Chapter 240 - Awl (5)

In a study faintly scented with books, a man asked, "What was it like?"

The blonde woman, SoulQueen, considered briefly before answering.

"An extremely interesting place."

That was the most fitting description. The Corpse Collector was merely one of its members, and even he was utterly powerless there. She had never imagined the community contained a chat room like that.

But...

"My personal impressions aren't what you really want to hear, are they?"

SoulQueen smiled teasingly, and the man made no attempt to deny it. After all, he had sent her to infiltrate Observer of the Round Table for another reason.

["Perhaps Observer of the Round Table is a gathering they created to evade our notice."]

Spies sent by the royal family, or Players from another world. He had sent her there to investigate those two possibilities.

And what had she found?

Still smiling, SoulQueen added, "It seems your instincts were right again, Love."

"Which possibility do you mean?"

"It does seem Observer of the Round Table was created by a Player from another world."

"Then I'll need to hear more."

SoulQueen slowly recounted what had happened there: Mr. Lion, with his overwhelming presence; the Clown, exposed as the Corpse Collector; Stag Horns, who appeared to be affiliated with the royal family; and Goblin, whose very ordinariness made him seem all the more out of place.

"Hmm, I'm not sure about Fox. She doesn't seem particularly quiet, but I didn't really get to speak with her this time."

Even so, Fox was a woman worth watching. After all, she had asked to speak to Mr. Lion at the end.

What if that had been some sort of clandestine rendezvous?

"So you suspect this member called Mr. Lion."

"Yes. If there's a Player from another world among them, it can only be him."

When the man asked for her reasoning, SoulQueen answered without hesitation.

"He drove the Corpse Collector to the brink of mental contamination with Bloodlust alone. Judging by how he withdrew it precisely at the limit, he seemed to have plenty to spare."

That alone made it clear. No ordinary human possessed the mental fortitude to do such a thing. A Player from another dimension who had arrived in this world over a century ago and survived ever since, however, might.

And that was not her only evidence.

During the second round, Mr. Lion had said:

["Ghost Busters was created by an evil spirit from another world."]

In response to her statement that the GM had not created the community, he had casually revealed information known to only a tiny handful of people. Almost as though he knew who she was.

That was when she had become certain.

["Yes, so that was it after all."]

This man, who had already seemed dangerous, was indeed no ordinary Player.

"Come to think of it, you said he knew about the Corpse Collector from the beginning?"

"Yes. For your information, the members seemed to believe Mr. Lion knew all their identities."

"... That is suspicious."

The community's security was absolute. Even he, who had inherited Moderator privileges and built Ghost Busters into its present form, could not discover their identities.

"How do you think he found out who they are?"

"Well, if he really does know, there are two possibilities."

In answer to SoulQueen's question, the man offered two scenarios.

"First, Mr. Lion is on par with the archmage from another world who created this subspace, or has someone like that as an ally. And second..."

"Second, Mr. Lion is working with whoever created Observer of the Round Table. Correct?"

"Yes, exactly. That 'Master' gathered all the current members, so naturally Mr. Lion would know if the Master tipped him off."

"But then it wouldn't make sense for him to know my identity."

"We don't know that for certain yet, do we? Next time, try laying some bait. Find out whether he really knows who you are, SoulQueen."

"I will."

"At any rate, information about the Master becomes important now. Have you learned anything?"

"I haven't met the Master yet. But after the gathering, Goblin told me the Master visited on the day that strange login was recorded."

"Then the person who secretly entered the community that day uses the nickname '0720.'"

"That would seem to be the case. I wanted to learn more, but Goblin still seems wary of me..."

The two continued talking for roughly another hour. Observer of the Round Table was not their only topic. They discussed the recent incident, the staggering number of Players who had died, and the most efficient way to recruit more new members going forward.

And...

"What are you going to do about Lee Baekho? He's turning the Magic Tower upside down looking for you, Love. Right now, you're only one of several suspects, but I don't think you can hide your identity forever..."

