Chapter 302: Chapter 302: Evil Spirit (6) - Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 302: Evil Spirit (6)

Smack!

Immediately after I struck Beck's bald head with the Demon Grinder with all my might, his skull and scalp burst at the same time, leaving blood spurting from all kinds of holes.

It was a successful surprise attack. However, as you'd expect from a group that had been through all sorts of hardships, the rest were quick to react, even though their leader's head had been blown off.

The archer stepped back and widened the distance between us. "You bastard!"

The close combatants approached quickly and blocked my left and right sides in unison, like a pair of annoying cockroaches.

Whooom!

I used Giantization and brought my hammer down on the shield-bearing warrior in front. Surprisingly, the guy didn't even try to dodge. He just raised his shield following the hammer's trajectory and shouted, "Stab!"

So, your plan is to block me while the others stab me in the side?

Now that I was getting a better look at it, the shield had a pretty nice sheen.

It's adamantium.

It looked like he was relying on that expensive shield to protect him, but there were better items than that in the world.

Suffer, then.

The hammer and shield collided, resulting in an explosive bang. The guy's shield was slightly dented, but otherwise fine.

Crunch!

Meanwhile, the guy actually holding the shield was spurting blood from every hole like a can of soda that had been punctured by a needle. That was because, since I didn't use Swing just then, I couldn't show off the full potential of my new double-digit Numbered Item. With Swing, my damage would increase by 500 percent when using blunt weapons, and my Soul Power consumption would be reduced by half. Plus, when brought down, I'd get a 50 percent bonus to Armor Penetration.

Plop.

The guy dropped to the ground with his eyeballs popped out thanks to the force of my blow.

Who's next?

Flick.

When I shifted my gaze to my third target, he took a step back. Taking a quick look to the side, I saw the archer doing the same. Were they trying to run? If so, that was a bit funny, because I had zero intention of letting them go.

Transcendence.

I quickly recited the command for the active skill I had acquired from Storm Gush.

Eye of the Storm.

Boom!

When I stomped on the ground, a vortex began to swirl around me, but it was different from the vortex the Storm Gush used. That was thanks to Transcendence.

Whooom!

Eye of the Storm no longer pulled in enemies within a fifteen-foot radius. Instead, it attacked a designated target within a sixty-foot radius. I pulled in one right in front of me.

"Aghhh!"

Just like that.

Crunch!

That made three. But I wasn't satisfied with that and looked to the final target trying to flee, the archer. If he got too far, I planned to follow with Leap.

Stab.

But Amelia took care of the archer. She was a very practical woman. Like it or not, since things had already gone sideways, she would have determined it was best to kill and silence everyone.

"Ah, ugh, uh, h-help..."

Smack!

Amelia then struck the child next to the archer, Jencia, on the back of the neck and knocked her out before coming back over to me. "That was a foolish thing to do," she said shortly.

"Because they work for the castellan?"

"No, because now we have to kill that child because of you."

...Is that how it works? But she was definitely alive in the future?

"We would have had plenty of opportunities to kill them, even if it weren't today. Even if you didn't step forward now, I was planning to kill them someday too."

"...You were?"

"I feel responsibility for this incident as well."

Responsibility, huh? Ugh, I don't know. My thoughts are all jumbled up.

Beeeeeep.

Although I'd beaten them all to death, the ringing in my ears remained. Rather than feeling refreshed, I felt even more suffocated.

"Why did you do something as rash as that? You said you'd never even seen your father's face before."

That was true. I had also been well aware the entire time that even if I beat all these bastards to death right now, that wouldn't make up for what had happened to him. Honestly, I couldn't have been more hypocritical if I'd tried.

"Just because." There was no better way to express it. "I just... felt like doing it."

"...I see." Surprisingly, Amelia didn't get angry. She just stared at me in silence.

I turned my head to avoid Amelia's gaze. In doing so, I saw Yandel Jarku's body. Besides the injuries he suffered in battle, his corpse looked like it had been messed with, like it had been treated like a toy.

