The Trap of the Dragon Lord
"How annoying to the very end."
Immediately, reactions erupted from all directions. Sharp intakes of breath, eyes widening to unnatural sizes, bodies flinching. Even without looking at their level colors, the shock they harbored inside was plain on every face.
"Are you sure you didn't just see things?"
Unlike the others, Roxanne crossed her arms and scoffed. Not only was she the highest-ranking Lord at the round table, but she was also an incredibly arrogant Dragon Lord. If one had to name the most arrogant entity in the 7 Abyssal Palaces, it would undoubtedly be Roxanne.
A Lord five ranks lower than her was the strongest among them? It was only natural that she couldn't believe it, even before feeling any sense of humiliation.
"Though he may be a solo entity, he is still only Rank 7. This lady cannot believe it at all."
"Yeah! He doesn't look that strong."
"Rin thinks so too!"
The twin dragon lords, Renrin, chirped like sparrows. Just as they said, on the outside, he looked like a run-of-the-mill Death Knight. (Though that was true for his inside as well.)
In truth, even outside the 7 Abyssal Palaces, most of the Lords silently dismissed the claim as utter nonsense.
Roxanne's eyes narrowed like a bird of prey as she stared at me. She was trying to determine the truth for herself, but there was already an absolute lie detector sitting right next to her.
"Renrin. Use your Insight on Bliz."
"Eeeeh? Why?"
"Why should Rin!"
"Aren't you two curious as well? Whether Bliz and Bargore colluded, and if those words are indeed the truth."
It was glaringly obvious that she was the one who cared the most. In that regard, it was classic Roxanne.
Unable to resist her prodding, the twins stared at Bliz. For a brief moment, a strange light flashed in their eyes—the precursor to their Heavenly Senses.
"No. Not Bliz. Target Rank 7, Bargore."
...Why me? If they wanted to investigate, it made more sense to ask Bliz.
The twins' Insight possessed absolute discernment. However, not everything in the world could be neatly divided into true or false.
Subjective conviction does not directly translate to actual probability. For instance, what if someone answered with 100% confidence that they could kill Bliz, purely out of sheer determination, without actually knowing either of their true power levels? If it was just 100% motivation, determining truth or falsehood would be fundamentally impossible. The skill probably wouldn't even activate.
On the other hand, it worked on Bliz. If they asked, "Did you truly see a 100% probability of death through your unique sense?" that could be verified as true or false.
But why did Roxanne insist on asking me instead?
...Ah, I see. She wants to find out if I possess an ability that grants 'absolute instant death' rather than just 'subjective confidence.' If I didn't, the twins' Insight wouldn't even trigger. But if I did indeed possess such a power, the Insight would activate.
"Rank 7! Is what the octopus said true? Can you absolutely kill him whenever you want?"
"Answer! Answer!"
Enhancement success rate: 0%. Probability of instant death: 100%.
In reality, this only applied to Bliz, but nobody else knew that. And with Valmonk as a prior precedent, they wouldn't even dream of the truth. I had killed Valmonk—one of the Empire's 4 Heroes and a certified powerhouse—without even laying a finger on him. Everyone at the round table knew this.
When an ant is placed before a human, the probability of the human killing it if they wish to is 100%. If the difference in power was so vast that comparison was meaningless, wouldn't the truth-detection skill react in a similar way? If my answer registered as 'true,' most of them would likely make that exact assumption.
"It is so," I said flatly, maintaining my majestic facade.
The gazes of the 72 Lords pierced into me. From their expressions, they clearly thought I was just bluffing. Silence descended, and all eyes shifted from me to the twins.
Before long, the playful smiles vanished from Renrin's faces. They simply stared at me, utterly dumbfounded.
Ren's eyes, which governed truth, dyed themselves in a vibrant green. The green light of truth.
"Whoa... It's real? I guess there's a reason he's a solo entity..."
"Rin has goosebumps..."
Suddenly, sharp gasps echoed throughout the chamber. A slight turn of my head revealed level indicators flashing with a mixture of wariness and terror. These belonged to the lower-ranking Lords. Since they weren't of much concern, I turned my gaze to inspect the levels of the other members of the 7 Abyssal Palaces one by one.
"Rin. Don't you think Rank 7 is super interesting?"
"Rin too! Rin thinks the same! I want to be friends!"
The twins whispered loudly enough for the entire room to hear. Their level indicators had already shifted to a deep, warm green.
"Ho. So that is the power of a solo entity..."
Even Dalon's level indicator deepened into a rich green. Both of them possessed personalities that favored the strong rather than fearing them.
"Well, isn't it obvious in a way? He is a solo entity of the 7 Abyssal Palaces. The only one among us."
Rosesha's level indicator also flushed a deeper shade of pink.
