Chapter 2493 - SB 4

After I returned to the inn, with a slightly tipsy Erwen in tow, I started observing her body from up close.

Of course, the oath I'd sworn on my honour with her sister was never broken.

Although I did wonder how much such an oath meant to me as a warrior in the first place.

"Erwen, loosen up a bit more."

"Ehh, even if you say that…"

Currently, I was forcibly stretching Erwen.

"Ah! My shoulders! I think my shoulders are going to fall off!"

"Hmm."

"I-, it's not even supposed to bend this way in the first place! Really!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, yes! On the name of my clan!!"

As soon as I relaxed my grip, Erwen immediately flopped down on the bed.

'Flexibility + 4' wasn't that obvious from the outside.

Well, hadn't the game been the same?

"Again, are you going to go again?"

"No. Rest for now."

[Dungeon and Stone] was a brutal game.

Just look at the stats.

Body, mind, and ability.

There are three main stats, but if you click the [+] button next to one, thousands of sub-stats come out.

For example, if the physical strength, a body sub-stat, increases, the weight that can be carried, physical attack power, etc. are corrected accordingly.

Flexibility?

Even if only slightly, evasion rate and critical strike rate increase.

Vision?

Ranged weapon attack radius and the character's visual range get larger.

Sense of smell becomes a factor to enhance any related ability, and accuracy rate is literally the accuracy rate.

Therefore, even if the body stat is the same at 50, the character's scope of action can be completely different depending on the finer details.

"…"

Note that I found all this out on my own.

It was information that neither the game production company nor any foreign users told me, so I had to repeatedly experiment numerous times and collect statistical data.

Just because I wanted to clear this game.

Fuck, I could've never dreamed back then that this passion would one day come back and bite me in the ass.

'Hoo, I'm suddenly feeling pissed off again.'

Back again, I was an old hand in his ninth year, a true so-called rotten water.

However, there were some stats that even I never managed to find out the effects of.

A typical example would be the 'obsession + 7' on the essence spat by the goblin archer.

Except for the fact that obsession was a sub-stat of mind, everything else was a mystery.

"Erwen."

"Uncle, I get so anxious every time you sigh like that, can't you just stop talking?"

"Has anything changed since you came out of the labyrinth? Like, something keeps popping up in your mind. As if it's hard to bear, something like that."

"… I-, I'm not sure? There's something, maybe?"

"What is it? Tell me."

"Sweets…? Yes, sweets. Now that I think about it, as soon as I came out, I bought a lot of sweets and wolfed it all down…"

"Did you usually hate sweets?"

"No, I liked them? Still, I think this was my first time eating that much in one day."

"Right."

Perhaps obsession just meant a desire to grow stronger.

So, there would have been no special function within the game.

Well, my thoughts were getting complicated.

Because this was a reality patch, and additional functions might have gotten tacked on to the detailed stats.

Same went for flexibility.

As in the game, the more natural the body's movements, the easier it would be to dodge. In the appropriate situation, you can even pull off some outlandish manoeuvre and inflict fatal damage on the enemy.

But is that all?

Greater flexibility can even make it easier to get into tight spaces, and better absorb shock on landing.

That was not so in the game.

So, in the future, I'd have to re-examine my nurturing method by synthesizing those aspects.

"Uncle, I'm sleepy now…"

Oh, did I let you rest too much?

Her eyes were already half closed.

I was going to check if there were any problems activating skills, cooldown timings, and stuff like that…

"I see. Go to sleep."

"Yes…"

I blew out the light.

And laid down next to Erwen.

Erwen didn't find it strange, and neither did I.

In the labyrinth, we'd both seen what there was to see, so it'd be funny to balk now.

Zzzzzz!

Just like that, my eyes too fluttered closed, and I slept again.

I remembered her sister's words not to sleep with her at the last moment, but…

Well, there wasn't any point worrying about it.

She probably didn't mean something like this anyway.

[07: 35].

I woke up fairly early in the morning.

I'd already slept for almost two days, so calling to too early now might've been a bit silly.

"Uncle, water…"

Erwen just woke up, so we had a quick meal on the first floor after washing our faces.

Then we headed to Erwen's place.

Because the city was so big, it took more than an hour just to get there on foot.

"I'm glad it's still in the same area!"

I feel you.

If it'd been on the other side, it'd have taken a long time even in a carriage.

For a so-called fortress town, Rafdonia was really absurdly large.

"You must stay quiet. You understand? Because big sis is the only one who knows I'm working with you, uncle."

"Got it."

As I waited in an alley three blocks away from the hostel, Erwen trudged back laden with two backpacks.

The backpacks of the leader and the crossbowman who'd attacked us just before the end of the seventh day. The weapons that had been haphazardly shoved in were sticking out.

"Let me."

"Oh, thank you!"

Also, she had no idea about their specifications.

I guess everybody has to start somewhere.

"Weapons here, armours here, place tools and consumables separately."

"Yes!"

Returning to the inn, we started checking and organizing the items in our backpacks.

It took about an hour, but maybe because of all the loot? It was quite enjoyable.

Erwen and I sat side by side on the bed, looking at the neatly arranged items on the floor.

"Are you going to sell them all?"

"Except what's necessary."

"Then, can I keep the leather clothes and belt that you gave me?"

"Doesn't matter. If you take them from your share."

"Then please!"

After classifying what to sell and what not to sell, we went back to the city.

Except for tools such as watches and compasses, we decided to share expeditionary items and consumables such as potions, but sell almost all of the collected equipment.

It's better to exchange money and buy something else than to use something that doesn't fit.

It wasn't like I couldn't afford to, now.

"Here it is!"

The place we arrived at was a weapon shop that Tersia had informed me of.

Items for sale included a Japanese katana, two longswords, a crossbow, a two-handed hammer, two daggers, and three small knives.

"A total of 350,000 stones."

I'd been a tad worried because it was introduced via an acquaintance, but I just sold it all off because it gave better prices than any of the other stores I'd stopped by at for comparison.

"Wow…"

As soon as we left the store, Erwen let out the admiring exclamation that she'd been holding back.

I was feeling the same.

"Uncle, isn't this a dream?"

Excluding the stolen mana stones, the money we earned from pure hunting for seven days was only around 100,000 stones.

But to compare that with 350,000 stones?

Besides, the armours hadn't even been sold yet.

… Now I could understand the look in those adventurer bastards' eyes when they saw us.

Equipment is money. A lot, too.

"Uncle, how much is my share then?"

Erwen's eyes were shining with a longing for wealth.

"Just wait, we've still got a lot left to sell."

The next destination was the armour shop, about a ten minute walk.

"Here are 180,000 stones."

There were more items, but the total value was less than the weapons.

The purchase price was low because it was difficult to sell used armour, which was a convincing enough reason.

Didn't we decide to just sell everything because of the size problem, too?

"I will sell them for that price."

"You sure have a refreshing personality, as expected of a barbarian. Please come again the next time you encounter something like this. I'll give you a good price again."

"I will."

After that, I stopped by at a general store and sold several items that had been judged unnecessary, and got a huge sum of 145,000 stones.

Well, it wasn't all my money.

"Take it, 45,000 stones."

"Uh? Isn't that a little too much?"

With her leather clothes and belt, 20,000 stones were subtracted, and exactly 7,000 stones were added.

It wasn't a freebie because she was pretty. It was her share of the mana stones from the samurai and the beanpole, divided 9:1.

"I don't know exactly how much they'd be worth, so I took the two you gave as a guide."

"Oh, I see! Thank you!"

Anyway, after selling off everything, I checked my total assets, which now amounted to a whopping 1.4 million stones.

It was a bit, no, a lot weird.

I'd never had this much money in the first round, even in the game…

It was a good start.

"Then let's break up."

"Yes?"

Why do you look so surprised?

We've divvied up the money, so now it's time to go our separate ways.

I have a lot of work to do, because my plans have now gone awry because of you.

"Well, we can go to the central square together."

"Yes…"

Erwen's words faded into silence.

As we walked along the road like that, we arrived at the central plaza, which was a fork in the path.

"Huh? Why suddenly so many people?"

Unlike the last time I passed by, it was buzzing with activity.

Half the crowd were soldiers, and the other half were there to watch the criminals chained to the pavement.

No, calling them criminals might be a little too much, right?

"Uh, uh! Ouch! Whoa!"

They were not violent criminals such as murderers, rapists, or arsonists.

The crime of these people who were trembling in fear, gags in their mouths, was 'tax evasion'.

In other words, because they had no money.

A young woman in her twenties, a man who was probably a father, an old man with wrinkled hands signifying the harshest of lives – were all sentenced to death.

"Start the execution!"

When the tax collector shouted that, the soldiers shoved the man's head under the guillotine.

And…

Thwock–!

With a gentle sound, the man's head was sheared off, and slipped into the wooden barrel in front.

Some of the nearby crowd soaked the bread they'd brought with the dripping blood and ate in a hurry.

"Hic!"

Erwen started hiccupping at the bloodshed that suddenly unfolded before her eyes.

