Chapter 290 - Heavyweights (2)

THUMP.

My heart, which had been beating quietly, began to race.

"... You're Auriel Gabis?"

Someone who might be able to answer every question I'd had since the day I opened my eyes in this body.

"Did you really... make that game?"

"I believe we agreed to one question at a time, but I understand how you feel. I'll answer this much."

Then he nodded.

"Yes. I made that game."

Whew. So it really was him.

Assuming he wasn't lying, of course.

"Now, I've told you my name, so it must be your turn. What's your name?"

He asked as though he was simply asking my name because I'd asked his.

But...

'He's probably after the same thing I was.'

Names mattered. All the more so in a spiritual world where appearances meant nothing.

As the Scholar of Destruction's childlike appearance demonstrated, we took the form we considered our own here.

The moment I revealed my name, my anonymity would vanish. He would have a way to find me outside.

So...

"Lee Hansoo."

I revealed my real name, which I'd never told anyone except Lee Baekho.

Naturally, the old man wasn't satisfied.

"Oh, so you were born in Korea? But I wasn't asking for that name. I meant the name you use in this world."

"The name I use in this world..."

Okay, I knew he'd say that.

"Nivels Enche."

That was a name I used here too, wasn't it?

Having seen Lee Baekho distinguish truth from lies, I'd deliberately slipped in a trick.

This man might have created the Round Table, after all. If he'd made the jewel that served as the gathering's core system, it wouldn't be strange for him to possess that ability.

'Besides, it never hurts to be careful...'

Indeed, he gave me a meaningful look when he heard my answer.

"Hmm..."

"Is there a problem?"

"No. Your turn now, then?"

After staring at me as though something didn't quite add up, he announced the end of his turn.

My mind was a jumble.

What should I ask first? There were so many things I'd wanted to ask this man if we ever met that even deciding on priorities was a task.

But...

'Right. Let's start with that.'

I picked one question from the lists I'd prepared.

"Why did you summon us to this world?"

The thing at the root of everything.

Motive.

Why had he done all this?

"... You really are special."

Instead of answering, Auriel Gabis made a strange remark.

"What do you mean?"

"I've met a few people from Earth, but most of them thought they'd simply entered a game."

Oh, so that was what he meant.

Well, I'd thought that myself once. But I'd experienced so much here and found so many clues. There was no way I'd still be under that misconception.

This was an independent world in its own right.

If my guess was right, [Dungeon and Stone] was a game made based on this world.

"So, what's your answer?"

"Yes, I suppose nothing could be more pressing from your perspective."

At last, Auriel Gabis spoke.

The reason they had needed to summon beings from distant other worlds.

"Because you're the only ones who can open the Gate of Abyss."

"What? The Gate of Abyss? What on earth is that..."

Auriel Gabis cut me off.

"One question at a time. Wasn't that the rule?"

"Ah..."

Right. That was true.

"Go ahead."

When I passed the turn to him, he grinned and spoke.

"Have you..."

"..."

"By any chance, used a Stone Fragment of Records?"

The deeply wrinkled old man's eyes brimmed with feverish anticipation.

* * *

The Stone Fragment of Records.

An heirloom passed down for generations in the family of Noark's lord, and a treasure with the absurd ability to turn back time.

'What? How did he figure that out?'

My heart sank the moment he mentioned it.

I'd never even considered that his very next question after asking my name would cut straight through to my circumstances.

'... Shit, what do I say?'

It was too late to casually brush it off by asking what a Stone Fragment of Records was. He must have noticed my surprise.

"Take your time answering."

Despite Auriel Gabis's words, I quickly made up my mind and asked him a question in return.

"What makes you think that?"

Of course, I knew asking that was practically half an admission.

But what else could I do? He didn't seem like someone I could fool with a lie, either...

'He must have evidence I don't know about.'

Auriel Gabis was almost certain. Otherwise, he couldn't have singled out something as specific as the Stone Fragment of Records.

"There are three reasons."

Sure enough, Auriel Gabis smiled as though addressing his grandson and explained the basis for his deduction.

"First, you're far too strong for someone who's only been here a year. Second, you weren't among those I invited here. Third, strong as you are, you're not strong enough to invade my domain without permission."

"Just from that...?"

"Hoho, it's hardly 'just that.' Only that stone could account for a contradiction of this magnitude."

No, that still didn't really make sense to me...

"So, may I take that as a yes?"

Denying it now would have been ridiculous, so I simply admitted it without a fuss.

It was a shame I'd been exposed on the second question, but what could I do?

I'd just have to do better from here on out.

"Heh heh. Since you're from Earth, you couldn't have come from the past. What year did you come from?"

"I believe we agreed to one question per turn."

"Ah, so we did. Go ahead."

He seemed to be in a good mood.

"Now, what else would you like to know? What the Gate of Abyss is? Whether the Witch is alive? Hmm, or perhaps you're wondering whether the outside really is hell, as the king says."

His tone suggested he'd answer anything I wanted to ask.

'Something about this makes me uneasy.'

Was it because I'd seen him coldly dismiss the other members earlier? Auriel Gabis's unexplained goodwill stirred my contrarian streak.

