Bjorn Yandel the Barbarian

“Isn’t there one more person who hasn’t heard the answer?”

What is this old man talking about? He keeps talking incoherently—

“Bryatt County, that is.”

“···what?”

“Didn’t you hear from Army Bryant that he wasn’t a traitor?”

“Do you think I’m alive?”

“Well, as someone who saw the body in person, I think it’s very unlikely… His death doesn’t mean he’s innocent.”

The old man continued speaking in a voice devoid of any emotion.

“No matter how many times I think about it, I always end up coming to the same conclusion.”

“······”

“If there is a traitor among us, it is none other than Army Bryatt.”

Although he didn’t know what other evidence there was, Grandpa seemed convinced that Brian was a traitor.

So, I also started to think a lot about many things.

‘The priest wants to kill Baekho Lee, the warrior is the lord’s lackey, and the magician has another plan.’

But the archer here is a traitor… ‘Did this bastard Baekho Lee really build the team with his feet?’ It’s not surprising anymore.

When the front door creaks open and a woman enters the building, everyone gathered in the living room jumps to their feet.

“Emily…! What happened?”

“How? You still haven’t found a way?”

It’s been four months since Bjorn Jandel went out and disappeared, looking for a way out.

At first, they waited, thinking that their return home would be delayed by a few days, but after more than a week, the situation changed.

Out of concern, I went down to the basement and found an empty underground plaza.

So from that time on, I started asking around in earnest…

“Jurven Havelion, what about that guy? He hasn’t shown up yet?”

The anxiety grew as even the magician who had gone to see the magic circle with Bersil’s introduction disappeared.

Of course, in the beginning, the prevailing opinion was that if the two of them went outside the walls, they would come back on their own if they waited a little longer.

However, as the period of disappearance became longer, the opinion changed. It is true that Bjorn went out with the magician.

However, something happened outside and that is why I haven’t been able to come back yet.

In fact, it didn’t take long for such speculations to turn into certainties.

Soon, the royal family’s troops began to station themselves in the underground area where no one had been present·······

“I still haven’t found a way to bring Bjorn back.”

Amelia is running around everywhere on behalf of the clan, gathering information, but the information she has found so far is only one thing.

The moving magic circle in the basement was damaged.

This was information that they had obtained by risking their lives by infiltrating the military barracks and eavesdropping on the conversations of the commanders, and thanks to this, they were able to deduce why Bjorn had not yet returned.

“Is that so···”

“Don’t worry, I made some money this time.”

“···Income?”

“They said that there was no problem with getting out, just that the way back was blocked.”

“Huh? Is that true?”

“Luckily, I have also obtained the method of activating the magic circle. Whether it is feasible or not, you will have to see for yourself, Gowland.”

Amelia took out a document that seemed to belong to the military from her bosom, and Bersil read it quickly but carefully. And then…

“It seems like the royal family knew everything about this magic circle. The instructions for activating the magic circle are neatly organized like a manual.”

“So the bottom line is: Can you do it?”

“Yes, if I have this, I can also activate the magic circle.”

Amelia nods as if she is right as Bersil answers with a confident voice.

“Then it’s okay.”

“Is it okay···?”

“Complete all expedition preparations by three days.”

It was an unexpected order, but no one objected to it.

“Oooooh! Are we finally doing something too!!”

Ainar, who was sleeping, burst into cheers.

“Ugh… The manager who left home hasn’t come back for months, so I have no choice but to bring him over myself.”

Misha nodded as if she had made up her mind.

“Yes, you left all the work behind and disappeared alone, so how hard was it for me? I heard that if Mr. Shabin Emoor came back, you would kill him or resign.”

Bersil, who was in charge of all the clan’s affairs, let out a sigh of resentment.

“Putting all that aside, isn’t this a rare opportunity? For us to go rescue the captain?”

At the words of the navigator Auyen, Erwen closed her eyes and placed her hand on her heart.

“Because it was always your role to protect us and come to our rescue.”

Clan Anabada’s expedition has been decided.·***

Leighton Bryatt, the archer of Team Baekho Lee, who had a good personality and decent abilities, if this guy is really a traitor, there are suspicious circumstances.

He was also our team’s guide. [He’s not a monster, he’s a human.]

[There’s only one opponent… Surprisingly, he seems to be sleeping soundly.]

Even if Baekho Lee didn’t sense the presence, the guy, due to the nature of his position, Hans L…

To be exact, it was possible to naturally guide us to the unidentified guy who was disguised as Hans L.

‘Besides, when everyone tried to stop Baekho from riding the Dimensional Stele, he didn’t say a word…’

After having doubts for a while, I started to wonder if this guy was really a traitor.

Nothing is certain—·Kuung-! Then suddenly I feel a vibration running through the ground·But I don’t know where it is·

Normally, in these situations, the agility characters would take care of the briefing, but the problem is that there is no one in that position around right now.

Two wizards, one priest, and two tanks.

“Where is it···?”

“I thought it was over there······”

“It’s far away, so it’ll take a little more time to check with magic detection—·”

While I was wandering around due to the absence of an expert, I felt a vibration again. Kuuuung-! A bigger vibration than before.

And maybe it was because I was on edge this time?

“It’s over there.”

This time, I was able to clearly recognize the direction, so I immediately ran to the spot with my group and… woof-! Boom! Woof!

The closer you get, the louder and clearer the vibrations and roaring noises you feel

“————Oh no———!!”

I can hear the sound of conversation, even if it is faint. Even if I can hear it vaguely, it is Baekho Lee’s voice. However, the problem is…

“You’re fighting with someone… right?”

