Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 104

Mafia (3)

Grade 7 Monster: Yeti.

The essence of this creature boasts quite respectable stats.

[Yeti]

Strength +10, Agility +10, Bone Density +15, Cold Resistance +25, Cold Sensitivity +15

Firstly, it has two stats that are considered Tier 1, and both Bone Density and Cold Resistance are defensive stats that are considered higher tiers.

And to have cold sensitivity on top of that?

‘This should be useful for a good few years.

Sensitivity stats are core for elemental dealers like Misha.

Just as high Strength increases physical damage.

Based on the sensitivity stat, it adjusts the potency of the corresponding element.

“Really, she’s lucky.”

I’ve felt it in the Witch’s Forest, but Misha is the complete opposite of me.

No matter what she does, things just work out.

Even the fact that the Yeti’s essence turned out to be blue speaks volumes.

(P) Frostbite – All attacks inflict additional cold damage, and targets hit have their cold resistance reduced.

It’s a passive, so it’s common regardless of colour.

(A) Cold Condensation – Temporarily greatly increases cold sensitivity.

But, among all the Yeti’s active skills, this is the one I wanted. I mean, [Cold Burst] isn’t bad, but in terms of potential, there’s nothing like this.

“Sigh, if only the base stats were better, it could even be used as a mere essence”.

[Cold Condensation] really shines in the later stages of the game.

Well, the problem is that the stat bonuses are too low, so it’ll inevitably be discarded later on.

“If only the Yeti was a grade 5 monster, things would have been much better…”

It’s oddly well-balanced in such unnecessary aspects, this game.

That’s when it happened.

“How much is it exactly…”

“Huh?”

“How much are you taking for the essence, Nyang!”

What, is she still going on about this?

“As you know, I’ve spent a lot this time, so I don’t have much, Nyang…”

At this point, I was wondering what was wrong with her, but it wasn’t unreasonable.

The way essence distribution among explorers is quite merciless.

When an essence drops, the first thing they do is look for someone to consume it.

If a taker is found, they have to pay the party members an amount based on the average value according to the guild.

However…

‘When there’s no buyer among the team members, that’s when it gets tricky.’

It’s not because it’s unnecessary, but because often, no buyer can be found due to the high price of the essence.

No, that’s the overwhelming majority of cases.

So, in such cases, they wait for the natural expiration of 30 minutes before resuming their exploration.

It’s a way of making sure you haven’t done some random person a favor for nothing.

Such are the explorers.

However, Misha was lucky this time as well.

“Don’t worry about the money. That kind of distribution is only for those who will part ways after a few meetings.”

“Really, Nyang?”

I’m a barbarian who knows how to invest for the future.

For a safe exploration life, Misha needs to become an even better damage dealer.

“Then I’ll take it, Nyang?”

“Why do you keep looking at me? Just take it.”

“Uh, really taking it, Nyang?”

How many times do I have to say it?

Misha, who had been an explorer for a long time, felt awkward accepting something without paying for it.

“Why hesitate? It’s enough for me that you continue to stay by my side.”

“Well, I appreciate you saying that, but… Ah, I don’t know. Really taking it, Nyang!”

Despite her bold claim, Misha cautiously reached out for the essence.

「Misha Karlstein’s soul absorbs [Yeti’s Essence].」

The essence, emitting a blue light, twirled into Misha’s body.

“…It’s been 2 years, so does it feel strange, Nyang?”

“You’ll get used to it soon.”

I decided to explain the Yeti’s detailed information later when we had time, and turned to look at Jenson’s group.

It seemed they had finished their discussion…

“What have you decided to do about that?”

Carlson cautiously responded to my question.

“We… decided not to take it.”

The outcome was somewhat unexpected.

To discard an essence that had finally appeared?

Even by beginners?

“That’s because… Jencia saw it drop from a Frost Wolf.”

“And so?”

“If it’s from a Frost Wolf… I judged it to be an essence not suited for me.”

Yes, that’s the conclusion they reached.

I observed Carlson’s expression closely and asked.

“Do you know anything about Frost Wolves?”

Grade 9 Monster: Frost Wolf.

Although it’s a lower grade, information about it isn’t well known since you don’t encounter it until reaching the 6th floor, excluding rifts.

But a 1st or 2nd-floor explorer knows about this?

It’s not impossible, but it’s certainly not common.

“Well… I’m not sure, but it is a grade 9 essence, isn’t it? Maybe something better will come along later…”

“I see.”

I was a bit skeptical, but there was nothing to fault in his answer.

It would be one thing outside, but here?

We’re in a rift where essence drop rates skyrocket. It would be a waste to fill the only slot with a grade 9 essence.

“Oh, of course I meant to take what was left, nothing else.”

“I know, no need to make excuses.”

After finishing with Carlson, it was Jencia’s turn.

