Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

A river flowed east of the temple.

Beyond that river, a group of humans was discovered.

Though everyone suspected with high probability that they were humanoid "monsters," regardless—

"We tried to make contact, but they quickly disappeared, so the attempt failed."

"I see..."

Though information was scarce, it was still a positive sign to have discovered something.

There had been almost no progress in exploration for about a week.

"Commander, may I ask your plan for future movements?"

"What plan?"

I smirked and said to the deputy commander,

"I was just about to start exploring beyond the river. This works out well. Prepare the expedition."

"The expedition, sir...?"

"I'll leave the main force here. Having too many people can be cumbersome."

I judged it wasn't too late to lead the main force across the river after confirming what lay beyond.

"Oh, and this time I'll be going too, so don't try to stop me."

"Yes... Then I'll prepare suitable personnel from those you mentioned."

The swift scouts with keen senses were naturally all included, and we added mages, priests, and combat personnel to form a 36-member task force.

For reference, Ainard filled one of the combat slots.

"Pnnelin should probably stay behind."

Scout captain Amelia seemed uneasy about Ainard, but I couldn't help it.

Just having him nearby was helpful.

We didn't know what kind of new monsters might appear, so 'beginner's luck' to increase essence drop rates was needed.

"Deputy commander."

"Yes. Don't worry; I'll take good care of the main force."

"Then I trust you."

That wasn't just polite talk—I really trusted him.

The deputy commander would ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) manage well without incident in my absence.

"Scout captain, speed up."

Once the expedition began, we moved quickly like a speedrun.

We'd already confirmed there was no immediate danger nearby...

If we didn't hurry, it would take ages just to reach the river mouth.

"Stop! We camp here today and depart again tomorrow morning!"

We adopted a style of moving all day, then setting up camp at night to rest.

"Thank you for your hard work today, Baron!"

"Hey! I'm a commander, not a baron! Don't you know I smile brightly every time you call me that?"

"Oh, right, Commander! Then I'm going to rest first because I'm tired!"

Since the journey was long, everyone's faces had become familiar, though it still felt a little strange.

Only three members of Clan Anabada joined this expedition: Misha, Amelia, and Ainard.

"Bjorn. Can I ask you something... is that okay?"

While patrolling the camp, the secretary quietly handed me some late-night food and cautiously spoke.

"Ask away."

"Why did you leave that kid behind?"

"You mean Elwen?"

"Yeah."

Secretary Misha nodded and spoke softly.

"By ability and everything else, I don't see any reason to leave her behind. That's why it seemed a bit strange."

She wasn't wrong.

Elwen had keen senses perfect for exploration and top-tier combat power—she was very suitable for this mission.

But...

"She said she wouldn't come."

What could I do if she chose to rest in the main camp?

Though it felt unlike Elwen, she probably needed the rest after recent hardships.

"Oh... I see?"

Misha seemed surprised by my answer.

Still, she didn't press further and left.

"I see... then, see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, rest well."

After Misha left, I ate my late-night meal alone, sorting my thoughts.

Nearby, I heard voices.

Checking, I saw Amelia quietly speaking to scouts in a remote spot.

I couldn't catch the details, but—

"Yes, captain. Understood!"

The last shouted salute reached my ears clearly.

'When did she get such discipline?'

She was quite skillful.

Though she seemed clumsy at times, she never shirked any orders.

"Is it over? Looks like she was scolding them."

"Not scolding. Just warning them about the formation breaking during today's movement."

"Oh, I see."

We considered that "scolding," but there was no reason to argue, so we let it be...

"By the way, did you decide to keep wearing the eyepatch?"

I asked as I saw her toss it off with one hand; Amelia flinched and replied,

"...Only during exploration."

"Really? Wouldn't it be better to get used to wearing it all the time?"

The [One-Eyed] effect that enhances vision doesn't consume resources, so there's no need to remove it.

In fact, constantly activating it reduces sensory error.

"..."

"You seem to wear it only during combat and live without it otherwise. Is there a reason?"

A question asked out of pure curiosity.

Amelia sighed deeply, then answered with a bitter tone.

"Isn't it strange? For a woman like me to wear an eyepatch..."

It was an unexpected answer.

But on the other hand, very Amelia.

She was surprisingly shy about many things and seemed to care about others' gazes despite appearing blunt.

She quickly changed the subject.

"...But why didn't you bring that kid?"

"Oh, Elwen?"

Amelia tilted her head.

"No, that kid. The... cute one..."

Ah, she meant Hamshik.

After about three days of travel, we arrived at the river mouth.

But seeing it in person made me question whether it deserved to be called a river.

"It's really as black as they said..."

Like the Taean Sea covered with spilled oil.

You couldn't even drink from it safely, and you'd better avoid touching the water.

'It's about as wide as the Han River...'

In fact, the river had been known for some time.

