Bjorn Yandel the Barbarian

Did you have similar doubts to me?

Rottmiller closed and opened his eyes without saying a word. Then, he looked around with his elliptical constricted pupils.

「Brown Rotmiller cast [Temperature Search].」

Lizardman Scout’s special ability ‘Temperature Search’.

Its function is similar to that of modern thermal imaging cameras.

By the way, it was a useful skill in-game as well. Whether it’s using stealth or whatever, as long as it’s a creature, it’s all filtered out.

“There’s no one around.”

Rotmiller released his ability and gave a short answer.

“But judging by the smell, it seems like someone was there a while ago.”

As he had two essences that compensated for his sense of smell stat, the possibility of him being wrong would be low.

I asked him a few more questions.

“How long ago do you mean how much?”

“There may be a margin of error, but with this level of body odor, no matter how long you hold it, it seems to be around 2 minutes.”

“That means it’s very likely that he left after seeing us hunting?”

“…That’s right.”

Rottmiller nodded bitterly, and the dwarf, who had been silently listening to the conversation, interrupted in horror.

“Wait a minute, so who’s targeting us on purpose?”

“Probably they weren’t targeting us. They were just waiting for someone to catch them.”

Rotmiller was not in denial.

He also explained that luring monsters in front of the portal was a tactic often used by looters.

Is it a low-risk predatory method among them?

‘One of the twigs is astonishing.’

Ambush with monsters.

It was also aimed at the moment when the explorers who had just entered the portal were most vulnerable.

So, if you are completely wiped out, it’s fine, if you get hurt one or two, it’s normal, and if you endure it fine, you can back off for a while and wait for the next prey.

“Rotmiller! Isn’t this something we have to catch and kill? Killing predators doesn’t make money!”

“Perhaps even if it is, it will be difficult to find. It is impossible to stay here all the time… And above all, isn’t there no evidence? The possibility of false accusations cannot be ruled out. .”

“Hey, the dead don’t talk!”

Misha, who learned the whole story, gasped with resentment, but the dwarf, as the leader, calmly judged.

“I’m going to go down to the second floor for a while and write a looter warning in front of the portal and leave.”

“It’s the right decision.”

After that, as explorers, we followed the minimum rules and left the portal area that way.

Then, naturally, we continued our conversation on the topic of looters.

But the more I listened, the more strange it was.

“Rotmiller is amazing. I didn’t even know there was such a trick until now.”

“I’ve only heard of it, but this is the first time I’ve been

victim to this trick.”

Uh what the hell are you guys saying?

I felt a sense of difference in the explorer talk, which was difficult to relate to at all, and asked a lot of questions.

And I realized something shocking.

“I mean? I met eight times in five years? I was on the same team once, and the rest were no big deal!”

Only 8 times in 5 years?

C’mon, isn’t it something that explorers encounter plunderers on a daily basis?

“I’m sure… I heard that there were times like that about 150 years ago!”

Misha said that after the death of the first king, who was also called the Immortal King, the number of plunderers was greatly reduced due to various policies.

But I couldn’t understand.

It was clear that something was wrong.

If not, I can’t explain it.

‘Once in the Crystal Cave, once in the Goblin Forest, and twice in a row in the Land of the Dead…’

Together until today, I’ve encountered looters 5 times in the last 3 months.

Then what am I?

When I told this story to get opinions, everyone looked at me strangely, including Rottmiller.

“How many sins did Bjorn commit in a past life?”

“Hahaha! Maybe it’s because you’re here that I met the marauders today!”

“…….”

I have nothing to say.

What kind of life have I been living?

I didn’t even have the energy to retort, so I walked silently, and Rottmiller sighed and opened his mouth.

“Everyone, stop kidding. Doesn’t everyone know that Miss Karlstein is one of the lucky ones?”

“Ah! It was like that—!”

“I also tend to meet marauders at least once every three months. So don’t worry too much about it.”

Ah uh uh…

I’m thankful for comforting you.

Still, not five times in three months.

***

「You have defeated Wormstone. EXP+2”

“You have defeated the Iron Falcon. EXP+2」

「You have defeated the Steel Hill Guard. EXP+2」

***

3rd floor, ‘Pilgrim’s Road’.

No matter which route you pass, such as the Land of the Dead, the Goblin Forest, and the Lair of the Beast, you end up with a hierarchy.

The starting point is different for each route, so in order to actually meet the explorer of the other route, you have to follow the road to the center where the 4th floor portal is located.

‘They said it took three to four days on average to get to the center…….’

For reference, this is the amount of time it would take if you only focused on moving. To that extent, the third floor has a size that is incomparable to the previous floors.

