Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 321

Role (1)

Jerome Saintred, Commander of the First Royal Knights.

A young knight in his mid-twenties who ascended to his position after the previous commander was murdered by a blood knight.

‘If I hadn’t heard about the ancient shelter in advance, our plan could have been derailed.’

He brushed his short silver hair back from his forehead and descended the dark stairs.

Thud, thud.

The reason he was in the underground of the Noark lord’s castle, rather than on the battlefield, was simple.

The proposal to help the lord eliminate threats in exchange for leniency towards the city was just a pretext to bring their forces here

The Fragment of Records.

According to the lord’s confidant, it was likely kept in the form of a necklace.

Of course, Jerome didn’t know much about the item. However, since he had received the order, he intended to obtain it and return to the royal family.

Thud.

Jerome suddenly halted his steps while descending.

He had found a corpse sprawled on the stairs.

The cause of death seemed to be a blow to the back of the head with a blunt weapon. The body had been stripped of its equipment, almost naked.

As for the time of death…

‘No more than 30 minutes ago.’

Jerome’s expression hardened as he touched the wound.

Someone had been here first. Their target was probably the Lord, hiding in the shelter.

If so, was the intruder still down there?

Tap, tap.

Jerome quickly descended the stairs.

Before long, a widened passage and an open stone door came into view. But beyond it, all that awaited him was the corpse of a middle-aged man, grossly overweight.

This body, too, bore signs of being crushed by a blunt weapon.

‘Whoever it was, I’m too late.’

Jerome bit his lip in frustration as he swiftly inspected the scene.

The most crucial item, the Fragment of Records, was missing. 

Judging by the marks around the neck, it seemed to have been forcibly taken.

‘Never thought I’d have competition.’

After only a brief moment of shock at this unexpected turn, Jerome turned and swiftly retraced his steps.

It wasn’t too late to give chase.

‘In 30 minutes, they couldn’t have gone far.’

He had to find the intruder.

***

Auril Gavis once said:

“The timeline once observed doesn’t change.”

Indeed, as he said, it might be impossible to change the future entirely.

But what if there was an error in the observation itself?

For instance, what if I could convince young Amelia that her sister had died? And then keep her rescued sister hidden for 20 years?

Wouldn’t it be possible to save her then?

The thought sent chills through me, but soon I faced a significant obstacle.

[That day, my sister died holding me in her arms.]

Amelia had witnessed her sister’s death up close.

Just as Dwalki had in the Larkaz Maze, she had seen the final spark extinguish.

How could I possibly deceive her about that?

I had no idea.

Convincing Amelia, who has killed countless people since she was a child, that her sister is alive will not be easy…

‘Well, somehow, I’ll manage.’

It feels as though I’ve returned to square one, but it’s not as daunting as before.

After all, didn’t the lord say on his deathbed that once I completed all my tasks, the Fragment of Records would activate on its own? This means I still have things left to do here.

So, what is my remaining ‘role’?

It’s all too obvious.

Therefore…

Bang-!

I burst through the door of the alchemist’s workshop after running for some time.

Perhaps the door had been unlocked, but…

So what?

Probability is just a number. So, I decided to live each moment to the fullest—

“Ugh, aaah!”

Huh?

“What the…?”

As I shattered the door and entered, an old man in one corner of the workshop recoiled in terror.

He wasn’t Marfa Ifaello, the owner of the workshop.

“Who are you?”

“Well, um…”

When I asked, the old man started darting his eyes around.

He looked suspicious…

‘Huh?’

As I examined the old man’s attire, I noticed a peculiar brooch pinned to his robe.

“Are you an alchemist?”

The old man flinched at my question.

No need to hear his answer.

Step.

I took a step forward, cautiously scanning the area, thinking there might be guards hidden somewhere.

The old man began stammering in defense as he backed away.

“M-Misunderstanding! It’s a misunderstanding! I wasn’t trying to steal anything…”

“I see.”

No wonder he seemed startled, like someone caught red-handed.

So, he was here to steal something amidst the chaos.

“If you keep this secret, I’ll make sure—”

There was no need for a long conversation.

Judging by the situation, it seemed he had left his guards behind to pull off the theft.

Thud!

Being non-combatant, the alchemist couldn’t do anything before I dashed forward and struck him on the head with a hammer.

“Wow, a subspace ring too?”

With little time to spare, I quickly looted the alchemist’s subspace ring and searched the workshop. I soon found what I was looking for.

Lethe’s Blessing Prototype.

A consumable with the insane effect of erasing all of one’s memories.

‘Alright, the first item is secured…’

Now it’s time to meet Amelia.

There are no phones in this world, and we hadn’t set a specific meeting place or time, but that wasn’t a problem.

It’s been six hours since I fell asleep, so she’s probably by now…

‘Being chased by now.’

No need to rush—

“I’ve found you.”

Hearing a voice from the entrance, I quickly turned around to see a silver-haired knight.

“Hand over the Fragment of Records.”

Who the hell is this guy now?

***

The Traitor, Ricardo Lühensprache.

Once known by the alias “Swordmaster.”

Anyone who had witnessed or faced him in battle would unanimously say the same.

His swordsmanship was different from that of an ordinary knight.

Whooong-!

The aura flickering at the tip of his sword.

Nothing special in itself.

The aura, minimized to conserve energy, exuded a sharp presence, but that was all.’

It didn’t display the overwhelming presence of the ‘Knight of Light’s’ aura or the flexibility of the ‘Knight of the Moon’s’ aura that could change forms at will.

