Chapter 248
Episode 248 The Gnome Tree (2)
That day, the tribal chief told me.
[If you want my position, become stronger, warrior. And prove you are worthy. I will watch over you.]
He said he would hand over this position to me if I proved worthy.
If so, how does the proof come about?
I didn’t bother to ask about it.
There is only one barbarian I know.
“Let’s move for a moment!”
“……As expected, you are a wise warrior.”
A battle that could have been fought indoors was moved to an outdoor clearing by my insight.
And…
“Behel—LAAAAAAAAA!!!”
“Behel—laaaaaaaa!!!”
The battle started with shouts, no matter who said it first.
Aaaaaang-!
The chief of the tribe mercilessly swung the ax that had decapitated ‘Kadua’s son Oreum’, and I also fought back, using the skills I had acquired generously.
Just speaking of the result…
“I won.”
After about an hour of fighting, they were defeated.
The factor of defeat was the lack of specifications.
After all, the tribal chief is the same type as me.
If the position was completely different, the variable would have continued to come out, but since I was pushed out of my strength, there was no incident.
‘As expected, not yet.’
I accepted defeat gracefully.
Of course, the outcome could have been different had it not been for Dalian.
In Dalian, he couldn’t use a mean trick like spraying [acid bodily fluid] on his eyes or distracting his mind by talking nonsense, and then taking a surprise attack. He didn’t even bite his neck with his teeth when his limbs were sealed in the ground match.
To put it simply, he fought with his special move sealed.
If so, what was the ‘proof’?
“You are still lacking.”
Soon the tribal chief spoke to me.
“If you want my position, become stronger.”
I thought the cut-off line was around the 6th floor.
Isn’t that already enough?
It’s not like he’s going to have to defeat himself so he can hand over the position of chieftain—
“An old man like me is no match.”
Ha, maybe it was the same.
Winning against the 8th floor explorer…
‘It will take a little more time.’
I let go of my impatience.
This is also one of the strengths of the Barbarians.
Even if the succession fails, there is nothing to lose.
Or rather, should it be said that there are only a lot of gains?
As soon as the game was over, my body was so weak that I forgot several bottles of potion, but…
‘I still caught up a lot.’
It’s different from the time when I fainted with a single punch.
The battle lasted nearly an hour.
And…
‘Six positively identified integers.’
Checked several tribal chiefs’ essences.
Not only that, but I learned to some extent the habits of fighting.
You will be able to deal with it much easier next time.
also.
‘I mean, barbarians fight well.’
I’ll have to fight more to learn it, but I was able to naturally learn the sense of the tribal leader who once climbed to the 8th floor as a warrior during the battle.
Furthermore.
“To fight against that tribal chief for an hour!”
“Look! That salty tribal chief eats potions!”
“They may look fine on the outside, but they’re not on the inside. As expected, Yandel’s son, Bjorn, is a great warrior…!”
Even my fellow countrymen, who were full at the end of the Dalian, didn’t seem particularly disappointed with my defeat.
Well, I’m in my first year now, right?
“I thought it would take at least five more years.”
“Well, maybe the tribal chief will change much sooner.”
Even the elders are nodding their heads in satisfaction.
So I lost but gained a lot.
On the other hand, the tribal chief gained nothing.
‘Yeah, so can’t it be said that I actually won?’
As I was winning mentally, my motivation returned.
Soon I stood up and stared at the tribal chief.
The tribal chief seemed curious about what I would say after I had been silent the whole time.
“Aren’t you frustrated?”
“No way.”
I chuckled.
and said
“Once more.”
It’s not common to have opponents you can fight without worrying about, right?
***
Since then, I have fought a total of three battles with the tribal chief, and all of them have ended in my defeat. However, as the number of times increased, the sparring time increased.
It is thanks to Lee Han-soo’s strength, not Bjorn’s.
I am good at self-feedback.
Yes, I have experienced many failures in my life, and every time I was desperate for it, it was the reason for the failure.
Finding the reason is my specialty.
‘Certainly, it’s because I have a lot of experience, so I have a lot of small skills.’
The difference between me and the tribal chief was not only in specifications.
Skills as a warrior.
judgment based on experience.
Instinctive intuition that catches gaps like ghosts even in battles where thinking and reacting is delayed.
These were all things I had to learn.
It’s not efficient to be satisfied with the role of a meat shield now that you’ve even eaten the essence of an ogre.
You should be able to fight better.
It is also a way to protect your colleagues.
‘If our allies are in danger, just kill the enemies so that they are not in danger.’
It was like fate.
My new destiny as a tanker that I have to move on from now on.
“…Your face seems to have realized something.”
