Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Hippermachant.

The Elder’s estimated rank: 2.

Confirmed abilities: 3.

But two of those abilities didn’t matter.

‘[Gigantification] on a monster with 2nd-grade stats…?’

How could I resist that?

The important thing wasn't the abilities themselves, but its essence.

Its passive skill.

If the passive skill was also useful…

Unfortunately, the book didn’t mention its passive skill.

Well, they had run away from it without defeating it.

They probably couldn’t identify its passive.

‘I’m wide awake now.’

As I was thinking about the possibilities, another thought occurred to me.

‘What happens if you absorb two identical essences? Does only one activate? Or can you not absorb it at all?’

Hmm… I had a feeling it was the former.

But it would be interesting if both activated.

I decided to consider the worst-case scenario as well.

There was one major problem.

Besides the monster’s estimated 2nd-grade strength…

‘I don’t know if it even drops an essence.’

That was one of the unique characteristics of this floor.

There were two types of monsters.

Normal monsters that dropped magic stones and essences, and monsters whose bodies remained intact even after being slain.

And they fought each other to the death.

That’s why their numbers decreased significantly after the rainy season.

‘The entire island becomes a field of magic stones.’

And the natives collected those magic stones and used them to create ‘life water.’

‘I’ve been distracted for too long.’

I would think about the Hippermachant later. For now, I had to focus on reading.

‘I didn’t expect there to be so many new species…’

The monsters I had encountered so far were just the tip of the iceberg.

From the creatures that appeared during the ‘rainy season’ to the ones that washed ashore…

‘I should write this down somewhere… I might forget.’

I had been reading for hours…

“Bjorn…”

…when I heard a voice.

“Misha? I thought you went out with Emily.”

“We just got back…”

I checked the time. It was much later than I thought.

“Really? Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I would have stopped reading.”

“She… told me not to disturb you. She said you were busy…”

“Amelia?”

“…Yes.”

Misha nodded and then asked cautiously,

“Can we… talk for a moment?”

“Of course.”

I closed the book and turned to face her.

If a teammate came to see me alone, it meant there was a reason.

“Is there a problem?”

“…Not really.”

“Then why?”

“I just… we haven’t had a proper conversation since we met again…”

“Ah…”

I opened my mouth to say something, but Misha spoke first, her voice bitter.

“You’re asking me why I came.”

I felt a pang of guilt, but I also had something to say.

“You were the one who said we should just be comrades.”

And she had been the one who drew the line after we reunited.

So I hadn’t tried to cross it.

Time was needed to heal old wounds.

“Right… I did…”

She didn’t say anything more.

An awkward silence followed.

I finally spoke.

“…Is there anything you’re uncomfortable with?”

It was a signal to change the subject.

Misha’s voice brightened, as if she was putting on an act.

“Ah, no… I’m just… a little surprised…”

It was understandable.

Floating objects in the sea, monsters that claimed to be human, monsters raining from the sky, and the Last Sage’s companion trapped in the labyrinth…

It was a lot to take in.

“It’s just… strange… being back in the labyrinth with you…”

Ah… we were back to that topic again?

I didn’t interrupt her.

“So… don’t worry too much… I’m just… surprised… it’s still hard to believe… I never imagined this would happen…”

She glanced at me, as if checking my reaction, and I chuckled.

“I’m not worried.”

Misha smiled faintly.

“What’s that supposed to mean…?”

“I’m serious. You’re nothing compared to Erwen.”

Right, Erwen had been much more difficult to deal with.

Amelia and I had also been constantly bickering.

“So just relax and do whatever you want. We’ll get along eventually.”

I was about to tell her about my experiences with Erwen and Amelia…

“Amelia and Erwen fight a lot—”

…but she interrupted me.

“What’s that book?”

“Oh, this? It’s written by the Elder. It contains information about the monsters on this island.”

“Really? That’s good. It’ll be helpful for our exploration.”

The topic had changed, but the atmosphere was still relatively relaxed.

We talked about the island, and whether Elder Brugrid was really one of the ancient heroes.

It felt like old times.

But…

“Yandel, are you busy? We should share the information we’ve gathered today.”

…the conversation ended when Amelia knocked on the door and Misha excused herself.

‘Someone told me you were a traitor. What does that mean?’

I couldn’t ask her today either.

______________________

One day, two days, three days…

Time flew by.

Our daily routine was simple.

I gathered information, talking to the Elder and reading his books.

Amelia and Erwen searched the village for hidden facilities and locations.

Bersil, Auyen, and Misha investigated the natives’ lifestyle, culture, social structure, and military strength.

And Ainar…

“I’ll be back!”

…was busy making friends.

“Where are you going today?”

“Sparring with Itaphia in the morning. Then I’ll visit the forge and watch them make weapons. And then I’ll meet with Kagudi and explore the underground warehouse. He said I would be surprised, so I’m looking forward to it!”

I didn’t understand how she had made so many friends in such a short time.

“Frenelin is… amazing. She can’t even speak their language, and yet she’s so close to them.”

“It’s nothing! And who needs words? Warriors can communicate with gestures!”

“I-Is that so? But how can you make such detailed plans…?”

“It’s because you lack sincerity! You mages are always reading books! Try looking someone in the eye and focusing on their words! Then you’ll understand their true feelings!”

