Surviving the Game as a Barbarian Chapter 477: Of Men and Women (4)

We moved to the living room on the first floor.

Auyen, who had been doing the dishes, was gone.

Alia had probably sent him away.

It didn't matter.

"..."

"..."

The atmosphere was awkward again.

Misha sat there, fidgeting with her hands, and I felt uncomfortable.

How could I break the ice?

As I was thinking that...

"Lee..."

Misha spoke.

"Hansu..."

My real na. A na few people in this world knew.

I had activated the sound barrier, but I still flinched in surprise and looked around.

And then, realizing my mistake...

"Ah... S-Sorry! I didn't an to make you uncomfortable—"

"It's fine. The sound barrier is active."

"...Oh... is it?"

She had supposedly fixed her speech patterns, but she was still awkward.

"Did Lee Baekho tell you my na?"

I had to confirm a few things before continuing the conversation.

"Yes..."

"Then you know I'm an evil spirit."

"...Yes."

"But you're not afraid of ?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I've known for a while..."

What? She knew?

"Since when...?"

"That's..."

Misha looked flustered and then mumbled, her face red,

"...August 16th, 154th year of the New Era. That's when I was sure..."

Why was she giving the date?

I was speechless, but I quickly figured it out.

"..."

August 16th, 154th year of the New Era.

That was the day I had confessed my feelings to her.

And then... after a few... incidents...

'She rejected .'

So that was the reason?

I had been wondering why she had rejected ...

I wanted to ask her directly, but I couldn't bring myself to do it.

So I changed the subject.

"Why did you follow Lee Baekho after I was declared dead?"

"...He said he would revive you with the Stone of Resurrection if I helped him."

I already knew that.

But I had asked the question for a different reason.

"Why? You knew I was an evil spirit."

"Because... you're my... precious... comrade..."

Precious comrade...

It was a heartwarming answer, but also a vague one.

If it wasn't because I was an evil spirit, then why did she reject ?

So she could be friends with an evil spirit, but not lovers?

I wanted to ask her, but she changed the subject first.

"A-Anyway!"

Right, she didn't want to talk about it.

"Can I... ask you sothing?"

"Go ahead."

"Lee Baekho... he called you 'hyung'... are you... close?"

"Not really. He's clearly hiding sothing."

One word seed to have caught her attention.

"Hiding sothing..."

"So is that all you wanted to ask?"

"No! I have another question! Why did you... disappear on Parune Island?"

Ah, so Lee Baekho hadn't told her about that.

Why? To drive a wedge between us?

Or maybe he just thought it was too personal.

He wanted to decide whether to tell her or not.

"Did the others know—?"

But my decision had already been made.

"Wait."

"...?"

"Let's clear up a misunderstanding first. The official story is different from the truth."

I briefly explained my trip to the past.

I wasn't worried about telling her.

After all, everyone in my inner circle already knew. And Misha knew my real na.

'And Lee Baekho knows too...'

Misha looked relieved after hearing my explanation.

"So... it was an accident... you didn't disappear on purpose..."

She then asked about what had happened after I returned.

I told her everything.

eting Erwen.

eting Alia.

Reuniting with Raven, Ainar, Bear, the dwarf, and Lotmiller.

"I was... the last one..."

She muttered wistfully and then asked cautiously,

"Do they... know about your secret?"

"Erwen, Alia, Raven, and Lee Baekho. They all know."

"...I see."

"I was worried at first. I heard you had joined a strange group."

And that she had testified against .

I stopped myself.

Misha's face hardened.

"S-Sorry... I thought you were dead—"

"Don't apologize. I know you were trying to help ."

I was still curious about her actions after my return, but...

I was grateful for her efforts.

Being alive was better than being dead, even if it ant living in a shithole.

"So that's my story. Now tell yours."

"My story...?"

"Yes. How have you been? Why are you so thin?"

"I'm not thin..."

She was practically skin and bones.

"Just tell what happened."

Misha hesitated for a long ti and then began her story.

___________________

Everyone dies eventually.

Even the immortal King of the old era couldn't escape death. It was an immutable law of nature.

But...

[So... Bjorn is really dead?]

The parting had been too sudden.

She had woken up from countless nightmares, hoping it was all a dream.

That's why she couldn't refuse.

[What if I told you there was a way to bring him back?]

It was the only way to get him back.

[The Stone of Resurrection can revive two people. If you help , I'll use it on your boyfriend.]

So she had agreed.

She had spread the rumor about Bjorn Yandel being an evil spirit, as instructed by Lee Baekho. She had helped him with his plans, exploring the labyrinth with him and his companions.

It hadn't been a bad life.

It had been difficult, and sotis she had cried herself to sleep... but she had hope.

[Oh, so you're finally giving up on that annoying speech pattern?]

She had fixed her speech, as he had requested.

She wanted to surprise Bjorn when they t again.

...Well, that wasn't the only reason, but...

[owow, what are you reading?]

She had started reading books, educating herself.

It made her feel closer to Bjorn.

[Stop reading and co train. I've trained a lot of newbies, and sparring is the best way to improve.]

She had trained relentlessly, sparring with Lee Baekho and his companions.

She wanted to beco stronger.

One month, two months, three months...

Ti passed, and she changed.

