After returning to the inn, I was organizing my backpack when I ran into a problem.
It was about nothing other than the metal helmet in my hand.
‘Should I just sell this?’
This helmet had been officially called the ‘Golden Mask’ in the game.
An item obtained by defeating the boss of the ‘Blood Citadel’ and satisfying certain special conditions.
The effect was simple.
It customized the appearance of the wearer’s face.
Although the effect was only limited to thirty in-game days.
‘Plus, it’s a limited-use consumable.’
From what I remembered; it could perhaps be used up to five times?
I recalled that it’d naturally disappeared from my inventory after I’d used it all up.
Of course, I wasn’t completely sure about the number.
Because except for the first playthrough when I’d gotten my hands on it, I’d never used this item.
Instead, I’d sold it off on the exchange every time.
For about 500,000 stones.
‘Still, I’m worried… ‘
It wasn’t a worry one would have if they were playing the game.
What use is a cosmetic item in a game?
Why would you go and apply a skin on a game character with 2D pixel graphics, and one with a limited thirty-day duration at that?
It was better to sell it off, even if it were as cheap as 10,000 stones.
But I was in a ‘reality’ right now.
After a short deliberation, I made my decision.
‘Since I can’t be sure, let’s keep it for now. I’m not hurting for cash right now, anyway.’
My situation was different from the game, in many ways.
Hadn’t I even been framed and imprisoned, just recently?
If I ever needed to become a public enemy of this city, this item would surely play a huge role.
And perhaps I could find some other place to use it, too.
‘In the end, it’s money that makes the world go round.’
I could once again feel how precious money was.
If I hadn’t made a lot of money this time, I’d have definitely chosen to sell.
And as could be seen from this –
The more money you have, the more options you have.
Whether it’s in the game, or in reality.
Or even in this distant world.
“Hey! Did you hear? The Crystal Union’s disbanded!”
A silver-haired fairy was quietly eating in a corner of the restaurant.
Daria Wittember di Tersia, perked up her pointed ears.
Because this was a topic she was interested in.
“What? The Crystal Union, disbanded?”
The Crystal Union.
It was the name of an adventurer clan that’d achieved explosive growth in the past decade. It specialized in providing various conveniences to first-floor adventurers, using an extensive network of contacts and an overabundance of of message stones.
“Surprising, right? A whole adventurer clan in tip-top shape just going ‘puff!’ overnight?”
“Hah! Tip-top shape? Can you even call them adventurers?”
From what she’d heard, the members of the Crystal Union were mostly ordinary people who, under the pressure of taxes, set foot in the realm of adventurers.
Many of them held a separate job in the city and spent only one day a month to visit the labyrinth.
Of course, there was nothing wrong with just that.
Rather, such a purpose could be even called noble.
In fact, she’d heard that many ordinary citizens who’d been facing a crisis of defaulting on their taxes, which would’ve seen them executed, had been saved through this in the past.
But…
“Anyway, this is good news! They always kept bragging everywhere about being adventurers.”
The current Crystal Union had become corrupted.
As its power grew, it began to reject outsiders, and there were frequent cases of abuse of power[1] and even violent deeds against rookie adventurers.
What’d happened to her sister was a perfect example.
It wasn’t enough that they’d tried to harm her in such an unsightly way, they’d even tried to eliminate her to keep her mouth shut.
‘I hate to admit it, but if not for that barbarian, something unimaginable could’ve happened.’
Ever since hearing about the incident, she’d been hoping to take care of those guys one day.
But from this conversation, it looked like she didn’t need to anymore.
Coincidentally, this time too, it was thanks to a barbarian.
“By the way, I haven’t asked yet. Why did they suddenly disband?”
“Oh, didn’t you hear the story?”
“What news?”
“The Barbarian of Liberty!”
As she secretly overheard the story that followed, Daria frowned involuntarily.
The more she listened, the more interesting the story became.
After being framed, not only did this guy escape from prison, did he even take the daughter of the regional chief hostage?
“The story keeps getting bigger and bigger. At this rate, the new loot investigation law for ninth-ranked adventurers may end up getting scrapped.”
It was a story worth listening to.
The person who’d allegedly done the frame-up had already been sentenced to death and summarily hanged. Even the Crystal Union, which had been proud of its staggering size, was now apparently being held accountable for its past actions, and was being savagely beaten.
