The Calm Before the Storm.
There could be no more fitting words to describe our tribe's situation right now.
'At least, it looks peaceful on the surface.'
The trade with the Western Volcano Tribe had been concluded, and the potatoes were growing well.
The barbarians were filling their bellies and regaining their vitality.
But...... This was not real peace.
I sat in Chieftain Jakan's tent, looking down at the old bone-piece calendar before me.
A red dot marked today's date.
And beyond the four empty spaces that followed, a large circle painted blood-red was glaring at me.
'Four days.'
That was the time remaining until the Red Moon rose.
We had decided to borrow the Western Volcano Tribe's military strength, but we could not rest easy for that alone.
Burta. Would that greedy beast truly only protect us?
What if he used the chaos of the Red Moon to swallow our tribe?
Could he really have seen those plump, luscious potatoes without feeling any greed?
There were too many variables, and naturally, we had far too few cards in hand.
“Chieftain.”
Jakan was leaning against the wall, cleaning his greatsword.
The sound of the blade being ground against a rough whetstone echoed steadily.
“I am listening.”
“We need to make a plan.”
“A plan?”
“A plan for the day the Red Moon rises.”
Jakan's hand stopped.
He set down his sword and looked at me.
“I already made a plan. I made a promise to the Western Volcano Tribe. A warrior does not break a promise.”
“That is only the Northern Rock Tribe's story.”
Oh, you naïve teenage chieftain......!
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
If the world ran on honor and promises alone, how wonderful that would be.
But the essence of both the world where I had lived and this barbaric world was ultimately profit.
I remembered the glittering, greedy look in Burta's eyes when he saw the E-Grade Potatoes.
It was a look I had often seen in the place where I had lived.
[Success! You resist Barbarian Mind.]
Glancing at the system message, I explained to Jakan.
“Listen, Jakan. When the powerless have something valuable, it is taken from them.”
Jakan's deep, pure eyes looked at me.
“Burta is curious. How such potatoes grow in this dead land. If he learns that potatoes can be grown in the ground, do you still believe he will protect us?”
Jakan's brows drew together.
He was simple, but he was not stupid. No, he was actually quite clever.
He understood what my words meant.
“He will try to take it.”
“Yes. He will kill us and take our land, or make us slaves.”
I lowered my voice.
“We are still weak. You are strong, but you cannot defeat Burta yet.”
“......”
Jakan did not argue, but he clenched both fists as though frustrated.
“So we must hide it. Until we become strong. Until you stand above Burta.”
Jakan nodded.
Resolute determination filled his eyes.
I explained in detail what our tribe had to do on the day the Red Moon rose, and he nodded along.
Did he understand it properly......? In any event, there was no other way.
To live, I had to trust them.
“Gather the tribe members. Then give the order.”
“Understood.”
Jakan rose and headed outside.
.
.
.
A little later.
The open space in the center of the village.
Every member of the Northern Rock Tribe had gathered.
Around forty people.
Half were teenagers who still had not shed their youthfulness, while the other half were little children who only came up to my waist.
“Waaah! Shaman!”
“Izak. Steam potatoes for us.”
The children were chattering with bright smiles.
Unaware of the terror of the approaching Red Moon or the threat from the neighboring tribe.
Pure souls who were simply happy that they could eat their fill today.
When I glanced at Jakan's slightly stiff expression, one part of my heart ached.
How hard had Jakan worked alone to protect those smiles?
- BOOM!
Jakan drove the tip of his greatsword into the ground.
When a heavy tremor spread through the open space, the noisy chatter quickly died down.
The chieftain's presence always overwhelmed the atmosphere.
Though he was young, the spirit he exuded was not.
“People of the Northern Rock Tribe, listen.”
Jakan's voice rang out.
“When the sun sets after four nights, the Red Moon will rise.”
“......!”
The tribe members' faces stiffened.
The Red Moon.
The fear that word inspired was instinctive.
The memory of that night, when adults bled and died, had embedded itself in the children's minds like trauma.
“Fight! I fight!”
“I fight too! I brave warrior. I avenge father!”
Some hot-blooded warriors raised their weapons and shouted.
But I could see it.
They were covering fear with anger.
Jakan shook his head.
“No. This time, the Northern Rock Tribe does not fight.”
“What? What does that mean!”
Everyone began murmuring.
Not fighting? That meant death.
“We bought the Western Volcano Tribe.”
“Huh? How buy tribe?”
“Then we become Western Volcano Tribe now?”
The children looked at one another in confusion.
To people who had no concept of hiring, those were hard words to understand.
“No. We bought the Western Volcano Tribe's swords. On the night the Red Moon rises, they will fight the monsters instead of us. Then we give them potatoes.”
“That's cowardly!”
“Only cowards do that! I fight!”
Just as expected, opposition erupted.
In particular, hot-blooded men like Malko were kicking up a huge fuss.
To a barbarian, avoiding battle was shameful.
Jakan looked down at them quietly.
Then he spoke in a low, powerful voice.
“Truly cowardly coward...... Is one who hides without paying a price. Stupid one who charges in without preparing.”
“......”
“We paid a fair price. With potatoes we worked hard to grow, we bought their strength. That is not shameful. It is wise.”
Jakan looked at me as he spoke, so I nodded to him.
The crowd fell quiet.
Jakan's words had a strange persuasive power.
“Look at yourselves. We are still young. We are not ready yet. That is why we bought them. Survive. Live and become stronger. That is the chieftain's order to you.”