She could now speak normally, even though she still reverted to her old habits when she was nervous. And she had beco much stronger.

And...

[...When are you going to use the Stone of Resurrection?]

She had beco impatient.

[I'll use it when the ti is right. Why are you so impatient?]

His answer was always the sa.

Vague and noncommittal.

So she had finally asked him.

[...Are you even planning to use it?]

The Stone of Resurrection was real.

But would Lee Baekho keep his promise?

She had tried to ignore the question, suppressing her doubts.

She didn't want to know the answer.

But...

[Lee Baekho, tell the truth. When are you going to use the Stone of Resurrection? Tell now. Or else—]

She had finally confronted him.

But his answer wasn't what she had hoped for.

[Or else what?]

[…….]

[You're so annoying. Why don't you trust ? What have you even done for ?]

[…….]

[I leveled you up, didn't I? And now you're finally becoming useful, but you're getting too big for your britches. If you want to demand sothing from , show so results.]

Their relationship had deteriorated after that.

But she couldn't leave him.

The Stone of Resurrection was real.

[Haha! You're feistier than I thought!]

She had distanced herself from him and his companions, focusing on her own goals. She had taken on dangerous missions, accumulating achievents.

And then one day...

She had received both good news and bad news.

[He's... alive...? Bjorn is... ?]

Bjorn Yandel was alive.

But...

[Because if you don't, Bjorn Yandel will die.]

She was now bound by a new shackle.

She couldn't tell them everything.

"Haha... so that's my story... not that interesting, is it...?"

She was used to hiding her true feelings.

___________________

Misha's story was interesting.

I had learned a lot about Lee Baekho's activities during the past few years.

'He's been leveling up like crazy.'

I had also learned about his skills.

I hadn't seen all of them, but I had a good idea of his build.

He was a 'lee Ability User'.

'He can use any weapon, depending on the situation.'

He was a more formidable opponent than I had anticipated.

But his essence build wasn't that impressive.

'He said he had reached his limit... but I don't see it. Was he bluffing?'

I had a few questions, but they weren't important right now.

I organized the new information in my mind, and Misha spoke cautiously.

"So... what did you an by that?"

"Huh? What?"

She lowered her voice.

"You said... I wasn't going anywhere..."

Ah, that.

"What did you an... by that?"

I answered without hesitation.

Just like Misha had said,

"...We're comrades, aren't we? We should stick together."

It was an instinctive response.

"...I-I see..."

"Yes, that's right."

"..."

I quickly changed the subject.

"So what did you want to tell on Parune Island?"

"Ah... that...? I-I don't rember..."

Her words were slurred. She was lying.

But I didn't press her.

It would only make things awkward again.

"Ah! Do you still have my necklace? Raven said you took it..."

No. 7777, Garpas's Necklace.

Misha unbuttoned her shirt, revealing the necklace hidden beneath.

So she had kept it.

"B-But... do I really have to give it back...?"

What was she talking about?

"Give it to ."

"...Okay."

Finally, I had it back.

___________________

Our conversation continued late into the night.

We had a lot to catch up on.

And as the awkwardness faded, a sense of familiarity returned.

But...

"It's getting late... Are you hungry? Let's have dinner—"

Misha shook her head.

She said she would eat at her inn.

"Why go back to the inn? There are plenty of empty rooms here. You can stay."

"Bjorn, thank you, but I don't want to impose."

She refused, her voice firm.

She was drawing a line.

"I see... Suit yourself."

"Thank you for understanding. And... about rejoining the clan... can I think about it?"

"...Think about it? Of course. How long will it take?"

"A week... I'll co back then, so don't wait up."

Our reunion ended, and I went upstairs. I had to explain the situation to Erwen and Alia.

They were in the sa room.

They were talking about sothing...

Knock.

I didn't even have to knock. They heard coming and stopped talking.

They were sensitive to presences.

I was a little curious about their conversation...

"Can I co in?"

"C-Co in!"

Their voices were slightly tense.

It was unexpected.

"W-What's wrong...? Is there sothing you need...?"

I had expected them to be upset or even hostile, but they seed surprisingly calm.

I looked at Alia.

She shrugged and smiled.

It seed like she had cald Erwen down.

'She's reliable.'

I gave her a look of gratitude and turned to Erwen.

"So... what did you want to talk about...?"

She was acting strangely.

She seed to be hiding sothing.

'I thought she would ask about Misha...'

I looked around the room, and sothing caught my eye.

A thick book on Erwen's desk.

'Wasn't that in Alia's room before?'

The title was 'Of n and Won'.

Was it a romance novel?

I made a ntal note to read it later.

"So what happened with Carlstain? Did she leave?"

"Ah, that..."

I briefly explained the situation and told them that Misha was thinking about rejoining the clan.

That was it for today.

"Ha..."

I lay in bed, but I couldn't sleep.

What if Misha didn't co back?

Why had I assud she would?

Did she really see as just a comrade?

But if she did, why had she tried so hard to revive ?

What was she really thinking?

"...Let's just sleep."

I couldn't find the answer, so I cleared my head and closed my eyes.

And ti passed...

"Congratulations, young warriors! From this day forward, you will leave the sanctuary and beco true warriors!"

It was the Barbarian Coming-of-Age Ceremony.

And the day the labyrinth reopened.