Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

A Fleeting Moment (3)

A Fleeting Moment (3)

Most bars in this city also offer lodging.

In other words…

“Do you want to go upstairs and see my ability for a bit?”

…it meant she was suggesting we get a room and she would show me her ability.

It wasn’t strange, as this had happened before.

But…

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

I expressed my refusal firmly as I looked at the flustered Erwen.

“It’s late. I have to go home.”

Because I had a cat waiting for me.

“Show me next time you have a chance.”

“Ah… okay!”

I know myself well.

As a gamer who’s more interested in this world than anyone else, it was clear that I would stay up all night experimenting if I saw her ability.

“Ah, you’re back?”

I parted ways with Erwen and arrived home, and Misha, who was reading a cookbook in the living room, approached me and sniffed.

“It seems like you didn’t drink much.”

“I didn’t feel like drinking.”

“Hmm, really?”

I felt uncomfortable making eye contact, even though I didn’t do anything wrong.

Was it because I didn’t tell her I was meeting Erwen?

Hmm, that seemed to be the reason, but I couldn’t help it since she would have been unhappy if I told her.

I naturally changed the subject.

“By the way, where’s Ainar?”

“She’s sleeping in her room.”

“…I see. You should go to sleep too.”

Just as I finished the short conversation and was heading upstairs, Misha stopped me.

“Wait, sit over there.”

Don’t tell me she found out?

“It’s good for your body to have something to settle your stomach before going to bed. It’s nothing special, I’ll just make some stew.”

“Ah… thank you.”

I sat down at the kitchen table as instructed.

Misha put on an apron and started cooking, and I silently watched her.

“…….”

Her tail was moving.

Swish, swish.

As if she was annoyed.

My contemplation didn’t last long.

“I met Erwen today.”

I confessed honestly before missing the golden time.

“…Really?”

Her answer was a bit delayed, but her voice didn’t sound surprised.

“…Are you angry?”

Misha chuckled at my question.

“…Angry? I would be if she were even a threat.”

Misha said so and then dumped the pot full of stew into the trash can.

Her words and actions didn’t match.

“Why…?”

“Ah, the seasoning wasn’t right.”

“I, I see?”

“Wait, I’ll make another one.”

Misha then made a new pot of stew and served it to me. And she said she was tired and went up to her room.

‘…What was that about?’

I felt a sense of dissonance, but I ate the stew in my bowl. As always, it was perfectly seasoned for my taste, and I ate it all without any side dishes.

Misha failed to season the stew?

‘There’s no way.’

After finishing my meal, I roughly cleaned up and opened the trash can.

And…

“…….”

…I froze, holding the lid of the trash can.

‘…It’s a good thing I confessed.’

The stew in the trash can was full of carrots.

She already knew.

From the moment she came up to me and sniffed, she knew who I had met today.

____________________

Time flows like water.

You can’t stop it with your hands, and you can’t turn back what has already passed.

Therefore, we only have one choice.

To somehow row our boat towards our goal.

‘Right, let’s start today.’

I got out of bed and looked in the mirror for a moment, motivating myself.

It’s a gamer’s know-how.

You have to do something like this to avoid getting tired of repetitive quests.

“Bjorn… oh, you’re awake? Then can you wake Ainar up for me?”

“Okay.”

My daily routine had been the same, almost like a repetitive quest.

Wake up at 7:00 AM, have breakfast with Ainar, prepared by Misha, and get ready to go out.

“Are you going to the library again today?”

“Why? Do you want to come with me?”

“No, it’s fine. I’m going to take Ainar to the training center later.”

After breakfast, Misha and Ainar go to the training center they have a monthly membership at to warm up, and I go straight to the library.

“Are you here for that book again today?”

“Ah, it’s more interesting than I expected.”

“Huhu, you should be grateful. I set it aside for you because I thought you would come.”

I’ve been reading a long novel series lately.

Ragna recommended it, and it’s much more interesting than I expected.

The content is also substantial since it’s set in the labyrinth.

‘Well, it’s a bit unrealistic since all the characters are good people.’

But it’s not unbearable if I think of it as a novel.

Honestly, it’s a decent form of entertainment.

The problem with this world is that there aren’t many hobbies besides drinking and partying.

“Then keep up the good work.”

As always, I close the book I was reading and leave the library around 1:00 PM to have lunch.

The menu is a meat-filled lunchbox prepared by Misha.

I eat it by the fountain, and then it’s time to meet Rotmiller.

“You’re late today. About 30 seconds.”

“…….”

“A good navigator has to be aware of the weight of time. We’ll start the lesson right away since you’re late today.”

It’s already been over six months since I started receiving scout training from Rotmiller.