“Ah, thank you. You learn a lot.”
“Haha, that’s the position of a tribal chief!”
What is this uncle?
I don’t think so, but I’m weak in praise.
“Can I come again next time?”
“whenever.”
The time when sunset slowly approaches.
After my sparring with the tribal chief was completely over, the barbarians who had finished the good sighting all scattered to do their own thing.
“Bjorn! Go home!”
“It’s not Baro. I’m thinking of looking around for a while.”
“Really? Can I follow you?”
There’s no reason not to.
After the sparring, he moved with Ainar.
There was no exact destination.
I just walked endlessly in the opposite direction of the city wall.
“It’s been a while since I came here.”
As we left the campsite, we were greeted by a thick, unorganized bush.
The forest where the spirits of numerous warriors, including the elder who performed the ritual of ‘soul succession’ to Einar, are playing.
But I kept walking.
“If you go that way, there’s nothing but barriers, so why are you going there?”
“Suddenly, I became curious about the barrier.”
After speeding up a little and walking for about an hour, I reached the point I wanted within.
Took.
An invisible wall appeared as if this was the last thing allowed.
Beyond that, there are still forests.
“Eek! Bjorn! What are you doing right now! If the protective barrier is broken, it’ll be really big!”
When I knocked on the wall with the back of my hand, Einar was startled and stopped me.
Well, it’s a world view where everyone dies without this.
‘Yeah, once it’s known.’
It was a question that arose after going to Bpron.
Is the world outside really the state the royals spoke of?
It was when I was thinking about that.
“It’s been a while, warrior.”
When I turned my back to the presence of people behind me, I saw an elderly barbarian wearing an eyepatch.
“powwow!!”
“Yes, it’s been a while for you too. Einar, the second daughter of Pnellin.”
It’s so amazing every time I see it.
How do you get around so well when you don’t have eyes?
“What’s going on here? Few warriors come to this depth.”
“I just came here because I was bored. What are you doing? What are you doing here?”
“What else could a shaman do in the woods?”
Saying so, the shaman showed me a hand smeared with white powder.
Looking back, it was bone meal.
It’s also a human, not an animal.
“It was at a funeral.”
When a body left in the forest turns into white bones, the shaman breaks the bones into small pieces and scatters them throughout the vast forest.
“Ho, was it today the turn of Tohar’s third son, Kiduba?”
“He has a long way to go back to the forest yet.”
To put it simply, it means that we have to wait longer for the body of the elder who served as Einar’s teacher to become a white bone.
“……Right.”
“I’m going back soon. How about you guys going too?”
Soon the shaman asked us, and I replied that I would return later.
“Yes? If you want.”
The shaman turned his back without hesitation.
And…
“Everything has an order.”
“…….”
“Warrior, it’s not yet time to wonder about the beyond.”
He left a meaningful message and left.
***
“Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since we’ve been together, huh?”
“is it?”
“How about a fight after a long time? Didn’t you play with me well because you’re not feeling well these days?”
Oh, you mean sparring.
Apparently, the confrontation with the tribal chief earlier had aroused sympathy for him as well…
Anyway, these barbarians.
“It’s a bit like today, let’s do it tomorrow.”
“Okay. You’ll understand even if I don’t tell you, but I’m pretty patient.”
oh yes yes
I nodded roughly and spent time observing the protective barrier again. Something felt strange, perhaps because of what the shaman had said.
But nothing I can find out.
‘If I had been a wizard instead of a later barbarian, would I have been able to discover something?’
In the end, I turned around without any income.
There was quite a distance from the place where the protective barrier was located to the castle wall, but the way back was not boring.
After all, Einar is a chatterbox.
I especially like Barbarian Talk.
The story of equipment, the story of who fought against whom and won.
Or…
“Oh, did you hear that? Charon is going to be a father soon?”
“what?”
I was genuinely surprised.
“How the hell? No, there was no such word in the labyrinth in the first place?”
“Whoops, it seems that he started meeting women as soon as he entered the third floor. Oh, and I only heard about the pregnancy from the woman a few days ago, so I probably didn’t have time to tell you.”
Then I heard the details from Einar.
The woman on the other side was one of the female warriors of the tribe.
Well, this was natural
. It is not possible to give birth to a child.
Mixed blood is not impossible, but in the end, a human child comes out with a racial value. In the first place,
barbarians prefer the same race.
The opposite sex itself that attracts them is different from other races.
‘Above all, there is no ideological problem when pregnant . .’
In human society, ‘marriage’ and having children is the correct procedure.
However, in barbarian society, this is not the case.
