episode_0187

Around lunchtime.

People saw the Barbaroi falling from the sky and froze stiffly.

Killa stepped forward.

“What is the matter?”

It was a stern tone. It wasn’t the second-in-command suffering under Ashur, but the imposing figure of a prosecutor.

“Didn’t I just say? I came to find someone.”

The black-haired man’s eyes shone sharply, but the answer from his mouth was calm.

Gulp.

The guild members all swallowed hard.

They had heard that he had quietly settled down after heading north.

Because no unfortunate news had been heard, they wondered if he had turned over a new leaf.

Was that not the case?

Jeong Yu-shin calmed his trembling heart.

It was a different Barbaroi from the one he saw last time.

They looked similar, but there were differences.

A long scar crossing one eye could be seen through the streaky hair mixed with gray.

He could have worn an eyepatch like Aldaine, but he revealed it without covering it.

The man lit up one eye and looked down at Jeong Yu-shin.

“We, we have a lot to talk about, right?”

“What story?”

“This isn’t the place. Let’s go somewhere where there are no people.”

“…”

Is he crazy?

He must have heard their rumors, but he’s telling them to go to a secluded place where there are no people.

Jeong Yu-shin was about to refuse when he noticed something strange.

The man’s gaze was fixed on Jeong Yu-shin’s finger, or more precisely, the ring.

The ring given by the Barbaroi grandpa.

Does it have some special meaning?

Swish.

Killa stepped forward, drawing her sword.

“That’s funny. When Guild Leader Ashur is here, you come in through the main gate, but when he’s not, you come over the wall? Do you think I’m a joke?”

The man shook his head.

“Not at all. I’ve been in the Labyrinth for so long that I temporarily forgot my manners. I’m sorry.”

The swordsmanship guild members’ eyes widened as they looked at the black-haired man.

A Barbaroi apologizing?

Vice Guild Leader Killa was also surprised and opened her mouth slightly.

“Oh…I understand. Please come in through the main gate next time.”

“I will.”

“Is it ending this warmly? I thought there would be a bloody fight.”

When one of the guild members muttered, everyone glared at that guild member.

The black-haired man looked down at Jeong Yu-shin.

“Is your name Sca? I won’t hurt you, so come with me. I need to talk to you about the ring you have.”

Killa stepped forward again.

“Sca, you don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

After thinking for a moment, Jeong Yu-shin shook his head.

“I will go.”

He didn’t want to cause trouble for the swordsmanship guild members.

The man laughed.

“That’s right. Shall we go then?”

Jeong Yu-shin nodded calmly.

Even if he’s strong, wouldn’t he be able to win somehow if he fought to the death?

At least he had that much faith.

The two men left the training ground.

Killa sighed deeply as she watched Jeong Yu-shin’s receding figure.

“Sca, what kind of trouble are you getting into again?”

A small murmur echoed through the quiet training ground.

* * *

Jeong Yu-shin sat down and looked down at the strawberry sherbet placed in front of him.

Strawberry sherbet in a beautifully crafted glass.

“Eat it. It’s delicious.”

The Barbaroi man sitting across from him recommended it with an indifferent expression, then lifted the glass and gulped down the strawberry sherbet.

‘What is this…?’

Currently, Jeong Yu-shin and the Barbaroi were sitting on one side of the cafe street in the central area.

They had placed a table in front of the cafe so that people passing by could see them clearly.

He could feel glances. Some people had a flustered expression and walked far away from Jeong Yu-shin and the Barbaroi man.

Jeong Yu-shin was just as embarrassed.

A man like a warrior full of the smell of iron and sweat suddenly takes a seat at a cafe and orders strawberry sherbet.

The Barbaroi man smacked his lips and raised his hand.

“Hey, owner, one more strawberry sherbet here.”

“Ye…yes!”

The owner, whose face turned pale, hurriedly went inside the counter.

Jeong Yu-shin took a sip of the strawberry sherbet and put it down.

“So, what’s the reason you called me here?”

“That grandpa, did he meet Ragna Hellblade?”

He remembers.

He was a man with a lot of tears compared to his big build.

“Yes.”

“I heard he gave you some gifts, though not significant.”

“That’s right too.”

The one-sided blade engraved with ‘Gale’, the elixir called Magician’s Tears, and a small magic stone.

