Bjorn Yandel the Barbarian

“Hey, you kid, you’re doing this again. Do you really think we’re worthless?”

Lee Baek-ho, who was laughing in disbelief at the sight of the drooping Bryant, soon kicked him with all his might.

“Look, if you hit me like this, I’ll wake up right away···”

puck-!

“···Huh? What the heck, why isn’t this kid getting up?”

It didn’t take long for the expressions of Bryant and Baekho Lee to harden, even after being hit by that kick.

“What the hell?” Baekho Lee hurriedly bent down with a look of bewilderment and checked the details of Briot. Or, to be exact, he slapped his cheek repeatedly.

“Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Get up! Stop fooling around and get up! Hey! Get up!”

“Stop it. I’m already dead.”

“Hey, isn’t that weird? Why is a kid who was given a potion dying all of a sudden? Hey! Grandpa! Did you do something wrong? Did you kill him while opening up a subspace?”

The old man who suddenly became the object of responsibility slowly walked over and stabbed a needle into Bryant’s neck. And then…

“···It’s poison·”

“···Poison? Oh! Could it be because of the poison powder from earlier?”

“It’s a very severe poison that can’t be compared to that. It looks like the outside is fine, but the internal organs have all melted away.”

“So does that mean he’s really dead?”

“That’s right. This time, there’s no room for doubt—”

Just as the old man was about to give a definitive answer, Baekho Lee took action quickly. Kwajik-! Without warning, he kicked Bryant in the head and sent him flying like a soccer ball.

Suddenly, there was silence for a moment due to the sudden situation. Soon, Baekho Lee began to hum briefly.

“Oh, why doesn’t it happen like this?”

Baekho Lee, stretching as if nothing had happened, walks towards us.

“Grandpa! Tell me, why did this kid suddenly die?”

“As I said before, the poison is—·”

“That’s why it’s weird. We were the ones who got poisoned, so why is this kid getting poisoned and dying?”

“I don’t know everything about the world.”

When the old man of destruction made a face as if telling him not to bother him, Baekho Lee also sighed.

“···Hmm, did you happen to take some poison or something beforehand?”

“Oh, I’ve heard that people on secret missions always have their opinions hidden in their mouths···”

“If you say that when everyone was focused on the subspace, then you were chewing on the dogma, then that would be an explanation.”

It’s a convincing story, but there are some parts that are questionable. However, bringing it up here will only create an even stranger atmosphere.

“under····”

It seemed like Baekho Lee was also thinking about something else, but he didn’t say anything.

It seems that since the previous interrogation involved misplaced trust, he was embarrassed to openly suspect her again.

“Okay, let’s continue with the center thing. If anything suspicious comes up, let me know right away.”

“···Ah, I understand·”

“In this situation, if I get caught with my back pocket, I think I’ll go crazy, so be careful.”

Baekho Lee, who never forgets to warn his colleagues until the end.

If I were in their shoes, I would feel dirty, but since they don’t react much other than shaking their heads, it seems like they’ve gotten used to Baekho Lee.

“Okay, so it’s almost over.”

Anyway, since we’ve been organizing the drop items together, the classification is almost finished. If it’s equipment, it’s equipment. If it’s consumables, it’s consumables. If it’s goods, it’s goods.

As a human, you can’t help but look elsewhere, but this time everyone was focused on a different place. It was a place where suspicious objects of unknown purpose were gathered.

“Let’s do the emotions one by one. Wolf mask, wolf medal. These are enough. What do you think this picture is?”

“Well… it just looks like a work of art….”

“I can’t see any text or anything like that written invisibly with magic potion.”

“Okay, then next, what do you think this is?”

“Isn’t this… women’s underwear…?”

“It wasn’t just me who saw it that way······”

“Oh my! What the heck is this!”

I used the collective intelligence to identify each suspicious object, but I didn’t get much results until I found a piece of parchment.

“Why is this categorized here?”

“Isn’t it just a magic spellbook?”