“I guess·”

At first, it seemed like that was the case. At first, I thought that Baekho Lee was just beating up things because he couldn’t stand the anger.

“Hey you little shit! If I catch you—!”

From the conversation, it seemed clear that someone was being chased. So I picked up my speed and ran towards the noise.

And… Ta-da! At that moment when I turned the corner as if I was hitting a wall, unable to resist inertia, flash! A flash of light flashed as if a nuclear bomb had exploded before my eyes.

My instinct as a tanker came first rather than my head.

“The character cast [Gigantization]”

He quickly blocked the narrow passage with his inflated body and protected his upper body with a shield, but as expected, immediately

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah-! A strong, invisible shock pushes my body away, and a hot heat is transmitted to my skin.

It felt as if my whole body was melting. The part that was covered with a shield, like I had applied sunscreen, was a little better, but… Chew!

When the flash died down, smoke rose from the heated armor.

It felt like hot electricity was flowing from my toes to my head, but I checked the situation behind me first.

“Is everyone okay?”

“Are you okay… Aah!”

What? Are you badly hurt? As I was about to turn around with that question in mind, I heard the voice of the old man who was destroying me.

“Everyone was hurt, but not seriously.”

This personality type is very helpful in times like these. In emergency situations, a clean briefing that reduces waste is important.

Anyway, in that sense, let’s put aside our worries about the rear and run forward.

The wall structure itself was intact, although it was somewhat damaged and melted, and only smoke was coming out. It was not surprising.

That’s right, I tried it last time too. Even [Star’s Extinction] can’t destroy the structures here.

There are a few weak points that can be physically damaged, but they are very few and are therefore out of the question.

‘I think the one I used this time was a different skill, though.’

How many secret moves does this kid have?

“Haa··· haa··· haa···”

As I turn another corner, I see Baekho Lee standing there, panting for breath.

“···Lee Baek-ho·”

Baekho Lee, who seemed to sense my presence only after hearing my voice, turned around and answered the question calmly.

“Oh, you’re here···?”

“Tell me, what is the situation?”

It’s nothing special. I was trying to catch a rat, but it was so fast… I overdid it in the heat of the moment.

“You little rat···?”

“But I don’t know if it went well. Do you want to go together? To check if the rat was caught or not.”

“Take the lead”

“Ah, loyalty!”

Regardless of his playful attitude, Baekho Lee quickly led the way and I followed him for about a minute.

“Wow, you held on even after getting hit by this?”

In the empty passageway, only a bloodstain remained. By the way, this bloodstain continued to the other side of the passageway.

“But somehow I don’t think I could have gone far?”

Lee Baek-ho slowly walks along the blood trail with a smirk. One step, two steps, three steps… It was after about three minutes that his steps stopped.

The blood trail stopped in the middle and Baekho Lee also stopped walking.

‘Instead of moving leisurely like this, shouldn’t we quickly find out where it disappeared to?’

I was anxious for no reason because I had that thought, but Baekho Lee just leisurely glanced around.

“What are you doing? You have to find it quickly—·”

“Do you know that, Baron?”

When I tilted my head at the question that was asked while cutting off my speech, Baekho Lee continued to speak as if explaining.

“In the world we live in, there is a creature called a chameleon. It is really amazing that its skin color changes depending on the color of its surroundings, and it uses that when hunting.”

At first I thought he was talking nonsense, but it didn’t take long for me to understand what he was trying to say.

First of all, Baekho Lee never calls me ‘Baron’ unless it’s in front of others.

“But… when I look at him, I keep thinking of a chameleon?”

With those words, Baekho Lee threw his fist at the empty wall and… bang! A dull, thud-like sound erupted, completely different from when he hit the wall.

“Cough!”

The ‘rat pup’ who had been hiding in hiding finally reveals himself.

“I got you, you bastard.”

Lee Baek-ho, who had been looking down with a creepy smile, quickly grabbed the rat by the collar and lifted him up. His physique was similar to that of an average man.

Judging by the lack of hair or ears, it appears to be human, and its body is wrapped in tattered robes.

‘Wolf mask···?’

If I had to name a feature that stands out right away, it would be this much. The rest will be revealed slowly in the future—

“What is this?”

The body is already sagging as if it has lost consciousness, but upon closer inspection, a dark-colored blood is flowing out of its mouth.

I was startled by this and felt his pulse, but for some reason I couldn’t feel any movement.

“Suicide······”

Baekho Lee heard me mumbling and snickered, then turned his head to look at me. And then…

“Your Majesty·”

When there is no one listening, he calls me by a title he never uses.

“Do you know that no matter where you go in the world, small animals always have something in common?”

It seemed like he already knew what was going on, but unfortunately Baekho Lee didn’t give him time to guess the answer.

“If it’s really bad, just pretend to be dead.”

“···?”

“Just like this”

After saying those words, Baekho Lee punches the corpse’s abdomen once more.

“Cough-!!”

Baekho Lee reached out his hand towards the wolf mask that was curled up on the floor like an insect.

“Hey, let me see your face.”

It’s time to take off the mask.

Baekho Lee’s hands removing the mask were far from words like affectionate consideration.

He spreads his palm and grabs the mask, then violently rips it off, ignoring all the devices that are meant to hold the mask in place, and then…

“······”

The face behind the mask was finally revealed. Baekho Lee, who had been silent for a moment as if he was gathering his thoughts, broke the silence and opened his mouth.

“Hey, you’re really alive?”