Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 215

Discarded Pawn(4)

The knight who gave me this ring said, 

“Show this and tell your story, and you’ll be identified immediately.”

“It’s a communication ring. And… it’s from Sir Garfizel, who went out searching through the second-floor portal.”

Before I could even say who gave me the ring, a knight recognized it.

Then he chuckled as he saw my reaction.

“A communication ring…?”

“It seems you didn’t even know what it was. Wait a moment. We’ll soon find out if what you’re saying is true.”

The knight turned the gemstone on the ring to the side, releasing a blue light that flowed into his body.

“……”

The knight closed his eyes, continuing the silence as if savoring the moment. About three minutes later, he finally spoke.

“The corpse collector is near the portal,huh….”

With that single phrase, everything made sense in my head.

Damn, so that’s why it’s called a ‘communication’ ring.

No wonder he handed it to me without asking for anything first.

‘Now I get why he gave it to me.’

Sir Garfizel wanted to convey information. He used me, whom he met by chance. 

That’s probably why he provided information about this place as well.

[If it’s the dark zone in the center, are you talking about where the monument is?]

[Yes, go there. If you can reach that place, you’ll be safe.]

Whether the message was delivered or not, it was no loss to him.

But he could have just been straightforward with me.

Now I really feel like I’ve been played.

‘Why are there so many people in this world who like to mess with others?’

It left a bitter taste in my mouth, but at least the ring properly vouched for my identity.

“Little Balkan, Bjorn, son of Jandel.”

A knight, with whom I hadn’t even exchanged names, called out to me.

“Is the doubt cleared now?”

“It’s clear you’re not from the Noark side. Although, how you managed to get through that path is still a mystery… Come inside.We’ll discuss the details at the temporary headquarters.”

“Good to hear. By the way, is there a priest available?”

Though it was unlikely there wouldn’t be, I phrased it that way just in case.

Fortunately, the knight seemed to catch the meaning behind my words.

“Yes, you should receive treatment first.”

The knight nodded, seemingly agreeing after seeing our condition.

It was a bit surprising. I expected him to be rigid and insist on an investigation first—

“Your companions will be taken to the temporary infirmary.”

“And me?”

“The investigation comes first.”

Well, at least that’s something.

“I’m fine, so go ahead and rest.”

“But…!”

Misha protested my decision, but I silently directed my gaze to one spot.

A more critical patient than me, missing an arm.

“Is Daria okay?”

“I, I don’t know. Raven did use a curse-breaking spell, but she’s still unconscious….”

“She’ll get better if you show her to the priest. So go quickly.”

“I’m sorry.”

What’s there to be sorry about?

I smiled wryly and patted Erwin’s shoulder as if comforting her guilt. Then, I approached Raven for a brief conversation.

“When I’m not here, you’re in charge. I know it’s hard because of the mana exhaustion, but I’m counting on you.

“…Don’t worry about the team. I’ll take good care of them. No matter how hard it is, it’s not as tough as what Mr. Jandel is facing, right?”

“If everything’s settled, follow me. My men will escort your companions to the infirmary.”

“Understood.”

After that, I parted from my companions and followed the knight inside.

It was an unusual sight.

The originally pitch-black dark zone was illuminated by installed torches, lighting up all the pathways.

‘It’s like a temporary refuge.’

While the outer areas were guarded by knights and explorers, the inside was different. The explorers were crammed into narrow corridors, sitting or lying down to rest.

“By the way, there’s no mist here?”

“Because we have set up a protective magic circle.”

“A protective magic circle…?”

“Ah, if you came from outside, you might not know yet. The mist is a type of dark curse spell. It’s not very dangerous due to its wide area of effect.”

A dark spell in the form of mist… Could it be [Feast of Malice]?

I had no trouble breathing, and the range was enough to cover the entire first floor, so I naturally assumed it was a fog spell to obscure vision.

‘How many dark mages were sacrificed to create this?’

A chill ran down my spine. What if we had decided to stick to the sparsely populated outskirts?

‘…We would have been screwed.’

No matter how low the potency, exposure for several days would show symptoms. I would have realized the nature of this fog by then and tried to find a solution.

The options would have been fewer by then.

“You there, it’s fine to rest, but don’t block the path. Stick to the wall.”

“Oh, yes… I’m sorry.”

After pushing through the narrow corridor for about 20 minutes, we finally reached the central chamber.

Or should I call it a plaza?

“How did you manage this?”

“We used mages to collapse all the nearby outer walls to expand the space. We couldn’t accommodate everyone in such a narrow place.”

Wow, is this a military-style construction project?

With enough people, there’s nothing you can’t do.

