Chapter 370 - Black Star (3)

Mr. Lion was Bjorn Jandel.

SoulQueen was the first to voice that claim at this Round Table. Her evidence was that Mr. Lion had disappeared immediately after Bjorn Jandel's death.

In other words...

'All I need is an alibi, and that's that.'

Mr. Lion was not Bjorn Jandel.

Once that single statement became an absolute premise, their suspicions would lose much of their force.

["Didn't you say he seemed to have absorbed an Ogre Essence, too?"]

["I doubt she'd use a pet name for a stand-in."]

["Then it would make sense for the Mage of Gold to leave that out of her report."]

["There is a possibility he faked his death."]

After all, those suspicions had sprung from the possibility that Mr. Lion was Bjorn Jandel. Clown's reaction was proof of that.

["Pfft, what are you all talking about? Bjorn Jandel is dead."]

Firmly convinced that Mr. Lion couldn't possibly be Bjorn Jandel, he alone had refused to entertain those suspicions.

'Huh. He really is different in here and out there.'

Outside, all I wanted was to smash his fucking head open and kill him. At the Round Table, though, he had his surprisingly endearing moments.

Ah, this wasn't the time for that. The others looked like they were finally coming back to their senses, too.

"..."

"..."

Fox was the first to speak in the oppressive silence.

"... Twenty-two years ago?"

The shock in her voice was too great to describe in a few words. Which was only natural.

"Um... d-does that even make sense? That would mean you've been here for over twenty years, Mr. Lion..."

As Goblin trailed off, Stag Horns smoothly picked up where he left off.

"It's not impossible. GM is said to have been dragged here around that time, too."

My supposed arrival date put me in roughly the same cohort as GM, the longest-surviving Player anyone knew of.

"Heehee, if I keep killing people for another ten years, could I become like you, Mr. Lion?"

Right, Clown. So you'd been here about ten years. From the looks of it, the others were somewhere around there, too.

"But why so quiet, Queen? Heehee."

Clown addressed SoulQueen with a sneer at how far off the mark she'd been.

"Shouldn't you be getting down on your knees and apologizing? Mr. Lion, Bjorn Jandel? What a ridiculous rumor to spread."

Enjoying his position as the only one who'd gotten it right(?), Clown swept his gaze over the other members.

"And you're all just as bad! Bjorn Jandel? Even if that bastard somehow survived, do you really think a small fry like him could hold a candle to Mr. Lion? Hm?"

"Hahaha... We were just considering the possibility. We didn't actually think..."

Goblin laughed awkwardly and trailed off. Stag Horns, on the other hand, didn't shirk responsibility and reflected on his own words.

"In hindsight... assuming Bjorn Jandel is alive at all was quite a leap."

"... Honestly, I find it hard to believe Bjorn Jandel was an evil spirit, either. There were some suspicious things about the royal family's announcement... And I've actually met him."

Fox had met me in person? Wasn't she one of the big shots who'd escaped through a dimensional gate? Hmm, maybe we'd run into each other on some other occasion?

'I'll think about that later...'

Clown soon agreed with Fox.

"Heehee, I'm with you on that. That utterly brainless barbarian, an evil spirit? How does that make any sense?"

This time, even Stag Horns, who was on bad terms with Clown, voiced some agreement.

"True... It's hard to imagine his behavior at the conferment ceremony was an act."

"... You mean when he shoved Marquis Kudo in front of the Chancellor and all those nobles?"

"Hehe, I heard about that afterward, too. Apparently he was shouting at the top of his lungs that the Marquis had used him to do a forward roll?"

... How embarrassing. What was I supposed to do with all this praise to my face?

'Anyway, that seems to have cleared away all their suspicions...'

As I glanced around, I noticed SoulQueen still sitting quietly, one step removed from the conversation.

'What is she thinking so hard about?'

While I watched Queen, curious about what was going through her head, Clown changed the subject.

"Queen, how long are you going to sit there like that? It's your turn now. Can't you see Mr. Lion is waiting?"

Apparently, that was how he'd interpreted my staring at SoulQueen. What was he, a professional lackey? Why was he so desperate to speak on my behalf?

"Ah, oh! Yes. Right... I should..."

Had Clown's prodding worked? SoulQueen seemed to recover a little. She steadied her breathing, then slowly spoke.

"... The royal family already knows GM's identity."

Now that was interesting.

* * *

Jurven Havelion, the Magic Engineer. The head of a school and an idol to countless mages specializing in crafting.

But that was only the public story. The truth about him was different.

Ghost Busters, the evil spirits' community. Its leader, GM, was considered a legend among Players.

That was who he really was.

But...

WHOOOOSH!

