A Common Enemy
The moment the group spotted Minel, they ducked into another corridor.
One of them, however, made no move to hide. He stayed right where he was.
"Hold on. I'm Miller, the party leader."
"……"
"As you can see, I'm unarmed."
Miller raised both hands high as he looked at Minel — a silent invitation to talk for a moment.
Keeping Noise trained on the man, Minel shifted his position and checked the corridor where the monster had been moments earlier. The hallway was so clean it made the scene from just before feel like a dream.
"You've already met that monster Chori controls, haven't you?"
Minel fixed his gaze on Miller for a moment, concentrating on his hearing. The man might be stalling while the others circled around through another corridor to surround him. But no sound reached his ears.
Still, he couldn't afford to drop his guard. They might have a skill that killed noise.
"How did you know?"
The moment Minel spoke for the first time, Miller bared his teeth in a smile. He had always preferred the battle of words and tongues to the battle of guns and blades. It wasn't outstanding combat prowess that had let him gather a party of twenty. It was a silver tongue, and the intelligence to back it up.
"We've already lost more than a few people to that thing."
"So?"
Miller had met countless people coming up from the 1st Floor. Fleecing them had been his main business, after all. That was why he was certain of one thing: a guy with eyes as rigid as Minel's would never go down easy.
"Don't be so wary. I know full well you killed one of our party members, and I'm still trying to resolve this peacefully. You're the one pointing a gun right now, too."
"I didn't kill him."
"I'd like to hear what happened, if you don't—"
Miller stopped mid-sentence. He had taken a single, casual step forward, and Minel had immediately raised the gun higher. When Miller lifted his hands even higher, Minel spoke.
"A Hound got him."
"More precisely, it was Chori, wasn't it?"
At those words, Minel's eyes sharpened. The moment Miller spat out Chori's name, Minel felt a thick killing intent flood the corridor. A faint yellow light had risen in Miller's eyes. If merely speaking the name was enough to raise his Wildness, the grudge between Miller's party and Chori ran deeper than Minel had expected.
"What happened between you and Chori?"
"Lower the gun first. Do that, and I'll tell you."
"That's not happening."
"Fine, whatever. I'll explain first. Hear me out, then decide."
Having said that, Miller again took a sly step forward — a ploy to ease his opponent's vigilance little by little. But Minel immediately dropped Noise's muzzle and fired.
Bang—!
With a thunderous report, a crater roughly two meters across bloomed at Miller's feet. Anyone else might have been startled. Instead, admiration lit Miller's eyes.
"That's one hell of a firearm. Cold-infusion skill and a gun like that? Now I understand why you walk alone."
Minel had no interest in Miller's flattery. He spat the warning like something he was chewing.
"Come any closer and you die."
"Got it. Got it. I'll explain from right here."
"……"
"That bitch Chori, see — she's famous for fleecing people with that innocent face of hers. She took one look at you, knew you were no ordinary catch, and deliberately lured you toward her monster."
If Chori had been using the Shocker to fleece people, she would first have to be able to survive the Shocker herself.
"Then why is Chori fine?"
Miller shrugged.
"I don't know the exact reason. Weird as it is, the thing's close to Chori and protects her. That bitch seems to think the monster is her mother or something. Anyway, it never attacks Chori. My guess is she picked up some unusual skill."
In a place as bizarre as the Backrooms, a skill for handling monsters wouldn't be strange at all.
Minel considered for a moment. Had Chori really used the monster to kill Hina?
No. If Chori had harbored that kind of malice, Hina would have noticed. He needed more information. And Miller held it.
People always try to control others. Don't try to control them the same way — turn it against them instead.
His father's words rose unbidden in his mind.
Minel boldly lowered Noise.
"From the looks of it, we both share a common enemy. Help me rescue Hina, and I'll help you capture Chori in return."
Once he fully committed to the act, Minel's words grew more plentiful. Miller, gullible as he was, took it for the first step of trust.
"I like that. I knew you'd be someone I could talk to."
"As you already know well enough, I've never killed one of your party members. There's no reason for you and me to be at odds."
Miller nodded vigorously.
"Obviously. That bitch Chori killed him and tried to pin it on you."
Minel put his weapon away completely and started walking toward Miller — a state of total vulnerability by any measure. One of the party members still hiding in another corridor spoke to Miller.
"Grab him the second he gets here. Pull a few nails and he'll quiet down on his own."
Miller kept a bright smile for Minel while answering with only the slightest movement of his lips.
"No need. Looks like luck handed him good skills and items, but a guy who walks around with just one woman and no party is easy enough to handle without that kind of nonsense."
"……"
"Welcome him nicely, stroke his ego a little, and he'll puff himself up like he's somebody. Perfect bait. You get me?"
