Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 568

The one-on-one conversation with the village chief continued a little longer.

I persistently questioned him about what I didn’t know about this floor and what was needed to open the portal stone. However, the village chief evaded my questions with vague answers.

“You’ll naturally find out when the time comes. And why worry already? You’ll eventually leave this place and return to the city anyway.”

“Why won’t you give me a straight answer? Could it be—”

“It’s not because I have ulterior motives. I’m simply considering what would be most helpful to you.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Who knows? There might be something more on this floor that I haven’t discovered. If I give you advice, the possibility of finding those things will surely disappear. After that, you’ll only act according to my advice.”

Is this like a lion pushing its cub off a cliff [a metaphor for forcing growth through hardship]?

If so, it makes even less sense.

The village chief and I are definitely not in a close relationship like parent and child.

It’s hard to trust his intention to ‘help’ me in the first place.

But….

“Hehe, don’t look at me like that.”

Looking at me, the village chief continued with his characteristic smile.

“Now that things have come to this, aren’t you and I in the same boat? You must have thought about it too. What kind of benefit I can be to you in the future. Isn’t that right?”

“Well… I can’t say I haven’t thought about it.”

“It’s the same for me. If my helper grows, there will be more things I can do as well.”

He sure is good with words.

“So, I’ll think about it a bit more and then tell you. It’s not like I’m leaving right away, am I?”

Listening to his words, which sounded like he was appeasing a sulking child, I just nodded. Even if he said it like that, it was hard to accept, but it didn’t seem like the situation would change even if I insisted more.

It’s better to have a productive conversation during that time.

“Then, what are we going to do now?”

It’s the nth time I’ve asked this question today.

But the content is different from before.

If the previous questions were about the village chief personally and us, this one refers to the entire exploration team.

“Are we going to stay on this island?”

What is the exploration plan going forward?

The village chief answered my question directly.

“I think we’ll probably stay on this island until today. We haven’t officially discovered the dimensional stone yet, have we? First, we need to find that, and then give the mages time to study it.”

“Because Jerome Saintred would have done that?”

“That’s right.”

“Anyway, what’s next?”

“It’s still undecided. However, I’ll try to finish thinking about it and tell you by tomorrow.”

“…Understood.”

That was the end of today’s conversation.

After finishing the one-on-one, I returned to where my companions were, and after spending some time, an order came down through the vice-commander.

They were planning to search the entire village one more time, so each team was ordered to freely roam around and find anything suspicious….

“It’s practically a rest order. Then, let’s find a suitable place to rest.”

Our temporary Team 4, under my command, entered an empty house and started chatting.

But, was that kind of slacking off not good enough?

“We’ll go take a look around. It’s a bit much to just stay here like this….”

“Are you worried about the commander’s eyes?”

“Rather than that, there might really be something hidden that we could miss.”

Müll Armin led the exploration team members out to search with those words, and the same was true for White Hectz, the leader of the Hectz Clan.

“…Maybe if we find something, it could be recognized as a contribution.”

If Armin’s side is focused on the ‘exploration’ itself, these guys seem more interested in the spoils.

Well, it wasn’t my place to interfere either way.

Eventually, when the time is right, news will come that they’ve found the cave with the dimensional stone, and I just need to go there around that time and give a few reactions.

‘But somehow, it’s just us again.’

With the Hectz Clan and Armin’s exploration team leaving, only the members of Clan Anabada were left to chat.

“Ack! D-don’t look at me!”

While looking around, Erwen, who suddenly made eye contact with me, was startled and covered her face.

Jeez, she’s still like this.

As I sighed inwardly, watching Erwen who had already fled to a corner, Bersil approached me.

“Don’t worry. There’s a potion that makes hair grow faster. When we return to the city, I’ll make it right away and bring it to you.”

“Oh, it’s a relief that there’s such a thing.”

“Wow… your taste is really firm.”

“……Huh?”

Why is she suddenly talking about taste?

As I made a puzzled expression, Bersil avoided my gaze.

“I… I thought Tersia looked really good with short hair too….”

I thought so too.

But she acts like that whenever she makes eye contact with me.

It seemed like anything I said now would only sound like a consolation, so I didn’t say anything.

‘Still, we have to stay here for quite a while longer….’

