Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Episode 306

Rainweilz (4)

‘Was my recruitment offer that unexpected?’

Amelia studied me with a look that suggested she was trying to understand my intentions. But when she couldn’t find any hidden motives, she continued in a somewhat bitter voice.

“I am… a plunderer.”

“You’re from Noark, so that’s to be expected. But I know better than anyone that you’re fundamentally different from them.”

In fact, during our first encounter, Amelia spared me and Aynar’s lives and let us go.

The same happened when we met in the sewers.

With the dwarf, Rotmiller, Misha, and even Dwalki.

Not only me, a ‘Barbarian’, but she gave everyone the precious ‘Blessing of Lethe’, a different method instead of killing everyone .

That’s why…

“My information is registered with the Explorer’s Guild. The royal family would surely know about it too—”

I cut Amelia off firmly.

“If needed, we can just create a new identity.”

“It’s not as easy as it sounds. Being next to you, a noble, will definitely attract people who will try to uncover my true identity—”

Geez, she’s really talkative today.

“That’s why I said, if I take care of all those variables, you should join my clan.”

“That kind of thing… … can’t happen, that’s why I’m saying it now. If you insist when the time comes, it’ll be difficult for both of us—”

“Stop trying to lay the groundwork.”

“Groundwork…?”

“Enough. Whether it works out or not is for me to handle. All you need to do is give me an answer.”

A simple yes-or-no choice.

When I neatly summed up the situation, Amelia hesitated for a moment before letting out a sigh.

“Sigh, why do you always make things so difficult for me…?”

“So, what’s your answer?”

“Fine. If it becomes possible for me to stay by your side without any issues…”

Amelia trailed off and averted her gaze.

But perhaps she wasn’t pleased with her unconscious behavior.

Swoosh.

Amelia lifted her head and looked into my eyes.

“Then, I’ll become your comrade.”

The quest was accepted.

****

Quest Title: Save My Sister!

Objective: Ensure sister’s survival (0/1), Resolve identity issues (0/1)

Reward: Amelia Rainweilz (SSR) Recruitment Ticket

Hmm, something like that.

As I neatly summarized the quest, Amelia took the bottle of alcohol from the table and gulped it down.

“Didn’t you say you don’t drink because you don’t get drunk?”

“I was thirsty.”

Oh, really.

But saying that while chugging down alcohol makes her seem quite macho.

Thud.

Amelia set the bottle down with a frown.

Seeing this, I couldn’t help but ask.

“Do you not like alcohol?”

“How can anyone find this stuff tasty?”

“No, I was just checking. I don’t really enjoy it either.”

People often say that after enduring many hardships, alcohol can begin to taste sweet, so I was curious. I’ve been through my share of hardships, but I still feel the same about it.

“…Enough with the idle talk, let’s get to the main topic.”

With that, Amelia sat down across from me.

“You wanted to know about Nibels Entze, right? I’ll tell you. Maybe hearing your thoughts will help me think of another way.”

“Sounds good.”

“Ah, and one more thing. Just so you know, I’ll only become your comrade if you keep all the promises you just made. Understand?”

“But I asked you to join the clan, not just be a comrade, didn’t I?”

“Ah, well…”

Amelia flinched at my words.

“You’re right… I assumed it meant the same thing. If they’re different, then let me correct—”

“No need. Now that I think about it, comrade sounds better than clan member.”

“…Were you teasing me just now?”

Sharp as always.

“Of course not.”

Amelia eyed me suspiciously but, without any solid proof, she didn’t say anything more.

Time to change the subject.

“Hurry up and tell me. Everything I don’t know, including Nibels Entze.”

Returning to the main topic, Amelia erased her playful expression and began recalling her memories.

“Nibels Entze is the name of the man who saved my life that day. ‘Iron Mask’ was his nickname in Noark.”

“I thought so.”

That cleared up one of my uncertainties.

I’m the one who saved this woman’s life.

Haha, no wonder she’s been strangely soft on me since the day I arrived in Noark wearing that iron mask.

“So, I’ve been debating whether I should tell you this. I came here to change the past, but the more I struggle, the more it feels like everything is happening as if it’s already been decided.”

“I see.”