"Damn, what is that! What are those people doing? Why would you dip bread in human blood?"

"There's a superstition that drinking the blood of someone executed by a tax collector will bring you wealth."

Erwen frowned as if she couldn't make head or tail of it. For her, it seemed to be more shocking than seeing a person's head being cut off.

"Erwen, how much is the first year's tax?"

"It's 700,000 stones, but depends on your race."

"Right."

It'd been 600,000 stones in the game.

There were some errors, but it was roughly consistent.

"Still, you don't have to worry. Because you've already earned that much."

Yeah? Yes, that's true, but…

It's not something somebody with a bigshot sister should say.

Besides, I have no intention of saving this money for next year's taxes in the first place.

For a simple reason.

"Erwen, how much is the tax from the second year?"

"800,000 stones. And there's a fee when you exchange money."

Taxes continue to rise until a certain number of years are accumulated.

So now is the time to invest in yourself.

The first year, when fees are waived and taxes are relatively low, is the time for rapid growth.

"Ah! S-, please spare me!"

"Gag him properly this time!"

"Next month! I can pay the bill next month – uh, uh! Aaaahk!"

Anyway, I'm glad.

Aren't humans the most reliant on visual stimuli?

Thwock–!

Seeing it with my own two eyes makes me really feel it.

Returning to the original world?

Rather than such unrealistic goals, it's necessary to set clear intermediate goals and strive for them.

For example, assuming my life span is 90 years old.

When I said that I might have to spend the rest of my life here if I couldn't find a way back home –

'How much money do you need?'

Well, I guess I'll have to do some math.

A house with a kitchen, medical expenses for when you're sick, and if you want to be able to relax with three puppies after retiring at the age of fifty…

"Sixth floor."

If you at least reach the sixth floor, the calculation shows that you can skimp and save enough before you retire.

Yes, therefore –

"Yes? What did you just say?"

"It's nothing."

Let's focus on reaching the sixth floor first.

Whether it's possible to go home or not –

Would be something to think about later.

「630,000 stones were transferred by Level 6 Adventurer Daria Wittember di Tersia. 」

「You have sold equipment.」

「You have sold equipment.」

「Total Item Level drops by -43. 」

「You have sold equipment.」

「You have sold…」

「…」

「…」

「TIP: The character's current total holdings are 1,403,520 stones. Use this to increase your character's Combat Index!」

-x-X-x-

"Then, I'll take my leave."

"Ah, yes… goodbye…"

After breaking up with Erwen, my next destination is nowhere other than the library.

The soothing smell of paper and ink.

A quiet atmosphere that makes you feel like you should hold even a cough in.

Seeing people busy picking up books without disturbing that quiet atmosphere, I somehow feel like I'm the odd one out…

Rumble–!

To my surprise, there is another barbarian besides me in the library.

I reach out and poke them in the back.

"B-, Bjorn son of Yandel?!"

Really, it's you.

Penelin's second daughter, or is it third? Ainar.

"It's good to see that you're safe and sound."

"You too!"

"… I think we should lower our voices."

Ainar also feels the piercing gazes from the people all around us at her raised voice, so she obeys.

"I'm sorry. I was surprised because I didn't expect to see another of us here besides me."

Same goes for me, too.

"What's going on, why the library?"

"You told me last time, that I should always think before I act. While I was in the labyrinth this time, I thought that I needed more knowledge in order to think properly."

Well, that's quite insightful.

How amazing.

If only you hadn't fallen asleep holding the book open…

"Looks like something happened to you inside the labyrinth."

"It wasn't easy from start to finish. The fights weren't a problem, but… "

Ainar continues with a bitter expression.

"It wasn't just the monsters that I had to watch out for."

She certainly is a bit different from the rest of the barbarians. They've been bragging about how easily they beat the monsters.

They wouldn't have called it hard out loud even if it killed them.

"So that's why you decided to come and study here."

"Yes. But again, this doesn't seem like a good fit for me. Reading text is very difficult. I should've studied harder when I was young."

… Oh, so it's that bad, huh?

"So, starting from today, I plan to visit the sanctuary and learn from the elders again. Although, now that I'm an adult, I'll have to pay for it."

It's a little surprising though.

That my rough advice could change one person so much.

Immediately, Ainar closes the book she'd opened and gets up from her seat.

"Are you going right now?"

"If you don't do it when you think of it, you'll forget it."

I see.

The more I get to know them, the more I think they're a sad and pitiful race.

"Then, I will go."

Ainar, who starts heading towards the exit after that brief goodbye, suddenly turns around as if she remembered something at the last moment.

"Ah! Come to think of it, I decided to repay you for your advice if I came back alive. If you need any help, come to the Angry Rhino Inn. Whatever it is, I'll help as much as I can."

"Alright."

I just hope you don't forget about this promise within the next day or two.

I think I'll be calling for help soon.

After Ainar left, I wandered around the library for a while.

Hey, could a library spanning an entire building the size of the National Assembly be a common sight?

Even in the game, the library only had a sign saying 'under construction' hanging at the entrance, and couldn't be entered.

Hmm, but how would you find a book amidst all this?

It's not like the location would only be a few taps of keyboard away like in the modern times…

Since I was in trouble, I decided to seek professional help.

"Khm."

At my cough, the librarian dozing at the desk slowly woke up.

"What is it?"

"I'm looking for a book. Related to history…"

"Parstyev."

Before I could even explain what kind of book I'd been looking for, the sleepy-looking librarian muttered a word.

At the same time, a faint light entered my body.

What, was this magic?

"Now look around and you will find the book you are looking for. You can't borrow any, and make sure you put it back in its original place after reading."

As the light faded, the librarian mechanically uttered some rote words and nodded off again.

… Who the hell was this girl?

For some reason, waking her up again didn't even cross my mind, so I just wandered around the library as directed.

As a result, I started noticing books all around me that made me feel like I was being drawn to them.

Slowly, I realized what kind of magic it was.

Demons. History. Labyrinths. Adventurers. Essences, and more.

As soon as the keywords I thought about changed, the books that attracted me also changed.

'What convenient magic.'

With this kind of magic, it was understandable why there was only one librarian. In the first place, compared to the size of the library, the number of users was almost negligible.

Among the books, I selected only the ones that attracted me the most, and started opening them one by one.

[The Ruined World].

The first 700 pages in this book described the early history of the world setting.

It mostly matched with what I'd known from the game.

Millenia ago, the land became impossible to live on due to the curse of the witch, and only the last stronghold, Rafdonia, escaped that disaster.

For the people who were starving to death due to the lack of resources, the royal family excavated a passageway that connected to another dimension.

Until it became the labyrinth of today.

[Basic Understanding of Alchemy IV].

The second book described how the mana stones collected from monsters were transformed into bread, water, and steel.

I didn't understand any of the principles.

I just read the books at random and tried to stuff as much knowledge into my head as I could.

Thanks to [Holy Wars III], I learned more about the reasons behind the relationship between the fairies and the barbarians, and what evil spirits were.

People were aware that evil spirits were evil beings, who came from another dimension, and could possess others' bodies.

Um, that wasn't wrong, considering.

[Demons of the Abyss].

Unfortunately, this book didn't explain the root cause behind the appearance of the evil spirits.

However, it did describe in detail the efforts of the Rafdonia royal family and the temples who had marked the evil spirits for annihilation.

Speaking as an evil spirit myself, it was full of useful tips.

According to the contents of the book, as long as you don't spit out some taboo words, you'll hardly ever be suspected of being an evil spirit.

For example, [Dungeon and Stone].

… I really needed to stop shouting 'Sparta'.

[How Did Adventurers Evolve?].

[The Two Royalties of Rafdonia].

[About Heroes].

[Life at Camp Bifron].

I was able to collect the information I wanted after reading a lot of books.

[The Death of the King].

This book dealt with the death of Ravigion III, who had been called the First King, or the Immortal King.

Although, the various suspicions surrounding it, or the changes that resulted from it, didn't matter much to me.

What I took note of was the timing.

Let's see, the date…

"150 years ago…?"

My hypothesis was proved correct at that moment.

The date of the king's death was about 150 years ago, as per the book.

In other words, it meant that the place where I was now was the future, 150 years removed from the game's standard timeline.

No matter which race you choose, the game starts the day after the death of Ravigion III.

Shit.

I'd have to live in the library for the time being.

"Whew…"

I closed the book and rested my eyes for a while.

Although I only read the important parts, my eyes were about go blind after skimming ten books in a row.

Even so, I decided to read the last two books I'd taken out.

Let's try just a bit harder. Because you might miss out on some important information.

[Dimensional Instability Observation Record].

Was this the book the blond, who'd saved me from crawling on three legs, had read?

It contained statistics and cases similar to mine.

Like the blond had said, falling into the outermost zone was something that only happened once in a century…

"Bullshit."

Speaking from experience, the actual number must've had been much, much more than that.

It was just that most of the time, the victim would've died before letting anybody know.

The rest of the content was just statistics, so I flipped through the pages and paused at the last chapter.