Just, there was one thing…
“But you know what’s even more surprising? That barbarian’s only a rank nine adventurer! A rookie barely past his coming-of-age ceremony!”
A rank nine adventurer who’d just finished his coming-of-age ceremony.
Somehow, when she heard this story, one person came to mind.
A barbarian who’d faced her with dignity, and was different from the masses in many ways.
‘No way, such a coincidence…’
She shook her head as if to untangle her jumbled thoughts.
Getting up and leaving the premises, Daria headed towards home.
But with every step, the thought came back again and again.
‘Is that barbarian really dead?’
So far, there’d been no reason to doubt it.
But if he was actually the protagonist of the story she’d just heard…
‘Then it explains why he didn’t come back to the inn for two days…’
Could she really tell her little sister about this?
Creak.
The thought still hadn’t left her head when she opened the door, and saw her younger sister, who looked noticeably emaciated.
She was sitting on the bed, eyes closed, manipulating three wisps of flame that were on the verge of winking out any moment.
Last time in the labyrinth, two had been her limit…
“Oh, Big Sis, are you back?”
“… Have you been summoning spirits nonstop since then?”
“Yeah, if I can expand my ability even the slightest bit…”
Daria’s mouth hardened into a line at those words.
The training method itself wasn’t surprising.
Because she’d been the one to instruct Erwen to train like this in the first place.
But her younger sister had never pushed herself to the limit like this before.
“You know, Big Sis, I think I heard the voice of fire.”
“What…?”
“Now I know. I know how to become strong. Why did I stay so weak all this time? Why did I always have to ask someone else for help… “
Her younger sister, who’d always been a bit shy, who’d always avoided her gaze when speaking, kept talking while staring straight into her eyes.
“I just wasn’t desperate enough.”
There was no vitality in that dry, cracked voice, merely a sense of desperation.
Spite. Thirst for victory.
Finally, the one thing that her younger sister had lacked the most, had been filled.
It was clear what was causing this change.
So Daria kept her mouth shut.
‘Even if the story is true… I’d better not tell her now.’
Just like how it’d been, ten years ago.
All this, was for the sake of her precious little sister.
Sometime past noon.
I visited the Adventurers’ Guild branch near the tower.
To be honest, my last experience there had been so traumatic I never even wanted to come near it ever again…
But I had no choice but to proceed with the daily quest I’d received the day before.
“What are you here for?”
“I’m looking for colleagues, of the right level.”
“Any requirements?”
The guild administrator quickly came to the point without wasting time on useless words.
I, too, answered without hesitation.
“A team of at least four, working on the third floor or higher.”
After all, I wasn’t here just to fill in a substitute for Ainar.
Rather, I planned to use my promotion to the seventh rank to join a team with the best skills, as that was the most effective path to attacking the labyrinth.
‘Well, assuming I get a good team.’
As I showed my identity card along with the personal statement I’d prepared in advance according to the procedure, the sleepy-looking administrator looked startled for some reason.
He looked it over several times, with strange eyes.
“… Five stars?”
“Is there something wrong?”
“Oh, ah, no!”
The administrative officer seemed to have gotten a sudden infusion of energy.
I didn’t know what the ‘stars’ meant, but his tone had become noticeably kinder.
“This is a list of teams that meet your criteria, Adventurer Bjorn Yandel. Would you like to check it out?”
He was finished in less than five minutes.
“That’s quite a few.”
“I swear, that among the recruitment announcements received by the guild, these ones definitely meet all your conditions!”
What did I say?
It was just a comment, I didn’t know why he suddenly had the urge to swear an oath.
“Hmm.”
The documents briefly described the fifteen teams in total.
When I started with the first one…
[Third Floor Adventurer – Ellen Bornev]
Preferred exploration areas: Twilight Slope, Steel Rock Hill, Jet Black Estuary. Average rank: 7th. Current personnel: 2 human melee warriors (7th rank), 1 beastkin melee warrior (7th rank), 1 dwarf melee warrior (7th rank). Recruitment: 1 melee warrior. Equal distribution. No fairies. Participation in post-battle meal together is mandatory. Drinking is allowed during exploration if desired.What the hell was this team?