Having gone through a similar experience myself, I didn’t need to say much.

“But you said you wouldn’t give up. Alright, just tell me. When did you next meet me—or rather, Nibels Entze?”

“I don’t know the exact date. But if my memory is correct, it’s about three weeks from now. The place is inside the inner castle…”

I continued talking with Amelia for a long time, gathering all the information I needed to know.

Amelia answered everything honestly, without the usual caution or evasiveness.

It was, in a way, our first perfect communication.

Ah, but of course, that didn’t mean we immediately found a solution.

“Do you have any more questions?”

“No, I think I’ve heard everything I need.”

“I see. Then perhaps…”

“Sorry. To be honest, I’m not sure yet. I need to think about it more.”

“I see…”

When I said I hadn’t come up with anything either, Amelia looked disappointed but didn’t press the issue.

“Well, it’s not like I expected you to come up with a plan immediately.”

“Sounds like you didn’t have high expectations.”

“…Strange guy. If I didn’t expect anything, I wouldn’t have bothered telling you all this.”

“Hmm, so you trust me?”

“…To some extent.”

“To some extent, huh.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

Under normal circumstances, I would have seen it as a slippery answer, but since it was Amelia who said it, it felt oddly gratifying.

You know, that feeling where you take your parents’ compliments with a grain of salt, but when someone who’s usually a bitch gives you a favorable comment, you feel somehow validated.

“Anyway, if you don’t have any more questions, it’s my turn now.”

“Huh?”

“Why are you surprised? Of course, I have things I’m curious about too.”

“Ah, I guess you would. Go ahead, ask. What are you so curious about?”

“What exactly did you talk about with Auril Gavis? You didn’t go into detail back then.”

I thought she would ask about the world I came from, but it wasn’t that.

She really doesn’t have unnecessary curiosity.

Well, that makes things easier for me.

“Honestly, the only thing worth mentioning was what I already told you. But since you’re curious, I’ll start from the beginning. When I woke up, I was in a mansion that felt strangely familiar. Ah, to explain why it felt familiar would take a while…”

“It’s fine, go ahead. We still have plenty of time.”

“Uh… alright then.”

After that, I recounted everything that happened in the spiritual world last month.

Naturally, the names of some big figures came up.

The leader of Orcules.

The Ruin Scholar, Belbev Ruinzenes.

And a mysterious man called ‘Kagureas’.

“Kagureas? That’s a name I’ve never heard before.”

Unfortunately, Amelia didn’t know anything about that man either.

Well, the other two were different cases.

“The leader of Orcules was there… I’d heard rumors that he might be an evil spirit, but I didn’t expect it to be true. So, you come from the same place as the leader?”

“Not exactly. Just because we’re all evil spirits doesn’t mean we come from the same dimension.”

“Is it the same with the Ruin Scholar?”

“Probably. People from my world only started getting dragged here around this time.”

“I see… You’ve shared quite an incredible secret. There weren’t even rumors that Ruinzenes was an evil spirit.”

“On that note, can you tell me more about those two?”

“I don’t know much, but if you want to hear what I do know…”

Even as she started, Amelia made sure to lower expectations. But still, she shared some valuable information.

I didn’t know much, after all.

There isn’t much information available about the leader of Orcules or the Ruin Scholar.

As someone from Noark with many ties to Orcules, Amelia had a different level of knowledge.

“So, you’ll be called back there again in 15 days?”

“Probably. The guy mentioned resolving the fairness issue before I left, so I’m curious about how that turned out. Oh, is there anything you want to ask that guy? If I get summoned, I can ask for you.”

“…I’ll think about it.”

With no more questions to ask, we ended our conversation and lay down. Having nearly stayed up all night, the day felt particularly long.

But lying down, I wondered if she was curious about something else?

“Bjorn, what kind of world did you live in?”

Unlike her usual self, Amelia started asking all sorts of questions, and I answered them one by one.

Democracy, science, cars, airplanes, missiles.

Every topic required an explanation, so the conversation dragged on, but it wasn’t boring or tedious.

For one thing, it was the first time.

It was the first time I talked to someone about these things in this body.

