Chapter 240: Awl (5)

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 240: Awl (5)

"How was it?"

In a library filled with a faint scent of books, the blonde woman, Soul Queen, answered after a moment's thought. "It was a very interesting place."

That was the most fitting description. A place where Corpse Collector was one of the members and where even someone like him was out of his element? She never realized such a chatroom existed in the Ghost Busters community.

"I'm sure my personal opinions aren't what you're most interested in," Soul Queen teased, and the man did not deny it. That was because there was another reason for her infiltrating the Watchers of the Round Table.

"Perhaps the Watchers of the Round Table is a private gathering created to avoid our detection."

Whether a spy from the palace, or perhaps a player from another realm, the man had sent her there to look into both possibilities. But what was the verdict?

Soul Queen smiled. "It seems you were right again, Mr. Love."

"In what sense?"

"The Watchers of the Round Table definitely seems like a space created by a player from another realm."

"I should hear about it in more detail then."

Soul Queen slowly explained what had happened there: Lion, who exerted an overwhelming presence; Clown, whose identity as Corpse Collector had been revealed; Deer, who was presumed to be affiliated with the palace; and Goblin, who was so average he seemed almost out of place there.

"Hmm, I don't know about Ms. Fox. I don't think she's reserved but I wasn't able to converse very much with her."

Still, Fox was worth keeping an eye on, and rightfully so, because she had requested to speak with Lion at the end. What if that had been some kind of secret rendezvous?

"You are suspicious of the member called Lion."

"Yes. If there really is a player from another realm among them, he's the only one it could be." The man asked for her reasoning and Soul Queen answered without hesitation, "He drove Corpse Collector close to the verge of Mental Pollution with murderous intent alone. And seeing as he pulled back right before reaching that point, I think he had more to spare."

That fact alone made it obvious. A feat like that was impossible with an ordinary human mind, unless he was a player from another dimension who had been dropped in this world and survived here for over a hundred years. That wasn't the only reason, either. In the second round, Lion had said this:

"The one who created Ghost Busters was an evil spirit from another world."

In response to her statement that it wasn't the GM who had created the community, he brought up information that only a few knew about almost flippantly, as if he knew her identity too. She was sure of it then.

"Yeah, that must have been it."

This man, who already seemed incredibly dangerous, was not a simple player.

"Come to think of it, you said he knew Corpse Collector's identity from the beginning?"

"Yes. To clarify, the other members already suspected Lion of knowing their identities."

"...That is very strange." Security within the community was flawless. Even he, who had taken over admin rights and created the modern version of Ghost Busters, was unable to learn the users' real-world identities.

"How do you think he knew who they were?"

"I don't know. If he really does know, there are two possibilities." The man provided two possible theories in response to Soul Queen's question. "One, Lion is on par with the archmage from another realm who created this sub-space, or he has a comrade who is. And two..."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Two, Lion is in the same team as the creator of the Watchers of the Round Table. Right?"

"Yes, that's right. Up to this point, the current members were gathered by that Master person, so if they told him who the members were, that would make sense."

"But then it wouldn't make sense for him to know who I am."

"But we're not sure about that yet. Next time, throw in some bait to confirm whether that guy really knows your identity or not."

"I will."

"Anyway, information about the Master is what's important now. Did you find out anything?"

"I haven't met the Master yet. But I was able to learn from Mr. Goblin that on the day of the foreign connection shown in the log, he had visited the Table."

"Then that means that the person who snuck into the community that day has the nickname 0720."

"I suppose that's the only thing that makes sense. I wanted to find out more, but it seems like Mr. Goblin is still wary of me..."

Even after that, the two of them conversed for about an hour. Their topic of conversation was not only the Watchers of the Round Table, but the recent incident, the deaths of far too many players, what the most efficient way was to increase new member recruitment in the future, and even the biggest problem to crop up recently.

"What will you do about Mr. Baekho? He's turning the Magic Tower upside down looking for you. Right now, you may be just one suspect out of many, but I don't think it will be easy to keep your identity hidden forever..."

