Chapter 103: 7th Floor Hidden Route (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 103: 7th Floor Hidden Route (2)
"...One of the four of us is the Sage?" a man muttered, his brow furrowed as he scanned the group.
The other two were the same, their eyes darting from one person to the next.
So, we have to find the Sage who's hiding their identity.
Was this another gate?
It seemed the test wasn't over yet.
[Select the Sage by unifying the opinions of everyone except the Sage.]
[600]
A number materialized in the air.
It ticked down, second by second. A timer.
We have to find the Sage before time runs out, I guess...?
The knightly man spoke first.
"Out with it. Which one of you is the Sage?"
The woman replied.
"This seems to be another of the Sage's tests. To think they're hiding among us... was the Sage always such a prankster?"
The traveler man chimed in.
"...The Sage is a figure from a thousand years ago, right? How can one of us be the Sage?"
"They're someone who can keep a dungeon like this running perfectly even after a millennium. Perhaps the Sage never died and is still alive?"
"Don't tell me they're immortal or something. That's ridiculous."
I looked at the three of them and thought.
'How should I play this?'
It was a kind of mafia game.
If I had to guess, the mage woman seemed closest to the image of a Sage...
But of course, I couldn't just pick someone based on a hunch like that.
"You're the most suspicious. You're the only mage here, are you not?"
No sooner had I thought it, the knight pointed his sword at the woman.
She defensively raised her staff.
"Calling me the Sage just because I'm a mage? I'd appreciate it if you refrained from such simple-minded thinking. If the Sage were trying to hide their identity, wouldn't it make more sense for them to imitate a personality far removed from that of a mage?"
A faint hostility began to radiate from the three of them toward one another.
I stepped in.
"Instead of fighting, why don't we try to discuss this first?"
All eyes turned to me.
I pointed a finger at the timer.
"We have to make a choice before that timer runs out, right? And the three people who aren't the Sage have to agree."
"...I suppose that's right."
"Is there a need for discussion? If I were to eliminate the three of you right here, the Sage would have no choice but to reveal themselves."
The traveler man scoffed at the knight's words.
"Hey, that's a hard line to ignore. Sounds like you think you can take on all three of us by yourself."
The atmosphere was turning hostile again, so I quickly cut in.
"Do you really think this is a problem that can be solved with force? The Sage is powerful enough to trap us in here. You just saw it. We couldn't even scratch that wall."
I pointed to the wall where the knight had unleashed his sword aura.
"So let's talk first. We might be able to figure out who's the most suspicious."
The woman agreed with me.
"He's right. The Sage is probably testing our wisdom. Surely they wouldn't expect us to reveal their identity by fighting like brutes."
"...Wisdom, you say? For a test of wisdom, all we've faced so far is a constant barrage of arrows."
The traveler man scratched the back of his head, then nodded.
"Well, I'm in for now. What good would come from fighting each other here?"
All eyes fell on the knight.
After a moment, he sheathed the sword he had drawn.
"And how do you propose we find the Sage?"
"...We'll have to figure that out now."
[458]
The three of them formed a circle in the middle of the cavern.
The woman made a suggestion.
"Let's all talk about ourselves. Where we're from, what we do, what brought us here... We might find something suspicious, don't you think?"
With that, she began her story.
"I am Dailin Targorian. I'm a mage, and I hold the position of Vice Tower Master of the Red Magic Tower."
The traveler man asked, slightly surprised.
"Dailin Targorian? You're the Vice Tower Master of the Red Magic Tower?"
"That's right. It's not something I like to boast about, but I imagine there isn't anyone here who hasn't heard of my name."
The knight also seemed to recognize it.
She must have been quite famous.
But Red Magic Tower, Vice Tower Master, whatever.
To me, a stranger from another world, it meant nothing.
"As I said before, my motive for coming here is personal interest. I wanted to find out if the rumors about the Sage's Dungeon were true, and if they were, I intended to explore it myself."
The traveler man nodded.
"I've heard the rumors that the Vice Tower Master of the Red Magic Tower has a penchant for wandering."
"...Wandering? Where did a rumor like that come from?"
Next, the knight spoke.
"I am Keilon Gaitan, the 11th king of the Duchy of Ton."
Dailin and the traveler man were taken aback.
"...Now this is a surprise. The Knight King Keilon? You were the duchy's former king?"
The man was apparently a king.
Former king, does that mean he's the previous one?
"As for my motive for seeking this dungeon, it is also personal interest. I wished to confirm the rumors with my own eyes, and since the Sage's Dungeon proved to be real, I passed through the gates and arrived here."
Oh, wait a minute...
I felt a sense of crisis.
This was not a good development for me.
"Haha, turns out everyone here is someone important, huh?"
Finally, the traveler man introduced himself.
"I'm just an adventurer. My name isn't as grand as yours, but I think you might have heard the name Fahel before?"
"...The legendary adventurer, Fahel? That's you?"
Dailin asked, sounding astonished.
Wow, now a legendary adventurer.