Therefore, in addition to the layer name of ‘Pilgrim’s Road’, each monster’s habitat is called by a name, and one of them is ‘Steel Rock Hill’ where I am now.

“Then we’ll camp here for today, and tomorrow we’ll move on to the next area.”

The boundary line where an area ends.

From that halfway point, we started preparing for camp. The reason is that there are relatively few monsters roaming around as the areas of monsters overlap.

“By the way, Dwalkie, are you alright? You haven’t looked good since before.”

The dwarf, who had finished preparing for sleep by spreading his sleeping bag on the floor, spoke to Dwalkie.

I listened, pretending to be neither Rotmiller nor Misha.

I was curious about that.

Why does this talkative guy keep looking like he’s chewing shit?

“…Did I see that?”

“It may be my illusion, but it seemed that way to my eyes.”

“I see…”

Dwalkie nodded with a wry smile.

And after hesitating for a moment, he confessed his feelings.

“I know how I sound. It probably sounds naive and young to you guys. But… to be honest, it was a shock.”

“Shock?”

“No, it would be right to say that the illusions I had were shattered. I’ve always heard about explorers from a young age… but there was no such talk.”

An explorer killing an explorer.

On the contrary, an explorer who kills such an explorer becomes money.

It’s definitely not a reality full of dreams and innocence.

“Hey, that was a no joke earlier!”

“Whether you’re kidding or not. Maybe if I continue my work as an explorer, I’ll end up killing people someday, too?”

At that, everyone in the party fell silent.

“…….”

“…….”

It would be a lie if I tried to comfort you here.

The dwarf, Misha, Rotmiller, and I all have experience killing people.

And if Dwalki continues to be involved in this industry, the day will inevitably come when he will have that experience.

“So I’ve made up my mind. Keep going until here…”

I asked a question with a much more resolute murmur than I thought.

“So what was the result? Are you determined that you can do it?”

“I did. But… I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it when the time comes.”

Dwalki’s resolve was full of confusion.

I had no confidence in myself and was full of fear about the situation.

But…

“That’s enough.”

Rather, I think this one is better.

Rather than idiots whining about not being able to make promises they can’t keep.

Rottmiller, who was listening to the conversation, also spit out a word, probably having the same thoughts as me.

“It’s important not to be overconfident. To me, that sounds a lot more reliable than saying you can.”

“Is that so?”

Rottmiller put a warm smile on his lips as he looked at Dwalkie with an awkward expression.

As if looking at a young man going the same way.

“You know what you have to do, and you’re determined to do it. If you’re like that, I’m sure you’ll be able to do it well even when the time comes.”

“I hope so…”

“Hahaha! Cheer up, my friend!”

Soon, the conversation ended with the dwarf slapping Dwalkie on the back.

Just a car that wants to lay down after setting the order of vigil.

“Could you all give us a minute?”

Suddenly, Rotmiller called the party together.

“I know that a little more rest helps the team, but I have one thing I want to show you.”

“Something?”

At my question, Rotmiller looked at Dwalki and said,

“It’s not that there are only hard and terrible things in this job.”

Rottmiller checked his watch and moved to the edge of the cliff near the camp.

We followed without knowing why.

All I could see was the usual darkness.

The darkness of the labyrinth, which eats up even the light, always obstructs the explorer’s vision.

“Do you have something to show me Dunning?”

“Wait a minute, just a moment.”

I took out my watch, suddenly having a clue as to Rotmiller’s answer while looking at his watch.

[23:59]

One minute before the start of Day 3, when the number of monsters peaks.

The second hand moves with a ticking sound.

10 9 8 7 6 5…….

I closed my watch and looked at the darkness on the other side of the cliff. It wasn’t long before I saw a silver orb of light far away in the darkness.

There were so many of them that they could not be counted, and they all started from the ground and flew upward like dandelion seeds.

As a result, the dark labyrinth gradually brightened.

It was only then that I realized why this place where I was was a steel rock ‘hill’.

“It’s a look that only explorers who arrived early can see. Isn’t it spectacular?”

Hill.

In other words, this place belongs to the highlands even within the labyrinth.

It was usually dark, so it was difficult to realize it, but after the numerous lights cleared the darkness, the entire expansive third floor came into view at a glance.

Mountains and fields flowing between them A river.

A dense forest and a lofty spire that rises from its center to the ceiling.

A sight that he would never have seen if he had lived only within the walls of Lapdonia for the rest of his life.

Dwalki looked blankly at him and muttered,

“…the world the explorers were talking about is I think I can understand the word spacious now.”

I raised my head and looked up at the sky.

It must have been a closed ceiling anyway, but at this moment, it really felt like the sky there.