"I'm still debating it. For now, it seems he is hostile toward the palace, but... we have to be careful. It could be a trap."

"Yes, I will leave that part to you, Mr. Love."

"Meanwhile, Elfnunna. How is the investigation into him going?"

"All of his posts have been deleted, so it will take a little while to recover them. But he has quite a lot of GP."

"Is it all from Mr. Baekho?"

"No, he made almost all of it on the first day by selling a few pieces of quality information." Soul Queen went on to explain that these were things one could know by playing the game to some extent, and that the other posts and comments left by him were all deleted so it would take some time to recover them.

"Hmm, I see..." Love tapped the armrest with his index finger, mulling this over. There was one reason why he was looking into Elfnunna: because he theorized that Bjorn Yandel and Elfnunna could be the same person.

Bjorn Yandel was a barbarian whose rise through the ranks had been meteoric. Strangely, he had picked a shield during his coming-of-age ceremony. Elfnunna, meanwhile, had easily acquired GP by selling in-game information within the community. Also, he was a Korean Baekho Lee looked to like an older brother. That was a very important thing about this man. If these two were the same, there was a possibility that he was also the person Love had been eagerly awaiting.

Hold on.

A thought flashed through his mind and Love parted his lips. "Soul Queen."

"Yes, go ahead."

"Did you say Lion was Asian?"

"Yes, even with a mask, you can't hide the color of your skin."

As it was a Western game, the percentage of Asian Dungeon and Stone players was very small. Just look at Baekho Lee. He had opened a chatroom waiting for Koreans, but it took several years for him to meet a fellow countryman, and that countryman had been Elfnunna, the same person now suspected of being Bjorn Yandel.

"Two, Lion is in the same team as the creator of the Watchers of the Round Table. Right?"

"Yes, that's right. Up to this point, the current members were gathered by that Master person, so if they told him who the members were, that would make sense."

"But then it wouldn't make sense for him to know who I am."

"But we're not sure about that yet. Next time, throw in some bait to confirm whether that guy really knows your identity or not."

"I will."

"Anyway, information about the Master is what's important now. Did you find out anything?"

"I haven't met the Master yet. But I was able to learn from Mr. Goblin that on the day of the foreign connection shown in the log, he had visited the Table."

"Then that means that the person who snuck into the community that day has the nickname 0720."

"I suppose that's the only thing that makes sense. I wanted to find out more, but it seems like Mr. Goblin is still wary of me..."

Even after that, the two of them conversed for about an hour. Their topic of conversation was not only the Watchers of the Round Table, but the recent incident, the deaths of far too many players, what the most efficient way was to increase new member recruitment in the future, and even the biggest problem to crop up recently.

"What will you do about Mr. Baekho? He's turning the Magic Tower upside down looking for you. Right now, you may be just one suspect out of many, but I don't think it will be easy to keep your identity hidden forever..."

"I'm still debating ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it. For now, it seems he is hostile toward the palace, but... we have to be careful. It could be a trap."

"Yes, I will leave that part to you, Mr. Love."

"Meanwhile, Elfnunna. How is the investigation into him going?"

"All of his posts have been deleted, so it will take a little while to recover them. But he has quite a lot of GP."

"Is it all from Mr. Baekho?"

"No, he made almost all of it on the first day by selling a few pieces of quality information." Soul Queen went on to explain that these were things one could know by playing the game to some extent, and that the other posts and comments left by him were all deleted so it would take some time to recover them.

"Hmm, I see..." Love tapped the armrest with his index finger, mulling this over. There was one reason why he was looking into Elfnunna: because he theorized that Bjorn Yandel and Elfnunna could be the same person.

Bjorn Yandel was a barbarian whose rise through the ranks had been meteoric. Strangely, he had picked a shield during his coming-of-age ceremony. Elfnunna, meanwhile, had easily acquired GP by selling in-game information within the community. Also, he was a Korean Baekho Lee looked to like an older brother. That was a very important thing about this man. If these two were the same, there was a possibility that he was also the person Love had been eagerly awaiting.

