“Good work. You may go.”

“Goodbye!”

Erwen promptly starts walking away without even stopping to say another word.

Looks like this past half-day spent studying her abilities has been quite hard on her..

“Then I’ll come back later!”

Are you still going to come back?

Oh boy, what are you even saying.

“You shouldn’t waste time coming back here.”

“Yeah?”

Why do you look so surprised?

This is natural.

It’s not like you’re my teammate.

“You’ll need some time to get used to your new ability. That’d be a better use of your time till the next opening of the labyrinth.”

In fact, the same goes for me too.

Yesterday, I set a new goal for myself.

To become a middle-class adventurer and reach the sixth floor.

So I have a lot of work to do, going forward.

First of all, I need to use these 1.4 million stones for my own growth.

If possible, I’d also like to receive professional training on fighting. I still can’t fully utilize this monstrous body of mine.

I should also acquire more common sense and knowledge by reading more books. And also, wander around the city as much as possible to familiarize myself with the local culture and the prices of goods.

In short, I don’t have the time to waste chattering with Erwen unless we have some business.

“Really! I-, is that so?”

“Didn’t you have a younger sibling? Go find them and spend some time together. You’ll have to go back to the labyrinth in three weeks.”

“Yes..”

Erwen nods with a sullen face.

Is it because I’m her first – teammate?

She seems to have some strange fantasies about me. To be honest, I can roughly guess what kind.

But how can we make our original business relationship last?

“I plan to stay here for now, so if something goes wrong, don’t hesitate to come here. I’ll help as much as I can.”

“Uh, really?”

“Aren’t we comrades?”

“Hehe, that’s true! Alright!”

Satisfied with the carrots I threw, Erwen leaves with a contented face.

Well, she’s still easy to handle.

In the end, I’ve decided to preserve my friendship with Erwen.

Because this, too, is a kind of bond.

Even without blood ties, you can develop a social relationship with someone with time.

Maybe it’ll be helpful someday.

“.. Am I being too self-serving?”

Well, so what?

I don’t have the luxury of choice[1].

After a quick shower, I’m out and again bound straight for the library. The same lethargic[2] librarian repeats the spell she cast last time, and I spend about five or six hours reading.

‘Isn’t there a place that sells something like soup?’

It’s a little late, but for lunch, I find a cheap looking restaurant and get a plate of stuffed mulligun stew with a few slices of bread.

The price is 450 stones.

Looks like it’d be cheaper to eat at the inn.

“Here is Bjorn, son of Yandel, the greatest warrior!”

After eating, I visit the Angry Rhinoceros Inn where Ainar is staying.

Surprisingly, it’s crawling with barbarians.

“You want to stay here too? Well thought! This place only takes 300 stones a day!”

Wait, 300 stones?

Surprised by the unbelievable price, I observe in a bit more detail, and it does make some sense.

As soon as I enter the room with five narrow beds, the thick smell of sweat several days stale assaults my nose.

“Are five people sharing a room?”

“No! Ten warriors together!”

“.. But there’re only five beds?”

“You can set a time and take turns sleeping!”

It’s not that it’s cheap, it’s just that several people are sharing the cost.

Seriously, these guys have earned 30,000 or 40,000 stones at most, so they probably don’t have a choice.

“But why are you here?”

“I’m looking for Penelin’s third daughter, Ainar.”

“Penellin’s second daughter, Ainar, went out in the morning!”

So she’s the second daughter.

I’ll get it right next time.

Anyway, after waiting for about an hour, Ainar returns from outside.

“Bjorn son of Yandel? Did something happen?”

Because we’re both barbarians, I say it straight.

“I want to fight you.”

“You mean a spar?”

“Yes.”

Now I need training.

In the labyrinth, I accomplished more than any other barbarian, but I’m no match for them in pure combat skills.

“It’s a bit weird.”

Ainar tilts her head.

I don’t think it’s because the request’s difficult..

“If that’s all, couldn’t you just go to the backyard instead of asking like this?”

Backyard?

Soon, Ainar leads me out through the back door of the inn.

About thirteen barbarians are gathered there, waving their fists and rolling on the floor, shedding buckets of sweat.

And, well, maybe even blood.

“Ha ha ha ha! Your fist just now was pretty heavy!”

“Same goes for you!”

No wonder the outside’s been noisy all along.

This is just normal for these people.

The fairies chirp and chatter with their spirits, too.

Smiling bitterly at the barbarians viciously attacking each other as if they are sworn enemies, Ainar asks me.

“Is there any reason why you’re only asking me?”

Actually, there isn’t.

I’d just thought that Ainar would grant my request. But now, if I say no, it would seem strange.

“Because you’re the only one using a sword.”

“Do you want to learn how to fight a swordsman?”

“Right.”

“I see, so that’s why. I have to go study writing in the morning, so if you come here during this time, I will treat you as much as you want.”

In other words, her schedule is free from 5pm.

I’ll have to visit every day from now on.

“Are we going to start today?”

“Of course.”

After waiting a while, Ainar comes back from her room with her sword in hand.

“Ainar and Bjorn are facing off!”

The other barbarians also stop fighting and start to watch.

I came here to learn, but I have no intention of losing in vain, so I too grab my shield and sharpen my nerves.

However, the result..