"As for me, like I said, I came here to find the Sage's treasure and make a fortune. A sparrow can't pass a mill, and an adventurer can't pass a dungeon, right?"
After the three had introduced themselves, all eyes naturally turned to me.
I stopped time and thought.
It seems these three are all famous enough to know of each other...
The problem was that I knew nothing about the background of this world.
I would naturally be suspected. What should I do?
'...I'll just have to bluff my way through.'
There was no other choice.
I released the time stop and spoke.
"My name is Hyun. I'm also just an adventurer."
"...Hyun? Never heard of you. An adventurer skilled enough to pass through those arrow gates... there's no way I wouldn't have heard of you."
Fahel's eyes narrowed as he stared at me.
Suspicion, right off the bat.
But there was nothing I could do.
Stuttering would only make me more suspicious, so I maintained a confident demeanor.
"Of course you haven't heard of me. I'm an adventurer from the far Eastern Continent."
"The Eastern Continent?"
"Yes. I heard the rumors about the Sage's Dungeon and traveled a long way to get here. Just as you said, Fahel, an adventurer can't just pass by, can they?"
Fahel still looked at me with suspicion.
Of course he would. I was the only one with an unconfirmed identity.
"What do you all think? Am I the only one who finds this guy suspicious?"
Dailin spoke up.
"On the contrary, I find him less suspicious."
"What? What do you mean?"
"If Hyun were the Sage, wouldn't it be too obvious? Everyone else has a clear identity, while he's the only one who's a mystery... If the Sage was determined to hide their identity, it's strange they'd be this sloppy."
Her logic was that I was so suspicious, it was unlikely I was the culprit.
Keilon nodded as well.
"That has merit. I don't think that man is the Sage."
The two of them were actually taking my side.
At that, Fahel also took a step back.
"Well... looking at his appearance, he doesn't seem to be lying about being from the Eastern Continent. And come to think of it, wasn't the Sage an Imperial citizen?"
"Judging by appearance seems meaningless. For a mage who has lived over a thousand years, changing one's appearance would be a trivial matter."
Anyway, it was good that I'd shaken off the suspicion...
But I still had to figure out which of the three was the Sage.
'...Is it not Dailin?'
If she were the Sage, she would have no reason to step up and defend me, right?
So if I assume it's either Keilon or Fahel...
I stopped time again and pondered.
I couldn't find anything particularly suspicious in their stories.
Then again, I'd need to know something in the first place to find anything suspicious.
If anything, I was the most suspicious one here.
'Demon King, do you know who it is?'
I decided to ask the Demon King.
– That knight bastard.
'...Why?'
– It's pathetic how he's acting all high and mighty like a king.
I didn't get a proper answer.
[131]
Ten minutes was far too short.
After just introducing ourselves, we only had two minutes left.
I thought for a long while with time stopped, but...
...It was no use. There were no clues.
I concluded that it was impossible to find the Sage through deduction.
'Let's go with instigation.'
Either way, I had to pick someone other than myself.
If I guessed right, great. If not, I could just hope for a next chance.
I released the time stop.
Silence stretched on as we just stared at each other.
When 100 seconds remained, I spoke.
"If I have to choose one person, I'll go with Fahel."
"...What?"
"You were the first one to try and frame me as the Sage. With so little time left, we have no choice but to go with our gut, don't we?"
When it comes to instigation, the first to strike wins.
Dailin nodded and said, "We are running out of time. In that case, I'll also choose Fahel."
"Hey, hey, wait a minute... Are you kidding me? What are you guys trying to pull?"
Dailin's choice seemed to be tinged with a bit of personal feeling, but she had sided with me again.
"We must unify the opinions of three people, so I have no choice."
Keilon also looked at Fahel, as if he would follow my and Dailin's choice.
In an instant, Fahel was framed as the culprit.
Huh... what is this?
To be honest, I was baffled at how easily they were swayed.
I could only imagine how Fahel felt. His face was a mask of bewilderment.
"I choose Fahel."
Before the dumbfounded man could even offer a rebuttal, I pointed my finger at him.
"I choose Fahel."
"I choose Fahel."
The other two followed suit.
Does this count as a unified opinion?
The timer in the air vanished.
A single symbol appeared.
[X]
"..."
An X.
It seemed we were wrong.
The gazes of the three of them fixed on me.
"...Haha."
The moment I let out an awkward laugh...
RUMBLE-!
With a violent tremor, the walls of the cavern began to close in on all sides.
As if to crush the four of us.
"...!"
Was this the price for a wrong answer?
Startled, everyone launched attacks at the approaching walls.
BOOM! KRA-BOOM!
Keilon and Fahel struck with their swords, and Dailin unleashed a powerful spell.
But of course, the walls weren't even scratched.
Fahel glared at me and shouted.
"You son of a bitch...!"
I had no excuse for the curses. My bad.
"You're the Sage after all! Aren't you? Stop this right now!"
Fahel threw a dagger at me.
I hastily dodged to the side.
The other two were also radiating hostility, as if about to attack me.
In an instant, I had become the common enemy.
...Fighting in this cramped space would be dangerous.
I stopped time.