'... Should I just call it quits now?'

It occurred to me that it might be wiser to end this question-and-answer session here and ask him to let me out.

I had no rational reason, but that didn't make it something to laugh off. In my experience, ignoring this kind of instinct led to serious trouble.

But...

'If I don't find out now, I might never know.'

There was no denying that this opportunity was too precious to pass up over a vague feeling of unease.

This old man would have all the answers.

Finally, I made my decision.

'Skip the minor details and check only what matters.'

Was he originally from this world? If so, how had he traveled between dimensions? Did he have allies who shared his goals, and why had he created this spiritual world?

Swallowing those questions and countless others, I asked,

"Why are you trying to open the Gate of Abyss?"

Motive was one of the easiest ways to understand a person.

What was this man working toward?

After a brief pause, Auriel Gabis answered.

"Why do you want to know that?"

"I believe we agreed to one question per turn."

"Hoho, don't look so stern. I merely thought you'd ask what the Gate of Abyss was first."

His question was reasonable.

It simply wasn't the sensible choice for me.

"Haha, I think I'm starting to understand what sort of person you are."

"So, what's your answer?"

"I intended to answer almost anything you asked, but this seems rather unfair."

"You're refusing to answer?"

"I still hardly know who you are. Everything has its proper order."

Whew. I hadn't expected him to pull that.

Did that mean we should just end the questions here?

As I was thinking that, he spoke.

"How about this instead? If you open the Gate of Abyss, you can return to your original world. Well? It isn't what you asked, but isn't that a fair substitute?"

Auriel Gabis offered that information as some sort of compensation.

Clearly, he'd been planning to tell me this if I asked what the Gate of Abyss was...

'That can't be all there is to it.'

I felt he was hiding what really mattered.

If returning home was all the Gate of Abyss offered, he'd have had no reason to summon us here.

Tsk. This was why I'd tried to establish his motive...

'Well, if that's how we're doing this, I can just skip anything I can't dodge from now on, too.'

"Fine. Your turn."

I casually passed him the turn as though I was satisfied with that much.

Then we exchanged questions in quick succession.

"What year did you come from?"

"154."

"Twenty years in the future, then."

He gradually probed into my personal details, and I did the same to him.

"Are you enemies with the royal family?"

"... You could say that."

"I could say that? I'd like a definite answer."

"We are enemies."

Hmm. So that was how it was?

They weren't in cahoots, then.

"Was the person who gave you the invitation my future self... No, let me rephrase that. Who gave you your invitation?"

"An evil spirit from Earth who goes by GM."

"... GM?"

"That's all I know, too."

"I see. Your turn now."

"Why is the royal family hiding the fact that the outside world is fine?"

"Hmm. So that much has come to light twenty years from now?"

Auriel Gabis subtly fished for information, then answered when I gave no reaction.

"The royal family firmly believes that doing so is the way to protect this world."

"So it's not simply a lust for power."

"Unfortunately."

On his next turn, he asked what difficulty multiplier I'd beaten the game on, and I answered.

"Fifteen times."

"... You're lying."

Sheesh, no need to look so stern.

Still, that confirmed one thing.

There really had been a lie detector running.

"But I don't understand. Why lie about this, of all things..."

Auriel Gabis trailed off.

Then, as though he'd realized something, he raised his voice in excitement.

"... The original! Don't tell me you cleared the original version I made?"

'Damn it.'

I was cornered.

The moment I said no, that would be an answer in itself.

'And he had the nerve to say my question was unfair?'

It was ridiculous, but what could I do?

This was a world where the strong got their way. Small fry like me just had to accept it and put up with it.

"..."

As I kept my mouth firmly shut, unable even to say no, he spoke.

"So that's it! Of course! The Stone Fragment of Records would never react to someone who crossed over through that mass-produced garbage...!"

Taking my silence as confirmation, the old man began muttering emotionally.

Listening to him felt rather strange.

"Tell me, how did you beat it? How long did it take? No, what did you originally do for a living?"

How should I put it? The old man suddenly seemed desperate.

Still, old people tended to have mood swings, so I needed to test it first.

"I'd like something to drink."

"Hm? You shouldn't feel thirsty here..."

"Are you saying I'm lying, then?"

When I took off my mask and frowned, the old man hurriedly conjured a cup and filled it with water.

Hmm. This wasn't quite conclusive.

"Soda."

"... Soda?"

"I'd prefer lemon-lime soda to water."

"Ah! You mean that drink?"

The old man quickly changed the liquid in the cup.

It was clear, but the bubbles rising from the bottom made it unmistakably soda.

Unable to resist, I immediately gulped it down.

"Ahhh."

Unlike the tasteless, odorless stuff in my room, this sent a refreshing fizz down my throat.

"Burp."

"Hoho, you certainly know how to down a drink like a man. Now, if you're finished, answer me. Twenty years from now, are there many people like you who've cleared the original?"

At that question, a smile crept onto my face before I knew it.

My barbarian instincts, sensitive to hierarchy, were telling me something. I didn't know what was so important about clearing the 'original,' but...

"Hmm. Are you that curious?"

Didn't this mean I held the upper hand now?