Novel Full Chapter 781: Month 13 (8)
Hot breath bursting out. Eyes filled with fierce determination and tenacity. Even fingertips and shoulders trembling from excessive excitement. Barbarian warriors had a serious obsession with property. Well, that was only natural, since I’d deliberately stoked that greed ever since I started developing real estate in the Sanctuary. Homeownership = excellent warrior. That formula had become deeply ingrained in every warrior’s mind, and now that perception was even stronger.
Thinking about it, it made perfect sense. Even when barbarians left the Sanctuary, most still chose to settle as close to it as possible, usually in District 7. But then both Districts 7 and 8 were completely wiped out, and the closest remaining area, Commelby, had prices so high it wasn’t suitable for warriors. Well, District 9 was the next closest. It had escaped the war and was in a far better state than Commelby, which had gone mad with inflation, but still…
“With a house… I wouldn’t have to sleep outside!”
“Even District 9’s rent is five times higher than usual…!”
“Yeah! And it’s far from the Sanctuary, so I don’t have any friends there…!”
At this point, most barbarians had effectively returned to the Sanctuary and were sleeping together under the guise of communal living. And really, that was understandable. The war had created a massive refugee crisis, and the whole city was suffering a housing shortage. With room prices skyrocketing and the dungeon sealed off, there was no way for the warriors to make money. Paying rent was simply impossible.
‘At least we managed to ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) survive by doing labor…’
Most warriors were now going out into the city for manual labor, earning just enough to live day by day. And in the middle of all that, someone puts a “house” up as a prize?
“I—I’ll be the first to challenge—!!”
“No! Me! I’m challenging first!!”
The reaction among the warriors was explosive, and word spread fast until every barbarian in the Sanctuary had heard.
‘If I say I’m not doing it here…’
Then my support would nosedive. Not that I actually cared much about popularity. But I didn’t want to see our barbarian warriors trudging around with their shoulders drooping during the festival.
So…
“Ainard.”
“N-No! This is something that has to happen! A-And anyway, Bjorn! Can’t you spare even a single day for us?! You’re our chieftain—!”
“Calm down. I’m not saying I won’t do it.”
“…Huh? R-Really?”
“Yeah. Let’s move somewhere else. It’s too cramped here.”
“Oh! Then let’s go to the Land of Proof!”
And so, we headed to the Land of Proof with all the warriors.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve been here…’
The Land of Proof was a large pit dug in the middle of the forest, used when warriors fought sacred duels. In my case, I came here when I succeeded the chieftain’s position.
“Come at me…!!”
As I threw away my weapons and clenched my fists, the warriors’ expressions changed. Sure, we were fighting for the prize of a house, but this looked like I was completely underestimating them. That’s how they saw it.
“Even if you’re the chieftain, barehanded won’t be easy!”
“Shut up and come at me!”
“Behell—RAAAAAAAHH!!!”
Thus began the challenge duels. Of course, just because I discarded my weapons didn’t mean any random weakling stepped up.
“This challenger is Velikta, son of Ruman!!”
“Dragon Hunter Velikta!!”
“WOOOOOOOO!!”
Right from the start, warriors considered named figures within the tribe stepped up, and I did my best to face them. And naturally…
‘Why the hell is it so hard to make myself bleed…?’
Because both sides were tough, the fights dragged on a bit, but no matter who I fought, I never ended up bleeding. It was mostly because barbarians rely on physical damage. Considering that the core of a shield barbarian’s build is physical resistance, it was virtually impossible for me to bleed.
“…I lost. The chieftain truly is a great warrior…”
“Good fight.”
“Ugh… No one can beat the chieftain…!!”
“He’s a monster!!”
As each named warrior failed, the enthusiasm that had gripped the crowd quickly died down. Once they saw there was no chance of winning, their motivation vanished.
‘Now what? I haven’t even used [Giant Form] yet…’
Looking over at Ainard, she seemed torn, stuck in limbo. For some reason, the image of Ainard during her coming-of-age ceremony came to mind. Back then, she lost her way while heading to the city as “the one who leads” and had that exact same look on her face.