Normally, I had to be so careful about what I said, even down to individual words, to hide that I was an evil spirit. But with Amelia, there was no need for such caution.

How much time passed like that?

“It was quite an interesting conversation. Most of it I already knew, though.”

“What? You knew? How could you?”

“There are many evil spirits in Noark who reveal their true identities. You hear all sorts of stories from them.”

“I see… Wait, then why did you ask me?”

“That’s…”

Amelia trailed off.

A long silence followed.

“Are you asleep?”

“…”

“Don’t pretend. I know you sleep like a dolphin, with half of your brain awake.”

“…”

Is this what it feels like when the student surpasses the master?

I never expected her to use one of the two ways to irritate someone against me.

“…Are you really asleep?”

“…”

Well, look at that, she’s even snoring now.

Hah, this is hilarious. Is she acting or what?

I have no idea, but after that, I stopped talking and closed my eyes.

For a simple reason.

If she was truly in a deep sleep for the first time in a while, I didn’t want to disturb her.

“…Sleep well.”

I turned over to face the wall, and soon fell asleep myself.

****

After that day, time passed quickly.

Or maybe not quickly, in a way.

To be honest, it felt like a very dull time.

I avoided going out to avoid creating any variables, so I spent all day cooped up in the lodging.

Ah, but it wasn’t a waste of time.

“Bjorn, you should take a shower.”

“I’m not going out, so why?”

“…You smell.”

We talked all day long.

The topics varied.

Sometimes it was about my homeworld, other times about memories of Amelia and her sister, and sometimes about incidents in the labyrinth.

Anyway, we talked about so many things that I got to know Amelia better.

Of course, the biggest takeaway was finally learning about Amelia’s essence list.

‘Has she never been part of a proper team? With those stats, I don’t understand why she only made it to the 8th floor.’

Amelia’s stats were much better than I expected.

Honestly, even without the Arc Steel Sword and ‘Dragon Speech,’ she was on par with the Dragon Slayer.

‘But it’s not just combat; she has talent as a scout too.’

With that as a foundation, she could perform well in the scout position, and as an aura user, she could easily slice through monsters with physical resistance, making her an extreme dealer.

The only downside is that she’s physically weak…

But that’s something I can manage by tanking in the front.

“Oh, right. What happened with your outing today?”

“As expected, they turned us down.”

Amelia answered as she dried her hair with a towel after her shower.

Tsk, I knew it would turn out this way.

“Hmm, maybe the offer was too low…”

Our attempt to recruit the Rainweilz sisters, who were part of another team, by offering money had failed.

“What about those guys? Do you think they might change their minds if we offer more money?”

“I’m not sure. But I don’t think that’s a good idea. If they realize we’re desperate to recruit them, they’ll become wary of us or even try to use that against us.”

“That’s true. The people here are all cunning.”

“But at least we managed to approach them naturally. Fortunately, they showed interest in us first.”

“Interest?”

“They asked if we’d consider joining their team.”

Things were progressing according to our plan, but neither of us looked happy.

After all, this had all happened in the past.

“Everything is falling into place so perfectly that it’s suffocating.”

In the original timeline, we also joined that team.

And after going through various events, that incident occurred about five months later.

“So, what are you going to do?”

“…I’ll join the team as planned. It might feel stifling, but being near the incident when it happens is the best way.”

“Is that so? Then let’s do that.”

I didn’t raise any objections.

No matter how I thought about it, it seemed impossible to change the past this way, but no better ideas were coming to mind.

For now, I decided to follow Amelia’s plan.

At least until a better one comes up.

So, with that in mind…

[23:55]

I checked the time once more.

Seeing this, Amelia spoke.

“Ah, now that I think about it, today’s the day.”

“Yeah.”

I drank a glass of water and lay down on the bed.

“Take care.”

Seeing her send me off felt a bit awkward.

“I still have five minutes left. Besides, it’ll only take a moment here anyway.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

After that, I spent the remaining time making small talk with Amelia.

Maybe because my opponent was Auril Gavis?

I was feeling a bit nervous—

Click.

The second hand on the clock on the nightstand ticked, and my vision blurred.

‘That soda was really good back then.’

I wonder if he’ll give me some if I ask again?