Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 638
Chapter 638: Political Schemes (2)
My life was in no way something for me to be ashamed of.
Not to say I had it all figured out and righteously overcame all my adversities like the heroes in fairy tales. I always did my best, but there were always things I wished I had done better. I had my faults and weaknesses like anyone else, and I was never afraid to own up to that fact.
“Hah…”
Yet today, I was embarrassed about myself. Why did multiple people come to mind when I heard the leader’s offer?
Have I lost it?
I couldn’t understand myself either. I thought about it for a long time while covering myself with my blanket.
Missha Karlstein.
Well, it was only natural that I would think about her. She was the first person to give me affection after I came over to this world and wasn’t able to approach anyone.
Erwen Fornacci di Tersia.
However, Erwen’s case was a little different. Although a part of me had always felt sorry for her, the emotion I felt for her was completely different from what a man might feel for a woman. However, I knew the feelings she had for me. As soon as marriage came up as a topic, she was bound to come to mind.
Relationships were just like that sometimes. Some preferred those that love them rather than the one they love.
Amelia Rainwales.
Ironically, Amelia, my once-enemy during her time as a plunderer, ended up becoming the most trustworthy person I knew. Someone who was always reliable no matter the situation. And on this topic, she honestly had a cute side as well.
The real problem was…
Why didn’t it end with just those three?
Raven, Hyeonbyeol, Ragna.
And Ainar—
No, she’s just a friend.
Compared to the three frontrunners, the thoughts about these women were short and sweet, but they did pass through my mind when the offer was made.
Just like a teenage boy who imagined a fulfilled life with any girl who graced him with a smile, I ended up imagining my married life with each one of them. Surprisingly enough, I felt that a life of joy and happiness would await me no matter who I chose.
…Have I actually lost it?
I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I just didn’t want to part ways with any of them. Since I was a noble, that sort of indulgence wasn’t anything illegal, but I didn’t want to be the one making that call.
But then, why did I still think of so many of them at once?
After thinking it over for a very long time, I found an answer that felt the most correct.
…Maybe this is natural.
For now, I didn’t have anyone I truly had feelings for. After what happened with Missha, I suppressed these emotions as much as I could. So when the talk of marriage suddenly came up, of course, I would think about the people closest to me.
And these were all the women around me, right?
Yeah, I’m not the weird one here.
Although it might seem like I was rationalizing here, my determination to hold onto that conclusion steadied my heart a little.
Snore! Snooooooore!
I ended up falling asleep and waking up the next day.
I snuck out of the new building, built where the chieftain’s tent used to be, without anyone noticing—
“You’re up early.”
Uh…
“Haha, I was thinking about going on a walk…”
As my eyes awkwardly darted away to look around us, Amelia let out a dry chuckle. “Don’t worry. No one else is around right now. They all said they would wait for you, but I convinced them to go back.”
“Uh… Really?”
“You’ll need to give them a proper answer at some point. Everyone is curious what decision you will make.”
Amelia seemed to have been waiting just to say that to me, as she coolly turned around to leave immediately after.
Then again, “cool” wasn’t the best word to describe her.
“And…I don’t know where you’re headed today but don’t come back too late. And contact me if you’re going to stay out.”
The way she interrupted her stylish exit by saying that made her seem more like a nagging mother. To be fair, it was another one of her charms.
Hah… I just had to end up talking about marriage at the dinner table…
This was why people needed to be careful about what they said. Death and life truly were decided by a wag of the tongue.
“It’s the chieftain!”
“The chieftain is leaving for the city!”
“Open the gates!”
I just wanted to go for a walk, but I somehow ended up arriving at the gates and ended up heading toward District Seven when they opened for me.
Since the reconstruction efforts hadn’t officially begun yet, District Seven still looked war-torn and destroyed. The residents were lying in front of their destroyed homes with only blankets to shield them from the elements, but they stood as soon as they saw me.
