Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 62

“Let’s move.”

I hurriedly got up from my spot.

After all the hard work and struggle of hunting a carnivoro in five minutes, there was little time to rest.

“So, are you feeling better now?”

“A little rest did me good. Thank you. But how long have I slept?”

“About three hours.”

That was a blatant lie.

In reality, even if I stretched it, it wouldn’t have been more than an hour.

But still…

“That long? How strange…”

A classic case of placebo.

Believing it was true was probably better for her mental and physical health.

Well, now the problem was me.

“Bjorn, you don’t look so good.”

Misha had woken from her nap and was no longer lagging behind as we moved.

Instead, it was my pace that had slowed down.

Which was to be expected.

High natural regeneration doesn’t mean fatigue just disappears.

“How about I carry you so you can sleep?”

No, that’s… I mean, it’s a nice offer, but…

That’s just absurd.

“I’m fine, I can manage.”

Though it was tough.

I could fall asleep in a second if I just stretched out and closed my eyes.

But…

“We need to move faster.”

There was no other choice.

After coldly assessing my current condition, I concluded that I could push through for only a few more hours. After that, regardless of my willpower, my body wouldn’t hold up.

So…

“We’re speeding up?”

“Yes, it’s the only way.”

We had to find a safe zone while my strength lasted.

These zones, randomly appearing in the Witch’s Forest at intervals and lasting for eight hours, neutralized field effects and were free from monsters.

In short, a place where we could safely rest.

“But what if we can’t find one?”

Well, then the situation would worsen.

But considering the last time we found a safe zone was two days ago, it seemed likely we’d encounter another soon.

‘I may not be lucky, but she seems to be…’

Just like the last time we found a safe zone. We had stopped briefly because she complained of sore legs, and right next to us, a safe zone appeared.

“Misha, you lead the way now.”

“Me, lead?”

“Just go wherever you feel like. It’s not like we have a proper way to search, anyway.”

I’m not superstitious, but just in case, I let Misha take the lead. We quickly moved on, taking down only the monsters we encountered along the way.

After a while…

“Uh, Bjorn! Look over there! Isn’t that it?”

“…It seems so.”

Is this what they call fate?

Surprisingly, in less than 30 minutes, we found a peculiar tree.

It looked similar to the others, but its bark emitted a faint purple glow.

A signpost to the safe zone.

“Well done, Misha.”

“Nyah! You can praise me more!”

What’s she on about now?

I casually ruffled her hair as a gesture of praise and approached the tree.

Then, Misha and I both placed our hands on its bark.

「Your character has entered the Witch’s Hut.」

The moment our hands touched the tree.

Purple mist wrapped around us.

Soon, a warm breeze reminiscent of spring blew, dispersing the mist.

Whoosh!

And when the mist cleared.

The gloomy, ominous scenery of the forest was nowhere to be seen.

The ground was a meadow full of blooming wildflowers.

The previously barren and vine-wrapped thorn trees were now lush with leaves.

“Bjorn! Look at these flowers! Aren’t they pretty?”

Yeah, sure.

But I had seen them last time too…

“Stop dawdling and let’s get inside to rest.”

“Hmph, talk about a romantic barbarian!”

Romance? That’s something to seek when you’re comfortable, not when you’re starving.

Creak.

Leaving an overly spirited Misha behind, I opened the door to the central cabin.

A bookshelf, a dining table, a carpet, a fireplace.

Despite its name, the interior of the Witch’s Hut was quite ordinary.

Just a normal hut that anyone could imagine.

‘If Raven or Dwalki were here, they would have liked it.’

Mages love these unique spaces.

There were books on the shelf, they would have checked those first.

But I am a Barbarian.

And an extremely tired one at that.

Thud-

So, I headed straight to the bed and collapsed onto it.

Then, burying my face in the pillow, I mumbled.

“This time, you sleep on the chair.”

“Ah, okay! You must be tired, so rest well.”

