Calm Before the Storm(3)

Weak footsteps.

A stifling atmosphere.

Expressions so hard they weren’t just dark; they were downright frightening.

Step…

All of this made the four walking through the forest resemble worn-out survivors who had just escaped a battlefield.

After they had walked a fair distance into the forest, the platinum-blond man leading the group suddenly stopped and muttered under his breath.

“This is bullshit.”

His voice was so quiet that unless someone listened carefully, they wouldn’t catch what he said.

The other three didn’t respond. They understood how furious he was and how deeply his pride had been wounded.

However, that silence lasted only a moment.

The large man, who had been stealing glances and looking unsure of what to do, opened his mouth as if deciding he should say something.

“Uh… Baekho……?”

“…….”

“It might be a meaningless question now… but why didn’t you go all the way……?”

“‘Why didn’t I go all the way?’”

When Baek-ho asked back in a cold voice, Aures looked like he regretted bringing it up, but he continued anyway, as if he needed to satisfy his curiosity.

“Baron Jandel. Everyone in the world knows how dearly he cares for his allies. If you had pushed it to the end, he would surely have been the one to back down.”

For Aures, it was an obvious question. Baron Jandel and Baek-ho were complete opposites.

Bjorn Jandel cherished his allies fiercely.

Lee Baek-ho was the exact opposite. He was someone who wouldn’t bat an eye no matter who died. This was Aures’s assessment of Lee Baek-ho, and it was fairly accurate.

Considering this difference, Lee Baek-ho should have had the advantage in the earlier ‘standoff’. So why was the result the complete opposite?

He got his answer from Jayna, who spoke up in place of the still-silent Baek-ho.

“…You probably didn’t see it.”

“Didn’t see what?”

“His eyes.”

“His… eyes?”

Jayna continued, explaining, “You wouldn’t be questioning this if you’d seen his eyes.”

“What on earth does that mean? What about his eyes? Did he use some kind of special ability?”

“No, not at all… You could see it the moment you looked at them. Baron Jandel is someone who won’t break. Even less so when he’s being threatened.”

Aures still didn’t seem to understand, so the Ruin Scholar added his own comment from the side.

“There are many people in the world who act recklessly or make foolish decisions due to short-sightedness. But today, Baron Jandel was different.”

“How so?”

The Ruin Scholar raised his hand and a small flame appeared above his palm.

“People usually don’t touch fire, since they know how hot it burns. But what about someone who’s seeing fire for the first time?”

“Well… I’m not sure, but if it were me, I might touch it out of curiosity.”

“That’s what ignorance is. Some fear things because they don’t understand them… while others gain courage because they don’t understand.”

“And what exactly are you trying to say?”

“Baron Jandel clearly knew how hot the fire was, and what the consequence of bringing his hand close to it would be. Yet he did not retreat.”

“Because he believed it was what he had to do.”Baek-ho finished the sentence.

However, the Ruin Scholar didn’t seem offended at being interrupted. Instead, he continued explaining how he interpreted the situation.

“They’re not people who don’t feel fear. They’re simply people who have learned how to overcome it. That is why they’re called warriors.”

“It was written in Peprok’s book.”

“……”

“Seeing it today, I think I understand why the barbarians call Baron Jandel a great warrior.”

“Hey, Gramps, whose side are you on anyway?”

“For now, I’m on your side. That’s why I’m giving you advice so you can understand the reason for your failure. Just now, the Baron’s eyes were the eyes of one who has resolved himself. But yours were not.”

“So what was I supposed to do? Fight him to the death? Over one unanswered question?”

“I’m just warning you to be careful from now on. You no longer have the ‘leash’ you thought you had over that man.”

“I know, I know… So stop talking. It’s irritating.”

Baek-ho seemed to have calmed down enough to return to his usual tone. He sighed exaggeratedly and grumbled.

“Damn… this is a real problem. If threatening his comrades doesn’t work anymore, what am I supposed to use to control him?”

His anger had subsided enough for him to voice his thoughts. He then fell silent, thinking hard, while the other three looked at him and resumed their own conversation.

“He was… unbelievably strong.” Aures began

“The Baron?”

“Yes. Who would’ve thought he could endure our full-force joint assault for hours? I never imagined such a monster could exist in this world.”

“They do exist — you just haven’t met them.” the Ruin Scholar added.

“There are more monsters like him out there?”

“Only a handful, but yes.”

Aures started folding his fingers one by one, as though trying to think of people who fit the description.

One, two, three, four, five, six…

He lowered them slowly, but by the time he finished, he hadn’t put down many fingers at all.

“That number might shrink to just one hand in a few years.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“The Baron will grow even stronger.”

Jayna and Aures didn’t say anything, but their confused expressions spoke volumes.

Was it even possible for him to grow stronger than he already was?

The Ruin Scholar shifted his gaze.

“Those who have nothing to lose merely become ruthless, but…” he said, his eyes on Baekho’s back, who seemed too lost in thought to notice their conversation. “But those who have many things to protect are the ones who truly grow stronger.”

It was a truth he’d learned over a long life.
***

When I opened my eyes, I saw a tree. An enormous tree soaring so high it seemed to touch the sky. The night sky peeking through the gaps in its canopy shimmered with stars, spreading out like a painted galaxy.

Crackle, crackle.

I could hear the soft crackle of a campfire somewhere close.

It’s cold.