But the reason we hadn't crossed it yet was simple.

We wanted to study the river first before expanding our search area...

'They say the depth is extremely deep.'

The depth was disproportionately deep compared to its width, so it took a long time to confirm nothing was below.

It seemed they even investigated the black water.

"It's not dangerous to touch, but be careful not to come into contact just in case."

We carefully launched small boats we'd brought onto the river.

Originally, the boats would sink, but thanks to some magical measures by the mages, they floated fine.

And how much time passed?

'Thankfully, nothing happened.'

No accidents occurred while crossing.

But the problem started after crossing.

Boom—!

The moment we set foot on land and spread out, heavy vibrations rippled through the bushes.

Any experienced explorer would recognize the sound of a 'large monster' immediately.

"Prepare for battle."

We secured a retreat route by boat just in case and got into combat formation.

Boom—!

The distinct footsteps grew louder, and finally, the beast revealed itself from the bushes.

Boom—!

A frame slightly larger than an ogre.

Unlike typical crustacean monsters, it had smooth iron-like armored skin and numerous hose-like tubes around its neck.

And...

Flash—!

Red glowing eyes like infrared.

"...A mechanical giant."

"A grade 3 monster appearing in the Panthelion Ruins."

Fortunately, it wasn't a new species.

Though rare, I'd caught one before on Library Island.

"One is not too hard to handle..."

Still, we decided to be cautious.

This one might have unusual abilities, or other enemies might appear.

"Expand vision and keep alert!"

So, instead of pouring all our energy into the fight, we stayed vigilant for any surprises.

Though a high-ranking grade 3 'mechanical giant,' it wasn't particularly difficult. I'd leveled up a lot since arriving on the first basement floor.

"Behel—laaaaargh!!"

Aegis Barrier.

Its biggest weakness—anti-magic—was compensated by consuming Bellarios essence.

「The mechanical giant cast [Magic Beam].」

「The mechanical giant cast [Support Request].」

「The mechanical giant cast [Reactor]...」

No matter what it did, I blocked it effortlessly and held it in place.

Scouts guarded the surroundings and protected the dealers.

Thanks to this, the dealers could unleash their power safely, steadily dealing damage until the battle ended.

「Mechanical giant defeated.」

The battered mechanical giant's body sparkled and vanished.

And...

"Essence...!"

An essence dropped.

When I'd killed one before with Beginner's Luck active, it hadn't dropped.

Though a rare grade 3 essence, I didn't feel much excitement.

After all, I'd gotten several grade 3 essences just from the first basement floor.

By now, I'd lost count of how many seasons this was.

No doubt the influx of supply would lower the price of grade 3 essences significantly.

The high price was mostly due to leftover effects from the previous dimensional collapse.

"Store the essence in a vial."

I ordered, and Raven, part of the exploration team, approached and collected the essence.

Though not as excited as when we got the Aegis Barrier, it was still somewhat fascinating.

'Even if you work hard at farming, these are hard to get, but here we get one casually.'

The mechanical giant essence was quite good.

Aside from the base stats and active skills, the passive skill [Mechanization] was valuable.

With it, one can consume mana stones to recover MP. The efficiency was terrible, so it cost a lot of money...

'But the potential peak was huge.'

If you had enough money, your MP could effectively become infinite.

"By the way, there's no sign of that human group?"

"We need to search the area thoroughly."

After the battle, we earnestly expanded our map and territory.

But finding the human group the investigation team had spotted that day was difficult.

They surely hadn't mistaken it.

'And since killing the mechanical giant, no monsters have appeared...'

Please, just show up already—something, anything—.

"Yandel, come here! The scouts found footprints!"

"What?"

Hearing Raven, I immediately headed to the outer formation where the scouts were.

"Ah, you're here."

Amelia looked up from inspecting the ground, bending over.

"So, footprints?"

"Here."

Checking, I saw a perfectly ordinary human footprint clearly imprinted in the soil.

"Not a group, just one person."

"Where are they heading?"

"We'll find out by following. The print looks fresh."

"Then let's go."

Amelia led the way, following the footprints, and we trailed cautiously.

And...

"They stopped."

The footprints, which had continued for hundreds of meters, ended abruptly in the middle of a clearing.

"Did they notice us following and erase their trail?"

I asked, but Amelia didn't answer.

She just scanned the area with a focused gaze and muttered coldly,

"...It was a lure."

Damn it.

"Are we surrounded?"

"Most likely."

Even Amelia, an expert, was uncertain.

But the mystery was soon solved.

"It's true—we're surrounded."

"...Prepare for battle!!"

As soon as we formed up, naked figures resembling humans emerged from the forest.

Seeing them, I exhaled deeply.

'They said they were humans...'

But they were not.

Some had pointed ears, others were short and stocky, and some had animal ears on their heads.