Surviving the Game As a Barbarian [EN]: Chapter 680

Whoosh-!

The ship slowly cuts through the starlit waves.

“Looks like the aggro’s all cleared, huh? The monsters aren’t spawning anymore.”

“Baekho, what’s ‘aggro’?”

“Ah, how many times do I have to explain it for you to remember?”

“……”

The ship was peaceful, as if there had never been an emergency.

“I’m glad you’re safe, Baron.”

“Yes, I’m glad you’re safe too.”

Just as I was about to chat with the GM [Game Master], who had finished recharging their MP [Magic Points] and belatedly greeted me, Rex Aureus burst in with a loud laugh.

“Hahaha! I knew I’d be perfectly fine! There’s no way the immortal giant would die in a place like this!”

“Immortal giant… what are you talking about?”

“Ah! That’s a new nickname I just made up! Isn’t it cool? It suits me perfectly!”

“He’s spouting nonsense again. Why are you taking him seriously? Just ignore him.”

The GM, taking Lee Baekho’s advice, awkwardly nodded, and Rex Aureus hung his head like a wounded puppy.

Of course, that didn’t last long.

“Oh my! Why did I join a team like this! There’s no place that treats warriors worse than this!”

As if hanging his head was just to gather momentum, Aureus became noisy again.

Used to this, the archer, who had been quietly guarding the surroundings by the railing, changed the subject.

“By the way, there are two of them this time.”

There was no need to ask who ‘two’ meant.

Priestess Jaina and the Old Man of Destruction.

Two people who had fallen asleep due to the field effect.

“Baekho, are we going to continue the search like this?”

“Well… I don’t know? Ask the Baron over there. He’s our new leader, full of individuality and freedom.”

“Leaders… what does that mean?”

“Ah, never mind, just ask the Baron.”

“……Looking at it, Baekho seems to talk nonsense more often than Aureus.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“…Nothing.”

The archer, who had been grumbling at Lee Baekho’s nonsense, quickly changed his attitude and approached me.

“So, what are you going to do, Baron? Are you planning to continue searching Dream Lake as planned?”

Well, I don’t know……

Actually, it’s a problem I’ve been thinking about.

Okay, I’ve decided.

“Let’s postpone Dream Lake for later, and search Dragon Bone Mountain first.”

“Dragon Bone Mountain, you say……”

The archer, after listening to my words, seemed to think for a moment before nodding.

“That’s not a bad choice. It just so happens that the ship is already near Dragon Bone Mountain.”

“Besides, Dryzen has already appeared near the waterfall, making a proper search difficult. It’s my judgment that it’s more reasonable to search Dragon Bone Mountain first, and then come back here when the situation calms down.”

I glanced at Lee Baekho, signaling him to speak up if he had any complaints about this plan, but Lee Baekho just shrugged as if to say, ‘Do whatever you want.’

‘Tch, trying to act cool.’

He would have opposed it first if he had any other ideas.

Anyway, once the destination was decided, everything went smoothly.

The ship continued to sail towards Dragon Bone Mountain.

Since it wasn’t going very fast, no monsters appeared.

But……

“……Huh?”

There were moments when I felt a sense of unease.

“Everyone except you has fallen asleep.”

It happened that everyone except the Old Man of Destruction and I fell asleep due to the field effect……

‘What’s the probability?’

The probability of more than half of the people falling asleep at Dream Waterfall was very low, so I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Could it be… a sign of bad luck?

I even steered the ship while diligently guarding all sides for a while.

“……”

Ah, this is so awkward.

“……”

The silence was so uncomfortable that I wished a monster would appear.

In the end, I spoke first.

“Hey.”

As I called out abruptly, the Old Man of Destruction, who was standing in front of the railing, turned to look at me.

If he heard me, he should at least answer instead of just staring, but……

If he were the kind of old man who knew that, such a thing wouldn’t have happened.

I decided to just ask what I was curious about on this occasion.

“What exactly is fate?”

“That’s a very broad question.”

“Before, when you saw Erwen, you said she had more fate than me. I’m curious what that means.”

“Though she has almost lost her light now, staying by your side.”

“No, I mean, what exactly is fate?”

When I asked again, the Old Man of Destruction shifted his gaze to the starlit waves flowing below the railing.

“There are many kinds of power in the world. Magic, divine power, mana. Not only those that are generally known, but also emotions like anger and love can be classified as ‘resources’ in that they become the source of power.”

“…So?”

“Fate is a quality that is difficult to define, but I think fate is also one of those powers. Especially in that it wears out the more you use it.”

“Wears out the more you use it?”

The Old Man of Destruction nodded at my question.

“Fate is not infinite. Ordinary people only have about three or four, and even those can decrease depending on their choices.”

Hmm… I was listening quietly, wondering what it was, but it felt like I was at a cult seminar.

“Wait a minute, I think the story is going off on a tangent.”

“But wasn’t it you who asked what fate is?”

“I was just curious about what you said to Erwen.”

When I brought the topic back on track, the Old Man of Destruction also gave me an answer to what I was curious about.

“Erwen Fornacci di Tersia, you mean……”

“Yes, what did you mean by what you said to her?”

“It’s exactly as I said. She had the most fate after you that day, so I tried to eliminate her as much as possible.”

“But you failed.”