That’s the open night sky with the Milky Way.

Of course, that time was really just a moment. “No one knows why this phenomenon only occurs on the 3rd floor.”

There are many

hypotheses

. ..

On the 3rd day, the magic power of the labyrinth dimension is oversaturated and released.

Whether it is a blessing from God.

Everyone accepts what they want to believe.

However, Rotmiller said straight away,

“Whatever the reason, one thing is clear. Anyone who sees this scene in person doesn’t wonder why.”

“That’s right! I’ve only heard of it, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it myself! Normally, I would have been sleeping in my sleeping bag!”

“Hahaha! I don’t think that friend will be able to sleep tonight for some reason?”

After that, the light completely disappeared and the usual darkness enveloped the labyrinth. Except for me, the first time, everyone on the team went into their sleeping bags and fell asleep.

But…

” …….”

It was after a long time that breathing was heard from Dwalkie’s sleeping bag.

***

The day was bright.

It wasn’t that the surroundings were really bright. But

it was just in time.

[08:10 ]

After clearing the camp, we walked downhill for a long time and got out of the steel rock hill,

and reached our primary destination.

“Now, this is

the orc colony . ”

The place with the most numbers. A characteristic is that only monsters of level 8 or higher appear.

‘There is no better hunting ground than here unless you go straight to the 4th floor.’

The difficulty is the second highest among the 3rd floor areas.

However, if my prediction is correct, there won’t be much danger to us.

In fact, with our combination, we can work on the 4th floor.

There are wizards, and even the three people except me are originally 4. Wasn’t it an explorer who was active on the floor? “Then

, let’s try to match our hands and feet

here for a while and then decide based on the results.

” When it comes to reorganization, Rotmiller was sent to the rear and a dwarf came out of that position to replace it. “A group

of orcs are coming at Murad’s 1 o’clock.”

As we were walking, we were able to encounter a group of orcs.

“Chwi chwiiik—!”

A group of basic composition with four orc warriors, one archer, and one shaman.

”

Just do as you have practiced!

” Formation A.

Me and the dwarf solidly block the front line, and Misha, who is in the melee dealer position, moves freely between the shield walls and prioritizes the closest enemies first.

「Rioll Warb Dwalki cast the 8th grade attack magic [Ice Lance].」

Orcs don’t really need curse-type magic, so Dwalki focuses only

on the offensive role

, and the same

goes for Rotmiller. 「The orc shaman cast [Zeal].」

「The physical resistance of the orc warrior increases by 3 times for 10 seconds」

Somehow, when the monster ignores the shield wall and goes to the rear, protect the most vulnerable Dwalkie in the party .

Giving.

“It’s zealotry! Be careful!”

“Dwalky! Catch up behind me.”

“Okay!”

One of the orc warriors in the [Frenzy] state ignored us and rushed at Dwalki, and Rottmiller pulled out his shield and blocked it

. I don’t have the physical ability to beat him one-on-one, but…

“Whoa, I was scared!”

You just need to buy some time by using his main weapon, a crossbow, a buckler, a dagger, and a molotov cocktail.

Then, whether Misha supports you or Dwalkie uses magic to attack ” Killed

an Orc Warrior EXP+2″

“Killed an Orc Archer EXP+2”

“Killed an Orc Shaman EXP+2″

And so, the first battle with the Orcs ended without incident. The total time it took was about 8 minutes, and there were no injuries, but the time spent in battle was longer than expected

.

There is a seeker, there are two shield warriors,

and the orc has a relatively high physical resistance among the 8th grade monsters.

Of course, in this world, there is a wizard who is the most respected dealer in name and reality on the team…

Dwalki is not from the Mage Tower. The 8th grade attack spell is [Ice Lance],

which only deals

damage to a single monster .

The value of a wizard is not limited to high-power attack magic.

There is compatibility between explorers and monsters.

However, if there is a wizard in the team, it is possible to actively fight against monsters of a much wider variety.

‘It’s just slow though. In terms of stability, it’s on the high side…’

It’s a pity, but even so, it’s a pretty decent team. ”

Then let’s go deeper.” As

the battle progressed,

the number of orcs appearing in groups increased as well. At one time, the 7th grade monster, ‘The Orc Warrior’, was also mixed in… [

Killed the Orc Warrior. EXP +3

] I was able to hunt without difficulty,

but shit always happens when everything seems to be going well.

It was when I was in earnest and hunting a bunch of orcs

like

crazy . There was a low-pitched chant from beyond the fallen bush,

and—

whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaghhhhhhhhhh-!

A fire meteorite fell and blew up a group of orcs we were about to hunt.

“…Fuck?

”