Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 696
Chapter 696: Evil Party (1)
Auril Gavis.
The creator of this damn game and the mysterious old man whose intentions I had yet to figure out.
Excluding the time I met him in the dream world when I returned to the modern world, the last time I met him was at the Round Table. He had suddenly appeared and declared he would shut down Ghost Busters. And he had even left an ominous parting message.
“Baekho, don’t get too close with that friend.”
It was honestly pretty ironic. After receiving that piece of advice, I was now traveling together with that very Baekho, and I met this old man during those travels.
Of course, ignoring those memories that appeared in my mind, I immediately picked up on the word he used.
He just said “everyone,” right…?
Still, it has been a while, everyone. This old man spoke those words and turned to look each of us in the face. It was as if he had prior contact with us all.
Do Aures and Jaina also have some connection with this guy? I wondered, glancing around.
“Seems everyone has grown more quiet since we last met,” the old man broke the continued silence and spoke once more.
Baekho responded with a growl, “It’s been a while, old man. You didn’t even show even a trace of yourself when I tried to look for you.”
His eyes were aggressive as if he was about to pounce at any moment. However, the target of this aggression, Auril Gavis, just let out a chuckle and continued speaking.
“In front of the people who are leading this era, what use is there for a person of the past like me to appear?”
That got a moment of hesitation out of Baekho. “What do you mean person of the past? Hey, old man. Do you know what all those ‘people of the past’ have in common?”
“Hmm, what is it?” Auril Gavis inquired, sounding genuinely unaware.
Baekho gave a low growl. “They’re all dead.”
Maybe he wanted to say that those alive weren’t of the past yet? I couldn’t know his exact intentions, but one thing was clear.
“So tell me if you want to become someone from the past. I’ll always be ready to help you out.”
Baekho’s hostility against Auril Gavis. It was not an act at all.
Well, from Baekho’s perspective, Auril Gavis was his mortal enemy because he was the one who had dragged us into this screwed-up world. All the anger and resentment built up while living here would naturally be honed and aimed against that old man.
“Sir.”
At that moment, GM suddenly joined the conversation. Just like Baekho, GM was a veteran player who had been stuck in this world for decades at this point, the emotions held in his voice were completely different.
“I am finally seeing you again, sir.”
Respect and goodwill seeped from GM’s tone of voice and the look in his eyes. I could instantly tell that this wasn’t something brought about because he was trying to grovel in front of someone more powerful than him.
“I wasn’t able to even greet you properly back then. I truly thank you for that.”
“Haha, that isn’t anything to thank me for.”
“What the hell are you two talking about?”
Although Baekho made his annoyance known and intruded on the conversation, neither GM nor Gramps answered his question. However, to take a guess…
Are they talking about the community?
It was the only thing I could think of considering their conversation. The one who had given GM the authority to manage Ghost Busters when GM was a newbie was the Gramps here.
“Rather, I thought you would hold more regret and resentment toward me, but I thank you for saying that.”
“I was a bit surprised because you didn’t notify me beforehand… But how could I dare resent you? You’ve only taken back what you let me borrow.”
“Haha, my eyes definitely weren’t wrong. I knew that you would grow into your shoes.”
“It’s all thanks to you. But may I ask how you know the baron…”
“Well, I just happened to know him through some unusual circumstances.”
“Ah… Is that so?”
The two of them laughed and complimented each other, the air between them gentle.
Baekho looked between them with open irritation and grumbled, “Hah, does that traitor not even have a backbone?”
Honestly, I was of the same sentiment. How could he just smile mindlessly like that? If that gramps weren’t here, none of this would’ve happened—
“Hmm, I wish to say that he is a smart fellow.”
I blinked. “Huh?”
“He’s intelligent, young, and also knows how to show respect.”
Fallen Gramps actually backed up GM’s behavior. Was GM someone who catered to all the old folk?
There was no telling, but Fallen Gramps’s reaction wasn’t much different from GM’s.
“It has been a long time, master.”
“Ah, Ruingenes… It’s good to see you. Have you been well?”
“What’s the point in asking?”
“I’ll take it that you have been well.”
“It seems you haven’t changed at all, master. Why does it feel like only I have experienced the tides of time?”
“Haha, you are still young.”
They were sharing some small talk for their reunion, but that didn’t last long.
“Since we haven’t met in a while, could I ask you something?”
“Go on.”
As soon as the permission was given, Fallen Gramps dropped a bomb. “Have you already achieved immortality, master?”
“Haha, you’re starting with a difficult question to answer.
“If it is not in your interest to answer, I do not need to-
“But if I am to give you an answer—” Auril Gavis cut off Fallen Gramps and spoke. It was as if he were advising a child. “Eternity doesn’t exist no matter the world, Ruingenes… Everything is bound to change at some point. Even the things you thought would never change.”
