Surviving the Game as a Barbarian

Top Ten Clans, Top Five Clans, Top Four Clans…

In the past, that’s how people grouped the most famous large-scale clans. But that culture has long faded away.

Years of political unrest caused countless clans to vanish or merge, and in the chaos, those naming conventions naturally disappeared…

Still, one clan had started to make a name for itself by growing rapidly amid the upheaval.

The Golden Tree Clan.

Just a few years ago, their renown barely extended beyond their clan leader, but during the war, they displayed exceptional tactical prowess, absorbing and merging with other clans to grow exponentially.

Raven’s evaluation of the clan was as follows:

“The Golden Tree Clan? Hmm, I’ve heard they performed well during the ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) war, but honestly, it feels like they just picked easy battlefields. Still, they seem to be well-equipped… If I had to rank them, I’d say they could probably squeeze into the bottom of the old Top Ten Clans list.”

“Adnus, what do you think?”

“They’ve got their share of rumors, but there’s no denying their strength. I’ve also heard they’re very well-connected with key figures in the political and financial sectors. Supposedly, they have ties to Count Alminus… and as for our Guild’s third regional manager, the two of them are practically soulmates.”

“I see…”

According to the Guildmaster’s intel, the Golden Tree Clan had deployed a total of ninety members into the Labyrinth this time—making them the fourth largest deployment among all clans.

Which meant they were being backed significantly by the Royal Family and the Guild.

Otherwise, there’s no way they’d be given such numbers.

“But what do you mean by ‘their share of rumors’?”

“I’ve heard occasional murmurs of internal unrest. Apparently, they really push their members to the limit… though no one’s come forward to testify or expose anything. Seems they keep a tight lid on things.”

“Pushing members to the limit, huh…”

Could that explain why Bear Guy had such a grim expression when he once talked about his own clan?

“Still, they don’t have a bad reputation either. Actually, they’re generally reviewed quite positively. Their compensation is solid, and rather than selling Essences, they distribute them to their members, which helps with growth.”

Hmm, true enough…

Seems the Guildmaster wasn’t wrong.

Last time I saw Bear Guy, he’d eaten a ton of new Essences and, as a result, had apparently been promoted to Tier-3.

“Avman… he’ll be okay, right…?”

Despite hearing the same thing, Misha still showed signs of worry, while Ainard was simply thrilled at the thought of encountering Bear Guy on this island.

“Let’s hurry inside! To meet Urakburak here of all places, this has to be a sign of good fortune!!”

Well, I wouldn’t exactly call it a lucky omen…

“So, what do you want to do, Yandel?”

“What do you mean, what do I want to do? Of course we’re going in.”

“I see… understood.”

Once I made my position clear, Amelia’s expression turned a little odd.

Like she was holding something back that she wanted to say.

“Spit it out. What is it?”

“…If you happen to meet the ‘Gold Ghost,’ you’d best not underestimate him.”

At her warning, I unconsciously tilted my head.

Knowing how cautious I am—someone who taps even the stone bridge before crossing—why would she feel the need to say this?

“Do you know something about him?”

I pressed for more, but all Amelia could offer was hearsay—rumors and past records. She hadn’t met the guy herself.

Which only deepened my curiosity about this ‘Gold Ghost.’

‘What kind of bastard is this guy, seriously…?’

Well, guess I’ll find out soon enough.

***

The Great Navigator, Pikma.

His legacy has been widely debated by later generations.

Some say he was simply the first to chart all the islands and produce a world map—hardly the legendary figure who unraveled every island’s secrets.

Which isn’t exactly untrue.

Pikma didn’t manage to conquer every hidden piece on the islands during his lifetime.

But…

‘How could anyone possibly chart every island?’

I don’t think that diminishes his reputation.

Think about it.

The Labyrinth only opens once a month, and even then it eventually closes again.

You only get one shot at life.

Your lifespan isn’t infinite.

Under these conditions, uncovering every secret of every island is physically impossible.

Unless you’re running dozens of games on a computer simultaneously.

‘Still, he did seem to know something about Skull Island.’

Catacoma.

One of the islands in the Grandrock region, located in the far eastern seas. The Great Navigator Pikma had this to say about it:

‘Either the easiest of all, or the most difficult.’

Couldn’t be more accurate.

On the surface, Skull Island has very low difficulty, but dig deeper, and the story flips completely.

In fact, it was this very line that led to the widespread rumor of a hidden piece on the island.

‘Though it seems no one really knows about “that.”’

Even the woman from Ghost Busters who once bought information about the island only knew about the “main boss”—not—

“What the hell is up with these wimps!”

Ainard suddenly complained loudly.

From the sound of it, the monsters appearing on Skull Island weren’t exactly satisfying her.

‘Not surprising.’

The average monster here is only around Tier-6.

“Ugh… When’s something strong going to show up…!”

“What’s wrong, Ainard? Isn’t it a good thing if it’s easy?”

