How a Black-Haired Barbarian Survived the Labyrinth in Another World

“Barbarian, wake up.”

“Huh!” 

Yoo-shin jolted awake. 

Seeing the daylight, he realized it was morning.

“Was I really asleep?”

“Yes, you slept quite soundly.”

“Well, that’s a surprise.”

Yoo-shin scratched his head and pulled some jerky from his bag. 

Seamus also took out an apple, showing it to Yoo-shin briefly before taking a bite.

“I found it in the forest.”

“Right.”

Yoo-shin thought it was odd how talkative the old priest seemed today as he chewed on his jerky. 

Seamus spoke again.

“Lady Karine has gone to the Great Labyrinth.”

“I know. The captain told me.”

“What do you plan to do after visiting the Great Labyrinth? Where were you headed originally?”

Yoo-shin tilted his head, surprised by how certain Seamus sounded that he wasn’t a slave hunter.

“I’m not going anywhere else. The Great Labyrinth was my intended destination all along.”

“Is that so?”

Seamus smiled slightly.

The two of them packed up their belongings and left the ruins.

On the afternoon of the seventh day, the final day of their journey, Yoo-shin reached his destination.

“Wow.”

The city he saw from the top of the hill was enormous. 

Just as Seamus had mentioned the night before, calling it the Eastern Alliance’s second capital was no exaggeration. 

Countless roads led to the city, filled with crowds that looked like swarming ants. 

The city walls towered almost like modern skyscrapers and loomed in the distance. 

A majestic river flowed from the north, wrapping around the massive walls before continuing south.

It was on a completely different scale from the cities Yoo-shin had glimpsed from afar during his journey.

“This city is huge,” Yoo-shin said in awe.

Seamus chuckled. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re not the most articulate conversationalist?”

“Sometimes.”

“You remind me of someone.”

“Who?”

“Never mind. Let’s go.”

Seamus took the lead. 

Yoo-shin had been expecting a long wait at the city gates with the massive crowd ahead of them, but it turned out to be a needless worry.

“Seamus!” 

The city gate’s guard captain called out as soon as he spotted him. 

The guard captain was a bear beastman with a large scar running across his face. He looked quite intimidating.

The bear beastman hurried over and bowed deeply to Seamus.

“Welcome to the Labyrinth City, sir. I will report your arrival to the committee immediately.”

“That won’t be necessary. I’m only here to meet with Lady Karine briefly and will leave soon after.”

“But, sir!”

The bear beastman seemed disappointed and twisted his body in frustration. 

To Yoo-shin, it looked like a bear trying to act cute for some honey.

“And who is this?” 

The bear beastman asked, pointing at Yoo-shin.

“I need Lady Karine to verify something about this barbarian.”

“Is it related to those slave hunters?”

“Yes.”

“Leave this troublesome matter to me then!” The bear beastman pounded his chest.

“You there, filthy human! What are you hiding? Speak up now!” 

The bear beastman growled, baring his fangs at Yoo-shin, drawing the attention of the crowd. 

People started whispering, and several guards with spears rushed over.

Seamus waved them off. 

“There’s no need for that. I’m handling this of my own will.”

“Understood. Please come in.”

The bear beastman immediately changed his tone, and the inspection at the gate proceeded swiftly. 

The one in charge of the process was an elf wearing glasses. He had dark circles under his eyes that made him look exhausted.

“Barbarian.”

The elf said.

“Yes?”

“Just remember one thing.”

The elf’s serious tone made Yoo-shin tense up.

“Priest hunting is forbidden in this city.”

“Excuse me?”

Did I hear that right?

Yoo-shin was confused. He asked for clarification.

“Don’t look so shocked. While we respect barbarian customs, causing chaos in this city is prohibited. And to be honest, it’s not exactly a virtue to be encouraged.”

The elf stared at Yoo-shin as if waiting for him to agree.

“Y-yes, of course.”

The elf let out a deep sigh.

“For example, you can’t just kidnap someone else’s wife, ravage her for three days and nights, then return her to her husband saying, ‘Hmm, your wife passed out during intercourse, so she’s unworthy of being my wife. I’ll give her back to you.'”

Yoo-shin clutched his head, feeling dizzy.

‘Barbarian.’

‘What kind of crazy people are these?’

He managed to speak, though his voice was shaky. 

“Yes, I understand. I won’t do any… bride hunting.”

“And another thing.”

‘There’s more?’

“You can’t engage in sexual relations without the woman’s explicit consent.”

“Yes.”

‘Why is this elf stating the obvious?’

“You can’t just grab a passing woman, force yourself on her, and then claim, ‘She swayed her hips to tempt me, so I had no choice.'”

“Yes, but… Isn’t that just rape? How is that bride hunting?”

The elf frowned. “If we directly translate the word *Barbaroi* use, it’s called ‘female hunting.’ But people prefer to use a more refined term, hence ‘bride hunting.'”

“I see… No bride hunting. Got it.”

“Call it bride hunting, not female hunting. It sounds a bit more noble. You may go.”

Still dazed, Yoo-shin exited the inspection area. 

Seamus stood by the wall, arms crossed.

“Do you want to rest for the day?”

“No. Let’s go quickly.”

“What if Lady Karine doesn’t recognize you?”

Seamus’s calm voice sent a chill down Yoo-shin’s spine.

Yoo-shin shook his head quickly. “That Karine has my artifact.”

“An artifact?”

“Yes, it’s something similar to a fire starter.”

“Did you give it to her?”

“No. She just took it.”

“Hmm. How unfortunate.”