The green light shining over the Round Table proved that SoulQueen's information was true, and that a majority hadn't known it.

"So the royal family knows about him..."

There was only one implication. Beyond deliberately leaving GM at large—

"Then GM and the royal family are very likely cooperating."

It could be taken that far.

That would also explain why he'd seemed to discount any threat from the royal family during our meeting.

Then why had SoulQueen revealed this at the Round Table? I soon learned the reason.

"Heehee, so GM is just another one of those bastards. No wonder the rumors never spread through the city, no matter how many people I told to talk."

It had to be advice and a warning: trying to spread rumors was pointless, so don't bother.

"Wait, isn't that strange, though? GM clearly defined the royal family as the enemy, didn't he?"

When Goblin pointed out the contradiction, Crescent Moon answered with a bitter smile.

"Nothing is more futile than believing something will last forever. Especially when it comes to people."

Whatever GM had been like in the early days, no one could know whether his original purity of purpose had survived.

"If this gets out, the community itself might disappear."

Stag Horns murmured with a sigh in his voice.

"Yes. Every Player would be terrified to learn GM had sided with the royal family. Myself included."

Fox fixed her gaze on SoulQueen, and the others naturally followed suit.

"Tell us, Queen. You're part of the administration, aren't you? Why did GM join hands with the royal family?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Then you're saying we should draw our own conclu—"

"But there is one thing I can tell you with confidence."

SoulQueen cut Fox off.

Then...

"If that round is over, let's start with me this time."

She placed her hand on the Round Table's gem.

"More than anyone, GM lives and acts for the sake of Players."

"..."

"I swear he would never offer other Players up to the royal family. The community's functions wouldn't allow it in the first place."

The moment she finished and lifted her hand, the gem began to glow green.

"Haha, hearing you say that is a bit of a relief."

Goblin broke the silence with a laugh, as though the awkward atmosphere itself made him uncomfortable. With that, the air of interrogation surrounding SoulQueen vanished entirely.

"It's a great relief that the functions make it impossible."

That was probably the deciding factor. GM could change his mind later, but knowing the worst-case scenario was technically impossible had eased their fears.

"True. If GM's privileges let him identify us, we wouldn't be in this situation..."

"Rather than serving under the royal family, it's more likely a relationship of give and take."

"Then it's your turn now."

Apparently unwilling to linger on the topic, SoulQueen hastily wrapped up the conversation and passed the turn to Clown.

"Heehee, after such an interesting story to start us off..."

Clown trailed off, as though choosing what information to offer for his turn. But apparently he soon found something suitable.

"Aha, this should do!"

He clapped his hands theatrically, then placed one on the gem.

"... I only learned this recently myself, but it's quite surprising."

"Earlier you said dragging things out only made you look pathetic."

"Heehee, but Goblin and I aren't the same, are we?"

Clown shrugged, and Stag Horns gave a small nod.

"Why are you nodding...?"

Goblin let out a wounded groan.

But no one at the Round Table paid him any attention. Clown had just begun to speak.

"The Dark Continent is a real place."

Despite the heightened anticipation, his statement wasn't easy to understand.

"... Well, the light is green."

"But what on earth does that mean? I don't understand."

"Heehee! Exactly what I said! Exactly! Once I left the city and traveled around, I realized it. There might be slight differences in the terrain and layout, but the land we're standing on looks just like the seventh floor's Dark Continent!"

For the first time in a while, a piece of information stirred my gamer curiosity.

"... If that's true, then that theory might be correct."

"The theory that the Labyrinth isn't a passage to another dimension, but a dimension someone created?"

"The Crystal Cave, the Stone Desert... Perhaps they were modeled after places that actually existed."

If so, that was a little ironic. Someone had modeled the Labyrinth after this world, and someone else had modeled a game after that Labyrinth city.

'I'm a little curious about the world outside, too...'

Would I ever get the chance to explore it?

* * *

The second round, now proceeding in reverse order, went smoothly without a single red light. Unfortunately, that was all it had going for it.

'Queen and Clown were good, but the rest of the information is a bit...'

Whatever its objective value, it wasn't useful to me.

Take Fox, for instance. She earned a green light by reporting that the Blood Spirit Marquis had spent a fortune on a mansion, then borrowed another large sum against it.

And Crescent Moon? With a sigh, he said the Blood Spirit Marquis seemed to have used that money to buy Essences.

And...

"She bought him a newlywed home and even feeds him Essences... Heehee, that woman really is something! It's not as if it'll bring Bjorn Jandel back from the dead."

The reactions to that stung a little.

"... Rihen Schuitz. We'll have to find out who he is, but I doubt he's a decent sort."

"B-but you said he was incredibly strong, didn't you? A few Essences wouldn't be enough to make someone that strong..."

