The Barbarian of the Count’s Family Is Too Strong

Chapter 13: Guild (3)

The man locked eyes with Agron’s chilling gaze and instinctively reached for his waist.

‘This bastard is no ordinary guy.’

He planned to draw his dagger and slash Agron’s eye immediately.

A preemptive strike was the key to victory.

But plans never go as expected.

"Huh…?"

He suddenly felt as if his wrists were shackled in iron restraints—he couldn't move them at all.

Before he even realized, Agron had already grabbed both of his wrists.

"L-Let go— Gaaah!"

With a sickening crack, his wrists twisted into unnatural angles.

A jolt of pain surged through his body like an electric current, from fingertips to toes.

Agron rose from his seat with a relaxed smile, baring his white teeth.

"This initiation is fun. I'll join in properly."

Then, he slammed his foot into the man’s shin with tremendous force.

His body lifted into the air.

At that moment, Agron’s fist came down like an axe, crushing his shoulder.

CRACK!

With a loud explosion of sound, the man crashed onto the floor.

"Kugh…!"

He wheezed, trembling like a beaten dog.

The pain was excruciating, but what terrified him even more was Agron himself.

For the first time, he felt pure, unfiltered fear as his pride as an adventurer shattered.

‘Please… someone… a healer… stop this… I’m going to die.’

He weakly mouthed for help, looking desperately at the others.

He didn’t want to die.

The pain was unbearable, nearly driving him to unconsciousness.

But before that could happen, Agron grabbed him by the collar, lifting him effortlessly.

"My initiation isn’t over yet."

"N-No… ahh…!"

"I hope my introduction leaves a lasting impression."

"W-Wait—!"

SMASH!

Agron’s fist drove into his face, shattering the floor beneath.

The entire room fell into stunned silence.

"Did… the newbie just take down Jerome…?"

Agron’s opponent, Jerome, was a seasoned D-rank adventurer known for his brutal nature.

Many low-ranking adventurers avoided even making eye contact with him.

There were rumors that he had beaten up a C-rank adventurer out of spite and that he once fought a troll with just mages and priests backing him.

A veteran troublemaker through and through.

"No way… That guy was a menace… and the newbie took him out in three hits?"

"Do you even realize what you just did?! You just crushed a D-rank as an F-rank!"

The adventurers surrounded Agron, raising their mugs high.

"To our incredible newbie!"

"To Agron, the guy who crushed ‘Troll Killer’ Jerome!"

"To the F-rank that fights like a D-rank!"

"Hah, this was a fun initiation."

Agron had no interest in starting fights, but he had no hesitation in ending them definitively.

"Damn it, another mess already?"

Baekun, having finished his paperwork, clicked his tongue upon seeing the scene.

"You didn’t kill him, right…?"

"If he had drawn his blade, I would’ve. Luckily, I broke his wrists first."

"…Sure, let’s call that a good deed."

"I’m a warrior of the Winter Wardens. I value life."

Agron grinned down at the barely conscious, bloodied Jerome.

Baekun opened his mouth to respond but found himself at a loss for words.

‘Pretty sure he has no clue what valuing life actually means.’

Baekun sighed, realizing that Dumurka hadn’t exactly raised Agron as a normal person.

"Well… I guess it’s good that you didn’t kill him."

"Of course. Every life has value."

"Do you really believe that?"

"Of course. Even in death, a body can be used as fertilizer."

"…Huh?"

Baekun considered questioning Agron’s entire philosophy but decided against it.

"Hey, newbie! Who’s the old man?"

"Oh, he’s also a newbie. I think he should get an initiation too."

"Oh? Alright, newbie, get over here for a drink!"

"W-Wait! I hate alcohol!"

Too late.

The drunken adventurers didn’t care about Baekun’s protests and forced him into drinking.

"Ack! Cough! I said I don’t— Gurgle!"

Watching Baekun flail as beer was poured down his throat, Agron smiled in satisfaction.

"Good. He’s fitting in nicely."

***

"Ugh… You’re awake?"

"…Yeah."

Baekun clutched his pounding head and made his way downstairs to the inn’s dining area.

Damn that beer. He had thrown up more times than he could count.

"You seemed to enjoy yourself yesterday."

"Shut up…"

Lacking the energy to argue, he slumped into a chair.

Raising his voice would only make him puke again.

"Ugh… What’s the plan today?"

"I’ll be taking on a guild quest today."

