[{"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-771":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},1328139,1764,"Chapter 771: Clarifying Positions (6)","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-771",771,"\u003Cp>In Greek mythology, there’s a figure named Atlas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He fought on the losing side during Zeus’s war against the Titans, and as punishment for his insolence, he was condemned to forever hold up the heavens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Kind of a naïve guy in a lot of ways.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...Anyway, that’s not the important part.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason I suddenly found myself thinking of a figure from Greek mythology—rather than something from Lafdonia or Korea—was simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because I looked exactly like him right now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"......\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I dropped to my knees and bent my back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arms stretched out to either side, I held up the heavy debris above me with my back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As pitiful as it was, I hadn’t started out in this position.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Fucking hell.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After I finished the performance test of the Urae the Marquis gave me, time flew by fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bunch of full-grown adults crammed into a narrow pit—yeah, it was stifling to the point of madness. But thanks to Amelia’s usual stockpile of explorer gear, at least breathing wasn’t an issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though those were consumables too, so it wasn’t like they’d last forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The real problem was the debris.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A building five stories aboveground and two floors underground—by architectural standards, it counted as a “large-scale” structure—had completely collapsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I had to look on the bright side, maybe that’s why the damage from Urae was relatively light...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Still, what the hell is this weight...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even using [Giant Form] and linking together every skill I had to max out my strength, it wasn’t easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I pushed hard, I could lift it slightly—but that was it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe if there’d been enough room to pull pieces out one by one and clear space... But in this deep pit, there was no such space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it’s not like I could just sit still, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried all sorts of things—lifting bits, pulling out fragments—but the end result...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'...I should’ve just stayed still.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The debris collapsed inward, and now here I was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I moved even a little or let up the force, the whole thing would cave in—and I wouldn’t be able to recover from that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Bjorn! Are you okay? Ah, your face doesn’t look good... Let me help!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Don’t yell. My head hurts.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I put on a strong front for my companions, but to be honest, it was hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The weight pressing down had me worried my spine might snap again—I just wanted to rest for a moment...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ainard, scratch me here. It’s itchy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn’t use my arms, so even a simple itch had to be scratched by someone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, higher up than that...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ugh... your armpit? Ew! That’s gonna stink!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Are you fucking kidding me—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uh...? If you don’t want to, should I do it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Forget it. I’ll do it. Move, Ainard Prnelin.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ugh... if only she wouldn’t make that face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s humiliating enough already.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I asked Ainard—but why is Amelia the one scratching me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...Well. It did feel good though.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Damn, how did things end up like this...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back, complacency was the biggest problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Urae detonates, we hide underground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, once things calm down, I push aside the rubble, climb out, and head to the royal palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought that was a given.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At some point, I stopped ever feeling limited by my own strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if a whole building collapsed, I never considered the possibility that I wouldn’t be able to break through it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is more serious than we thought. Yandel doesn’t have infinite stamina, after all.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If we don’t want him to get crushed to death, we’d better come up with a solution before that happens.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Harin Suevi, you got any ideas?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, nothing really comes to mind...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While I held up the debris, the others kept trying to come up with solutions—but honestly, none of it mattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not because they couldn’t find a solution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But because, before they could, the solution came to us from outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hold on a sec. Everyone quiet.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I halted the nonstop strategy meeting and focused all my senses—not just hearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then, I felt it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, I thought it was just some confusion brought on by extreme stress...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...It’s real. It’s getting lighter.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With every faint vibration coming from above, the weight I’d been holding up lightened ever so slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wow! Is it a rescue team...?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We can’t rule out the opposite. District 4 is occupied by Noark.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like Hyunbyeol and Amelia said, there were two possibilities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Personally, I leaned toward Amelia’s guess—but even if it wasn’t, it was still a better situation than before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fighting Noark soldiers beat being crushed to death a thousand times over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Huu...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, that didn’t mean I felt relaxed. I was definitely on edge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Can you blame me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t know what happened to the others after we got separated, but as of now, the only death I’d confirmed was Rotmiller’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Two more...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the record in the Memory Stone to come true, there were still two left to die.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn’t help but worry—would someone else die in the chaos to come?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I think I can lift it now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I steadied myself and waited for the right moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually, that moment came.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With all my strength, I shoved the debris upward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>KWAHAAAAANG—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I steadily pushed, it was like I struck a pressure point—suddenly my arms felt lighter, and the rubble surged upward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>SHWAAAAAA—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sunlight I hadn’t seen in ages was harsh on my eyes, but its warmth was deeply welcome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, no time to bask in it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Now!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I scrambled up to the surface, and my companions followed in formation, taking combat stances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it didn’t take long to realize all that caution was pointless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldiers clearing the debris looked at me and shouted warmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s Bjorn Yandel! Sir Yandel is alive!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...The Royal Army?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We were riding in a massive military wagon—large enough to comfortably carry over a dozen people if packed efficiently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was huge and very much “military issue,” so the ride quality sucked—but I wasn’t about to complain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was just grateful we were heading back without a fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Once again, it’s truly an honor to escort you, Sir Yandel. I’ve long admired and respected you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sitting next to me was some tall-ass knight I’d never seen before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Name: Denez Akel Zaire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He repeated it constantly, like he was trying to brand it into my brain—so I remembered it against my will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was apparently a royal knight from the Zaire baronial house...