Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Chapter 341: Snowball (5)

Chapter 341: Snowball (5)

Bjorn Yandel is an evil spirit.

It started as a rumor, but eventually, even the royal family acknowledged it.

Of course, it wouldn't be difficult to refute it.

I could just create an opportunity to prove myself and use Auril Gabis' gift. Then I could regain my noble title and my reputation.

But...

'Something feels off.'

The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt.

The dead have immunity.

Not legally, but morally.

There's no point in accusing the dead, so people don't dig too deep, and they don't care much about it.

But this was different.

A dead man was being accused of being an evil spirit, and the royal family was acknowledging it.

It was an absurd situation.

'I need to lay low for a while...'

This wasn't natural.

It didn't seem like some divine intervention or a coincidence.

Someone was behind this rumor.

And the royal family had a reason for acknowledging it.

But the problem was...

'I don't know what that reason is.'

I didn't have enough information.

So it was too dangerous to just go to the royal family and say, "I'm alive."

Not everyone would be happy to see me alive.

Some might even want to make my survival disappear.

If that someone was the royal family, I would be as good as dead.

'...I'll prove myself after I figure out what's going on.'

I decided on my stance.

First, gather information without revealing that I'm alive.

I would clear my name and regain my title and reputation later.

"Phew..."

I sighed and lay down on the bed, looking at Erwen.

It seemed like I would have to rely on her for a while.

I didn't even have a place to stay, let alone money to buy clothes. And it would be impossible to gather information with this conspicuous body.

It was a bit embarrassing, showing up like this...

'But at least she passed out after just a few drinks. Maybe she's not completely gone...'

I was looking at Erwen, who was sleeping peacefully, when she suddenly spoke.

"How long are you going to stare out the window?"

Erwen's eyes were open.

"It's like you're waiting for someone."

Uh... she wasn't asleep?

_____________________

The peaceful night passed, and as soon as the sun rose, Erwen got dressed and prepared to leave.

And she warned me repeatedly, as if she was worried.

"You can't leave this room while I'm gone. Not even one step. I'll know if you do. Do you understand...?"

I was curious about what she meant, but I just nodded and asked where she was going.

"Are you going back to the sanctuary?"

"Yes, I have to."

Right, she had obtained the Pureblood and contracted the Spirit King.

She had her own duties and responsibilities—

"I need money."

"...Huh?"

"I'm going to sell everything I can and find a better place to stay. This place... it's not... you know?"

"...What's wrong with this place?"

"No, it's not that I don't like it... but it would be better to start fresh in a better place..."

...I didn't understand, but I decided to accept that this inn wasn't a good place to hide.

"Well... I'll be back later?"

"Ah, wait. Can I ask you a favor?"

"Yes? Do you want me to buy you some meat?"

"Not that... well, I'm not saying don't buy meat. But it's a different favor."

I asked Erwen to check the vault at the bank. And if there was anything inside, I told her to bring it to me without asking any questions.

"Okay, I'll see you later, mister!"

Erwen agreed and left.

She didn't seem very reliable.

'Will she really bring it back...?'

I felt uneasy, but I didn't have a choice.

If I went out, someone would definitely recognize me.

'At least Amelia came back first.'

I was shocked last night when I realized that 22 years, the vault's time limit, had already passed. But luckily, it seemed like Amelia had taken care of it.

She wouldn't have left that message otherwise.

[I'll take it...]

She must have extended the time limit.

She was truly reliable.

'And it seems like she's gotten stronger.'

The summon range of a clone made with [Self-Replication] is 5 meters.

And the clone's movement range is 100 meters.

But it didn't seem like Amelia's real body was nearby.

It meant she had obtained a new ability.

There were three synergy skills that fit those conditions, according to the database.

But considering how Amelia had listened to my advice in the past...

[Dual Control].

She probably absorbed the Twin Hydra's essence and granted her clone independence.

I had already explained the drawbacks of the other synergy skills.

'Okay, let's get some sleep...'

I was exhausted from staying up all night, so I went to bed.

And after some time...

"Mister, wake up."

"Ah... you're back..."

I opened my eyes and saw Erwen.

The sun was setting.

It seemed like about eight hours had passed.

"Did anything happen outside?"

"You... worried about me?"

No, I was sleeping.

"Of course."

