Chapter 157 - Mr. Lion (3)

The newbie in the goblin mask.

Strictly speaking, I was the newbie, and he was more of a returning player...

Sorry, but if you’re coming back after a long break, shouldn’t you check what’s changed? Or at least listen carefully when the veterans explain the patch notes.

“S-stop...”

The moment Goblin managed to speak, I immediately withdrew my Bloodlust. But if I left it at that, they would just think I was an ill-tempered asshole.

[“Is this all you have to offer?”]

Recalling the last thing I had said before leaving the previous meeting, I settled on my line for today. Consistency was essential to keeping up an act, after all.

“A new face. I had hoped for more.”

I murmured the words with a touch of disappointment, as though the newcomer had raised my hopes a little, only to prove exactly what I had expected. As though I had been testing his mettle, not simply tormenting him.

“How dull.”

As if that had been my sole purpose, I looked away from the goblin mask and swept my gaze over Clown, Fox, Crescent Moon, and Stag Horns in turn. The message was clear: if all they had today was more dull chatter, my disappointment would only grow.

“Heehee, don’t worry, Mr. Lion. This time, I’ve brought something even you should find interesting.”

I didn’t answer. I simply rested my chin on my hand and waited, thinking to myself:

‘If Clown’s talking it up this much, it must be some seriously important information.’

Was this why everyone worked their underlings so hard?

As I struggled to maintain my indifferent air...

CLUNK.

The door to the Round Table room closed as the entry period ended. No more members would be joining us.

But there was one thing to take care of before the meeting could begin in earnest.

“Goblin, pull yourself together.”

“You’re a funny one. After acting so impressive all the time, too.”

“Heehee! Mr. Lion even went easy on you compared to last time, and look at you! Ah! You’re making even me feel embarrassed.”

Fox and Stag Horns chuckled in agreement with Clown.

“Certainly... it wasn’t as bad as last time.”

“Yes. Even I could endure it this time.”

I felt a little guilty as the two of them gave me subtle looks, as though thanking me for going easy on them. The reason was simple.

‘That was my maximum output...’

That was the most Bloodlust I could release while still being able to turn it on and off at will. I had practiced countless times after seeing the Karlstein family head use it in the real world, but once I went into serious mode, I couldn’t shut it off whenever I wanted.

Still, it worked out well enough if they wanted to interpret it as consideration. Was this why it was so important to look impressive in the first place?

“S-sorry. I’m all right now.”

Anyway, Goblin finally recovered, though the experience seemed to have traumatized him: the instant our eyes met, he looked away.

‘He definitely seems a cut below the other four.’

Fox alone was proof of that. She had endured my full-fledged Bloodlust for much longer, yet she was merely wary and cautious around me, not terrified like this.

“Who should go first, then?”

Fox opened the discussion, looking at Clown. He shrugged.

“You save the tastiest bite for last, don’t you? Why don’t we start with Mr. Goblin?”

“Ahem. Fine by me.”

Goblin cleared his throat and delivered his information, as though determined to make up for his earlier disgrace.

“I’m sure you all know that Ludwig, the high priest of the stars, went missing.”

“And?”

“Orculus was responsible. Apparently, they kidnapped him and were putting him to work.”

Could this bastard be a priest? Was that how he knew?

The thought crossed my mind, but the gem on the Round Table shone red.

“Heehee. It seems at least half of us already know that one.”

For some reason, it left a bitter taste in my mouth. It hadn’t even been half a month since I delivered the letter. Lee Baekho knew, and it seemed everyone in the know had already heard at least something—

“You should get used to it quickly. Ordinary information won’t satisfy those two.”

Huh?

“I hadn’t heard this. Perhaps this incident will lead the temple to lend its support to the royal family.”

Judging by Fox and Crescent Moon’s comments, neither of them had known.

‘So it turned red because Clown, Stag Horns, and I knew?’

I clicked my tongue without thinking. Had Clown been watching me the entire time? He glanced at my face, stood up, and snapped at the other three.

