Barbarian in a Failed Game

016. The Guide (4)

Drip-drop, drip-drop.

Red droplets of blood fell to the floor, mingling with strands of beautiful platinum hair. To Khan, these locks of hair were all too familiar. Aries.

Interrupting Khan’s call was an uninvited guest. Aries slowly lifted her head, her eyes meeting his. Her gaze seemed irritable, as if asking, “Wasn’t I supposed to just stay put? What’s all this chaos?”

“They started it. I’m innocent here.”

“…And who might you be?”

“There’s this mercenary group around here known for throwing their weight around. Something Nero, or was it Cat?”

Aries’ annoyed gaze shifted toward Nero.

He seemed taken aback by the unexpected situation, his eyes wavering.

“Put your sword away.”

“…How presumptuous.”

Despite grinding his teeth, Nero sheathed his sword without further complaint.

Rather than heeding Aries’ words, it seemed he acted out of awareness of the elderly man who had appeared alongside her.

“I told you to stop. Why didn’t you pull back your sword!”

“How could I possibly stop mid-swing? Maybe those sword ghosts, but that’s impossible for me.”

“This is…! Are you alright!”

The old man, dismissing arguing with the unashamed Nero as a waste of time, hurried to check on Aries. Khan also inspected Aries’ palm, where blood was still dripping.

The wound was not superficial, yet it was healing remarkably fast, rendering it less severe than it could have been.

Considering she had stopped a sharp sword with her bare hands, it seemed more like a minor injury.

What was more astonishing was Nero’s skill to have inflicted a wound on Aries, who was protected by her divine armor.

‘Given his reputation as the strongest mercenary in the city, his skills do kinda make sense, but something feels lacking…’

Perhaps it was a mismatch in skills. His physical prowess might be on par with a knight’s, but his swordsmanship seemed rather clumsy.

Just typical combat-honed mercenary skills, nothing more.

In truth, with that kind of power, refined swordsmanship wasn’t strictly necessary.

Khan, for one, knew nothing of martial arts yet had solved everything with brute physical strength.

Nero was probably a similar case.

“Causing a fight within the city. Are you out of your mind? Even if the governor has delegated some policing duties to you, there are limits!”

While Khan was contemplating Nero, the old man, having confirmed Aries was safe, was now furiously scolding Nero.

Khan, impressed by the old man brazenly scolding a mercenary, nodded understandingly upon noticing his attire. A priest.

“The deputy priest.”

“Oh, aspiring to be a knight of the holy order, I heard.”

Aries approached with an expressionless face, identifying the old man. Aspiring for knighthood…

‘So that’s why he’s so bold.’

“Limits? I was merely doing my job, deputy priest. Over ten mercenaries lying beaten, two shops belonging to the Brown Horse Trading Company wrecked. Do you know how furious the trading company’s master, Adam, was? He sent about twenty appeals in these few days, complaining that the governor can’t proceed with his work.”

“If that’s the case, you should have arrested and tried him lawfully. Is it right to harass him in the middle of the night with your men!”

“What naive talk. Barbarians are typically violent and unaware of laws, expecting me to solve this peacefully? What if my men die in the process? Will the deputy priest take responsibility?”

“If talking about responsibility, you should have followed the law as well. I’ll take this matter to the governor. Disperse for today!”

“……”

Nero, seemingly with more to say, glared silently at the deputy priest, then shot an angry look at Khan with bulging eyes.

Khan simply smirked, brushing it off.

‘Come at me if you dare.’

Eventually, Nero left with his men, unable to gain anything.

Khan was about to crack a joke at their departure but swallowed his words under Aries’ stern gaze.

“So, you’re Khan. The barbarian serving this lady. I’ve heard about you on my way here. To think you clashed with Nero and emerged unscathed, you must be a formidable warrior. I’m Norman, the deputy priest of the Nordic Monastery.”

“Well… It was nothing. I’m Gordi Khan.”

Norman nodded, dismissing the bystanders with a gesture. His command made everyone retreat without a word, indicating significant respect.

However, there were a few who couldn’t quite figure out what to do next. The three sorry excuses for men who had somehow managed to slink out of the tavern.

