Surviving the Game as a Barbarian Chapter 579: Return (5)

Novel: Surviving the Game as a Barbarian Author: Jung Yun-kang Updated: Jun 10, 2026

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Now reading: Chapter 579: Return (5) from Surviving the Game as a Barbarian, a Action novel by Jung Yun-kang.

Ghost Busters.

A space created over 20 years ago that beca a refuge for countless users nostalgic for the past.

The end of that space ca suddenly, even until the very last mont.

[Urgent Notice] The server will be shut down soon.

[If forcibly disconnected, unforeseen problems may occur, so all logged-in users are advised to log out promptly.]

About five minutes after receiving Hyunbyeol’s ssage, this notification popped up.

After pressing the refresh button, the bulletin board, already radiating an apocalyptic atmosphere, went into chaos.

Posts ranged from “Why is this happening so soon when there’s still plenty of ti before the community closes?” to ssages searching for soone, and even mindless spam posts rarely seen during normal managent.

[Guys, urgent. Please respond.]

Curious about what was so pressing, I clicked—and unsurprisingly, it was nothing significant.

[What happens if you don’t log out and just wait?]

Ugh, I figured as much.

Still, since I was secretly curious myself, I checked the comnts on the post.

[these99: What do you think? You’ll just be logged out.]

[└Author: Really? Then I’ll just wait until it disconnects automatically before logging out.]

[└fliccolo: Didn’t you see the part about “possible issues”? Just quietly log out yourself. If you ss up, you might end up an idiot for life.]

Quite a chilling statent.

That you’d beco an idiot if you failed to log out on ti...

I wondered if it could really happen, but given the uniqueness of this place, I couldn’t completely rule out the possibility.

“The wording ‘possible issues’ left by the GM himself also bothers a bit.”

Even without that, there was no reason to stick around till the end, so after reading through so posts on the bulletin board one last ti, I clicked the logout button.

[Are you sure you want to log out?]

The choice window divided between “Yes” and “No” brought back mories of when I first entered this world.

Click, click.

As I pressed “Yes,” my vision darkened to black, and a sensation as if being sucked into sowhere blossod.

It was ti to return.

No longer the mysterious absolute investigator Maske, nor the ordinary office worker Lee Hansu.

But Bjorn Yandel.

Co to think of it, since when had it started?

Every ti I ca back from the community, Alia was always there.

No matter how many tis I told her it wasn’t necessary, she’d secretly co, so I gave up trying to stop her.

Honestly, I wasn’t ungrateful...

“You said you were just going to sleep earlier? Now you’re even lying?”

“I was planning to.”

“But?”

“I couldn’t sleep.”

Couldn’t sleep indeed.

When I smirked, Alia continued as if making an excuse.

“...And you never know what might happen inside the labyrinth.”

Well, she wasn’t wrong.

As I sat up, Alia handed a cup of water and asked again.

“So, what exactly happened inside?”

I quenched my dry throat with cold water and told her the details of what happened.

The announcent that the community would be closed right after logging in.

And the closure information obtained from the roundtable.

“Hmm, so Auril Gavis was involved in the closure...”

“The official reason is to prevent evil spirits from growing complacent, but that can’t be the real reason. What about you? Do you suspect sothing?”

“Not really... If sothing cos to mind later, I’ll tell you imdiately.”

Hmm, I guess she didn’t suspect anything either.

Well, she hadn’t t Auril Gavis properly anyway, so that was to be expected.

At that mont, Alia changed her tone and stared at .

“So, Yandel, what else happened inside?”

“...Huh?”

“You wouldn’t have that expression just because of that.”

“What expression...?”

When I tilted my head, Alia cautiously spoke.

“I might be mistaken, but...”

“No need to beat around the bush, just say it plainly.”

“You look like you’re in pain.”

Ah...

“Did sothing else happen inside?”

Ha, I really can’t hide anything in front of her.

What should I do? Should I say it or not?

After a mont of hesitation, I finally told her everything honestly.

It wasn’t sothing to hide anyway.

...And it felt a bit awkward to lie in front of soone with such wide eyes.

“I see... So that’s what happened inside.”

It didn’t take long for her to finish listening.

I had excluded my personal views and strictly laid out the events in chronological order.

But Alia seed to imdiately grasp what was bothering .

No, maybe she knew better than I did.

She then said,

“You’re struggling with whether you have the right to be angry at Misha Kalstein.”

Alia sumd up my psychological state, which even I hadn’t fully understood, in one short sentence.

It felt like I was completely exposed and naked.

Maybe that’s why I unwittingly defended myself.

“It’s not that simple. It’s not just Misha but a complex issue involving everyone—”

“But the core of the problem is Misha Kalstein.”

“......”

“Am I wrong?”

...I had no response.

So I just closed my mouth, and Alia calmly asked,

“Can you tell what happened that day?”

There was no need for clarifying which day she ant.

That was the day I said nothing happened.

