Chapter 40 - Delia Island (3)

Today, we decided to head towards the island's coast.

Since there was no particular pattern to monster appearances, there was no other way but to search the island thoroughly.

The only problem was that Delia Island was quite large.

Still, there was one encouraging fact: I had secured a large amount of Guyeopcho last night, which eased the burden of mana depletion while carrying out the quest.

“Senior. This medicine is a total hit! Where on earth did you learn this kind of thing?”

“You’re trying to sound me out right now, aren’t you? To find out where I’m from.”

“……Hehe. I guess I was found out right away.”

“Aren’t you admitting it too quickly?”

“I figured excuses wouldn’t work on you anyway, senior.”

Still, I liked that she didn't have a sly bone in her body.

“Don’t try so hard to find out. What are you going to do with the information anyway.”

“I’m just curious. And since you’re not revealing it, it makes me even more curious. So last night, I let my imagination run wild all by myself, wondering what on earth your identity could be.”

“For instance?”

“Like a special agent from a secret organization, or a big shot from some shadowy force.”

“You’re completely wrong, so stop talking nonsense and keep an eye on what’s ahead. I can feel the presence of a monster.”

To be precise, it felt like a foreign presence was surrounded by the energy of monsters.

I quickened my pace and approached, and sure enough, my prediction was correct.

A monster was attacking a person.

“Senior! A monster over there!”

“Yes. A new species of monster. Looks like we can finally progress with the quest.”

“Isn’t it already engaged in combat with another Hunter?”

I shook my head.

It didn't feel like an Earthling.

An abnormally brawny, muscular body with uncivilized attire. I could tell immediately just by looking at the weapon he was holding.

“It’s a Barbarian from Delia Island.”

“Ahh! So that’s what I’ve only heard about!”

“What are you doing? If you’ve seen it, you should go out and take care of it right away.”

“Both the monster and the Barbarian?”

“Are you crazy? Of course, just the monster.”

“But Barbarians are known to be extremely hostile and dangerous to Earthlings….”

That was something I had also learned when I did my preliminary research.

That the Barbarians of Delia Island attack Earthlings indiscriminately.

This seemed to be due to the Barbarian trait of being extremely wary of outsiders, but there was no reason to fight them.

Although it’s difficult to befriend them at first, once you establish a good relationship with Barbarians, they become absolute allies.

In fact, during my time as Johan Raven, I had made friendly pacts with various Barbarian tribes and sometimes received a lot of help from them.

“Go and save him.”

“The Barbarian?”

“Yes, we have to catch that monster anyway.”

“For now, I understand!”

The monsters attacking the Barbarian were Blood Wolfhounds.

Individually, they were nothing special, but the fact that they moved in packs made them a bit annoying.

There were roughly thirty of them gathered in this spot alone.

Kaaaaak!

As Min Ha-rin approached, the Blood Wolfhounds bared their sharp teeth and began to charge.

This time, there was no need for me to give her any specific advice.

It might take some time, but with Min Ha-rin’s skills, she would be able to handle them.

Moreover, with a Barbarian also fighting alongside her, a pack of Blood Wolfhounds of that size wouldn’t be much of a threat.

Kaeeeaeng!!

Immediately, the screams of monsters began to echo through the forest.

Min Ha-rin’s swift sword mercilessly slashed through the Blood Wolfhounds.

The Barbarian also swung his club fiercely, adding momentum to the attack.

Blood splattered everywhere as the monster slaughter took place, and I sat on a tree stump, leisurely watching their battle.

It would have been even better if I could have watched while sipping a cup of coffee.

***

[Quest Progress: 2/6]

There are many mysteries in the Abyss, but one of the most surprising is that beings from different dimensions can communicate with each other through language.

This was something I experienced in Yoron Village, the first quest area.

Even the Penozeri I met there, despite being an inhuman species, had no particular restrictions on linguistic communication, and I even learned the ‘Mana's Eye’ technique from the Penozeri.

In that sense, the setting of Delia Island had a slightly unique aspect.

The setting was that the Barbarians here and the Earthlings could not communicate with each other.

“You stupid oaf! Put that club away! I told you I saved you!”

Min Ha-rin yelled at the Barbarian who was threatening her.

However, the Barbarian, unable to understand Min Ha-rin’s words, maintained a guarded stance and confronted her.

“Senior! If this guy attacks me, I’ll have no choice but to strike back!”

“Step aside. I’ll deal with him now.”

I walked towards the place where the two were confronting each other.

The Barbarian blinked, looking back and forth between me and Min Ha-rin.

“Man! You must be this woman’s leader! Come at me!”

“What do you mean, come at me? Are you trying to repay kindness with hostility?”

“Kindness, how absurd! I will never be fooled!”

“I have no intention of fooling you. Anyway, what’s your name?”

“My name is Langkun! Damn it! I answered without thinking! Huh? But how do you know how to speak our language?”

I didn't know either.

Why I was the only one who could communicate with the Barbarians.

I had learned the Barbarian language during my time as Johan Raven, but there was no way it was the same as the language of the Delia Barbarians here. The fact that we could communicate now was simply a mystery of the Abyss.

Because I wasn't using the Barbarian language right now.

“First, let me introduce myself. My name is Yohan, and I came from another dimension called Earth.”

“Earth? Another dimension?”

Just by the fact that we could communicate, Langkun was already lowering his guard to some extent.

What would he do if I had ill intentions? As expected, Barbarians have a naive side.

“This woman next to me, and all the people who look similar to us, are from a place called Earth.”

“The invaders’ home is Earth! Understood!”