The author's reasoning was written at the end, that 'entering at the moment the portal is closing may have something to do with instability'.

If true…

So I only had myself to blame after all?

I was feeling pitiful, so I moved on to the next book.

[Ninth Grade Essence Compendium].

Finally, this book was the last.

It was an organized encyclopaedia that described the abilities of the essences dropped by 9th-grade monsters, but unlike the in-game notation, there were no exact numbers.

[Goblin]

Endurance (low), Sense of Smell (low), Poison Resistance (low), Dexterity (low), Vision (low).

Imbue paralytic poison when wielding melee weapons.

Create traps.

Looking at the other monsters, medium seemed to mean a stat of twenty-one or higher…

There was no way to guess the standard value of the high grade.

According to the guide on the first page, it seemed that information above the eighth grade had to be purchased from the Adventurers' Guild.

"Haah…"

I closed the book and simply stretched my limbs.

The world outside the window had gotten dark.

It was almost time for the library to close, and there were almost no visitors left.

I put all the books I'd read back into their original places and returned to the inn.

And after a simple meal, I stretched out on the bed.

With this, I'd passed three days inside this city.

"So another twenty-seven days like this? …"

The labyrinth opens at midnight on the first of every month.

A month here lasts exactly thirty days, so it means that you have to enter the labyrinth once every four weeks or thereabouts.

"…"

What can you do in the city with the rest of your time?

No, what should I do?

As I was organizing all sorts of information in my head, I quickly fell asleep.

When tomorrow comes, let's start with getting a new colleague.

"Uncle! Uncle! Come on, get up!"

Almost at the break of the next day, Erwen was knocking at my door, as if blown in by the morning breeze[1].

She sounded quite excited on top of that…

'Why the hell did she come back?'

I hoped she wasn't here to say she'd follow me instead of her sister.

To be honest, I thought I might never see her again.

"What's going on?"

"Look at this! The contract was successful!"

As soon as the door opened, Erwen blurted out an endless stream of words.

"Contract? Oh, I guess you ate the 'spirit stone'?"

Spirit stones are items that allow fairies to make contracts with spirits of different attributes.

With the caveat that the user has to be lucky enough.

"Yes! Yesterday, after I left your place, I went and successfully signed a contract with a new spirit!"

"You were lucky."

Spirit stones cost about 150,000 stones in the game.

The success rate was only around 10%.

It must've been a gamble with almost all of her fortune on the line, but still, did she succeed?

"Yes! Big sis bought about ten of them for me, and it worked!"

… Fuck, are you here to make fun of me?

As a barbarian who only inherited this body, I could only feel a sense of deprivation.

When we first met, I thought she was a pitiful kid because she had a sibling to take care of, but it was clear now that she was a top-class gold spoon by birth.

Perhaps her sister was the one who bought her that bow, too.

"By the way, it looks like you made a contract with the wind spirit."

"Yes! I was quite lucky. Because fire and wind go well together!"

"Okay, then cancel the summon first."

I took a deep breath and spoke.

I'd be lying if I said my stomach wasn't hurting, but it was for a different reason than envy.

"Yes? But I haven't shown it to you properly yet… "

"Are you here to mess around?"

"Oh, ah! sorry!"

The raging winds instantly subsided.

Hoo, why do I have to bother with such a a fuss as soon as I wake up?

Erwen, who'd been so bubbly, began to look a bit down at my frown.

"Sh-, should I clean it up?"

I didn't know why it was even a question.

Or did she mean to just stand and stare while I cleaned up her mess?

At my nod, Erwen quickly tidied up the room that had fallen into shambles.

Surprisingly, it took less than ten minutes.

She hadn't been lying when she'd said that she was confident in cleaning and laundry.

She moved really cleanly.

Just like some master of martial arts.

"Do you want something more?"

"…"

"I'll clean up a bit more…"

"No. That's enough."

To be honest, I wondered if it was even possible to do any more.

The room was looking even cleaner than when I'd first rented it, for some reason.

Well done, let me give you a carrot.

After all, I have something to ask you later.

"By the way, I haven't said it yet. Congratulations on contracting a new spirit."

"Hehe, thank you!"

"Did you have breakfast yet?"

"Not yet."

We went down to the first floor to have a meal and finish our conversation.

"What can you do with this wind spirit?"

"I think I might be able to slightly twist the trajectory of an arrow that's already been shot, or shoot it much faster!"

Compared to what I'd expected, the operations seemed fairly simple and one-dimensional.

What about rotating arrowheads increase penetrative power, or silencing the sound of the shot?

Then the combat power would be enhanced even more.

"Uh, I hadn't thought of that… It seems like it might be possible?"

What the hell are you talking about?

I feel down for some reason.

"Anyway, that's good. Once you're done eating, let's go back up."

"Yes? why?"

"I have some stuff to do in the room."

Erwen tilted her head.

As if she had no idea at all what I meant…

"You didn't think that your debt was fully repaid last time, did you?"

"Yes yes? Wasn't it?"

She really was naive.

Creak.

Locking the door so nobody could disturb us, I made Erwen sit on the bed.

"Come on, use your ability."

Are there any difficulties in the skill's usage, what's the cooldown, what're the weaknesses of the stealth ability, etc.

There were a lot of things that I needed to check.

Editor's Notes:

[1] 아침 댓바람부터 (lit. with the morning breeze). Here breeze/wind means being early or in a hurry, so the phrase just means really early in the morning. The literal meaning of the phrase sounds beautiful, though, so we tweaked it a bit and tried to fit it into the sentence.

-x-X-x-

"Good work. You may go."

"Goodbye!"

Erwen promptly starts walking away without even stopping to say another word.

Looks like this past half-day spent studying her abilities has been quite hard on her…

"Then I'll come back later!"

Are you still going to come back?

Oh boy, what are you even saying.

"You shouldn't waste time coming back here."

"Yeah?"

Why do you look so surprised?

This is natural.

It's not like you're my teammate.

"You'll need some time to get used to your new ability. That'd be a better use of your time till the next opening of the labyrinth."

In fact, the same goes for me too.

Yesterday, I set a new goal for myself.

To become a middle-class adventurer and reach the sixth floor.

So I have a lot of work to do, going forward.

First of all, I need to use these 1.4 million stones for my own growth.

If possible, I'd also like to receive professional training on fighting. I still can't fully utilize this monstrous body of mine.

I should also acquire more common sense and knowledge by reading more books. And also, wander around the city as much as possible to familiarize myself with the local culture and the prices of goods.

In short, I don't have the time to waste chattering with Erwen unless we have some business.

"Really! I-, is that so?"

"Didn't you have a younger sibling? Go find them and spend some time together. You'll have to go back to the labyrinth in three weeks."

"Yes…"

Erwen nods with a sullen face.

Is it because I'm her first – teammate?

She seems to have some strange fantasies about me. To be honest, I can roughly guess what kind.

But how can we make our original business relationship last?

"I plan to stay here for now, so if something goes wrong, don't hesitate to come here. I'll help as much as I can."

"Uh, really?"

"Aren't we comrades?"

"Hehe, that's true! Alright!"

Satisfied with the carrots I threw, Erwen leaves with a contented face.

Well, she's still easy to handle.

In the end, I've decided to preserve my friendship with Erwen.

Because this, too, is a kind of bond.

Even without blood ties, you can develop a social relationship with someone with time.

Maybe it'll be helpful someday.

"… Am I being too self-serving?"

Well, so what?

I don't have the luxury of choice[1].

After a quick shower, I'm out and again bound straight for the library. The same lethargic[2] librarian repeats the spell she cast last time, and I spend about five or six hours reading.

'Isn't there a place that sells something like soup?'

It's a little late, but for lunch, I find a cheap looking restaurant and get a plate of stuffed mulligun stew with a few slices of bread.

The price is 450 stones.

Looks like it'd be cheaper to eat at the inn.

"Here is Bjorn, son of Yandel, the greatest warrior!"

After eating, I visit the Angry Rhinoceros Inn where Ainar is staying.

Surprisingly, it's crawling with barbarians.

"You want to stay here too? Well thought! This place only takes 300 stones a day!"

Wait, 300 stones?

Surprised by the unbelievable price, I observe in a bit more detail, and it does make some sense.

As soon as I enter the room with five narrow beds, the thick smell of sweat several days stale assaults my nose.

"Are five people sharing a room?"

"No! Ten warriors together!"

"… But there're only five beds?"

"You can set a time and take turns sleeping!"

It's not that it's cheap, it's just that several people are sharing the cost.

Seriously, these guys have earned 30,000 or 40,000 stones at most, so they probably don't have a choice.

"But why are you here?"

"I'm looking for Penelin's third daughter, Ainar."

"Penellin's second daughter, Ainar, went out in the morning!"

So she's the second daughter.

I'll get it right next time.

Anyway, after waiting for about an hour, Ainar returns from outside.

"Bjorn son of Yandel? Did something happen?"

Because we're both barbarians, I say it straight.

"I want to fight you."

"You mean a spar?"