They were decent items.

“He must have given you a ring.”

“That’s right.”

“Do you know the meaning of the ring?”

“I don’t know.”

He answered simply and drank the strawberry sherbet again to moisten his throat.

The man smiled slyly, then turned his head to look at the street.

Jeong Yu-shin didn’t have much to say either, so he quietly crossed his arms and looked around the street.

The street around noon in early autumn.

Unlike the southern district, people in expensive clothes were walking around busily.

The Barbaroi slowly opened his mouth.

“That ring symbolizes the tribe leader.”

Strangely, his throat was parched.

He opened his mouth and followed the man’s words.

“Tribe leader.”

“That’s right.”

“Why is the head of the Barbaroi tribe in the Labyrinth City?”

“I’ll tell you slowly later. You probably know that representatives from each country are gathering in the Labyrinth City this time, right?”

“So?”

“I want you to attend as the Barbaroi representing this generation.”

Representative?

What the hell is that all of a sudden?

“Are the Barbaroi that great? It’s just a tribe.”

“You’re a mixed-blood, so you probably don’t know, but at least in the Labyrinth City, we are quite prestigious warriors.”

Jeong Yu-shin stared blankly up at the Barbaroi’s face.

He felt sorry for him because he seemed like an innocent Barbaroi who didn’t know how the world works.

“You’re shameless. These days, you guys are called the Wandering Thugs. You’re said to be committing crimes against men and women of all ages under the pretext of bride hunting.”

“The tradition has been distorted. It’s originally different.”

‘Hoo.’

Is this that ‘true’ Barbaroi thing?

“Bride hunting is the act of finding and wooing a woman who can bear your child. Respectfully. For example, like this.”

The man cleared his throat and lowered his voice.

“You go to a woman you like and politely ask, ‘Won’t you give your sticky womb the chance to hold my baby seed?’ Of course, if you bring flowers or gifts with you, your chances of success will increase.”

“…”

Is it not?

Is it even a little better than just going and raping someone?

Either way, it wasn’t normal.

“Why do you have to do bride hunting? Are there no Barbaroi women?”

“There are. But not many.”

Those Barbaroi guys.

Was it a male-dominated tribe?

He felt like he knew why the tradition of bride hunting came about.

“Let’s get back to the point. I won’t attend the meeting.”

“Why?”

“I don’t have the will or ability to lead anyone. And if it’s urgent, can’t the Barbaroi grandpa go?”

“He left the city for a while on business. I don’t know if he’ll be back in time. Or he might have gone straight back to his northern hometown.”

“Still…”

“The burden of a generation is borne by that generation. We can help, but we can’t drag them along.”

‘This guy.’

A way of speaking that distinguishes generations.

He said he’d been in the Labyrinth for a long time.

He seemed a little different from the Barbaroi he had heard about while living in the Labyrinth City.

Should he say he’s like the Barbaroi grandpa?

He looked old, so it would be good to see him as the same generation.

What is his identity?

Jeong Yu-shin shook his head and erased his questions.

‘It probably doesn’t matter.’

His interest was in the Labyrinth.

Specifically, getting a transfer engraving.

If he went into the Labyrinth and worked hard, heaven might be moved and give him a transfer engraving.

Jeong Yu-shin took the ring off his finger and held it out to the man.

“Take it.”

The man shook his head and stood up.

“Impossible. I think there’s a reason Ragna Grandpa gave you that ring. I have a guess as to what it is, but I don’t want to misinterpret the reason for the tribe leader, so I won’t say it. Keep it for now.”

“Where are you going?”

“To the northern district. I’m going to educate those Wandering Thugs, as you said.”

Jeong Yu-shin leaned back in his chair.

“Good luck.”

The man waved his hand and slowly walked down the street.

Jeong Yu-shin watched the man’s back and got up from his seat.

The owner slowly approached. A cautious expression. Did he have something to say?

“Excuse me…customer.”

“What’s the matter?”

At the polite question, the owner’s face brightened a little.

“You have to pay before you go.”

“…”

Jeong Yu-shin was only able to leave the store after paying for the one-eyed Barbaroi’s share as well.

* * *

A week passed quickly.

Jeong Yu-shin’s daily life was complex yet simple.