“Giant…! It’s the Giant!”
“What? The baron is here?”
“Baron Yandel…!”
Perhaps it was thanks to my reputation as a hero. Most people here would have quickly made themselves scarce in fear if it were any other noble passing through, but they reacted differently to me.
Of course, it wasn’t all good for me. Although it was nice to see the people come and give me words of thanks and blessings when I passed them, not all reacted that way.
“P-please! Please help my family! Our shop was destroyed, and at this rate, the taxes for next year…!”
Some asked for pity and begged me to help them.
“Lord Baron! Your Lordship! What will happen to our District Seven from now on? What about Bifron? What happened with Bifron?”
“I heard that the palace will abandon District Seven! Is that true?!”
Some questioned me as if hounding me for information.
“Please say something!”
While others still asked me questions and expected direct immediate answers as if they were entitled to them.
…It’s not like I don’t understand how they are feeling.
They’d found themselves in dire circumstances and had to be suffering day in and day out. The lack of proper news on top of that was probably making them feel frustrated.
And so I answered.
“Baron Yandel!”
“Don’t believe in weird rumors. District Seven will soon be reconstructed.”
“Lord Baron!”
“Take this and hold on for a little longer. I will work hard to get more relief supplies for you.”
“Your Lordship!”
“The barrier of Bifron? Why are you so afraid? Do not worry! This city will never collapse!”
Rather than get angry at them, I said words of encouragement and gave them the hope they wanted to hear as I walked down the street.
…Will she be here?
Since I was here anyway, I decided to visit the magic tower. I had received a few letters back in the holy land from this place as well.
Thanks to receiving an extended vacation from the palace after the expedition, Raven was carrying out her own personal investigation in the research lab here. The letters were asking me to visit her as soon as possible.
This isn’t an impregnable fortress at all.
I ended up smirking when I arrived at the magic tower. I heard that in the long history of its standing, it had never once been invaded by intruders, but that precedent had been broken twice in the last few years.
Once by me. And once by Noark.
Honestly, rather than being impregnable, it’s just well-situated.
Still, compared to the damage it sustained on the outside at its entrance, the interior had supposedly faired reasonably better. I heard that as soon as the invasion began, they bought time by using barrier magic before taking all their research data and equipment and teleporting out with the high-ranking officials and leaders of District Seven.
Other than the teleport magic circle being destroyed, they said that everything else was safe…
The Noarkans also seemed to have noticed that they’d left with everything valuable. They only ended up destroying the magic circles the palace could use and hadn’t touched anything else—
“Why are you standing around in front of the door? You should’ve just come in and waited for me if you were here.”
Raven appeared behind me, catching me where I had been waiting after arriving at the research lab.
“At least walk around to announce your presence or something,” I said snarkily.
“…What are you talking about?”
“Ha! What did I say about talking like that to a baron? Shortie.”
“What the, why are you picking a fight as soon as we meet? Did something piss you off on the way here?” When I didn’t respond, she asked, “Wait, did something actually piss you off?”
“No.”
I wasn’t technically lying. Rather than pissing me off, the attention of the residents had both mentally and physically drained me a little.
After a moment, Raven said, “Come in for now. We’ll talk inside.”
“By the way, where are you coming from? I assumed you would be inside since you’ve been talking about how busy you are.”
“I didn’t go far. I just visited someone I know to borrow something.”
“Borrow what?”
“It’s research equipment. Do you want me to explain it to you?”
“No, it’s fine.”
After entering the research lab and sitting down, I could see that Raven’s research lab had changed quite a bit from before as well.
“It’s a total mess, right?” she acknowledged. “Because of what happened, the magic tower is in chaos. My master took most of the things out while I wasn’t here, but quite a few things were missing when I looked around for them.”
“I see.”
“Well, since I took plenty of things to the research station in Karnon, there wasn’t much left here to begin with. Should I get you something to drink? You’re still a baron and all that.”