"Yes."

Now I need training.

In the labyrinth, I accomplished more than any other barbarian, but I'm no match for them in pure combat skills.

"It's a bit weird."

Ainar tilts her head.

I don't think it's because the request's difficult…

"If that's all, couldn't you just go to the backyard instead of asking like this?"

Backyard?

Soon, Ainar leads me out through the back door of the inn.

About thirteen barbarians are gathered there, waving their fists and rolling on the floor, shedding buckets of sweat.

And, well, maybe even blood.

"Ha ha ha ha! Your fist just now was pretty heavy!"

"Same goes for you!"

No wonder the outside's been noisy all along.

This is just normal for these people.

The fairies chirp and chatter with their spirits, too.

Smiling bitterly at the barbarians viciously attacking each other as if they are sworn enemies, Ainar asks me.

"Is there any reason why you're only asking me?"

Actually, there isn't.

I'd just thought that Ainar would grant my request. But now, if I say no, it would seem strange.

"Because you're the only one using a sword."

"Do you want to learn how to fight a swordsman?"

"Right."

"I see, so that's why. I have to go study writing in the morning, so if you come here during this time, I will treat you as much as you want."

In other words, her schedule is free from 5pm.

I'll have to visit every day from now on.

"Are we going to start today?"

"Of course."

After waiting a while, Ainar comes back from her room with her sword in hand.

"Ainar and Bjorn are facing off!"

The other barbarians also stop fighting and start to watch.

I came here to learn, but I have no intention of losing in vain, so I too grab my shield and sharpen my nerves.

However, the result…

"Then I will start!"

Owned[3].

Just three minutes to make me lose my shield?

She's great in a fight.

Still, it's a good experience for me in many ways.

"Bjorn, son of Yandel, was not the greatest warrior of all time!!"

"Now Ainar is the greatest warrior ever!!"

"Waaaaaaaaaaaarghh!!"

Now if only these bastards weren't here.

How many more times did we fight since then?

Soon the sky had become dark.

"Are you going to do more? I also want to take a break."

"No. Today's duel will end here."

The other barbarians had already left the empty yard.

After much deliberation, I made a decision.

"Ainar."

"What is it?"

Ainar, who'd been walking back towards the building while stretching her legs, stopped.

"Are you planning on going alone into the labyrinth again next time?"

"I guess so. Because I don't have enough money to build a team. However, this time, if possible, I will try the second floor."

Once again, I could feel how hardcore the barbarians were.

Compass and torch.

With these two things, you could advance to the second floor. But making money to buy consumables on your first entry, and going straight to the next floor with that money…

"Wouldn't it be difficult on your own?"

"Is there a choice?"

No choice…

Perhaps this was why the lower floors were crowded with only humans.

The other races, whose taxes were several times higher, couldn't even pay their first yearly tax by working on the first and second floors.

Their motivation was clear at a glance.

Didn't the guy who earn the most get just a bit more than 40,000 stones?

"If you're lucky, you might even be able to meet other people on the first floor and form a team."

"Right."

"So, what are you talking about?"

As our conversation seemed to be dragging, Ainar immediately returned to the the main point.

Like a barbarian, I spoke straight and directly.

"Ainar, would you like to be my teammate?"

"Teammate?"

"I will bear the cost of setting up the team."

I felt it after fighting her a few times today.

Ainar was strong.

Hearing what people around me were saying, it seemed that she was at the top among our ranks.

Above all else, she was pretty smart.

"Thank you for asking, but why me?"

In the end, I needed a teammate.

It'd be hard to find a friend every night, and having a partner would also increase your profits.

And Ainar not only had high combat power, but also the advantage of not having to worry about betrayal due to the nature of her race.

Instead, our classes overlapped, but…

Since Erwen was gone, Ainar was the best option I could choose.

Of course, there was no need for vulgar words.

"I just want to."

"Right."

Ainar nodded and immediately made a decision.

"Good. Entering the labyrinth with you, a clever warrior, would any warrior's dream."

It was a much more positive response than I thought.

Could I be a bit more greedy here?

"However, there are conditions."

"Yes?"

"Ratio. I'll have eight in ten."

"…?"

Ainar frowned at my words.

Could it be that she felt uncomfortable?

I continued the explanation.

"You don't have to pay anything for forming the team. And I promise. At least this ratio will make you much more money than if you went into the labyrinth alone. Besides, I'll pay for all the other consumables –"

"Stop, no need to explain."

"…?"

"Even if you say something difficult, I won't understand it anyway. So just do like you said. I trust you."

"… Right."

I had no choice but to admit that I had underestimated the barbarian race.

"I am indebted. Bjorn, son of Yandel."

Ainar walked over and slapped me hard on the back.

Calling it a debt was too heavy, but…

Well, I'd better get used to it quickly.

"I'll do my best."

I now had a reliable barbarian teammate.

Next morning.

I visited the sacred sanctuary with Ainar.

The sanctuary is a kind of communal nurturing facility.

Barbarians who leave for the city, if they have children, send them back here. Because they have to be warriors until the day they die, they can't afford to raise children.

And those children, too, leave for the city once they become adults, and the cycle continues.

This wasn't something I had to worry about right now.

"Bjorn son of Yandel."

Upon arrival, the chieftain came out to greet us.

Fuck, this was why I didn't want to return for a while…

"It's rare for a warrior who has left to come back to visit. Are you here to learn to read too, like Penelin's second daughter Ainar?"

Suppressing the pounding of my heart, I shook my head.

"It's not that, chief. I came for a different reason."

"A different reason…"

The chieftain looked at me with curious eyes.

Don't be nervous.

Didn't you learn the barbarian way of speaking from Ainar and prepare in advance?

Just don't make a mistake.

"Tell me."

I took a deep breath and said calmly.

"I want to get a spirit engraving."

Different races have their own characteristics.

For example, fairies deal with elemental spirits, and dwarves with artifacts.

Barbarians have 'spirit engraving'.

This growth method couldn't be used in the early game due to the significant cost…

Luckily, I now had a huge amount of money, over 1 million stones.

So, after thinking over and over again, I made the decision.

It was still terrifying to stand in front of this fucking chieftain bastard…

"To be precise, the 'undying' imprint."

But without a doubt –

This was the best way to spend my money.

Editor's Notes:

[1] 가릴 때가 아닌데 (lit. it's not the time to choose), related to the proverb 찬밥 더운밥 가릴 때가 아니다 (lit. it's not the time to choose between cold and hot rice), meaning beggars can't be choosers. See here.

[2] 귀차니즘 (lit. lazism), a neologism defined as lazy behaviour stemming from finding everything in the world a nuisance. See Naver.

[3] 개발렸 (lit. develop) is a gaming slang, meaning completely defeated.

-x-X-x-

The chieftain's eyes narrowed.

Shining with a savage cruelty.

"Where did you hear about spirit engraving? How could a young warrior know about them?"

Naturally, I'd first learned about them in the game.

How could an old player like me, who was solidly in the ranks of rotten water, be unaware of such basic information?

But I answered honestly.

"I read it in a book."

There was nothing to fear, because I'd already confirmed that the information could be easily found in the library.

"The book said that the spirit engravings were a great help in fighting the fairies during the War of the Holy Relics –"

"Hahahahahahahaha!!"

The chieftain suddenly broke into manic laughter, cutting me off.

To be honest, it was really scary, but I didn't let that stop me, since that laughter seemed to contain a hint of joy.

"Did you read that in a book? Hilarious! And there's Ainar too, to think we got a pair of such quirky bastards this time!"

Fortunately, the chieftain seemed to be fond of young barbarians who liked learning.

"… If the book's contents are true, I too want to get this secret magic."

"Certainly, we have no reason to refuse a spirit engraving if a warrior demands it! But, young warriors! There is just one problem!"

"Problem?"

"It costs a lot of money."

What, don't scare me like that.

Was that worth being so serious about?

Spirit engraving required a lot of expensive materials.

For higher-grade engravings, not just money, you'd also have to collect a lot of reagents.

"Hahaha! It's amazing that you've come this far after reading a book, but you don't seem to have understood everything!"

"If you need money, then you need money. How much?"

The chieftain looked at me as if he was looking at something cute.

"The cost of the undying imprint is, well, about 800,000 stones!"

I frowned.

Ugh, it was 150,000 stones more expensive than it'd been in the game.

I could still afford it, though.

"I can pay."

"What?"

"Is that really true?"

The chieftain and Ainar exclaimed at the same time.

Before they could make too much of a fuss, I took out a pouch of 500,000 stones and three of 100,000 stones from my pocket.

At this, doubt appeared in the chieftain's eyes.

"Bjorn, son of Yandel, where did you get so much money?"

It would've been a shame if he hadn't asked.

I'd taken some trouble to prepare the screenplay in advance, after all.

I told them what'd happened with Erwen, with some adaptations.

Roughly speaking, the fairy I met on the first floor had to work for me like a slave, an essence dropped by chance, and her sister paid the price with money…

"Hahahahahaha!! That's great, it's what those fools deserve!"