Squeeze.

I clenched both fists and recalled the short conversation we'd had inside the rift.

"Did you say your name is Bjon? Well, Bjon, you should have a child as soon as possible. It's a sad thing, the thought of leaving nothing behind."

"...Is it?"

"Yeah, I didn't realize it before I had a child, either."

Jarku then said that a child of your blood was like another you, which was such a mysterious thing. After having a child of his own, he began, for the first time, to wish for something other than just becoming an excellent warrior himself someday.

"Hehe, he's going to become a great warrior."

And so I ran away.

"Stop!"

"Huh?"

"Stop. I need to go..."

I'd realized something profound from that single sentence—that even if I lived with the name Bjorn Yandel, saved countless people, and became a revered hero in the city, I could not be forgiven. Even if none of this had been my intention.

No matter what anyone said, the facts of the matter wouldn't change. In the end, I was an evil spirit—one that had robbed this barbarian warrior of his most precious wish.

"Looks like you've calmed down a bit," Amelia said as I continued to stare at Yandel Jarku's dead body.

She wasn't wrong. As the saying went, time was the best medicine. Before long, the ringing in my ears subsided and the tremors stopped. It was now time to figure out how to fix the situation I'd put us in.

"Ah, ugh, uh, h-help..."

Smack!

Amelia then struck the child next to the archer, Jencia, on the back of the neck and knocked her out before coming back over to me. "That was a foolish thing to do," she said shortly.

‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Because they work for the castellan?"

"No, because now we have to kill that child because of you."

...Is that how it works? But she was definitely alive in the future?

"We would have had plenty of opportunities to kill them, even if it weren't today. Even if you didn't step forward now, I was planning to kill them someday too."

"...You were?"

"I feel responsibility for this incident as well."

Responsibility, huh? Ugh, I don't know. My thoughts are all jumbled up.

Beeeeeep.

Although I'd beaten them all to death, the ringing in my ears remained. Rather than feeling refreshed, I felt even more suffocated.

"Why did you do something as rash as that? You said you'd never even seen your father's face before."

That was true. I had also been well aware the entire time that even if I beat all these bastards to death right now, that wouldn't make up for what had happened to him. Honestly, I couldn't have been more hypocritical if I'd tried.

"Just because." There was no better way to express it. "I just... felt like doing it."

"...I see." Surprisingly, Amelia didn't get angry. She just stared at me in silence.

I turned my head to avoid Amelia's gaze. In doing so, I saw Yandel Jarku's body. Besides the injuries he suffered in battle, his corpse looked like it had been messed with, like it had been treated like a toy.

Squeeze.

I clenched both fists and recalled the short conversation we'd had inside the rift.

"Did you say your name is Bjon? Well, Bjon, you should have a child as soon as possible. It's a sad thing, the thought of leaving nothing behind."

"...Is it?"

"Yeah, I didn't realize it before I had a child, either."

Jarku then said that a child of your blood was like another you, which was such a mysterious thing. After having a child of his own, he began, for the first time, to wish for something other than just becoming an excellent warrior himself someday.

"Hehe, he's going to become a great warrior."

And so I ran away.

"Stop!"

"Huh?"

"Stop. I need to go..."

I'd realized something profound from that single sentence—that even if I lived with the name Bjorn Yandel, saved countless people, and became a revered hero in the city, I could not be forgiven. Even if none of this had been my intention.

No matter what anyone said, the facts of the matter wouldn't change. In the end, I was an evil spirit—one that had robbed this barbarian warrior of his most precious wish.

"Looks like you've calmed down a bit," Amelia said as I continued to stare at Yandel Jarku's dead body.

She wasn't wrong. As the saying went, time was the best medicine. Before long, the ringing in my ears subsided and the tremors stopped. It was now time to figure out how to fix the situation I'd put us in.

I looked at Jencia's unconscious body. "Do we really have to kill her?"