"...Hehe, that feels nice."

"Ahem, so how did it go?"

"Ah, that? I found a good house! It wasn't perfect because I didn't have much time, but don't worry! I renovated it properly."

"Really? Good job."

I didn't care much about the house, so I quickly moved on to the most important question.

"But... what about the bank? How did that go?"

"Ah... the bank...?"

Her reaction was strange.

I felt uneasy.

Did she fail to open the vault?

I gave her the correct password.

No, wait... could it be that Amelia failed to extend the time limit?

As I was thinking about all the possibilities...

"Here."

Erwen handed me a crumpled piece of paper.

"Uh..."

I took it, but I didn't understand.

"What... what is this...?"

"The thing that was in the vault. You asked me to bring it, right?"

"Was there a hammer in there? About this big—"

"There wasn't anything like that. Just this letter."

"...Letter?"

I finally realized what it was and carefully unfolded it.

There was no sender, but I knew who wrote it.

Amelia Rainwales.

"...Can I read this?"

"Sure."

I asked Erwen for permission and quickly scanned the letter. It was crumpled, but I could still read it.

To summarize:

She had taken some measures, but just in case something went wrong and we couldn't meet, she was leaving this letter.

She had extended the vault's time limit.

So I should leave my current location, and she would come find me.

Ah, and lastly...

[Kraul's Demon Crusher is...]

That was the end of the letter.

It seemed like the last part was torn off.

'The most important part is missing!'

I asked Erwen if she knew what the missing part said, but she shook her head.

She said she didn't remember because she had only skimmed it.

'My hammer...!'

I felt a pang of anxiety.

What if something had happened to it while I was gone?

'No, that hasn't happened yet.'

I tried to think positively.

Maybe Amelia was just holding onto it.

And even if she wasn't, I could just send her a reply and find out what happened.

"Erwen..."

I burned the letter and called Erwen.

I was going to ask her to put my reply in the vault.

But...

"It's okay. It's not your fault that you received a love letter. It just means you're popular. What can you do about it?"

"Huh?"

"Ah, just in case, I closed the vault."

"Uh..."

I should be angry.

She had done something without my permission.

And I was usually the type to get angry when I had to.

But...

"Th, there's no way!"

I blurted out a denial.

It was an instinctive reaction.

Perhaps I was worried about ruining our relationship.

"Hehe, I knew you would say that."

Anyway, we ate the food Erwen had brought and then it was nighttime.

The best time to use the darkness spirit.

We used the darkness spirit to hide ourselves and walked to the house Erwen had found.

"You found this... in one day?"

It was a detached house with a high fence and a private garden.

"I told you, I have money."

Even if she had money, it was still unbelievable that she had found this place in one day. She must have bought it at full price without even negotiating...

'Maybe I should just buy a new Demon Crusher...'

I followed Erwen into the house.

And...

Thud.

The heavy iron gate closed behind us, and the lights turned on.

And then I realized...

"..."

There were no windows.

Or rather, all the windows were boarded up with thick planks. It had looked dark from the outside, so I thought they had just drawn the curtains...

"Erwen...?"

"Yes?"

"Why are the windows..."

"Ah, this? Well, it would be troublesome if someone saw us from the outside, and..."

Erwen smiled and continued.

"We don't have to go outside anymore, right?"

Gulp.

_____________________

"This... isn't this a bit much? Boarding up the windows? If you're worried about people seeing us, we have curtains, and the fence is really high..."

I felt uneasy and tried to find a reason, but Erwen wouldn't listen.

"No, mister, you don't understand how dangerous the situation is!"

"..."

"I'm not just talking about you. What if they find out that I'm hiding you?"

"...It would be a big problem."

She was right.

It wasn't just a problem, it could destroy everything I had built.

Erwen seemed emboldened by my agreement and raised her voice.

"Right? So this is necessary! You're a trouble magnet. I have to take care of you, you know?"

"..."

"Ah, what am I doing... look at you, all slumped over..."

Erwen seemed to feel sorry for me and offered a compromise.

"It will be tough, but cheer up... I'll let you walk in the garden at night. Okay?"

"Really...?"

"Yes! But only if I'm with you."

"..."

And so, my reclusive life began.

And time passed...

?The character's soul resonates and is drawn to a specific world.?

It was midnight on the 15th.