Chapter 22
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Barbarian (2)
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As I walked toward the massive log house, the Barbarians' gazes all focused on me.
'I'm not short myself... but here, I feel like a kid.'
My height was over 180 cm, but every Barbarian—women included, as long as they weren't children—stood over 2 meters tall.
I glanced around discreetly and saw the barely clothed Barbarians.
Despite the freezing cold, they wore only animal hides covering their vital spots.
I pulled back my hood to show my face, trying to project confidence as I walked.
But it made no difference whatsoever.
I was debating whether to put the hood back on when we passed over the wooden fence, and children came into view.
'Even Barbarians look normal when they're kids, huh?'
Ordinary-looking children stood in a line behind the hulking adults, staring at me.
One kid waved at me.
'Should I wave back? What if waving means "I'll kill you" in Barbarian language?'
I hesitated for a moment but eventually gave a small wave back to the child.
Fortunately, it seemed correct—the smiles on the faces of what must have been the child's parents deepened.
'Aren't there... an awful lot of kids here?'
Suddenly, it struck me that the number of children was disproportionately high compared to the total Barbarian population gathered here.
The North estimated there were around 100,000 Barbarians in total.
Given their habit of living scattered in tribal units across various places, not all of them would have gathered here.
Yet the ratio of adults to children in this city was nearly 1:1.
Children were running and playing between the wooden houses.
"Here. I can't go in."
The man with the bear tattoo leading the way stopped in front of the large log house.
A man with both bear and wolf tattoos on his body opened the door.
Inside, Barbarians sat around a wide table, with a lone man seated at an even higher position.
He was over 3 meters tall, with shoulders broad enough for children to play on.
Bear, wolf, eagle, fox, ox, reindeer, whale...
His massive frame was covered in countless tattoos.
Just as the Northern Duke had described, there was no mistaking his appearance.
Spotting me, the Great Chieftain waved his hand impassively.
The men at the table stood and headed toward the door I'd entered through.
Barbarians each bearing three or four different tattoos brushed past me.
Once the last one exited and the log house door closed, the Great Chieftain rose from his seat.
-Thud.
The ground shook as the Great Chieftain walked.
I had to crane my neck way back just to see his face.
Perhaps taking pity on me, the Great Chieftain knelt on one knee and extended his hand.
I cautiously handed over the tree branch I was holding.
"It's genuine."
The Great Chieftain spoke in the Imperial tongue.
It was a plain statement, yet it sounded like a tiger growling somewhere nearby.
"Th-the adu... ceremony..."
My tongue twisted further from the tension.
"Speak in the Imperial tongue."
"I've come for the coming-of-age ceremony."
"First, how did you obtain this from the ruler of the North?"
Unlike his appearance, the Great Chieftain spoke the Imperial tongue fluently.
"I saved the Northern Duke's life and received it."
As I answered, the fox tattoo on his right arm glowed orange.
"Truth. Next, what is your true purpose in coming here?"
Lies don't work on the Great Chieftain.
I paused for a moment.
The reason I'd crossed the Great Wall into unknown lands.
To stop the barbarians' invasion? Because I needed the Barbarians' strength for the upcoming one?
Because I needed my own group to achieve what I wanted?
All excuses.
Even now, ideas floated in my mind for preparing for the future more efficiently by abandoning the barbarians.
But here I was.
"To... save you all."
The fox tattoo emitted a blue light.
A smile crept onto the Great Chieftain's lips.
"Sincere..."
The Great Chieftain rose and walked back to his high seat.
Sitting in his chair, he looked at me.
The fox tattoo only distinguished truth from lies—it revealed no possibilities.
No matter how sincere I was, how he interpreted it was another matter.
The Great Chieftain raised his hand and rang the bell beside his chair.
As the bell tolled, a man with five tattoos entered from outside the log house.
"Prepare the festival... no, the promotion matches. I need to see this new warrior's strength."
"Yes!"
As the five-tattoo man exited, the outside grew noisy.
"To save us Barbarians, eh...? If you're making such a grand vow, you must be confident."
His voice was the same, but the tiger's growl was gone.
Instead, it sounded like a fox laughing, as if the situation amused him greatly.
A brief time passed, and shouts erupted from outside.
"Come out! Come out!"
"They're calling. Go."
I opened the door and stepped out to find people forming a circle in the clearing near the log house.
As I emerged, cheers poured from the crowd.
Moving to the center, the people parted to make way.
In the middle stood a table with posts on both sides.
On one side sat a tattoo-less Barbarian grinning at me.
I entered the clearing and tossed aside the robe I was wearing.
'That expensive thing...'
The robe, handmade by an 8th Circle Archmage, hit the dirt ground.
Wearing only short shorts, I waved to the surroundings.
The Barbarians' cheers grew even louder at my appearance.
'It's freaking cold! Barbarians must be a different species...'
The bitter cold clawed at my body, but I circulated mana to endure it.
"..."
The smile on the seated Barbarian twisted.
I sat at my prepared spot.
"Let's see what the man my father acknowledged can do."
Up close, he looked quite young, even for a Barbarian.
'Father? Well, first time, so they're sending the weakest one, I guess?'
I quietly took my stance and gripped the young Barbarian's hand.
The man with five tattoos who'd received the Great Chieftain's orders approached and gently placed his hand over our joined ones.
Tension built in our gripped hands.
"Begin!"
The moment the five-tattoo man lifted his hand and shouted,
the young Barbarian's hand hit the table.