“Then I will start!”

Owned[3].

Just three minutes to make me lose my shield?

She’s great in a fight.

Still, it’s a good experience for me in many ways.

“Bjorn, son of Yandel, was not the greatest warrior of all time!!”

“Now Ainar is the greatest warrior ever!!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaarghh!!”

Now if only these bastards weren’t here.

How many more times did we fight since then?

Soon the sky had become dark.

“Are you going to do more? I also want to take a break.”

“No. Today’s duel will end here.”

The other barbarians had already left the empty yard.

After much deliberation, I made a decision.

“Ainar.”

“What is it?”

Ainar, who’d been walking back towards the building while stretching her legs, stopped.

“Are you planning on going alone into the labyrinth again next time?”

“I guess so. Because I don’t have enough money to build a team. However, this time, if possible, I will try the second floor.”

Once again, I could feel how hardcore the barbarians were.

Compass and torch.

With these two things, you could advance to the second floor. But making money to buy consumables on your first entry, and going straight to the next floor with that money..

“Wouldn’t it be difficult on your own?”

“Is there a choice?”

No choice..

Perhaps this was why the lower floors were crowded with only humans.

The other races, whose taxes were several times higher, couldn’t even pay their first yearly tax by working on the first and second floors.

Their motivation was clear at a glance.

Didn’t the guy who earn the most get just a bit more than 40,000 stones?

“If you’re lucky, you might even be able to meet other people on the first floor and form a team.”

“Right.”

“So, what are you talking about?”

As our conversation seemed to be dragging, Ainar immediately returned to the the main point.

Like a barbarian, I spoke straight and directly.

“Ainar, would you like to be my teammate?”

“Teammate?”

“I will bear the cost of setting up the team.”

I felt it after fighting her a few times today.

Ainar was strong.

Hearing what people around me were saying, it seemed that she was at the top among our ranks.

Above all else, she was pretty smart.

“Thank you for asking, but why me?”

In the end, I needed a teammate.

It’d be hard to find a friend every night, and having a partner would also increase your profits.

And Ainar not only had high combat power, but also the advantage of not having to worry about betrayal due to the nature of her race.

Instead, our classes overlapped, but..

Since Erwen was gone, Ainar was the best option I could choose.

Of course, there was no need for vulgar words.

“I just want to.”

“Right.”

Ainar nodded and immediately made a decision.

“Good. Entering the labyrinth with you, a clever warrior, would any warrior’s dream.”

It was a much more positive response than I thought.

Could I be a bit more greedy here?

“However, there are conditions.”

“Yes?”

“Ratio. I’ll have eight in ten.”

“..?”

Ainar frowned at my words.

Could it be that she felt uncomfortable?

I continued the explanation.

“You don’t have to pay anything for forming the team. And I promise. At least this ratio will make you much more money than if you went into the labyrinth alone. Besides, I’ll pay for all the other consumables –”

“Stop, no need to explain.”

“..?”

“Even if you say something difficult, I won’t understand it anyway. So just do like you said. I trust you.”

“.. Right.”

I had no choice but to admit that I had underestimated the barbarian race.

“I am indebted. Bjorn, son of Yandel.”

Ainar walked over and slapped me hard on the back.

Calling it a debt was too heavy, but..

Well, I’d better get used to it quickly.

“I’ll do my best.”

I now had a reliable barbarian teammate.

Next morning.

I visited the sacred sanctuary with Ainar.

The sanctuary is a kind of communal nurturing facility.

Barbarians who leave for the city, if they have children, send them back here. Because they have to be warriors until the day they die, they can’t afford to raise children.

And those children, too, leave for the city once they become adults, and the cycle continues.

This wasn’t something I had to worry about right now.

“Bjorn son of Yandel.”

Upon arrival, the chieftain came out to greet us.

Fuck, this was why I didn’t want to return for a while..

“It’s rare for a warrior who has left to come back to visit. Are you here to learn to read too, like Penelin’s second daughter Ainar?”

Suppressing the pounding of my heart, I shook my head.

“It’s not that, chief. I came for a different reason.”

“A different reason..”

The chieftain looked at me with curious eyes.

Don’t be nervous.

Didn’t you learn the barbarian way of speaking from Ainar and prepare in advance?

Just don’t make a mistake.

“Tell me.”

I took a deep breath and said calmly.

“I want to get a spirit engraving.”

Different races have their own characteristics.

For example, fairies deal with elemental spirits, and dwarves with artifacts.

Barbarians have ‘spirit engraving’.

This growth method couldn’t be used in the early game due to the significant cost..

Luckily, I now had a huge amount of money, over 1 million stones.

So, after thinking over and over again, I made the decision.

It was still terrifying to stand in front of this fucking chieftain bastard..

“To be precise, the ‘undying’ imprint.”

But without a doubt –

This was the best way to spend my money.

Editor’s Notes:

[1] ?? ?? ??? (lit. it’s not the time to choose), related to the proverb ?? ??? ?? ?? ??? (lit. it’s not the time to choose between cold and hot rice), meaning beggars can’t be choosers. See here.

[2] ???? (lit. lazism), a neologism defined as lazy behaviour stemming from finding everything in the world a nuisance. See Naver.

[3] ??? (lit. develop) is a gaming slang, meaning completely defeated.