“Do you feel the same as him?”

“Yes… I only have one slot, so I wanted to be a bit more cautious…”

Cautious, huh.

It didn’t quite seem like something a swordsman who had devoured a Goblin Archer’s essence should say…

“Well… it costs a lot to erase an essence, right? I thought it would be best not to make the same mistake this time…”

Learning from past mistakes, then.

That left me with nothing to say.

“I’m sorry. After you generously offered it to us.”

In the end, both interviews concluded without much gain.

A somewhat disappointing outcome.

“Sigh, I thought at least one of them would reveal their true colors.”

Originally, if someone took the essence, I planned to cross them off the list of suspects.

However…

In the end, neither took the essence, and their responses were clean.

“Damn, they can’t all be in it together, can they?”

Even considering the worst-case scenario, I decided to end my contemplation.

After all, the final wave was about to begin.

“Is it all over now?”

Jencia murmured in an anxious voice.

And at that moment.

Crackle, crack-

After a few minutes of downtime from the early kill of the mid-boss Yeti, the final wave of the second chapter began.

Nine layers of ice walls had already shattered, making the area four times wider than before.

“Look out!”

The ceiling cracked like a spider’s web, revealing a 3 meter diameter beast.

[GRROOOOAAARRR-!!]

Greyish-white fur covering its hide.

A mane that climbed its spine and enveloped the area around its neck.

A grade 7 monster that walks on two legs and specializes in tearing its enemies limb from limb with sharp claws.

“…Lycanthrope, Nyang!”

Lycanthrope.

At Misha’s outcry, Mr. Bear expressed his confusion.

“Isn’t it too big to be a Lycanthrope? And what’s with that club in its hand?”

A valid question.

That creature was the final boss of the rift we had entered.

The Guardian of the Glacier Caverns, the Tyrant Tarunbas, if they didn’t know.

“We’d better be careful.”

Perhaps instinctively sensing that this was no easy foe, Mr. Bear tensed up for the first time, and offered me advice.

Of course, I didn’t pay much attention.

After all, even though it was the final boss…

Fighting him would have to wait until later.

“Watch out, Nyang!”

With the arrival of this formidable foe, everyone heightened their focus, bracing for what was to come.

And then.

「The Tyrant Tarunbas, upon detecting intruders, flies into a rage.」

「The Tyrant Tarunbas casts [Ice Shatter].」

The creature slammed its club into the ground.

BOOM-!

The impact was loud enough to cause the whole place to vibrate.

Soon, just like on the ceiling, cracks spread like a spider’s web across the floor… … .

“What, what?”

“Bjorn!!”

“…The floor’s collapsing!”

As the floor collapsed, we plummeted.

“AAAAAHHHH!!”

It was time to move on to the third chapter.

「Your character has entered a special area.」
「Field Effect – Glacier Caverns is applied.」
「Status Ailment [Hypothermia] is applied.」
「Agility is significantly reduced, and cold damage received is doubled.」

“Pff!”

As I rose above the surface, I took a deep breath, holding in the air I had saved. Then, trudging towards the ground, I laid myself down.

Swear words came out naturally.

“Fucking reality patch”

Back in the game, all I had to do was wait for the loading window.

Though my HP had been significantly reduced, the third chapter began with me emerging by the water.

“I thought I was actually going to die.”

But what was it like in reality?

There was an underground water vein flowing where we fell.

And it was flowing fiercely.

We were swept away by the current, smashed here and there by rushing water, and by the time I came to my senses we were being thrown down a waterfall.

“So that’s why my HP was depleted.”

Every curve we hit left me aching all over.

I just wanted to rest for a bit… but resting isn’t really in my fate, is it?

“Bjorn, are you okay, Nyang? Snap out of it… oh, what do we do? Ah! That’s right, there was that!”

Somewhat noisily, I opened my eyes to see Misha’s face close to mine. I pushed her away with one hand and got up.

“Ugh! What are you doing, Nyang!!”

That’s my line, actually.

“It’s not Bjorn; it’s Béyon.”

TL/n- Bjorn is hiding his name

I murmured quietly enough for only Misha to hear, then quickly surveyed the surroundings.

“Blargh! Eugh!”

First, there was Carlson, vomiting water.

“Are you okay?”

Next was Jencia, gently patting his back.

As for Mr. Bear…

“It’s getting cold.”

He was warming up in front of a bonfire that I didn’t know when he built.

When our eyes met, Mr. Bear gestured to me.

“If you’ve come to, come over here.”

“I owe you one.”

“Wow, do you always carry firewood around, Nyang?”

“Being alone, you end up having to carry all sorts of things.”

Was it true he always soloed?

I wasn’t sure, but I went over to the fire to dry my clothes and warm up. Soon, Jenson also arrived and quietly curled up.

“…Do you happen to know where that Lycanthrope disappeared to?”