Unintentionally, I was reaping endless benefits from their misunderstanding of me as a 'solo entity.' If I were just a regular Rank 7, everyone would have questioned it, but the mere label of 'solo entity' made it incredibly easy for them to accept.
Meanwhile, Calandas's level color betrayed deep wariness mixed with a faint trace of fear. He was trying to look imposing while glaring at me in silence, but his true feelings were laid bare.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Roxanne's nose twitching. Her level indicator flared a slightly deeper shade of red. She didn't fear me; she only harbored pure hostility.
Well, she is an undead dragon, after all.
Roxanne, of all people, wouldn't be intimidated by me, nor would she let her guard up. If anything, her animosity had only grown, but it didn't matter. I had gained far more than I lost from this.
I wondered how she would react if she ever found out my true strength. Externally, I maintained a perfectly calm facade, but internally, I was sweating bullets. I had made my move, but how on earth was I going to handle the fallout?
How else?
I'll just have to wing it. To hide my true self, I must become a master artist of bluffing. I have to make sure no one ever doubts my facade.
"Let us set aside the small talk for now." Bliz spoke up, looking around the table. "It is time to begin the meeting. I shall act as the facilitator."
The agenda of the round table meeting consisted of conflicts between Grand Dukes and Lords, disputes between lower-tier dungeons, and other minor matters that had absolutely nothing to do with me.
As the discussion flowed into arguments of "you did this wrong" and "no, you did," the atmosphere gradually grew heated. I felt a small wave of relief as the attention naturally drifted away from me. Throughout it all, I merely pretended to listen... while doing my best to ignore the uncomfortable stares.
Please, for the love of god, stop staring at me.
It was true that the general attention had dispersed. The lower-ranking Lords were either stealing glances while pretending not to, or their interest had shifted entirely elsewhere.
The problem was the 7 Abyssal Palaces. They weren't even trying to be subtle; they were all staring at me dead-on. They were practically screaming with their entire bodies that they were highly conscious of my presence. Maintaining this dignified facade was already giving me a mini-heart attack, for fuck's sake. What am I, a monkey in a zoo?
What the hell am I going to do when this meeting ends?
No, I was worrying about the wrong thing. First, I had to worry about getting through this meeting in one piece.
Just as the discussions began to wind down, Clap! Bliz clapped his hands to refresh the atmosphere.
"Now, we shall move on to the main topic—the core agenda."
The core agenda. I knew exactly what the core of the 72 Dungeons Meeting meant. Calandas would probably leap at this with fire in his eyes.
"This is a gathering where everyone is present," Calandas's voice rang out, right on cue. "My comrades. This very moment is our opportunity to advance our great cause. We have let things slide for too long, but we can no longer afford to do so. Awaken your vigilance. Even Bango's Dark Abyss, a former member of the 7 Abyssal Palaces, has fallen."
I hadn't expected him to be this aggressive right from the start.
The purpose of the 72 Dungeons Meeting was the round table conference, and the core agenda of this conference had always been one thing: the annihilation of humanity to establish a paradise for monsters.
In truth, at this point in time, the Empire was no match for the 72 Dungeons. If even one of the 7 Abyssal Palaces mobilized in earnest, it would pose an unprecedented threat to humanity. Yet, even now, at the eighth centennial meeting, the Empire stood firm.
"The Empire has only grown stronger with the passage of time. With their conquest of one of the 7 Abyssal Palaces, they have soared to even greater heights. Shall we continue to sit idly by and watch?"
When a dungeon among the 72 Dungeons was cleared, a new dungeon of the same rank would be born. While this allowed them to continue resisting humanity, from another perspective, it was akin to handing the Empire an infinite supply of resources. Dungeon byproducts had driven human advancement to extreme heights, and they would continue to do so. Calandas wished to break this humiliating cycle.
"The time has come to bring about the end of the Empire. If we form a coalition of the 72 Dungeons, humanity will—"
"And why should we?"
However, there was a reason why this agenda had always fizzled out. Not everyone shared Calandas's vision.
Rosesha glared at Calandas with venomous eyes.
"Why on earth should we follow your lead?"
"Are you suggesting we do nothing? Bango's Dark Abyss has been conquered. Next will be you, and after that, me!"
Honestly, as a player, I had always wondered about this. Any single one of the 7 Abyssal Palaces possessed enough power to bring about the end of humanity. So why did they sit back and watch as they were picked off one by one? Surprisingly, it wasn't just a convenient game mechanic; there was a real reason.
"So, who exactly is this coalition for?"
"For the 72 Dungeons. A coalition to establish our paradise."
"Ha! You're living in a fantasy world."
The reason they had all stayed cooped up in their own dungeons, only looking out for themselves, wasn't due to a lack of power. The 72 Dungeons simply did not trust one another. It was a truth everyone knew but chose to ignore.
Distrust and betrayal. With these two factors at play, true unity was impossible.