I was worried about the future, but for now, there was no solution, so I cleared my head.

And just as I was about to rest.

“You were here. I’ve been looking for you for a while.”

A man entered the house where we were slacking off.

“Kaislan? What brings you here?”

“I saw Armin’s exploration team wandering around alone, and after talking to them, I heard you were resting here, so I came by for a bit.”

“Good to see you. You shouldn’t just work too hard, you need to rest too.”

“I intend to. Anyway, once this exploration is over, I’ll be saying goodbye to this tedious military life.”

Was it because the antipathy towards the royal family had reached its peak due to the Ice Rock incident?

He was going to be a salary thief; it was something Kaislan would never have done before.

Well, it wasn’t my concern.

Anyway, that unexpected visitor was surprisingly not just Kaislan.

“Um… are you there…?”

Soon, another person cautiously entered the building.

“Sven Parav? What brings you here?”

“I met the Hectz Clan while passing by… If it’s okay, could we talk for a bit? Just the two of us.”

“Of course.”

At the goblin’s request, I went outside the building alone, and we went into a nearby empty house to talk.

He seemed to have a lot of questions for me.

“So… what happened?”

A comprehensive question with no subject.

Well, from his perspective, he must be wondering what’s going on.

Our guys at least got an explanation, but he didn’t get any of that.

I summarized the situation simply.

“It’s hard to explain in detail, but it ended well.”

“Huh?”

“It means that the scene of the oracle you received was safely avoided.”

“Ah… then that’s a relief, but….”

He clearly looked curious about the details I had omitted, but he swallowed his questions.

Seeing this, he’s quite socially adept.

I then patted him on the shoulder as if to encourage him.

“Sven Parav. Now that I think about it, I couldn’t say it before, but thank you.”

“Huh?”

“I can’t go into detail because of circumstances, but in the end, I don’t know what would have happened if it weren’t for you.”

“Ah….”

“I look forward to working with you in the future. If anything goes wrong, tell me right away. I’ll do everything I can to help.”

He looked dazed for a moment, as if my words of gratitude were unexpected. Then, he seemed to come to his senses and left, saying it was nothing.

Does the archbishop make a fuss if he’s away for too long?

“You’ve been through a lot too. Go on. See you later.”

After finishing the conversation and returning to the building, Ainar ran up to me, shouting.

“Bjorn!!”

Hmm, this tone of voice is the one he uses when he has something to brag about?

After quickly scanning the surroundings, one change immediately caught my eye.

I don’t know why, but….

“Raven?”

Raven was here.

And….

“Forget about Aruru! Look over there! Look at that!”

Erwen was wearing a dark, iron helmet.

“…What is that?”

I asked, looking at Raven instead of Ainar, and Raven sighed deeply and explained the situation.

“It seems that Pnelin came up with a plan because Tersia looked depressed.”

Yeah, looking at his proud smile, I figured as much.

“Hahaha! Isn’t it a truly genius idea? If you wear this, you can hide that embarrassing short hair. No, do you know that’s not all? You can even protect your head safely while wearing this!”

Ainar proudly spoke, presenting his barbarian-style solution.

“Okay, if you’ve seen it, try to stop him?”

Raven whispered quietly, urging me.

However, I postponed my answer and first made eye contact with Erwen.

“That old man… h-how is it…?”

Surprisingly, Erwen, wearing the iron helmet, no longer avoided my gaze.

I was worried that her hair might bother her during battle and restrict her movements, but that worry was solved with just one helmet.

“…It’s not bad?”

Of course, putting an iron helmet on her delicate outfit, which was both practical and fashionable as an explorer, felt a bit unbalanced.

But, so what?

“You used your head a bit, Ainar.”

“Hehe, it wasn’t easy. But, Erwen is my friend!”

The problem was solved.

***

“Are you really going to let Tersia walk around like that? She’s going to be a laughingstock for sure? Mr. Raines? Shouldn’t you say something—”

“Leave her alone. What can we do if she says she’s okay with it?”

“Tersia! Are you really okay with that?”

“Yes? Yes… it does seem to reduce the embarrassment a bit when I wear this….”

With Raven gaping in disbelief, this topic came to an end.

Erwen would be wearing the iron helmet from now on.