The smell of sweaty muscles could almost be felt within the lines.
Frustrated, I read the recruitment letters of the other teams, but couldn’t find one that I really liked.
If the members were good, the loot distribution was too lopsided; and if the distribution ratio was good, there was some problem with the team composition.
‘… If I can see it even from the recruiting announcement, it’d be even worse in reality.’
Perhaps if I’d had a slightly longer career, finding a team would’ve been easier.
The highest I’d reached was the second floor.
If I weren’t such a purported newbie, I would’ve had a much wider range of choices.
There wouldn’t have been any teams trying to openly rip me off with such a low distribution ratio.
‘It’s annoying.’
I thought I’d rather organize a team myself by posting a recruitment notice, but…
Well, no one would join, right?
Rather, the unlucky bastards who’d join such a team wouldn’t be normal people.
‘Forget it, I didn’t think I’d be able to find a team on my first day, anyway.’
“Do you have a team you prefer?”
“I’m not really seeing anything I like today.”
When I shook my head and returned the documents, the administrator started parroting lines like those brainwashed game NPC.
“Oh, is that so? Thank you for your valuable time, but I’m so sorry that I couldn’t help you. Bjorn Yandel, we can let your information be disseminated to other teams if you wish –”
“It’s fine, I’ll be back.”
“Oh, would you please? Then see you next time. I am Terbes, a guild member who’s always friendly towards adventurers!”
Really, this man was kind – in his tone, in his words, and in his actions.
He wasn’t bad at his job, either.
“Then goodbye, Adventurer!”
But… why was I feeling so weird?
Leaving that hint of unease behind, I left the guild and headed back to my hotel.
But my feet stopped at an alley corner.
It was because of one barbarian.
Step.
A bushy beard.
Trousers that were frayed and stained with dirt.
It was true that many barbarians comported themselves no better than beggars, but even keeping that in mind, the barbarian resting against the alley wall looked particularly wretched.
‘What?’
As soon as I saw him, a sense of incongruity struck my mind.
Although I lived in a separate inn, I often hung out with other barbarians, so I could pinpoint the source.
Even if it was like this, a barbarian who’d just sat down to rest somewhere –
‘Why… are there no weapons?’
He had no weapon.
This was a very serious contradiction.
No matter how poor, hungry, and cold they might get, the barbarians carry their weapon as if it were their own life.
Although I wasn’t one to indulge in idle curiosity, I approached him instinctively and tried to start a conversation.
But what was this, again?
“Hey.”
“… H-, hey!”
The barbarian, who’d fallen asleep leaning against the wall, was startled and greatly dismayed when he woke up and found me looking down at him.
Well, fear of strangers may be a natural reaction for a living creature…
But that’s by the standards of other creatures, not for us brave barbarians.
‘Motherfucker, this bastard… ‘
That nebulous sense of incongruity began to gradually take shape.
My heart was pounding, but I quickly suppressed my raging emotions and thought through what I had to do next.
First, I’d have to lower his vigilance.
“Don’t be afraid, I won’t hurt you.”
As proof that I wasn’t an enemy, I pulled out a piece of jerky from my backpack and forced it into his hand.
It was the greatest kindness a barbarian could do.
Of course, he only took it, and he didn’t actually eat the jerky in front of me.
Still, I could at least clearly feel that the caution engraved in his eyes had subsided a little.
‘Well, this should be enough to start a conversation.’
I asked as if curious.
“Why’re you doing this here?”
“T-, that, that’s… I, I don’t have any money… “
I nodded quietly.
Rookie barbarians were indeed penniless.
This could indeed be the reason.
No, it made more sense the more I thought about it.
But…
“What happened to your weapon?”
“I, I sold it, sir…”
He didn’t just sell his weapon, he was also polite…
“You’ve got a name? I am Bjorn, son of Yandel.”
“I, I’m Ta-, Tarikan, son of Li-, Lien!”
He raised his voice as if he’d realized his mistake, but it was already too late.
I was already certain.
“Nice to meet you! Tarikan, son of Lien!”
This bastard, was an ‘evil spirit’. And it hadn’t been long since he’d entered this world.
Editor’s Notes:
[1] 등에 업고 (lit. carrying on the back), to use your position or background to your advantage.
