Barbarian’s Adventure in a Fantasy World
Chapter 80: Worshippers of the Grotesque (1)

Chapter 80: Worshippers of the Grotesque (1)

“What kind of family is this Hybolka family?” Ketal asked.

“As I mentioned before, it’s a family that has grown rapidly over the past year,” Milayna replied.

When the family was first established, no one paid the Hybolka family any attention. Becoming a successful merchant was no easy feat. One needed efficient routes to acquire goods and reliable partners to purchase them.

However, that wasn’t all. Those at the top always sought to crush newcomers trying to climb the ranks. Established families, having already secured most of the profitable routes, were quick to stomp out any competition by taking over and sabotaging others’ channels.

Because of this, most merchants failed before even being recognized as a proper family, going bankrupt and disappearing without a trace.

When the Hybolka family first appeared, everyone assumed they’d meet the same fate and paid them no mind. However, the Hybolka family grew at an extraordinary rate.

In just one year, they had risen to a size comparable to the Akasha family, second only to them.

Ketal’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Just one year? That’s impressive.”

Considering how long it had taken the Akasha family, even with their efforts in the White Snowfield, to reach their current position, the Hybolka family’s growth speed was indeed remarkable.

Milayna nodded. “Yes, they must have worked incredibly hard. Unlike us, they had no history or foundation to build upon.”

Although the Akasha family had been on the verge of collapse at one point, they were still a family with a long and storied history. Because of this, their initial stabilization efforts faced little interference. The challenges came later, during their explosive growth phase, when they truly began to draw attention.

The Hybolka family, however, had no such history to shield them. From the beginning, they likely faced every possible scheme and obstacle from other merchant families, who would have viewed them as nothing more than unwelcome intruders. The fact that they had overcome all of that to reach their current position was a testament to their strength and determination.

That was why Milayna had thought highly of them and even felt a sense of kinship. The Hybolkas had endured far worse conditions than her own family and still managed to grow.

“I met them at a merchant family gathering once. They approached me first, and we had a long conversation. They seemed like good people—pleasant to talk to. But to think they’d stab me in the back like this...” Milayna said.

Milayna’s stomach turned as she discovered that the family responsible for repeatedly harassing her by hiring a mage was the Hybolka family. She began to doubt her ability to judge character.

As she spoke, Ketal’s expression shifted into one of intrigue.

“That’s quite an interesting story,” he said.

“Interesting?”

“If the family has grown so quickly, it could be because they’ve crushed their competitors with their own hands,” Ketal said, his tone calm yet pointed.

“Wait, what are you suggesting?” Milayna froze mid-thought.

“The Hybolka family might have attacked others in the same way they attacked your family. Hiring a mage to target you doesn’t seem like the kind of thing they’d only do once.”

Milayna fell silent, her mind racing. Thinking about it, Ketal’s theory made sense. Someone willing to use poison rarely stopped after the first time. The fact that they used it at all indicated they had access to it, and the only thing preventing others from doing the same was a moral or emotional barrier. Once crossed, the barrier ceased to exist.

The Hybolka family might have employed underhanded tactics, like hiring mages, long before targeting the Akasha family.

“Is it possible for your family to retaliate in a similar way, with schemes like these?” Ketal asked.

“N-no,” Milayna stammered. “We only use legal methods of competition.” She was referring to standard merchant practices, like taking over routes or securing contracts ahead of rivals. The moment a family resorted to physical methods, like hiring mages to burn down warehouses, the kingdom would intervene.

“So it’s possible the Hybolka family grew by using such methods. And yet, they managed to avoid drawing your attention until now.”

Milayna’s face darkened as she processed his words. Finally, she stood up from her seat. “I need to verify something.”

Ketal smiled, clearly entertained by the unfolding situation, and nodded.

***

Milayna and Ketal would often chat about trivial things nearly every night before going to bed. It was Milayna who had mustered the courage to request this arrangement, as talking with Ketal brought her a sense of calm and emotional stability. Ketal, feeling indebted to her, had readily agreed. That night, Milayna came to Ketal’s room as usual.

“I’ve looked into it,” she said.

“About the Hybolka family? What did you find?”

“I researched the history of the Hybolka family’s rise. And, as I suspected, some things seemed off.”

The Hybolka family’s initial foothold had been a general goods store located in the heart of the capital. Milayna was already familiar with this fact.

“But before that store was established, there was another business in its place.”

Milayna knew about this store as well. It was a bakery that she had often visited as a child to buy snacks. The Hybolka family had taken over the bakery’s location when they set up shop.

At first glance, there didn’t seem to be anything unusual about this. Store locations could change hands through legitimate transactions, after all.

The problem arose later, after the bakery was sold and its owners went missing.

“They said the owners were retiring and planned to return to their hometown. But no one ever heard of them again.” “That sounds plausible enough,” Ketal said.

“It does, but it didn’t stop there.”

The Hybolka family seemed to always benefit from peculiar circumstances. Whenever they needed a stepping stone for growth or faced rival merchants, strange things would happen. Competitors would mysteriously disappear, or families that had secured goods the Hybolkas intended to sell would suddenly suffer accidents.

These incidents were far too frequent to be mere coincidences. Ketal stroked his chin thoughtfully. “And now your family is next in line, isn’t it?”

“It’s a possibility...,” Milayna admitted with a frown.

The Hybolka family had grown to a size just below hers. It made sense that she would be their next target. “But how?” she muttered, her pupils trembling.

Even with the clear signs of something amiss, she had failed to notice. That could only mean that the Hybolka family was operating with extraordinary precision, leaving no traces behind.