"Ugh, yeah? This is that ‘adventurer life’ you wanted?"

"Something like that. I want to explore the world, see more of it. But that’s not my only goal."

"Then what else?"

Baekun chugged the water the innkeeper brought as he asked.

Agron remained calm as he answered.

"I’m also searching for my parents’ killers."

"The ones who orchestrated Count Ludikain’s downfall…?"

Agron nodded.

Ludikain was not the mastermind behind all of this—he was merely a tool.

The real culprits were those who manipulated him into assassinating the head of the house and his wife.

However, the problem was that Ludikain’s information was too fragmented to pursue a proper investigation.

"As an adventurer, I will take on various quests and meet many different people. Eventually, I will find the ones responsible."

The city guards, the Senate, the administrators, the knight captain, and the branch families—all forces that should have pursued justice—had instead cleared the path for the true perpetrators, making it nearly impossible to uncover the truth.

Thus, Agron decided to act on his own.

"This could take a long time."

"It might. But that’s fine. I plan to wipe out every last trace of them from this land—from head to toe, completely."

"Hmm…"

Baekun felt as if his hangover had suddenly vanished, chilled by Agron’s icy determination.

Given his personality, these were not mere words of emotion.

A true warrior’s words carried absolute weight.

Agron would make his prophecy come true.

"Don’t carry everything on your own. You have me, Dumurka, Luna, and even Lawrence by your side."

"Not sure why Luna and Lawrence are included in that… but I understand."

"Make friends your age. Someday, they’ll be a great help."

"You mean Luna and Lawrence?"

"That’s right. They both have good hearts."

"Hmm."

Agron dismissed it as Baekun still being hungover.

Otherwise, there was no way he would call Lawrence kind.

"So, what’s today’s quest?"

"Gathering herbs…"

"Ah, herb gathering. A simple task fitting for an F-rank."

"No. We’re hunting a ‘Herb Tiger.’"

"…What?"

"It’s not an F-rank quest, but since I beat a D-rank adventurer yesterday, they told me I could take it if I wanted."

Agron spoke casually and stood up.

"Are we seriously going to hunt a tiger?"

"Yes."

"You could go alone."

"That’d be boring."

Baekun glared at Agron.

"Let’s go, old man. We don’t have all day."

***

They ventured deep into the mountains.

Even in daylight, the dense foliage blocked out the sun.

Baekun sat on a boulder, patting his aching knees.

Hiking was not something he was suited for at his age.

"Did you change weapons?"

Baekun eyed Agron’s back.

"You used to wield a longsword."

"Yes. It broke while hunting goblins. Kingdom-forged swords are weaker than I expected."

‘That’s not the sword’s fault. It’s because you’re too strong.’

Baekun swallowed those words and cleared his throat.

"Ahem. That’s a mace, isn’t it?"

"Yes. I had it made thicker than usual, so it should last longer."

"I’m no expert, but that looks oversized for a standard mace."

Most maces weighed between one to three kilograms, but Agron’s appeared to be at least twice that.

"It’s about eight or nine kilograms."

"You can actually swing that?"

Baekun lifted it slightly, eyes widening.

Lifting a heavy chunk of metal was one thing—wielding it efficiently in battle was another.

Only someone with immense strength and endurance could manage that.

"This is ridiculously heavy. You really fight with this?"

"You could too. Give it a try."

"If I had four arms, maybe. But I’d rather keep both of mine functional."

Baekun handed it back, shaking his head.

He briefly wondered what would happen to anyone on the receiving end of that weapon.

‘At least they’ll die instantly. That’s merciful, I suppose.’

After climbing for a while, they reached a valley where Herb Tigers were known to appear.

"According to the map, this should be the place."

"Let’s rest a bit. Keeping up with your pace is exhausting."

"That’s because you don’t exercise."

"Wait until you’re my age and see how you feel."

"Dumurka seems fine."

"…Your whole tribe is just unnatural."

Baekun shook his head, thinking of Dumurka and White Bison.

The people of the Snowridge Labyrinth were certainly beyond human limits.

And Agron, most of all, was completely out of the norm.

"Hmm… There’s something here."

Agron sniffed the air.

"The tiger already? They’re supposed to appear around dusk."

Baekun, still catching his breath, replied.

"No. Not a tiger."

"Then maybe a bear or wolves? Animals come to valleys to drink."

"No, not that."

Agron narrowed his eyes at a specific point in the distance.

"Humans. Dressed in all black."