Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 845

Waves 3

We spent the fourth safe period in the Beasts’ Den on the second floor. Despite the slight stench, it was actually a fairly good place to rest.

Firstly, it was one of the lower floors. The entities there were weak, so a priest’s Destruction of Evil was enough to keep most of the beasts away.

Of course, there were a few monsters that had fallen in from elsewhere because of the dimensional collapse, but those could be handled by keeping watch in shifts.

“…What will you do?”

At Armin’s question, I spent a moment thinking.

There were two options.

I could wander around and search the surrounding area, or I could lie down on the ground and recover my stamina.

It did not take me long to decide.

“…I’ll get some sleep,” I said.

“I see. Understood. Please rest well.”

Yeah.

This time, I would just rest.

I was exhausted, and there was no particular event I wanted to go looking for.

If there was one thing I could hope for, it would be finding more survivors to add to our numbers.

Honestly, if there were any, they would be a huge help. We lost many explorers during the previous wave. If we did not reinforce our numbers somehow, we would keep getting overwhelmed and eventually fall into a death spiral.

No matter how slim the chances of finding other survivors here were, I probably should have gone looking for them.

However…

“Then we’ll send those who still have energy left to scout the area. Please rest, Viscount,

“…I’ll leave it to you.”

It should be fine to entrust it to someone else for a day.

To be honest, the thieves and scouts had not done much until now. This was one job they could actually handle.

“I apologize for disturbing you while you are resting, but we are forming a scouting party. Please step forward when your name is called. Creed Ellen, Anton…”

As the names of the explorers who were guaranteed to still have enough stamina were called out one by one, I settled into my spot and went to sleep.

“Snoooree”

This time, I did not dream at all while I slept.

It felt like I had merely closed my eyes for a moment and opened them again. When I woke up, I could feel people murmuring around me.

What the hell are they talking about?

Six hours of sleep.

Since the safe period lasted at least eight hours, I should still have had around thirty minutes of guaranteed free time. That was why I wanted to go back to sleep, but…

The whispering continued.

Ugh, seriously?

All that murmuring forced me awake.

“Huh? I think… is he awake?”

“Y-you go check on him.”

“…Ahem. Let’s just wait, just in case.”

Once I could make out what they were whispering about, I took it as a sign that I might as well wake up. I sat upright.

“Ack!”

“The viscount is awake!”

“What the hell are you all muttering about?”

Maybe because I had just woken up, my words came out a little sharper than intended. The survivors nearby quickly rushed over and began reporting.

“The search party found other survivors. Mr. Armin is currently recording their identities and abilities.”

“What? You found more? How many?”

“Well… I believe there were more than ten. Please ask Mr. Armin for the details.”

“More than ten!”

The good news washed away my irritation in an instant.

However, there was still one thing I wanted to know.

“Then why didn’t you wake me up immediately? You were whispering right next to me.”

“Ah, because Mr. Armin told us to let you sleep as long as possible…”

“…I see.”

I appreciated the thought, but it had been pointless.

After all, how was I supposed to sleep with them whispering beside me like that?

“And Armin is… Ah, over there.”

After getting to my feet, I spotted Armin standing a little apart from the main group and walked over to him.

“Viscount?”

“Are those the people the search party found?”

“Yes. To summarize, they are survivors from a coalition of three clans that naturally formed during the dimensional collapse. However, they suffered heavy losses during the previous wave. Fourteen people survived in total, and while they were resting, our search party discovered them and made contact. They have now joined us. I’ve recorded each person’s abilities, so if you would like to review the notes…”

What?

That was not brief at all.

I took the document and skimmed through it. From what I could see, they were all fairly capable. They would not be a burden to the group. If anything, they would be able to pull their own weight.

“The reason I kept them separate from the main group was in case you did not approve—”

“I approve.”

The moment I gave my approval, the explorers who had been anxiously watching my conversation with Armin brightened at once.

“Aah! We’re saved!”

“We managed to meet up with Viscount Yandel’s group during the collapse!”

“Truly, the gods must have guided us here…!”

“Praise Viscount Jandel!”

Seeing their intense reaction, I was reminded once again of just how sharp Armin was.

Now I understood.

He had not let me sleep longer simply out of kindness.

He had deliberately dragged this out.

The more desperate they were, the more clearly they understood the debt they owed.

My future authority over them had already risen another level. After all, there was a difference between simple cooperation and salvation.

“Viscount, may I say something?” Armin asked.

“Go on,” I replied.

“Although I have confirmed their identities, I’m concerned that you are accepting them too readily. It is already difficult enough for us to look after ourselves…”

“I know what you’re worried about. However, during a catastrophe like this, we will follow the labyrinth survival method declared by the royal family and the guild. I have a responsibility to take these people in and endure this disaster together.”

“Even so, if these people cause trouble—”

“Stop.”

I cut Armin off and turned to the survivors.

“Do you intend to cause trouble for us?”

“No! Never! If you place your trust in us, we will repay it tenfold!”

“That’s what they say.”

Armin closed his mouth, pretending to be displeased, and our little exchange ended there.

“Then I’ll be counting on you.”

“Yes, Viscount! Thank you for accepting us!”

With that, the fourteen survivors joined the main group and received a basic briefing from Armin—where they needed to stand once the waves began, what strategies and tactics we used, and what they should do whenever those plans were put into action.

Since he was handling the tutorial for the new recruits…

I turned my attention away from them and looked elsewhere.

Toward the place where we had held that false funeral before I went to sleep.

Despite my worries, the area was quiet.