“We’re not invaders. Can’t you tell by the fact that we saved you from trouble? You may not understand, but we only came to this island to hunt the monsters that live here. We plan to return to Earth once our business is done.”

“Lies! Invaders are liars! The chieftain said so!”

It seemed a Hunter from Earth had caused trouble with the Barbarians in the past.

Barbarians are a race that never forgets a kindness or a grudge.

The problem seemed to be that their first impression was unfortunately a grudge, not a kindness.

And as I had been feeling for a while, the presences surrounding us were getting closer.

Their number was at least thirty. It was highly likely they were Langkun's comrades.

“Invaders!”

“Langkun is in danger!”

“Save Langkun!”

One of the characteristics of Barbarians is that their voices are incredibly loud. All sorts of booming sounds began to overlap in the forest.

“Senior! It’s the Barbarian tribe!”

“Don’t worry.”

“Of course! I’ll trust in you, senior, and fight to the death as well.”

“Don’t overdo it. I have no intention of fighting.”

“Pardon?”

“They’re simple-minded folks. And it seems there’s some misunderstanding, so we need to clear it up.”

I patted the tense Min Ha-rin on the shoulder.

As long as we could communicate, becoming friends with Barbarians wasn't that difficult.

As I said, they were simple-minded folks.

And if I used the Barbarians well, it would help in quickly resolving this quest.

***

“Chieftain! We have captured two invaders!”

Of course, I had let myself be captured on purpose.

Because I had something to say directly to the leader of this group.

The Barbarian settlement was not far from where we had hunted the Blood Wolfhounds.

The one called the chieftain was truly a giant. He was a man who looked to be at least 2 meters and 30 centimeters tall.

“Kill them immediately! Invaders must be killed immediately!”

“But this invader is a little strange! Chieftain!”

“Tell me what is strange!”

“This man speaks our language! And the woman is said to have helped Langkun!”

“Truly a strange invader! Langkun, come to me!”

“Yes! Chieftain!”

And then, the two Barbarians, Langkun and the chieftain, talked for a long time.

Langkun spoke in a loud voice, audible even to me, about our identities and what had happened with us.

Don’t these guys know how to speak discreetly?

A moment later, the chieftain called me and Min Ha-rin over.

A giant mace was held in the chieftain’s hand.

“I will ask you one thing. If you lie, you will die!”

“Are you going to hit me with that mace?”

“That’s right!”

“How brutal.”

The chieftain’s question was what I had expected.

“Tell me how you can speak our language!”

Of course, I had an answer prepared.

“Because the spirit of your ancestor resides within me.”

The Barbarian tribes I met during my Johan Raven days all held spirits in high regard.

Among them, the spirits of their ancestors were what they revered the most. I was certain that the Barbarians of Delia Island would be no different.

“You are lying!”

But his eyes were already wavering.

“Then you can just hit my head with that mace. Then the spirit of your ancestor will fly away with me, and it will be very amusing.”

At my words, the chieftain shook his head vigorously.

Revealing his confused heart as it was.

“Prove what you just said immediately!”

As expected, there were no mind games with Barbarians.

Their way of thinking was one-dimensional.

“What? That the spirit of your ancestor resides in me?”

“That’s right! If you can't prove it, you will die.”

It was a baseless demand, but it wasn't that difficult either.

All I needed was to give them a little bit of faith.

As it happened, I had a suitable method.

“There!”

I pointed to an old man mixed in with the crowd of Barbarians.

“What now!”

“The former chieftain before you, I presume. Am I right?”

“No! How did you!”

The amount of mana visible through the ‘Mana’s Eye’ was remarkably different.

It was even larger than the current chieftain’s, so it wasn't that difficult to infer the old man’s past position.

“I told you. The spirit of your ancestor is with me right now! That’s how I know.”

“Lies! There’s no way the spirit of our ancestor would be with an invader!”

“There’s a good reason for that.”

“Tell me the reason!”

The chieftain’s eyes showed he was already almost won over.

To think it was this easy.

It was almost anticlimactic.

“Your ancestor wishes to clear up the misunderstanding you all have. That is why he is trying to use me.”

“Speak. Quickly.”

“You probably heard the gist from Langkun, but we are not invaders. Rather, you could say we are people who came to help you.”

“Those words are wrong! You invaders killed our brother. And you tried to plunder our treasures!”

I knew it.

A Hunter who had fought against the Barbarians existed in the past, and after that, the Barbarians of Delia Island had been indiscriminately attacking Hunters from Earth.

“That is precisely the misunderstanding. Not all Earthlings are the same. Some Earthlings may harm you, but most will not. The reason Earthlings visit Delia Island is not to covet your tribe’s treasures, but to hunt monsters.”

“Just to hunt monsters?”

“Yes. I heard that you are in difficulty because unfamiliar monsters have recently appeared in large numbers on Delia Island. Therefore, we are not enemies, but friends.”

“Friends……?”

I took a sword out of my Inventory.

It couldn't compare to the Reapersword, but it was a decent spare longsword.

“Yes. And this is a gift for a friend.”

I offered the hilt of the longsword to the chieftain.

Ten out of ten times, Barbarians react strongly to gifts given with goodwill.

Moreover, the word ‘friend’ was a cheat code.

“Why are you giving this to me!”

“Because your ancestors ordered it.”

“Th-the ancestors ordered it?”

“Yes.”

The chieftain held the sword I gave him with a dazed look in his eyes.

“The invader is now my friend?”

“Yes. Friend.”

This rapid change in his train of thought was simply astonishing.

In any case, what was a common item on Earth would be a historic new piece of civilization to the Barbarians.

And this moment was a historic moment of dramatic reconciliation between Barbarians and Earthlings.