"Is there another way? If this child returns alive, the castellan will know what we did."

Ha, goddamn it.

When I let out a sigh of frustration, Amelia asked, "Is there a reason not to kill her?"

"She's... still young."

Even as I gave that answer, I second-guessed myself. Why was I looking for a way not to kill her? After all, I knew the future. After living a hellish life, this child would become an adult whose body was taken over by an evil spirit. So it was actually better to kill her now.

God damn it.

The curses came freely. What the hell was I thinking? That since she was going to die ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠someday anyway, killing her now changed nothing? Or was it actually that killing her would prove Auril Gavis was wrong?

I firmly shook my head. "We can't kill her. Let's find a solution."

"That's unlike you."

"What do you know about me?"

You don't even know I'm an evil spirit.

I didn't mean to be so harsh with my reply, but deep down, I knew the truth. There was no doubt that if I were my usual self, I might have made a different choice here. But at least today, I didn't want to do that. Today had already been particularly hard. Even if this decision meant complying with fate, I couldn't bear to do anything else.

"It's as you said. I guess I don't know you very well. I didn't know you were so weak. If you can't do it, I will."

"Stop." I grabbed Amelia's wrist.

"...I'd advise you to let go."

"I said we should look for another way."

"Another way? There is no surer way than this."

Ugh, honestly! That's why I'm saying we should come up with a way together... Oh, right, that!

A solution occurred to me and I quickly opened my mouth. "Wait, the pill! If we give her the medicine created by Noark's alchemist, we can erase her memories! You said they work for the castle lord? They might have one!" I spoke with the same passion as a philosopher shouting, Eureka!

Amelia just snorted. "In the current year, we'd be in the early stages of when that medicine was developed. There's no way these guys have something that precious on them."

"But we should at least look!"

"...Okay, if that will make you give up." Amelia shook off my hand. "And I'm warning you, do not grab my arm without permission again."

Jeez, so sensitive.

With that, Amelia approached the bodies and started looting.

Okay, whether the pill turns up or not, that buys me time to think... Oh, wait.

I belatedly realized I'd made a mistake. It looked like Amelia hadn't noticed yet, but...

That was pure foolishness.

Was it because I lost my head there? It was a mistake my normal self would have never made.

...I'll deal with it later when she brings it up herself.

I squatted down as well, took the equipment off the corpses, and checked their backpacks. As I did so, I continued to worry about what would happen if we couldn't find a memory removal pill.

I looked at Jencia's unconscious body. "Do we really have to kill her?"

"Is there another way? If this child returns alive, the castellan will know what we did."

Ha, goddamn it.

When I let out a sigh of frustration, Amelia asked, "Is there a reason not to kill her?"

"She's... still young."

Even as I gave that answer, I second-guessed myself. Why was I looking for a way not to kill her? After all, I knew the future. After living a hellish life, this child would become an adult whose body was taken over by an evil spirit. So it was actually better to kill her now.

God damn it.

The curses came freely. What the hell was I thinking? That since she was going to die someday anyway, killing her now changed nothing? Or was it actually that killing her would prove Auril Gavis was wrong?

‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I firmly shook my head. "We can't kill her. Let's find a solution."

"That's unlike you."

"What do you know about me?"

You don't even know I'm an evil spirit.

I didn't mean to be so harsh with my reply, but deep down, I knew the truth. There was no doubt that if I were my usual self, I might have made a different choice here. But at least today, I didn't want to do that. Today had already been particularly hard. Even if this decision meant complying with fate, I couldn't bear to do anything else.

"It's as you said. I guess I don't know you very well. I didn't know you were so weak. If you can't do it, I will."

"Stop." I grabbed Amelia's wrist.

"...I'd advise you to let go."

"I said we should look for another way."

"Another way? There is no surer way than this."

Ugh, honestly! That's why I'm saying we should come up with a way together... Oh, right, that!

