Chapter 5 – Give and Take (Part 1)

Looking back, I was always a strange person. Even though life always seemed boring to me, I never thought about suicide. After all, the feeling of boredom was just an emotion. And for me, life was more precious than anything else. In many ways, death was disadvantageous to me. This thought still did not leave me.

Here's why...

I crawled in the dark on three legs. You might be wondering what that means, but it's just as I said. I crawled across the floor on all three of us, dragging my completely shattered right leg behind me. If anyone saw me now, I'm sure they would think of an abandoned dog with a broken leg. How do I know? Because that's what I'm thinking about right now.

The price of giving up human dignity was pleasant. First of all, I was no longer in pain because I no longer needed to use my injured leg and I was moving faster than before. Plus, I didn't have to worry about stepping on a trap. In return, my elbows and knees hurt, but this... was tolerable. I could bear it. What would you not do to survive? I can even eat dog poop with a smile. Well... If I had enough time to mentally prepare for this, it would be quite possible.

But what happened to that mister? A different player at the ceremony?

"Mister" is just a nickname I gave him. I didn't know his gender, age, or even his name. I was just guessing from the way they spoke. I had the feeling that he must be a white man in his 30s with glasses. Or not.

[Bleeding continues]

In any case, what happened to the man who woke up in the body of Kadua's son, Oreum? Is he dead? Or did he wake up in his original body?

This question has been tormenting me ever since I opened my eyes here. Even if I intentionally try not to think about it, the worse the situation gets, the more I think about this mister.

[Bleeding continues]

Now I understand why people turn to religion. Reality is too complex to endure alone. When despair strikes, you need a place to turn. Just like in my situation now.

[Bleeding continues]

[Bleeding continues]

[WARNING: The character's health is less than 5%. If you do not provide timely assistance, the character may die].

Hell, after crawling with these thoughts in my head, I've made it pretty far. It was a subtle difference, but I could feel it getting lighter. In many ways, this was a positive thing.

At least I was moving in the right direction, and my hypothesis that the entire first floor couldn't be that dark turned out to be correct. I needed to get to a bright place because there could be people there. I could give this mana stone in exchange for help. Then somehow...

Don't fool yourself.

I whispered positive words to myself when my alter ego appeared.

Hey, idiot, they're already taken. Do you think they'll help you for one loaf of bread? Most likely, they will steal your mana stone and shield, and then kill you.

Maybe because the voice was mine, but that bastard was smart.

What will you do if you meet a goblin before a human? Don't you have any brains? And?

I could not tolerate further insults.

Well, then what the hell do you think I'm going to do? I still have to move on. At least I'll see something there. Isn't that better than fighting the goblins here?

... That's the truth.

My alter ego agreed, and my head went quiet again. I kept crawling.

"Hehe...

I'm going crazy. No, maybe I'm already crazy. After all, I've shed so much blood, haven't I? Some time ago, my ego split in two, then merged again, and then became dull again. It was a kind of virtuous cycle. If my mind goes cloudy again, I'm sure I won't be able to open my eyes again.

"He-he-he...

I laughed loudly. I didn't have the energy to do it, but I laughed anyway. At some point, it became light around. In the distance, at the end of the passage, I saw a brightly shining crystal. Moreover, I saw the figure of a man with lights standing in front of him. It wasn't a goblin. It was definitely a person.

"By... Could...

I wanted to shout something, but there was no voice. I crawled desperately, closing and opening my eyes. Then... about? The human form appeared closer, as if it had teleported. Surprised by this, I closed my eyes and opened them again.

[Bleeding continues]

This time he was closer. Now there were about 5-6 people standing in front of me. Did I really see it? I closed my eyes again and opened them.

[Achievement]

[Condition: Health drops below 2%].

[Reward: Permanently increase Spirit stats by +1].

Then I saw a blond man kneeling. He was standing right in front of me, but he was just watching me and my surroundings without asking anything. Instead of listening to the words of others, he made judgments based on his own experience and intuition. As a veteran, he made a quick decision.