They also discussed the most troublesome recent development.

"I'm still considering what to do about Baekho. The circumstances do suggest he's now hostile to the royal family... but we must be cautious. It could be a trap."

"All right. I'll leave that to you, Love."

As their conversation ranged over various subjects, he asked another question.

"How is the investigation into Elfnunna coming along?"

"All his posts were deleted, so restoring them will take quite some time. He did have a fair amount of GP, though."

"Did he get it from Baekho?"

"No, he earned almost all of it on his first day by selling some high-end information."

SoulQueen elaborated that it was information someone who had played the game a fair amount would know, and that all his posts and comments had been deleted, so recovering them would take time.

"Hmm, I see..."

The man tapped his index finger against the armrest, as though organizing his thoughts.

There was one reason he had investigated Elfnunna: he believed there was a possibility that Bjorn Jandel and Elfnunna were the same person.

Bjorn Jandel. A barbarian whose rate of growth was unprecedented. Unusually, he had chosen a shield at his coming-of-age ceremony.

Elfnunna. Someone who had easily earned GP by selling game information within the community. He was also a Korean whom Lee Baekho looked up to as a bro.

That was enormously important to the man. If they were the same person, there was a chance he was the very person the man had been waiting for so desperately—

'... Wait.'

A thought suddenly struck him, and he tentatively spoke.

"SoulQueen."

"Yes? Go ahead."

"Did you say earlier that Mr. Lion was East Asian?"

"Yes. He may wear a mask, but he can't hide his skin color."

As one might expect of a Western game, only a very small proportion of its Players were Asian. Lee Baekho was proof enough. He had opened a chat room hoping to meet a Korean, but it had taken years to find a compatriot.

And that compatriot was Elfnunna—the very person suspected of being Bjorn Jandel.

"The Clown's identity is the only one Mr. Lion explicitly revealed, correct?"

The man adjusted his posture as he asked.

"Uh, it was my first visit, so I can't say for sure, but that was the impression I got."

"I see..."

He trailed off, lost in thought. After all, Bjorn Jandel had fought the Corpse Collector very recently.

Could this really be mere coincidence?

Of course, they had not even established whether he was Elfnunna, so this remained an outrageous leap in logic. But for that very reason...

"When is Bjorn Jandel's conferment ceremony?"

"Three days from now, as I recall."

"Three days..."

The man soon made his decision.

"It seems I'll be going out for the first time in a while."

Rather than ponder it endlessly, he would meet the man himself.

* * *

"Hey, wake up, nyah! Wake up! I said wake uuup, nyah!"

The morning after my visit to the community, I woke to Misha smacking me on the back. Having used Bloodlust for the first time in ages, I was so tired I thought I might fucking die, but...

"What did you do yesterday to be this worn out first thing in the morning, nyah?"

After visiting the community, it was best to get up on time, even if I had to force myself. Anyone who knew about the place might find it suspicious if I slept in only on this particular day. And there were more eyes on me now.

'They said some fucking assassin was coming, too...'

Yesterday, I'd simply collapsed from exhaustion, but from now on, I probably wouldn't even get a decent night's sleep.

God, this was so damn annoying.

'Why is everyone so desperate to get me?'

In my current condition, I wouldn't even be able to fight as usual. A sigh escaped me, but I quickly washed my face and headed downstairs to eat with everyone.

It was a slightly unfamiliar scene. After all, there was one more person at our usual breakfast.

"Y-you're up?"

"Of course I am. Don't just stand there awkwardly. Sit down before the food gets cold."

"Y-yes!"

Erwin sat at the table with a tense expression and picked at her food.

"..."

An uncharacteristically awkward silence settled over the table. Fortunately, Misha sensed it and spoke up brightly.

"So, how's my cooking, nyah?"

"I-it's delicious... Thank you..."

"If there's anything you want to eat, let me know and I'll make it for dinner, nyah. Oh, and tell me later if there are any ingredients you can't eat, nyah."