He woke up in the morning, finished his training, and learned how to handle Yin energy from Eru.

After finishing his meal, he immediately put on his bag and went to the library to read books.

Around lunchtime, he left the library, ate a simple lunch at a cafe, and rolled around in the Swordsmanship Guild.

He trained endlessly to increase the high point of his mutated body.

The swordsmanship guild members also took turns facing Jeong Yu-shin’s sword.

“Huff…huff…!”

Jeong Yu-shin slumped down in his seat. Even though it was early autumn, sweat poured down like rain.

The swordsmanship guild members were in a similar state.

No matter how he thought about it, five consecutive sparring sessions were too much.

“That’s it for today! Everyone worked hard.”

“Vice Guild Leader, you worked hard too!”

“Hoo. That’s no joke. It was delicious again today.”

“This is training.”

After finishing their greetings, the guild members chatted among themselves and left the training ground.

Jeong Yu-shin was lying on the floor of the training ground in a starfish position before getting up.

Killa was looking down at Jeong Yu-shin with her arms crossed.

“Vice Guild Leader.”

“What?”

“How strong am I?”

“If you’re talking about swordsmanship, the basics are well established. It’s visible that you’re moving into the realm of application. If I had to pick, I’d say mid-level intermediate?”

It was an explanation excluding the engravings.

“I want to know if it can be grasped in numbers, not that.”

At Jeong Yu-shin’s question, Killa tilted her head for a moment.

“Are you talking about mana adaptation? If you’re mid-level intermediate, you’ve probably experienced five to ten body mutations.”

Mid-level intermediate is between level 5 and level 10.

‘If you think about it, am I level 4?’

He felt like he had rolled around enough.

Now that he looked at it, he had a long way to go.

“If you got a good engraving, how would it be?”

“There would be a difference in compatibility. Sca, listen. These kinds of word games are meaningless. No matter how strong someone is, they’ll die if they get a knife to the neck. You have to fight to know.”

‘I don’t die.’

Jeong Yu-shin didn’t answer and just thought to himself.

“I understand. Still, I’m glad I seem to be going average.”

Killa shook her head with an absurd expression.

“You’re too fast. You barely know the grip, and it’s only been a little over half a year since you came here, but you’ve already grown this much? Honestly, it’s scary.”

He was a friend who sometimes had a talent that even Guild Leader Ashur would stick his tongue out at.

What’s the rush?

They say that those who have a talent that amazes the sky have a tragic fate.

Jeong Yu-shin, unaware of Killa’s worries, grinned and scratched his head.

‘My self-esteem is soaring all of a sudden. As expected, you have to succeed in this world to feel good.’

“Thank you. Vice Guild Leader, rest well.”

“Okay.”

* * *

In the slowly setting sun.

Jeong Yu-shin, whose shoulders were raised to the fullest, arrived at the inn with a swagger.

Karin and Eru greeted him. Ingrid seemed to be away for a while on business.

And.

There were two welcome guests.

Brin and Lena.

He had a connection with Brin from the Iron Mask Party.

The daughter of a minister of the Lionel Kingdom.

She was a decent woman except for the disadvantage of being overly honest. She was a grateful person who had helped him in many ways in the forest area.

Lena was a magician.

She was a woman with good insight who recognized the Lich Prince at the last party.

“H…hello.”

Brin stood up from her seat and bowed her head.

She was still shy.

Jeong Yu-shin smiled.

“It’s nice to see you like this. How have you been?”

“I’ve…I’ve been doing well.”

Jeong Yu-shin had a conversation with Brin and Lena. Lena did most of the talking.

A moment later.

Eru, who came out of the kitchen, approached and put the food down on the table.

“Eru.”

“Y-yes.”

“Do I have the face to become a sword master?”

Karin made a strange expression while eating a sausage.

“Sca, why are you suddenly saying such nonsense while eating? A sword master?!”

“Hey! Karin, that’s too harsh. Pour me some water here.”

Karin glared at Jeong Yu-shin, then blushed and poured water into the cup quietly.

Suddenly, Brin forced the corners of her mouth up.

“B-but if you’re a Barbaroi, wouldn’t you be a sow, sow master, instead of a sword master?”

“…”

A cold silence fell on the table.

“A-am I wrong?”

Brin glanced at people’s faces and muttered quietly.