Surviving the Game as a Barbarian Chapter 391: Captain Barbarian (1)

The living room on the 1st floor of Erwen's CCTV-equipped mansion.

Three won were sitting in a row on the sofa, sipping tea.

"A special forces unit with thirty mbers... I've never heard of it. It ans they're working on it in secret, right?"

Alia responded to Raven's mumble.

"The war has been going on for a long ti, so the royal family must be looking for a way to turn things around."

"Yeah. Considering the nas of the candidates the Marquis ntioned, I wonder if it's even possible to put them all on the sa team."

"But that part is certain. The Marquis said so himself."

"Then it ans they're planning sothing big."

The two won exchanged serious words, discussing the situation. Erwen, on the other hand, didn't seem interested at all.

"Mister, you don't like things that are too sweet, right? Here, have this. I bought sothing savory this ti."

"Ah, thank you."

I took the peanut cookies from Erwen and started munching on them. Raven looked at with a dissatisfied expression.

She didn't like just sitting there after explaining the situation.

I quickly swallowed the cookies and spoke.

"Raven, so what are you going to do?"

"...What do you an?"

"Didn't I tell you? There are two spots left. , Erwen, Emily, and the Dragonkin the Marquis added. That's four."

"Ah..."

"I want you to join us."

I asked directly, and Raven looked away, her expression troubled.

"I'd like to help, but it's difficult right now."

A disappointing answer.

"...Is that so?"

Raven seed to sense my disappointnt and quickly explained.

"Captain Febrosk has been busy lately. He's been summoned everywhere, both on the battlefield and in the city. If I leave, there's no one to manage the Magic Corps..."

Always the responsible one.

Well, that's what made her a trustworthy companion.

I quickly ended the conversation, not wanting to see her dejected expression.

"Don't make excuses. It's not your fault. And besides, it's not sothing you should apologize for."

"Thank you. I appreciate your understanding."

"It's not understanding, it's just the truth."

"..."

Raven's recruitnt had failed.

Then who should I choose for the remaining two spots?

As I was contemplating, Alia spoke softly.

"Schuitz, do you think we need a navigator?"

"Hmm, we'll be taking a large warship, so I don't think we need one."

"...I see."

Alia nodded, but the atmosphere felt strange. Did she want to take Auyen, the basent navigator, with us?

Well, no matter how much she enjoyed sailing, there's a ti and place for everything...

"Auyen is better off staying here for now. We might need him again after the war."

"Okay. I've been worried about him because he's been skipping als lately, but I guess I should just increase his walk ti."

"...Yeah, that should work."

That settled the navigator issue.

"Raven, do you know anything about that Dragonkin woman?"

"No. I've never heard of Raviyen. But I'll look into it when I get back. The Captain might know sothing."

"Okay, I'm counting on you."

Raven then left, sensing that the conversation was over.

We were alone again.

"So, who should we choose for the remaining two spots?"

"We need a mage."

"I agree. We'll be at a disadvantage without one."

We quickly agreed on the need for a mage to fill Raven's vacancy.

And...

"What about the last spot?"

"A priest would be nice."

"If we can't find a priest, then a support ability user."

We decided to add a priest or a support ability user to the team.

I was the only tank, Alia was the lee damage dealer, Erwen was the ranged attacker, and we had a mage.

It would be better to strengthen the lee line and prepare for any unexpected situations with a support mber.

It was a rational decision, so I agreed.

But then...

"Okay, then for the mage, we'll choose between these two, and for the priest, this one. And if we can't get a priest, then this ability user!"

Erwen pointed at the nas on the candidate list with a cheerful expression.

And then I noticed sothing.

"Oh, they're all n."

"Well... there are too many won around you, aren't there?"

"...Huh?"

Was that a valid reason to choose only n?

I looked at Alia for help, but she nodded in agreent.

"It's better to have more n on the team."

"...Why?"

"You can't think straight when won are involved."

What?

What's wrong with her?

I'm a man of steel.

I've always treated n and won equally, especially when it cos to smashing heads.

The first player I killed in the Glacier Cave was a woman.

"Emily, I think you have the wrong idea about . Why would you think that?"

Alia didn't even hesitate.

"Because that's how you were with ."

What?

What's my image to these won?

____________________

Ten days before the next labyrinth expedition.

Alia, who had been going to the comrcial district every day to sell the loot, finally returned with good news.

"The loot is all sold."

"That's good to hear. So, how much did we get?"

"350 million stones, after deducting expenses."

Wow, that's a lot of money.

Even if we reached the 7th floor, it would be difficult to earn this much with just magic stones.

'Well, it's not surprising. We robbed an entire 6th-floor clan.'

Still, it was an unbelievable amount.

And we hadn't even sold the largest ship yet. If we sold it, our total earnings would triple.

"So, what are we going to do with the money?"

Alia asked, and I answered without hesitation.

"We split it evenly, of course."

"That's 110 million stones per person, after rounding."

Alia smiled for the first ti in a while, saying she could finally buy the weapon she had been saving up for.

But her smile didn't last long.