After returning to the inn, I was organizing my backpack when I ran into a problem.
It was about nothing other than the metal helmet in my hand.
‘Should I just sell this?’
This helmet had been officially called the ‘Golden Mask’ in the game.
An item obtained by defeating the boss of the ‘Blood Citadel’ and satisfying certain special conditions.
The effect was simple.
It customized the appearance of the wearer’s face.
Although the effect was only limited to thirty in-game days.
‘Plus, it’s a limited-use consumable.’
From what I remembered; it could perhaps be used up to five times?
I recalled that it’d naturally disappeared from my inventory after I’d used it all up.
Of course, I wasn’t completely sure about the number.
Because except for the first playthrough when I’d gotten my hands on it, I’d never used this item.
Instead, I’d sold it off on the exchange every time.
For about 500,000 stones.
‘Still, I’m worried… ‘
It wasn’t a worry one would have if they were playing the game.
What use is a cosmetic item in a game?
Why would you go and apply a skin on a game character with 2D pixel graphics, and one with a limited thirty-day duration at that?
It was better to sell it off, even if it were as cheap as 10,000 stones.
But I was in a ‘reality’ right now.
After a short deliberation, I made my decision.
‘Since I can’t be sure, let’s keep it for now. I’m not hurting for cash right now, anyway.’
My situation was different from the game, in many ways.
Hadn’t I even been framed and imprisoned, just recently?
If I ever needed to become a public enemy of this city, this item would surely play a huge role.
And perhaps I could find some other place to use it, too.
‘In the end, it’s money that makes the world go round.’
I could once again feel how precious money was.
If I hadn’t made a lot of money this time, I’d have definitely chosen to sell.
And as could be seen from this –
The more money you have, the more options you have.
Whether it’s in the game, or in reality.
Or even in this distant world.
“Hey! Did you hear? The Crystal Union’s disbanded!”
A silver-haired fairy was quietly eating in a corner of the restaurant.
Daria Wittember di Tersia, perked up her pointed ears.
Because this was a topic she was interested in.
“What? The Crystal Union, disbanded?”
The Crystal Union.
It was the name of an adventurer clan that’d achieved explosive growth in the past decade. It specialized in providing various conveniences to first-floor adventurers, using an extensive network of contacts and an overabundance of of message stones.
“Surprising, right? A whole adventurer clan in tip-top shape just going ‘puff!’ overnight?”
“Hah! Tip-top shape? Can you even call them adventurers?”
From what she’d heard, the members of the Crystal Union were mostly ordinary people who, under the pressure of taxes, set foot in the realm of adventurers.
Many of them held a separate job in the city and spent only one day a month to visit the labyrinth.
Of course, there was nothing wrong with just that.
Rather, such a purpose could be even called noble.
In fact, she’d heard that many ordinary citizens who’d been facing a crisis of defaulting on their taxes, which would’ve seen them executed, had been saved through this in the past.
But…
“Anyway, this is good news! They always kept bragging everywhere about being adventurers.”
The current Crystal Union had become corrupted.
As its power grew, it began to reject outsiders, and there were frequent cases of abuse of power[1] and even violent deeds against rookie adventurers.
What’d happened to her sister was a perfect example.
It wasn’t enough that they’d tried to harm her in such an unsightly way, they’d even tried to eliminate her to keep her mouth shut.
‘I hate to admit it, but if not for that barbarian, something unimaginable could’ve happened.’
Ever since hearing about the incident, she’d been hoping to take care of those guys one day.
But from this conversation, it looked like she didn’t need to anymore.
Coincidentally, this time too, it was thanks to a barbarian.
“By the way, I haven’t asked yet. Why did they suddenly disband?”
“Oh, didn’t you hear the story?”
“What news?”
“The Barbarian of Liberty!”
As she secretly overheard the story that followed, Daria frowned involuntarily.
The more she listened, the more interesting the story became.
After being framed, not only did this guy escape from prison, did he even take the daughter of the regional chief hostage?
“The story keeps getting bigger and bigger. At this rate, the new loot investigation law for ninth-ranked adventurers may end up getting scrapped.”
It was a story worth listening to.
The person who’d allegedly done the frame-up had already been sentenced to death and summarily hanged. Even the Crystal Union, which had been proud of its staggering size, was now apparently being held accountable for its past actions, and was being savagely beaten.