It didn’t possess the overwhelming momentum of the Knight of Light’s aura, nor could it change shape freely like the Knight of the Moon’s aura.

Yet, despite that…

Slash-!

This man’s sword was considered superior to theirs.

Not because of the aura, but because of the unique ‘style’ with which he wielded it.

“Aaagh! S-Spare—!”

Among the hundreds of explorers blocking the Eastern region, not a single one could withstand his sword strike.

“If we don’t escape…! Aaagh!”

Those who blocked were cut down.

And if they tried to dodge, they found his sword already there, as if he had anticipated their movements.

To anyone watching, his sword seemed crude.

The elegant techniques knights strive for were nowhere to be seen.

But Amelia couldn’t take her eyes off that sword.

“E-Emily, we need to run…”

Just watching it made her feel a wall.

Killing people.

A swordsmanship refined to its peak by endlessly pursuing that single goal.

“What are you all doing! Hurry up and move!”

As the one-sided slaughter began, Clan Leader Felix Barker gathered his members to flee.

Amelia couldn’t allow that to happen.

After all, the months she spent with them were all for this moment.

“Felix Barker”

“Hm?”

As Felix Barker turned his head to her call, Amelia threw a thin needle into his neck.

“…W-What?”

His body froze like a statue, with his head turned awkwardly.

Amelia threw Felix Barker’s body over her shoulder.

“What the hell are you doing…!”

The clan members, who belatedly realized what was happening, aimed their weapons at Amelia, but it wasn’t a big issue.

“Betrayal!”

It wasn’t betrayal.

She had never considered them allies to begin with.

Slash-!

Amelia beheaded the one who came closest.

And, as expected…

“…”

“…”

The enraged explorers hesitated for a moment, then, after some consideration, started to flee, abandoning their captured clan leader.

“Damn it, I’m out!”

“…Forget it, let’s get out of here!”

It was predictable.

After all, wasn’t the Traitor massacring them and gradually approaching?

There was no reason for them to risk their lives for their clan leader.

Unlike these two.

“…Please let him go.”

The moment her younger self approached and spoke to her.

Whoosh-!

A sudden sound of air being torn behind her.

Amelia twisted her body to avoid it, using the momentum to kick at the wrist of her attacker.

Clang-!

The dropped sword clattered to the ground, and she saw the young girl holding her aching wrist, gritting her teeth in pain.

It was her sister, Laura Rainweilz.

“Amelia, let’s run!”

The moment Laura sensed that things were going south, she grabbed her sister and ran, and Amelia just watched.

She felt a tightness in her chest.

Of course, she knew why her sister and the others stayed to save Felic Barker.

It wasn’t loyalty.

It was because of the curse Felix Barker had placed on Laura.

The Unholy Contract.

A contract filled with countless unfair terms, but its essence was simple. The moment Felix Barker received a fatal injury, he would absorb all of Laura’s life force.

That was why the two had stayed behind to confront her.

Yet, as soon as they failed, they fled without looking back…

‘Because of me.’

It was all because of Amelia herself.

In that brief moment, her sister had accepted her own death and tried to save her younger sister.

Clench.

Amelia found herself unconsciously gritting her teeth.

A mere three-year age difference.

As a child, her sister had seemed larger than life, like an adult, but now Amelia knew better.

She had been only seventeen.

There was no way she hadn’t been exhausted, no way she hadn’t wanted to give up and run away at times.

So…

Tap.

With Felix Barker on her back, Amelia moved forward.

Slash-!

Like a predator among prey, she moved toward the man who was systematically cutting down hundreds of fleeing explorers with mechanical precision.

“…?”

For the first time, the man’s expressionless face showed emotion.

It was curiosity.

Well, she supposed he would find it strange. After all, everyone else was running away, but she was rushing toward him, a grown man slung over her shoulder.

Whooong-!

The aura on Amelia’s dagger turned black.

It was the Power of the Abyss, a conversion-type ability she gained after obtaining the essence of the level 4 monster Grevanich.

While this ability was active, all resources, including spiritual power and dragon power, were replaced with soul power, effectively doubling their output.

This applied to mana-powered ‘auras’ as well.

For Amelia, who was naturally low on mana, this ability was invaluable.

But…

Fizzle.

As soon as she got within a certain distance, the black aura reverted to its original color.

It was due to the ability of the Traitor Ricardo Lühensprache, known as Silent Reign.

This ability nullified all other abilities within a certain radius.

In other words…

‘It’s over now.’

Inside this zone, even the Unholy Contract became ineffective.

Thud.

Amelia threw Felix Barker to the ground, and Ricardo Lühensprache decapitated him with a single stroke.

Slash-!

With a short slicing sound, the body was split in two.

She had been worried, but there was no sign of the Unholy Contract activating and healing his wounds.

‘One hurdle is cleared…’

Having escaped with her sister at the time, Amelia hadn’t witnessed Felix Barker’s actual death, so she felt a wave of relief.

But there was no time to dwell on it.

Tap.

Having achieved her goal, Amelia quickly retreated.

Then, for the first time, the man who had slaughtered dozens in silence, spoke.

“I don’t know much, but I can tell I’ve been used.”

He seemed to have grasped the situation from the context and was angered by it.

But for some reason, a word the Barbarian had once taught her floated in her mind.

It wasn’t a pleasant-sounding word…

But unfortunately, Raphdonia didn’t have a compressed term like that.

‘What a strange language.’

Amelia unconsciously muttered the word.

“Ki-Kimochi…”

Wasn’t it a word of thanks to someone who helped you?