"Huh?"
The Barbarian blinked his big eyes, staring at his hand on the table.
"Winner! Imperial!"
The five-tattoo man extended his hand toward me.
The unexpected result set the Barbarians murmuring.
"The Great Chieftain's son lost?"
"If not for the Chieftain opposing tattoos, his actual strength would be at the centurion level..."
Unexpected words floated from the crowd.
'Wait, the Great Chieftain's son? He won't hold a grudge over this, right?'
Fortunately, the young Barbarian who lost walked away looking relieved.
Turning, I saw the man with the large chest scar who'd guided me earlier approaching.
I looked at the five-tattoo man and said,
"Not Imperial. Eric."
I pointed to myself, and understanding, the five-tattoo man replied,
"Ulfric."
We smiled at each other.
Next, the scarred-chest man gripped my hand and said,
"Krack."
"Eric."
The bear tattoo on his collarbone glowed, his skin reddening.
Veins bulged, muscles swelled.
'Damn, roider's unfair.'
Krack eyed me as if questioning if something was wrong.
I smiled back and wrapped my hand in materialized mana.
Krack's eyes widened in surprise at my magic.
"Any problem?"
"None."
In Barbarian promotion matches, all abilities were permitted.
I'd worried they might call engraving magic okay but decry others as sorcery.
But the Barbarians straightforwardly accepted magic as my ability.
"Begin!"
Strong pressure hit my hand, a force trying to push me back.
I could barely win if I went all out, but...
'Showing full power here kills the impact.'
I pretended to strain while entrusting my hand to a fixed wall spell.
The softly adjusted wall spell cushioned my hand.
'They'd obviously give breaks for Barbarians too, but...'
Today, I'd defeat every opponent without a single loss.
About 10 seconds in, my opponent's strength began to wane.
I pushed all at once, overpowering him.
"Winner! Eric!"
"Brunda."
"Eric."
I quietly smiled as I gripped hands with the approaching woman bearing a bear tattoo.
"Winner! Eric!"
The clearing fell silent.
At first, they cheered my victories, but at some point, the Barbarians watched wordlessly.
'Did I overdo it...?'
From the one-tattoo fighters onward, I'd beaten an average of three to advance each rank.
Just now, felling my third four-tattoo Barbarian darkened their expressions.
"Krack! You're up!"
The man who'd been watching as referee sat before me.
Krack, my second opponent, approached to judge.
"Ulfric."
"Eric."
I finished the self-introduction I'd done over ten times by now and gripped Ulfric's hand.
Bear, wolf, eagle, ox, whale.
His five tattoos glowed as his body transformed.
Ulfric's eyes fell on the mana wall I'd created.
By now, anyone not an idiot had figured it out.
Things were going to plan, but honestly, I was a bit scared.
'They won't freak out and call it sorcery now, right...?'
But Ulfric said nothing, merely glancing at Krack to signal start.
"Begin!"
A force on another level crushed my hand and mana wall.
'Insane!'
As cracks formed on the mana wall, I hurriedly poured in mana.
Dumping three times a typical 5th Circle mage's mana reserves restored it.
10 seconds... 1 minute... 3 minutes...
Ulfric's strength didn't weaken no matter how long I waited.
'I was saving this for wrestling!'
I finally shot mana at where Ulfric's elbow would land.
The table instantly softened, disrupting his balance.
I seized the moment, pushing with all my might to slam his hand down.
Ulfric's hand hit the table.
The clearing went as quiet as a library.
'Not trying to start a Barbarian library!'
Despite the North's chill winds, cold sweat beaded on me.
The match had clearly ended, yet Krack didn't announce the winner.
Ulfric stared wide-eyed at the table before chuckling and standing.
He grabbed the dazed Krack's arm and raised mine.
"Winner! Eric!"
Even after the announcement, the clearing remained silent.
Ulfric bellowed, displeased.
"You foxes call yourselves warriors acting like this?!"
Only then did light return to the stunned Barbarians' eyes.
Realizing the situation, they surged toward me.
"Whoa! Whoa!"
Numerous Barbarians surrounded and charged at me.
"Incredible, Imperial!"
"Not Imperial—Eric!"
"Eric! You're a warrior!"
"Not just any warrior—a great warrior in the making!"
My body was lifted by their thick hands and tossed into the sky.
'A shoulder carry?!'
Amid deafening cheers, I soared over 10 meters high.
Glancing around midair, my eyes met the Great Chieftain's through the log house window.
Grinning broadly at whatever amused him, he burst through the window and wall to come outside.
'Why not use the door?!'
As the Great Chieftain emerged, the carry halted, and I was set down.
The approaching Chieftain hoisted my hand high and shouted,
"Eric is a Barbarian! No fox will deny it!"
"Woooaaahhh!!!"
Barbarian cheers echoed.
"I'd love to wrestle too! But time's short! Eric joins the coming-of-age ceremony!"
"Eric! Eric!"
A familiar word stood out in the Great Chieftain's words.
"Great Chieftain, hold on. Coming-of-age ceremony?"
"You said you came for it. Perfect—today's our tribe's ceremony day."
The Great Chieftain grinned like a child.
"A child unpassed can't be a warrior. Becoming our tribe's second-in-command requires passing it."
As I panicked, Ulfric approached.
"Eric, the shaman calls. Go to that tent."
A small tent fluttered in the wind where Ulfric pointed.