Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel 2025 - Chapter 703
Chapter 703: Calm Before the Storm (3)
Powerless trudging.
Dour mood.
Hardened expressions that went beyond just dark into downright scary.
These traits made the four people walking through the forest look like stragglers who had just tucked and run from the battlefield.
When they were a good distance into the forest, the man with the platinum blond hair standing at the front stopped walking and quietly mumbled, “This is shit.”
The declaration was so quiet that unless one kept an ear out for his words, they wouldn’t be able to understand what he said.
None of the other three responded to this three-pronged jab. They all knew how enraged this man was and how hurt his pride had become.
However, the responding silence only lasted for a moment.
The large man who didn’t know how to go with the flow couldn’t hold himself back and felt as if he had to say something.
“Uh… Baekho? It might be a meaningless question at this point, but…why didn’t you duke it out with him…?”
“Why did I not fight him to the bitter end?” Baekho asked back with a chilling voice.
Aures regretted asking for a moment before deciding to continue satisfying his curiosity. “With Baron Yandel, yeah. Anyone and everyone knows that he treasures his allies. If we kept pushing him, he would be the one to lower his tail at the end.”
It was only natural that Aures’s curiosity would be piqued by such a question.
Baron Yandel and Baekho were polar opposites. While Bjorn Yandel cared for his allies like they were his own blood, Baekho wasn’t like that. He was cold and calculated, someone who wouldn’t even blink at another’s death, no matter who they were. That was Aures’s evaluation of Baekho, and it was an evaluation based on experience.
With that difference in mind, the one who had the upper hand in the proverbial “chicken game” the two just played was Baekho.
So then, how did the opposite result come to be?
He heard the answer from Jaina as she answered in the still-silent Baekho’s stead.
“It seems you didn’t see them.”
“Didn’t see what? What are you talking about?”
“His eyes.”
“His… His eyes?” Aures tilted his head, unsure of what she meant.
Jaina continued, explaining, “If you saw his eyes, you wouldn’t be asking these questions.”
“Just what does that mean? What was with his eyes? Did he use an ability or something?”
“No, it’s nothing like that… You can tell as soon as you see his eyes. Baron Yandel isn’t someone who will ever fold. Even more so when he is being threatened.”
Aures still didn’t seem to get what she was talking about, and the Fallen Scholar added his own commentary from the side.
“There are many in this world who act recklessly or make the wrong decisions because their thinking doesn’t extend into the future. However, that wasn’t the case for Baron Yandel today.”
“What do you mean?”
Then, the Fallen Scholar created a small flame on his palm.
“Most people do not reach their hand toward the flame. It is because they know how hot it is. But what about someone who sees fire for the first time?”
“Well… I’m not sure, but if it was me, I might’ve tried to touch it out of curiosity.”
“That is what it means to be ignorant. Some feel fear in their ignorance, while others gain confidence.”
“Wait, so what are you trying to say?”
“Baron Yandel clearly knew just how hot the flame was and what would happen if he reached into it. However, he still didn’t back down—”
“Because he thought it was something he needed to do,” finished Baekho.
However, the Fallen Scholar didn’t seem in any way insulted at having been cut off, instead going on to explain his read of the situation.
“They are not ones who do not know fear. They have just learned the method of overcoming it. And they are called ‘warriors’ by the people.” When Aures shot him a look of confusion, the Fallen Scholar continued, “It’s a passage in Sir Peprok’s autobiography. From today’s events, I understood why the barbarians call Baron Yandel a great warrior.”
“So whose side are you on, Gramps?”
“Yours for now. That is why I am giving you advice so you can understand why you failed. Just then, the baron’s eyes were those of one who was determined and sure of his decision. However, you weren’t able to achieve the same.”
“What about it? Should I have just fought him until the bitter end? Just to get one little question answered?”
“I am only telling you to be wary in the future. You can no longer control that man with the ‘leash’ that you seemed to believe you are holding tightly over him.”
“I know, I know… So shut up about it. Don’t rile me up.”
Still, Baekho seemed to have calmed down somewhat, as he regained his usual way of speaking. He made a show of letting out a big sigh as he grumbled to himself, “This is a problem, a real problem. If I can’t control him by threatening his allies, what else can I use?”
His anger had subsided a little, enough to allow his thoughts to escape in the hopes of answering that one question. He then quietly began to rattle his brain, and the other three glanced at him before talking amongst themselves.
“By the way…” Aures began. “He was really strong.”
“The baron?”
“Yes. I didn’t expect him to last hours against us even when we were going all out… I never thought a monster like that could even exist in this world.”
“It is only that you don’t know. They do exist in the world,” the Fallen Scholar intoned.
“There are more monsters like him?”
“Of course, there are only so few to be counted on your hands, but they do exist.”
Aures began to fold his fingers one by one as if there were people he could think of that fit the description.
One, two, three, four, five, six…
Although he lowered them slowly, after he was done, he hadn’t even put down that many fingers.
“It may not take even years for the number to be reduced down to just one hand.”
“Hmm? What do you mean?”
“Baron Yandel will continue to become stronger.”
Although Jaina and Aures didn’t respond, their eyes were questioning.
Questioning if it was even possible for him to become stronger than he was now.
The Fallen Scholar turned his gaze.
“Those who have nothing to lose will only grow tougher…” he continued while looking at the back of Baekho, who didn’t seem to hear what they were talking about from being so deep in thought. “But those with many things to protect will grow stronger.”
It was a law of the world he had learned over the long course of his life.
***
When I opened my eyes, I could see trees. Huge trees that seemed to stretch far and high enough to touch the sky.