"I think it's better to pay off the debt first."

Erwen's cold voice.

Well, it was a reasonable request.

The situation was complicated, but Alia was the one who had put my Demon Crusher up as collateral.

She had used the money to buy the Vol-Herchan essence, and we had to take out a loan using Erwen's house to cover the cost.

"The due date is still a long way off..."

"I don't think we'll be able to repay it on ti if you keep spending like this."

"...How much do we owe?"

"Everything, of course. If I add my earnings to it, we should be able to repay most of it."

"..."

Alia looked at with a pleading expression.

But what could I do?

"...Let's buy the weapon next ti."

"You promised you would help buy it."

"The situation has changed. You agreed to keep the largest ship, didn't you?"

"That's because we might need another ship."

"Yeah, you said that. Just wait a few more months. I'll help you buy it then."

"..."

Alia didn't answer.

She looked sulky, but she seed to understand the situation.

What could I do to cheer her up?

She wasn't interested in food...

"Mister, soone's here!"

Huh? Soone?

Erwen's words made look outside.

A man from the Marquis's family had arrived. He wasn't wearing a uniform, so I couldn't tell if he was a knight.

The conversation was short.

"The Marquis sent this letter."

"Ah, thank you for delivering it."

I quickly returned inside and checked the letter.

It was short and to the point, typical of the Marquis's style. Maybe it was because I was a barbarian.

[The shaman issue has been resolved. I'm sending soone tomorrow morning, so co with him.]

Finally, I could get the 7th-grade Spirit Engraving.

____________________

The next morning.

I left the house as soon as the sun rose and boarded the Marquis's carriage.

It would have taken at least six hours to reach the Imperial City by carriage, but we used the military transfer station again.

'This is really convenient...'

We arrived at the mansion in the morning, even though we had left in the morning.

But I couldn't et the Marquis this ti.

He had left for the royal palace early in the morning because of work.

Well, he wasn't a jobless bum, he was the Pri Minister of the country, so he must be busy.

Actually, it was unusual for him to et so often.

It was thanks to his consideration that I had been able to have private conversations with him.

'Well, I prefer not to see him anyway.'

I followed the Marquis's servant and arrived at his office on the 3rd floor.

"..."

The Marquis's son, Eltora, was working at his desk. He looked at with an awkward expression, and then, as soon as the servant left, he greeted .

"...Welco, Viscount Yandel. It's been a while."

He was polite and respectful, but there was an underlying tension in his voice.

Ah, is it because he's avoiding eye contact?

"It's been a while. How are you feeling? I hope your face has healed properly..."

"...As you can see, I'm fine now."

"That's good to hear."

"Ah, and I apologize for my rudeness the other day."

Eltora's words made want to laugh.

I knew it was just a formality...

But it was still funny to hear the one who got beaten up apologizing for being rude.

"It's fine. It's all in the past. The Marquis and I have already settled it, so don't worry about it."

"Thank you. I feel much better now."

"So, where's the shaman?"

"He's waiting in another room. Renia... the maid outside will guide you."

So I just had to go to another room and get the Spirit Engraving. There was no reason to rush, so I asked a few questions.

"How did you bring the shaman here?"

"My father personally asked the barbarian chieftain to send a shaman. He said soone needed a Spirit Engraving."

"Hmm, wouldn't that be suspicious?"

"Not really. Not all barbarians can freely enter the sanctuary."

"Ah, did you tell him it was for a barbarian who had been exiled from the tribe?"

That was the most likely scenario.

But Eltora shook his head.

"He said it was for a barbarian who was born and raised in the city."

"...I see."

I nodded in understanding.

That was also a possibility.

Barbarians were no different from humans.

If they lived in the city for a long ti, they would adapt to the city's culture and beco less attached to their traditions.

So even raised their children in the city instead of sending them to the sanctuary.

"Well, then there shouldn't be any problems. Thank you for taking care of it."

"It's our pleasure to help the Viscount."

"Okay, then I'll see you later."

I left the room after my questions were answered. The maid, Renia, was waiting outside and guided to the shaman's room.

"I'm not allowed to go any further."

She ant I had to enter alone.

I opened the door and entered.

The room was empty, all the furniture removed. The air was thick with smoke.

A figure was sitting in the center, shrouded in a cloth.

'It's been almost three years since I last saw a shaman...'

I felt a surge of nervousness as I approached.

Even if the Marquis had prepared everything, the shaman would probably recognize .

Well, knowing his personality, he would probably keep it a secret from the chieftain...

"You've arrived."

A voice ca from behind the cloth, stopping in my tracks.

"Barbarian born and raised in the city."

What? That voice sounded so young...

Whoosh!

The cloth was pulled aside, revealing a young barbarian with an eyepatch.

I recognized him imdiately.

He was the shaman's young apprentice, the one I had seen several tis during my visits to the sanctuary.

'Kkeuk, kkeuk... Are you nervous to et the shaman you've been waiting for? I can feel your heart pounding from here."

What's wrong with this kid?

'And what happened to the old shaman? Why is he here?'