"What happens to our Dungeon Cores if war breaks out? How can we unite when we're constantly worrying about getting stabbed in the back in the middle of a war?"
The reason humanity was so obsessed with the 72 Dungeons was the dungeon byproducts, with the Dungeon Core being the absolute prize. Similarly, a Dungeon Lord could also consume the core of another dungeon to boost their own power.
If a war broke out, the Dungeon Cores would have to be moved to a safe location. But no one could rest easy, knowing there were other Lords within their own ranks who would gladly covet those cores.
"We are bound by our ranks. We instinctively crave a higher position. Those numbers weren't engraved in our minds for nothing."
If a Rank 20 Lord consumed the Dungeon Core of a Rank 15 Lord, there was a high probability they would ascend to Rank 15. Consequently, the newly reborn Rank 15 dungeon would no longer be Rank 15. It would drop to Rank 16, or perhaps even lower. By gradually absorbing other cores, a Lord could climb to a higher rank.
"Humans are a necessary evil. Many of our monstrous races would eventually go extinct without them. And that's not the only sacrifice. Who do you think will bear the brunt of the losses in a war? The lower-ranking Lords of the 72. They will simply be sent to their deaths."
"Even if they die, they will be reborn. It is a worthy and infinite sacrifice," Calandas countered.
"Oh? If you die, a new Rank 5 will just be born to replace you. So why don't you go fight on the front lines and die for us? Can you do that?"
"...Hah."
Man, watching them fight is already entertaining.
At any rate, Rosesha's points were entirely valid. To anyone, their own survival came before any grand cause. Because Calandas had continuously demanded mindless sacrifices under the guise of a 'great cause,' they had failed to unite even after eight centennial meetings.
"You know this. You've always known, yet you keep pushing for it. Why? Because you view any dungeon outside the Abyss Palace as nothing but expendable pawns."
"..."
"And above all, Calandas, everyone knows your little scheme. A war with humanity is bound to bring heavy losses. But there is exactly one Lord who stands to gain everything without losing a single thing."
"Enough."
"We all know it, don't we? This skeleton is egging everyone on just so he can monopolize all the spoils for himself."
I cheered inwardly. Rosesha was saying exactly what I wanted to say, laying it all out beautifully. As expected of his rival faction.
Any corpses resulting from a war on either side would be resurrected as Calandas's undead minions. In the game, once Calandas consumed humanity, his next target was the 72 Dungeons. Rosesha had likely foreseen that exact future.
Forming a dungeon coalition to destroy humanity sounded like a noble cause, but everyone saw right through Calandas's true intentions. They had simply kept quiet out of fear, choosing to look away because they couldn't agree to it.
"Your leaps in logic are absurd," Calandas hissed.
"It's the absolute truth. How many times have you used our 'great cause' as an excuse to push for a coalition? Don't you ever get tired of it? You might as well try to cover the sky with your palm."
A war with humanity would just be doing all the hard work only for Calandas to reap the rewards. I completely agreed with Rosesha, but I kept my mouth shut and simply nodded. I would rather die than draw any unnecessary attention to myself by speaking up.
"That is enough."
Roxanne finally intervened, unable to listen to any more of their bickering. I had expected one of the higher-ranking Lords to step in since the atmosphere was getting too heated. As Roxanne held the greatest influence at the round table, both of them immediately shut their mouths.
"Strengthening our unity is well and good. Questioning it is also acceptable, but your priorities are out of order."
Roxanne swept her gaze across the room. When her eyes briefly flicked over me, an inexplicable sense of dread washed over me.
"Before we discuss war, there is something we must resolve. Our absolute priority is to root out any traitors within our ranks. If there is a crack in our foundation, any unity we build will soon shatter."
Having spoken, Roxanne's sharp gaze locked onto me. To be precise, she was staring at the Holy Sword, and at Charlotte standing behind me.
"I trust there is no Lord here who does not know what the Holy Sword represents. It is the revelation of Solari, the god who champions humanity. And yet, the one chosen by that very Holy Sword sits among us today. Furthermore, he has even taken a pure-blooded human as his lieutenant."
...That fucking bitch.
Now she was openly pointing her finger at me.
"Rank 7, Bargore. This lady raises suspicions that you harbor sympathy for humanity and hold a treacherous heart. Therefore, by the authority of the Rank 2 Lord of the Ten-Tier Abyss, I demand a hearing."
The heated air instantly plunged into a freezing chill.
According to the bylaws of the assembly, the sacred and inviolable Lords of the 7 Abyssal Palaces possessed the right to demand a hearing. Such hearings inevitably triggered silent political warfare and conflict.
Was she truly trying to bury me under the pretext of being pro-human?
No. She had a different motive. Her level indicator had been flashing red for a while now—a sign of blatant hostility.
You petty little lizard.
It was purely because her pride had been wounded. She was doing this simply because I had bruised her ego, and she found me utterly obnoxious.