A magic circle bloomed underground in the sewers. As I stood in the light emanating from it, the musty smell of sewage disappeared into nowhere.

"You're here.

I found myself in the dragon temple that I was in last time. Mr. Dragon stood in front, and behind him were 6 members of the dragon tribe. These must be the elders he had spoken of earlier. They had reptilian eyes, but it wasn't hard to understand that their gazes weren't all that friendly.

It seemed to require a battle cry.

'Behellaaa

I didn't use the [Wild Splash] as I wasn't going to fight, but it was enough to attract the aggro. The elders frowned as they watched me. The expression on their faces seemed to ask what was going on.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just wanted to do it.

When I scratched my head and apologized, Mr. Dragon, the only one present who had had experience with me, began to look at me strangely and spoke:

"You... have not changed.

That was a compliment, wasn't it? Now that the cries of self-introduction were over, I got straight to the point.

"So, what do I have to do now?"

Can the Dragon's Blessing be granted to me, a barbarian? Mr. Dragon said that the elders would resolve the matter after meeting with me, but not because they were really interested in seeing my face. What kind of "check" do they want to do?

"Nothing special," Mr. Dragon said. "Before making a final decision, the elders will take turns asking you questions or making requests.

"I understand the questions, but what do you mean by requests?"

"Well, I don't know about that yet, either. But if you don't want to, know that you can refuse.

yes, of course. Then they will simply vote against.

Is it because it's the Blessing of the Dragon? They are ridiculously strict.

"How about that?" Do you agree?

I grumbled inwardly, but nodded, even though I was beginning to think that they were asking a lot from someone who was returning the Dragon Sword to them... but I swear the Dragon's Blessing is worth it.

"Okay, then it's decided. There's no point in wasting time, so let's start right now?

"Good.

After receiving my answer, Mr. Dragon looked at the elders behind him to start checking on me. One of the two female dragons was the first to step forward.

"I'll begin.

Due to the nature of the dragon tribe, it was pointless to guess her age from her appearance, but from the expression of her eyes and the tone of her voice, she was the youngest among them.

"Bjorn, son of Yandel." What is your greatest wish?

As soon as I heard this question, I understood the purpose of this hearing. This is literally a test to find out what kind of person I am before handing over the Secret Dragon Blessing Art to a member of another race.

After thinking for a while, I answered honestly.

Was it a return to Earth? Even so, it was only a secondary goal.

"Survive.

Survival was still my top priority, but now there was something to add to that:

— If possible, with teammates.

Even answering like that, I had a strange feeling. Ever since I entered this strange world, this may have been my biggest transformation. So, what is the reaction to this answer?

—... I see.

The dragon looked at me with meaningful eyes and asked another question.

"If your victim could save a teammate, what would you choose?"

"I thought everyone asked one question or a request.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

The dragon spoke in a voice like it really didn't matter, and this time I just answered honestly.

"I'm not sure yet.

If I were asked if I would make the same choice as the mage of the loser team, Riol Warb Dvalki, I would answer only that. I knew that no words or decisions made sense before this situation actually happened. Death always puts people to the test.

"But when the time comes, I'll choose what I have to choose.

— ... Then you could just say yes.

The dragon looked at me with a puzzled look.

I brushed her off briefly, saying:

"I didn't want to answer the question that way.

That would also be wrong with regard to her.

The dragon, who had no idea what I had been through, stared at me for a moment and then stepped back.

"This is where my questions end.

From the expression on her face, it was difficult to tell whether she liked my answer or not.

Before I had time to catch my breath, the next turn came.

"I'm Jornavevanuters."

A middle-aged man with a physique almost as strong as mine asked instead of asking.

"Fight me."

This proposal was made with an active [Dragon Fear]. I answered without a moment's hesitation.

"Good.

As a barbarian warrior, it would be ridiculous to refuse such an offer.

It was also a good opportunity. A Dragon Tribe elder would be at least equivalent to a 7th floor researcher. If I can fight him without fear of dying, then there's no reason to refuse. That was my opinion, but...

"Enough," Mr. Dragon interrupted. "I thought we agreed not to make such requests.

"What could be more reliable than a clash of fists?" Isn't it, barbarian warrior?

Personally, I was going to use a mace...

Although I believe that equipment is also a skill, but at the moment I agree with his words.

— Of course.

"Hahaha!" I like him!

My answer seemed to satisfy him, as the macho dragon smiled broadly.

—... Although I didn't think he'd agree to it without hesitation.

The other elders also found this situation interesting.

"So what are you going to do?"

"Then I'll ask a question, and let's move on.

The macho dragon asked in a disappointed voice:

"Barbarian, what are you most afraid of?"

The first thing that came to mind was death. However, the same answer as the first question would not be suitable for an interview in many ways. Therefore, I answered less specifically.

"Fighting someone stronger than me.

