Baby Barbarian (4)
It's more common than you'd think for barbarians to team up with humans.
Even with their natural high physical stats and combat senses, they need companions from the 2nd floor onwards.
In fact, forming a team and heading to the 2nd floor after 2 or 3 months is the standard route.
'The problem is that it's almost impossible to find decent people.'
Fairies, dwarves, beastmen, etc.
Other races are in a relatively better situation.
They're less naive than barbarians who only hone their 'combat skills' in the sanctuary...
...and their hearts aren't sold at high prices as magic materials.
[What about the others? Most of them are dead.]Less than one-third of the barbarians who went through the coming-of-age ceremony with me are still alive.
Was it really because of the 'monsters'?
'No way.'
Because of that reasonable suspicion, I focused even more on eavesdropping on their conversation.
But...
"Then I'll get some rest too, I'll leave it to you."
"It's my turn next, right?"
They all fell asleep one by one, and the topic of the baby barbarian didn't come up again after the initial mention.
Of course, it wasn't a big problem since I had a rough idea of what kind of people these three were just from those three lines of conversation.
'It seems like they're not planning to do anything today.'
They're probably thinking of exploiting him and then killing him on the last day.
That's much more efficient.
'...What should I do?'
I was troubled.
As a fellow barbarian, I had no intention of ignoring a baby barbarian in danger.
But I couldn't just follow them around forever and keep an eye on them until they revealed their true intentions.
'Should I just go and kill them all?'
I chuckled and shook my head.
It's an easy and convenient method, but it's not the best.
It wouldn't matter if there was no evidence that these three are marauders. I'm confident that I could persuade Misha and the baby barbarian with a plausible story.
But...
'It would just be the same thing repeating itself.'
Sometimes, there are things you only truly understand after experiencing them firsthand.
'Training was the main goal anyway, so it wouldn't hurt to invest one day...'
After much deliberation, I came up with a plan and woke Misha up.
"Misha."
"Hmm…?"
I signaled her to be quiet with my hand and then moved to a place where we couldn't be heard.
Then I briefly explained the plan.
Misha listened without a word of complaint, even while rubbing her eyes.
"Hmm... so you're saying those guys are probably marauders?"
"Yeah, I'd like to confirm it if you don't mind."
"I don't mind. He's not a stranger since he's a barbarian."
"...Not a stranger?"
"Ah, no! I mean... he might be someone I've met before."
It seems like she's referring to the times when I acted as a guide for the young warriors every time I entered the labyrinth for the past few months...
Hmm, maybe he's one of them.
I warned them countless times to be wary of humans, but it's hard to truly understand until you experience it firsthand.
"Then it's settled. Go change your clothes."
There were things we needed to prepare for the plan.
_______________________
I put my mace, Laetium breastplate, and shield into the bag.
'As for the weapon... I can just say I lost it.'
After finishing my preparations, I checked my current state one last time. I was a perfect baby barbarian, without any metal equipment except for the helmet.
And next to me was a ground-dwelling beastman.
"Ugh... this is uncomfortable..."
To make the plan perfect, I had her wear Jensia's beginner-level equipment set instead of her usual gear.
But Misha keeps fidgeting with her chest area.
Geez, it's distracting.
"What are you doing?"
"Huh? It's just that my chest feels really tight..."
"Chest?"
Misha punches me in the solar plexus as I glance at her.
I can feel the cold damage, as it chills me to the bone.
"Where are you looking? It's definitely not because I'm fatter than that woman, okay?"
No, I didn't say anything.
In the first place, I looked because it was an unexpected complaint. The armor she was originally wearing must have been the same size.
When I point out the inconsistency, Misha answers nonchalantly,
"The one I was wearing was also small, but at least it didn't have metal plates."
Hmm, if that's the case...
Although both Jensia and Misha have figures befitting agility-based characters, there must be some differences if you look closely.
For example, their bone structure.
