Surviving game as a barbarian Episode 619

Glorious Return(2)

A proposal to let me leave this place.

After being stuck here on the first basement floor for months, it was the sweetest thing imaginable.

But…

“What’s the price?”

There’s no such thing as a free lunch. The sweeter the offer, the more likely it is to come with dangerous conditions.

This time, though, it’s a bit ambiguous.

[It’s simply that you must never return to this place again.]

The demand was so incomprehensible that I needed more information.

“Never return? What exactly does that mean?”

[Is it not clear enough? I thought my words left no room for misinterpretation.]

No, does this guy not understand conversational flow?

“I’m asking why you’re imposing that condition on me.”

[Isn’t this proposal entirely in your favor? Why does the reason matter?]

“How can you be so sure it’s entirely in my favor?”

As if he needed to load the answer, the director paused before replying.

[I see. You’re wary because you don’t know how my proposal will affect you in the future.]

“Well, I don’t know anything about you.”

[Then, if I tell you about myself, will you accept the offer?]

“That depends on who you are.”

The moment I finished speaking, the Director continued without hesitation.

[Very well, then. I’ll tell you about myself. I was once the head of the Panthelion Laboratory and committed countless atrocities. But in the end, I repented and was forgiven by the witch. After that, I became a completely different person. I became incapable of deceiving others and was always kind and considerate by nature.]

“……”

[I can’t go into detail right now, but the condition that you never return is also for your sake.]

“…Are you messing with me right now?”

I couldn’t hide my disbelief when I spoke, and the Director responded as if he had expected this.

[See? There’s no point in explaining, is there?]

“No, that’s because you had no intention of explaining properly—”

[Even if I told you a more plausible story—]

He cut me off.

[Would you have believed it then?]

I couldn’t respond. His calm tone left me speechless.

And honestly, he had a point.

[The only way to learn the truth from others is to believe them. Therefore, prolonging the conversation is a waste of time.]

“……”

[That’s why I called it a transaction. Does it matter who I am? Just decide whether you accept the offer based on its content. It’s far more efficient, isn’t it?]

“Ugh, this is ridiculous…”

I had so much I wanted to say, but when I tried, I couldn’t find the words.

Still, I forced myself to organize my thoughts and spoke.

“The reason I wanted to know about you was to judge whether I could trust you.”

[Then that’s strange. Didn’t you say earlier that no matter what I say, you wouldn’t believe me?]

“No, what I mean is… nothing in this world is 100%, right? I could at least listen first and then decide—”

[Then decide now. What I told you earlier is all there is to it. What will you do?]

Ugh… I was hoping I could actually have a decent conversation with him.

But I can’t just punch this guy through the screen.

‘Why is he so stubborn?’

Or maybe this is all strategy.

Maybe he’s using a weird persona to derail the conversation and distract me.

[If deciding is difficult, I’ll give you one more piece of information. Whether you believe it is up to you.]

“……”

[Do you want to hear it?]

It felt like a trap, but I couldn’t say no. That’s just how I am.

Besides, I was curious.

The more information I gather, the better I can decide.

“…Fine. Tell me.”

I sighed as I answered, and the director immediately continued.

“If you don’t leave this place within six months, you’ll be in grave danger. That’s when ‘he’ will appear.”

“Who?”

[If you leave before then, there’s no need to know about him. If you don’t leave, it means you’ve rejected my offer, so there’s no reason for me to tell you.]

Ah, seriously, what’s with this guy?

The best way to deal with people like this is to avoid them entirely. And if you do run into them, it’s better for your mental health to knock them out first and then talk.

But, since I can’t do that, I’m going insane here.

“Then at least tell me this. When you say ‘grave danger,’ how serious are we talking?”

[You’ll probably survive. But as for the people by your side…maybe you’ll be able to count them on one hand.]

“So, like five people?”

[That’s my estimate. Give or take.]

Considering that in modern warfare, even a 30% casualty rate is considered total defeat, this was a devastating prediction.

More importantly, I’ve changed a lot since back then.

Back then, saving one person was enough. But now, five fingers aren’t enough to count who I care about.

[So, do you believe what I said?]

“I’m still considering.”

[Then I hope what I said has had a positive influence on your decision.]

“……”

[Still having trouble deciding—]

“Can you be quiet while I think?”

[…]

Finally, he shut up.

***

In a way, the director’s logic made sense.

When making a deal with someone you’ve just met in a new area, who they are isn’t that important.

What they can give you.

And what you have to give in return.

If those two match, the deal is valid.

Of course, it’s easier to trust someone if you know them—but…

‘Judging by the way he talks, he’s never going to tell me more.’

I could refuse his offer to see how he would react.

But I decided to save that as a last resort…

“The method.”

Breaking the long silence, I spoke.

“I don’t care about your backstory. Just tell me how you’re going to help us leave.”

[……Method?]

“How exactly are you going to get us out of here?”

[Ah, you mean that.]

“You don’t have to explain everything, but at least give me the gist. Otherwise, I can’t make a decision.”

[A reasonable request.]

Without hesitation, the director answered.

[At this point, you’ve probably already found the door. So I won’t say more on that. If you accept my offer, I’ll immediately grant you the qualification to open it.]

“Qualification… I’ve heard there might be other ways to get that.”

