Surviving the Game as a Barbarian Chapter 74 Ghostbusters (3)

Ghostbusters (3)

I’m sitting by the fountain, eating my lunchbox.

The nu is potato stew, bread, and a vegetable salad with beef.

Misha is sitting next to .

“Bjorn, have so of this.”

“You’re giving at…?”

“I ate a lot while I was making it.”

If that’s the case…

I chew and swallow the at that Misha handed .

How long has it been since I last had beef?

It lts in my mouth.

However, the downside is that it’s difficult to fully enjoy the taste because of the stares coming from the side.

“I’m pretty sure I just heard him say Bjorn?”

“Then that must be Little Balkan.”

“Hmm, I don’t see anything special about him…”

Since so ti ago, people have started recognizing wherever I go.

Clan invitations, team recruitnt offers…

I can understand those, but…

“Hey, are you really Little Balkan?”

There are also guys who co up and pick fights or annoy by asking to tell them about what happened back then.

Geez, can’t they see I’m eating?

Well, it was the last bite anyway.

“Misha, let’s go.”

“Huh?”

“We’re done eating, so it’s ti to go.”

We quickly pack up and leave the fountain.

I hear so grumbling from behind, but they don’t cross the line and follow us.

Misha glances back and mutters,

“It’s kind of strange. I thought only really amazing people would get recognized like that…”

What is this? Is she picking a fight?

Still, I understand what she’s trying to say.

She feels awkward because soone close to her suddenly beca famous.

‘Little Balkan…’

In the ga, there was no downside to having a high fa stat.

You could receive quests that you couldn’t before, or suddenly get high-paying requests.

Moreover, if your fa stat is low, you can’t enter the 1st district, the Imperial City of Karnon, so it was essential for ga progression.

However…

‘I’m not sure if this is a good thing.’

The place I’m in now is not just a ga.

It’s a world where players are treated as evil spirits and are beheaded as soon as they’re discovered.

If my na suddenly becos known, I’ll definitely attract unwanted attention.

But…

‘It couldn’t be helped if I wanted to survive.’

To gain sothing, you have to give up sothing.

I obtained the Orc Hero’s essence, saved lives, and gained various other benefits.

So I have to accept this much.

“Then I think we’re done for today.”

After retrieving the equipnt that I left for repairs, buying various necessities, and even stopping by the auction house to see if there was anything worth buying, it’s starting to get dark.

‘I should go back to the inn and finish planning my build.’

“I’m going to head back now, what about you?”

It’s basically saying let’s go back together.

But Misha suddenly trails off.

“Ah, that is…”

What is it? It makes feel uneasy.

As I look at her with an expression that says ‘just tell ’, Misha observes cautiously and then speaks carefully,

“…I’m going to visit my family for a bit.”

“Family?”

“Yeah. I’m planning to stay there until tomorrow or the day after.”

“I see.”

Why is she acting so cautiously about this?

If she has plans, she has plans.

It’s a family matter, so it’s not sothing I should interfere with.

Although I’m a bit worried… she’ll be fine.

“Good luck.”

Still, I decide to at least offer so words of encouragent.

I know what kind of presence her family is to her.

Misha chuckles.

“Well, I feel a bit encouraged now…”

Really?

Her voice doesn’t sound very energetic for soone who feels that way.

It seems like she needs a push.

Of course, in the barbarian way.

Thwack-!

“Ack! You barbaric idiot!”

Anyway, Misha is startled and shouts sothing.

“That’s better.”

“Ugh, anyway, I’ll definitely be back within two days, so make sure you eat properly until then, okay?”

I smirk and answer,

“Alright.”

It’s a change that happened after returning to the city.

She said she would treat as her benefactor, is this what she ant?

For so reason, she’s been acting like a mother lately.

_______________________________________

I part ways with Misha at the carriage platform.

She gets on a carriage heading towards her family, and I get on one going to the 8th district where my accommodation is.

My body sways with every creak of the carriage.

