[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian":3,"chapter-surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-42":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Surviving the Game as a Barbarian",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1327659,1764,"Chapter 42","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-42",42,"\u003Cp>Wizard and Barbarian (2)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Click\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The line cut off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was silence inside the laboratory for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heck, evenIhad never expected this to happen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was just trying to sponge some money off her, but how could I have known that things would turn out like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Really, this lack of imagination seems endemic here.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, it wasn't that she didn't have any way to win the argument.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If shed caught any of the ninth-grade adventurers scraping by hand to mouth and asked them the same question, they wouldve called it a lucky break.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her argument definitely wouldnt have gotten dismantled like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But instead, she ended up asking an adventurer who seemed capable even at a cursory glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If its her teacher, shes talking about a master wizard. There's no way somebody who has a personal acquaintance with someone like that could be some ordinary adventurer.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This served as the decisive factor[1] that resulted in her defeat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So now it was her time to reap what she\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Chuckle! A barbarian beating a wizard in a battle of words, it seems youre even more amazing than Id heard, eh, friend?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A white-haired old man with wrinkled skin opened the door without even knocking and entered the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although his face showed his age, he had a straight waist without any sign of stooping that one mightve expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a moment of bewilderment at the sudden intervention, I was quickly able to infer the identity of this old man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, I didnt introduce myself yet. This old man is the master of the lady who you just made to cry.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I, I didnt cry!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Raven's teacher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, the master of the great Artemion School, that independently owned a whopping five floors inside the tower.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was as much a bigshot as the regional manager Id met earlier no, in some ways, he was even more powerful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anyway, I heard you two talking by chance.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Eh? You heard us? I'm sure the soundproofing magic is still working \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, it needs to be reinforced it a bit more. Therere a lot of gaps in the technique.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From his way easy of speaking, he sounded like a normal old neighbour, but since he still sat in such a high position, I couldnt help but feel a bit daunted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, this disciple of his that Ive been dealing with he seemed to cherish her a lot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Haah, you completely smashed my magic circle. It mustve been difficult to do that without me noticing, no matter what you say Why were you trying to snoop?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man chuckled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My youngest disciple brought in a boy for the first time. Plus, its been so long a barbarians entered here alive; wouldn't you be curious?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something was strange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alive?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I mumbled unconsciously, the old man savagely grinned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Chuckle! They mostly come in as corpses! Or just their hearts get delivered!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Look at your face, all red. It was a joke, a joke!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh, I see.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is this wizard humour?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was also a barbarian who was an expert in reading the atmosphere, so instead of staring blankly, I gave a big smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hahaha! I want to smash your head!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>AKA barbarian humour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\" Wh-, what?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But why weren't they laughing?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh, I forgot the punchline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hahaha! It was a joke!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whatever bullshit you spout, you just have to tack on that it was all a joke at the end, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So dont look so red and smile. Old geezer!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ol-, old geezer?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, that was a joke! Hahaha!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old geezer who happened to be the master of the Artemion School frowned at me as if he was uncomfortable with my sense of humour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I glanced at the side, Raven was also gaping as if she couldn't believe what was happening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\" Mr. Yandel, are you a crazy bastard by any chance?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was this her being respectful or rude?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was confusing because of the mixture of tones\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I mightve messed up a tiny bit.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing their expressions, I thought I mightve exaggerated things a bit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasnt normal, huh?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A damned barbarian playing such a crazy prank in front of the head of a school inside the tower?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Haah I should've known, seeing what you did at the guild\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was still a little sad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It might sound like an excuse, but hadnt this guy been joking about dead barbarians in front of a barbarian who somehow survived his imminent demise just this morning?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I was feeling a bit sensitive, so I mightve gotten defensive without realizing it. I apologize if I've offended you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was quite a succinct explanation, but Raven shouted as if she didn't accept it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You callthatgetting defensive?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Offence is the best defence, after all.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was my theory, which Id clung to all my life since my early childhood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So how do I follow up?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At a glance, I noticed that the old man was still standing still with a blank gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the silence continued, I was beginning to become genuinely concerned about my future well-being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Heh heh heh heh! That was great, my friend, great!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man suddenly started talking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn't know what he was going on about, but I went with the flow and laughed along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ha ha ha ha ha!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Heh heh heh heh! Youre funny, my friend, very funny!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anybody could tell that this old man was forcing himself to laugh, but\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I did it right, I might be able to cross the bridge like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Dont worry about it! The old man is different from those other little bastards whore sensitive to every word.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although he probably still had some resentment left, from the way his lips were trembling\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there was no need to bring attention to that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I can roughly guess what kind of a character he has.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had a sense of how to deal with it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Haha! Do you have some barbarian blood in you? I take back calling you old geezer! To think you didn't even bat an eye at barbarian-style humour! This is my first time seeing a wizard as spry as you!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although wizards were scarce and hard to see in the first place\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But who cared aboutthat?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Chuckle, Im not that old in the fist place. Somehow, it feels like we get along a little bit!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I agree!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bloody atmosphere seemed to dissipate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing us goinghaha hoho, Raven made an absurd expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Haah What is even going on?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, I didn't know either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I was sure that even this old man had no idea what he was doing right now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I am Bjorn, son of Yandel! Great wizard! I want to know your name!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So youre Bjorn Yandel! After seeing all those other little bastards for so long, you feel like a breath of fresh air! Good to meet you! This old man is Deian Tveherion!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For some reason, the old man introduced himself in a loud voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the veins sticking out on his neck would make any observer worry about his health\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Let's pretend I didn't see anything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Awesome! Thats the majestic voice of a real man!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I, Bjorn Yandel\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was a barbarian who understood the mores of society.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So, what I told those little bastards back then was \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Awesome!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Huh? I didnt say what I told them yet \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mustve been awesome!