"To rob those wretched midgets, you're the first! Bjorn son of Yandel!"

The barbarians were fonder of this story than expected.

Not only Ainar and the chieftain, even the elders who'd been standing far away came by to laugh.

Wasn't this a bit much?

"Hah ha ha ha! I don't know how long it's been since I last laughed like this!"

Soon, the chieftain took 600,000 stones from my hand.

Huh? I was sure he'd said 800,000 stones…

As I tilted my head, the chieftain clapped me on the shoulder.

"My gift for a young warrior who has shown such great qualities!"

My shoulder did feel dislocated, but the reward was sweet enough.

Fuck, with one sentence, 200,000 stones!

Our chieftain was gallant like only a barbarian could be.

My heart was full of sincere emotion.

"Whenever I see those idiot tribals again, I'll make sure to fuck them and become a greater warrior!!"

"I look forward to it! Young warrior, Bjorn son of Yandel!"

Was this what people meant by familiarity breeding fondness?

I was gradually beginning to like this barbarian race.

Spirit engraving is a kind of strengthening technique.

The principle is to obtain special powers by infusing the 'spirit' of the magical material into the body.

It's also the reason why barbarians are always covered in tattoos.

They probably get tattooed as infants while the soul is relatively pure, so that the soul circuit can be seen even when they reach adulthood.

It's definitely a setting like that.

"I will give you one more chance to think about it. If you choose this path, you cannot receive the spirit engravings of other paths. Are you still sure?"

"Of course."

I know all the paths.

So I won't be changing my decision.

The high-grade imprints of the 'undying path' are the core of my nurturing method, and even disregarding that, all the abilities of the undying path are pretty high-tier.

"It seems that the elder has also arrived, so I should go."

"Alright."

After Ainar leaves, the chieftain leads me to the shaman's tent.

And the operation begins in earnest.

"Hmm, the circuit is pretty clean. Keep your heart pure, and this spirit will give you great power in the future."

The masked shaman utters some incomprehensible words and starts poking the tattoos on my torso with a needle.

And…

"Uggghhhhh…"

"Young warrior, don't hold back, you can scream. It's the same for everyone."

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"

A searing pain, ten times worse than the potion had been, assaults my senses.

Damn, I thought this would just be like getting a tattoo.

Do I have to feel this pain every time I go up higher on the path?

"Okay, it's over. I'm tired, so leave."

By the time the shaman utters the words I'd been waiting for, the sky has already become dark.

The chieftain who brought me here is nowhere to be seen.

"Thank you."

"Kuku, this is the first time ever that a warrior has thanked a shaman."

Yes? Did I do something wrong?

I don't know, but let's get out of here before anybody catches on.

「You have activated Undying Imprint Stage 1. Natural regeneration is greatly increased. 」

「Body +20」

Mentally, I feel extremely tired, but my body feels strangely full of energy.

Is this the power of the spirit imprint?

It feels very strange. Like some unknown power is residing within my body.

I should check the details later.

"Open the door!"

After leaving the sanctuary and returning to the inn, I test my newly acquired abilities a few times, then collapse on the bed and fall asleep.

Another day passed, and morning came.

I went back to the business district I'd visited along with Erwen the other day.

It was time is to invest all my remaining capital, less than 900,000 stones after the chieftain's passionate discount, in myself.

"You're the one who came by last time. Are you here to sell again?"

"No, this time I came to buy."

I needed a new weapon.

The hammer I'd gotten from uncle was sold together with the rest of the weapons last time.

It wasn't bad, but the handle was too long to use it one-handed, so it was a bit uncomfortable.

"I want to see some one-handed blunts."

"One-handed blunts…"

As a result of my battles with Ainar, I'd decided that they suited me better than blades.

Bladed weapons required more proficiency.

Well, there's nothing you can't do if you practice, but…

In the first place, the weapon itself would only be for the early levels, so it wouldn't be efficient to train it. Once I got the 'essence' I was aiming for, I'd just focus on the shield.

"Hmm."

The shopkeeper looked me up and down, and brought me a few 'one-handed blunts' that didn't look like they could be called that.

The lightest one seemed to be three times heavier than the two-handed hammer I'd used.

Hey, do you call this a one-handed blunt weapon?

"These are all the one-handed blunts favoured by barbarians."

Okay, it might've been fine for them, but I was dying here.

Although my shield, too, was a brutish slab of pure steel.

But even so…

"I want something a little more normal."

"All right."

There was no need to buy some crazy shit.

Although it was true that such a weapon would allow my destructive power to multiply by several times…

But almost all the monsters on the first floor were already at the level of one-hit, one-kill.

I wasn't even going to fight any huge monsters, so carrying such a large weapon around would just be cumbersome.

"How about these?"

Soon the merchant took out some new weapons.

Of course, these too were out of the norm, but they fit a barbarian's body size just right.

I chose a mace of moderately brutish size.

"How much is this?"

"250,000 stones."

250,000?

I sold you six weapons last time only for 350,000 though?

Frowning, the shopkeeper added:

"The crafting level isn't that high, but the steel content is, so it can't be helped."

Oh, that made sense.

I understood.

Although I wasn't going to just let that pass unchallenged.

"Bring it down to 220,000 stones, and you've got yourself a buyer."

When I tried to bargain, the merchant looked at me with curious eyes.

… Just how profligate a life did these barbarian bastards lead?

"Nobody will buy these anyway."

"The barbarians often look for these, actually."

Well, maybe that was true for the first ones he'd showed me.

But the barbarians I knew wouldn't pick something this esoteric.

Above all, most barbarians preferred sharp bladed weapons like an axe rather than blunts.

When I mentioned my reasoning, the trader agreed to the bargain distressingly easily.

"Good. Then you can have it for 220,000 stones."

… Should I have aimed for 200,000?

「Total Item Level rises by +85.」

Anyway, after that, I looked around and purchased two additional pieces of equipment.

First of all, a half-armour.

「Total Item Level rises by +57.」

It was shaped similar to a bulletproof vest, made of sheet steel. The price was 360,000 stones, and it was a bargain because I managed to find one just the right size.

I would've had to pay twice as much for a custom order.

Like the second piece I bought, a helmet.

"It'll take three days. I'll jot down your address and have someone deliver it to you."

Helmets had to be custom-made because they had to fit snugly on the head.

By giving up on the design altogether, I was able to haggle the price down to relatively cheap, 170,000 stones.

「Total Item Level rises by +47.」

As a result, about 50,000 stones remained.

… There wouldn't be any meat dishes in my future, it seemed.

My daily routine has been set.

Wake up at 7am.

Have breakfast with Erwen.

"Wow, the stew even has potatoes today!"

"Tell me something, why do you come here for breakfast every day?"

"It's delicious and cheap, isn't it?"

Afterwards, I head straight to the library.

If I take it slow, I can make it right at the opening time, 8 o'clock.

"Parstyev."

Receive the spell from the chronically tired lady librarian.

"Do your best."

"…"

Of course, we haven't even had a proper conversation yet.

Creak–!

After reading till 4pm, if possible, visit the restaurant you'd went to the first time, for a simple meal.

Although the place is expensive and the food is bland.

But there're a lot of adventurers, so it's easy to eavesdrop on conversations.

"Is Ainar still out?"

"Yes! I'll deal with you till she's back!"

After a rough meal, go to the barbarian dormitory around 5 o'clock.

From the seventh day of training, I've started competing with the other barbarians.

Like them, I also take off my upper garments, swing my fists and strangle their necks, and in a word, fight fiercely.

Although it's far from the systematic fighting training I'd expected…

Fighting with the barbarians, with their finely honed instincts and razor-sharp intuition, is indubitably a great help to me.

I am also a barbarian.

「Reflexes improve slightly with repeated training.」

「Flexibility improves slightly with repeated training.」

「Dynamic Vision improves with repeated training…」

「Body +1」

Now, I have a better sense of how to utilize this body of mine.

"Bjorn son of Yandel has won!!"

"The greatest warrior ever!!"

Even without the help of new equipment, I can occasionally win against Ainar.

She is certainly skilled, but the downside is that she has some fixed patterns.

I gave her some advice, but it seems like they've already become a habit, and she can't fix it easily.

"Tired! I am going to sleep!"

"Me too!"

"A wise warrior knows when to rest!"

At 9 pm, all the mock battles that seem no different than actual battles are over.

Then, I drag my body covered in sweat and dirt back to the inn.

By the time I wash up, Erwen comes again.

"Uncle! Wash up right away! The food will get cold!"

"I get it."

Not every day, but five times a week, we meet once more in the evening to eat and chat.

Most of the talk consists of nonsensical everyday stories about what Erwen did and how she felt today.

"Isn't it annoying to have to walk an hour every time?"

"No? The rice here is really cheap and delicious!"

It's true, it's pretty cheap and delicious.

But what does that have to do with you, with your tycoon elder sister?

"I really enjoyed the meal!"

By the time we finish eating, it's around 11pm.

Time for Erwen to also return to her dormitory.