“Yes, and the fairy I couldn’t kill that day has now grown into a powerful being called the Blood Spirit Lord.”

“Is that all because of the power of fate?”

“That’s right. Ordinary people are not given that much fate. Whether to become a chef or a scholar. The fate of ordinary people is just that. They can never become a king or someone who will leave their name in history.”

Having said that, the Old Man of Destruction took his eyes off the railing and looked at me.

“Unlike you.”

“……?”

“With the amount of fate you have, you can do and become anything. Even becoming the king of this city is not impossible for you.”

“……”

“Of course, that’s assuming that it’s possible to coexist with that fate that strongly attracts you.”

“That fate?”

When I asked, tilting my head, the Old Man of Destruction burst into a hearty laugh.

“Heh heh, don’t you know? You are destined to open the gate of the abyss someday. No matter how great your fate is, you cannot change the ‘record’. Well, you know that better than anyone, since you’ve experienced it yourself.”

Experienced it myself, huh……

It seemed that the Old Man of Destruction also knew about my story of going to the era 20 years ago.

‘Well, I’ve been almost inseparable from Lee Baekho for the past few years.’

A gap was created during the conversation.

Taking advantage of that gap, I quickly scanned the surroundings.

Everyone, including Lee Baekho, was sound asleep and showed no signs of waking up yet.

Therefore……

“Belbebe Ruinjenes.”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve heard my full name.”

“What exactly are you plotting with Lee Baekho?”

To be honest, even while asking the question, I didn’t really think I would get an answer.

But……

“I don’t really have any plots?”

“No plots? Don’t tell me you don’t know that you’re trying to use me from behind?”

“Hmm… I don’t know what Lee Baekho’s intentions are, but at least I’m not thinking of any schemes to use you. I’m with Lee Baekho because our goals align in other areas.”

“Then… what is that aligned goal?”

Even though I asked in a subtle, probing tone, the Old Man of Destruction answered coolly, as if there was nothing to hide.

“It’s to return to the original world without opening the gate of the abyss. Lee Baekho calls it Plan B.”

“Ah……”

If it’s Plan B, Lee Baekho mentioned it before.

But listening to the story, it really seems like the Old Man of Destruction is not interested in me and is only focused on Plan B……

“Returning without the gate of the abyss… is that really possible?”

To my cautious question, the Old Man of Destruction answered immediately without any hesitation.

“It’s possible. Theoretically.”

“Theoretically?”

“There’s still a lot to prepare, so I haven’t tried it yet. And that’s why I’m with Lee Baekho, for that preparation.”

“…I see.”

“Anyway, I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but I’m really not interested in any schemes targeting you. Unless my method fails.”

“Still, you’re with Lee Baekho, so don’t you know something?”

“Well, Lee Baekho might have something in mind, but I haven’t asked him separately. It’s not my business. Even if he asks for help, I won’t help him.”

“Unless it benefits your goal?”

“Exactly.”

He could have said no, even as a formality, but the fact that the Old Man of Destruction immediately agreed made me trust him more.

Should I say he really doesn’t seem interested in me?

“……”

Just like push and pull is important in a relationship.

Watching him look down at the railing again and fall into thought, I became curious about him.

‘Come to think of it… this old man was also an ‘evil spirit’.’

To be precise, he’s an evil spirit from our previous generation.

They were from a different world than Earth and were summoned here through a different method than the game.

Well, since the generations are different, I’ve hardly ever had direct contact with them.

“Ruinjenes, what was the world you lived in like?”

“The world I lived in……”

The Old Man of Destruction, looking into the distance as if pondering the question, gave an unexpected answer.

“I don’t remember. I was very young when I was summoned to this world.”

“…What?”

“I found a book in a dark cave, and I read that book every day. Now, the only scenes I remember properly are those scenes.”

Could that be why he had the appearance of a child when I saw him in the community 20 years ago?

I don’t know, but the old man’s words continued.

“When I opened my eyes, I was in an adult’s body, and I started surviving based on the knowledge in that book. And now I’ve come to this.”

It was a type of possession I had never seen before.

Most people, whether old or young, enter a 20-year-old body and become younger, but he was completely the opposite.

While the Old Man of Destruction’s story sounded fascinating, this question also arose.

“But why are you so obsessed with going back?”

If his memories of the previous world are hazy, then his longing for that world would be less.

But even so, why is he trying to go back?

To my question, asked out of pure curiosity, the Old Man of Destruction chuckled.

“Let me ask you the opposite. Why don’t you want to go back?”

Well, that’s because……

“…Because I like this world more?”

Many reasons may have been omitted, but this is the essence.

I no longer consider this world, which I once considered so barbaric, to be barbaric.

No, I’ve even thought about it repeatedly while living in the dream world set in modern times.

How can there be such an unrealistic world—.

“I’m the opposite.”

“Huh?”

“Because I don’t like this world. That’s why I’m trying to go back.”

There was no emotion in the Old Man of Destruction’s voice and eyes as he said that.

What kind of story did this old man have?

It was a very curious moment, but unfortunately, today’s conversation ended here.

“Ugh……”

“It seems like they’re starting to wake up one by one.”

Tch, I felt like I could have heard more if I had pushed a little harder.

“I’ll go check on Briat, so you watch Lee Baekho.”

What timing.