Hold on.

A thought flashed through his mind and Love parted his lips. "Soul Queen."

"Yes, go ahead."

"Did you say Lion was Asian?"

"Yes, even with a mask, you can't hide the color of your skin."

As it was a Western game, the percentage of Asian Dungeon and Stone players was very small. Just look at Baekho Lee. He had opened a chatroom waiting for Koreans, but it took several years for him to meet a fellow countryman, and that countryman had been Elfnunna, the same person now suspected of being Bjorn Yandel.

Love straightened his posture. "Lion has only openly mentioned one identity: Clown's. Correct?" he inquired.

"Uh, it's hard to say since this was my first visit, but that's what I think, judging by the atmosphere when he brought it up."

"In that case..." he murmured and fell into thought.

Bjorn Yandel had most recently fought against Corpse Collector. Could all this really be just a coincidence? Of course, since they had no way of finding out if he was the same person as Elfnunna, this all remained a huge leap. But because of that...

"When is Bjorn Yandel's conferment ceremony?"

"I remember it being in three days."

"Three days..." Soon, Love made up his mind. "I'm going to go out for the first time in a long time."

Rather than ruminating on it for another hundred days, he may as well meet him in person.

***

"Hey, wake up, wake up! Wake up!"

The morning after spending time in the community, I woke up to a Back Smash from Missha. I was tired as hell from using murderous intent for the first time in a while.

"What did you do yesterday that you're so exhausted this morrrning!?"

After community nights, it was better to wake up on time, even if you had to overdo it. To anyone who knew about that place, sleeping in could look suspicious. There were more eyes on me now than ever too.

And a goddamn assassin is on their way...

Yesterday, I had collapsed out of sheer exhaustion, but I didn't think I'd be sleeping well from now on. Ha, so annoying.

Why can't everyone just leave me alone?

I wouldn't be able to fight like usual in my current state, either. The sighs came to me naturally, but I quickly washed my face and headed downstairs to share a meal with the others. It was a bit of a strange sight. That was because there was one more person at the breakfast table than usual.

"Y-You're up?"

"Of course. Don't just stand there, sit down. The food will get cold."

"Y-Yes!" Erwen sat down, her expression nervous as she began to eat.

An uncharacteristically awkward silence fell over the table. Fortunately, Missha noticed it and asked enthusiastically, "So, how is it? My food."

"I-It's good... thank you..."

"Let me know if you want to eat anything. I'll make it for dinnerrr later. Oh, and tell me if there's anything you can't eat too." As always, Missha was considerate of even the minor details.

"Carrots! I can't eat carrots!" Ainar jumped in at that point and received a Back Smash of her own.

Do you really think that'll work? I've tried the same thing ten times, but every attempt has ended in failure.

Apparently, we had to eat those since we ate meat every day.

I am grateful, but... A barbarian has to live a barbarian lifestyle.

"I-I'll do the dishes!"

After the meal, Ainar left for the holy land as always and the rest of us spent time together. The vibe was not as bad as I thought it would be. I guess you could say it felt like the hierarchy had been fully settled.

"Erwen, come sit over herrre. We should talk."

"Y-Yes!"

"It might be a bit earrrly to ask this, but what are you going to do from now on? Our team is alrrready full, as you know."

"That's..." Erwen trailed off and glanced at me. She must have been asking if it was okay to talk about the clan.

Well, there was no reason she couldn't. But I didn't have the energy left to discuss it at length right now, so I just glossed over it. "It's too early, Missha. We don't even know if we'll be able to enter the labyrinth next month."

"That's... trrrue."

To be honest, unless this situation was declared resolved, it would be wise to stop exploring the labyrinth for a while. It wasn't like we were hurting financially right now.

The irritating thing is that the city isn't all that safe, either.

Between the Dragon Slayer, Corpse Collector, Noark's mystery assassin, and even the actions of the palace, which were all too enigmatic, there were countless reasons for me to get stronger as soon as possible.