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a few minutes of such entertaining conversation\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps the old man regained his sanity after getting his fill of blowing his own trumpet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So, what do you think Aruen should do?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Aruen?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, thats the nickname of my youngest disciple.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arua + Raven = Aruen?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This kind of culture seemed to be multiversal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anyway, those five million stones earlier, if this old man \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No bargaining.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Social life mode, off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing me stop talking, the old man clicked his tongue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hnn, tch, whos talking about stiffing you? Rather, if it's fine with you, this old man would like to replace it with something else \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then it was different story.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Something?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man put his hand inside his robe and pulled out a box the size of a palm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, I was more interested in his robe than the box itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is there a subspace attached to the robe?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Umm, I wonder if hed give it to me if I asked for it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Whatre you staring for? Come on, open it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I opened the box and glanced inside as instructed. A ring lay inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Its an item called the Ring of the Frost Spirit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ring of the Frost Spirit?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man continued to explain, but I didn't need to listen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because I already knew what it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even though it's from the 9000s, every adventurer knows. How precious a numbered item is.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Numbered items.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They are only dropped by rift guardians, and each one has its own special ability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, except for production' and discovery', in [Dungeon and Stone], the only other source of equipment is numbered items.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, most of them are expensive regardless of their number.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Youre really lucky. People usually cant get their hands on it even if they want to \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well, it's not something anybody would actually use.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No. 9425, Frost Spirit Ring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frost Spirit Ring, which can only be dropped from rifts below the third floor, has only one unique ability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its not an ability that helps in battle, it just seals one of the essences absorbed by the wearer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, stat changes are still applied, and only the skills are sealed\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that case, it's cheaper to remove the essence from the temple.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Consider the facts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Levelling up becomes astronomically difficult as you go higher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, if you wear this ring, all of the skills youve acquired from an essence will be completely lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The skill slots disappear altogether.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Adventurers, considering their future, would rather choose to erase the essence at the temple and eat a new one, instead of wearing this ring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But it must be a very useful thing for you, isnt it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, there was some truth to that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stats are more important in the early game than skill combinations. Moreover, even though the corpse golem has poor skills, its stats are quite high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I take the ring off at any time, I can use the skills again, so it's not a bad item by itself.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I finished my mental calculations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, I never even considered rejecting in the first place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That's because this ability was only a fraction of the true value of this ring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter what, since you havent mentioned it at all You really don't know about that, do you?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wizards were the best intellectuals in this worldview.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, in the Blood Citadel', Raven had no idea how to obtain the Tear of the Goddess' hidden under the statue. That was what convinced me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yes, in my eyes, they were all newbies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What could be easier than playing with a newbie?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Whatre you so worried about? To be honest, this ring isn't worth five million stones. But its not something you can get even if you want to.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Right.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I nodded as if in agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even in the game, the auction house price was only about 1.5 million stones, but numbered items hardly ever went up for sale, so I got my hands on this ring less than once in ten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But did I get such a precious thing just like this?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the first place, Id never expected to get the full five million stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This old man also took this out with the intention of foisting some useless stuff off me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was probably laughing at me inside, calling me an idiot barbarian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you, I got something good. Ill use it well.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uhm, and I was in the exact same situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Chuckle, think of it as a gift from an old man.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought, as I looked at the old man who smiled kindly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I did well, perhaps thered be a lot more things I could mooch off him in the future.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As much as possible, I wanted to stay friends in the future.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mr. Yandel, a lot has happened today, hasnt it? You must be tired. Shall we meet again in two days for the rest of the discussion?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I was just going to say that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a quick arrangement of the detailed time and place, Bjorn left the laboratory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that, Raven looked into her master's eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Im sorry, Master, because of me\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Its fine, it was something thatd have gotten sold anyway. That barbarian, he might get quite heartbroken when he finds out later how much that ring costs.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\" Is that so?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, he didn't seem to be particularly angry with Bjorn whom shed brought here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Raven could more comfortably try and confirm what she was curious about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But why were you like that today?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her teacher's attitude today was very abnormal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He usually hated rude people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And hed never joke about his fellow mages, either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, theres just something I need to check.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Check?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You dont need to know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She shut her mouth with a subdued expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly her master had some kind of intention behind matching Bjorn's pace, but\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since hed spoken like this, there was no way for her to find out the details.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anyway, hes an odd duck. Hes so unique that Im kind of looking forward to what he does next. I hope Im on the right track\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are you going to keep doing this? If youre going to tell me, just tell me!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ill tell you later, when the time is right. Oh, and make sure you write down what happened with that barbarian and give me a report.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Arent you going to tell me why?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'll tell you once I'm sure.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her teacher left the laboratory with a gentle smile as usual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the empty place, Raven felt a bit uncomfortable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell is Master thinking?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wondered if bringing Bjorn here had been a mistake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the people her master had such interest in never ended up well, from what she remembered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh, but maybe Mr. Yandel will be different?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of the mess hed left at the guild as just a level nine adventurer, she became somewhat anxious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ah, Im just overthinking it. The Magic Tower isnt as small-time as them.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tower was completely different from the guild.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasnt a place that could be shaken up by a single barbarian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Certainly, indubitably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Editor's Notes:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[1] (pachak) is a term that comes from Go, meaning the move that was the root cause of a defeat. Its used in more modern contexts these days, like in strategy games.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The weekly chapter that was missed a couple weeks back is now made up for.\u003C\u002Fp>",2492,"2026-06-05T19:32:48.785Z",1,"novelbin.me","09619289d789f47cbaa4f0557d2386cd9ce629b09d31b4fde78009cd1885bd87","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-298","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-297",807,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsurviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-cover.jpg"]