“Good heavens…! How did it get to this point?”

What’s with him?

“Okay, Raven, what brings you here?”

“Ah, that? I was just wondering what Yandel was up to.”

“Huh?”

“It was a free search order, right? I thought Yandel might find something….”

Ah, in short, he came to freeload.

If he’s nearby when something is discovered, he can be the first to study it.

“Then, that’s too bad. As you can see, we decided to just rest.”

“…I guess so. I didn’t expect this.”

After talking with Raven for a while, Amelia joined in.

“By the way, Yandel, is the conversation over?”

“It went well, and Sven Parav has returned.”

“I see… Then, could you spare me some time too?”

For some reason, a lot of people are calling me today.

“Excuse me for a moment. It might take a while, so Raven, just play around and go back on your own.”

“Do I look that free to you? It’s okay. I was about to leave anyway.”

“Really? See you later.”

After seeing Raven off, I went outside with Amelia.

Honestly, I was a bit curious.

What business did she have to call me for?

The answer was soon revealed.

“I was going to just ignore it, but seeing you sulking alone in the corner, I couldn’t bear to watch.”

Ah….

So, this is what’s coming.

“What happened with Misha Kalstein yesterday?”

There was no reason not to tell the truth.

The White Tiger, the Stone of Rebirth, the two-and-a-half-year gap, and the crack of distrust that had formed there, etc.

But for some reason, those words wouldn’t come out of my mouth.

So, I just answered like this.

“Nothing happened.”

A lie that even a three-year-old wouldn’t believe.

But Amelia just nodded quietly after hearing those words.

“Okay, I see.”

“…….”

“If you want to talk about it later, tell me. I’ll be waiting.”

She’s talking to me like I’m a child.

I chuckled and replied.

“Okay.”

But for some reason, I felt a bit better.

***

The duration of our stay on the village chief’s island unexpectedly became longer.

The reason was simple.

Originally, we were planning to head to the next destination right after discovering the dimensional stone, but….

“The flow of magic emanating from the dimensional stone shows a similar pattern to the bidirectional transmission device that was recently published in a paper!”

“With this… maybe we can forcibly activate the stone!”

The mages who were studying the dimensional stone had discovered something unique, and they were spouting incomprehensible words, begging us to stay on this island longer.

And….

“I’ll give you ten days. Make sure you accomplish it by then.”

The village chief accepted their request.

Well, from the village chief’s perspective, it was inevitable.

Jerome Saintred would have made the same decision at this time.

Of course, there was also a glimmer of hope.

If the mages really succeeded in activating the stone, we could return to the city right away.

‘In the first place… the village chief isn’t interested in exploration.’

Since the village chief is planning to return after just ‘adapting,’ it doesn’t make much difference whether he stays in the village or explores outside….

One day, two days, three days….

Time passed endlessly like that.

The mages spent all day in front of the dimensional stone, trying all sorts of things, and the rest of us rested in the village or went up to the island to kill monsters and pass the time.

And how much longer did those days continue?

「The character’s soul resonates and is drawn to a specific world.」

The day the community opened had arrived.

The only space for communication with the outside world, and to meet that bastard Baekho.

‘I can finally confront him.’

As it was a time I had been secretly waiting for, I turned on the computer and moved the mouse as soon as I woke up in my room.

Click, click.

But, what is this?

As soon as I opened the community, a pop-up window that filled more than half of the screen appeared.

[We would like to inform all players using Ghost Busters.]

“…An announcement?”

They’ve never posted it like a bulletin board before.

Did something happen outside?

I quickly read down to the bottom and froze like a stone.

[Hello, this is the GM.]

The announcement, which began with such a common phrase, contained information about when this community started, what its purpose was, and how much effort the management team had put into maintaining this community.

Gamers who had played minor games couldn’t help but feel uneasy about the content.

Because whenever this kind of content is posted, the conclusion is always the same.

‘Damn it.’

I hoped it wasn’t, but….

There was no need to see more.

[We deeply thank all of you who have used Ghost Busters so far, and we sincerely apologize for this announcement.]

[Due to the personal circumstances of the management team, the service for Ghost Busters will be terminated today.]

[Inquiries regarding refunds for GP purchased with cash can be made in the newly created refund inquiry tab….]

The server crashed.