The Traitor Among Us
"It seems like one of our comrades is a rat colluding with those Black Round Table bastards."
I couldn't believe it. I'd scoured the original game and the first DLC, yet found not a single hint of such a thing.
"There's a traitor... among us? Can you be sure about that right now, sis?"
"The odds of a traitor being among us are nine to one. Maybe even higher than that."
A traitor. The absolute scum of the earth, the kind that should never be forgiven. No matter the nation or religion, betrayal is treated as a grave crime. Even in Dante's Divine Comedy, the three wretches Satan chews on were traitors. One of them, Judas Iscariot, was the ultimate backstabbing gay bastard who sold out Jesus with a kiss.
If one of us turned out to be that kind of filthy traitor, wouldn't it be my duty as the youngest and a fellow comrade to personally end them?
"So... what's the evidence?"
Accusing someone of betrayal without solid proof had to be avoided. Otherwise, it would be no different from the mindless #MeToo witch hunts that plagued 21st-century Korea.
"...First off, they knew we were leaving on a journey. That's something only a very small number of people knew, aside from those directly involved."
"And the chance that the traitor is among that 'small number'?"
"I thought the same at first. But here's the thing..."
Melissa set down her fork and knife, then began tapping the table with her index finger.
"That small group didn't even know our destination or travel route."
"What do you mean?"
"Every time we moved, those bastards attacked us."
Those damned bastards had attacked? If their top executives had come after us, even a party of heroes including Zik wouldn't have walked away unscathed.
"Sis, bro—don't tell me you got hurt because of them?"
They were a group that wielded Demonic Swords capable of shattering a mage's mana circuits. Cowards who might resort to any filthy demonic blade or poison. Even if we overpowered them in skill, getting caught off guard by such underhanded tricks would be disastrous.
"Nah. They were so pathetic it made me yawn."
What? Was Werner still getting pushed around by weaklings like he did as a kid? This frail, water-bodied mage bastard.
"The leader or the Heavenly Demon could handle them alone. We didn't even get a chance to step in."
Melchior, who had been quietly listening, chimed in.
"We even captured one and tortured him, but he didn't have any useful information. Clearly just a low-ranking grunt."
"They sent those bottom-feeder grunts to deal with you guys? Have those bastards lost their minds?"
It was like sending a bunch of elementary school kids to stop a pack of tyrannosauruses. As the wise Master Jirobo once said, when the boss is an idiot, the underlings suffer. Looks like his philosophy holds true even here, Master.
"We were wondering the same thing. At best, they'd only slow us down... or rather, just add a few more annoying mosquitoes to swat."
"Hmm... Yeah, that is strange. I can't figure out what their goal is either."
"Anyway, the fact that they knew our exact route means there's no other explanation besides someone among us feeding them information."
Melissa's analysis made sense. Unless one of us was the informant, there was no way they'd be able to plant people along every route for ambushes. Even if the attackers themselves were low-level, that part still felt off.
"Any guesses on who the traitor might be?"
"None. We only started suspecting a traitor recently, so..."
At least the comrades I knew from Werner's perspective weren't the type to betray anyone. But that was just my analysis of their "character traits." Real people had far more complex personalities and backstories than game characters could ever convey. If any of them had unavoidable circumstances or hidden sides beyond what was shown...
Even I couldn't pinpoint the culprit.
"Well, it definitely isn't you or sis..."
""No, that would be a problem.""
"What?"
Don't tell me these two were the traitors? That would be the cheapest twist ever.
"Junior. There's no proof that I'm not the traitor... and no proof that my wife isn't either."
"Right. I also have no proof that my wife isn't the traitor."
"But you two would never betray me..."
Before I could finish, Melissa and Melchior's hands were at my throat. If they applied even a little force, I'd become a headless corpse on the spot.
"You're still so naive, junior."
The traumatic line "Junior, you've been fooled" flashed through my mind, but I decided to let it slide.
"If you want to survive, even this brother of yours doesn't stop suspecting others. The one who stabs you in the back is always someone you trusted enough to turn your back on."
"So don't trust us too much either. You might end up dead."
Ah, so that's what they meant. No matter how peaceful the world seemed, it was a jungle filled with schemes and power plays. Trusting someone just because they were a close brother or sister could easily get you killed. In reality, debt scams and betrayals happened most often between family and friends.
"Got it. So back off... before I blast you away with magic."
"What kind of way is that to talk to your sister?!"
"I'm just trying to blast away a suspect who might be a traitor. Is there a problem?"
"Fine. Let's have a magical conversation while beating each other up with spells and see who's the real traitor."
Melchior eventually grabbed the furious Melissa and lifted her into the air. Watching her flail helplessly while floating was oddly comical.
"Let go! I'm going to properly educate the junior on manners today!!!"
"Werner's always like this. Why not just get used to it?"
Melchior, still restraining the struggling Melissa, turned to me.
"So, Werner, we have a favor to ask..."
"What is it, bro?"
"That annoying Knight Commander bastard... I mean, investigate Ricardo, that son of a bitch."
There didn't seem to be much point in correcting the wording... though the latter version was an even worse insult.
Come to think of it, their relationship had been the worst since Dragnity Fantasy 1. Ricardo Carven, the knight who served as the party's second tank in the game. A member of an imperial knight family loyal to the Empire. His past and personality clashed with Melchior's in every way.
When Melchior's father was accused of treason, it was the Carven family who killed both his parents during the investigation, even though it was still ongoing. Of course, that was later revealed to be a misunderstanding and resolved between the parties involved... but Melchior still despised the Carven family. Naturally, his relationship with their heir, Ricardo, was terrible. I thought things had improved a little, but apparently not.
"Why him? Wasn't he in the Imperial Capital?"
"Yeah. He only showed his face at the leader's summons before running off again, that gay bastard!"
I distinctly remembered Ricardo having a wife and daughter... but people tended to distort memories to suit their own convenience. Maybe my recollection was slightly off.
"But he wouldn't know our destination, right?"
"Werner, we have to report our travel routes and next destinations on a regular basis."
I'd heard that was the case. Since every single party member was a walking nuclear weapon, such reports were mandatory. After all, if someone declared they were leaving on a journey and then suddenly committed treason, there'd be no way to respond.
"And the bastard who receives those reports is none other than Ricardo, that brainless son of a whore. While the rest of us are gathered together, he's off on his own—so of course he'd have plenty of chances to collude with the enemy."
The level of profanity was escalating. Must be my imagination.
"So you and sis are convinced Ricardo is the traitor?"
"I'm still at the suspicion stage... but my husband seems to have reached the level of certainty."
"It's definitely that bastard!!! Just give me proof! I'll smash that bastard's skull open and suck out his brains!!!"
Melchior's excitement had led to some rather gruesome remarks... but I had to admit Ricardo was suspicious too. If there had been anything shady among the party members traveling together, we would've noticed immediately. We'd lived, fought, and bled together as comrades—how could we miss something like that?
That left Ricardo as the only possible suspect. Even in mystery stories, the guy who always travels alone tends to be shady.
"Alright. I'll look into Ricardo. You two keep an eye on the others."
"Got it."
After all, we couldn't rule out the possibility that someone else was the traitor—or that there was more than one.