Chapter 6

006.

The Volcano Tribe, encountered once again.

They were as huge as ever, and thanks to that, it felt like Zakan’s tent was about to burst.

Chief Zakan sat facing them without shrinking before their murderous presence.

I could see that Zakan’s shoulders were slightly stiff, but he did not back down.

“What do you mean by saying you want to make a request?”

Burta, chief of the Volcano Tribe, asked.

The pressure emanating from his massive body, easily over two meters tall, was truly tremendous.

‘The Western Volcano Tribe and the Northern Rock Tribe were originally said to be tribes of similar strength.’

Of course, that was before all the adults of the Northern Rock Tribe died.

But Zakan raised his chin and spoke.

“Exactly what it sounds like. The Rock Tribe makes a request of the Volcano Tribe.”

Burta silently looked down at Zakan.

His gaze was that of a beast that had survived countless battlefields sizing up a young animal whose fangs had only just begun to grow.

But Zakan met that gaze with unwavering eyes.

‘Oh…… not bad.’

It was hard to believe this was the same brat who had been fuming over his pride only 30 minutes ago.

“I do not understand.”

Burta tilted his head slightly.

“We buy the Volcano Tribe.”

“What? Khahaha…… Zakan. Have you gone mad?”

A disbelieving laugh escaped Burta’s mouth.

The red-skinned warriors sitting on either side of him laughed along.

It must have sounded absurd that the brats of a collapsing tribe whose adults had all died were saying they would ‘buy’ them.

As expected, the explanation was lacking, right?

For people who did not even have the concept of employment or contracts, it was only natural to react like that. But Zakan did not panic and continued exactly as I had instructed him.

“Fight for us when the Red Moon rises. Then we will give you potatoes.”

“What?”

“This is our request. We need blades, and Volcano needs potatoes. Am I wrong?”

Oh, clean.

I applauded inwardly.

It was an explanation without any unnecessary fluff.

The core of this deal was simple, after all. Let us exchange what you have for what I have. That was the foundation of trade.

But Burta had not become a chief for nothing. He was not such an easy opponent.

His smile disappeared as he slowly stared at Zakan.

“Zakan. You are still young.”

Burta’s massive shadow flickered in the torchlight.

“You have no adults to teach you. That is important.”

“…….”

“How to hold a blade on the battlefield, how to read an enemy from the scent of the wind, and how to survive the Red Moon. Barbarians learn from behind the backs of adults. But all your adults are dead.”

Zakan clenched his fist.

It struck directly at the heart of the matter.

The Rock Tribe’s greatest Achilles’ heel.

The absence of the previous generation who could pass down experience and wisdom.

Burta cleverly dug directly into that weakness.

“If you do not know, you die. If you do not learn, you perish. You have the qualities of a good warrior, Zakan. But you cannot protect your tribe alone.”

It was persuasion.

A silent pressure telling us to come under them in exchange for accepting our proposal.

Contrary to my prejudice, barbarians were not stupid.

Their way of expressing themselves was simply violent and rough, and our kids just had not been taught yet.

And a fully matured adult barbarian like Burta was far smarter than I had expected.

‘Crafty bastard.’

I clicked my tongue.

Because inside that even larger, brutish-looking body sat a seasoned fox.

Information was power.

The world I had lived in was a place where, if you were curious about something, a single search could teach you even the laws of the universe.

But what about this place?

How to farm, how to hunt, how to survive.

It was a world where, if no one taught you, you would die without ever knowing.

Burta was using his monopoly on that knowledge as a weapon to shake Zakan.

- Poke.

Seeing Zakan’s eyes waver, I lightly poked his back with a finger.

‘Get a grip. Show them what we prepared.’

At my gesture, Zakan snapped back to his senses.

“Zakan. You do not have that ability.”

Just as Burta was about to drive the final nail in,

Zakan silently lifted the leather sack beside him and turned it upside down.

- Clatter

Dozens of dirt-covered lumps spilled out with heavy thuds.

They rolled across the floor and stopped in front of Burta’s feet.

Potatoes. And not just ordinary potatoes.

Burta’s thick eyebrow twitched as he slowly picked up one of the potatoes that had rolled to his feet.

A potato as thick as a barbarian’s huge fist.

[E-rank Potato]

A crop blessed by fertile land that could never grow in this already dead, barren wasteland.

Dozens of them were scattered across the floor.

Burta’s eyes widened.

He held the potato up before the torchlight.

