Barbarian’s Dark Fantasy Strategy Guide

Chapter 21: Sanctuary of Mist （2）

“It’s a gloomy place.”

Khalid summed up the atmosphere of the castle in a single word. According to the creator, it was a Gothic-style building that emphasized grandeur and splendor, modeled after the Milan Cathedral. To call it merely gloomy…… really……

『It really is gloomy.』

Becky couldn’t find any other way to describe it. It exuded an eerie atmosphere, enough to believe it was a Demon King’s castle rather than a cathedral. The dozens of spires soaring towards the sky felt more oppressive than magnificent.

True to its name, the Sanctuary of Mist was shrouded in fog here and there, making it impossible to believe that anyone lived there.

‘You said someone was waiting for me here?’

『Uh…… maybe.』

Becky’s confidence waned a bit. It looked more like ruins than she had expected, so she wasn’t sure if there would be any NPCs left.

Khalid followed Scarecrow up the central staircase. Passing through the arched passageway surrounded by numerous pillars, a wide-open main gate greeted Khalid.

（There, there is!）

As he entered the sanctuary, a woman in black clothes was waiting for Khalid in a modest posture far away. Seeing her standing alone in the unnecessarily wide and desolate space made him feel inexplicably lonely.

The woman in black bowed slightly to Khalid, who was walking with Scarecrow.

“Welcome, Guide-nim.”

A quiet and calm voice echoed through the sanctuary. Scarecrow guided Khalid to her and left without saying a word.

“Are you the master of this place?”

The woman shook her head. A gentle smile spread across her face, which was hidden behind a black veil.

“Master? You flatter me. I am Maria, the servant who attends to the Guide-nim.”

“Then can you bring me the Guide? I want to know how to get through the fog that surrounds this place.”

“The Guide-nim is you. You are the true master chosen by this Sanctuary of Mist.”

What is this woman saying?

Khalid was momentarily speechless at her unexpected answer. He felt like the focus of the conversation had subtly shifted.

“I’m sorry, but I’m neither your master nor the Guide. As I just said, I’m only interested in knowing how to get through this fog, so if you know, please tell me.”

“Of course. Then would you please extend one of your hands for a moment?”

When Khalid held out his left hand, Maria clasped it with both of her hands. Soon, a soft light enveloped her hands. After a moment, the light faded, and a ring was placed on Khalid’s finger.

“If you ring the bell at the top of the spire in front of you while wearing that ring, you can return to your original place.”

Ringing a bell to return was a rather strange method. But before heading to the spire, Khalid felt something strange and unwrapped the bandages around his shoulder and arm.

“Is this…… your doing?”

The wound he had sustained from the fight with the Banshee a few days ago had completely disappeared, leaving no scar. He wondered if she had cast some kind of magic while handing him the ring.

Maria bowed her head and apologized to Khalid.

“I apologize if I was presumptuous. I couldn’t ignore my master’s wounds…… Please forgive me.”

“No, I don’t understand why you’re asking for forgiveness.”

Khalid sighed and scratched the back of his head. Her excessive deference made him feel uncomfortable.

It seemed that she genuinely regarded Khalid as her master. It was the first time he had encountered someone who treated him this way, even though he was sometimes looked down upon as a barbarian, so it was baffling.

“Could you please stop calling me master? As I said before, I’m not your master.”

“I’m afraid I can’t obey that request. We, the ‘Lost Ones’, are beings born with the destiny to follow the ‘Guide’ who leads the way.”

“I’m just a mercenary. I have no intention of leading anyone.”

“Please don’t misunderstand. We never intend to be a burden or a nuisance to the Guide-nim. Just by the Guide-nim setting foot in this Sanctuary of Mist, the fire has already been lit. From now on, you are free to walk your own path. We will simply follow behind the Guide-nim in silence.”

“……”

Khalid realized why she was making him uncomfortable. Even though they were having a face-to-face conversation, it felt like they weren’t communicating. She was outwardly submissive and obedient, but a conviction harder than steel was supporting her.

Just like the warriors who live by the tribe’s rules.

『Hahaha, do you understand what I mean by stubborn now?』

Becky scoffed as if it was amusing. From a third-party perspective, both Khalid and Maria were equally stubborn. However, unlike Khalid, who had the flexibility to accept Becky to a certain extent, Maria had an almost fanatical personality.

It was impossible to win with words.

Khalid was getting a headache from Maria’s unwavering attitude when…

Clang, clang, clang.

The sound of metal being hammered came from somewhere.

“……The sound of hammering? Is there a blacksmith here?”

“Yes. If you follow the passage where the knight just left, you’ll find it right away.”

A blacksmith in these ruins? It didn’t seem to fit, but Khalid’s interest was piqued. It wouldn’t be bad to stop by before leaving the sanctuary.

He wasn’t originally very interested in the quality of weapons, but after using the Blacksteel Axe, he felt that the balance was off with ordinary hand axes.

Khalid left Maria behind and followed the passage where Scarecrow had gone. At the end of the long passage, the light of a furnace blazed.

Clang, clang.

Scarecrow was squatting in front of the blacksmith’s shop, like the armor he had tried to sell. He looked even more pathetic because he was rusty and covered in scratches. The cat that had been with him was gone.