[That’s not wrong. If someone proves they’re worthy, I’m obligated to grant them the qualification.]

“So I don’t need to make a deal with you, right?”

[In theory, yes. And you likely can prove yourself. However—]

Then he said,

[It would take a very long time. And as I said, time isn’t on your side.]

Somehow, the conversation had come full circle back to the same threat, and I still couldn’t tell whether it was real or just a bluff.

Still, I kept asking.

“But is it okay for you to just hand out qualifications like that? I thought it had to be earned.”

[It’s my authority to grant them. And I’m obligated to do so for anyone who proves themselves. No contradiction.]

Feels like twisted logic, but I had no grounds to argue.

[Now, do you have enough to decide?]

“One last question.”

[Go ahead.]

I hesitated for a second, then asked,

“Don’t you worry?”

[About what? You’re missing a subject.]

“…That I might break the promise. I mean, not that I will. I take promises seriously—as seriously as any barbarian does. You can trust me. Really.”

I added that last part just in case he misunderstood, but it was pointless—the director didn’t seem to care at all.

Instead, he said:

[Ah, I didn’t mention this, did I?]

“…Mention what?”

[The moment you make the promise and receive the qualification, you’ll never be able to return here. Not metaphorically, literally. Of course, I can’t force you if you don’t make the promise.]

That was unexpected.

‘Ah… so that’s why.’

Honestly, I wondered what gave him the confidence to make a deal with me based on a promise.

Maybe the promise was just an excuse, and the real goal was simply granting me the qualification itself?

‘Now my head hurts even more.’

Honestly, everything about this situation is sudden.

I came here to stop the belt, but suddenly this weirdo appears on the screen, spouting nonsense and making an offer…

I need time to sort through my thoughts.

I don’t even know how much of this I should believe.

“Can I take a few days to think about it?”

[Of course. I’ll always be here.]

Surprisingly, the Director was cool with it, and the deal was put on hold.

With that, I prepared to leave the control room.

[Oh, and one more thing.]

As if he had more to say, the light on the screen flickered like a smirk.

[Even if you accept my offer, I don’t recommend leaving immediately.]

“…Why bring that up now?”

[I’m not scheming anything—this is genuinely for your sake. By now, you must realize what kind of place this is.]

I had a rough idea of what he meant.

[As long as you leave within half a year, you’ll be safe. So take as much as you can before then. You’ll never be able to return.]

“……”

[Choose wisely.]

Being unable to return to Basement Floor 1 is a huge loss in itself.

“Oh, and one last thing. Where are my kidnapped allies being held?”

[That’s for you to find out. If you want to prove yourself, that’s your first step. But don’t worry too much. Judging by your progress, you’ll find them soon enough.]

I felt like I had done a lot here, yet somehow it seemed like I had gained nothing.

***

After my conversation with the research director, I returned to the underground factory.

I quietly pulled Amelia and Raven aside to tell them what had just happened.

It’s not that I don’t trust Misha, Erwin, or Aynar, but honestly, they wouldn’t be much help in this situation.

‘And Versil doesn’t even know I’m a Player.’

Anyway, after explaining the events in the control room, their reactions were roughly the same.

However, the reasons behind their reactions were different.

“Absolutely not. That guy is clearly hiding something sinister. Who knows what he might be plotting behind your back?”

“I’m against it too. Even if the offer is genuine, we still have so much left to explore here. If we leave now and can never return, other explorers will swoop in and take all the credit for our discoveries!”

To be fair, I’d already considered both points myself.

But the Director’s words kept nagging at me.

[You’ll probably survive. But as for those by your side until then…]

There was no way to know if his warning was true.

Yet, the more I dwelled on it, the heavier my chest felt.

Was it some kind of ominous premonition?

Which is probably why I argued against them a little.

“Emily, if his words are true, refusing could put us in even greater danger. And Raven, even if we leave now, returning later would be nearly impossible anyway. The royal family is already blocking explorers from entering.”

Raven argued that it was just a temporary measure, but I wasn’t so sure…

Call it intuition, but I doubted the royal family would ever reopen access.

There’s something massive hidden here on Basement Floor 1.

Which makes this decision even harder.

“Thanks for talking it over with me. I’ll take more time to think.”

“Call us anytime.”

“Same here. You’ve got this habit of doing everything alone. Though, judging by today, you’ve gotten better.”

Anyway, that concluded the first round of discussion.

After that, I resumed searching for kidnapped allies and spent my free time running experiments.

Because if I can earn the qualification on my own, that’s the best case.

And as the Director himself said:

[Gather as much as you can.]

To me, Basement Floor 1 was a land of opportunity.

The Library Island, the Stone Door Island—no, even after the rainy season, all the islands scattered with mana stones were beyond lucrative…

And this research institute was no exception.

No, to be precise—

Flash—!

At the heart of the underground factory in the research institute.

The device could create a new monster by combining the mana stones of three different monsters, giving it traits from all three.

“This machine… this is the real jackpot.”

Of course, monsters produced by this device weren’t treated as new species and didn’t yield experience points.

But—

“An essence…!”

When you defeat the generated monster, there’s a tiny, almost cruelly small chance that it drops an essence.

So, in simpler terms—

“…Wait a sec. Does this essence really have all three monster traits packed into it?”

You can craft custom essences.

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