"Those who have plenty are always worse. Exploiting a wounded woman's feelings for his own gain—he's a disgrace to men."

"Oh my, Stag Horns. I didn't realize you were such a romantic."

"Ahem..."

"It seems the elves will need to investigate him as a race, too. I knew she'd bought Essences, but to think she gave them to a complete stranger..."

Ugh. At this rate, all sorts of people would be investigating me as soon as the Round Table ended.

'If I could just tamper with the Explorer Guild's records, I'd feel a little safer...'

I'd have to find a solution as soon as possible, somehow.

"Haha, my turn already!"

Anyway, Goblin and Stag Horns, who went next, weren't much different. Unlike the previous two reports, theirs weren't about me, but none of it struck me as particularly necessary information.

'Well, I can't expect to hear only things I need.'

Putting my disappointment aside, I glanced around. Was it because my turn had arrived? The atmosphere had changed a little.

"..."

Their eyes gathered on me, eager to hear what I'd offer this time. Even their breathing had settled; calling the room quiet hardly did it justice.

And in that stillness...

'Now, what should I do...?'

I considered it one last time.

But I didn't change what I'd already decided. I opened my mouth.

"I have met Auriel Gabis, the creator of [Dungeon and Stone]."

Yes, I needed to drive the point home.

"...!"

"...!"

So they could never even imagine Mr. Lion was Bjorn Jandel.

* * *

"Whew, I'm exhausted..."

As soon as I returned to Lee Hansoo's room, I threw myself onto the bed, closed my eyes, and reviewed what had happened at the Round Table.

'It's been a while since we went three rounds.'

After the second round, we'd continued for one more. Some of the information was useful, but most wasn't.

So...

["Goblin leaving won't make much difference. Why don't we all keep going?"]

["I doubt that will produce anything interesting."]

I coldly ignored Clown's disappointed gaze and rose from my seat. After all, Goblin's departure lowered the number needed for a majority. As always, another member or two would leave around this point even if I didn't take the lead. I decided it was better to move first.

'... And I really didn't think we'd get any high-value information, either.'

Okay, that little rest had gotten my brain working again. I'd kill the remaining time browsing the web.

CLICK, CLICK.

I got out of bed and browsed posts around the community.

"Hehehe, these crazy bastards..."

It was just stupid troll bait, so why was it so funny? What did these people have in their heads?

"Hehehe..."

I'd been browsing and snickering for a while with one leg propped on the desk when...

"... Huh?"

I hurriedly straightened up. Even after I rubbed my eyes and leaned forward, the words on the monitor didn't change.

[Long Live Korean Independence] - 1 user online.

Someone was online? Who the hell was it? Lee Baekho? No, GM couldn't have lifted the ban already...

'Even if he had, Baekho couldn't log in right now anyway.'

Then was it just someone who'd wandered in out of boredom? Or an actual Korean?

'... Maybe one of the recent newcomers was Korean.'

Either way, I'd find out by meeting them. With that thought, I double-clicked the mouse.

And...

CLICK, CLICK.

My vision washed white, and my surroundings changed. Instead of the clearing or field used as the chat rooms' default settings, I found myself in an extravagantly decorated noble's mansion. Lee Baekho, the room's host, had decorated it himself.

'What? A woman?'

I could see her from behind and to the side, sitting in front of the fireplace.

[HS123]

Her username didn't tell me much about her nationality, but judging by her hair and skin, she was definitely Asian. Hmm, was she really Korean, then?

'Well, I'll find out when we talk.'

I was more comfortable around men, but that didn't mean I wasn't glad to meet a woman. If she was from my country, I was willing to lend her a hand, just as Lee Baekho had done for me.

With that thought, I made my presence known.

"Ahem."

"Eek!"

The seated woman flinched, her shoulders trembling. Apparently, she hadn't even noticed I'd entered the room... She positively reeked of newbie in a way no acting could reprodu—

"... Huh?"

The startled woman turned around, and our eyes met.

At that very instant...

"Uh...?"

"Uh."

Her eyes widened. Actually, mine probably did, too.

"Uhhh?"

What the hell? Was this a dream? Why was she here?

"Uh..."

My mind ground to a halt. My open mouth merely worked like a goldfish's, unable to produce anything resembling coherent language. She was no different.

"Uh, uh."

"Uh..."

"Uhh?"

Still, she recovered faster than I did.

"Hansoo...?"

She asked with far more shock than joy on her face.

"Hyunbyul...?"

Even as I echoed her blankly, my gaze drifted downward. A knee-length suit skirt and a neat blouse.

And...

"Ha... You really haven't changed, have you?"

... She was wearing black stockings.