Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 493
Chapter 493: Declaration of War (4)
Booooooom!
I broke the wall and crawled through into a new, empty passageway, then proceeded to take up my jog again. Whenever I would get surrounded, I would simply swing my hammer at another wall and continue running away.
Booooooom!
Occasionally, the wall would lead to a dead end, but that wasn’t a problem.
Because of the structure of the building, it was clear that I could also go upstairs and downstairs as well.
Booooooom!
As I smashed the ceiling, jumping upstairs, I was met with an unusual place. One of the main differences was the minimal lights and the dozens of steel bars that spanned the length of the long corridor. Behind those bars were people from every race, some of whom were barbarians. Every one of them who was trapped behind those bars was marked with a tattoo in a similar location.
Slaves…
Even though a massive barbarian had just suddenly broken through the floor, they all stared into the air mindlessly with a helpless look in their eyes. As a twenty-first-century barbarian, it was an unsettling sight to behold.
So slaves still exist in this world.
Slavery was illegal in Rafdonia. At one point, those who committed grave sins were legally cast into slavery, but that practice had long since disappeared from this world when the law was revised about one hundred years ago. The slaves who had originally committed heinous crimes were executed and those who were enslaved under misdemeanor charges were forced to pay a fine before being restored to their status as ordinary citizens. In the end, though, most died shortly after, as there was no way for a slave to pay their taxes.
As I looked around, I came across one little boy who still had some life in his eyes. I went over to him to talk to him. “Hey.” When I called out, he skittered away until his back was pushed up against the wall like I had scared him. Not caring, I asked him a question. “Why were you caught and put here?”
Unfortunately, the response came from behind me instead. “…S-stop! Baron Yandel!”
Why won’t these guys ever quit? They should know by now that they won’t be able to subdue me.
I ignored them and stared at the little boy in front of me. Surprisingly, hearing the cries of the people chasing after me seemed to help me get a response out of the boy. “Giant…?” As he quietly murmured one of my nicknames, his eyes opened wide. “Giant… I heard you are a hero who saves people and punishes bad guys…
Is that true?”
“Well, sort of.”
“…Are you here to save us too?”
“No,” I replied honestly. “I just happened to find you. So tell me, how did you end up here?”
The big guy who had been chasing behind me and begging me to stop slowly drew near. The little boy flicked his gaze between me and him before saying, “My mom… she couldn’t pay her debt, so I had to pay it back instead.”
“Your mom? What happened to her?”
“Because she couldn’t pay taxes…she died.”
“What about that elf girl next to you?” I asked while glancing down at the girl who was sitting next to him behind the bars.
“She couldn’t pay her debts back either,” the little boy quietly explained. “She had the money, but the bad guys wouldn’t take it. That’s why she was brought here.”
I didn’t respond.
“She managed to escape before and came back here to save me, but…after the bad guys dragged her away a few times, she doesn’t say anything anymore.”
“I see.”
That was why this kid was the only one with a spark of life in his eyes. Those who rebelled and fought back must have already gone through intense brainwashing. A person’s will could break more easily than one might think.
Then that settles it…
After finishing my conversation with the little boy, I turned toward the big guys. The one at the front flinched when our eyes met. He looked like a bully who had just been caught picking on a weak friend.
Step.
I approached, taking deliberately slow steps as I asked, “Did you know?” He lifted his shield as he quietly gulped. “I haven’t killed anyone so far.” I knew they were bad guys, so I beat them down without mercy, but I still controlled my power so they at least wouldn’t die. “Why do you think that is?”
“…You don’t want to be enemies with us either. That’s what the higher-ups have decided.”
“Is that so? That’s correct,” I calmly agreed.
The reason these guys didn’t hurt me was because they had guessed what my intentions were from the start. Otherwise, they would have never treated an intruder like this. If I had been running around beating everyone to death, there was no way they would only be holding shields to subdue me. That was why I planned to assert my dominance just a little bit, then have a peaceful conversation with the boss here to get what I wanted and leave.
However, things were different now.
“Please tell us what you want.”
Why did I always make a Plan B? Because this world was full of variables. There would always be something that forced me to change my plans, just like this.