Children are raised in the Holy Land, and women also consider giving birth to children a matter of pride. Not only
that, but there are also practical benefits
to humans . Compared to that, it’s small, but the royal family gives two years of tax relief.
‘And the gestation period is short.’
Although it varies from person to person, it takes an average of 4 months to give birth and the recovery is very fast.
This is probably why barbarian women are
so lenient with childbirth
. Was it just a
noble process?
If the economic aspect of pride is not resolved, it will eventually lead to a low birth
rate
. I heard that my tribe’s female warriors were targeting you…” Oh,
that’s what they were aiming for.
Somehow, they told me that if I did something, I would feel good, and I would press here and there. …….
“I have no idea yet.”
“Oh, why? It’s a bit hard for me to say this, but we’re late. Among the riders later than us , there
are female warriors who have given birth!”
Is it because it’s the first time I’ve ever had a talk like this?
For some reason, I became scared for the first time since entering this body. A
race called barbarians.
As I was trembling, Einar said he was right and said,
“Ah! Could it be because of Misha? Don’t worry! Misha will understand. Aren’t we barbarians? Anyway, he can only give birth to beasts!”
Einar is somehow unfamiliar to me.
In front of Mr. Bear, he said he was a cat and everything, so I would have thought he had this thought in his heart.
“I’m done. That you?”
It was an uncomfortable subject, so the topic changed.
In a martial arts style, it is a method of grafting a flower that uses the enemy’s power to counterattack.
” I
mean me!”
was simple:
“Ha, even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. Where would a warrior like me who would like a petty woman like me…”
Those damned aesthetic standards.
Unintentionally, it was like stabbing Einar’s wrath with a dagger.
Just as he was about to apologize for it.
“And … I have no idea either.”
Huh?
“Isn’t he like that too!! All the other people in your country seem young and unmanly after spending time with you!”
Einar exclaimed as if feeling unfair.
At the same time, I was taken aback. Then, I asked if I could look for someone among my fellow countrymen who had accumulated years of age…
“I’m older. No!!”
An unexpected reply came back.
‘I don’t like being older and I don’t feel like a man my age…’
It can’t be that it’s quite a troublesome taste.
However, to put it bluntly, it was a positive thing for me.
If she suddenly becomes pregnant and cannot enter the labyrinth for several months, the aftermath will be transmitted to me as well
.
29-year-old Lee Han-soo grew one year older in this world and turned 30.
But…
“Anyway, if you have any ideas, tell me! I’ll introduce you to a good female warrior!”
Of course, I’m uncomfortable with this kind of talk.
***
Two days later.
I went out alone after breakfast and warm-up sparring with Einar.
Oh, is it a bit too much to say alone?
“Destination arrived at The search inside the store has been completed, but please be careful just in case.”
Now I’m used to the courtesy of the knights.
“Yes, thank you.”
I got off the carriage with a slight bow and entered the meeting place. I
had visited once or three times before. Teahouse.
“Oh Bjorn! Here, here!”
Shabin Emour, a 7th-class secretary who took a seat at the corner, looked at me and waved.
Next to me, librarian Ragnar sat silently.
Soon after I sat down as well, all the members of my regular group of friends gathered.
” Thank you for coming. After you got the title of baron this time, I was really worried about whether or not I could call you like this.”
“You care about all the strange things.”
“That’s right, Shabin. Do you think this man will change when he becomes a nobleman?”
Ragnar sips tea while speaking in an arrogant tone.
This time, he was right.
I have no intention of spreading the title of nobility.
But…
‘Yes, Jun. There’s nothing particularly burdensome about the title of baron, right?’
From that natural behavior, it shows how good the daughter of a
family
is .
.Where is it?’
Soon after, I turned my gaze and stared at Shabin.
Unlike Ragnar, I was gently looking at the knights, pretending not to be him.
It would be uncomfortable, though.
Let’s just get to the point quickly. “So
, what’s the matter called today?”
Did you meet only for business?”
“You have a habit of crinkling your nose when you lie.”
“Huh? really? I knew it for the first time!”
Of course, it must be the first time.
“It was a lie.”
“Ah…!”
Ragnar giggled as he looked at Shabin, who suddenly put on a dumbfounded expression.
“It’s really hard to see someone like this.”
“That would be the same for you. This much is nothing to a barbarian.”
In fact, regardless of age or gender, when I start to act like a barbarian in earnest, they usually make that kind of expression.
“Okay, so? Tell
me about your business .” “I’d like to make a request to Baroness Bjorn Jandel on behalf of the administrative office.”
Hmmm,
it’s a part-time job…….
It’s not that I don’t have money right now, but money in this world is no matter how much you have. Something that is always lacking in the liver.
“Tell me what kind of request it is
. ”