Since there’s nothing else to do, I close my eyes and let my thoughts wander.

‘It’s better to stay on this team for a while.’

My specs have skyrocketed after absorbing the Orc Hero’s essence.

I’m practically guaranteed a promotion to a 6th-grade explorer just by submitting an application.

And with the fa of Little Balkan, I might even be able to jump straight to 5th grade.

In other words, it ans I can find a better team if I want to.

‘But it would be difficult to bring Misha along.’

Misha’s combat power is exactly at the level of a 7th-grade explorer.

Of course, she has enough potential to reach higher ranks.

She just acquired a Spirit Beast, and the transformation-type ability [Enhance] is the decisive reason why I decided to raise her as a companion.

In that sense…

‘First priority is to level up Misha, huh.’

I make my final judgnt.

It’s more efficient to focus on Misha’s growth for a while.

‘First, we need to raise her Spirit Beast contract level, and if possible, we should head towards that area for the next expedition. That essence might drop. Ah, and it would be good to change her main weapon too…’

As I’m ticulously planning Misha’s developnt process, we arrive at our destination.

‘Whew, even if it’s not anything else, I should get a place near the platform when I change accommodations later.’

It’s like living near a subway station.

Although the rent will be expensive…

Thud.

I get off the carriage and head towards the inn, skillfully finding my way.

Go straight and then turn left at the candy store.

Then, when you see the statue of the Immortal King, take the right fork.

If you go for about 5 more minutes, you’ll reach the Central Plaza, but…

“We will begin the execution!”

Damn it, it was quiet for a few days…

I see a crowd gathered in the plaza, which is usually empty.

Everyone is looking up at the guillotine.

Slash-!

It’s a sight that’s not even that grueso anymore.

However, I have no desire to watch with interest.

Therefore, I ignore the chilling sound and quicken my pace.

But even so, my subconscious detects sothing strange based on the visual information.

‘…Why are there so few people today?’

I’m not talking about the crowd gathered under the guillotine.

I’m talking about the people who are about to be executed today.

Usually, they execute dozens of people at once, but today there are only four.

‘And it seems like there’s no one waiting to dip their bread in blood either.’

The mont my mind detects the question…

The faint murmurs beco clear.

“It’s disappointing, I was expecting more from an evil spirit.”

“Oh my, that’s right. His blood is red too.”

“Isn’t it disgusting? An evil spirit pretending to be human.”

What, evil spirit?

I stop walking involuntarily.

I turn my head to look at the guillotine, and I see the death row inmates trembling and waiting for their turn.

There are three left.

“I, I’m not! I’m not an evil spirit!”

“What are you doing? Put the gag back on.”

A young-looking fairy woman.

A dwarf man who seems to be around the sa age as the dwarf.

And—

“Eugh, eueueugh!!”

…a barbarian with a sowhat familiar face.

Slash-!

The fairy’s head rolls off and falls into the designated container, and the dwarf, who is next in line, is forced to kneel on the execution platform.

However, my gaze is fixed on one spot.

‘Tarik, son of Liyen.’

Right, that was his na.

The na of that barbarian who is trembling in fear with terrified eyes.

‘Damn it, I was worried because of his behavior…’

His awkward barbarian-style speech.

His timid personality.

His weak mindset that wanted to rely on soone.

I can’t even guess what he did wrong to be exposed, maybe because there are too many possibilities.

But I have a feeling…

‘I don’t think he bought a weapon with the money I gave him.’

There’s no evidence.

They would have confiscated his weapon before bringing him to the execution grounds. But for so reason, I can’t shake the feeling that he didn’t enter the labyrinth this ti either.

‘Why?’

Just as I’m seriously contemplating the source of this baseless intuition…

“Eugh, eueueugh!!”

He suddenly starts struggling.

And his mouth, gagged, keeps moving as if trying to say sothing, and his wide eyes are looking in my direction.

It doesn’t seem like a coincidence.

“Eugh! Eueueueueugh!!”

Could it be that he recognized from afar?

