Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 439
C439: Giant Step (1)
As soon as the meeting time came, the man who had just entered donned a deer horn mask and stepped out into the hallway. He quickly headed for the room with the round table.
Unlike usual, the round table was empty.
“Looks like I’m the first one here.”
The man glanced around and made his way to a seat.
It was four seats away to the left of where Mr. Lion normally sat.
Ever since empty seats started popping up at the round table, everyone had been leaving exactly one seat open between them.
Assuming all seven members attended, he could definitely secure the second turn.
‘Being first is kind of a hassle…’
After all, the quality of the entire round of information depends on what the first speaker says.
‘And, more than anything, that seat is right next to him…’
The third or fourth seats weren’t bad, but he would have to face that person directly.
The later seats were too burdensome.
Well, that clown guy seems to like the attention so he always sits in the back.
‘That guy’s just born that way.’
Anyway, the man with the deer mask didn’t know it, but the seat he had chosen was secretly the most popular seat among the other members. Maybe that’s why…
“Oh! Deer Horns? You actually showed up this time?”
As soon as the goblin mask entered the room, he greeted him and sat down one seat away from him.
“Mind if I sit here?”
When the meeting began, this seat would make him the third speaker.
“Did you have some urgent business last time?”
When the goblin mask asked this question after sitting down, Deer Horns’ replied vaguely.
“Just personal matters.”
“Is that so?”
Since it was more or less just small talk, Goblin mask didn’t seem too bothered by the short answer.
Deer Horns asked carefully,
“By the way, did anything happen?”
“…What?”
“Last session, I mean. I was wondering if anything significant happened while I was away…”
The way Deer Horns asked sounded a little too humble, given he was talking to Goblin mask.
Well, this kind of behavior was close to being bad manners.
It was an unspoken rule of the Round Table not to tell non-participants what had happened at previous meetings.
But…
‘If it’s the Goblin mask, maybe he’ll tell me.’
After all, what other reason was there for him to rush in like this?
He wanted to fish for information from someone else before other members arrived.
And the goblin mask was the first to arrive.
Lucky him—
Footsteps.
At that moment, the sound of someone approaching came from the direction of the door.
Another member, arriving right after the Goblin.
‘It’s Fox mask, of all people.’
Given her meddlesome nature, she would likely prevent the goblin from answering his questions.
Deer Horns heaved a sigh at the thought.
“I overheard it by accident.”
“…”
“Don’t worry about it. Nothing happened”
“What do you mean?”
“Mr. Lion didn’t show up last time.”
“Mr. Lion didn’t attend…?”
“Yes. And naturally, the clown and the queen just left soon after. Without him there, the session pretty much ended on the spot.”
“Oh…”
“If your curiosity is satisfied, please don’t do this again. Once someone breaks the rule, it isn’t a rule anymore.”
Her voice carried a hint of discomfort.
“…I’ll be more careful.”
The fox mask then turned her gaze to the goblin mask.
“And you, Mr. Goblin.”
“Eh? Me? Why?”
“Don’t just answer everything you’re asked. Or rather, be careful with what you say.”
“…Ha ha! You’re right, Fox. Watch what I say… yes, I’ll be careful… ha ha ha!”
While the Goblin mask let out an awkward laugh, the Fox mask looked around at the empty seats and sat in the fourth seat.
“Um, Fox. In that case, the first turn goes to Crescent Moon, right?”
“That is, if he shows up. I don’t think he likes sitting in the back seats.”
“…Hmm, but I wonder if Mr. Lion will miss again?”
“Who knows. We’ll find out if we wait.”
“Ha, ha ha. Right…”
Watching the goblin and fox mask converse, he got a vague sense of discord.
Something’s off about them,
It seemed like the Fox mask was quite comfortable with the Goblin mask , whereas the Goblin mask seemed uneasy around the Fox.
But Deer Horns didn’t dwell on it. There were bigger issues to think about.
‘So Mr. Lion didn’t attend…’
In a way, it was a relief.
He had been regretful about missing the meeting, but if he had attended, it wouldn’t have made much difference.
At least he hadn’t missed out on much.
But one thing still nagged at him.
[Mr. Lion is Bjorn Jandel.]
The queen had said this in front of the gemstone.
Of course, the gem had turned red and everyone let it go.
But it had been a hot topic around the table for a while, as many details seemed to overlap between Mr Lion and Bjorn Jandel.
‘…But that’s probably just a coincidence. They’re too different to be the same person.’
After all, Bjorn Jandel was now a fourth-year explorer.
And Mr. Lion had joined this community about 20 years ago.
They couldn’t possibly be the same person.
But…
“What am I missing? This nagging feeling…”
He glanced at the goblin, who was still chatting with the fox mask.
“When will Crescent Moon arrive? It seems like the clown and the queen will be last as usual.”
“Why do you address the queen so formally?”
“Ha ha… Do I?”
Right, it was this guy.
He had been the first to suggest that Bjorn Jandel might be the same person as Lion mask.