Honestly, I thought it would be over in a month or two.

But Rotmiller’s knowledge is like an ocean. There’s always something new to learn.

“It seems like you’ve mastered the basics, so let’s move on to the advanced course.”

“More importantly, what happened to what I said yesterday?”

“You mean about opening a training center?”

“Yeah.”

It was Rotmiller who first mentioned the training center.

But the more lessons I receive from this man, the more I feel like it would be a huge success.

Navigation skills that anyone can learn, even if they don’t have good ears like fairies, a good nose like beastmen, or the natural talent of a Guide.

Rotmiller’s essence, the reward of his hard work.

It’s already appealing, and on top of that, this man is a first-rate teacher, perhaps because he started from the very bottom.

‘But this man has no idea of his own worth.’

Honestly, I don’t understand why he hasn’t done it yet.

Unlike the dwarf’s blacksmith’s workshop, it practically requires no initial capital.

“Think about it seriously. You’ve been doing nothing but relaxing for months.”

“It’s not relaxing, I’m taking time to cultivate myself.”

“Then wouldn’t it be even better to do it? There’s a saying, ‘you learn by teaching’.”

“That’s… hard to deny. Indeed, I’ve also learned quite a few new things while teaching you.”

“So what’s your answer?”

“I’m not ready yet.”

I subtly click my tongue.

It seems like Rotmiller is reluctant to retire from active duty…

“Really? Tell me when you make up your mind. I’ll help you.”

“Anyway, thank you.”

“I mean it.”

Actually, I’ve already made a rough plan.

First, I’ll rent a training center and use it as a classroom, targeting human children who want to become explorers.

And once it’s established, I’ll advertise at the Explorer’s Guild and operate a separate class for explorers.

That would be more profitable.

Of course, it would take a long time to get it up and running…

‘But Rotmiller is human.’

Humans have low taxes.

Once it’s established and generates a certain amount of income, he won’t have to worry about making a living.

‘Well, it’s all over if he doesn’t want to do it.’

If capital is the problem, I’m willing to invest to some extent. The concept of stocks is still unfamiliar, but it’s not completely nonexistent in this world.

It’s also perfect for investment…

“That’s all for today’s lesson.”

Anyway, today’s lesson ends after a few hours.

It’s around 8:00 PM.

Is it because it’s the advanced course? The explanation was longer than usual, so it ended about an hour later.

“Then tomorrow… no, I can’t come tomorrow.”

“Let’s meet in three days, just in case.”

“Alright. Take care of yourself this time too.”

Anyway, my daily routine ends here.

I often spend my evenings drinking with explorers introduced by the dwarf or the bear-like man, listening to industry news, or having a bonding time with my team…

But I don’t have any appointments today.

And I’ve already taken care of my special bi-weekly routine, so my schedule is completely empty.

It’s my first free time in a long time.

‘Should I go back to the library? Or go to the training center and work out?’

I hesitate for a moment and then enter a random bar and order a drink.

Right, there should be days like this sometimes.

“Keuh.”

I organize my thoughts, drinking lukewarm beer.

‘There’s really nothing going on these days.’

My daily routine isn’t boring.

Honestly, it’s comfortable and enjoyable.

But on the other hand, my anxiety grows.

Because I know that these dream-like days won’t last forever.

‘…But it’s still okay for now, right? There wasn’t anything at the Round Table.’

The Round Table gathering I attended two weeks ago wasn’t much different from before.

Everyone looked at me with awe as I shared information while acting all serious, and I listened to the information they shared, pretending to be bored.

That was the entire event.

No one brought any interesting information that could pique my interest, and the gathering itself ended after just two rounds.

‘Ah, was there really nothing strange?’

But if I had to choose one unusual thing from this gathering…

…it would be the Clown.

[Then I’ll see you next month. Pfft.]

The Clown said goodbye for the first time when the gathering ended.

Not to me, but to the other members.

In a slightly meaningful tone.

‘Does it mean something interesting will happen next time?’

Well, I don’t know.

It could just be a whim.

After all, that’s his character, and I’m not a prophet or a mind reader.

‘I should get up now.’

I get up from my seat after about an hour of wallowing in self-pity and head home.

When I arrive, the melee damage dealer duo has already returned from the training center and is bickering.

Well, to be precise, it’s more like Ainar is being scolded.

“Ainar! I told you to put your laundry in one place! Do you think you can become a great warrior like this?”

“That… I was going to do it later! I really wasn’t trying to avoid it! Especially not because I was lazy!”

“This is your last warning. If you do this again, you’ll have to wash your own clothes… Oh, Bjorn, you’re back? What about dinner?”

“Not yet.”

I drank, but I didn’t order any food.

