Chapter 259 - Clan (3)

"..."

"..."

The silence continued even after the jewel's light faded. We had been unsure whether that post was true, but hearing Clown confirm it brought the full weight of the situation home.

'So the outside really is fine.'

What would happen to this city once our time in the community ended? The rumors were bound to spread out of control.

'Those fucking Noark bastards.'

Hearing the truth from Clown made Noark's intentions all the clearer. That post wasn't one individual's unauthorized confession. It was a calculated operation to spread this information within the city through the community.

'Which is why this Clown bastard is telling us so readily.'

Clown always hid behind a frivolous mask and spoke in an emotional voice, but that didn't mean he was an idiot. For instance, he had kept quiet about every previous incident. As one of Orculus's leaders, he couldn't possibly have been unaware of them, yet he had never offered them as information.

["An assassin will be coming for Bjorn Jandel soon."]

That latest piece of information was a similar case. He had implied Noark was sending the assassin, but he had actually been referring to an assassination plot by the major clans. And what he had gained in return was simple.

"By the way, you certainly worked hard, Stag Horns."

Clown had prompted Stag Horns to act in the real world.

"Pfft, I never imagined you'd send knights like that."

From his perspective, he had taken the first step toward tracing Stag Horns's identity. He had probably decided back then that this mattered more, even if the assassination of Bjorn Jandel failed.

"Obnoxious bastard."

Perhaps Stag Horns had recalled the knights midway through because he had belatedly realized Clown's aim. The longer he left a trail, the greater the chance of being caught.

"Watching you two fight is fun, but save it for later, in private! Um, Clown, would you mind if I asked a question?"

As Clown and Stag Horns showed signs of starting a battle of wills, SoulQueen deftly changed the mood with a question.

"So who is that old man? The one who supposedly vanished with over ten thousand people at once using Mass Teleport. From what I hear, he was also the one who led them outside."

"That's..."

Clown trailed off, then laughed awkwardly.

"Pfft, it's a secret. Where's the fun in just telling you?"

It was obvious he didn't know who the man was. Come on, that wasn't how you pretended to know something.

With all my accumulated experience as Mr. Lion, I spotted the perfect opening and spoke.

"That old man would never have revealed his identity."

For good measure, I gave Clown a contemptuous look that said I saw through his pathetic little tricks. He flinched like someone caught in a lie. He seemed to be thinking, 'How does he even know that?'

SoulQueen, meanwhile, turned toward me with a curious look.

"Hmm, does that mean you know, Mr. Lion? Who that mysterious old man is?"

No, how the hell would I know?

I met her gaze without answering—Mr. Lion's signature gesture telling people to bring something interesting if they wanted to hear anything.

SoulQueen grumbled, "Hmph. Can't you at least tell me what you're interested in?"

Now, now. That would limit the variety of information I got.

There was only one thing I could tell her—the very same line I had used in a similar situation before.

"I don't know myself."

Even Mr. Lion didn't know.

"What interests me."

SoulQueen looked at me as though she couldn't believe someone like me existed.

'Okay, that should more or less fill today's quota... '‌

Feigning disinterest, I listened to the conversation that followed. The briefly interrupted gathering was resuming.

"Then I'll go next."

Goblin took the second turn. Once again, his information concerned religion...

"Remember how I said an oracle was delivered a few months ago? I've finally discovered who received it."

What? Out of nowhere?

I hadn't expected that to come up here, so I struggled to maintain my composure.

"Something useful for once. Pfft, so who was it? And what sacred relic did they receive?"

Clown, who had shown a keen interest in the oracle and sacred relic back then, straightened in his seat.

Had this ever happened before? Goblin puffed himself up with pride as he spoke.

"Bjorn Jandel. The one who received the oracle was that barbarian they've recently started calling 'TITAN' in the city."

Things were getting interesting.

* * *

"Bjorn Jandel."

It felt odd saying it myself, but that name was all the rage lately.

"He's the one who received the oracle...?"