Because that was when Misha started isolating herself, refusing to talk to anyone, hiding in a corner alone.

‘...Where should I even begin?’

After a short pause, I started explaining from the beginning.

“Do you know about the Resurrection Stone?”

To explain what happened with Misha, I first had to explain this.

I hadn’t told anyone the full story yet.

“To so extent.”

“Misha Kalstein received the Resurrection Stone from Ibaekho before returning to our clan. When I found out, I questioned her about it.”

“And?”

“I asked if she knew that using the Resurrection Stone causes the target to lose all mories of their previous life, and she said she didn’t know. So I told her I understood and told her to leave.”

“So... what happened after that?”

I sighed as I answered.

“Misha didn’t leave. I asked her to say sothing, even if angry. So I just spoke honestly.”

“......”

“I can’t trust you... Even after hearing what you said today, my first thought was whether you’re hiding sothing.”

After those words, silence settled between us for a while.

“...And?”

“That’s all.”

Misha left the room without a word, and since then, we haven’t had a proper conversation.

That is the whole story.

“I see.”

After hearing everything, Alia was silent for a long ti, seemingly organizing her thoughts, then unexpectedly asked,

“Why did you hide the story about Misha Kalstein from us?”

Well... I don’t know. Why?

Why hadn’t I told Alia about the Resurrection Stone either?

I wanted to dodge the question, but I actually knew the answer.

“...Because Misha would beco isolated.”

Misha’s position in our clan was already precarious.

Elwen looked at Misha with disapproval, and Versil was openly watching her as a candidate for betrayal.

Even socially withdrawn for over two years, Misha couldn’t get along with Ainard, her forr comrade, and was alienated.

If the fact that she received orders from Ibaekho ca out here, it was obvious what would happen.

‘She’d be even more isolated.’

Maybe it would even end with her leaving on her own.

But that made feel even more foolish.

‘What exactly do I want?’

At the mont when it beca increasingly difficult to understand my own state, Alia finally nodded as if understanding.

“So that’s why you couldn’t use ‘Broken Trust’ on Misha Kalstein.”

“......”

“You must have thought she was hiding more.”

That was the point.

It was a paradoxical story, but because I didn’t trust Misha, I couldn’t use that item.

Like Schrödinger’s cat.

Once you open the box, the result is already determined, and there’s no going back.

So for now, I left the box unopened.

Seeing my pathetic self, Alia said,

“That’s so like you.”

It sounded like a reproach, but Alia’s gaze was gentle.

“Bjorn Yandel. At dawn, take the ‘Broken Trust’ and ask Kalstein if she’s hiding anything else. If she says no, treat her as a comrade like before.”

“And if she is hiding more from ?”

“Well, then you’ll have to reconsider.”

“That’s... a bit irresponsible advice, isn’t it?”

“But you know you can’t keep postponing it forever.”

Well, she was right.

Sighing in frustration, Alia comforted ,

“Even ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) if you don’t want to, do what you have to.”

“......”

“Bjorn Yandel. Be yourself.”

Be myself...

What kind of person did she think Bjorn Yandel was?

That question suddenly ca to mind, along with thoughts about how I saw her.

“...Why do you see that way?”

“Just because you seem more mature than usual?”

A sincere answer without any filtering.

“Ugh...?”

For so reason, Alia flinched as if struck in the solar plexus.

Then she looked at for a mont and sighed.

“Take it as a complint.”

Huh... could that be interpreted otherwise?

The next morning, after a good night's sleep,

I imdiately went to the chief and received the ‘Broken Trust’ to use on Misha.

But I hesitated.

‘Is this really the right thing to do...?’

Not because I was worried about what Misha might be hiding, but because using such an item on a comrade felt very uncomfortable.

If I get past this with this item, then what next?

Would I start relying on ‘Broken Trust’ every ti I felt suspicious?

And would such a relationship still be called camaraderie?

That was the fundantal doubt.

But...

‘This is the last ti I’ll use it.’

No matter what happens later, once I decided that, my hesitation lessened a bit.

Yeah, so...

Knock knock.

After standing dazed for a long while, I knocked on the door.

No response. She didn’t seem to be sleeping.

“I’m here, Misha. Let’s talk for a mont.”

Knocking again and calling out, soon I heard movent inside.

“Huh? B-Bjorn? W-Wait a mont...”

The door finally opened nearly five minutes later.

“What... is it...? So early...?”

Unlike the stories about being a shut-in, she looked much cleaner than expected. She was probably in the middle of washing, water still lingering in her hair.

“Can I co in for a mont?”

“Um... it’s a little ssy...”

“That’s fine.”

I stepped inside through the slightly opened door.

Then I took out the Broken Trust right away.

“That is...”

Misha’s expression, recognizing the item instantly, was mixed with many emotions.

It looked like relief, happiness, disappointnt, and fear all at once.

Because of that, she couldn’t easily speak.

But I forced my voice out.

“Before we talk, I want to turn this on. Can you allow that?”

After a short pause, her answer ca back.