The timing of Bjorn’s ‘death’ was suspicious, he’d said, only to be laughed at by everyone else.
“Perhaps it’s because… well, she is a queen…”
He joined their conversation.
“Listen, Goblin.”
“…Yes?”
“Do you still think that Mr. Lion could be Bjorn Jandel?”
“Uh… suddenly?”
“Just curious.”
“Hmm…”
The goblin seemed perplexed by the question, but eventually, he answered.
“No. I don’t think so.”
His voice was clear and decisive.
He spoke decisively, and Deer Horns nodded in understanding.
“That makes sense… A person summoned 22 years ago can’t be the same as him.”
“Yes? Ah… that’s true…”
When the goblin mask responded somewhat hesitantly, Deer Horns tilted his head.
“…Hmm? Is there another reason?”
“Well… I actually don’t think Bjorn Jandel is an evil spirit.”
“Oh, is that why?”
The royal family’s announcement that Bjorn Jandel was an evil spirit had been strategic, and the new news that he isn’t, has spread across the world.
So that reaction made sense—
“No, there’s another reason for it…”
What? Another reason?
When Deer Antlers shot a look that demanded explanation, the Goblin Mask seemed to check the Fox’s reaction and then spoke.
“I can’t say much, but… Bjorn Jandel isn’t an evil spirit. He can’t be an evil spirit. I’m sure of that, at least.”
Having said that, the goblin shut up, as if to say he wouldn’t be answering any more questions. And Deer Horns dropped the subject too.
‘…Come to think of it, Sven Parab was also in that expedition party.’
Evil Spirits can often detect fellow Evil Spirits with relative ease.
And if the Goblin mask had traveled side by side with Bjorn in the Labyrinth, maybe that personal experience led him to a conclusion that couldn’t be ignored.
‘So… I guess Bjorn Jandel isn’t really an evil spirit.’
Deer Horns did not contemplate the matter further.
The subtle nagging feeling from before had already slipped away…
“Everyone’s already here before me.”
It was Crescent Moon who arrived fourth and took the first-turn seat. After him, the remaining members began to arrive.
“Happy to see everyone again today.”
The Queen came fifth, sitting in the fifth seat.
And then—
“Pssit.”
The Clown also arrived.
As everyone but one had taken their seats, all eyes naturally turned to one place.
It was somewhat comical.
All these people gathering and leaving one seat open like a seat of honor, waiting endlessly for a single person to show up.
“Ahh, I really hope he comes today.”
As if answering the Clown’s wish, footsteps echoed from down the hall.
Tap, tap.
The small steps sounded far away.
At the sound, the man in the deer antler mask unknowingly tensed his shoulder muscles.
What a strange thing.
Thud.
It was just the sound of ordinary walking.
It was strange.
It was just ordinary footsteps.
The person wasn’t even visible in the corridor yet. So why did it feel so intimidating?
He wondered if it was some lethal aura technique, but he knew better.
Tap, tap.
Yes, there was nothing special about those footsteps.
If any one of them walked, they’d make pretty much the same sound. And yet, the instant the footsteps were heard, everyone fell silent.
Tap, tap.
They all knew. Even if the sound itself was ordinary—
Tap, tap.
The person making it was not.
Tap, tap.
When the footsteps sounded again, he finally appeared.
“Pssit, welcome—”
The Clown sprang up to greet him like some devoted underling, but the man didn’t even glance at him. He simply took the empty seat. Then—
“….”
He sat, propped his chin on his hand, and said nothing.
“…I better be extra careful today.”
He unknowingly swallowed.
It wasn’t even that he felt ashamed for acting so careful. Surely everyone else felt the same.
“….”
“….”
They all felt the atmosphere shift.
***
I really just want to flip over and take a nap.
“Ah, I’m so sleepy…”
I leaned back, forcibly suppressing a yawn that kept threatening to escape.
Maybe I should have skipped today?
Beyond tired, I felt like I could fall asleep at any moment.
“Why is it so quiet here today?”
I didn’t feel like talking, so I just stayed quiet, hoping the meeting would proceed on its own, but the silence stretched on unusually long.
“…”
“…”
Why were they acting like this?
I had expected them to bombard me with questions about why I hadn’t come last time.
Unable to bear it any longer, I finally spoke up.
“How long.”
“…?”
“Are we going to keep this up?”
“…!!”
Let’s start; I’m about to die of sleepiness.
I meant it in a roundabout way, and the goblin quickly responded.
“Yes, yes! We, we, we should start! So, starting with Mr. Crescent Moon… would be… good…”
Hmm, I thought the Fox would lead the proceedings, but it’s the Goblin stepping in.
He seemed nervous, stammering like that, but at least it got everyone’s attention on Crescent Moon in seat one.
“…I knew I should’ve picked a different seat.”
Crescent Moon sighed as if the first turn was a burden, then officially opened the meeting.
“Alright, I’ll start.”