"You're a beginner.

Fuck, then help me, motherfucker. As you can see, I'm an amateur barbarian with only a shield, and all I have is a goblin mana stone in exchange for a leg. I'll give it all to you if you want. So...

"Strange. How did the newcomer get here faster than us?

I quickly opened my mouth. But a gurgling sound escaped from it.

"Grrr...

To be honest, it was more like a goblin, but... That was enough to let him know that I was not in a position to respond.

Soon the blond man asked his comrade,

"Priestess of Ersina." Could you cure this person?

Priest? Are you saying that there is a priest in their group?

I looked in his direction with wide eyes, as if I had seen a miracle.

There was indeed a priestess in white robes. The priestess, who was now looking into my eyes, spoke bluntly with her beautiful lips.

"I refuse.

Shta? What did you say?

- I see.

Why do you agree?

I wanted to cry.

Damn, I don't know why I was brought into this world to be treated like this.

Then, when a fire burned in my chest.

"Patsan, will you give me a potion?"

"I prepared it in case I couldn't use the divine power.

"You've got plenty of it already. I'll pay for it when we get out.

— Tc.

At this moment, the man with the sword on his belt clicked his tongue and threw the potion from his bag. My heart ached when I thought my life depended on it.

*Grab*

Fortunately, the blond deftly caught the potion.

"It's not a divine power, so it will hurt a little.

The blond opened the cork and poured half of the potion on the wounded spot, then poured the other half directly into my mouth. Soon I felt unbearable pain. It seemed that all the pain I had accumulated now manifested itself at once.

[The body regenerates quickly thanks to the Regeneration (Medium) effect].

It felt like my whole body was melting. This is why it was not possible to use potions during combat in the game. I thought it was just being blocked by the system, but it turned out that it just reflects reality very well. I was suffocating.

Gosh darn. How many minutes have passed?

The pain gradually subsided, and I came to my senses.

"Now tell me, barbarian." How did a newcomer like you get here before us? If you know about the new passage, I want to buy this information.

So was that his goal? I didn't feel bad. Rather, I felt relieved by the thought that he was treating me well, with a motive for it. There is nothing more sinister than good intentions without a motive. Still, it was unfortunate. I didn't know about any secret passages.

— ... I was here as soon as I entered the labyrinth," I told him honestly.

The blond man tilted his head and then nodded in understanding.

— I definitely read this in the article. Sometimes the phenomenon of spatial dimensions occurs. But this is the first time I've seen it in person.

My heart was pounding violently. I asked, as if I did not understand.

"For the first time... You see?

I couldn't believe it. In this group there was a priestess and a wizard. This meant that they were legal guys, active and at least from the middle class. But for the first time?

— Yes, in the book it was described as a once-in-a-century phenomenon. To get so far into the extreme section, that is.

Oh, I see. This happens once every 100 years or so. And this happened to me during my first stay in the labyrinth. Now I understand why other barbarians did not carry torches with them. No one was afraid of being struck by lightning just because it was raining.

"It looks like you're here for the first time. It must have been hell to go through such a rare phenomenon.

The blond looks at me with a pitying look.

"It wasn't the information I wanted, but it was interesting nonetheless. Don't worry about the cost of the potion and hit the road.

Although his tone was a bit goofy, he seemed like a good guy.

"Oh, and don't forget your shield there.

I looked where the blond man was pointing and saw a shield on the floor. The distance was about 20 yards (18 meters). I thought I had it well attached to my belt, but it seemed to have fallen off.

"Then it's time for us to go."

They passed me before I could thank me. In the labyrinth, time is money, so I could understand it. That they spent so much time for me was just a miracle. I looked at the place where they were standing for a minute, then quickly ran up and picked up the shield that had fallen to the floor. Of course, it was nice to survive...

But something seemed strange.

***

[Bjorn Jandel]

Level: 1
Constitution: 25
Spirit: 36 (New +1)
Special Abilities: 1
Item Level: 24
Total Combat Strength: 68 (New +1)

***

"This barbarian, he is very lucky.