“We are ready to have a conversation with—”
Before he could finish his sentence, I gathered all my strength to land a sturdy blow at his chin.
Crack!
Despite his large size, he flew like a baseball straight into the wall where he collapsed onto the ground, wriggling like a bug on its last legs.
“How sturdy.” Looking at him, I spoke calmly. “I even swung to kill.”
Immediately, everyone standing behind him flinched in response. However, despite my actions, the bug had still not grasped the situation. “Why…did you do that?”
Oh, that?
“Didn’t you say it earlier, Your Lordship? That you didn’t want to be enemies with us?”
“Yeah, I did.” I lifted my hammer and watched him writhe in pain.
As I stalked closer, his expression shifted. “Stop. You are going to regret this…”
What a strange thing to say. “Why would I regret this?” I swung my hammer down as hard as I could.
Crack!
His wiggling body stopped moving.
“You should be the ones regretting it.”
This was the right choice.
There was no further conversation to be had. After slamming his face in with my hammer, everyone clamped their mouths shut and raised their guards, scrutinizing every little move I made.
Step.
As soon as I took a step forward, the group of large men also took a step back in unison. It happened just as I found the right time to rush to all of them.
Creeeak!
Suddenly, the door creaked open behind me. When I turned around to see a middle-aged man who was heavily escorted by a group of large men walking through a thick iron door.
“Let’s stop here, Baron Yandel,” he called to me.
“Who are you?”
“I am Mel, the current head of the Shadow Organization.” Simply put, he was in charge of this black market. The one who called himself Mel glanced over at his subordinate who was on the ground. “That friend of mine over there. Is he still alive?”
“…He’s still breathing, boss.”
“That’s a relief.” Mel then asked, “Baron Yandel, before we begin our conversation, may I treat my friend over there first?”
“Do you think that I, a baron of Rafdonia, would accept the demands of a criminal who committed treason?”
“Haha, treason… It seems that you have a very low opinion of us.”
“Then is there another opinion to have? You clearly disobey the strict laws of Rafdonia.”
“Hm, I see.” He nodded as if the point I made was true. “Then, everyone, get out of the way.”
Our onlookers’ eyes bugged at his orders.
“Boss!”
“It’s too dangerous!”
His underlings started to protest, but Mel was stubborn. “I won’t say it twice.”
I didn’t know how he normally disciplined them, but as soon as he said that, they all shut their mouths and started to leave.
Step, step.
Mel walked down the hallway, getting closer to me. Now, only the two of us were left. To be honest, I was surprised to see him act like this. Was he incredibly strong? Confident enough that he could take me on? Or did he not care if he died here? There were a million possibilities that filled my head.
Step.
However, he simply walked past me and squatted down by his underling on the floor, leaving his back completely defenseless as he took out a potion from his pocket.
Sizzle!
Bubbles started to boil up from the underling’s punched-in face. The body of the big guy, who was about to die at any moment, began to tremble weakly.
“That’s a high-quality potion.”
“Yes, it is.”
I didn’t understand this situation at all. Just what in the world was happening?
Unable to think up an answer no matter how much I thought it over, I decided to ask him bluntly, “What are you trying to do?”
“I’m only saving someone that was about to die.”
“But you could have died instead?”
“Yes, that’s true. But that man is one of my people.”
I was left speechless for a moment. I had seen countless leaders before, but I had never seen someone like him. “You’re risking your life for a reason like that?”
“A person’s values are subjective. Just like how you changed your mind the moment you stumbled across these slaves here.”
“…You’re a funny guy.”
“Now, how about we move locations? This place isn’t the most conducive to conversation.” He immediately turned back down the hallway, offering me his defenseless back again. I was dumbfounded, but all I could do for now was follow along.
After passing through several doors, we eventually reached a small room. “This is a private room that we have prepared for our guests. All of our customers have already returned to the city for the day, so you don’t have to worry about anyone disrupting us.” He sat down at the table in the center of the room, then looked at me in an apparent order to sit down with him.
At this point, I couldn’t help but ask him, “Are you not afraid?”
“I am afraid.”
“Doesn’t look like it.”