The chamber, initially around 30 meters in radius, had been expanded to hundreds of times its original size. The expanded area was filled with tents marked with various clan emblems.

“Come in.”

The knight led me to a large tent at the very center.

A flag of the Kingdom of Raphdonia was flown at the entrance, and inside, people were gathered around a round table in a meeting.

‘A strategic meeting, huh…’

Even though it was the royal tent, it wasn’t just knights. Explorers with well-known clan marks were also present, actively discussing something.

Incidentally, there was a familiar face among them.

“Oh, it’s you…!”

The woman exclaimed in surprise as if she had seen a ghost.

I greeted her with a bitter smile.

“We meet again, Vercil Gowland.”

I didn’t expect to meet her again so soon.

***

“How did you get here… Did you find a mage capable of teleportation?”

As if.

Instead of answering, I waved my arm that was now only an elbow.

Judging by her expression, she seemed to understand what it meant.

“You really came through that path…?”

Vercil murmured in disbelief.

She hadn’t expected us to break through the route they had abandoned, and succeed.

“How did you do it?”

Well, it’s nothing to brag about.

I used a method similar to hers. Prioritizing and discarding what needed to be discarded.

“That’s enough chit chat.”

As Vercil and I were exchanging pleasantries, a man interrupted, bringing silence.

So, this guy’s the leader here, huh?

“Why is Sir Ergos, who should be on the front lines, here? And who is this barbarian next to you?”

“I had something urgent to report, so I briefly left.”

“Go on.”

“I acquired Sir Garfizel’s communication ring.”

“…Sir Garfizel’s?”

“Yes. And this man, an explorer named Bjorn Jandel, is the one who brought me the ring.”

The knight handed over the communication ring, and the man activated it.

How much time passed?

“I am Marco Elburn, currently the captain of the 3rd Royal Knights.”

The man looked at me and spoke.

Finally, he seemed interested in me as well.

“I have a few questions for you. Can you answer them honestly?”

“…Sure.”

“First of all, according to the contents of this ring, it implies that the ‘corpse collector’ is stationed north of Goblin Forest.”

Some explorers exclaimed, “Corpse collector!” but it wasn’t enough to disrupt the conversation.

It wasn’t something I needed to worry about right now.

“So, what do you want to know?”

“Is this information reliable?”

“It is. Although we fled, we did engage in a brief fight.”

“Fought, you say. Can you tell me your team’s rank?”

“…Fifth rank.”

Upon revealing our rank, the knight commander wore a peculiar expression and stroked his chin.

“If what you say is true, then it’s safe to say that he let you go.”

“Probably.”

I nodded in agreement.

In fact, the Corpse Collector seemed to be concentrating solely on blocking the portal to the second floor. If that hadn’t been the case, escape would have been extremely difficult.

“Is that all the questions?”

“No, there’s one more. From what I’ve just heard, it seems you entered through the path Sir Ergos was guarding, is that correct?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I’d like to hear the details. Is there a way to move while avoiding the enemies?”

“If there were, do you think I’d be in this state?”

“…That makes sense. Can you tell us in detail how you got here? It might be useful for our strategy.”

Although my identity as a non-Noark explorer was already proven, there was no need to create a conflict by refusing. I summarized the 20-minute bloodbath briefly.

Would they understand how desperate our journey was from just that?

“That was an impressive story.”

The knight commander’s gaze turned more favorable. The explorers from the clans listening to my story also looked at me with curiosity.

“You show qualities of a leader.”

“If I had real qualities, half wouldn’t have died.”

“That’s why I said you show qualities. All your companions are alive, aren’t they?”

“…”

“A good leader isn’t someone who makes perfect decisions, but someone who makes necessary ones.”

It seemed like a genuine comment rather than sarcasm, but it wasn’t a topic I wanted to discuss.

Even if it was praise, it didn’t make me particularly happy.

I changed the subject.

“If you have no more questions, I’d like to go now.”

“Actually, I have one last thing to ask. The person you met at the end, did he have a scar on his chin?”

A scar…

“He did.”

When I nodded, the knight commander smiled with interest.

“I thought so when you mentioned the adamantium greatsword. He was the Serpent Knight.”

“Serpent Knight?”

“He stabbed his liege’s child with a sword and ran away. Quite a famous figure, though it was a long time ago, so you might not know.”

No wonder he could use aura. He was a knight.

Judging by the murmuring explorers, it seemed he was indeed well-known.

“Anyway, congratulations. Killing such a person will increase your fame.”

“Fame, huh…”

“Don’t barbarians like that sort of thing?”

It wasn’t wrong, but I’m different from most barbarians. Though gaining fame isn’t a bad thing.