— Well, I wouldn't call it luck. To go through something similar on his first journey...

When the blond man replied with a vague smile, the male swordmaster snorted.

"An idiot who stepped on a goblin trap would have met some other misfortune elsewhere. He was lucky to meet us.

"Drus, to be exact. Not us. You didn't even want to use your potion, did you?

When the female archer who was listening quietly intervened, the swordmaster shrugged.

"Because there are a lot of guys like that here. They don't live long anyway. Surely our priestess had the same thoughts?

The priestess smiled bitterly, but didn't say anything, and instead, the female archer shot back.

"Priestess Ersina would have cured him if it hadn't been for the rules of the temple. No, without the potion, she could have broken the rules herself. Do you really think that everyone is like you?

"Well, who knows. I've seen a lot of duplicitous people in my life.

— ... Patsran, you need to be more like Drus.

"For example, be attentive enough to ask if he knows the secret passage?"

— Yes. I have heard that barbarians do not accept help from others. Perhaps that's why he was tactful.

— ... Hey, I think you're flattering me too much.

When the topic turned to him, the blond smiled awkwardly and scratched his head. But he also did not deny that he was attentive.

"Ah, if you want to take the shortcut, you need to turn here.

"Of course, it's good to have a guide in the party.

"Priestess of Ersina!" Guides usually only know the direction to the portal. Drus just doesn't look like the others. He memorized all the landmarks on the 1st floor.

The male swordmaster looked at the female archer and shook his head.

"But how far does this bloodstain extend?" Haven't we already gone through enough?

"I'm not sure. But judging by the fact that he was able to crawl that far, I think you're wrong to say that he was just lucky.

"Hmph, like it's a big deal... I'm sure it will end somewhere here.

The group followed the trail of blood and turned onto a short road in the middle of the road. After about 15 minutes, they reached their destination.

"It looks like we're the first to arrive on this route. It's good that we hurried here. Let's get to work.

When the blond man placed his hand on the tombstone in the cul-de-sac, an intense beam of light burst out of it and took the shape of a sphere.

It was a portal leading to the 2nd floor.

"Wait.

Just as everyone was about to rush into the portal, a female archer stopped the group.

"Isn't that what the barbarian wore on his leg before?"

"What?"

Everyone looked in the direction the archer was pointing and fell silent for a moment. In the darkness illuminated by the light of the portal, the bloody trap and the unknown sandal were thrown aside.

— ... It looks like it.

The wizard looked interested, then created a new sphere of light and moved it over the passage.

*Oooo!*

The blood stains that started from the trap continued to go down the winding passage. No matter how far they moved the sphere of light, they couldn't see the end of this passage. There was a moment of silence.

— ... Hey Drus, how long does it take to get from here to where we used to be?

— ... If you do not use short paths, then about 10 miles (16 kilometers).

"Hahaha, that's a beast. To crawl this distance alone in this darkness.

The wizard giggled in surprise. However, the male swordmaster next to him couldn't do that.

"He's gone mad...

He felt that it was a matter of mind, not body. He tried to think.

... How many hours could I crawl if I found myself in a situation where I couldn't even be sure that I would ever bump into another person?

He couldn't know. But he was sure that the barbarian was crawling, even when they first discovered him. Even when he seemed unconscious, he continued to move his arms and legs. What happened after that? Unable to speak normally, he stretched out his hand, holding a small mana stone in it. He hadn't paid much attention to it at the time, but now he was beginning to understand what this action meant.

Probably, he asked for help in exchange for the stone.

Other than that, he had nothing to offer in return. Therefore, when the barbarian covered this distance, he tightly gripped the mana stone in his hand in case he came across anyone.

Then he could immediately show it to them.

— ... Forget what I said before.

Just lucky?

That's impossible. He knew it from experience.

"Drus, what was that barbarian's name?"

Such a madman will not die so easily. It doesn't matter how difficult and hopeless the current moment may be. Death has never been their way out.