“Erwen, do you have any plans to cut your hair short?”

“Huh? I like it the way it is now… But if you, sir, think it’s g-good…”

“What are you talking about! I like long hair! Don’t even think about cutting it! Got it!”

“Yes…? Ah… Yes! I will never cut it!!!”

Okay, now that it’s like this, she won’t cut her hair voluntarily…

Even if all my hair burns off and I become bald, I must protect her hair.

While I was making that resolution, Ainar shouted.

“Oh! Bjorn, you were over there!”

What do you mean over there.

I laughed it off because it was absurd, but for some reason, Amelia was looking at me with a meaningful look.

“Hmm, Yandel, I didn’t know your taste was like that.”

…Do I have to explain this?

I don’t know, but Raven, who made eye contact with me, cleared his throat and started twirling his curly hair that reached his chest with his index finger.

“Ahem… !”

Ah, I don’t know.

Just let them think whatever they want. It’s not important.

I already have a lot to think about, and I don’t want to waste my energy on this.

“I’m going to sleep for a while, so don’t bother me until the shift change order comes.”

Therefore, to avoid being disturbed, I went into the cabin, lay down on the bed, closed my eyes, and organized my thoughts.

‘No matter how I look at it, it doesn’t seem like they came with orders to kill me… Execution out of the blue…’

How did things end up that way?

‘I think the chief is probably involved…’

There’s no solid evidence, but that thought came to mind first.

That’s because there’s suspicion about the chief.

Perhaps he has a way to take over other people’s bodies like an evil spirit.

‘If he really has such an ability… it’s something that could happen.’

Even in this case, there are two versions.

In the case where Commander Jerome Saintred was possessed.

And…

‘In the case where I was possessed.’

Both situations can explain the scene of the expedition executing me.

Therefore, the only important thing from now on is one thing.

‘Then how can I prevent that situation?’

First, under the premise that my hypothesis is correct, I worked hard to come up with countermeasures.

‘Since Erwen’s hair was short in the dream…’

What about shaving it off right now?

Then that scene wouldn’t be valid, right?

‘…That’s not likely.’

After all, the goddess herself said that the future can be changed. The presence or absence of hair wouldn’t bring about a big change.

Something.

Yes, something…

Unless there’s a bigger change.

Flash-!

Suddenly, it was as if lightning struck my head.

Maybe I was overthinking it.

‘Since it was Jerome Saintred who killed me in the prophetic dream the goblin saw…’

Wouldn’t everything be solved if I just got rid of him?