Not even the kingdom had caught on to their activities. She wondered if such a feat was even possible for an ordinary merchant family.

“That’s quite an interesting story,” Ketal said, his tone laced with intrigue.

***

Moonlight streamed through the window, illuminating the dark room.

The room was luxurious, with a marble floor and walls made of high-quality wood. Just by looking at this single room, it was clear that an immense amount of money had gone into constructing the building.

Yet, despite its grandeur, the room was devoid of any decorations. Apart from the bare minimum of furniture necessary for living, it was entirely empty. It was as if the building existed solely to project an illusion of wealth—a façade, nothing more, nothing less.

Inside this desolate room were two figures.

“The hound has been captured,” one man said, bowing low.

The other, seated on a chair, gazed lazily at the ceiling. “Is that so?”

“It seems he spoke about us after being caught. I can feel the Akasha family’s attention on us.”

“I see.” The seated man, the head of the Hybolka family, furrowed his brow. “As expected, mages cannot be trusted.”

“Should I kill him?” the subordinate asked calmly.

Dragosar was a mage from the School of the Deep-Rooted Tree. Killing him would undoubtedly provoke the school itself, which was why Milayna had been forced to return him to the Mage Tower.

However, the subordinate spoke as if such concerns were irrelevant, a sentiment the family head seemed to share.

“Mages can be dealt with at any time. Once the world changes and our master descends, capture him and tear him limb from limb.”

“As you wish, sir,” the subordinate replied, bowing lower.

The family head muttered with a faint tone of annoyance, “But the Akasha family’s attention... That could be troublesome.”

“Should we assassinate her?”

The suggestion came as calmly as if he were discussing the weather.

“That’s tempting, but no. The whole reason we hired that insignificant mage was to avoid drawing attention to ourselves in the first place.”

They had entered the Denian Kingdom unnoticed by anyone. Slowly but surely, they had established a foothold and expanded their influence. If they moved too openly now, all their hard work would go to waste.

Speaking in a firm tone, the family head reminded his subordinate, “The reason we’re here is to establish dominance in the Denian Kingdom and devour everything it has. Do not forget that.”

“Yes, sir,” the subordinate replied with a nod.

The family head murmured softly, “Still... this does complicate things.”

Their ultimate goal was to consume the Denian Kingdom entirely. However, with the Akasha family now watching them, they faced several new constraints, making their objective harder to achieve.

“We still need to strengthen our position. This isn’t ideal,” the family head said.

“What are your orders?” the subordinate asked.

The family head fell silent, deep in thought. After a few moments, he spoke. “In hindsight, relying on external tools like that hound was a mistake. Outsiders who do not worship the great master are nothing but heretics. It was foolish of me to think of using them.” “Then...” The subordinate’s eyes gleamed in anticipation.

“We will handle matters ourselves, as we always have,” the family head declared. He continued, “Approach the head of the Akasha family and threaten her.”

“She is known as the Iron Lady. I doubt she will be easily swayed by threats,” the subordinate replied.

“Then how about taking a hostage? What if we abduct a family member?”

“Her family lives far from here. Moreover, she’s estranged from them. Using them as hostages would be ineffective,” the subordinate pointed out.

“Her family is out of the question, then. What other connections does she have?”

“She is not the type to form close bonds with others,” the subordinate admitted after a moment’s thought. Then as if a sudden idea had struck him, he added, “There is this... barbarian.”

“A barbarian?” The family head’s expression soured. “What are you talking about?”

“It’s true, sir. There is a barbarian associated with the Akasha family. I’m not certain of the details, but it seems he’s on friendly terms with the family head.”

Information about Ketal wasn’t widely known in the capital. After all, Ketal spent most of his days visiting Arkemis in the early morning and returning late at night. However, since neither Ketal nor Milayna had made a concerted effort to hide his presence, some details about him had leaked out.

The Hybolka family, having long kept the Akasha family under surveillance, had naturally gathered some information about Ketal as well.

A flicker of interest crossed the family head’s face. “Tell me what you know about this barbarian.”

The subordinate fell silent as he hesitated to speak. He couldn’t provide an answer. The family head scowled. After a tense silence, the subordinate finally spoke, albeit reluctantly.

“There’s nothing to tell, sir. We do not know where he came from. Judging by his appearance, he is definitely a barbarian, but beyond that... he seems to have appeared out of nowhere, like he dropped from the sky..”

“I see.” The family head stroked his chin thoughtfully.

The subordinate, sensing his displeasure, quickly added, “I doubt he’s worth worrying about. Before the Akasha family rose to prominence, Milayna Akasha personally handled trade negotiations. Perhaps she met him during one of those trips.”

“So this barbarian is her acquaintance. The Iron Lady’s tastes are... unique,” the family head murmured. Then, after a brief pause, he asked, “Do you think he is worth any consideration?”

“He might be,” the subordinate replied.

“In that case, bring the barbarian to me. I don’t care if you have to cut off his limbs to do it.”

“But we don’t know the extent of his strength. Shouldn’t we confirm his capabilities first—”

“It doesn’t matter. A barbarian is no real threat. Who’s our best available operative?”

“Our strongest is Lockbird.”

“Lockbird, huh? Send him to capture the barbarian,” the family head ordered. “Yes, sir.” The subordinate nodded and left.

“If even the Iron Lady spends her nights talking with him, I doubt she will move recklessly. Afterward, we can use him as a puppet,” the family head murmured, his voice calm and assured. The family head chuckled quietly to himself. “All of this is according to the will of the Great Grotesque One.”

His voice echoed through the empty room, reverberating into the void.

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