Still, it'd be better to keep an eye on the situation until it calms down to some extent.

I tried to let go of my impatience. As the saying went, "Even when you are in a hurry, take the long way around to be safe."

That part I'll have to discuss with Raven later.

Anyway, after that we ate snacks and talked about this and that. At first, Erwen looked downcast and uncomfortable, but because Missha treated her with kindness, she soon relaxed.

Still, it looks like she finished processing what happened to her sister before coming here.

That was a weight off my shoulders. In the future, she would inevitably have to shoulder even more heavy burdens, but Erwen was currently standing under her own power. There was no doubt she would be able to go even further.

"Huh? You have a youngerrr sibling?"

"Yes, she's still young and living in the holy land. When she gets older... I'll have to take care of her. Just like my sister did for me..."

"Nyaha, don't worrry too much. You still have a long way to go. By then you will have much more wiggle room."

"You think so...?" Surprisingly, their conversation was friendly. But Erwen suddenly bowed at her out of nowhere. "I-I never apologized for back then, did I? I-I'm sorry, something must have been wrong with my head that day..."

"Don't apologize. It's fine. Something good came out of all of that too."

I cocked my head. "Back then"? Did the two of them have something to apologize for?

"B-But are you okay, sis...?"

"What's not to be all rrright about? My thoughts have changed a lot since then too... It's not like I'm qualified for the thing we talked about in the firrrst place." Missha looked me up and down. For some reason, I shivered.

Knock, knock.

A knock sounded from the front door.

"I'll go see." I quickly got up and headed to the door. Normally I would've opened it straight away, but I learned yesterday that an assassin might be sent after me. First, I asked who it was.

"My name is Rayman Keplow, a knight of the Second Royal Guard."

The knight politely revealed his identity, I guessed because I was due to receive the title of baronet. When I checked through the peephole, the armor looked legit, and other knights were standing behind him, surrounding him.

This doesn't seem like a trick.

I opened the door because I had a guess as to why they were there, and I confirmed the reason they came face-to-face. It was the first bit of good news I had received in a while.

"An order has come down from above."

"An order?"

"We've received instructions to protect Lord ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Yandel from any dangerous people that intend to harm him."

So, Deer had made a move.

Love straightened his posture. "Lion has only openly mentioned one identity: Clown's. Correct?" he inquired.

"Uh, it's hard to say since this was my first visit, but that's what I think, judging by the atmosphere when he brought it up."

"In that case..." he murmured and fell into thought.

Bjorn Yandel had most recently fought against Corpse Collector. Could all this really be just a coincidence? Of course, since they had no way of finding out if he was the same person as Elfnunna, this all remained a huge leap. But because of that...

"When is Bjorn Yandel's conferment ceremony?"

"I remember it being in three days."

"Three days..." Soon, Love made up his mind. "I'm going to go out for the first time in a long time."

Rather than ruminating on it for another hundred days, he may as well meet him in person.

***

"Hey, wake up, wake up! Wake up!"

The morning after spending ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time in the community, I woke up to a Back Smash from Missha. I was tired as hell from using murderous intent for the first time in a while.

"What did you do yesterday that you're so exhausted this morrrning!?"

After community nights, it was better to wake up on time, even if you had to overdo it. To anyone who knew about that place, sleeping in could look suspicious. There were more eyes on me now than ever too.

And a goddamn assassin is on their way...

Yesterday, I had collapsed out of sheer exhaustion, but I didn't think I'd be sleeping well from now on. Ha, so annoying.

Why can't everyone just leave me alone?

I wouldn't be able to fight like usual in my current state, either. The sighs came to me naturally, but I quickly washed my face and headed downstairs to share a meal with the others. It was a bit of a strange sight. That was because there was one more person at the breakfast table than usual.

"Y-You're up?"

"Of course. Don't just stand there, sit down. The food will get cold."