Well, I’m the only barbarian here, so I would have stood out even from a distance.

“What are you doing! Force him to kneel!”

He’s finally subdued by the people and his head is placed under the guillotine blade.

Even in the midst of that, he tries to say sothing.

Looking directly at among the crowd.

“Eugh, eueueugh!!”

I don’t understand.

What his muffled cries an.

Is he asking for help?

Hmm, his eyes seem too venomous for that…

“Ugh, eugh!!”

While I feel heavy-hearted at the sight of him unable to even leave behind his last words, I also feel a slight sense of relief.

‘It’s a good thing I kept my distance back then.’

If I hadn’t just given him 150,000 stones and called it a day…

If I had made a different decision and revealed that we were in the sa situation and relied on each other—

“Yandel’s so—!!”

…I might have been there with him.

Slash-!

The gag breaks at the last mont, and he shouts sothing, but the cold blade falls and silences his voice.

I imdiately turn around and head back the way I ca.

And I engrave a lesson in my heart.

‘I shouldn’t do things like that again.’

I need to be more careful.

In this shitty world, it’s not just marauders and explorers who threaten my life.

Who’s to say who’s pitying whom?

I should refrain from unnecessary ddling and act with caution from now on—

“Bjorn, son of Yandel, right?”

Soone calls my na from behind.

I turn around, and a well-dressed man is looking at .

“Don’t bother and get lost.”

I ignore him and continue walking, as I’ve had many strangers approach lately.

But…

“Don’t be so wary. I’m in a similar situation.”

The nuance of his words is very strange.

I involuntarily stop and turn around to look at the man.

“Arica? Taiwan? Europe? Where are you from?”

Damn it, what the hell is this again?

____________________________________

I’ve thought about it after gaining fa.

That sothing like this might happen.

However…

‘I didn’t expect it to be this soon.’

My mind becos ice-cold.

Of course, my actions are already decided.

Whether this guy is a real player or just pretending to be one…

‘It doesn’t change anything. Let’s do it as planned.’

Didn’t I know from the first day I woke up in this body that there were other evil spirits besides ?

I already asked myself this question before.

‘Is it necessary to take risks and interact with them?’

The conclusion I reached at the ti was simple.

Absolutely not.

Because what would I do by eting another player?

Share information?

We could do that to so extent, but…

In the end, it would just be a sense of relief that I’m not alone in this strange world.

Taking such a risk just to feel at ease is a foolish thing to do.

That’s why…

‘There’s no need to reveal my cards to anyone.’

There’s a saying in the world, ‘poker face’.

It’s sotis used to describe soone bluffing, but it basically ans an expressionless face.

That’s because the face is the part of the body where a person’s psychology is most easily revealed.

But I’ve made a judgnt.

What I need to do right now is not to have a poker face.

I answer as soon as he finishes his question,

“What are you talking about?”

Of course, this isn’t perfect either.

That’s why, even as I answer in a barbarian-like tone, I think to myself,

‘How would Ainar have reacted if I said that?’

Since we spent quite a bit of ti together, the answer cos easily.

“Don’t speak in riddles and say it properly.”

Right, that’s it.

Barbarians don’t know much.

And they’re not ashad of not knowing.

And if the stranger is a human…

…they also show a bit of wariness and aggression.

Therefore—

Thud.

…I take a step forward with a slightly threatening look in my eyes.

And I snort as if I’m about to smash his head in if he says one wrong thing.

But even with my actions, the man only lets out a strange exclamation.

“Wow, I almost fell for it. You’re really good at acting. You’re not really a 3-month-old, are you?”

“Acting? I told you not to use difficult words.”

“Ah, you don’t have to be on guard. I’m from Arica. I shouldn’t have even touched that damn ga.”

His voice is filled with regret and sorrow.

And he even revealed information that only a player would know.

With this, I’m sowhat certain.

“Anyway, you’re amazing. To gain a title in just 3 months… it took over 3 years. And of all things, to be stuck as a human…”

This bastard is not a player.