At my limit physically, I sent Misha to sleep in the rocking chair I used last time.

Tadadadat, tadat.

As I closed my eyes, I heard the sound of wood burning in the stove. Misha must have settled herself in a chair by now, as I could hear its steady creaking.

Creak, creak.

“…Sleep well, Bjorn.”

My consciousness gradually drifted away.

***

Was it because I was so exhausted?

For the first time in a while, I had a dream.

I was at the office, just like any other day, busy with administrative work. After finishing, my ex-girlfriend came to meet me… wearing black stockings.

Anyway, we went to my place and ordered chicken to eat together, each of us busy with our own things afterward.

I played video games.

And she quietly read a book in a corner.

A comfortable silence ensued.

When it was time to sleep, we naturally embraced each other and fell asleep.

That was all there was to the dream.

As soon as I realized it was all a dream, I was abruptly brought back to reality.

The small hut I had stumbled upon while wandering the Witch’s Forest.

The old bed inside it.

The giant body of a barbarian sprawled across it.

Waking up from a deep sleep, I had to lead this monstrous body to fight real monsters for survival—

This was my reality.

‘…Let’s do what needs to be done.’

I didn’t think I could sleep any longer, so I turned my head to look at the fireplace.

The once-blazing firewood had lost its strength and was nearly extinguished.

Meaning, the hut would close soon.

I also checked the time to see how long I’d slept.

‘Nearly seven hours, huh.’

It was somewhat surprising.

I woke up at just the right time without an alarm.

“…….”

Forcing my drowsy eyes open, I stared at the ceiling.

As I slowly came to my senses, I felt a sharp headache in the back of my head.

It was as if my brain was whining for more sleep.

But giving in to such weakness would lead nowhere, so I sat up.

For some reason…

‘When did she climb up here?’

Misha was stretched out on top of me, using my waist as a pillow, sound asleep and even drooling a little.

She seemed quite comfortable, her breathing steady and even.

‘Was the chair too uncomfortable?’

I gently moved Misha’s head aside and got out of bed.

It would probably help her adjust her condition if I woke her up now, but I decided to let her sleep a bit longer.

Dududuk, tuduk-

I stretched, loosening my stiff body.

Then, I stepped outside the hut to bask in the sunlight.

Honestly, it was quite refreshing.

‘…Is that why Misha liked the flowers so much?

Thinking about it, I could somewhat understand Misha’s sentiments, but I still found it hard to relate.

It’s not wrong, just a matter of preference.

The sun makes you feel like you’re synthesizing vitamin D, but flowers have nothing to hypnotize you.

The placebo effect is less effective.

Anyway, it’s time to wake her up.

“Misha, wake up.”

“Mmm, five more minutes…”

“Come on, wake up. We’ll need to leave soon.”

“Just until then…”

What is she on about?

Seeing her logic impaired by sleep, I picked her up by the waist and shook her.

“Aaack! Aaack! Okay, okay! I’m up! Stop shaking me!!”

“There you go.”

“Stupid barbarian!”

She should have woken up when I first called her.

Smirking at Misha, I handed her a water bottle.

She seemed more grumpy than genuinely angry.

“…Ah, thanks.”

Now that she seemed more awake, Misha and I sat down and started munching on bread and jerky.

The taste wasn’t great right after waking up…

But once we left, there wouldn’t be time to eat comfortably.

“If you’re done eating, warm up your body. We don’t have much time left.”

“Got it.”

Misha then started doing exercises resembling a national fitness routine, slowly awakening her bodily senses.

Maybe it’s because she’s an agility-based character, but her flexibility was astonishing.

“Bjorn…”

While I was organizing our backpacks during my spare time, Misha, still stretching, started a conversation.

“What is it?”

“About Hikurod, Dwalki, and Rotmiller… you know…”

“Just say it straight out.”

“What do you think happened to them? They’re still alive, right?”