I do need access rights to the Imperial City of Karnon.

But…

“That’s only if I return alive.”

I’ll worry about that later. It’s only been less than a day since the labyrinth opened.

***

“Oh, I’ve kept an injured man for too long. Go and rest. Sir Ergos will inform you of the rules here.”

With that, I left the tent. Following the knight’s guidance, I moved to the temporary treatment center to reunite with my comrades.

“Mister!!!”

“How’s Daria?”

“The priest healed her completely. She’s sleeping now, probably tired… Anyway, it’s all thanks to you!”

Erwin, who seemed more relaxed after her sister’s treatment, was back to her usual lively self.

“Hey! Stop bothering him and get away.”

“Huh?”

“What’s with ‘huh’? Can’t you see Bjorn’s injured?”

“Oh…”

“Let me see. Are you okay? No other pain? You went through a lot. Let’s show your arm to the priest first.”

As all my injuries needed to be treated, I followed Misha to the priest for treatment.

Oh, by the way, there was no charge. 

It’s a wartime situation.

All explorers must comply with the royal family’s orders. 

The treatment center here was probably staffed by conscripted priests from various teams.

“For about a day, you might feel weak and strange. Now, I must attend to other patients. May the light of the sun be with you.”

Within minutes of receiving a healing spell, my arm grew back. 

It reminded me of the importance of priests.

Top-grade potions would have taken at least two or three bottles.

And reattaching a severed arm was out of the question…

As physical abilities increase, the effectiveness of potions decreases.

‘When I form a clan, I must secure a priest first.’

After receiving treatment, I rejoined my companions and had a conversation.

“Raven, did you learn about the situation here?”

“Yeah, roughly, while getting our area assignment.”

“Area assignment?”

“Where we’ll be sleeping from now on. According to the map we received, we’re assigned to an outer passage. I guess we arrived too late. The safe inner areas are already full.”

I laughed silently at Raven’s words.

The central area was filled with the tents of large clans. Did they really get those spots by arriving early?

“Anyway, let’s head over there. Starting tomorrow, we’ll also have to take turns on guard duty according to a rotation schedule.”

It feels like we’ve joined the military.

As I looked around at the tense surroundings, a question popped into my mind.

“…By the way, where’s Tacellan?”

Tacellan Arbenon. The only fifth-rank explorer who survived this plan.

“…”

As soon as I mentioned Tacellan‘s name, my companions stiffened.

“Oh, him…” Raven forced a smile and spoke.

“As soon as we got our area assignments, he went there. They said that solo explorers or those in pairs would be assigned to teams with vacancies”.

“Really?”

But why didn’t he just join our team? Clans seem to stick together.

And I’ve seen groups of more than six members forming along the way.

When I expressed this doubt, Raven gave an awkward smile and said,

“He wanted it that way. So, don’t worry about it, Mr. Jandel.”

“Alright then.”

I nodded casually, thinking to myself.

‘Something must have happened while I was away.’

There was an incident. Why they’re hiding it from me, I don’t know.

I can always ask Aynar or Misha later…

“Erwin, you said you’re joining the Blue Barrier Clan, right?”

“Yeah… I don’t want to, but my sister insists. She says it could cause problems with our contract later.”

Well, beyond the contract, it’s probably much safer. Blue Barrier operates six teams.

Though one of them disappeared on the way here.

“Then we’ll get going. Take good care of your sister when she wakes up. Always stay vigilant.”

“Yes…!”

After parting ways with Erwin, we headed to our assigned area.

It was a passage located on the outskirts, less than 2 meters away from the next team.

“It’s been a while since I’ve slept on the first floor…”

Still, being true explorers, we laid our sleeping bags on the ground and settled in without complaint.

Everyone knew how lucky we were just to have a place to sleep.

Drraaaaaargh!!

As soon as Aynar lay down, she started snoring.

For some reason, hearing that reminded me of all the tasks I had to do.

I needed to check today’s loot, inspect the equipment that had been covered in lava, and clean my body, soaked in blood and sweat.

Oh, and I needed to find out what happened with Tacellan.

There’s a mountain of tasks ahead.

Despite having done so much already.

‘Ah, forget it, I’ll do it tomorrow.’

As soon as I closed my eyes, I felt the strength drain from my body.

It felt like sinking into water.

As my consciousness slowly faded into sleep, I heard Misha’s voice beside me.

“Bjorn, you did well.”

From the other side, I heard Raven’s voice too.

“Yes. You really did a great job.”

Even Abman spoke awkwardly.

“Rest, Jandel.”

Only then did it hit me.

Snore!!

The exceptionally long first day had finally ended.