‘Ah, almost forgot…’

“Just go.”

Khan considered ending them but the atmosphere didn’t quite lend itself to such actions, so he let them be.

‘If I had intended to kill them, I would have done so from the beginning.’

After all, one was now limping, and the others had crushed bones. Their lives wouldn’t be easy for a while.Two daggers hobbled along, supporting a limping and injured misfit between them. After expressing gratitude with a bow of their head, perhaps for sparing their life, they departed.

“Let’s talk inside for a moment.”

“Very well.”

After a brief assessment of the situation, Khan, Aries, and Norman entered a tavern that had seen better days, its walls punctured with holes. The place was in ruins, leaving them no choice but to drag over what little intact seating remained to use.

“First things first, we need to establish what you’ve been told to continue this discussion. What has Aries informed you of?”

“I was told about the hideout of Darkin Perayas in the Necar mountains, and that we came to subdue it. The detailed plan was about to be shared by the Paladin when an inconsiderately loud shout interrupted our conversation.”

“Well, it seems you’ve got the gist of it. The plan doesn’t really matter. It boils down to just me and these two slight gents here dealing with him.”

“…That sounds reckless. Wouldn’t it be wiser to wait for reinforcements and attack all at once? You might need a guide, too.”

Khan shook his head.

“That would be too late. There’s a high chance he already knows we’re here. If we start calling for a big force, he might just run away.”

“He could have already fled, though.”

“No. If he thinks the only threats are a tiny Paladin and a barbarian, he will come out to confront us in his lair. Necromancers have a high demand for corpses, after all.”

“So, you’re saying the best strategy is to attack with a force just strong enough to make him feel endangered rather than greedy.”

“Exactly.”

Norman looked deep in thought, his gaze fixed on the floor, while Aries seemed disinterested, as if the conversation wasn’t about him. Khan scratched the back of his head in the uncomfortable silence.

It took Norman about two or three minutes to break the silence.

“Fine. The monastery doesn’t have much in terms of manpower to offer, but… there are several items that could be useful against the undead. I’ll give you a few bottles of holy water I’ve personally consecrated. It will take some time to prepare, though. I can have it ready by tonight. Stick around till then, and come to collect. I’ll handle what I can on my end in the meantime, like sudden attacks from mercenaries.”

“Thank you.”

“Paladin, do you need anything else?”

“Not really.”

“I suppose it was unnecessary of me to ask.”

With the discussion quickly wrapped up, Norman stood from his chair. He looked towards Aries, quietly recited a prayer, and then left the tavern.

Khan hummed thoughtfully. ‘He looked too normal.’

A former hopeful Paladin, now the de facto abbot of a city’s monastery, and an aged zealot. At a glance, one might expect Norman to be terribly fussy and arrogant, but he proved to be much more constructive than Khan anticipated.

He didn’t look down on Khan as a barbarian, and he readily accepted the proposal of ‘There’s a dark mage in the hills behind our town; go help deal with him.’ Normally, one might react with surprise or confusion, but his excessive calmness was odd. It’s as if a zealot shouldn’t be capable of such….

“Doesn’t that gentleman smell of dark magic to you?”

“Why would you ask that?”

“It’s suspicious. He doesn’t seem devout enough for a zealot.”

Abruptly approached and kicked in the shin by Aries, Khan could only stare silently in return. Aries, undaunted, glared back and then scoffed.

“Prejudiced barbarian.”

What now? Khan was puzzled by this small figure’s anger. Had he made a mistake? He was sure the quarrel wasn’t his fault….

‘And. Is it really okay for a Paladin to resort to such violence?’

Though he didn’t voice his thoughts out loud, not because he felt guilty but rather it seemed inappropriate to do so. His judgment, in the end, appeared to be right.

Aries, uncharacteristically, let out a heavy sigh and slumped into a chair, covering the somewhat clean floor with a blanket to sleep. What an eventful day indeed.

Truly, it was. Aries was not one to easily express feelings, and often, Khan had to read into facial expressions to interpret how Aries felt.

Notably, Aries had been unusually talkative today. Could there have been a reason for it?