‘Tch. Looks like I have to help again this time too.’
“Break time!”
I called a temporary pause to the duels and went over to Ainard. I gave her an idea that might change the ruined mood, and she was overjoyed as she shouted to all the warriors.
“The duels end here…!! From now on, we all drink together!!”
“…Drink?”
“The rules are simple! Everyone takes a shot together, and the one who lasts the longest wins!!”
“Same prize?!!”
“Of course!! If you outlast Bjorn, you’ll get a house built for you!!”
…Wait, one house per person? I never agreed to that.
“UOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!”
“Behell—RAAAAAAAHH!!”
Ainard’s reckless prize declaration made my head spin for a second, but the words had already left her mouth—there was no taking them back.
“This will be a drinking duel…! A sacred drinking duel!!”
“Drinking duel! Drinking duel!!”
“UOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!”
Apparently fond of the name Ainard slapped together on the fly, the warriors roared with excitement.
‘Haa… screw it…’
I didn’t have the heart to douse this energy with cold water, so I stayed silent. After a bit of setup, the sacred drinking duel—the one that might just become a barbarian tradition—finally began.
“Here comes the first round…!!”
At Ainard’s shout, thousands of warriors sitting in the Land of Proof raised their cups.
“Pour it…!!”
And in unison, they threw back the liquor in one gulp. Then again. And again.
Second round, third, fourth, fifth…
As the rounds continued, warriors began to drop out.
“Ugh… mmrgh…! PFFFFTTT—!!”
“Karubo, son of Bulrak, just puked! He’s out!”
“DAMN IIIIIT!!”
The tempo was fast from the start, and most warriors were already fairly drunk from enjoying the festival…
‘At this rate, I might actually win…’
That thought gave me strength. If, by some chance, over a thousand warriors survived, the barbarian tribe would be bankrupt. As chieftain, I had to stop that future no matter what.
“Pour it…!!”
Sixteen rounds, seventeen, eighteen… The more liquid poured into my gut, the more the drunkenness set in.
‘…How long has it been since I got this drunk?’
Truth is, I don’t even know my own limit. I’ve never blacked out in this body. Ever since my natural regeneration and poison resistance stats skyrocketed, even when I got drunk, I sobered up so fast it was hard to stay drunk.
“Alright, this is the seventy-third round…!!”
As warriors kept dropping—vomiting, fainting, or stumbling off to the bathroom—the drinking pace only got faster. We simply didn’t have time to prepare anymore.
“Fill ’em up! One hundredth round!!”
“WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!”
…Wait, when did we hit a hundred?
I looked around. The number of warriors still holding their cups had thinned dramatically.
‘Maybe around a hundred left…?’
I didn’t know the exact number, but my stomach was bloated. I could feel it rising to my throat, and even my bladder was starting to ache.
‘One hundred houses… if converted to money…’
The thought alone cleared my head. I activated an ability. If my stomach was full, then—
「The character has activated [Giant Form].」
—just expand it.
Sure enough, my enlarged body eased the bloating. Even my bladder had more space. Though, a second crisis was coming sooner than expected.
“One hundred fiftieth round!!”
…I’m dying.
‘…Thirty people left?’
What the hell are those guys? Do they have pocket dimensions in their stomachs? Or are they drinking something else entirely?
Even so, at least the remaining challengers weren’t in their right minds.
“Heeheeheeheehee… hehehee…”
“Driiink… hihihi… hehehe…”
“My houuuse…! Mrrgh…!”
Even in a state of utter collapse, they couldn’t let go of their material desire for a home. Watching their zombie-like faces, I forced myself to focus.
‘Just a little more…’
I can endure. This isn’t new. In Icerock, it was worse than this.
Yeah… so…
“One hundred fifty-first round!!”
Drink.
With my vision spinning, I saw a few warriors collapse at once.
“One hundred fifty-second round!!”