"Yes, sir."
Minel had already closed more than half the distance down the corridor. Miller spread his arms and stepped toward him.
"Nice to have solid backup. Let me introduce the party first."
Miller turned and jerked his chin at his people. The party members forced awkward smiles and gave their names. Aside from Miller, their acting was terrible. Even a child could have seen through those strained grins.
Minel forgot every name but Miller's the moment he heard them. He only quickly checked the weapons each of them carried. Their armament was impressive — cold weapons and firearms, of course, plus a fair number of shields and armor.
Then he realized everyone was staring straight at him. The introductions must have finished.
"I'm Minel."
"Good name. Shall we head to our base for now? If we're going to hunt properly, we need to rearm."
Their base. Even the most naive person — or the most arrogant — wouldn't follow a party they'd just met all the way to their home base.
"You lead."
"……"
"What?"
Miller stared at Minel with startled eyes, then immediately smiled.
"Nothing. You just don't seem to distrust us at all."
"I do distrust you."
"But?"
"Looking at your condition, it doesn't seem to matter much."
Those were not words a man surrounded by twenty people ought to be saying. Even if it were a bluff, no one could stay this calm and composed.
Miller grinned, teeth showing.
"Well, no reason to mess with someone who says he'll help us catch that dog of a bitch."
"Exactly."
"……"
"Lead the way. I'll follow from behind."
Miller signaled the others with his eyes, and they formed ranks of five and started moving. Only after everyone else had gone ahead did Minel attach himself to the rear like a tail.
Miller walked in silence at the front. One party member whispered to him — the same one Minel had choked unconscious earlier.
"Miller. That guy's bluffing."
"Why?"
"I asked him about his weapon's level. I was trying to figure out whether a bullet-immunity skill could stop it. He's definitely a newbie who just came up from the 1st Floor."
"And if you're wrong?"
"Huh?"
Miller stopped. He turned his head toward the man and growled in a low voice.
"If your guess is wrong and we all get wiped out, are you going to take responsibility?"
"I—that's—"
"I've always told you to keep this in mind. The scariest thing in the Backrooms isn't the monsters or the environment. It's the veterans."
"……"
"Don't you remember? One veteran traced a finger through the air and five heads went flying right there."
"I—I'm sorry."
Miller clapped the man on the shoulder.
"Don't do anything reckless. Real skill always shows itself in the end. No need to step up and poke the bear like you're gambling."
Then Minel's voice carried from the rear.
"Why did we stop?"
"Ah, my shoelace came undone. Let's move."
Miller gave the party member one more warning look, then took the lead again at a measured pace.
Watching them, Minel was certain his bluff had worked. Having run into Balan twice, he had been able to mimic a veteran's atmosphere to some degree, and that had played a large part.
Of course, he could have made some excuse from the start and slipped away safely. But it would have come to a fight eventually. With twenty of them and their intimate knowledge of the terrain, surviving would not have been easy. Even if he had survived, he might well have learned nothing about Chori and Hina before running into the blue-flash monster — the Shocker.
He had to stake his life either way. So he had chosen the path he could force through with certainty.
After about twenty minutes, they reached Miller's base. It had been closer than expected.
How had they built a base in a world of nothing but corridors and corners? Minel kept the curiosity welling up inside him from showing on his face and walked on, expressionless.
"Here we are."
When they reached the corner where Miller was waiting, Minel saw a massive wooden wall completely blocking the corridor. It was a kind of plywood panel cobbled together from desks and chairs brought up from the 1st Floor. At the left end, a door just wide enough for one person stood open, and beyond it partitions of the same plywood stretched on in a continuous line. Doors along the partitions looked like individual living quarters.
The plywood wall continued all the way to the opposite corner. They seemed to occupy a fairly large area. This was no temporary setup of a day or two. The structure looked like it had stood for at least ten years.
"Wait out front. I'll grab all the weapons and bring them out."
At Miller's words, Minel gave a short laugh.
"I thought you were going to give me a house tour."
Miller made a slightly troubled face.
"It stinks pretty bad in there. Wait at the entrance and I'll rearm quick and come back."
Without waiting for Minel's reply, he hurried inside. Two party members immediately took up posts on either side of the entrance and glared at Minel with hard faces.
Minel ignored them and walked straight forward. The two guards tensed and raised their guns, training them on him.
"D-don't come any closer."
"I-I'll shoot."
Minel completely ignored them and looked at Miller farther down the corridor.
"Miller. They're your party members, so I'll let it slide once. There won't be a second time. Understood?"
Miller stared at Minel in silence. Behind those calm eyes, countless calculations seemed to be running. At last his heavy mouth opened.
"Stand down. Unless you want to die."