“…That’s quite the philosophical answer.” Fallen Gramps nodded, truly taking the answer to heart.
However, Baekho couldn’t help but snort at that. “What philosophy? When you get down to it, aren’t you saying you’ll die if we beat you up hard enough?”
“It seems that you are more grumpy than usual?”
“Why would I not be? It’s obvious now that you were the one who did some trickery to trap us in that place.”
Not wanting any more of this small talk to continue, Baekho brought his anger out in full force and made his inner thoughts known as he got to the main topic.
“You should be thankful that I didn’t just deck you.”
As always, he used provocative words and attempted to pressure his opponent in a mind game, but his opponent wasn’t any random mob this time, unfortunately for him.
“Haha… You are the one who should be thankful.”
“Hah!” Baekho let out that dry laugh in bafflement. “Thankful?”
Auril Gavis only glared at him intensely. “Of course, you should be thankful. Thankful that I still haven’t found a reason to ‘eliminate’ you.”
I could sense with my entire body the shift in the atmosphere the moment those words were spoken. It felt like the gentle air had suddenly transformed into steel spikes.
And then, Auril Gavis, who had suppressed everyone with just the mood, took a step forward as he continued, “Baekho, you still don’t get it? The reason I interfered with you is so that I do not ‘eliminate’ you.”
Unlike the “maybe I will, maybe I won’t” Baekho, Auril Gavis’s taunts were much more direct and threatening.
“But if you continue to break from the path, I will have no choice but to reconsider.”
From what I could tell, Baekho also seemed a little caught off guard. I mean, even he would have no choice but to concede a point to this geezer.
“So what do you want to do?” Baekho finally asked. “And Bryat, who the hell is he? From the looks of it, you planted him by my side a long time ago now.”
“Bryat was the guide I sent for you.”
“What? Guide…?”
“You are a blacklisted person. You’ll need at least one person next to you. A guide to take you down the right path so that you do not stray.”
It was so shameless that even I, who was just listening from the sidelines, was speechless. However, that was just the kind of world this world was.
A savage world where the powerless had no right to even speak.
And for Baekho, who had enjoyed the benefits of the powerful for such a long time, he had even less he could say about what the geezer was talking about.
“Just tell me.”
After keeping silent for a while, Baekho finally spoke with a tone of resignation.
“What do you want from me? Just tell me…”
The emotion I felt from his short request wasn’t sadness or anger. It was just an intense feeling of exhaustion, of how long Baekho had been tired.
“Hmm… I don’t particularly want anything from you.”
“…What?”
“Don’t you know at this point as well? You are but a defect.”
Auril Gavis continued with his clear and precise words aimed straight at Baekho.
“Not once did I want you. I never wanted you to come over here either. That is why I don’t understand why you despise me so much. Isn’t your anger misguided?”
Baekho didn’t respond.
“Well, if there is one thing I somewhat want, it is for you to know your place and live quietly. A supporting role should act like it. Don’t try to change the story.”
Baekho remained silent at Auril Gavis’s cutting words. However, his bloodshot eyes were telling me just how much humiliation he was feeling at that moment.
And of course, Fallen Gramps, who had not even a hint of empathy, didn’t even care about that.
“If Baekho is a supporting role…then we are also supporting roles?”
He only seemed to find interest in the one part that caught his attention.
“Are you disappointed by that fact?”
Fallen Gramps shook his head at Auril Gavis’s question. “Not at all. I am long past the point of thinking of myself as the protagonist, and…”
“And?”
“What’s the point of becoming the protagonist in a story someone else made for you?”
“…That’s quite the loaded answer.”
Auril Gavis seemed a little displeased at Fallen Gramps’s answer, but Fallen Gramps didn’t show any reaction as he just continued, saying, “Are you also acquainted with Ms. Flyer and Mr. Aures?”
“Hmm…”
“I don’t see any particular connection you might have with these two.”
At that question, Auril Gavis seemed to think for a while as his eyes jumped between Jaina and Aures.
“I’ve met him exactly once in the past.”
Jaina honestly came forward and revealed her connection.
“He’s the one who told me that I could recover the memories I had offered up to Karui.”
“…So that happened? What about you, Aures?”
“Ah… Uh… I-I think I’ve seen him next to the castellan a few times after the palace guys started invading Noark?”
Anyone could tell that he was lying, including Fallen Gramps. Baekho even narrowed his eyes.
Auril Gavis shook his head and revealed something quite shocking.
“Aures is from the same world as Ruingenes.”
“…What?”
“R-really? This man is an evil spirit as well…?”
From what I could tell, this was something that none of these people knew.
For all six people here together to be evil spirits…
Was this the evil spirit dream team or something?