Just, there was one thing…
“But you know what’s even more surprising? That barbarian’s only a rank nine adventurer! A rookie barely past his coming-of-age ceremony!”
A rank nine adventurer who’d just finished his coming-of-age ceremony.
Somehow, when she heard this story, one person came to mind.
A barbarian who’d faced her with dignity, and was different from the masses in many ways.
‘No way, such a coincidence…’
She shook her head as if to untangle her jumbled thoughts.
Getting up and leaving the premises, Daria headed towards home.
But with every step, the thought came back again and again.
‘Is that barbarian really dead?’
So far, there’d been no reason to doubt it.
But if he was actually the protagonist of the story she’d just heard…
‘Then it explains why he didn’t come back to the inn for two days…’
Could she really tell her little sister about this?
Creak.
The thought still hadn’t left her head when she opened the door, and saw her younger sister, who looked noticeably emaciated.
She was sitting on the bed, eyes closed, manipulating three wisps of flame that were on the verge of winking out any moment.
Last time in the labyrinth, two had been her limit…
“Oh, Big Sis, are you back?”
“… Have you been summoning spirits nonstop since then?”
“Yeah, if I can expand my ability even the slightest bit…”
Daria’s mouth hardened into a line at those words.
The training method itself wasn’t surprising.
Because she’d been the one to instruct Erwen to train like this in the first place.
But her younger sister had never pushed herself to the limit like this before.
“You know, Big Sis, I think I heard the voice of fire.”
“What…?”
“Now I know. I know how to become strong. Why did I stay so weak all this time? Why did I always have to ask someone else for help… “
Her younger sister, who’d always been a bit shy, who’d always avoided her gaze when speaking, kept talking while staring straight into her eyes.
“I just wasn’t desperate enough.”
There was no vitality in that dry, cracked voice, merely a sense of desperation.
Spite. Thirst for victory.
Finally, the one thing that her younger sister had lacked the most, had been filled.
It was clear what was causing this change.
So Daria kept her mouth shut.
‘Even if the story is true… I’d better not tell her now.’
Just like how it’d been, ten years ago.
All this, was for the sake of her precious little sister.
Sometime past noon.
I visited the Adventurers’ Guild branch near the tower.
To be honest, my last experience there had been so traumatic I never even wanted to come near it ever again…
But I had no choice but to proceed with the daily quest I’d received the day before.
“What are you here for?”
“I’m looking for colleagues, of the right level.”
“Any requirements?”
The guild administrator quickly came to the point without wasting time on useless words.
I, too, answered without hesitation.
“A team of at least four, working on the third floor or higher.”
After all, I wasn’t here just to fill in a substitute for Ainar.
Rather, I planned to use my promotion to the seventh rank to join a team with the best skills, as that was the most effective path to attacking the labyrinth.
‘Well, assuming I get a good team.’
As I showed my identity card along with the personal statement I’d prepared in advance according to the procedure, the sleepy-looking administrator looked startled for some reason.
He looked it over several times, with strange eyes.
“… Five stars?”
“Is there something wrong?”
“Oh, ah, no!”
The administrative officer seemed to have gotten a sudden infusion of energy.
I didn’t know what the ‘stars’ meant, but his tone had become noticeably kinder.
“This is a list of teams that meet your criteria, Adventurer Bjorn Yandel. Would you like to check it out?”
He was finished in less than five minutes.
“That’s quite a few.”
“I swear, that among the recruitment announcements received by the guild, these ones definitely meet all your conditions!”
What did I say?
It was just a comment, I didn’t know why he suddenly had the urge to swear an oath.
“Hmm.”
The documents briefly described the fifteen teams in total.
When I started with the first one…
[Third Floor Adventurer – Ellen Bornev]
Preferred exploration areas: Twilight Slope, Steel Rock Hill, Jet Black Estuary. Average rank: 7th. Current personnel: 2 human melee warriors (7th rank), 1 beastkin melee warrior (7th rank), 1 dwarf melee warrior (7th rank). Recruitment: 1 melee warrior. Equal distribution. No fairies. Participation in post-battle meal together is mandatory. Drinking is allowed during exploration if desired.What the hell was this team?