“That can’t be helped, can it? If I hurt you, Baron Yandel, then that will be the end of me. Both my family and this place will come to an end. I am not so reckless as to do such a thing.”
“Isn’t acting like this reckless too?”
“Well, if I die, then I die. There’s nothing more to it. At the end of the day, someone else will take over in my place, and though it might take some time, everything will return to the way it was. Dirty water always collects at the lowest point.”
I couldn’t find the words to respond.
“Oh, and even though you may have been able to vent your anger, you won’t be able to return with what you initially came for.”
How could someone be so brave? Even though our conversation wasn’t long, it was enough to realize just how impressive he was. However, there was no need to beat around the bush any longer. “So what do you want to say?”
“You should be the one to answer that, not me. Didn’t you come here because you wanted something?”
Oh. Damn, yeah, that’s true.
I was left speechless at his response. Since I didn’t want to look weak in our negotiations, I decided to demand what I wanted right away without worrying any longer. “Give me the personal information of your clients.” That was my main purpose for visiting the black market.
“Some wizards…are making requests through the black market.”
As supply dwindled, wizards had even been going to the black market to obtain barbarian hearts.
“Your Lordship, i-in the black market…there is also a request for your heart.”
Someone had asked for my heart.
“I-I’m not lying… I was just offered the job through the black market. I-I don’t know anything else… I-I don’t know who made the request either…”
Someone else had made a request to sabotage our raid against a Lord of the Floor.
“I see…So that’s why you came all the way here.”
“I don’t need an excuse, just answer me.”
“From our position, asking for the personal information of our clients is a very difficult demand.”
“So you won’t do it?”
“No. I’m a merchant, after all. This will reduce the number of commissions we receive, but it would still be more beneficial to us than to become enemies with you.”
“So?”
“I will arrange for the personal information of our clients to be delivered to you within the day,” Mel said, calmly accepting my request.
The development was completely outside of my expectations. The only reason I ran around causing mayhem beforehand was because I assumed our negotiations would be a long quarrel.
“Is that everything?” he inquired.
“No, there is one more thing.”
“Please tell me.”
I asked Mel for my final request. “Free the slaves that are locked up here.”
I can’t just leave after seeing that.
“Hmmm. I see that you are the type who believes in human dignity.”
“You’re quite curious about me, but all I need to hear from you is a yes or a no.”
“…May I calculate for a moment?”
“Go ahead.”
After giving him my permission, Mel closed his eyes without any fear, thinking it through. About three minutes later, he finally opened his eyes. “Alright. I will free the slaves and refrain from working with the slave industry from now on.”
“…That was a quick decision?”
As if he had nothing to hide, he calmly responded, “In truth, it’s a business I wanted to part ways with earlier myself.”
“You wanted to leave it?”
“There have been quite a few instances where the buyer was unable to properly manage their slaves. There have been a number of occasions where that nearly led to a major incident.”
So he had tried to cut ties with the industry several times before, but he was unable to find proper justification? It must have been even harder to close it given the large profits the industry was making during his predecessors’ reigns.
“Since it’s by your request and arrival,” he continued, “now no one can oppose my decision. This turned out rather well for us. Then, is that everything?”
“Yeah. I’ll get out of your way as soon as I am given your clients’ information and see the slaves released.”
“If that is the case, I will work toward fulfilling your requests as soon as possible.”
After wrapping up our conversation, he summoned his underlings back and gave them orders. By daybreak, I was given the information I needed, and all the hundreds of slaves were set free.
“Mel Asmond,” I asked as I was about to leave, “why were you willing to give in to my demands so easily?”
Rather than responding, he looked at me with a peculiar expression. “I see you are already aware of my house.”
That’s because I completed the black market episode in the game.
I knew about how House Asmond had reigned as king of this place for many years.
Still, I wouldn’t be distracted. “That’s not what I asked you?”
When I harshly asked him again, he confessed his feelings openly. “Heroes are always short-lived. There’s no reason for us to be on the end of a falling blade.”
In other words, with the way I acted, I wouldn’t live for much longer.
Mel Asmond, the head of the Black Market. What an interesting guy.
For some reason, I had a feeling I would be seeing him again in the future.