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Truly incredible. The soldiers said the debris you lifted during your escape weighed several tons!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With how clingy and flattering he was, he seemed more like a politician than a knight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not that I minded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every organization turns political at the top anyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You do what you have to do if you want to rise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And to his credit, this guy wasn’t bad conversation—he was a commander, so he had plenty of up-to-date intel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So currently, the Royal Army has reclaimed over half of District 4?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes. We’re currently in a standoff around the central plaza. I, Denez Akel Zaire, received intel about your last known position. I never doubted that you would survive even in that horrific wasteland—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So you got permission directly from the commander and led your own unit to clear the rubble?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, that is correct, Sir Yandel.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Does this guy have a parrot in his bloodline?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He keeps repeating the same thing every chance he gets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, it’s the era of self-marketing. I get it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ah, we’re entering the capital now. There will be a checkpoint, but don’t worry—I’ll take care of it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually, the wagon arrived at the capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that, we switched to a different carriage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sadly, my orders were only to escort you as far as the capital, Sir Yandel. Please forgive me for not accompanying you the rest of the way.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even at the end, the tall knight kept trying to leave a good impression, glancing back at us multiple times as he returned to District 4.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We boarded the new carriage and headed toward the royal palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching the capital streets slide past the window gave me a strange feeling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More accurately... it didn’t feel real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Is it really... over? Just like this?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn’t believe it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buried under rubble, I’d braced for a final showdown with Noark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now... it just ends, like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'...Stay sharp. It’s not over until it’s over.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that mindset, I resumed gathering information—though this new knight was a very different type from the last one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was dead silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Which unit are you with?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...I serve His Majesty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ah, a member of the Royal Guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder he wasn’t talkative.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People like him had no reason to suck up to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We’re headed to Commander Berun. If you have questions, you can ask her when we arrive.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I kept trying to glean something on the way, but that was all I got.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The carriage continued forward and passed through the palace gates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please disembark.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, we arrived at Gaebyeok Palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once inside, the Royal Guard split our group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The commander has summoned Sir Yandel alone. The rest of you will be shown to the reception room.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d already anticipated that, so I just gave Amelia a nod and followed along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We walked for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...It’s been a while, Bjorn Yandel.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I stepped through the door, Astarotta greeted me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knight escorting me left and shut the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I immediately opened subspace and pulled out the Marquis’s corpse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That makes three left now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that, Astarotta tilted her head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Three? Ah—are you talking about the deal with His Majesty?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What else?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But the numbers don’t add up. The first condition was to spend seven days with me—but you ran off early, saying you’d kill the Chancellor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tch. So she’s counting it that way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worth a shot, I guess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That means you still owe four, Yandel. Got it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Yeah, yeah. Drop the smug tone.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I grumbled, and Astarotta chuckled, then changed the subject.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So... what happened out ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ there?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You mean you don’t know?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Most of what I know comes from the intelligence bureau. And the bureau can’t know everything—especially these days.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right. If you’re trying to seize the royal family, the first thing you cut off is intel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Marquis said they blinded the other side first in this war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tell me. What happened?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I gave Astarotta a summary of all the key events.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Going to rescue Ainard. Joining forces with the Marquis’s traitor son. Fighting the Evil Eye. Finding the secret garden. Meeting the bespectacled guy...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually deceiving him to meet the Marquis.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I told her everything I could.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The best place to hide a lie is within the truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Marquis, after losing everything, fired Urae mid-conversation. We hid underground.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The one thing I couldn’t reveal was the deal I made with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragna had already been exposed during the escape—so I couldn’t hide her anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the rest...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ohh? And?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s it. The rest, you already know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hmm, I see...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Astarotta rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So Urae didn’t fall into Noark hands, at least. Assuming your story’s true.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was clearly probing for my reaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t show anything, just nodded and moved on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anyway, now it’s my turn to ask something.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Go ahead.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment she said yes, I felt a tightness in my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Urae struck and I killed the Marquis, the others who’d been caught in the teleportation scattered across the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some landed safely in royal territory—but others, like Ainard, landed deep in District 4.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Have you confirmed the status of everyone who was caught in the teleportation with me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I asked quietly, and Astarotta nodded without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ah, that? We checked a while ago.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her words filled me with an indescribable emotion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'So it’s all been sorted out...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As far as I knew, only Rotmiller had died.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now—whatever she says next...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I can’t avoid it forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hoo...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a deep breath and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are you ready to tell me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah. I’ll tell you now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So then...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who lived?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And who died?\u003C\u002Fp>",2032,"2026-06-05T19:33:19.606Z",1,"novelbin.me","3124da7a56ac2b92a508d9e9a042dedb0b498a4f4a998d0a5afe7171e14464c2","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-592","surviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-chapter-591",807,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsurviving-the-game-as-a-barbarian-cover.jpg"]