Whew......! If I could, I wanted to see his Status Window. What was his Intelligence?
In any event, innocent eyes blinked at Jakan's great speech.
The order to survive.
It came across as far heavier, and at the same time warmer, than an order to fight and die.
“And.”
Jakan paused and looked around.
“I give one more command. Never speak about farming.”
“Why? That's something to be proud of!”
“I want boast. Our potatoes very big!”
“Right! Barbarian rich. We must spread rumor! I want boast potato wizard!”
The place grew noisy again.
Of course it did.
Malko already looked as though his mouth was itching to death.
That guy was the problem.
- BOOM!
Jakan stomped his foot again and roared.
“If you speak......! The Western Volcano Tribe takes it!”
“......!”
“Are you all right with those red monsters taking all our potatoes and capturing Izak?”
“No!”
“I do not want my potatoes taken. Izak not taken either!”
The barbarians changed their stance at the speed of light.
“I keep mouth shut.”
“I keep secret well too. I tell no one.”
They covered their mouths in alarm and nodded.
They were simple, but that made them certain.
Potatoes and the shaman had become treasures that they, too, had to protect.
I let out a sigh of relief.
This would do.
Our kids might seem a little lacking, but they followed the chieftain's orders well.
'Did I do well?'
I felt a piercing gaze on the left side of my face, so I turned my head. Jakan was staring at me with that expression.
I gave a small laugh and nodded to him. I saw his gaze soften.
Yes, you did well. Little chieftain. You are an excellent leader.
After looking at me for a moment, Jakan pointed at the oldest children among the tribe members and spoke.
“Remember it. And the ones I name, come to my tent. You have work to do.”
***
That afternoon.
'Hmm...... It takes three days until harvest, so if I harvest today, I can harvest once more at the end.'
There were four days until the Red Moon rose.
I intended to harvest once more without the Western Volcano Tribe noticing, then rest for a while.
I sat between the furrows, looking at potatoes more precious than gold with a satisfied expression.
Only one last potato remained to harvest.
The moment I put strength into it and lifted the heavy potato stem.
A message window appeared along with a cheerful notification sound.
- DING!
[You have harvested a D-Grade Potato. When consumed, it provides twice the usual satiety.]
[Achievement Accomplished! You are the first barbarian to harvest a D-Grade crop.]
[Title Acquired! You have acquired ‘A Barbarian Serious About Farming.’ Cultivation Speed +5%, Fame +1, Stat Points +1]
[You gain experience.]
“Oh......!”
I could not help but exclaim.
Jackpot. Not an E-Grade Potato, but a D-Grade Potato! It seemed likely to be because my Potato Comprehension had reached 40%.
And a potato that made me twice as full.
This was it! With this, I could solve the food problem drastically.
One potato had the effect of eating two, so it was effectively as though our harvest yield had doubled.
If there was a potato god, I wanted to bow before it.
'Farming does not betray you after all.'
Just as I was about to close the Status Window, filled with satisfaction.
- DING!
[Beginner's Luck! You have obtained 1 <Special Mutant Crop> as a gift from the goddess.]
“Huh?”
A special crop? What was that?
I sprang to my feet and examined the newly dug pile of potatoes again.
One potato emitting an unusually alien light caught my eye.
I swiftly picked it up. It was about the same size as the other potatoes, but its skin was red.
==========
【Target Information】
• Name : Shining Muscle Potato
• Grade : ?
【Detailed Description】
• A special crop received as a gift from the goddess. It is tough and tastes bad.
• When consumed, permanently increases Strength by +1.
==========
After checking the item information, I doubted my own eyes.
The goddess had given this as a gift? Had she really felt sorry!? You damned goddess!
Even as I cursed inwardly, I grinned from ear to ear while examining the potato.
'Jackpot.'
Thinking I might have misread it, I rubbed my eyes and checked again. Strength +1.
“Heh.”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
This was a jackpot. A real jackpot.
My gaze suddenly turned toward the tribe members moving busily around me.
In particular, to Chieftain Jakan, who was silently training in the distance.
'If this keeps happening......'
I swallowed.
I had awakened as a hidden Farmer class and was raising stats that were hard to increase even by one, but what about them?
What if I produced ten or a hundred potatoes like this? What if I fed them these potatoes like food?
Would our entire tribe not become a super-monster muscular barbarian army with Strength over 100?
'Raise the strongest barbarian tribe!?'
The thought alone made my mouth water, but I shook my head and dismissed the fantasy.
Calm down, Kang Jin-ho. Do not count your chickens. First think about surviving the Red Moon four days from now.
I carefully tucked the Muscle Potato into my chest.
'I should give it to Jakan.'
That was what I had realized after seeing the Western Volcano Tribe.
Ah...... I could never survive alone.
If so, I had to invest in the strongest man and draw the most efficiency from it.
Of course, that person was Jakan, the barbarian hero and protagonist of this game. That was how I survived.
At that moment, the final notification appeared in my view.
[A Level Up is imminent. Upon reaching Level 5, a new class-exclusive skill will be unlocked.]
[Barbarian Farmer-exclusive skill ‘Sneak Peek’.]
“......Huh?”
Sneak Peek? Why was the skill's name like that?
Sneak Peek for a farmer.
The name was a little odd, but my heart beat faster all the same.
Level 5, and a new skill.
It made me think that I was adapting rather well to this barren, dangerous world in my own way.
'Ah! My ocean sunfish.'
First, I should feed that guy the Muscle Potato.