Ah, so that’s the question. I figured it would come up sooner or later.

Once people start feeling better, their minds wander to other concerns.

I answered without hesitation.

“I don’t know.”

“But you could at least make a guess, right?”

Her ‘guess’ sounded more like a hope. T

I firmly cut off the conversation before it got too long.

“Whatever I guess, it won’t change anything.”

Whether they are dead or alive doesn’t matter.

Even if they were in trouble, what could we do, stranded in the Witch’s Forest? Our focus must be on survival.

After all, we’ll naturally find out the results once we return to the city.

“So, if you’re done warming up, check your equipment again.”

That’s all we could do for now.

Tadat-

The last flames of the burning wood died out.

「The Witch’s Hut has closed.」

「Your character is moving to the Witch’s Forest.」

It’s time to leave.

「Status ailment [Witch’s Eye] has been upgraded to level 6.」
「Status ailment [Witch’s Eye] has been upgraded to level 7.」
「Status ailment [Witch’s Eye] has been promoted to level 8.」
「Status ailment [Witch’s Eye] is promoted to level 9…」

Day 11 in the labyrinth.

In other words, it’s been 8 days since we were stranded in the Witch’s Forest.

“Status Ailment [Witch’s Eye] has been upgraded to Stage 10.”

Now, there’s really no time to catch our breath.

We must keep moving.

With [Witch’s Eye] at its maximum level.

Staying in one place for even three minutes meant a Carnivoro could appear.

‘At least, the silver lining is… things can’t get any worse from here.’

Assuming no other variables come into play.

Of course, there’s a chance for positive variables too.

Like essence, essence, or more essence…

‘Damn.’

Wandering the Witch’s Forest, we had to hunt many monsters regardless of our wishes.

But no essences dropped.

It was a significant disappointment.

Any essence would boost our combat power, even slightly…

Some essences could even completely turn our situation around by 180 degrees.

Like this one, for instance.

“Bjorn! There’s a Witch’s Lamp over there!”

“Hurry up and catch it, let’s move on.”

A 9th-grade spectral monster, Witch’s Lamp.

It looked just like a will-o’-the-wisp.

Its combat power was pitiful; easily defeatable with elemental damage.

Its active skills were practically trash.

In any place other than the Witch’s Forest.
「Witch’s Lamp casts [Witch’s Beacon].」

The summoning skill [Witch’s Beacon].

Surprisingly, the summoned entity was the ‘Witch’s Lamp’ itself.

Yes, this creature summons itself.

Meaning, if you obtain its essence, you can summon and command a Witch’s Lamp.

“Come on, essence!”

Misha, chanting her spell, swiftly eliminated the Witch’s Lamps, which had multiplied from three to six.

However, as expected, there was no essence dropped.

Sigh, if only I could get this guy’s essence, I could use it as a guide to get out of here right away…

‘Do we really have to hold out until the last day?’

Realistically, that’s the most likely scenario.

The third floor of the labyrinth closes on the 15th day.

Just four more days, and we can return to the city.

The problem is, I’m not even confident we can make it through these days.

“Misha, how’s your stamina?”

“Uh, it’s tough, but I’m okay since we rested a bit ago.”

Last night, we were lucky to find another hut for a brief rest.

It was a respite after nearly 50 hours.

In other words, we had been moving non-stop without proper sleep or food until then.

‘And we only managed to rest for 4 hours because we found it late.’

Finding a hut is purely luck-based.

So, it’s possible we might not find any more huts in the remaining four days.

That’s why we’re so eager to hunt every Witch’s Lamp we see.

It’s better to try everything possible—

“Bjorn.”

Misha, leading the way, stopped in her tracks.

I halted my thoughts and checked ahead.

“Adventurers.”

For the first time since being stranded, we encountered beings other than monsters.

Yet, it was still unclear.

“A barbarian and a beast human? Are you two alone?”

I wondered if this would be a positive or a negative variable.

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