“Ah… okay…”

It was a strange sight, a barbarian lecturing a mage.

But only Ainar could make friends without being able to communicate, so I didn’t interfere.

“Ah! I’m late! I’ll be back!”

“Don’t cause any trouble. And tell me what you find in the underground warehouse!”

“Okay!”

Ainar was always the first to leave in the morning, followed by the other teammates.

And in the evening, we would gather at the house the Elder had provided and share our findings.

“I found a strange place today. It’s about fifteen minutes from the Elder’s house. It looks like an ordinary house, but there are guards everywhere. I think I can sneak in, but I wanted to hear your opinion first.”

“Don’t be reckless. We have to be careful until the rainy season is over.”

“The Silver Lion Clan… they’re in a worse state than I thought. The relationship between those who escaped and those who were left behind is deteriorating.”

“It seems unlikely that they’ll be able to continue exploring after the rainy season. Auyen, anything to report?”

“Well… I’ve been feeling this for a while now, but… Brugrid… he’s not just the Elder, he’s practically the king of this village.”

“More like a god. They obey his every command without question.”

“That’s enough for today.”

After the meeting, we would go back to our respective rooms and sleep.

That was our routine.

Of course, there were minor variations.

Day 4 of the rainy season.

I had finished reading all the books in the Elder’s study, so I started exploring the village.

I couldn’t let the only person who could communicate with the natives stay cooped up in a room all day.

As I was walking around…

I ran into Marupichi again.

Most of the villagers avoided me, but Maru’s attitude hadn’t changed.

We chatted for a while, and it told me about a local legend.

[Did you know? A long time ago, a giant dragon lived on this island!]

A giant dragon…

Day 5.

I met Ainar’s friends, but I couldn't become close to them like she had.

They were all wary of me.

Even though Ainar and I were close enough to joke around physically.

Had the Elder given them some kind of instruction?

I asked them several times, but they didn’t answer.

Day 6.

The leader of the Silver Lion Clan came to see me in the morning and asked if they could join our exploration team.

I refused.

Another group from the same clan came in the afternoon with the same request.

I refused again.

Day 7.

We finished our investigation of the village and returned to our house to prepare for the next expedition.

The ‘rainy season’ would be over today.

As I was preparing for tomorrow…

The Elder summoned us. He just gave us some words of encouragement.

Day 8.

Or rather, Day 21 of the expedition.

We left the village and returned to the surface.

The island, which had been covered in grotesque corpses, was now beautiful.

Covered in magic stones.

If they didn't disappear after 30 minutes, the entire island would be covered in essences.

The Elder had told us to leave the magic stones on the ground for the patrol team to collect, but…

I couldn’t resist picking up a few.

Day 22.

The island was still swarming with monsters, so we used the village as our base and explored the surrounding area.

And then I found an essence.

I didn't fight for it. I just picked it up.

It must have been dropped by a monster that had been killed by another monster…

It had to be a high-grade essence, since it had survived the rainy season.

I immediately put it in a test tube.

We also encountered the Silver Lion Clan for the first time since leaving the village.

They didn't look well.

Day 23.

We spent the night in the village and then returned to the island in the morning. The Silver Lion Clan decided to stay in the village.

One of their members had died yesterday.

They said they would stay until the island was safe.

We, on the other hand, expanded our search area.

Day 24.

The villagers started sending out patrols to collect the magic stones.

I felt a pang of envy.

That was a lot of money.

Day 25.

The island had returned to its pre-rainy season state.

We had been searching for the Hippermachant, but we hadn’t found it.

Had it been killed by other monsters?

I asked the Elder, and he said that some monsters left the island by swimming across the sea.

Day 26.

There wasn’t much to do on the island, so we left and resumed our voyage.

Day 27.

We discovered another island before nightfall.

Or rather… could you even call it an island?

A giant tree, rising from the silver sea.

It was much larger than the monster island.

And much taller.

I wondered if all the islands here were like this.

Day 28.

We spent the night on the ship and then entered the tree island.

As soon as we docked at the base of the tree, vines sprouted from the bark, and monsters emerged.

It was a new species, not mentioned in the Elder’s book.

After a vote, we named it Nanari.

Day 29.

We explored the roots of the tree and found a giant knot hole, larger than most caves.

It seemed to lead deep underground.

Was it a passage?

We explored cautiously, encountering new monsters.

The battles were challenging.

Ainar was seriously injured, even though she quickly recovered with a potion.

Day 30.

I started seriously considering the labyrinth closure timer.

When would this floor close?

Would I be trapped here forever, like the Elder?

If that was the case, we would be in trouble.

We couldn’t survive on magic water like the natives.

We needed meat.

…Should we start rationing our food?

Day 35.

After six days of exploring the winding tunnels, we finally found an exit.

It led to the base of the tree.

It was about knee-high.

I wondered how long it would take to reach the top.

Anyway, it wasn’t really an exit. It was more like a window.

We returned to the tunnels and continued searching for another exit.

But we couldn’t find one.

Everyone looked tired, so we set up camp and went to sleep.

And…

“…….”

I suddenly woke up.

「Character’s soul resonates and is drawn to a specific world.」

I was back in my room.

“What the… why am I here?”

I was genuinely confused.