‘It’ll sort itself out.’

Khan decided not to pry.

The whispered breaths that followed were partially why, but also, their relationship hadn’t reached a point where prying into each other’s feelings seemed right.To tell the truth, we’re only traveling together because we share a common goal. I had no desire to learn why the young girl had come all the way to the Kingdom of Argon alone to chase after a dark mage, why she had shown such fury upon seeing a dark knight, or why she suddenly complained of fatigue after visiting a monastery full of devout priests.

I didn’t want to know, nor did I feel the need to.

The most crucial reason was that Khan himself was hardly capable of lightening anyone else’s burden. He was not a cruel barbarian nor a modern man in his thirties. Just an indecisive halfwit.

“Do you not know you’ll wake up with your mouth twisted if you just sleep on the floor like that? This is why kids are…”

Looking at Aries, who had quickly fallen into deep sleep as if she hadn’t slept in days, Khan just snorted with laughter. He carelessly threw his blanket over her and moved a table against the wall to cover a hole.

‘This should do.’

Suddenly, he felt someone’s presence and turned his head toward the direction of the inn’s door, sensing a déjà vu. He should have put up a sign saying ‘Child Sleeping’.

“Don’t knock. Just wait.”

“…!”

The surprised whispers sounded familiar. When Khan quietly opened the door, he saw two bald heads flinch in recognition.

“The ugly duo?”

It was the same pair of dagger-wielding thugs he’d beaten up before.

“What? You’re here to get beaten up again?”

“No, that’s not it!”

“Keep your voice down. Unless you want a beating.”

What do I care! Regardless of how much the two protested with their eyes, Khan was not too far from being irritated.

“So, why did you come?”

“First off, we wanted to say thanks for letting us go.”

“What nonsense is that.”

After a fine battle, and now suddenly thanks? Moreover, didn’t he almost cripple one of them?

I thought I didn’t hit them in the head. Could it be they’re into that…?

“We know it’s shameful to come back like this, but we had something we had to say. Honestly, if I were you, I would have killed the ones who ambushed me. Which mercenary would spare an attacker?”

“I was regretting not killing you. Seems like it would have been better.”

“Ahem! I’m thanking you right now for sparing us!”

“I see; killing you seems like the better option since you won’t lower your voice.”

“What kind of man…”

Should I? Khan eyed the beard on the ugly man’s chin, considering plucking it, but then let it go.

Removing the beard might make his face even uglier here.

“Brother. Instead of this, shouldn’t we talk about the main matter?”

“Ah, right.”

“The main matter?”

Fortunately, that choice was correct.

Though they both looked unfortunate enough to be mistaken for one another, they were actually brothers. The younger ugly one brought up a topic that caught Khan’s interest.

“Big brother. That is, the person whose leg you cut off. We were taking him home when we encountered someone. A friend who went on a mission with us and returned yesterday.”

“And what about it?”

“You should hear us out. It seemed like the friend got severely drunk and was sleeping on the street, so I woke him up.”

“Sounds carefree.”

Ignoring Khan’s teasing, the younger one continued.

“But upon seeing our state, he got angry asking who did this to us. So, I explained vaguely. We were tricked by Nero’s guys and got beaten up badly. I advised him not to mess with them.”

“And then?”

“He suddenly flew into a rage, saying he’ll confront Nero. ‘How dare they screw over four of his friends! Unforgivable!’ he shouted, determined to seek justice.”

“I knew that guy was crazy, but with alcohol, it seems he lost his mind.”

What does that have to do with me, brat? Khan frowned, unable to grasp the essence of the story.

Whether a drunk lunatic causes trouble for Nero or not, how is that related to me?

Khan decided to pluck the beards of the two nuisances as punishment for wasting his time with uninteresting and dull chatter…

‘Wait a moment.’

Screwed over four friends? Weren’t those idiots a trio? Who’s the fourth?

Khan felt an uneasy sense of dread. The one that returned to the city last night, was crazy, and also drunk…?

It felt alarmingly familiar. No, more like he had recently encountered someone similar…

“Damn it all.”

Realizing the identity of the déjà vu, Khan’s face hardened.