Seamus stroked his chin, and Yoo-shin stifled a laugh as he saw this side of Seamus. 

Even this powerful priest seemed to have a human desire for artifacts.

“Well, it’s not that great of a magic tool, so I’m not really bothered.”

“No. It’s not a magic tool.”

Huh?

“Then what are you disappointed about… Ah!” Yoo-shin suddenly realized.

Seamus smiled.

“If Lady Karine didn’t recognize you, I would’ve disposed of you.”

“Disposed of me?”

Cold sweat dripped down Yoo-shin’s back.

“Even an evil slave hunter can be redeemed. I had plans for a long journey of redemption, penance, and obedience for the two of us. But alas, it seems it won’t happen.”

“…”

Yoo-shin wanted to meet Karine as soon as possible and clear up this misunderstanding.

———

“I don’t really remember,” Karine said nonchalantly, leaving Yoo-shin’s jaw hanging open.

“Wait, what?!”

They had somehow made it through the outer city inspection and reached the main gate of the inner city, where only high-ranking individuals were allowed. 

Karine was standing outside, seemingly already informed by Seamus.

“You saw me back then! You saved me with those three elves!” 

“Hmm.” 

She wore a confident smile and had sharp eyes. 

When they first met, Yoo-shin hadn’t been able to get a good look, but now he could.

Her tall frame was matched by a heavy chest. It was barely suppressed by a thin linen shirt. 

Her leather pants clung tightly to her powerful thighs, showing every curve. 

A bushy, red-tinged tail swayed behind her.

She was like fire, not just her tail, but her entire presence.

“You took my artifact! The one that makes fire.”

Yoo-shin struggled to keep himself composed.

“I don’t remember that at all.”

‘She doesn’t remember?’

‘Did she suddenly get amnesia or something?’

“And is that really the way to ask someone to remember something? Maybe if you knelt, it might jog my memory.”

Karine’s tail swayed lazily, like a wolf toying with prey it had already caught.

Yoo-shin bit his lip hard.

Pride?

He’d toss it aside. 

Better to smash his head to the ground here than be forced into some penitential journey with a middle-aged man.

Without hesitation, he knelt and bowed his head to the ground.

“Should I lick your feet too?”

He felt a cold gaze from above.

“Enough. I thought you were hiding something interesting, but I guess not. Boring. Seamus, this one isn’t a slave hunter.”

Seamus clicked his tongue.

“How unfortunate. He could’ve been a good companion for my journey. Anyway, could we speak privately?”

Karine tilted her head.

“About what, exactly?”

“I’d prefer to discuss it somewhere less public.”

“Understood. Hey Barbarian, get up and go.”

Yoo-shin stood up and bowed.

“Yes. I wish you both a pleasant time.”

“Yeah, sure.”

*Damn.*

He felt irritated by Karine’s mocking tone but didn’t show it.

“Seamus, have a good journey.”

“Take care. I hope we meet again.”

Leaving the two behind, Yoo-shin walked away from the inner city gate. He thought about heading to an inn he’d spotted earlier in the outskirts.

“Damn it.”

He wandered around for a while, but couldn’t find the inn he had seen. 

Frustrated, he eventually entered a different one nearby.

“We don’t take in barbarians.”

Yoo-shin blinked at the innkeeper’s cold response and asked, “Why?”

“Why? Ha!”

The innkeeper uncrossed his arms and put his hands on his hips, looking like he had plenty to say.

“The only people who break into women’s rooms in the middle of the night, rape them, and leave them drenched in their own fluids are you barbarians. Every black-haired savage who’s come here has done that. And then what? ‘Isn’t it fine as long as we’re both happy?’ Get lost before I call the guards!”

The innkeeper’s rant left Yoo-shin dizzy.

*These damn barbarians…*

Judging by the innkeeper’s expression, there was no point in arguing.

A rat beastman sipping alcohol nearby snickered.

“Oh, innkeeper, quite the spirit, eh? Or is it just that this one’s a young barbarian?”

“No. I simply believe in the law and justice of this city.”

The innkeeper’s words made the nearby patrons burst out laughing.

Ignoring the laughter, Yoo-shin left the inn.

The city was large, and there were plenty of inns, but not a single one welcomed barbarian.

By the time the twentieth inn had rejected him, the sky had grown dark. 

Street lamps flickered to life, and groups of adventurers, fresh from exploring the labyrinth, laughed loudly as they headed into taverns. 

A grim thought crossed Yoo-shin’s mind.

*Am I screwed?*

He had known it wouldn’t be easy to adapt to a world he had fallen into with no prior knowledge, but reality was proving far worse than he had imagined.

In order to adapt, he needed to blend in, but because of his appearance, he couldn’t even get a chance to try. 

The terrible reputation built by those crazy barbarians had become a tall wall blocking his path.

“Come on, with all these inns, it doesn’t make sense that there’s not a single place willing to take me in.”

Clinging to a sliver of hope, Yoo-shin wandered the streets. 

But after his thirtieth rejection, he slumped against a wall and sat down.

The night had grown dark, and people were heading home.

‘This will be the last one.’

He told himself, preparing to sleep on the street if it didn’t work out. 

He walked on until he spotted a shabby-looking inn tucked away in a corner at the end of the road.

There was something written on the sign, but he couldn’t read it.

Come to think of it, how strange.

How was it that he, who didn’t know the language, was able to speak it so fluently in this world?

‘Not something to worry about right now. I’m about to be homeless.’

Yoo-shin opened the wooden door and stepped into the inn.