Clown, who had suffered plenty at the hands of my main character, let out an incredulous laugh.

"Hey, are you sure this information is accurate? He's not even human. How could he receive an oracle?"

"Well... I found that strange too, so I looked into it. It turns out it's not entirely unprecedented. Several members of other races have received oracles in the past."

"And most left a significant mark on history."

Stag Horns chimed in, supplementing Goblin's explanation.

"So stop doubting Goblin when you don't know a thing. Besides, didn't the jewel turn green?"

"That's..."

It wasn't always accurate. That was clearly what Clown wanted to say, but he couldn't finish. After all, he himself was the example proving it.

"All right, let's stop there. You too, Clown. Unlike your information back then, this is one hundred percent certain, so there's no need to worry. I saw it and confirmed it myself."

Huh? He had seen it himself?

That changed things. At first, I had thought Goblin had most likely picked up information that had spread. But he'd witnessed it?

'... Then he was one of them?'

When the third vine snapped, there had been five people around me. Three escort knights and Misha. And...

'Sven Parav.'

Deputy commander of Leatlas's Second Paladin Order.

Naturally, the suspects narrowed down to one. It was practically an established fact that Goblin was a Paladin.

'That's seriously amazing. To think he was that guy.'

There was a considerable gap between Goblin's image at the Round Table and that dignified Paladin. Well, not as big as mine, of course.

'... Maybe this is a good thing?'

After Clown and SoulQueen, I had now identified Goblin too. Perhaps someday this information would prove immensely useful.

"Then what was the sacred relic? Since it came from the Goddess of the Stars, was it something related to fate?"

"Actually... I don't know that myself. I'm not in a position to go around asking everyone..."

Goblin ended his turn by admitting he knew nothing about the relic's abilities.

SoulQueen was next.

"On the day the explorers who had returned alive from the Palace of Glory were being rewarded for their merits, the royal palace sent an official letter to the Magic Tower."

"An official letter?"

"Yes. It was a request to repair the Labyrinth portal. Upon inspection, it proved to be highly unstable."

SoulQueen stopped there, and soon the jewel shone green, signaling a pass. But the members weren't satisfied.

"Even if this is only your second time, isn't that a little shameless? Pfft, who has any use for garbage information like that?"

"Who knows? Perhaps that depends on one's level of understanding. If the repairs had been delayed even a little, a Dimension collapse could have occurred."

Unfazed by Clown's sneering, SoulQueen fired back. This time, however, even Stag Horns sided with him.

"You're not telling us a Dimension collapse is imminent, only that the repairs are complete. That's a bit lacking."

To be fair, there wasn't much they could gain from this information. For me, it was a slightly different story.

'... If the repairs are complete, I should assume the EXP duplication bug has been patched.'

Tsk. Did that mean I'd have to start speedrunning too if I wanted portal-opening EXP?

Still, just in case, I'd check it once more on my next trip into the Labyrinth.

"I have nothing more to say. I genuinely believe this information is every bit as good as anything else we've heard today."

SoulQueen held firm despite the members' objections and ultimately secured a pass.

"Oh, so you could do it that way..."

Goblin, who had been rejected many times before, seemed impressed that such an approach was possible.

But knowing about it and pulling it off were two different things. It wouldn't play out the same way if Goblin tried it. Not just anyone could practice barbarian-style stubbornness. You needed an underlying conviction that you were the best.

'This woman really is unusual too.'

Anyway, Stag Horns went after SoulQueen. He said one of the royal family's treasures had been stolen while Carnon was engulfed in flames. I'd never heard its name before, but judging by their reactions, it seemed quite important. I'd look into it later, once I got out.

"You're next, Crescent Moon."

At last, it was Crescent Moon's turn. Throughout the gathering, they had been unusually quiet and sparing with their words, so I was rather eager to hear what information they would offer. But it turned out to be nothing special.

"Due to internal circumstances, the fairies have decided to replace their next pureblood with someone else. They are searching for a suitable new candidate."