“Excuse me, have we abandoned our unwritten rules? I thought we agreed not to announce outright that we hadn’t known something.”

“Sorry. I just felt a little bad for Goblin.”

“I let it slide when it was just us. But we have a new member now, don’t we? Let’s all be more careful, shall we?”

“Y-yes, of course.”

Oh, so there had been a rule about that all along. It made sense. If they kept doing this, it would inevitably become clear who knew which pieces of information.

That had been bothering me privately, but Clown stepping in had neatly resolved it.

‘Still, I don’t think he did that just for my sake...’

Something similar had happened at the previous meeting.

[“Don’t be too discouraged, Crescent Moon. Most people wouldn’t know what you just told us.”]

Back then, Clown himself had been the first to behave that way. Which meant...

‘Did he decide that this information could be used to work out his identity?’

I wasn’t sure, but it seemed entirely possible. If that guess was right, though...

‘Clown is connected either to the priesthood or to the underground city. One of the two.’

The latter seemed more likely. I couldn’t picture Clown working at a temple. Though, of course, he could be deliberately playing a character like me.

‘That’s not what matters right now.’

I refocused on the meeting and listened closely to the next piece of information Goblin revealed. Had the red light on his first offering come as a shock?

“The Goddess of the Stars has delivered an oracle.”

This time, the green light came on immediately.

Was this something even Clown hadn’t known?

“I’d like to buy information on who received that oracle.”

“I don’t know that myself...”

“Heehee. If even a paladin doesn’t know, the temple must be keeping it tightly under wraps.”

“Didn’t we agree you wouldn’t mention that?!”

“Ah, how rude of me. But everyone knows anyway. Why be so sensitive?”

At that, the man in the goblin mask stole a glance at me. Clown laughed as though he couldn’t believe it.

“Do you really think he would care about you?”

Goblin could only huff indignantly, unable to offer a rebuttal. I casually made a mental note.

[Goblin mask = paladin.]

In any case, the meeting continued. After Goblin came Fox, who was seated beside him.

“A double-digit Numbered item will be listed at the Sky Auction House next month.”

A double-digit Numbered item. In other words, an item numbered somewhere from 11 to 99 was going up for auction.

Had Clown’s reminder about the rules worked? No one said much after she shared her information, but the atmosphere grew heavy, as though they now saw one another as competitors.

‘Whew. I need to get access to the Sky Auction House soon, too.’

The Sky Auction House was in the capital, Carnon. To enter Carnon, I would need to gain more fame, or raise my explorer rank and build up my merit score. That would take at least a full year.

‘I don’t have the money for a double-digit Numbered item anyway. I’ll have to pass this time.’

I let go of the idea without any lingering regrets. I didn’t even know exactly which item it was, and if I came into that much money, using Garpas’ Necklace from the count’s banquet ought to come first anyway.

“The royal family is planning a punitive expedition against Noark.”

Stag Horns offered his information after Fox, and the green light came on. Lee Baekho had said a punitive force might be assembled, and he had been right. I would take his advice and stay well away from it.

Next came Crescent Moon.

“Equipment believed to belong to the Dragonslayer, a member of Orculus, has appeared on the black market. The Dragonslayer Sword was apparently not among it, but something must have happened to him.”

Once again, the light turned green on the first attempt. Still resting my chin on my hand, I barely managed to maintain my composure.

His equipment had appeared on the black market? But all I had taken was the Dragonslayer Sword.

I was bewildered at first, but the situation soon took shape in my head.

‘I should probably assume Baekho was telling the truth.’

The Dragonslayer had lost his memories. Probably because of that drug. Whoever had administered it must have stripped him of the rest of his equipment and sold it all on the black market.

‘Finally, it’s Clown’s turn.’

Having worked clockwise from Goblin, we had finally reached Clown. After all his buildup, the gazes directed at him were full of anticipation.

“Hmm. Would you like to go first, Mr. Lion?”