"Then, good night. Oh, and I can't come tomorrow either."

"You couldn't have met me if you did. We should both be busy tomorrow."

It's time to end my daily routine that has been repeated up to this point.

After checking the time, I quickly go up to my room and flop straight down on the bed.

A month has already passed.

And…

[23:41].

About 24 hours remain before the labyrinth opens again.

「Bjorn Yandel」

Level: 1

Body: 46 (New +21) / Mind: 36 / Ability: 1

Item Level: 202 (New +185)

Combat Index: 133.5 (New +67.25)

-x-X-x-

Library, city adaptation, fighting training.

I skipped all the daily routines I'd been repeating for the past month.

Because they were not what the adventurers had to do on the day the labyrinth opened.

[08:10].

As soon as I woke up, I skipped breakfast and hurried to where I was supposed to meet Ainar.

Because I'd heard that you needed to wait at least a few hours to get your turn.

"Here! Bjorn son of Yandel!"

To my surprise, Ainar had arrived before me.

"… Since when have you been here?"

"Didn't you say you would leave me behind if I were late? So I slept at the front overnight! Come on! We're first in line!"

"…"

Even though it was 30 minutes before opening time, there was already a long queue in front of the entrance.

However, thanks to Ainar, we were able to enter the Adventurers' Guild as soon as the doors opened.

"What are you here for?"

"We've come to receive binding magic."

"Is it a two-person team?"

"Yes."

"Put your hands here together."

As we followed the instructions, a faint light leaked from the crystal ball.

The colour was greenish.

"Two level 9 adventurers. That comes to 15,000 stones."

15,000 stones…

If I hadn't scrimped on living costs, it would've been a little tight.

I meekly paid from my pocket.

It was indeed tragic, but it was an unavoidable expense.

When entering the labyrinth, the starting point is random, but if you receive this magic in advance, you can at least start from the same place.

"What is the adventurer rank based on?"

"It's measured by the total amount of essence engraved on the soul."

"Right. So, does the cost of forming a bond increase with rank?"

"Naturally."

Haah, this didn't match with the game.

"It's done. Please note that this will only work for the next 24 hours."

"Understood."

It was a little past 9 o'clock when we finished our business and left the Adventurers' Guild.

"Let's go back to my inn for dinner. The food's pretty good."

"The inn? You mean your inn cooks meals for you?"

What kind of life had she been living?

When asked a question in return, Ainar replied with an easygoing tone that it wasn't a big deal.

"I usually buy the bread I'd eaten in the labyrinth."

Ah, the one that cost 20 stones.

I'd tried it once in an attempt to save money on food, but had to give up after a while.

I didn't know the exact principle, but what'd been quite edible inside the labyrinth was hard as stone here outside.

'That's why they call it rock-bread…'

But did she keep eating that for a full month?

My heart was full of sadness for some reason, so I ordered meat and stew, leading to Ainar swearing an oath of allegiance on the spot.

"Bjorn! Even if you ask me to jump into a pit of fire, I won't refuse! So don't leave me!"

After a tearful meal, we went up to my room and organized our backpacks.

"Be careful. If you forget something necessary, it'll be troubling."

"Don't worry! Because there's nothing I need to bring!"

Time passed surprisingly quickly as I checked my equipment and shoved in exploring equipment and consumables into my backpack.

"Then let's get some sleep now."

"I've never seen such a soft bed. It looks like two people can lie down! It doesn't even smell!"

After finishing the maintenance so that we were ready to enter the labyrinth at any moment, we lay down next to each other and slept.

It was pretty cramped with the two of us there, though.

With Erwen, there'd be space left for one more normal-sized person.

"Even if you can't sleep, force yourself to close your eyes. You won't be getting proper sleep for a while –"

Erm, what was I worrying about again?

Rrrrrrrumble–!

Before I could even finish speaking, came the snoring sound in the native style of the barbarians.

I just smiled and closed my eyes.

How long had it been since then?

[20:30].

We woke up a little early and had our last meal on the first floor.

A special, extravagant meal that cost 800 stones per head.

"Hey, what does this taste like?"

Ainar, who'd been fussing all through the meal, bit the baked cream pie that'd been served as dessert and froze.

"Oh, is it some kind of magic? M-, my eyes keep tearing up."

"Ah, that's called 'sweet'."

" I think I'll have to work hard from now on…"

It wasn't intentional on my part, but more motivation was always good.

"So many."

As we packed our bags and headed out into the night streets, there was a crowd of people passing through instead of the usual quiet.

Most of them, like me, were armed and carried a large backpack.

Although not all of them were, and there were also barbarians with just a weapon on them.

Looked like they'd just entered the city today after finishing the coming-of-age ceremony…

"Stop! I must have lost my way."

"It can't be! We must reach the labyrinth within the set time!"

"Parthun has no qualification to be the leader!"

So this happened every month, huh.

Just how did they actually reach the labyrinth every time?

While I was seriously pondering the issue –

"Follow them and you will reach the labyrinth."

Ainar approached them with advice.

The young warriors looked at her like you would a successful senior, and gave profuse thanks.

"Thank you. I will definitely repay this favour one day!"

Watching the young barbarians moving away, Ainar wiped her nose.

"… Hooo, it reminds me of the past."

Please don't wave it off and pretend it's a thing of the past.

I don't think anything has actually changed between then and now.

"Everyone, back off!"

Thousands of people had already gathered in the Dimensional Plaza. As we found a place to sit and settled in to wait for midnight, a light began to shine from the centre.

Although it was small at first, the halo quickly grew in shape and finally coalesced into a sphere.

"Now you can enter!"

When the official shouted, the adventurers around us quickly throw themselves into the portal.

I led Ainar out to the fringes to avoid the press of the crowd.

"Bjorn, aren't we going in?"

"Wait."

The number of adventurers gathered in the plaza dropped by dozens every second, but the crowd was still as packed as ever.

Because other adventurers kept arriving.

About forty minutes after the portal opened, the once-crowded Dimensional Plaza had become pretty quiet, with a line of seven to eight hundred people.

"… Shouldn't we go in now?"

The portal, which had already devoured tens of thousands of adventurers, was getting smaller in size.

But I kept waiting.

Ainar also raised her voice to check if I was paying attention.

"Bjorn, what are you waiting for?"

Well, it was too complex to explain…

I didn't know if she'd understand or not.

Even so, I decided to give a brief explanation as there was quite a bit of time left.

"I plan to enter when the dimension is unstable. The book says it happens once in a hundred years, but if you use this phenomenon –"

"I don't understand what you're saying, but I'll follow you."

"…?"

"I feel like I won't understand anyway!"

I did honestly think that would be the case.

It was annoying that she said that after being the one to ask in the first place, but…

To be fair, it might be quite convenient to be able to skip the explanation for each and every action.

"The gate will close soon! Back off!"

Eventually, the portal's light began to fade.

There were no adventurers left at this point.

Then I slowly walked towards the labyrinth with Ainar.

Seeing us like that, the official exclaimed.

"It's dangerous to enter now!"

I pretended not to hear.

I didn't know what they meant by dangerous.

Considering that there were even books with statistics, they had to be aware of the phenomenon…

"B-, Bjorn! Those important-looking people are saying it's dangerous! We have to get out of here!"

Then why did they never consider using this?

One second, two seconds, three…

Well, what's the point in a countdown?

My gut tells me this is enough.

"It's now. Let's go."

"Kuhk!"

I push Ainar from behind and jump into the labyrinth.

Flash–!

A flash of light obscures my vision, and when it disappears, a deep darkness is there to greet me.

It means that what I'd intended has worked.

"Ahead! I can't see ahead! I should've listened to that important-looking fellow after all! Bjorn is an idiot!"

"Ainar, calm down."

Ainar regains some of her composure as I take out a torch from my backpack in a hurry and light it up.

"Damn, how the hell did this happen?"

"Even if I tell you, you won't understand."

"That… That's true!"

Having easily convinced Ainar, I slowly look around. And as I see the monument in front of the dead-end wall, a strange feeling wells up inside me.

Really, the dimensional instability phenomenon is closely related to the starting point of the portal.

The news is both happy, and sad.

This means that if I'd decided even a minute earlier the first time, I wouldn't have had to crawl on three legs with one leg in tatters!

Whoooooosh–!

As soon as I place my hand on the monolith, a halo bursts out and coalesces into a sphere.

"What is this?"

"It's a portal for going up to the second floor."

In other words, we've skipped all the intermediate processes of finding the route using the compass, fighting monsters as we meet them, and wandering in the dark.

At least a day or two has been saved.

"What?! The chieftain said it would take three days to find the portal! What kind of magic did you use?"

Even if I tell you, you won't understand.

「First portal opened. EXP +2」

「The character's Level has risen.」

「Soul Power rises by +10.」

「Maximum absorbable essences rises by +1.」

To regain my original status as an old expert, I have to make good use of the bugs.