Carlson asked, shivering from the cold, to which Mr. Bear gruffly replied.

“How would I know? It’s not like I came here after studying up on it. Don’t disturb the rest.”

“Oh, yes… Sorry for the intrusion.”

Rest and maintenance time followed.

Everyone spread out their clothes and gear near the fire and managed to grab a quick meal.

However…

“It’s unusually cold.”

Even after drying off and continually warming up by the fire, the chill wouldn’t fade.

It was better than being soaking wet, but there seemed to be a limit to how much warmth we could gain.

Eventually, Mr. Bear drew a conclusion.

“It seems this is a special area.”

“A special area, you say?”

“Ah! Do you mean like the Witch’s Forest, Nyang?”

“Yes, it’s unnatural for our bodies to stiffen up from the cold like this.”

“Hmm, it’s that cold? I don’t really feel it much…”

Misha tilted her head, watching us shiver in front of the fire.

It was an honest statement, not deceit.

After all, her cold resistance was much higher than ours.

‘She must have received much less of a penalty.’

Misha had formed a contract with the Ice Beast Skadia.

And it was of the Enhancement type, which gives the biggest stat bonuses.

Now that she’s also consumed the essence of the Yeti…

‘Her cold resistance must be around 40.’

In [Dungeon & Stone], 40 is by no means a low figure.

My pain resistance is only at 70.

Ignoring the reduction in damage, with that level of resistance, one would hardly feel the cold.

“Is it very cold, Nyang?”

“I’m fine. It’s cold, but not painful.”

“I don’t really understand what you mean…”

It’s literal.

While the cold made our bodies shiver, it didn’t feel painful.

Perhaps that answer made me seem even more pitiable?

“Sigh, this foolish barbarian.”

She fluttered the blanket that had taken the place of my drying clothes and made me an unreasonable offer.

“Come in here, then you’ll feel a bit better, Nyang.”

…What is she on about?

“Phew.”

Seeing Mr. Bear whistle, it seemed I wasn’t the only one thinking it was odd.

***

Maintenance time turned out to be longer than expected.

Drying our clothes and gear took quite a while…

“It’s gotten quite late.”

We had been in the rift for over 12 hours already.

Since the rift opened around 7 PM, it meant we had been awake for a total of 31 hours without a wink of sleep.

“Um… it doesn’t seem like monsters appear here, so how about we all try to get some sleep?”

Eventually, everyone agreed to Carlson’s suggestion and decided to catch a bit of sleep, however short.

“We’ll go over there and sleep separately.”

“Isn’t it going to be cold?”

“We carry emergency firewood for such occasions.”

“Then, suit yourself.”

Since it wasn’t right to sleep all huddled around one fire, we moved to a secluded spot to start a new one.

We also agreed to take turns keeping watch.

It meant halving our sleep time, but…

A little sleep while alive seems more appealing to me than a lot of sleep while dead.

“Bjorn, go ahead and sleep first.”

“Just a moment, there’s something I need to talk about.”

“Something to talk about?”

Since it was just the two of us for once, we put off sleep to catch up on overdue conversations.

First off was about the essence.

One ought to know what they’ve consumed to make good use of it in battle.

“Wow, you remembered all that, Nyang?”

“It’s not a big deal. Anyway, listen carefully from now on.”

After explaining the details of the essence based on this world’s standards, I lowered my voice even further to continue.

“Have you noticed any suspicious behavior among those three while we were coming here?”

I had deliberately sent Misha to the rear.

The ostensible reason was to have her keep an eye on the rear before any battles began…

But the real reason was surveillance of the group.

Being at the back, she’d have a clear view of everyone else’s actions.

“Hmm, suspicious behavior? I’m not sure.”

“That’s fine. Just keep a closer eye on them from now on, if you can.”

“I will, Nyang.”

After finishing our conversation, I crawled into the blanket and laid down.

I then revisited the words and actions of Carlson, Jencia, and Mr. Bear, pondering if I had missed anything.

Throughout the day, I had observed their every move, constantly casting bait in ordinary conversations to gather clues.

As a result, I was able to identify a likely suspect.

But…

‘Still, there’s no conclusive evidence.’

It wasn’t enough to definitively label someone as the mafia.

If only there was just one more clue…

Lost in thought, drifting closer to sleep, that’s when it happened.

“Bjorn, Nyang.”

Misha gently shook my shoulder.

“Now that I think about it, there’s one odd thing, nyang…”

Despite my fatigue, I listened attentively to her story.

And then…

“Well done, Misha.”

“Oh, was it helpful, Nyang?”

“Definitely.”

It was more than just helpful.

The final piece of the puzzle had clicked into place.

I looked towards Mr. Bear’s fire and smiled slyly.

‘So it was one of you after all.’

Indeed, it was you, the mafia.

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