Only then did I notice the chill of the bare ground and the damp air soaking through the forest.

‘Did they cover me?’

It looked like my allies had placed a blanket over me. It was a specially made one, large enough to cover a six-and-a-half-foot-tall barbarian’s body.

Did they cover me with a blanket instead of moving me in case I woke up?

The thought filled my chest with warmth.

If I had been on Baek-ho’s team, I doubt I would have ever felt this, even after decades of working together.

“You’re awake.”

Amelia must have noticed me shifting under the blanket. When I sat up to look for her, I saw her sitting beside the campfire.

“How long has it been?”

“It’s been two days since you fell asleep”

“…What?”

So I slept on the bare ground for two days?

No wonder my shoulders were sore.

“Where are the others?”

“They’re sleeping. I’m keeping watch.”

When she said she was on watch, I tilted my head.

“You’re not using a clone?”

Amelia specialised in summoning a Self-Replication clone to stand guard while she rested. So why was she keeping watch with her real body?

“I thought it would be better if someone was there when you woke up.”

Goodness me, I really picked the right person to be my ally!

“The Tech Mage gave me a rough summary of what happened. Seems you went off on your own and stirred up trouble again.”

“Trouble?”

“If you hadn’t taken the Magic Engineer and gone off with just the two of you, none of this would’ve happened.
What on earth were you thinking?’

Amelia scolded me as though I were a child.

“You didn’t even consider discussing it with us? What if you had died out there? What were we supposed to do then?”

I had nothing to say.

I didn’t expect things to go this way, but because of me, they had suffered.

“Bjorn Jandel… I entrusted my life to you.”

“….”

“Do not make me regret that choice.”

“…I won’t. This kind of thing will never happen again.”

I pulled the most pitiful face I could manage. At that Amelia pressed her fingers to her forehead and let out a long sigh.

“…That’s enough scolding.” Returning to her usual voice, Amelia looked at me and spoke, “You probably have plenty of questions too, so I’ll start by explaining what happened on our side.”

She then gave a concise summary of what had happened in the city after I disappeared.

Well, since it covered several months, it was quite long.

First was the clan competition held during the Festival of the Thirteenth Month. Our Anabada Clan had planned to participate, but they had to withdraw because I disappeared.

“The royal family opened the Gold Soul Archive to the ten members of the winning clan?”

“For the clan leader, they allowed him to view the Sacred Soul Archive, the tier above the Gold Soul Archive.”

Damn.

That archive held Level 2 essences and Double Numbers.

My stomach was cramped with envy, but I decided to stay positive.

After all, I also gained a lot from exploring outside the walls, and in the end, I even hit the jackpot of getting a settlement from Lee Baek-ho.

From the rest of her account, it turned out that nothing significant had occurred. My absence created some trouble, but my business operations in the city were running fine.

“My disappearance hasn’t been revealed yet…?”

This part surprised me.

“How is that possible?”

“Because we could handle most of the tasks you were doing.”

“But people must’ve been suspicious.”

“I told everyone that you acquired a new essence and were dedicating all your time to researching it.”

“Still… I suppose anyone who realized I was missing would already know that much.”

“That’s probably true. It’s that kind of city. Even if they accept our excuse on the surface, they’ll still be suspicious. And this isn’t the first time we’ve disappeared like this.”

“…Ah! Right! How did you get out? Is the magic circle fixed?” I asked, thinking I could finally return home, but Amelia shook her head and began explaining how she managed to leave.

Only the return circle was destroyed. Leaving the city is still possible.

My heart grew even warmer.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

Because I was grateful.

Unlike me, they had no way to return, yet they still ventured outside the wall into uncharted territory to find me.

“So what about you? What happened?”

Seeing me smile silently, Amelia awkwardly changed the subject.

“Oh, me? Well… where do I even start—”

“As I said, I heard a general outline from the Mage Engineer earlier. What I want to know is something else.”

“Something else?”

“The real reason you clashed with Lee Baek-ho, despite the two of you having traveled together without any major problems.”

Ah, that.

“I heard you met Auril Gavis. And that you came out late in the end.”

That alone should’ve answered everything, but…

“What happened? Why hide it from Baek-ho even at the cost of fighting him in such a disadvantageous situation?”

Seeing Amelia’s serious expression, I let out a small laugh.

“There seems to be a misunderstanding… The reason I hid it from Lee Baek-ho was different.”

To be honest, there was no reason to keep it a secret from Lee Baek-ho. In fact, if he had politely asked while offering compensation first, I might have told him. But…

“Since he came at me trying to start a fight, I decided there was no way I could back down.”

“…I see.”

Having grown up in a world ruled by survival of the fittest, Amelia understood my meaning without needing a long explanation. Even so, that alone didn’t satisfy her curiosity.

“Anyway, so what happened with that man?”

Hearing her ask again, I hesitated for a moment.
Was it really the right thing to tell her what I saw in the records? It’s not like it can be changed anyway.

That thought made it hard to open my mouth, but it didn’t take long for me to change my mind.

There was one thing I learned from watching Lee Baek-ho.

“Emily. There’s something you need to hear.”

No one has to carry the entire world alone.

Continue reading more chapters at henprogressive.com

Please join here, I need supporters to help me continue translating Surviving game as a barbarian and Lee Gwak
If it doesn’t work support me here buymeacoffee.com/hennoveltranslations. There are advanced chapters for supporters as well.