「Bjorn Yandel」

Level: 2 (New +1)

Body: 46 / Mind: 36 / Ability: 4 (New +3)

Item Level: 202

Combat Index: 136.5 (New +3)

「You have entered the Goblin Forest on the second floor. 」

Finding myself floating about 3m up in the air, I quickly regained my balance and landed on my two feet.

Step!

Yeah, I'd practiced this.

While wrestling with the barbarians.

"Ugh!"

Watching Ainar fall and pound the ground with her buttocks, I could feel my own growth anew.

I could now understand Erwen, who'd smirked at me, to some extent.

"Ugh, my ass is numb."

It was pretty funny to watch.

Well, she was athletic, so she'd learn to land properly in no time.

"What is it? You look sad?"

"No, it's nothing."

Leaning around, I took out my watch and set it to 0:05.

The plan had been to do it right away after opening my eyes, but I'd forgotten.

Still, I moved it forward by 5 minutes, so there shouldn't be a problem.

"… Ainar, do you feel it too?"

"What do you mean?"

"It feels like my heart is pounding."

Maybe I should describe it as a sensation of something denser than blood pouring into my veins and filling me up from the inside?

It was like that from the moment I crossed the portal, and now I could feel it clearly.

What was this?

After I explained the symptoms, Ainar quickly made a diagnosis.

"Looks like your soul level has risen! Congratulations!"

Ah, so I'd leveled up.

[Dungeon and Stone] also has levels.

Soul power is based on level. In other words, as you level up, MP, the resource required to use abilities, increases, and the total number of absorbable essences also increases.

For example, at level 1, I could only absorb one essence, but…

At level 2, up to two would be possible.

Well, you'd have to come across two essence drops for that to count.

"It's amazing. You haven't even caught any monsters yet, but your soul still rose in rank!"

"No wonder. Opening the portal for the first time must've been recognized as an achievement."

Achievement is a term that means a feat that gives you experience points.

"Um, what does 'recognized as an achievement' mean?"

Ah.

Well, once you reach a certain level, 'speedr​uns' are the easiest way to increase your experience.

[Dungeon & Stone] is a game with a slightly unusual growth system.

You can only get experience points from the same monster once and only the first time. Therefore, just like filling out a book of pictures, you have to defeat various different monsters to get exp and level up.

Uh, wait, wasn't this a bit dangerous?

"… Ainar, this is a secret between you and me. Do you understand?"

"Secret? What do you mean?"

"I was the first to open the portal. This has to be kept secret. If anyone asks, tell them that it took us two days to get to the second floor."

Opening the portal only gave 2 exp. In other words, it was equivalent to about two level 9 monsters…

'But unlike hunting monsters, achievements can be repeated to accumulate exp.'

Therefore, adventurers who've reached a certain level stake it all on speedruns.

Because whether you can hunt a monster or not is decided by various factors – if you're a good match-up against it in combat, its zone of activity, if you have a wizard in your party or not, the nature of the god your cleric worships, etc.

If you reach some kind of limit, you can try using achievements to break through.

But to do that from the start?

Only I knew this trick, and it was my ticket to easy mode.

If this got spread around, it won't end well for me.

"I swear on my honour as a warrior."

Was my expression too serious?

The look in Ainar's eyes changed, and she even made an oath although I hadn't asked her to. It did make me feel pretty relieved, but we still needed to move quickly.

"We have to run."

Adventurers would start pouring in here in a few hours. And if they saw the two of us here who looked like rookies, they'd start doubting.

How did two rookies manage to get here earlier than the veterans?

It was best to not be seen at all.

As always, I was more scared of adventurer bastards than the actual monsters.

-x-X-x-

I slot the torch into the groove carved onto my helmet.

And tie it tightly with a string.

Let's call this, Barbarian: Candle Mode.

… It's a bit bizarre, but this is a practical setup popular among the adventurers.

Ainar puts her hand into the roaring flames, and exclaims in wonder.

"Oh, amazing! There's really no heat!"

Yes, this torch is also a magic tool.

It is only an arm span in length, so it doesn't interfere with bodily movements, and can run for three days straight – a very useful item.

It's an expeditionary item I got from the crossbow party.

The average price is, hmm, about 10,000 stones?

… I suddenly miss Erwen.

"But where is this?"

The surroundings slowly come into view, and Ainar looks around before asking.

There's a huge gap between what you actually see and the 2D pixel graphics of the game, but it's still easy to recognize.

The black earth squelching with every step.

Ruins of stone buildings scattered about.

And even the mournful cries coming faintly from afar.

"The Deadlands."

"Ah, that's where the ghouls and deathfiends come from!"

She's right, for once.

To elaborate, elder ghouls, skeletons, banshees and even mid-level bosses like dullahans may appear.

"I'll take point."

The average combat power of the monsters is much higher in the Deadlands compared to the Goblin Forest.

But to say which place is trickier, should be the Goblin Forest.

It's a lot darker here, but…

At least there are no traps.

This is much more comfortable for two barbarians working together.

"There's a ghoul."

Before long, we encounter some monsters.

They're few in number, a mere three.

Of course, this number will increase to thrice from the third day.

And that's just one more reason for us to move quickly.

"Bjorn, I found a mana stone!"

"You don't have to report every single thing, just take what you find. We can distribute the loot later. Let's speed up."

Unlike the Goblin Forest, we speedily leave the entrance and continue heading north.

Then, we hear a scream nearby.

"Kiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"

"B-, B-, Bjorn?!"

"It's just a banshee howling. Ignore it. They rarely attack others first."

"I see… But is it really fine to let it go? It might be dangerous."

Well.

I don't know about Erwen, who's an elementalist.

But for us two with pure physical builds, no matter what we do, we can't hunt a banshee.

Even if I managed it somehow, it'd only become a bigger problem.

"If you attack a banshee pre-emptively, you'll get cursed."

"Curse?"

"It's a curse called the 'mark of grief'. Banshees will focus on you until you leave the labyrinth."

Unless you're prepared to weather their attentions for ten whole days, it's best to not touch the banshees at all.

If experience is the goal, the common practice is to just hunt one or two on the last day.

"You are a truly wise warrior. I'm lucky to be following you."

Thank you for your praise.

I don't want to expose it, but I understand well enough that you're more afraid of this kind of thing than I thought.

But that's that and this is this.

"Kyaaaaaaah!"

Crack!

Please stop clinging to me every time there's a sound.

Not only is it burdensome…

But the arm that you're clutching feels like it's about to break.

"Let, let go… It's just skeletons."

A group of skeletons appear, bones rattling.

Ten in number.

Even on the first day, there are quite a few monsters that come in higher numbers.

Well, even if we catch them all, only three to four mana stones would drop.

"Khm! I'll get rid of them!"

Maybe because she's ashamed of having been so afraid of the banshee's howls, Ainar jumps ahead first.

Tch, I click my tongue quietly.

"Ainar! Look between the ribs, you'll see the nucleus. To hunt a skeleton with a blade, you have to aim for…"

Crunch–!

"Huh? You say something?"

"… No, no. Don't worry about it, just keep fighting."

Crunch–! Crunch! Crunch!

Who cares about weakpoints anymore?

Every time Ainar swings her enormous greatsword, a skeleton gets mercilessly smashed to pieces.

Never to get back up again.

「You killed an elder ghoul. EXP +1」

「You killed a skeleton. EXP +1」

「You killed a skeleton warrior. EXP +1」

「You killed a skeleton archer. EXP +1」

After that, we continued our northward journey for about eight more hours.

And naturally, we encountered various new monsters.

An elder ghoul, twice as large as a normal ghoul.

Skeleton warriors and archers, classified as mutants.

It was hard to make a final conclusion because we hadn't met any mage types yet, but the difficulty level hadn't been much to speak of so far.

It was the first day, so the enemies were small in number, and my combat power had also risen significantly compared to the last time.

Puff–!

Just consider my equipment.

I could only use uncle's two-handed hammer with a short grip due to its centre of gravity.

But now my mace, about 70cm in length, made it possible to strike from a distance.

Much safer, and much more powerful.

More than anything…

Claaang–!

I now also had armour.

Because it was just a vest made of sheet metal, my forearms were bare, but that still meant I had a significantly smaller area to defend with my shield.

As a result, I could adopt a much more drastic fighting style.

As if my shackles had been lifted.

"Bjorn, be careful! We've got some skeleton archers!"

My T-shaped steel helmet exposed only the eyes, the nose and the mouth; and protected the most important vital area, my head.

Of course, a direct hit with something like a crossbow would still be dangerous, but deflecting the arrows shot from some shabby bows was no problem at all.

And I had another barbarian, with combat power similar to mine, by my side.

"Behel-raaaaaaaaaaa!!"

We cried out together the name of the ancestor of the barbarians, and continued the one-sided battle that was nothing more than a massacre.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Crunch–!

No matter what kind of monsters appeared, ten seconds was enough for us to destroy an entire group.

Was that why?

Every battle left me with a refreshed feeling that I'd never tasted while with Erwen.

Ohh, was this the true taste of a barbarian?

"Bjorn, you're injured."

Hm?