“Really? I’ll make something quickly, so go wash up first. Hey! Ainar! Where are you going! I’m not done talking yet!”

“Tsk! She caught me!”

I then head to the bathroom, leaving Ainar, who’s being scolded by Misha, and when I come out after washing up, the table is full of food.

It seems like she put in extra effort since it would be difficult to eat like this tomorrow.

“Thank you, Misha.”

“Don’t mention it…”

After dinner, we play card games that Misha bought from the market and spend time until late at night.

After all, it’s better to sleep late today.

“The sun is rising.”

“Next time, let’s invite Beefcake and Aruru and play together!”

“Are you going to keep saying weird things? I don’t know about Aruru, but Avman should be at home. He has a wife.”

“Then we can just invite his wife too!”

What is she talking about?

I cut in and end the conversation before it turns into a pointless argument.

“Enough, let’s go to bed. Try to sleep in as late as possible.”

The labyrinth opens tomorrow night.

_____________________

「Entered 1st Floor Crystal Cave.」

_____________________

Pitch-black darkness.

It’s an obvious phenomenon considering we just entered the labyrinth, but no one is flustered.

It’s because we’ve experienced this several times since then.

“Liate.”

A dimly lit light orb floats above our heads, illuminating our surroundings. The first thing I see is a Floor Stele located on the dead end wall.

“We arrived properly again. At this rate, I think we can consider it a law, not a special phenomenon.”

The dimensional instability bug with a 100% success rate.

As always, Raven approaches the stele first and places her hand on it.

Is the mana flow structure when a portal is generated so unique that she can’t get a sense of it after just one or two tries?

Of course, I don’t know what she’ll use it for even if she figures it out.

Is it even useful?

「Opened a portal for the first time. EXP +2」

Anyway, we enter the portal, and the unique musty air and the ground greet us.

Damn it.

「Entered 2nd Floor Beast’s Lair.」

Of all places, we ended up here.

“Mr. Yandel, what are we going to do?”

“…We’re going back down.”

Even though I’ve been taking Rotmiller’s lessons for over six months, this place is impossible.

There are too many forks in the road, and the rules are too complicated.

Even Rotmiller had to use his sense of smell to navigate this floor, and he even told me it was better to just give up.

“Then are we going to the Goblin Forest again?”

What else is there?

We return to the 1st floor and head towards the Goblin Forest, the route we’ve used the most. It’s not that difficult to navigate the Land of the Dead or the Rock Desert…

But this route is the fastest.

“You might be able to get portal opening achievement points too. We’re going to move quickly, so follow me closely.”

I took out the compass and started navigating.

We left the dark zone without getting lost even once, and then we continued moving along the shortest route, crossing the border between the dark zone and the normal area.

I didn’t even have to ask the bear-like man for the portal’s location.

I’ve mastered the Crystal Cave now.

Thud.

That’s when, a little over 2 hours after entering the labyrinth…

“Mr. Yandel.”

…Raven stopped me, riding on Ainar’s back.

“So, something’s strange.”

“…Strange? What do you mean?”

“Mana is swirling in the center. As if dozens of people are casting a joint spell…”

A joint spell refers to a method where mages link their unique mana to cast high-level magic or amplify the power of a specific spell.

For reference, it’s often used in large-scale raids.

But to think it’s being used on the 1st floor…

“…I can also feel dark magic. The aura of cursed magic.”

And even dark magic is being used.

The situation is serious.

“…It must be Noark, right?”

“Yes. It’s common knowledge that there are many dark mages who are affiliated with Noark.”

“I thought it was too quiet. This is troublesome.”

“Wh, what are we going to do?”

Raven, as if scared of the current situation, showed a side of her that was unlike her usual calm self.

Right, the more that’s the case, the more I have to get a grip.

“Nothing changes. We’ll increase our speed. We’re getting out of the 1st floor as quickly as possible.”

I quickly gave the order and resumed moving.

About 5 minutes later…

“Something’s coming from behind!”

The moment Raven shouted…

Whoosh!

…a red light from the passage behind us grazed past us and disappeared into the distance.

There wasn’t even time to dodge.

“…What the hell was that?”

“I, I don’t know. It seemed like mana…”

I feel a sense of dread.

A magic spell that even Raven doesn’t know.

“Um, Bjorn… wouldn’t it be better to keep moving?”

We continued forward, following Misha’s advice, and I started analyzing the situation.

There were no clear answers.

Maybe that’s why…

“We… will be okay, right?”

…I couldn’t answer that question, even though I knew what a leader’s role was in times like this.

“…….”

In this uncertain situation…

…one thing was clear.

The peaceful days that felt like a blessing…

…had come to an end.

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