— ... A what?

The macho dragon tilted his head as if he had misheard. Belatedly, it dawned on him.

"Do you think I'm weaker than you?" He asked in an angry voice.

I shook my head.

— No, I don't think so.

"But you've just -...

"You weren't going to kill me, were you?"

"No, but-...

I cut him off and muttered abruptly:

"I have to fight because I'm afraid. More and more.

I knew it might not seem barbaric to some, but so what? This was the true essence of the barbarian.

Fortunately, it seems that the meaning of my words was conveyed well.

"Not to run away, because you are afraid, but to prepare for this moment... This is a really reasonable answer.

The macho dragon smirked.

— Interesting. Are all barbarians like you?

— To some extent.

In fact, it was Einar who taught me what the "life of a warrior" is, and this advice of hers later told me how to act when I found myself in a dead end.

- I see. This is where my questions end.

Soon, the macho dragon returned to his seat with a satisfied grin on his face. At least one thing was certain: I definitely have one voice.

***

A third also asked a question, not a request, and a rather strange one.

"Are you in love with anyone?"

— ... No.

"Your answer is a little late. Apparently, you have someone in mind.

The dragon, sleepy-eyed, returned to her seat without question.

The fourth move began like this.

"I'll test your insight."

A gray-haired dragon grandfather handed me an object. I knew what it was as soon as I saw it. It was a ring puzzle.

"Now take it apart."

Hmm, I never thought there would be such a task.

"To help you a little: you can only separate them all if you use the right order and the right method.

When I received the puzzle, the dragon grandpa chuckled and even gave me a hint.

He probably thought that I would never be able to solve it.

Lord, does he really think that I am a real barbarian?

As a child, when I was still in the hospital, I often played with such puzzles.

"I'll give you as much time as you want." Sometimes the truth is achieved through perseverance.

I took the puzzle and first checked the structure, examining it up and down. If I had enough time, I would never be able to fail to solve this problem.

Well, or should have...

"Haha, it's been 5 minutes.

Bloody hell. What the hell is this?

"It's been 10 minutes. Are there any other people who want to?

I honestly admitted that more time is unlikely to lead to a solution.

So, there was only one way left:

[Giganization]

My body instantly swelled. I grabbed the rings with my enlarged hands and pulled them to the sides, and...

*Crackle*

Finally, I managed to separate the seven rings.

"What are you doing?!"

"I've separated them.

— ... К-к-какого черта?!

"You never told me not to break it," I replied confidently.

That was because I had already figured out what the catch of this puzzle was. This old man said from the beginning that he was testing my insight, not my intellect. He also hinted that truth is achieved by perseverance. In other words, this ring puzzle was impossible to solve at all!

He probably gave it to me to test how I would solve the problem without an answer.

"That's it! You could have solved it like this...!

Grandpa Dragon dropped to the ground and began to fiddle with the puzzle, which still had a few pieces left. His eyes looked somehow very sad.

"Hmm...

"You can't get one anywhere else...

"Who's next?"

I ignored the grandfather dragon and turned to the elders, who resumed the inspection.

The fifth question was about my record.

"How many people have you killed so far?"

I mentally counted each of them and named the exact number. Then the elder asked why I had killed them. The answer was simple. The methods of murder were different, but the reason was the same.

"Because they tried to kill me.

- I see.

The elder who had asked the question nodded and walked away, and that was the end of the fifth line. Soon the hearing came to the final stage. I couldn't tell if it was a success.

Well, the old man who gave me the puzzle will most likely be "against"... The macho dragon is likely to vote yes. And the rest? Well, I'm not sure.

"Then now it's my turn."

Soon, a handsome man of 25 came forward and asked one question.

"Did you tell only the truth?"

He spoke as if he had the ability to discern the truth. I felt uncomfortable, but so far I had answered all the questions truthfully. I reasoned that if I was rejected, it would not be too late to start negotiations in the Civilized Barbarian Regime.

— Yes.

"Then we finished.

In general, the hearings were over. Mr. Dragon exchanged a look with the last man and spoke.

"It looks like we'll have to talk to each other some more, so you can rest for a while."

"And how long will I have to wait?"

"Well, it looks like no more than an hour.

Well, okay.

Led by the dragon who asked the first question, I headed inside the temple and found myself in a room. Since they mentioned that I could rest a little, I decided that I would be escorted to the guest room, but...

"Are you the barbarian who was supposed to come today?"

In the room was the previous inhabitant - a baby dragon with the appearance of a teenager. She looked at me and laughed.

"Wow, you're super ugly!"

What the hell? Who is this impudent child? My head was clouded by the surprise, but I laughed calmly, like an adult.

"Haha, it looks like you don't have a mother.

— ... And?

"If you had received a normal home education, you wouldn't have told such shameless lies!"

Bjorn Yandel looked courageous, but not ugly.