“……This.”

For the first time, greed entered Burta’s voice.

He deeply inhaled the scent of the potato, then glared at Zakan with ominous eyes.

“The Rock Tribe had something like this?”

“We are rich.”

Zakan raised his chin as he spoke.

“This is only a portion. Our warehouse has mountains of these.”

Of course, it was a bluff, but there was no way Burta could know that.

The Volcano Tribe warriors were shaken by Zakan’s confident attitude.

I heard the sound of someone swallowing.

But Burta was a chief.

He suppressed his agitation and released an even more intimidating killing intent.

It was an instinctive contest of pressure to avoid losing the upper hand in the negotiation.

“Why should our Volcano Tribe listen to you?”

Burta squeezed, crushing the potato like tofu.

“We have strength. We have blades. If we want it, we can simply kill you and take it.”

“……!”

Zakan flinched and placed a hand on the hilt of his sword.

‘Just as expected. These Volcano bastards.’

The rule of this world. The strong devoured the weak.

If the weak possessed treasure, it was not something to trade for, but something to plunder.

Burta was asking us right now. ‘So? Do you have the strength to protect this treasure?’

Zakan opened his mouth, but unable to find a proper answer, closed it again.

Because even if he said, ‘We will fight,’ it was obvious the response would be, ‘Then we will kill you and take it.’

The atmosphere grew cold.

The Volcano Tribe warriors adjusted their grips on their weapons.

A situation on the verge of exploding.

‘That’s as far as you can go.’

I sighed and stepped forward.

Zakan had done well.

But what came next was something that could not be solved with a warrior’s logic.

“Enough.”

When my voice broke the silence, Burta’s gaze shifted from Zakan to me.

As the predator’s gaze swept across the back of my neck, instinctive fear ran down my spine.

Pretending as best I could to remain calm, I sat beside Zakan.

“What are you?”

Burta growled.

“Shaman.”

“Lie. Rock Tribe has no shaman.”

“No. Now it does.”

I stared straight into Burta’s eyes as I spoke. At a moment like this, Barbarian Spirit was actually helpful.

“A shaman just as unripe as the chief.”

Burta snorted.

“Bloodlings playing chief. A shaman is the tribe’s head. I smell no wisdom from you.”

“The shaman is!”

Zakan bristled and tried to step forward, but I quickly raised a hand to stop him.

Stay still.

Then I looked at Burta again.

To persuade this man, I had to show him profit, not strength.

I just hoped my Mental Strength could endure it.

“Burta, chief of the Volcano Tribe. You are right. Volcano has strength.”

I picked up one of the potatoes from the floor.

“You can kill us right now and take these potatoes. You could also drag away the children of our tribe.”

“If you know that, why are you acting so boldly?”

“But that would be a loss for you.”

“A loss?”

Burta’s eyebrow twitched once again.

“Why has Volcano not killed us until now?”

I continued speaking without avoiding his eyes.

“Because we have nothing worth taking? No. You are waiting for us to grow. You planned to raise us into warriors and take us later. Right now, Volcano also needs to become stronger.”

Good. Up to this point, the words were coming out smoothly just as I had planned. My head did not hurt either.

Hold on just a little longer, Mental Strength!

Burta’s gaze sharpened.

He looked as though I had hit the mark.

In barbarian society, population was national power.

You could say it was the same principle behind people having many children in old agricultural societies.

Especially under the threat of monsters, replenishing young blood was essential for survival.

“But what happens if you take us now?”

I grinned as I looked at him, and his expression turned sour.

“We are still young. We are bad at hunting and fighting. You cannot use us in war right away. Your food is already scarce, and now you gain 40 more mouths to feed.”

“…….”

“If you plunder us, you get potatoes. But those disappear in a few days. After that? All you have left are 40 hungry mouths and the Red Moon. Is that what you want?”

Burta said nothing.

He was probably calculating furiously inside his head.

Taking in the weak when food was scarce was an enormous risk.

‘Good. I think he’s almost convinced.’

Just as I opened my mouth to deliver the final counter,

a powerful resistance surged inside my head.

[Barbarian Spirit resists logical thought.]

[Warning! A massive amount of Mental Strength is being consumed.]

“Ugh…….”

Once again, tremendous pain like a skewer stabbing through my brain struck me, and my vision flashed white.

Grinding my molars together, I endured it and forced out the next words.

“But it is different if you accept our request.”

I reversed the atmosphere.