As always, Misha took the initiative to attend to even the little details.

"Carrots! I can't eat carrots!"

Aynar seized the opportunity to butt in, only to get smacked on the back.

Hah. As if that would work. I'd tried at least ten times myself, and failed every time. Something about how we ate meat all the time, so we at least needed to eat our vegetables properly?

'I appreciate the thought, but...'

Tsk. Barbarians had their own way of life.

"I-I'll wash the dishes!"

After breakfast, Aynar headed out to the sanctuary as usual, leaving the three of us to spend some time together.

The atmosphere was better than I'd expected. How should I put it? It felt like the pecking order had been firmly established.

"Erwin, come sit over here now, nyah. We should have a talk, nyah."

"Y-yes!"

"It might be a little early to ask this, but what are you planning to do from now on, nyah? Our team is already full, nyah."

"Well..."

Erwin trailed off and glanced at me, gauging my reaction. She probably wanted to know whether she could mention the clan.

Well, there was no reason she couldn't, but I didn't have the energy for a long discussion right now, so I brushed the matter aside.

"It's far too early, Misha. We don't even know whether we'll be able to enter the Labyrinth next month."

"Well... that's true, nyah."

Honestly, until this whole situation was over, the wise choice was to put our Labyrinth expeditions on hold. We had no immediate financial concerns.

'... The most annoying part is that the city isn't safe either.'

The Dragonslayer. The Corpse Collector. An assassin from Noark. And the royal family's utterly inscrutable actions.

There were far too many reasons I needed to grow stronger as soon as possible. But...

'Still, I should watch how things develop until they settle down at least a little.'

I forced down my impatience. As the saying went, more haste, less speed.

'I'll have to meet Raven later and discuss this properly.'

Anyway, the three of us continued chatting over tea and snacks. Erwin had seemed terribly subdued and uncomfortable at first, but Misha's kindness put her at ease surprisingly quickly.

'It looks like she'd already come to terms with her sister's death to some extent before coming here.'

That took a considerable weight off my shoulders, too. She would inevitably carry a heavy burden through life, but Erwin had gotten back on her feet through her own strength.

Surely, then, she would be able to go farther.

"Huh? You have a younger sister, nyah?"

"Yes. She's still young, so she lives at the sanctuary. Once she comes of age... I'll have to find a way to look after her. Just like my sister did for me..."

"Nyaha, don't worry so much, nyah. That's still a long way off, isn't it, nyah? By then, you'll have much more breathing room, nyah."

"Do you think so...?"

Erwin and Misha's conversation was surprisingly heartwarming. Then Erwin suddenly bowed deeply.

"I-I never properly apologized for what happened then, did I? I-I'm sorry. I must have lost my mind that time..."

"... No need to apologize, nyah. Forget it, nyah. Some good came out of it, actually, nyah."

I tilted my head. That time? Had something happened between them that warranted an apology?

"B-but are you really all right with it...?"

"Why wouldn't I be, nyah? My thinking has changed quite a lot since then... and it's not like I have any right to object in the first place, nyah."

Misha shot me a sidelong look as she spoke. For some reason, a chill ran through me.

Just then...

KNOCK, KNOCK.

Someone knocked at the front door.

"I'll get it."

I quickly got up and approached the door. Normally, I would have flung it right open, but yesterday I'd learned an assassin might be coming.

First, I asked who it was.

"My name is Raymond Kepler, a regular knight of the Second Royal Knight Order."

The knight introduced himself politely, perhaps because I was about to become a baronet. Through the peephole, I saw that his armor looked authentic, and a whole group of other knights stood behind him.

'That much suggests he isn't lying.'

I also had an idea what this might be about, so I opened the door and confirmed the purpose of their visit face-to-face.

It was the first good news I'd had in a while.

"We've received orders from our superiors."

"What orders?"

"To protect you, Mr. Jandel, from any hostile individuals who might threaten you."

Right. Stag Horns had made his move.