She's quite tall, even though she doesn't look like it.
I haven't measured, but she's probably around 170 centimeters.
And her expression is a bit cold, so I initially thought she was the prickly type.
"It's just that the chest area is tight, but the rest is actually loose and baggy. Got it?"
"Got it."
I roughly answer her because I don't know what she wants.
Misha sighs deeply, sensing my lack of understanding.
"Phew, right... how would you know about a woman's body?"
"Yeah, you're right about everything."
"Are you going to keep answering so half-heartedly?"
"Let's go if you're ready."
I didn't want to waste time on pointless arguments, so we ended the conversation and moved to the previous location.
We intentionally made a lot of noise so that our presence would be noticeable.
“Behel—laaaaaaaaaa!!”
“Kyaak! Why are you shouting all of a sudden?!”
“I just felt like it!”
“What?!”
Misha looks at me with a dumbfounded expression, but the effect is great.
“Wh, who’s there!”
I hear a shout from beyond the darkness.
“Hey! There are people over there!”
I shout innocently and run towards the source of the sound.
Soon, the labyrinth’s limited visibility ends, and four explorers with a bonfire come into view.
Three humans and one baby barbarian sleeping soundly.
“Stop, don’t come any closer.”
The three humans are already awake and wary of us.
“Royce, wake that guy up quickly.”
The archer called Royce kicks the baby barbarian awake.
“Wh, what is it? Monsters?”
“Explorers.”
“Explorers? But why did you wake me up? I was sleeping soundly…”
“I told you before, didn’t I? We need to be just as cautious of explorers as we are of monsters.”
“Ah! I remember! But… isn’t he one of our own?”
The baby barbarian nods at the archer’s words, then sees me and waves excitedly.
“I’m Karon, son of Tarson!”
“I’m Bjorn, son of Thor!”
I approach him and shake his hand, then even bump shoulders. While doing so, I glance at the others, and their expressions are priceless.
The three humans, and even Misha, who was briefed beforehand.
‘What the hell are these barbarian bastards doing?’
They’re looking at us with that exact expression.
And did the baby barbarian sense it?
He looks at me as if to say ‘don’t worry’ and then says to his companions,
“Put down your weapons! Bjorn, son of Thor, is not a bad explorer!”
“That’s right! I’m not a bad explorer!”
At our words, the archer and the spearman’s gazes turn towards one man.
It seems like this guy is the leader…
The men all lower their weapons as the man sighs and nods. It seems like he judged that it would make them look foolish to remain wary.
“So, barbarian—”
“Bjorn, son of Thor.”
“Right, Thor—”
“Thor is my father’s name.”
“Ahem, Bjorn—”
“We’re not that close yet, so I’d like you to call me by my full name.”
The leader, whose words were cut off three times in a row, looks quite pissed off, but he exercises his patience and forces a smile.
And he speaks to me again.
“Right, Bjorn, son of Thor?”
“Speak.”
“If you have no business here, I’d like you to leave. We were resting, you see.”
The leader’s words are reasonable and common sense.
It’s etiquette and custom for explorers not to approach each other unless necessary.
But…
So what?
Right now, I’m a big and important baby barbarian who doesn’t know about such things.
I exclaim as if it’s a good thing,
“You were resting? What a coincidence! We were also looking for a place to rest!”
“So… what does that have to do with us?”
“Let’s rest together since we met! That, night companion? Right, there’s something like that!”
“Night companion?”
As if they heard something they shouldn’t have, the expressions of the three humans distort strangely.
It’s understandable.
Finding night companions is a culture limited to the 1st floor.
They wouldn’t have imagined receiving a night companion offer from some random barbarian on the 2nd floor.
“Ha…”
The leader rubs his forehead as if he doesn’t know where to start explaining.
But in the meantime…
“Oh, that would be good. Come here, I lay down earlier, and this spot is a bit less hard.”
The baby barbarian nods as if it’s a good idea.