“If you keep us alive and remain friends, you do not need to feed 40 people. We feed ourselves.”

I threw the potato in my hand toward him, and he reflexively caught it.

“Instead, you gain more potatoes. When Volcano needs them, we can trade them for animal hides.”

“…….”

“When we need blades, you can help us and receive potatoes. You gain friends and potatoes. Now, which side profits Volcano more?”

Spin-

Had I finally reached my limit?

The moment I forced out the last word,

my vision shook violently and the tip of my nose stung.

Drip- Red blood ran down my chin and fell in drops.

“Shaman! Blood!”

Zakan panicked and tried to support me, but I raised a hand to stop him.

Then, panting heavily, I stared straight at Burta.

Burta looked down at me with a dazed expression.

His gaze seemed to bore into the depths of my eyes.

Tension filled the air.

I swallowed.

“Izak……! Did you once again force yourself to draw out the ancestral god’s great wisdom for us, shaving away your own lifespan?”

‘Huh? That’s what you thought was happening?’

At Zakan’s mistaken shout, Burta’s eyes shook as if an earthquake had struck.

“A shaman who sees the ancestral god’s wisdom?”

What is this guy talking about now?

Burta was looking down at me with a strange expression.

I had done everything I could. The choice now belonged to that monster.

If that bastard shouted, ‘I do not understand complicated things, kill them all!’ then we were finished.

That was when it happened.

“Kahahahahaha!”

Burta threw his head back and burst into hearty laughter.

His laughter was so loud that I thought my ears would go deaf.

“Interesting. You are an interesting barbarian!”

Burta looked down at me with laughter in his eyes.

Fortunately, his killing intent had disappeared.

“It does not seem to be a lie. You are still young, but you are a clever barbarian.”

He took a bite from the E-rank potato in his hand.

Crunch- With the sound, he made a satisfied expression.

“Tastes good too.”

Burta smacked his lips.

Ding-!

[Burta, chief of the Western Volcano Tribe, was moved after eating your potato. Fame +1]

What is this? My Fame suddenly went up just because this guy ate my potato?

While I stared at the system window, he spoke.

“Good. Chief of the Rock Tribe. And young shaman.”

His hand lightly struck my shoulder.

It hurt.

But knowing it was a sign of approval rather than an attack put me at ease.

“For your sake, I will do it. During this Red Moon, the warriors of Volcano will become your blades.”

“……!”

Zakan’s face brightened.

I felt like I might faint too, but we succeeded!

We survived!

“However.”

Burta grinned and added.

“Prepare many potatoes. Our warriors eat a lot.”

“Understood.”

It hurt a little to give up the potatoes, but it was a cheap price for our lives.

We could always grow more potatoes.

‘But why are barbarians so obsessed with potatoes?’

Burta held out his hand.

“The contract is established.”

Zakan clasped that hand.

A handshake between the two chiefs.

Watching them, I barely held back tears.

Surviving day by day is really hard…….

.

.

.

On the Volcano Tribe’s way back.

As Burta walked along the rough mountain path, he savored the lingering taste of the potato in his mouth.

Sweet and filling.

“Chief.”

The vice-chief asked cautiously.

“This is a loss for us. We should have simply killed them and taken it.”

Burta shook his head as he continued walking.

“No.”

“What do you mean, no?”

“The potatoes are excellent. But…… that young shaman is even more excellent.”

Burta’s eyes looked up at the moon in the night sky.

The moon that still shone yellow.

“And.”

He turned around.

Far away, the Rock Tribe’s village could be seen submerged in darkness.

“We need to find out.”

“Find out what?”

Burta took a potato from his clothes and held it in front of the vice-chief’s eyes.

Bathed in moonlight, the potato remained smooth and appetizing.

“Our land is cursed soil where not even a blade of grass grows. Yet the Rock Tribe said they have mountains of these piled up.”

Burta’s eyes flashed like those of a beast.

“We need to find out where they came from.”

“Did they not steal them?”

“Those bloodlings?”

Burta clenched the potato tightly.

“Those brats are hiding something.”

He was certain.

This was not food they had simply obtained through good fortune.

And there had been something extraordinary about that young shaman’s eyes.

They had some secret of their own.

He had to discover it and seize it.

“Vice-chief. When the Red Moon rises and we deploy the warriors, keep watch on them.”

A cold smile spread across Burta’s lips.

“And whatever they possess will belong to our Volcano Tribe.”

The enormous shadows disappeared into the darkness.