The night sky I could see through the gaps in the canopy was sparkling with stars that painted it like a galaxy.
Somewhere close, I could hear the sound of a campfire.
It’s chilly.
Only then did I feel the cold of the bare floor and the moist air that permeated the woods.
Did they cover me?
My allies seemed to have put a blanket over my body. It was a special-sized blanket that could cover the entirety of the six-and-a-half-foot-tall barbarian body.
Did they only put the blanket on me instead of moving me just in case I woke up?
Warmth heated my chest at the thought.
If I were on Baekho’s team, this was something I would probably never have felt, not even after decades of working with him.
“You’re awake.”
Amelia must have noticed me rustling inside my blanket. When I sat up to check where she was, I found her sitting next to the campfire.
“How long has it been?” I asked.
“It’s the second day since you fell asleep.”
I froze. “What?” Then was I just sleeping on the hard ground for two days straight?
I did wonder…why my shoulder ached a lot.
Putting that aside, I questioned, “What about the others?”
“They’re asleep. I’m on watch.”
I tilted my head. “I don’t think this is your clone though.”
It was Amelia’s signature trick to use the clone made from Self-Replication to stand watch. So why was her original body actually standing watch this time?
“I figured it’d be nice if someone was next to you when you woke up.”
Wow… I had some pretty great allies.
“I heard the general deal of what happened from the Magic Engineer. Looks like you acted on your own and caused trouble again.”
“Trouble?”
“If you didn’t take the Magic Engineer and leave with just you two, none of this would’ve happened in the first place. Just what were you thinking?” Amelia scolded me as if I were a child. “Did the thought of consulting us never occur to you? Why did you act so irresponsibly? Did you even think about what we would do if you died outside?”
I had nothing I could say.
There was no way I could have known things would turn out this way, but nevertheless, I had caused not just myself, but them pain as well.
“Bjorn, son of Yandel. I have put my faith in you and entrusted my life to you… Please do not make me regret that decision.”
“I will make sure something like this never happens again,” I said slowly, making the most pitiful expression I could.
Amelia pinched her brow letting out a long sigh. “That’s the end of the scolding.” Her voice tempered to her usual tone as she looked at me and said, “You must have a lot of questions as well, so I’ll tell you what’s been going on our side first.”
She gave me a short rundown of what happened inside the city while I was gone.
Well, since it was a few month’s worth, it took quite a bit of time.
First, the clan competition on the festival of the thirteenth month. Although our Anabada Clan had planned to enter, they had to step out because I went missing.
“The palace opened the Gold Soul Repository to the ten members of the winning clan…?”
“Their captain was able to look at the Sacred Soul Repository, the one above the Gold Soul Repository.”
What the hell? But the Sacred Soul Depository was the place that stored rank 2 essences and the double-digit numbered items.
Jealousy ate away at me, but I decided to think positively about it. I had been able to obtain a lot of things by adventuring outside the city walls, and in the end, I had even gotten the jackpot by robbing Baekho of some money, after all.
The rest of her summary revealed that nothing huge had happened, contrary to my worries. My absence caused a few problems, but the business plan I had been enacting in the city seemed to have progressed without a hitch.
“My absence hasn’t been made known yet…?”
That was the part that surprised me.
“How is that possible?” I demanded.
“We’ve dealt with all the duties that you would’ve done.”
“Still, there should’ve been a lot of people who questioned it.”
“I told those people that you obtained a new essence and were focusing all your attention on researching it.”
“Still… I guess it’s safe to say that anyone who would know that I had gone missing would know that.”
“That’s probably the case. That’s the type of city this is. Even if they can’t say anything when we give them the excuse, they’d still doubt it. And we had disappeared like this once before as well.”
“Oh! Right! How did you leave the city in the first place? Did you fix the magic circle?” I asked, expecting to be able to go back home now, but Amelia shook her head. She then went on to explain how she was able to leave.
Only the return circle is destroyed. Leaving the city is still possible.
My heart warmed further still.
“… Why are you looking at me like that?”
I was thankful.
Unlike me, these guys knew that there was no way to return but still chose to enter unknown lands just to look for me.
Amelia seemed a little embarrassed by my silent smile, as she quickly changed the subject. “So, what happened with you?”
“Ah, me? Hmm, where should I even begin—”
“I’ve heard the general outline from the Magic Engineer. I’m curious about something else.”
“Something else?”
“The real reason that you faced off against Baekho even though you had been traveling together without much issue.”
Ah, that…
“The fact that you met Auril Gavis, and that you were the last to come out, and come out late at that. That was what I heard.”
Well, that meant that she practically knew everything there was to know.
“What happened that even in that disadvantaged situation you chose to fight Baekho just to hide it?”
Taking in Amelia’s serious expression, I smirked. “I think you’ve got the wrong idea… I hid it from Baekho for a different reason.”
To be honest, there was no need for me to keep it hidden from Baekho. In truth, if he made an offer first and asked me politely, I might’ve even told him the truth.
“Since he came at me looking for a fight, I determined that I could never back down at that point.”
“I see.”
As someone who grew up in this world that operated on the law of the jungle, Amelia understood what I meant without my having to give a long explanation. Still, her curiosity wasn’t sated with just that.
“So what happened to that man?”
I hesitated for a moment.
Was it right for me to tell her what I saw on the records? Since it couldn’t be changed anyway, would my telling her just make her worry and cause confusion for no reason?
Although my mouth refused to move at first, it didn’t take long for me to change my mind.
I learned one thing while observing Baekho.
“Emily. There’s something I need to tell you.”
There was no need to carry the weight of the world on my own.