"Y-Yes!" Erwen sat down, her expression nervous as she began to eat.

An uncharacteristically awkward silence fell over the table. Fortunately, Missha noticed it and asked enthusiastically, "So, how is it? My food."

"I-It's good... thank you..."

"Let me know if you want to eat anything. I'll make it for dinnerrr later. Oh, and tell me if there's anything you can't eat too." As always, Missha was considerate of even the minor details.

"Carrots! I can't eat carrots!" Ainar jumped in at that point and received a Back Smash of her own.

Do you really think that'll work? I've tried the same thing ten times, but every attempt has ended in failure.

Apparently, we had to eat those since we ate meat every day.

I am grateful, but... A barbarian has to live a barbarian lifestyle.

"I-I'll do the dishes!"

After the meal, Ainar left for the holy land as always and the rest of us spent time together. The vibe was not as bad as I thought it would be. I guess you could say it felt like the hierarchy had been fully settled.

"Erwen, come sit over herrre. We should talk."

"Y-Yes!"

"It might be a bit earrrly to ask this, but what are you going to do from now on? Our team is alrrready full, as you know."

"That's..." Erwen trailed off and glanced at me. She must have been asking if it was okay to talk about the clan.

Well, there was no reason she couldn't. But I didn't have the energy left to discuss it at length right now, so I just glossed over it. "It's too early, Missha. We don't even know if we'll be able to enter the labyrinth next month."

"That's... trrrue."

To be honest, unless this situation was declared resolved, it would be wise to stop exploring the labyrinth for a while. It wasn't like we were hurting financially right now.

The irritating thing is that the city isn't all that safe, either.

Between the Dragon Slayer, Corpse Collector, Noark's mystery assassin, and even the actions of the palace, which were all too enigmatic, there were countless reasons for me to get stronger as soon as possible.

Still, it'd be better to keep an eye on the situation until it calms down to some extent.

I tried to let go of my impatience. As the saying went, "Even when you are in a hurry, take the long way around to be safe."

That part I'll have to discuss with Raven later.

Anyway, after that we ate snacks and talked about this and that. At first, Erwen looked downcast and uncomfortable, but because Missha treated her with kindness, she soon relaxed.

Still, it looks like she finished processing what happened to her sister before coming here.

That was a weight off my shoulders. In the future, she would inevitably have to shoulder even more heavy burdens, but Erwen was currently standing under her own power. There was no doubt she would be able to go even further.

"Huh? You have a youngerrr sibling?"

"Yes, she's still young and living in the holy land. When she gets older... I'll have to take care of her. Just like my sister did for me..."

"Nyaha, don't worrry too much. You still have a long way to go. By then you will have much more wiggle room."

"You think so...?" Surprisingly, their conversation was friendly. But Erwen suddenly bowed at her out of nowhere. "I-I never apologized for back then, did I? I-I'm sorry, something must have been wrong with my head that day..."

"Don't apologize. It's fine. Something good came out of all of that too."

I cocked my head. "Back then"? Did the two of them have something to apologize for?

"B-But are you okay, sis...?"

"What's not to be all rrright about? My thoughts have changed a lot since then too... It's not like I'm qualified for the thing we talked about in the firrrst place." Missha looked me up and down. For some reason, I shivered.

Knock, knock.

A knock sounded from the front door.

"I'll go see." I quickly got up and headed to the door. Normally I would've opened it straight away, but I learned yesterday that an assassin might be sent after me. First, I asked who it was.

"My name is Rayman Keplow, a knight of the Second Royal Guard."

The knight politely revealed his identity, I guessed because I was due to receive the title of baronet. When I checked through the peephole, the armor looked legit, and other knights were standing behind him, surrounding him.

This doesn't seem like a trick.

I opened the door because I had a guess as to why they were there, and I confirmed the reason they came face-to-face. It was the first bit of good news I had received in a while.

"An order has come down from above."

"An order?"

"We've received instructions to protect Lord Yandel from any dangerous people that intend to harm him."

So, Deer had made a move.