Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 129

Episode 129: Karlstein (3)

The head of the Karlstein family had invited me to their mansion.

Apparently, the invitation had been ongoing for about three months.

So, what could be the reason?

The first thing that came to mind was this:

“Curiosity.”

Simply put, he wanted to meet me, a colleague of his daughter.

If Misha was accepted as a member of the family, it was a plausible scenario.

If he found me unsatisfactory, he could tell me to let his daughter go. It seemed most of the family’s offspring were comfortably engaging in explorer activities within large clans the family had connections to.

However…

“If I just endure a little longer, it will be okay.”

Misha’s situation had remained the same.

Her father had kept her awakening a secret and made no effort to improve her standing within the family.

The moment I realized this,

I felt a sinister malice emanating from this mansion.

Malice directed not just at Misha, but at me as well.

‘Knowing the situation, he still deliberately invited me here…’

The head’s objectives,

And the means he chose to achieve them, became painfully clear.

‘He’s even crazier than I heard.’

The head wants something from me.

But instead of politely setting up a negotiation table, he created this situation.

Probably, his calculation was something like this:

Bjorn, Son of Jandel, and the Little Balkan..

A warrior who didn’t abandon his companions even in the face of a Layer lord.

Perhaps a barbarian who might even be in a romantic relationship with one of those comrades.

He probably figured that leveraging my public identity as a loyal and courageous warrior, who wouldn’t abandon his comrades, would make it easier for him to manipulate me.

Based on this, I concluded:

‘Using his daughter so shamelessly, he’s a parasite. Underestimating him would be a mistake.’

Plan A is not enough.

Ending things here would just leave me as an ordinary barbarian.

Therefore…

 

Taking another step forward, I fixed my gaze on her brother. 

He didn’t seem scared at all while looking at me.

He just laughed as if the whole situation was absurd.

“You really don’t know when to be satisfied, do you?”

He seemed to think I was just being stubborn, wanting something more. Well, technically, he wasn’t wrong.

“Bi, Bjorn…! You shouldn’t do this!!”

Misha quickly grabbed my wrist, and I stopped right there. I really had no intention of hitting him after all. He wasn’t just a servant of the mansion but one of the direct descendants. Recklessly attacking him would only turn into a vulnerability for me.

Therefore…

“Bethel—raaaaaaaaa!!”

I let out a loud shout that could be heard anywhere in the mansion. Her brother frowned at my actions.

“What is this madness?”

“I just felt like doing it!”

“…You’re insane.”

Regardless of what he said, my shout served as a catalyst, drawing the mansion’s inhabitants to us. 

Servants stopped their work to watch from the end of the corridor connected to the first floor. 

Glancing subtly towards the second floor, I spotted a group of young men and women dressed in fine clothes.

‘Misha’s siblings?’

I wasn’t sure, but they were watching with curiosity.

‘Anyway, that’s enough audience and witnesses.’

With the stage set, it was time to end my barbarian mode and address her brother.

“Talon Karlstein.”

“It’s not Talon, it’s Telon.”

“You’re not very manly, fussing over such trivialities.”

“…Enough, what do you want to say?”

He seemed uninterested in discussing manliness and just wanted me to get to the point.

I got straight to the point.

“Why is Misha treated this way in your family?”

“As I said before, that’s a family matter—”

“Is it because she’s considered a half-ling? A direct descendant who couldn’t even make a contract with a Spirit Beast?”

He was momentarily taken aback by my question before smirking at Misha.

It was a look of scorn, as if to say, “You spilled all that to him?”

“Since you’re aware, there’s no need to hide it. Yes, what you said is true. So, stop prying into our family matters.”

His advice to mind my own business was somewhat valid. 

After all, except for us barbarians, they have a culture of valuing bloodline.

It was natural for them to treat Misha as an outsider.

If she had inherited the family’s blood, she wouldn’t have failed to make a contract with a Spirit Beast by now.

It really was as if she didn’t share a single drop of their blood.

It seems her mother, the fourth wife, had no other children but Misha.

But…

“What if that’s a misunderstanding on your part?”

The truth isn’t important.

What matters now is that Misha has awakened, and this fact can be used as a valuable card.

“If Misha contracts with a Spirit Beast, will you apologize for all the wrongs done and accept her as a member?”

“At twenty-five, there’s no way that—”

“Answer me. Just answer this, and I won’t cause any more trouble.”

Her brother sighed, rubbing his forehead before speaking in an annoyed tone.

“Fine, I’ll apologize as much as needed.”

“And accept her as a member?”

“That too.”

He answered without hesitation, as if he couldn’t possibly believe it would happen.

I smirked and nodded.

“That settles it then.”

“Settles what…?”

His voice quivered with uncertainty at my attitude.

Instead of replying, I turned my gaze to Misha.

After all, my role here was done.

“Misha, show them.”

“Wh, what…?”

Suddenly the center of attention, Misha looked around, flustered. When our eyes met, she lowered her head and murmured.

“But, father said…”

I had wondered why she hadn’t come out with it yet, and as I suspected, it seemed the head of the family had silenced her in some way.

But that’s exactly why Misha needs to be brave.

Revealing this fact in front of everyone means one less card for the head to play.

“Don’t worry. Nothing will happen.”

“…He won’t forgive me.”

“So what? Just admit you were wrong. That’s what families do.”

“Bjorn, you might get in trouble too, Nyah.”

“Let them. I’m not scared.”

To her, he might be a father like no other, but to me, he’s just one of the chiefs of the beast-tribe.

And one among five at that.

“What’s there to be afraid of? Family isn’t everything in life. I’ve lived well enough without it.”