It concerned the internal affairs of one of the six races, so it would help us understand the current situation... but that was all. Ordinary information.

Still, I couldn't take my eyes off Crescent Moon, because they were staring straight at me.

"Next time, I shall bring something more interesting."

They had nothing useful this time, but were making it clear they had by no means given up on the Stone of Resurrection.

Not bad. In fact, today's information wasn't all that bad for me either.

'If they're choosing a whole new pureblood candidate, could I get Erwin to consume it? If I could just get her that, it'd be a massive win.'

As I briefly gathered my thoughts, I felt the gazes around me turn my way. Ah, my turn now.

Instead of the several pieces of information I'd prepared, I offered something else.

"The Stone of Resurrection can bring back up to two people."

So keep up the hard work.

* * *

The Stone of Resurrection. Until I mentioned it, the item had been considered nothing but a legend. Now, it was real.

Naturally, information about it was valuable. Still, I had thought members who weren't desperate for the stone might complain. This wasn't information on how to obtain it, only a fragment about its ability to revive up to two people. It was even the third time I had milked this subject.

And yet...

"..."

"..."

No one voiced a complaint. It wasn't the right atmosphere for that.

"Two people... I see. So that's how it is..."

Crescent Moon, who seemed to have recently lost someone precious, murmured dazedly at my words. An intense longing came through in their voice.

The silence lingered for a while.

"Well, now. Thanks to you, Crescent Moon, we've wasted one of today's opportunities."

Regretting that my turn had been wasted on the Stone of Resurrection, Clown suggested moving on to another round. But...

"I have nothing else prepared, so I shall stop here. If not for you, Mr. Lion, I would not have come at all."

Without so much as looking at Clown, Crescent Moon asked the others' understanding and immediately left the Round Table.

Goblin was in a similar position.

"Uh, everything I was curious about has been answered too... I don't really have anything else to use, so I'll be going."

Once Goblin left, Stag Horns apparently found continuing with four people a little too burdensome. He said he'd stop there and left as well.

Fair enough. These gatherings got pretty tough with four people or fewer. Excluding the speaker, you had to offer information that two of the other three didn't know to pass. Yet you received fewer pieces of information in exchange for each one you provided.

"Well, how about it? Shall the three of us continue?"

"I don't mind."

Clown and SoulQueen were both willing to keep going. In the end, the choice was mine.

'With just the three of us, I feel like we'd get a flood of valuable information... '‌

I was tempted, but decided not to push it. One wrong move could expose me as all show and no substance.

And so the gathering ended after the first round.

"If you had anything interesting, you'd have offered it already."

Maintaining Mr. Lion's persona, I delivered that arrogant remark, turned away, and returned to Lee Hansoo's room. Then I passed the time browsing posts until closing time came and I returned to my real body.

"Oh, right. I'm not home."

I was in a District 7 inn room, having borrowed Karon's face and name. The moment I opened my eyes, the worries I'd set aside came flooding back.

'Is Karon doing all right?'

Karon was my alibi. If GM really had been targeting tonight, he'd be watching Karon from a distance right now, checking whether he was a Player.

I sucked in a breath through my teeth.

I wanted to find out what had happened as soon as possible. But going to Karon now might needlessly ruin things. So I exercised patience and held back.

Then, the next morning, after a nearly sleepless night...

"Bjorn!"

I met Karon at the sanctuary again, as promised. Since the appearance change lasted thirty days, we put on the mask again to return to our original forms.

"Hehehe, judging by those dark circles under your eyes, you must have had one hell of a night!"

Oh, right. That was the excuse I'd given him.

"... Thanks to you."

I gave a vague answer and grilled Karon about everything that had happened yesterday, reasoning that I couldn't afford to run into something later that I didn't remember.

... Actually, I was just dying of curiosity. I'd left it to him, but had grown anxious for no good reason and spent the night imagining every possibility.

"Ah, yesterday?"

Just what had happened yesterday?