Only a white-haired old man was hammering away at the anvil. Sensing someone’s presence, the old man glanced at Khalid, then stopped hammering and approached him. Despite the wrinkles on his face, his muscles were as impressive as Khalid’s.

“Are you the brat who broke my greatsword?”

“That’s right.”

The old man narrowed his eyes. He noticed the handle of the Blacksteel Axe visible over Khalid’s shoulder. The old man put down his hammer and extended his hand.

“Give it to me.”

He seemed to want to take a closer look at the axe that had broken the greatsword. Receiving the Blacksteel Axe from Khalid, the old man tapped it with his knuckles and examined every nook and cranny carefully.

The old man stroked his beard and said.

“Hmm…… What a cocky brat, whoever sharpened this thing. To dare break the greatsword I made in two.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Tsk. So what do you want from me?”

“I want to get a pair that matches that axe.”

The old man threw the axe back with a displeased expression.

“Go look somewhere else. I’m not interested in making anything unless it’s a material that interests me.”

The blacksmith firmly refused Khalid’s request. Everyone in this sanctuary seemed to have their own stubbornness. It seemed that he was only interested in rare minerals.

‘Rare minerals……’

Khalid suddenly rummaged through his luggage bag. He pulled out the object he had found and showed it to the blacksmith.

“Is this interesting enough to be called a material?”

What Khalid pulled out was the Banshee’s Soul Stone. A small blizzard swirled inside the translucent ore. He remembered Becky telling him to keep it safe because it might be useful someday.

A Soul Stone is also a kind of Runestone.

The only difference is that a demon’s soul is sealed inside instead of magic.

“Oooooh!”

As expected, the old blacksmith exclaimed. The grumpy expression he had until just now was gone, and his eyes sparkled. He grabbed Khalid’s hand and couldn’t take his eyes off the Soul Stone.

“This is it, this is it. I’ve always wanted to have a go with something like this.”

“Have a go?”

“Yes. Handling a Soul Stone is like having a showdown with the demon that’s sleeping inside. Don’t you see it? The demon’s power is raging wildly inside!”

“I don’t quite understand what you mean, but can you make it into a weapon anyway?”

“Heh heh heh…… If I can beat this thing, that is.”

The old man grinned, revealing his teeth as if possessed by madness. He seemed completely different from Melissa, even though they were both blacksmiths. No, seeing how much he was looking forward to the fight with the demon, he seemed more like a warrior than a blacksmith.

“So, what do you say? If you entrust this to me, I’ll give you a pair that matches that Blacksteel Axe, just like you said.”

“What about the payment?”

“I don’t need anything like that.”

The old man assumed Khalid had accepted and quickly snatched the Soul Stone. Then he immediately placed it on the anvil and struck it with his hammer without hesitation. However, the Soul Stone was perfectly fine without a scratch.

“Good! As expected, you don’t disappoint.”

“……”

“What are you standing there for?! I’m busy, so come back in three days!”

The old man waved Khalid away as if he was a nuisance. Whether a new axe would be waiting for him when he returned, or whether the old man would be swallowed by the demon, was anyone’s guess.

As Khalid turned away from the blacksmith’s shop, Becky asked.

『How did you think of giving the Soul Stone to the old man? I haven’t explained it to you yet.』

‘Didn’t you tell me about this bracelet?’

Khalid subtly raised his wrist. The Runesteel bracelet with the Arik Trading Company’s emblem engraved on it. It was none other than Becky herself who had explained that Runesteel was a special material made by combining Runestones and iron.

『You seemed indifferent when I was talking, but you remembered it well.』

‘I can’t help it, your words reach my ears even when I block them.’

Thanks to her extensive knowledge, Khalid’s options naturally expanded. Perhaps if it hadn’t been for Becky, he might have sold the Soul Stone to a magic shop in the next town.

It was still unclear which was the right thing to do, but he didn’t regret the choices he made.

That was Khalid’s rule.

“Have you finished your business?”

When he returned to the chapel, Maria, who was sitting in the pew, spoke first. The cat that had disappeared earlier was peacefully asleep on her lap.

“You said the way out was at the top of that spire?”

“That’s right.”

“Does this fog always stay in the same place?”

“When you return to the outside world, the fog will probably be gone.”

“If I want to come back here, what should I do?”

“If you have the ‘Ring of Return’ I gave you, the fog will come to greet you whenever you wish to come, Guide-nim.”

Khalid looked at the ring on his finger. It was a somewhat vague explanation, but it seemed like he could return as long as he had this ring.

“Then I’ll come back later.”

“Farewell, Guide-nim.”

Maria saw Khalid off, sitting in her place so as not to wake the cat.

Khalid headed for the entrance of the central spire.

Climbing the spiral staircase, barely wide enough for one person, he found the bell that Maria had mentioned at the top. The dozens of spires visible around it were all the same shape.

‘Whoever built this place must have really liked bell towers.’

With that thought, Khalid pushed the large bell forward.

Dong…… Dong……

The solemn sound of the bell echoed throughout the sanctuary.

Just as he was wondering how he was supposed to get out, fog from somewhere enveloped him.