The smell of sweaty muscles could almost be felt within the lines.
Frustrated, I read the recruitment letters of the other teams, but couldn’t find one that I really liked.
If the members were good, the loot distribution was too lopsided; and if the distribution ratio was good, there was some problem with the team composition.
‘… If I can see it even from the recruiting announcement, it’d be even worse in reality.’
Perhaps if I’d had a slightly longer career, finding a team would’ve been easier.
The highest I’d reached was the second floor.
If I weren’t such a purported newbie, I would’ve had a much wider range of choices.
There wouldn’t have been any teams trying to openly rip me off with such a low distribution ratio.
‘It’s annoying.’
I thought I’d rather organize a team myself by posting a recruitment notice, but…
Well, no one would join, right?
Rather, the unlucky bastards who’d join such a team wouldn’t be normal people.
‘Forget it, I didn’t think I’d be able to find a team on my first day, anyway.’
“Do you have a team you prefer?”
“I’m not really seeing anything I like today.”
When I shook my head and returned the documents, the administrator started parroting lines like those brainwashed game NPC.
“Oh, is that so? Thank you for your valuable time, but I’m so sorry that I couldn’t help you. Bjorn Yandel, we can let your information be disseminated to other teams if you wish –”
“It’s fine, I’ll be back.”
“Oh, would you please? Then see you next time. I am Terbes, a guild member who’s always friendly towards adventurers!”
Really, this man was kind – in his tone, in his words, and in his actions.
He wasn’t bad at his job, either.
“Then goodbye, Adventurer!”
But… why was I feeling so weird?
Leaving that hint of unease behind, I left the guild and headed back to my hotel.
But my feet stopped at an alley corner.
It was because of one barbarian.
Step.
A bushy beard.
Trousers that were frayed and stained with dirt.
It was true that many barbarians comported themselves no better than beggars, but even keeping that in mind, the barbarian resting against the alley wall looked particularly wretched.
‘What?’
As soon as I saw him, a sense of incongruity struck my mind.
Although I lived in a separate inn, I often hung out with other barbarians, so I could pinpoint the source.
Even if it was like this, a barbarian who’d just sat down to rest somewhere –
‘Why… are there no weapons?’
He had no weapon.
This was a very serious contradiction.
No matter how poor, hungry, and cold they might get, the barbarians carry their weapon as if it were their own life.
Although I wasn’t one to indulge in idle curiosity, I approached him instinctively and tried to start a conversation.
But what was this, again?
“Hey.”
“… H-, hey!”
The barbarian, who’d fallen asleep leaning against the wall, was startled and greatly dismayed when he woke up and found me looking down at him.
Well, fear of strangers may be a natural reaction for a living creature…
But that’s by the standards of other creatures, not for us brave barbarians.
‘Motherfucker, this bastard… ‘
That nebulous sense of incongruity began to gradually take shape.
My heart was pounding, but I quickly suppressed my raging emotions and thought through what I had to do next.
First, I’d have to lower his vigilance.
“Don’t be afraid, I won’t hurt you.”
As proof that I wasn’t an enemy, I pulled out a piece of jerky from my backpack and forced it into his hand.
It was the greatest kindness a barbarian could do.
Of course, he only took it, and he didn’t actually eat the jerky in front of me.
Still, I could at least clearly feel that the caution engraved in his eyes had subsided a little.
‘Well, this should be enough to start a conversation.’
I asked as if curious.
“Why’re you doing this here?”
“T-, that, that’s… I, I don’t have any money… “
I nodded quietly.
Rookie barbarians were indeed penniless.
This could indeed be the reason.
No, it made more sense the more I thought about it.
But…
“What happened to your weapon?”
“I, I sold it, sir…”
He didn’t just sell his weapon, he was also polite…
“You’ve got a name? I am Bjorn, son of Yandel.”
“I, I’m Ta-, Tarikan, son of Li-, Lien!”
He raised his voice as if he’d realized his mistake, but it was already too late.
I was already certain.
“Nice to meet you! Tarikan, son of Lien!”
This bastard, was an ‘evil spirit’. And it hadn’t been long since he’d entered this world.
Editor’s Notes:
[1] 등에 업고 (lit. carrying on the back), to use your position or background to your advantage.