“Water’s fine.”
I gulped down water out of a 1.8-liter flask in Raven’s lab as we talked. A lot of time had already passed since we came out from Basement Floor 1, and a pretty big incident had happened after that as well.
“How did something like that happen to you immediately after returning?” she questioned.
As I summarized what happened to me after I returned to the city, Raven listened with great interest before making comments in between with a baffled expression.
“Honestly, whenever I think about it, it’s like you’re involved in all the major events happening in the world.”
Although it was tragic, I couldn’t retort at all. To be honest, since she knew most of the things that happened to me, I didn’t think she would even agree if I tried to refute her claim.
Why is the world hellbent on hurting me?
Was Hansu a cursed name?
“By the way…” Raven began in a serious tone when I tried to contemplate that question. “I’m a bit disappointed. I mean, I heard that you gave all the essences you got during the underground-floor expedition to the ordinary adventurers. Just by researching them, I would’ve been able to dominate the academic awards for at least the next few years.”
“Right, about that…”
“I’m saying this just in case you’ve got the wrong idea, but I’m not trying to blame you, Mr. Yandel. Honestly, when I heard you made that decision, I thought it was really just like you to do that.”
That threw me for a loop. “Huh? Just like me?”
For a moment, I wondered if she had seen through to my true intentions just from that information alone, but that wasn’t the case.
“You did it for the good of the city and to save its residents, right? I can’t really say it was an intelligent decision, but no matter what other people say, I…” Raven glanced to the side with a flustered expression. “I… Well… I think it was manly.”
It was a look I had never gotten from Raven for as long as we had been together. It was something close to respect and awe.
“Uh… R-really?” I stuttered.
“Yes.”
“But… You know…”
With how serious Raven looked throughout all this, I couldn’t even think about joking like I normally would and ended up immediately correcting her misunderstanding. “Well… Don’t feel too bad about it.”
“Yes, you’re right. You did it for a good cause. Maybe just thinking about how it could have benefited me might seem shallow from your perspective—”
“No, nothing like that…”
How could I tell her this?
I looked at Raven who was waiting for me to continue before confessing, “To be honest…”
“Yes, go on?”
“I’ve kept the useful ones.”
“…Pardon?”
The question was asked after a long moment of silence.
“You’ve… You’ve kept them?” she echoed. “What do you mean?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. Since I’ve given out a lot of essences, the palace won’t be able to really look into me at this rate.” No matter how I thought about it, it was such a great plan.
While I was praising myself in my heart, Raven’s jaw dropped. Then, she slowly began to speak, like someone who denied the reality presented to them.
“…You’ve messed with the property of the palace?”
“Yeah?”
“Are you nuts?”
I understood that I had earned that sort of response from her, but I couldn’t help but tilt my head. “Why are you acting like this is the first time I’ve done this? What’s the problem?”
We had already stashed something away once before back on the underground floor, after all.
“And weren’t you happy back then too?” I pressed. “You even gave it a cool name like Flower Crown of Anguish.”
“Th-th-this is different! No, why are you even being open with me about doing something like that in the first place?!”
Well now, look at how she was trying to back out.
Although I was a little saddened by her reaction, thankfully, I knew of a good way of dealing with wizards. “That’s because I didn’t want to hide anything from—”
“That won’t work anymore!”
“…Really?”
Maybe because she was a studious person, but she was quick on the uptake.
“Anyway, don’t tell anyone,” I warned. “I mean, if either this or that gets out, won’t you be executed either way?”
“No! Not at all! That one is fine if we both stay quiet, but the scale on this one is too big!”
Hmm… That was true.
“So, about that… Don’t you want to research them?”
“Th-that’s…!” Raven squirmed like a puppy who didn’t know what to do with the snack in front of her, before her shoulders shrunk down as she said in a quiet mumble, “I do.”
Yeah, that’s what I thought.