“Misha! I want enemies worthy of my autobiography!!”

“Ah… right, I forgot…? I wouldn’t know, so go ask Bjorn.”

“…No.”

“Why not?”

“If I ask Bjorn, Emily Raines will scold me.”

“Ah…?”

Poor Ainard shrank instantly and started glancing nervously at me, but what can I say—Amelia’s discipline had been thoroughly effective.

If she ever becomes a mom, she’d probably raise a very competent kid—

“Yandel.”

“…I wasn’t thinking anything weird.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Ahem… So why did you call me?”

“We’ve probably entered the Golden Tree Clan’s territory.”

“They’re nearby?”

“No life signatures detected, but there are clear signs of recent movement in this area.”

I see…

Well, we had made it to roughly the central part of the island.

“We’ll be sharing the island for the next few days, so we’d best introduce ourselves.”

We kept heading toward the center without changing course.

Eventually, we arrived at the entrance to a central cave.

“…No one’s here.”

All that greeted us was a clearing that clearly bore signs of previous occupancy.

But that moment of curiosity didn’t last long.

“Well, well. What a rare treat to meet someone so distinguished.”

Dozens of presences were suddenly detected behind us, along with a greasy voice.

At the same time, Amelia—our human radar—spoke quietly.

“…Yandel, we’re surrounded.”

She didn’t need to say it.

We’d been surrounded by a group of roughly ninety explorers.

My body tensed momentarily at the realization.

“If we startled you, I sincerely apologize. Lord Yandel.”

The voice from earlier came from a blond man in his mid-thirties who stepped forward—and Amelia whispered beside me:

“Just a heads-up. That’s dyed. His real hair color’s black.”

What a weirdly unnecessary detail.

Still, it did look natural… Anyway, back to the point.

“I’m Bill Ironred, leader of the Golden Tree Clan. Please, just call me Bill.”

He introduced himself with a beaming smile.

Is that the face that let him cozy up to all those political and financial elites?

I don’t know, but one thing was clear—he didn’t seem like an easy opponent.

“Nice to meet you, Ironred. I didn’t expect such a grand welcome.”

“Haha, if we startled you, I apologize again. We simply didn’t expect a visit from you, Lord Yandel.”

What a bald-faced lie.

“I see.”

I nodded and casually scanned the ninety warriors emerging from the underbrush.

Their presence meant one thing.

They’d detected us before we detected them.

Which meant their detection capabilities outstripped ours.

‘And they even managed to coordinate a successful ambush with that many people…’

Did he really not know we were here?

No, he definitely knew.

Which meant the only reason he went out of his way to gather everyone, hide them with stealth skills, and ambush us around this clearing was—

‘To assert dominance.’

In the city, explorers are carefree drunks throwing around money and laughter. But once they enter the Labyrinth, they become beasts.

To survive, they become part of nature, packing venom inside themselves and inflating their stature with intimidating plumage.

Look weak, and you’ll be bitten.

“By the way… quite the dilemma, isn’t it? Might I ask, Lord Yandel—are you here for him as well?”

I couldn’t be sure who exactly “him” referred to, but I nodded and returned the question.

“What if I am?”

My voice carried a slightly aggressive edge, but he didn’t seem offended—just smiled again.

“Haha, then it can’t be helped.”

“You saying you’ll back off?”

“I’m afraid not. I have people I’m responsible for, too.”

“So, we compete?”

“There’s no owner to the Labyrinth’s treasures, is there? First to grab it, gets it.”

It was a bit annoying, but I couldn’t disagree.

There’s nothing wrong with competition.

The problem only comes when someone refuses to accept defeat—or lets greed blind them.

‘Though judging by his demeanor, he doesn’t seem the type.’

He was surprisingly diplomatic.

Is it because of my rank and fame?

Most likely.

If our clan were small and obscure, they probably wouldn’t be treating us like this.

“For a fair competition, how about we agree to two things?”

“Go on.”

“No interfering with each other. And whoever opens that cave door first, gets the right to challenge.”

“How about it?”

“Fine.”

“Then it seems we’re in agreement. Let’s both give it our best.”

“‘Give it our best’ is informal.”

“…Hahaha. You’re quite amusing, Lord Yandel.”

That wasn’t a joke. I meant it.

“Well then, we’ll take our leave for now. Given our competition, after all.”

With that, he politely withdrew, and Raven snorted in irritation.

“Hmph. He’s just as smug as the rumors said.”

“What exactly rubbed you the wrong way?”

“He didn’t even mention cooperation or sharing. Clearly thinks they’ve got this in the bag.”

Well… yeah, he probably does.

“But is that a bad thing?”

“What? Uh, no… but… shouldn’t you, like, empathize with your members or something? You’re the clan leader.”

The hell?

That’s not what a leader does in situations like this.

“Don’t worry. We’ll be the ones who enter that cave first.”

We’ll win.