Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Team Half-Wit (2) - Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 52: Team Half-Wit (2)

Whoosh!

The heat of the meteor could be felt even from thirty feet away, and the acrid scent burned our noses.

Thump!

As soon as my brain processed the situation, my heart tightened.

If that thing had fallen on our heads... It would've been game over for all of us.

"P-Prepare for battle!"

The moment Hikurod—who had momentarily blanked out from the abrupt turn of events—shouted, adventurers appeared from the bushes. Four people were closing ranks around one wizard.

Fuck, they clearly don't belong on the third floor. Why are these assholes here?

As I was inwardly praying that they were not plunderers, a beastman with triangular ears smirked at our battle formation and spoke in an arrogant tone. "This orc colony is the domain of the Dzarwi clan. Go somewhere else."

Clan? ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠No wonder... they all had the same seal on their chest.

Damn it all...

I couldn't stop myself from cursing. Not because I couldn't understand what these people were doing, but because they were controlling a hunting ground on the third floor.

Shit, doesn't that only happen from the fifth floor on?

Dungeon and Stone was a single-player game, but surprisingly, it had a control function. At first, the game seemed to prevent movement between maps during a quest, but once you created a clan later down the line, the player could oversee a hunting ground. Of course, a huge amount of manpower went into this, so it was a losing game unless done inside a few rare monster or boss territories.

But they're doing it on the third floor?

I couldn't understand it. I mean, what were they going to gain by dominating rank-seven monsters? Just look at that wizard. Using a high-ranking person like that to catch some orcs was a waste.

Hikurod also seemed to have no idea what was going on. "I know that the Dzarwi are active above the sixth floor. But why are your people in an orc colony?" he asked carefully.

The answer we got in return was a cold, "We have no reason to explain anything to you."

Aha, I see. I could understand that, but apparently the dwarf couldn't. Even though we had shown each other a lot of our more idiotic sides since joining up as a team, this man was still an adventurer. He was perceptive when it came to matters related to self-interest, especially if the reasons behind them were external rather than internal.

The dwarf laid out his doubts in a logical and orderly manner. "I've heard that the royal family grants some clans rights in the labyrinth in recognition of their achievements. But I've never heard of this place being Dzarwi Clan's territory. Moreover, I cannot be certain that you are actually a part of said clan."

It was definitely a sensible argument. It was clear from their equipment and the level of that spell just now that they were much more experienced adventurers than we were, but there was no proof that they were part of the clan that they claimed to be.

However... I think we should just bounce in this situation...

Honestly, I was more worried that they weren't Dzarwi. Large clans were usually conscious of public opinion, but these impersonating bastards wouldn't care about that in the least.

The beastman glared at Hikurod, his expression displeased. "You tell an amusing tale."

Hikurod didn't back down. "I often get told that."

As a silent battle for dominance resumed, the tension continued to rise.

Step.

I felt someone come up behind me. When I checked, it was none other than Missha. Why was she right behind me all of a sudden? Almost like she was hiding or avoiding something...

"Are you... Wait, Half-wit?" the beastman asked with a frown. I felt a flinch behind me. What the heck, was she actually hiding?

"B-Brotherrr..." Missha stuttered, slowly walking out from behind me.

This made the beastman's frown deepen. "I told you not to call me that in public."

"S-Sorrry."

"And you still talk like a half-wit, huh?"

Missha didn't respond to the beastman's taunt and just dropped her head. As I suspected, he was not calling her a half-wit affectionately.

But what's their relationship? Could they really be family?

As I was pondering this, the wizard standing behind him asked the question that sated my curiosity. "Just wondering, but is that lady your younger sister?"

The beastman politely nodded his head. "Yes, for now."

The wizard stroked his shiny beard. "Hmm, I am indebted to Sir Karlstein. And if she's your younger sister, she can't be called a stranger, so as a special exception—"

"There's no need."

"Hm? But—"

The beastman once again firmly refused the wizard's attempt to be considerate. "Father will not care either. I can't tell you the reason why because it's personal business," he said coldly, a stubbornness in his tone.

"All right, if you say so." The wizard promptly changed his mind and nodded his head without another word. But maybe he thought we deserved an explanation. "Look here, men." He stepped forward and spoke persuasively. "Due to the clan's internal workings, we urgently need the essence of a Mighty Orc Warrior. If things go well, you will be able to hunt here after the next cycle, so just go hunt somewhere else this time. Or go to the outskirts where there are no mighty warriors."

Maybe it was because he was a wizard, but his tone was much softer than the beastman's. Anyway, he was still essentially telling us to get lost.

"I will decline." Hikurod shook his head and ridiculed his opponent in a sharp tone that was quite out of character. "It seems that you are claiming rights over this land without the royal family's official recognition, so why should we have to play along with your clan's internal issues? And did you know that what you're doing right now is illegal in the first place?"

"...Illegal?" That seemed to strike a nerve. The gentle wizard's eyes sharpened. "A wise adventurer would know when to be careful with his words." But he didn't seem to want to invite trouble later on. "When did we break the law? We were just being considerate and letting you know it'd be best for you to hunt somewhere else since there won't be any monsters left for you to hunt here."

Although he was beating around the bush, what he meant by that was that if we didn't leave, they would hunt in full force to interfere with our own hunt.

Picking up on this as well, Hikurod bit his lip, an angry expression on his face. "Damn it..."

Unless we were forced out or injured, these sorts of situations were not governed by the labyrinth laws. In other words, there would be no legal precedent to support our case.

Trying to rely on the law is a problem in the first place.

I felt bad for Hikurod, who was trying his best to protect our team's interests, but I had wanted to back out of this from the beginning. The labyrinth was a place where the words of the powerful became law. If you forgot that and kicked up a fuss, you might disappear without a trace.

As a silent battle for dominance resumed, the tension continued to rise.

Step.

I felt someone come up behind me. When I checked, it was none other than ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Missha. Why was she right behind me all of a sudden? Almost like she was hiding or avoiding something...