“You seem quite confident.”

“Of course. If I tell another boring story everyone knows, you might not come back next time, might you?”

I chuckled and gave a slight nod, signaling him to stick to the original order. I had no intention of playing along with his silly games.

“Well, I suppose there’s no helping it, then. Perhaps your story will be even more entertaining, Mr. Lion!”

Clown shrugged flippantly. Then he stretched, contorting his body to a grotesque degree, and casually dropped his bombshell.

“Within three years, Unity magic that can link up to six people will be developed.”

Silence followed his playful words. Everyone turned toward the center of the Round Table.

“It’s green...”

That meant Clown’s words were true. No, it meant that Clown, at least, believed them to be true.

“Holy shit. To think that was possible.”

“The Guild, the royal family, the clans... Everything will change.”

Unwritten rules or not, the members all voiced their astonishment. And naturally so. From the very basics of team composition onward, it would vastly expand the scope of explorers’ activities. Not to mention...

‘Six people could enter the final floor?’

That was practically the same as multiplying the odds of clearing the game several times over. Five people and six were fundamentally different. Whether in ten-times mode or a hundred-times mode, it would open up party compositions and synergies impossible in the original game.

Through it all, however, Clown watched only me, as though the other members’ reactions didn’t matter.

“Well? What do you think?”

The eyes concealed behind the small holes in his mask met mine. The emotion in them was unmistakable.

‘What is he, a little kid desperate for praise?’

I chuckled and spoke honestly, insofar as it wouldn’t undermine my persona.

“This is... somewhat interesting.”

One gold star earned.

* * *

They say praise can make even a whale dance. Well, a few hundred lashes would probably make it dance too... but there was an enormous difference in efficiency.

What truly inspired passion in people was the future: the reward they desperately hoped for and looked forward to.

“Ahem. Then it’s your turn now, Mr. Lion?”

Having earned his gold star, Clown awkwardly averted his gaze and changed the subject. As if they had been waiting for that cue, everyone’s eyes turned to me. Thanks to Clown’s earlier bombshell, their eyes were positively sparkling.

‘... This is tricky.’

I had prepared a few pieces of information to share today. But...

‘The quality of the information has gone up too much.’

Perhaps because of what I had said at the end of the last meeting, everyone seemed to be digging into their reserves. Clown had gone all out. Information about six-person Unity magic? That was a result I would never have gotten without playing the mysterious figure.

‘Whew. It’s a good thing, but...’

It also put me under far more pressure. What on earth should I tell them?

It wasn’t as though I had nothing that could meet their sky-high expectations...

‘But if other people learn that, it’ll affect me too.’

The problem was choosing information that would be of no use even if they knew it, like the information about Bandemon. Besides, bringing up the Labyrinth when everyone else was discussing the outside world would feel somewhat out of place.

‘Hmm. That really is my best option.’

After carefully considering the repercussions this information could cause, I made my decision. Then I looked at Clown and spoke, as though rewarding him for being the one person to entertain me.

“You were curious about the oracle earlier.”

“I have no intention of explaining why—”

I cut off Clown’s mistaken response and said quietly:

“The oracle came with a sacred relic.”

“What?”

“A new sacred relic has entered the world through an oracle delivered by the Goddess of the Stars.”

Clown went blank for a moment, as though he had heard something impossible, before gathering himself. He looked at the gem glowing green and asked cautiously:

“... Might you also tell us what kind of sacred relic it is?”

Unlike his usual playful tone, his voice had turned cold and subdued.

‘Right. What matters to you is what the sacred relic is, not who received the oracle.’

I smiled in amusement and answered.

“If you bring me something entertaining again.”

“Heehee. Well, I’m glad you’ll be coming back.”

Clown let out his usual frivolous laugh. But I could feel it. The next time I came, I would hear something even more interesting.

I couldn’t begin to imagine what it might be, but...

“I look forward to it.”

When that time came, I would probably tell him this:

That it was boring.