A scroll that allows even ordinary people who are ignorant of magic to use magic by simply tearing it. But why did it come here?

“Who put this in?”

“It’s me····”

GM raises his hand slightly in response to Baekho Lee’s question.

“Why did you put it in?”

In response to that question, the old man of destruction glanced at the scroll and stepped forward to answer on his behalf.

“It’s probably because it’s not a normal magic spellbook.”

“···?”

“This spellbook contains ancient magic.”

“What ancient magic is this?”

“It seems to be a type of space travel, but other than that, I can’t figure it out. Do you happen to know?”

Within seconds, the doomsayer nodded to GM’s question.

“I know, it could be our lifeline.”

“Dong-A-Jul…? What are you talking about? Tell me quickly.”

When Baekho Lee, who had become interested, urged him, the old man of destruction said the name of the scroll.

“Return Order”

“···?”

“That’s the name of this thing.”

It was the first time I heard of this item·***

Return Scroll: A scroll I’ve never seen or heard of while playing [Dungeon and Stone]. But is it because of its intuitive naming?

The words of the old man who ruined the world, ‘Dong-A-Jul’, are immediately understood.

“···So if I use this, can I return to the city?”

“No one knows that. This spell only has the effect of ‘returning’ to a designated location.”

“If it’s true, it’s truly amazing. It’s possible to teleport without a fixed coordinate magic circle or magic converter, just with a single spellbook.”

“So it’s an ancient magic spellbook, right? It’s said that ancient times were filled with even more amazing magic.”

Contrary to expectations, it was not an order that would allow them to return to the city immediately, but the group’s eyes were still filled with deep anticipation. After all, it couldn’t get any worse than it was now.

“If I use this spellbook, at least I can escape this ruin?”

“That’s right. But you should consider the worst case scenario. If the place you go to with this order is the ‘Ashes World’, it’ll be a big problem.”

“You’re saying that I have to make a careful decision.”

As always, the old man of destruction took the stance that he would only spit out information and that the decision was up to us. So the eyes of the group turned to me and Baekho Lee.

I had a feeling that if our opinions diverged again this time, it would be a headache, but…

“I’m the type that wants to give it a try, but what do you think, Baron?”

“I agree with you”

This time, the two of them had the same thoughts without any differences. I don’t think it’s safe to use the return order, but if something comes up, we have to overcome it or not.

I’m sick of being stuck here like this for days on end.

“But even so, I must be fully prepared before tearing up the return letter.”

“Me too, Aggri”

“······”

“Hahaha, I agree with you.”

After reaching an agreement, I looked through the remaining items that I had not yet appraised. I couldn’t find anything special like the return order. So…

“There are a total of eight return orders···”

“This way, even if each person uses one, there will be two left over.”

Since there were six people in total, the remaining two were shared between me and Baekho Lee. By the way, the equipment and supplies from Briant were distributed appropriately.

After that, I had enough time for personal maintenance and got in the best condition.

“If everyone is ready, shall we rip it?”

As soon as Baekho Lee lifted the order form, the others nodded and lifted the order forms. And at the same time, everyone ripped the order form. ***

“The character used [Return Scroll]” “The character moves to the specified location” ***

Again, again, knock! The sound of water drops falling from somewhere. I opened my eyes and quickly checked my surroundings.

“This is… the Crystal Cave?”

“No, it’s a little different.”

Inside the cave, reminiscent of the first floor crystal cave.

“But fortunately, there were no stragglers.”

First of all, everyone in the group successfully moved to the same space, and there were no monsters or enemies around. However…

“Quiet·”

In the passage across the street, the characteristic red light of a bonfire flickers. Hwaruk! Baekho Lee, who confirmed this, winked at me and I naturally stood at the head of the group.

And I walked quietly, step by step, trying to make as little noise as possible. No matter how carefully I walked, there was no way this huge body covered in armor would not make a sound. Anyway.