I’ve fought enough battles to know.
This—this is the turning point.
“One hundred fifty-third round!!”
Just a few more rounds.
The winner will be decided by who can endure.
“One hundred fifty-fourth round!!”
Just as I expected, a few more fell. I was reminded again of the truth.
“One hundred fifty-fifth round!!”
The more I suffer, the more they suffer too.
In the cold world of competition, the winner is whoever can hold on that final second longer.
“One hundred fifty-sixth round!!”
And I always have to win. Because losing means losing something—
“One hundred fifty-seve—enth—roooound!!”
Ah, this is bad now… …How many are left?
“Siiixty—sev—eeenn—!!”
Voices growing distant.
Like I’d entered a tunnel, my vision narrowed.
“Siixtyyyy—sevvv—ennnn!!”
Ah…
“——— ———!”
At the moment I sensed I’d hit my limit, I saw one last warrior through my narrowed vision. I had planned to bow out once three remained, but…
‘…Huh?’
Looking at that last remaining warrior, I realized something deeply wrong.
‘That guy…’
How could a person with a human body drink that much?
‘He’s… urinating himself while still drinking…?’
No, seriously—does such a being exist in this world?
Even a barbarian should have lines they won’t cross.
But he had broken through all civilization, all humanity, all natural law.
I stared in awe. Not in horror—but reverence.
“Ah…”
Stunning. That unshakable resolve to win, even if it meant destroying every principle.
And hidden within—
Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh—
Flow. Not resisting what enters, but letting it out in return.
“Ah, ahhh…”
Yes… this is the mystery of the taiji cycle…
“Ahhh… ah…”
In that soaked man, I saw nature itself.
‘From the beginning…’
Nature feels no shame. Nature isn’t bound by rules. Nature simply is. Like a mountain.
‘From the beginning… this was a battle I could never win…’
As a mere man—how could I possibly defeat one who had become one with nature?
And so, I humbly accepted my loss.
“I… lost…”
That was the last thing I remembered.
*
When I opened my eyes, it was night. My body was sore, but surprisingly, I didn’t have a bad hangover. My stomach and head were both fine. Better than I’d expected.
‘First, the bathroom…’
As I remembered that transcendent final moment, I rushed to the restroom. But perhaps someone heard me?
“Looks like you’re finally awake.”
“Emily?”
“Drink. It’s honey water.”
“…Thanks. Wait, were you waiting out here for me?”
“…Of course not. I just happened to hear something while passing by, thinking you might be waking up around now.”
Well, that was a relief. I downed the honey water Amelia gave me and asked,
“How long was I out?”
“A day.”
“Then today’s the last day of the festival.”
“Disappointed? That you wasted the final day?”
“Of course not. The sooner the festival ends, the sooner something new can begin. I’m glad.”
Amelia gave me a slightly disgusted look, and I quickly changed the subject. I had something I was curious about.
“By the way… what’s the name of the guy who beat me?”
That scene of infinite flow was burned into my memory, but unfortunately, I never saw his face properly.
“Vekta. From what I hear, he’s Kiltau’s third son.”
“Vekta, third son of Kiltau…”
The name sounded familiar. Who was he again…?
“Ah…!”
I remembered. Back when I first became chieftain and oversaw my first coming-of-age ceremony—he was there. He had that stiff expression, rolling his eyes around. I knew he was a newbie the moment I saw him—
“…Wait, hold on…”
My whole body stiffened. Just like when I was hit by basilisk venom. My muscles tensed, and cold sweat dripped down my back.
“What’s wrong? Are you unwell?”
Amelia asked with concern, but I couldn’t escape the awful truth I’d just faced.
Vekta, Kiltau’s third son. The barbarian who became one with nature, who achieved the mystery of taiji through urination. A master who left his mark in the history of urinary technique.
Yeah… he must’ve been…
“…No way. Fuhuhu…”
Maybe I was just seriously mistaken.
‘There’s no way someone like that could be a modern person.’
No way, right?