A solution occurred to me and I quickly opened my mouth. "Wait, the pill! If we give her the medicine created by Noark's alchemist, we can erase her memories! You said they work for the castle lord? They might have one!" I spoke with the same passion as a philosopher shouting, Eureka!

Amelia just snorted. "In the current year, we'd be in the early stages of when that medicine was developed. There's no way these guys have something that precious on them."

"But we should at least look!"

"...Okay, if that will make you give up." Amelia shook off my hand. "And I'm warning you, do not grab my arm without permission again."

Jeez, so sensitive.

With that, Amelia approached the bodies and started looting.

Okay, whether the pill turns up or not, that buys me time to think... Oh, wait.

I belatedly realized I'd made a mistake. It looked like Amelia hadn't noticed yet, but...

That was pure foolishness.

Was it because I lost my head there? It was a mistake my normal self would have never made.

...I'll deal with it later when she brings it up herself.

I squatted down as well, took the equipment off the corpses, and checked their backpacks. As I did so, I continued to worry about what would happen if we couldn't find a memory removal pill.

"...She's lucky. To think they would have something like this at this point." A pill appeared from their bag.

Once we found the pill, everything went smoothly. Amelia hurriedly put the pill in Jencia's mouth and we waited until she came to her senses.

"A-Ahhh! W-What is this...?!" After some time, Jencia, whose hands and feet were tied and who even had a blindfold on, regained consciousness. We quietly observed her reaction from a distance, judging that a drug from the early days could be defective. "Mister Beck! Mister Beck! H-Help me!"

Seeing as she was looking for Beck, it was clear her memory had been erased. So how much of it was gone? We were able to obtain that information through Jencia, who was muttering to herself, properly unhinged.

"To think she forgot everything since the moment she entered the Crystal Cave. Maybe it's because it's in the early stages of development, but it seems like it's more potent compared to the mass-produced ones."

Amelia then went over to the flailing Jencia, knocked her out again, and even dosed her with sleeping pills to prevent her from waking up. That was that, then.

"The labyrinth will close soon. We just have to stay with her for a few hours."

After moving locations, we passed the time with the sleeping Jencia. After all, you couldn't leave a child on her own in the labyrinth. Once the labyrinth closed, Jencia would be retrieved by the castellan's men. They would try to dig up information about what happened, but she wouldn't remember anything.

"...Um, Amelia. Sorry about earlier." I apologized to her while we were waiting, but Amelia just ignored me like she didn't hear anything.

After a long, awkward silence, white light rushed in from all directions and the labyrinth closed.

Shaaa!

There was no warm sensation of sun on our skin, or the usual cool breeze winding around our bodies in greeting. Only the drab underground city welcomed us.

"You're back."

Noark's Dimension Square was located in the western region of the castle. From here on there were differences with Rafdonia. In the overworld, you had to pass through a checkpoint at the end of the expedition and exchange your mana stones, but currency exchange here was up to the individual.

"Come, let's go drink!"

"What the—isn't that the kid from Beck's gang? Why is she here alone? Did the others kick the bucket inside?"

"Iron Molars will welcome that news. He was waiting to get at Beck, anyway."

The adventurers who appeared in the square all dispersed to their respective destinations and the area grew quiet. Jencia, who was lying on the ground in the distance, was found by the castellan's men as expected and transported somewhere.

"We should go too."

"Oh, right..."

We left the square as well and headed to Melta Merchant Company, Noark's one and only merchant company and the underground plunderers' most preferred vendor for getting rid of their equipment.

Unlike the mana stone exchange, where the line was quite short, the street in front of the merchant company was bustling with people. That was because mana stones themselves were money here, so there was no need to exchange them. The mana stone exchange here didn't even exchange stones for money anyway, but rather food or other desired items.

"Hmm, Iron Mask and Emily. The hottest topic in town these days."

When our turn came, we took out all the equipment we had in storage. Oh, for reference, we had removed Beck's equipment from the pile since they'd know that we killed those guys if we pulled that out.