“······”

As I turn the corner, I see an unidentified figure sitting in front of a campfire. Someone is looking down at the campfire without moving, even though it is strange that I don’t feel any movement.

“The fact that you’re here… means that Bryant is already dead?”

Someone continues to speak slowly without even looking at us.

“He was a sincere friend, you know······”

“Okay, who are you?”

Baekho Lee asks in a belligerent tone while being on guard. ‘Something… the voice sounds familiar…?’

At that time, when I had that kind of sense of foreboding and the alarm bells in my head started ringing,

Ssurukruk, an unidentified man lowers his hood that was covering his face and stares at us. “It’s been a while, everyone.” Wrinkles and pure white hair and beard.

Intense eyes contrasting with a soft impression. “···!” It was Auril Garbis, the producer of [Dungeon and Stone].

Auril Gavis, the mysterious old man who created this damn game and still has no idea what he wants.

The last time I met this old man, except in a dream where I returned to the present, was at the round table. He appeared out of nowhere.

He said he would close down the community called ‘Ghostbusters’… and then he even left some meaningful advice at the end.

[Don’t get too close to that guy, Baekho Lee.]

It couldn’t be more ironic. I, who received such advice, am now on a journey with Baekho Lee, and I met this old man on that journey.

“······”

“······”

Of course, apart from the strange feeling I felt, I also quickly analyzed the words this old man left behind.

‘Didn’t you clearly say everyone a little while ago···?’

Still, it’s been a while, everyone. Even as he said that, the old man glanced at us.

As if everything was spherical.

‘Could it be that Rex Aures Jaina also has a connection with this old man?’ I was looking around while thinking that.

“You’ve become a lot more reserved than I expected.”

Grandpa Lee Baek-ho, who was interrupting the ongoing conversation and speaking once more, opened his mouth as if growling.

“It’s been a while, old man. When I tried to look for you, you weren’t even visible.”

A belligerent gaze that seemed as if it would rush in at any moment. Auril Gavis simply laughed and passed it off as a joke.

“Why would an old person like me appear before you, the people who lead the current era?”

“···People from the past, what the heck? Hey old man, do you know what people from the past have in common?”

“Hmm, what is it?”

Lee Baek-ho muttered briefly while looking at Auril Gavis, who asked as if he didn’t know.

“It’s all over”

If he were alive, would he want to say that he was not an old person? The exact intention is unclear, but at least one thing was certain.

“So if you want to be an old person, tell me.”

Lee Baek-ho’s hostility towards Auril Gavis

“I will always be happy to help you”

This one thing is real, it’s not acting

Kaddeuk·Hanji, from Baekho Lee’s perspective, they were like water and oil that couldn’t mix. ‘Auril Gavis’ was the one who dragged us into this shitty world.

All the hatred that has accumulated while living in this world is bound to naturally gather on that old man····

“Elderly·”

At that moment, GM, who had been quiet, suddenly joined the conversation. Like Baekho Lee, GM was a veteran player who had been trapped in this world for over a decade, but the emotions in his voice were completely different.

“It’s nice to finally see you again, sir.”

GM, whose eyes and voice were filled with kindness and respect, could tell at a glance that he wasn’t simply lying flat because of the law of strong and weak.

“I couldn’t even greet you properly back then. I was really grateful back then.”

“Haha, is that something to be thankful for?”

“What on earth are you two talking about?”

Lee Baek-ho intervened nervously, but neither GM nor the grandfather gave an answer to the question. However, if we were to make a guess,

‘Are we talking about community?’

It seems like that’s the only way to go with the flow of conversation. That’s understandable, since it was this old man who handed over the Ghostbusters’ operating authority when GM was a rookie.

“Rather, if it were you, I would be more upset and resentful, so I am grateful that you told me that.”

“I’m a little surprised that you didn’t tell me in advance… but if you had any sense of shame, you wouldn’t be upset. I just got back what you lent me.”

“Haha, my eyes weren’t wrong. I knew you would grow up big.”

“···Thank you. By the way, how do you know the Baron····”