Hearing Ainar mention it, I checked, and there indeed was a slight scratch on my forearm.

But…

"Don't worry. It'll get better soon."

There was no need to apply any herbs, let alone a potion.

"Ooh! It's already healing! Is this the effect of the spirit imprint?"

The efficacy of the first stage imprint of the undying pathway is that your natural regeneration increases significantly.

Of course, it was nothing compared to a potion…

I'd checked the other day, and a 0.5cm deep gash took about a minute to heal to some extent.

However, this alone was a sea change in the stability of my playstyle. My stamina now recovered faster, and total stamina had also increased tremendously.

"Let's slow down a bit and get ready. Looks like we're almost there."

Calming Ainar down, I lowered our speed of movement.

Suddenly, the terrain changed.

The floor turned hard instead of soggy, and flat ground gave way to hills.

The banshees' howls got louder and louder.

"Kiyhihihihihihihi!!"

"Kehehehe, uaaaaaghh!"

Of course, the biggest change was something different.

This was the starting point for the upper-ranked species.

In other words, eighth grade monsters might appear from here on out.

"… Bjorn, you really won't attack first?"

Perhaps because she was afraid of the banshee's cry, Ainar had been gritting her teeth for a while.

Perhaps it was a barbarian habit to clench their jaws when they were afraid…

I couldn't know for certain, though.

Because I'd never been that scared.

"Cooooooooo—!!"

As we kept moving, we heard a strange roar in the dark.

Huh, hearing it actually even made me shake.

"Ainar, prepare for battle."

"B-, but didn't you say that we shouldn't attack the banshees first, Bjorn?"

Did she have a problem with her ears?

"That's not a banshee."

Deathfiend.

Among the many eighth grade monsters that'd made the game so unwelcoming for newbies, it was undoubtedly the worst.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The distant sound of heavy footsteps grows louder and louder, and finally it appears before us.

"… Are we going to fight?"

Ainar asks a question, but continues before I get the chance to answer.

"It looks fun."

I don't know what goes on inside her head.

She herself told me last time how she's afraid of dying, so how can she smile with such childish joy?

Is she only scared of banshees or something?

Coo–!

Perhaps because he's bothered by the torchlight, the deathfiend halts at the edge of it.

"Don't be nervous."

"Don't worry, I'm not."

Why are you answering? It's not you I'm talking to.

I had it all planned in advance, but now that I see it in person, I'm getting goosebumps.

The deathfiend is a humanoid undead monster.

Or perhaps, it's closer to a chimera?

It's over 3m tall, equipped with a sword and a shield on its arms.

Not actually holding them, though.

One hand stretches out into a long, curved blade in the shape of a crescent half-moon, and the other arm fans out wide from the elbow onward in the shape of a shield.

They're called 'protean sword and shield'.

"Cooooooooo–!!"

Fuck, don't shout like that, it's scary.

It's not easy to shake off the fear seeping into my head.

"Keep calm and follow the plan, and you can win."

"Of course, I trust you."

Thank you, but again, it's not you I'm talking to.

… Let's calm down.

Although this is the first attempt, there should be no danger as long as I don't let my guard down.

If things take a turn for the worse, just scarper and don't look back.

"As I said before, always aim for the head. Because anywhere else would be useless. Understand?"

"I get it!"

No, that wasn't a sign to attack immediately.

"Behel-raaaaaaaaaa!!"

Ainar runs out, her two-handed greatsword swinging.

It's already too late to stop her.

Perhaps the roar helps her draw the aggro properly, because the enemy also rushes forward with its sword and shield instead of staying at the edge of the torchlight.

"Cooooooooo–!!"

Claaaaang!

Ainar's greatsword and the deathfiend's protean blade collide with a clangouring roar.

"Bjorn, be careful! This monster's power is no joke!"

Wouldn't that usually be obvious from just seeing it?

"Behel-raaaaaaaaaa!!"

I join the battle with my own roar.

My shield guarding the front like a wall, I pound at the flank of the enemy, interrupting its attack on Ainar who's just been knocked away.

But is it possible for mere flesh to be this tough?

It feels like I'm striking stone.

Creeeeeeeak.

Even as I apply force, it's me who gets pushed back, shield and all.

There's no reason to keep at it – apart from my injured pride, that is.

I lift my toes up high, my heels digging on the ground.

Then I slam my entire weight forward, with not a roar but a scream.

"Aaaaaaaahhh!"

Fuck! I feel like my muscles are about to be torn apart.

But there's an indescribable sense of joy.

Looks like I… managed to resist.

And Ainar isn't green enough to let this gap go.

Boom–!

Her greatsword lodges itself at the side of the deathfiend's head with a heavy, dull sound.

Not severing it, but literally 'lodged in it'.

Crack!

She cut with such a heavy sword, and yet it only pierced about 1cm into the enemy's flesh.

The blunt sound was probably the blade striking the skull.

Even in the game, the deathfiend boasted a notorious level of defence.

Although, it was its regeneration rather than physical defence that drove the newbies away from the game.

"Cooooooooo!"

"Take distance, now!"

Avoiding the frantic struggles of the deathfiend, I widen the gap between us.

Dark red blood is dripping from the where the sword was pulled out, but the bleeding stops in less than three seconds.

Due to its passive skill, 'preservation of the flesh'.

"Ainar! Make a gap. It's my turn to attack!"

Just as I quickly shout an order out and try to rush in –

Thump, thump, thump!

The earth suddenly begins to shake.

This is my first time seeing such an effect, but I understand at a glance.

An active skill possessed by deathfiends.

'Call of the dead'.

"Keep away, there're ghouls coming!"

As the shaking stops, ghouls dig their way out from beneath the ground.

Exactly ten in number.

"Get rid of these guys first!"

"Got it!"

While Ainar gets rid of the ghouls with her greatsword –

"Coooooooooooooooooooooo!"

I keep the deathfiend's attention.

Although since I keep drawing aggro, the ghoul bastards keep attacking me instead, their nails scratching me up until my skin looks like a tattered rag.

Of course, it's no big deal.

I have regeneration, too.

Although not as good as the other guy.

"Bjorn! Now I'll take on this guy!"

The ghouls are wiped out in about two minutes.

It's kind of funny, to be honest.

To think you can survive the deathfiend's summoning pattern by just beating them up.

'I never did this well even in the game.'

While Ainar takes over the baton and starts marking him one-on-one, I take my mace out and move behind his back.

And smash him good on the back of his head.

Puff–!

The sound and the feel are pretty good.

A trickle of putrid blood leaks out from the wound.

I keep hitting.

Puff–! Puff–! Puff–!

With enough power to convert a goblin into motes of light in every shot.

But, fuck, why is it still like this?

Crack!

In reality, the skull is sturdy beyond imagination. Even as I keep hitting it, the flesh keeps healing.

… What should I do now?

The attack power is lacking.

If I'd known this beforehand, I'd have bought the weapon the merchant had recommended at the time.

Should I just give up and go hunt level nine monsters instead?

Crack! Crack! Crack!

I continue attacking with my mace as I keep thinking, but it's not enough to destroy the brain.

Whoosh–!

In the end, I have no choice but to step back to avoid the protean blade that comes swinging in.

But then –

"Coootttt!"

Suddenly, the deathfiend's body loses its balance and tilts.

I can see Ainar digging her heels, grabbing one of the legs of this 3m tall bastard and lifting it up.

It's a common technique in the UFC.

Don't they call this…

'A single leg tackle?'

"Behel-raaaaaaaaaaa!!"

All those muscles swelling up and those veins bulging out, the scene really makes her look like the monster…

The goal is clear, and even seems feasible.

So I immediately join in.

Puff–!

When I hit the ankle he still has on the ground as hard I can with my mace, the massive body completely loses its balance and hovers in the air for an instant.

And…

Coo–!

Crashes down on the floor.

This is what you call, In technical terms, a takedown.

Although I'd never even thought that applying such a technique against a medium or large class monster might be possible.

… Anything's possible if you're a barbarian.

"Cooooooooooooooo!"

The deathfiend flounders on the ground like a worm turned on its back.

For us, who were about to rush in again, it's a startling sight.

"Coooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!"

Wait, it can't right itself back up?

"Bjorn!"

"Yeah!"

We read each other's thoughts in our eyes.

Ainar and I run to its fallen form and smash it with our weapons like crazy.

Like when you make mochi, putting the rice on a mortar and take turns hitting it with a mallet, we also decide on an amicable turn-based arrangement.

Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff!

Come to think of it, this reminds me of making rice cakes in that folk village I'd visited during elementary school.

"So fun!"

Maybe because I remember the buddy I'd paired up with crying and asking for their turn?

Seeing Ainar having fun somehow heals the wounds in my heart.

As if my spirit is sublimating.

「You killed a deathfiend. EXP +2」

We smile brightly, watching the deathfiend dissolve into motes of light.

Without any help from a wizard's powerful spells, a priest's divine power, or a fairy's elemental magic…

"Bjorn! Look at this! The mana stone is huge!"

We've succeeded in hunting an eighth level monster.