I said, scratching my ear, and Misha laughed in disbelief.

“Nyah, That’s you! No, never mind. What’s the point of all this?”

“Yeah, just ignore the little things, it’s good for your mental health.”

“Nyah, I don’t know anymore”

Okay, it looks like my persuasion worked.

“Misha Karlstein, just once, do what you want to do. You have a companion to support you this time.”

With that, I said no more.

Time passed, and finally, Misha raised her head to slowly look around.

Was the situation intriguing?

Many were watching from a distance.

Gulp

Misha swallowed hard.

And then, as if to reaffirm her decision, she opened her mouth.

“I will-“

Just as she was about to speak, a cold voice filled the vast mansion.

“Everyone, leave.”

Misha froze, and when she came to, a middle-aged man stood before her.

With a single command from the man, no one dared to speak up, all retreating from the scene.

The atmosphere suddenly became heavy, as if pressed down by something.

The man’s gaze turned towards me.

Without any introduction, I knew who this man was.

‘Yes, this is the madman.’

Albreniv  Kalstein.

The patriarch of the Karlstein family, who has held the position of Chief of the Red Cat tribe for generations.

“Thank you for accepting the invitation, Bjorn, son of Jandel.”

“Thank you for the invitation, Karlstein.”

In the middle of the now-empty first-floor lobby, we exchanged formal greetings.

“Ha, you’re more polite than I expected?”

He approached me with a friendly smile.

Instead of a handshake, he patted my shoulder as if dealing with someone beneath him.

What was this supposed to mean?

「Your character falls into a [Fear] state due to [Lord of Nightmares]

My body stiffened as if encountering a natural predator.

A tingling sensation begins to rise in my brain, the kind I’ve felt every time I’ve been on the edge of life and death. For the first time, I understood why Misha feared her father so much.

It was then he spoke.

“Why would you do such a thing? That’s no way to behave.”

The head of the family whispered, wiping all traces of smile from his face.

It was a damn frustrating feeling.

Although my mind knew this was the effect of a skill, my body wouldn’t cooperate.

It felt as though my sensory organs had malfunctioned.

Fortunately, the effect didn’t last long.

「Your character’s resistance to magic exceeds a certain threshold.」

「Your character’s will to fight exceeds a certain threshold.」

「Your character’s mental strength exceeds a certain threshold.」

「[Fear] state is removed.」

Finally, it’s over.

“Look here—”

I immediately removed his arm from my shoulder as he tried to say something in an arrogant voice.

“…?”

His brow furrowed in confusion, not understanding my reaction.

“Why are you touching someone else’s body?”

I tossed aside the arm I was holding and said,

“So rude.”

As the saying goes, respect is a two-way street.

“Funny.”

After a moment of silence, the Patriarch spoke.

It was chilling to hear him say that without smiling, but…….

But I couldn’t afford to lose in terms of momentum.

“You have strange tastes. I don’t find it funny at all.”

I responded calmly, grasping Misha’s hand, which had frozen like a statue.

This redirected the head’s gaze to Misha.

“Father…”

“I didn’t expect you to defy me.”

“It’s not that…”

“Enough, you’re not important anyway.”

He cut off Misha’s attempt to explain and fixed his gaze back on me.

“I had originally planned for us to share a lunch and then discuss matters.”

Discuss, my ass.

He probably planned to show me how Misha was treated here.

Staring at him silently, I spoke.

“I refuse.”

“What?”

His expression contorted at my immediate rejection.

I bluntly stated my position.

“Why should I wait?”

Giving him time will be foolish.

He’d been forced to come out because of Misha, but this was probably not part of his plan.

He’d likely regroup and call again once he’d reorganized his thoughts.

“If you have something to say, say it here.”

“Even for a barbarian, this is disrespectful.”

“You’re the one who summoned this barbarian, Beastman.”

Perhaps he hadn’t expected to be called simply a beastman, disregarding his name or status as the head of the family?

The head’s expression hardened, and a killing intent radiated from him.

Not metaphorically but literally.

‘…This works in reality too?’

I was a bit surprised, but it was far weaker than the fox mask.

Well, that was in the spiritual world, so the output difference was to be expected.

I Scratched my ear as if I was bored.

Then he asked with genuine curiosity

“Do you truly not fear death?”

To me, it was an utterly pointless question.

Is there anyone in this world who isn’t afraid of death?

“Well, I’m not sure about that. But you don’t seem too scary.”

This was sincere.

The head of the family was a once 8th-floor explorer?

So, theoretically, if he fought me, I’d be beaten to a pulp?

So what?

If he killed me, our tribe chief wouldn’t just sit idly by.

“Could you even kill me?”

I asked outright again.

It was just that absurd.

Me? Killed?

And by one of the most promising talents of the barbarian tribe, no less?

Invited right into the heartland of the beast-tribe sanctuary?

That would instantly reignite the war with the fairies from ten years ago.

Because that’s what barbarians are like.

“What? Hahahaha!!”

The head of the family forced a laugh, but I could see the deep irritation within.

Surely, it must be frustrating.

He didn’t want to admit it, but my point stood.

He glossed over it.

“No wonder things went wrong, I didn’t realize you were so cunning.”

“I appreciate the compliment, but I’m getting hungry, so answer me. What do you have to tell me?”

After a pause, as if collecting his thoughts, he finally spoke.

“I know you’ve used that item.”

Finally, all the pieces fell into place.

The Frost Spirit Ring.

So, this was the cause of all the commotion.

Hey Folks, This website and the translation runs on the support I recieve from you guys. So please consider supporting me if you can. You can join my patron here or buy me a coffee here. Thank You