'Demon King!'
I sent out an SOS to the Demon King.
'Please freeze all three of them.'
– Why should I?
'What do you mean, why? You promised to actively cooperate with me in climbing the Tower.'
The Demon King sounded annoyed.
'Or can't you? They are rather formidable opponents.'
– Switch.
The moment I provoked him, the Demon King stepped forward.
I relinquished control of my body and released the time stop...
FWOOOOSH—
An arctic chill enveloped the entire cavern.
My willpower was instantly depleted, and the three of them were frozen solid.
The Demon King's power was truly immense.
The cavern continued to shrink.
I took my body back from the Demon King and observed the three figures.
If one of them was the Sage, wouldn't they do something?
But contrary to my expectations...
Crack! CRACK!
The frozen trio, one by one, were crushed by the advancing walls. Blood stained the floor.
'...What the?'
They just died?
The cavern had almost completely closed in.
It seemed this attempt was a failure.
[Do you wish to exit the Tower?]
I exited to avoid being crushed.
[Failed to clear the 7th Floor Hidden Route on Nightmare Difficulty. (2/3)]
Back in my room, I fell into thought.
I thought the Sage would reveal themselves when faced with death...
Was it impossible to uncover their identity with such a trick?
In any case, I now knew that Fahel wasn't the Sage.
That left two people.
With two chances left, it was possible to identify the Sage before I ran out of attempts, even if I had to guess.
[You have entered the 7th Floor on Nightmare Difficulty.]
The second try.
I passed through the arrow gates and met the three of them again.
"Instead of fighting, why don't we try to discuss this first?"
Things proceeded just as before.
After we introduced ourselves, Fahel suspected me, and Dailin defended me, just like last time.
This time, I had to point to Keilon as the culprit.
When time was running low, I began my instigation again.
"...We're out of time. If I have to choose one person, I'll choose Sir Keilon."
"What did you say?"
"Weren't you the first one to cast suspicion on Dailin for being a mage, Sir Keilon?"
Keilon glared at me.
But, amazingly...
"Then I suppose I must also choose Sir Keilon."
Dailin immediately sided with me again.
"Hmm... Is that so? Well, we're out of time, so it can't be helped. I'll choose the Knight King, too."
And Fahel was the same.
Seriously... are these people complete pushovers?
It was good for me, but I was a little baffled as to why they were so easily swayed.
"You foolish simpletons. You are all making the wrong choice."
Keilon protested, but it was useless.
The three of us, including me, chose Keilon...
[X]
"Ah."
Wrong again.
So that meant Dailin was the Sage?
RUMBLE-!
The cavern began to shrink again.
I got out before a fight could break out.
[Failed to clear the 7th Floor Hidden Route on Nightmare Difficulty. (1/3)]
One last chance.
But I had figured out the Sage's identity, so it was fine.
I entered to land the final blow.
[You have entered the 7th Floor on Nightmare Difficulty.]
I passed the arrow gates and met the three of them.
The situation unfolded in the same way.
"...I think Sir Keilon's initial thought was correct. If I have to choose one, I also think it's Dailin."
This time, I started a bandwagon against Dailin.
Keilon crossed his arms and nodded.
"Yes. Choosing the mage is the right call."
Fahel also nodded without complaint.
"We're out of time, so it can't be helped. We have to pick someone."
Suddenly framed as the culprit, Dailin looked around at us in bewilderment.
"...Wait a minute. You're all making a huge mistake. Do you really think it makes sense to assume I'm the Sage like this?"
Protesting was futile.
All that was left was to choose Dailin, and it would be over.
And yet...
"..."
I stopped time.
This sense of dissonance, this nagging feeling I'd had from the start.
'Is Dailin really the right answer?'
Why was this so easy?
It wasn't like I had meticulously engineered the situation to sway them.
I had just thrown out some flimsy reasons and started a bandwagon.
Why was everyone so receptive...?
Whoever I pointed to, they would agree with my choice as if they had been waiting for it.
In truth, anyone could see that I was the most suspicious person here.
How should I put it...
It felt like I was the one being played.
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
I had one chance left.
If I got this wrong, the Hidden Route would be a failure.
Still, I decided to follow my gut.
I released the time stop.
"...Wait a minute. I think I was wrong."
All eyes focused on me.
"That's right! I'm really not the Sage!"
Dailin said, her voice full of indignation.
"You were wrong? Then who is the Sage?"
Fahel asked with a frown.
"As for who the Sage is..."
Dailin, Keilon, Fahel.
I pointed my finger at the three of them in turn.
"It's all of you."
In that instant, the expressions vanished from their faces.
The three of them stared at me, saying nothing.
Just as a chill ran down my spine at their bizarre reaction...
Crumble.
Their bodies collapsed, as if they were made of sand.
As I stared in bewilderment at the piles of sand on the floor, the grains began to gather again, squirming and writhing as they formed the shape of a person.
The figure that emerged was an old man with a full head of white hair.
The old man, his hands clasped behind his back, smiled at me.
"Congratulations on finding the correct answer."
...It seemed this was the Sage.