It’s a total mess.
The leader exercises superhuman patience and explains the customs of explorers.
To summarize, it’s simple.
“So you’re saying… you don’t make night companions from the 2nd floor onwards?”
“Yes, that’s right. If you understand—”
Well, understanding is something you do if you have the intention to…
I speak with genuine disappointment,
“You guys are so stupid! If we sleep together, we can sleep more!”
“Huh?”
“Use your brains if you have any. There are four of you and two of us, right? If seven people take turns keeping watch, each person can… anyway, we can sleep more!”
It’s a barbarian-style argument that makes no sense from start to finish.
Everyone is dazed as if they’ve heard a hallucination.
Ah, except for one person.
“That’s… true…! Why haven’t explorers done that before?”
Did the sight of the baby barbarian nodding vigorously at my argument make him realize that further conversation is pointless?
“Excuse me. We’ll handle things on our end, so please take your things and leave—”
The leader turns his gaze from me to Misha and then suddenly stops.
It seems like he finally saw her face.
His voice, which was only filled with annoyance, has also changed.
“Ahem, that would be the usual course of action, but… what do you think?”
His gaze, scanning her from head to toe, seems to have made her uncomfortable.
Misha freezes, but as I subtly give her a hint, her expression changes.
“Well…? I don’t know… there’s a barbarian on your side too, so you don’t seem dangerous…”
“Haha, the same goes for you.”
“Anyway, I was worried about having him keep watch alone since he lost his weapon. So if it’s okay with you guys, I think it would be fine to just spend one night together…”
“Oh, he lost his weapon?”
The man looks at me with a strange expression at Misha’s words.
It seems like he finally realized that I’m unarmed and empty-handed.
“Ah, weapon? I lost it by mistake while fighting a monster!”
“I see?”
The man seems to accept my roughly made-up excuse.
As expected, barbarians are OP.
‘Anyway, I think we’ve thrown enough bait…’
I make the final offer in a clear voice.
“So are we going to be night companions or not? Decide quickly. I’m getting sleepy.”
For reference, if they reject this offer here, I plan to leave immediately.
If they refuse after I’ve done this much, it’s much more likely that I misunderstood these three.
However…
“Well… it’s not a typical situation, but…”
The leader exchanges glances with the three humans and then smiles brightly.
“Since you say you’re in a difficult situation, it would be too cruel to just send you away.”
“I don’t understand when you speak so complicatedly.”
“…You can stay for one night if you want.”
I barely hold back my laughter since his intentions are so obvious.
Everyone has a plan.
______________________
Somehow, we’ve entered into a one-night stand.
Hmm, that sounds a bit strange, but anyway…
First, we briefly exchange names.
“This is Royce, Victor, and I’m Briol.”
Royce the archer, Victor the spearman…
…and Briol, the leader and hammer warrior.
‘…There’s no Hans.’
Could it be a pseudonym?
No, if he used a pseudonym, that baby barbarian would have found it strange.
Feeling a strange sense of unease, Misha and I lie down together in a nearby spot.
I desperately want to at least lay down a blanket…
…but then they’ll see us using the expandable backpack.
“You two get some rest. We’ll put you in the last shift.”
“Ooh, you guys are really nice explorers!”
“Hahaha… this friend is something else.”
Anyway, as soon as we lie down, Misha whispers in my ear,
“Bjorn.”
“Be quiet.”
“Do we really have to do this?”
Although she’s following my instructions, Misha doesn’t seem to like the situation very much.
Well, no matter how weak they are, it would be uncomfortable to lie down defenselessly, both physically and mentally.
But…
“Just bear with it for a bit. I’ll do you a favor later.”
“…Really? You promise?”
I throw Misha a new carrot to keep this plan going.
It’s worth it.
Today, the baby barbarian, Karon, son of Tarson, will be reborn as a true warrior.
One who is wary of humans and defeats marauders.
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