The first piece of information was about the fairy race. Or more precisely, about Erwin.
She mentioned that the Blood Spirit Queen had expressed an intention to resign from the Pureblood Legion.
The round table’s lantern glowed green for him.
Apparently, the Pureblood Legion is some kind of elite unit among fairies, and Erwin was on temporary leave from it. She’d said she was going to file for resignation soon.
Tap, tap.
So, the first piece of information was something I already knew.
“The expedition led by Bjorn Jandel was destined to be sacrificed from the start,”
Deer Horns, who was in second turn, got a red light after mentioning that the expedition was a sacrifice.
It seemed like the fox, the goblin, and I already knew the story.
In the end, Deer Horns tried again, flustered…
“…The royal family has offered to grant Bjorn Jandel a noble title for his contributions in this expedition.”
Although a green light appeared, there was no feedback.
Normally, someone would have chimed in, “So he won’t just be a lesser baron but a proper baron? Can he pass it on to his children?” or something like that.
Come to think of it, it was the same during Crescent Moon’s turn.
Why’s everyone so quiet today?
Truth be told, the expedition news would have been shocking to most of them, but we already knew it.
Their reaction was a bit odd, but I didn’t really care.
I was too tired to bother.
Tap, tap.
Anyway, I guess that second piece of information was a dud too.
Should I have told the Fox and the Goblin in advance? If I had, maybe it would’ve shown up as a red light this time, too.
As I was licking my lips in regret, it was time for the third turn.
The goblin, who was in his turn, trembled and got straight to the main point.
I expected him to talk about the expedition, but he didn’t.
Was it because of the fox’s warning to be careful what he said?
Hmm, he could still have shared something helpful…
But the internal affairs of some church I don’t care about…
That’s just how the Goblin is.
Sometimes he spills important stuff, but most of the time the quality of his information is pretty low.
Anyway, the lantern lit green, so we moved on.
So that’s three duds in a row…
Something felt off today.
Usually, even if the lantern turned green, someone would object and force a second piece of information if the first one wasn’t good. Why is everyone just letting it slide?
Tap, tap.
I didn’t feel like stepping in, so I just let it go.
For now, I can consider the Goblin an ally.
So now it’s the Fox’s turn.
Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much here either.
She’d been in the Labyrinth with me the whole time, just like the Goblin…
“…Major clans are planning a collective boycott. They’re angry that an expedition with a special mission was formed without even informing them.”
I already knew this from my time in the city.
Although she was expelled from the clan after being in a vegetative state, the Fox, who had long been Vice-Captain, had a wide network and access to various pieces of information.
She now shared that network with me.
So the fourth piece of info is a dud as well.
I hoped the next one might be different…
Tap, tap.
As I shifted my gaze to the queen, our eyes briefly met.
But did my look make her uncomfortable?
Swoosh.
Startled, the queen immediately looked away. She then spoke in an uncharacteristically timid voice,
“…The GM has lifted that guy’s… Lee Baek-ho’s ban from the community.”
It was obviously the GM’s doing.
She was trying to emphasize that she’d carried out the request I’d asked of her a while back.
Oh, for crying out loud—never mind that, just spit out some real info.
Tap, tap.
Anyway, the content was good enough to get a green light from everyone else, so it moved on to the next person.
“…It’s already my turn. pssit.”
No one had made any side comments; they just spat out their info, so we arrived at the sixth turn way faster than usual.
Whew. Right, this guy’s always the wild card.
Even though I was so sleepy I could die, I still had some hope that he’d come up with something interesting, so I kept my ears open.
But…
“I’m sure you’ve all heard that the Dragon Slayer, Regal Vargos, is dead…”
He opened with something like he was testing the waters, but the info he ultimately revealed was a real letdown.
“Bjorn Jandel, that guy, the royal family said he was given a special mission and infiltrated our side. All of that is a lie.”
Not only was it not helpful, it was downright annoying.
Tsk. Great, now I’ll have to explain everything to the Fox and the Goblin later, because they believed that story…
In any event, the Clown got a solid green light for his info.
And then came my turn.
“…” “…”
All eyes were on me.
It was the usual pattern once my turn came around.
Since I joined, an unspoken rule had developed at the round table: if they brought me something entertaining, I’d evaluate it and give them a reward in return.
So, how was it this time?
Was it really something I was interested in hearing?
Thump.
My response was simple.
I raised my hand to the gem and spoke.
Normally, I might have filtered what I said, watered it down, but I couldn’t be bothered today.
“Everything you guys just said.”
Honestly, I was pissed off.
“It was complete garbage.”
That wasn’t me playing some persona. I was 100% serious.
I mean, I had to stifle countless yawns just to listen through that crap.
“I feel like taking a nap would’ve been more productive.”
The moment I lifted my hand from the gem, the lantern lit up.
Ssssssssssshh—
Such a strange thing.
“So you all really didn’t know?”
“…”
“Seeing that it’s glowing green.”
It made me want to sleep out of boredom.