“…They managed to sleep.”

“They only fell asleep a little while ago.”

I had been speaking to myself, but Maize Rayner—the first survivor I had encountered after being separated from the Anabada Clan—answered me.

“Please don’t worry too much about them, Viscount. They are all capable adults,” Rayner said, looking toward the families of the deceased, who had collapsed from exhaustion and fallen asleep at the funeral site.

I had not thought of him as such a cold person.

But after hearing what he said next, I nodded.

“They’re people who have survived until now. Even if you leave them alone, they’ll overcome it on their own. Whether they liked it or not, they must have experienced something like this at least once before.”

Strangely, those words did not sound heartless.

Nor did I think he was speaking lightly because it was someone else’s problem.

Rayner had also lost all of his companions and been left to wander the labyrinth alone.

He had simply accepted it and resigned himself to it.

To the shitty fate that came with being an explorer.

“…Why are you saying that all of a sudden? At this point, you’re the one who should get some sleep,”

“Please excuse me.”

After that, Rainer bowed politely and left. I quietly let out a bitter sigh.

“Haah…”

The breath left my lungs, but I did not feel any lighter. It still felt as though something heavy was pressing down on the back of my neck.

However, that weight only reminded me of what I had to do.

Offering condolences would not bring anyone back to life.

Clench!

What I needed to do was try as hard as I could to keep these people alive and bring them back to the—

“V-Viscount!”

At that moment, one of the explorers standing guard at the edge of the group hurriedly called out to me.

“There’s a group of survivors ahead!”

“What?”

I quickly ran over to the spot he was pointing at.

There, within the still darkness of the labyrinth…

Clack, clack.

Uninvited guests had appeared, accompanied by the ominous sound of metal.

***

When they emerged from the darkness, I could tell immediately that they were not ordinary explorers.

“The Palace Knight Order…?”

“It’s the knights of the palace!”

The royal family’s insignia was visible on the chest of each knight.

Needless to say, their armour was nowhere near as polished and gleaming as it had been when I saw them in the city.

Exposed areas of their skin were covered in blood and flesh, and their armour was dented all over, showing just how fiercely they had fought to survive.

“So even the palace soldiers were dragged into this place…!”

It was not hard to tell that they were in the same situation as us.

Still, during a disaster like this, it was only natural for people to feel relieved at the sight of any kind of government force.

“The gods are watching over us!”

Judging by everyone’s reactions, they were far more relieved to see the newcomers than wary of them.

I was the opposite.

My distrust of the royal family ran deep.

“Stop there.”

At my aggressive tone, the approaching knights came to a stop. The moment they did, I quickly counted their numbers.

“…Viscount Jandel?”

The knight standing at the front tilted his head. Then, after recognizing me, he tried to take another step forward in surprise.

So—

“Didn’t you hear me?”

I stopped him with an even sharper tone. I needed to make it clear who was in charge here.

“There is no need to be wary of us! As you can see, we belong to the Raphdonian Royal Family’s—”

“State your name and affiliation first.”

Just as I was about to continue the security check, a familiar and completely unexpected face appeared between the knights.

“V-Viscount Yandel!”

That irritating face.

A stocky build, with calluses here and there.

And that shiny forehead, courtesy of his bald head.

“Illya Adnus…?”

It was the guild master — the man who had joined the Anabada Clan on this expedition in exchange for the Dragon’s Heart.

“You can relax! These people really are knights of the palace! They even saved me while I was wandering alone!” he exclaimed.

My mind went blank for a moment.

What was going on?

Where was Missha, the person I had been searching for? Why had this old man appeared out of nowhere instead?

“Uh…”

“I-it’s truly wonderful to see you again! Aah! I don’t care about achievements anymore. I just want to return home safely…!”

“What the…? Why are you here? Where are the others?”

“Ah, well… things happened!”

Still reeling from the surprise, I ignored the knights for the moment and focused on piecing together the guild master’s story.

It wasn’t a particularly long one.

Once I had filtered out all his whining and dramatic descriptions of how he had felt at every moment…

“So you tripped, fell away from the group, were rescued by the palace soldiers, and ended up here?”

“You could summarize it that way!”

“Where’s Misha? What happened to her?”

“Ms. Karlstein? Did something happen to her?”

Unfortunately, the guild master could not give me the answer I wanted about Missha.

He knew even less than I did.

“Everyone was safe before I tripped! Ah! Except Ms. Phenline!”

If I reconstructed the timeline, then the guild master had been separated first. After that, something else must have happened that caused Misha to be left behind as well.

Just what happened to the—

“Ahem.”

Right.

I had almost forgotten this guy was still here.

When I reflexively turned my head at the sound of him clearing his throat, the knight met my eyes and seized the chance to speak.

“It is an honor to meet you. I am Saul Endreako, commander of the 4th Company of the 3rd Royal Knights.”

This was rather strange.

I had thought he might be at least somewhat intelligent, since he had remained quiet the entire time I was speaking with the guild master.

“As we were separated from the main force due to an accident during the dimensional collapse, I request your active cooperation in helping us regroup.”

“Is this guy insane? Why should I cooperate with you?”

“Huh? What did you just…”

“Ah.”

I had accidentally said what I was thinking out loud.

But it was not a big deal.

Besides, when you made a mistake, choosing how to correct it mattered most.

So I simply continued saying what I had wanted to say.

“Cooperate? You only have two choices.”

“Two…?”

“Fuck off, or submit.”

Who did this titleless bastard think he was, acting so high and mighty?

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