Chapter 520: One-to-One (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 520: One-to-One (3)
The mood took a turn for the heavy at Baekho's words, but not for long. A second later, Baekho regained his cheer like he hadn't said anything at all, and I let his mumbles go without comment.
However, the thought still lingered in my heart.
How things could have been...
I knew a thing or two about Baekho Lee's past now. Long before I had ever opened my eyes in this world, this guy's identity as an evil spirit had been exposed by one of his companions in an act of betrayal, and just look at how he had ended up. Before his party disbanded, he had been clearing the labyrinth aboveboard like me, but now, he had to work alone in secret.
His obsessive level of distrust in others was probably warranted.
Well, from the point of view of the people living here, calling it a "betrayal" might be too much...
Still, if he had never been betrayed back then, what would Baekho Lee be like now?
"Hm? Bro, why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?"
"I'm just looking at you. But did you do something wrong? Why do you sound so guilty?"
"...C'mon, Big Bro! No way, haha. But hey, could we talk in private for a sec?"
When Baekho shot a quick glance at Hyeonbyeol, she let out a sigh. "Are you guys seeing each other or something?"
"Haha, are you jealous right now, Big Sis?"
"...I'll come back later."
As always, Hyeonbyeol left the chat room without much of a fuss. Admittedly, though, I was a little surprised that she didn't react when Baekho called her Big Sis. Was it because she knew he wouldn't stop no matter what she said?
"Hehe, now it's just the two of us. All right, since the third wheel is gone, we can get lovey—"
"I'll kill you. Don't joke around like that."
"Yes, sir."
"Anyway, what's so urgent that you sent Hyeonbyeol out?"
"Oh, that? Honestly, it's nothing that major..."
"Then what is it?"
I didn't want to keep standing, so I went and sat down on the sofa, leaning my chin on my fist. Baekho sat opposite me before asking, "Bro, are you actually stuck in the labyrinth right now?"
"Yeah."
"So you're still there even though the labyrinth closed... That's interesting. Did you find a way out?"
"Not yet."
"Hm, honestly, isn't that a pretty big deal? Should I go save you?"
"Save me from what? Just do your own thing."
"Heh, I knew you would say that. And it's not like I can actually get there anyway."
"Are you outside the city right now?"
"Yeah. I thought I might be able to find something big by going outside, but I haven't even seen a single rat. If I knew this was going to happen, I would've gone into the new area with you."
"I'm a little curious as to why you went outside this month, actually."
"I didn't expect anyone to find and open the hidden area so quickly."
So that was why. I had found it odd that the guy who was more interested in the labyrinth than anything else had left the kingdom at a time like this.
"Bro, where is it? Give me some information."
"For free?"
"Hey... I mean aren't you curious about my intel from outside the walls as well? Let's trade."
"Didn't you just say you haven't even found a rat out there?"
"Did I? Well, I have a huge hunch that there's something incredible hidden out here!"
I could tell that Baekho was playing up the value of his own information a bit, but I did sort of agree with him. There was something hidden outside those walls—it was just that I didn't have any idea what that thing might be.
"All right, deal."
"Magnanimous as always, bro!"
After that, I gave him a good amount of information about Basement Floor One.
Mutant monsters and new monsters, the library and the summoning stone and the almost encyclopedic books on its shelves, the lost items we found floating on the silver ocean, and so on.
What I didn't tell him, however, was anything about the village chief, and I didn't feel a shred of guilt over it. Although this was supposed to be an exchange, I hadn't received anything in return yet, and it wasn't like this guy was going to tell me everything he saw outside the walls anyway.
Well, there is a chance that I could stumble on something new if I discuss the chief with him, but...
Hah, why couldn't I trust Baekho Lee? It felt like if I revealed everything and tried to work with him, I would only end up getting stabbed in the back in the end.
Even still, he was an incredible ally, and it would be a waste to cut ties with him.
"All right, that's it."
"Eh? But what about the tree island? I was just getting into it."
"We're in the middle of exploring it. Do you know how shocked I was to get dragged here out of nowhere?"
"Still, it's good you're here. Honestly, Hyeonbyeol looked like she was going to cry when she asked me if you were dead or not. I was so confused."
Well, since this guy was outside the walls, he probably only heard the news about me from Hyeonbyeol. It didn't seem like he read the forum posts that much either.
"Anyway, bro, I'm off."
"Huh, how come? We still have a lot of time left."
"Even so, I think it'd be best for me to step out early today."
"What do you mean?"
I honestly couldn't understand what he meant, but Baekho just grinned at me. "Give my extra time to Hyeonbyeol today. Even if she's a good actress... No, I'm pretty sure she didn't even try to act. I think she was really shocked by the news."
"Ah..."
"Well, I'll leave you to it."
"Baekho, wait."
When I called out to stop him from leaving, Baekho tilted his head.
I thought for a moment before opening my mouth. I could be making a mistake here, but...
"I'm not smart."
"...Sorry? I think I heard you wrong."
I ignored Baekho's obvious confusion and carried on. "Having a lot of secrets isn't being smart."
"...Then what?"
"It's just being afraid."
You and me...
"For free?"
"Hey... I mean aren't you curious about my intel from outside the walls as well? Let's trade."
"Didn't you just say you haven't even found a rat out there?"
"Did I? Well, I have a huge hunch that there's something incredible hidden out here!"
I could tell that Baekho was playing up the value of his own information a bit, but I did sort of agree with him. There was something hidden outside those walls—it was just that I didn't have any idea what that thing might be.
"All right, deal."
"Magnanimous as always, bro!"
After that, I gave him a good amount of information about Basement Floor One.
Mutant monsters and new monsters, the library and the summoning stone and the almost encyclopedic books on its shelves, the lost items we found floating on the silver ocean, and so on.
What I didn't tell him, however, was anything about the village chief, and I didn't feel a shred of guilt over it. Although this was supposed to be an exchange, I hadn't received anything in return yet, and it wasn't like this guy was going to tell me everything he saw outside the walls anyway.
Well, there is a chance that I could stumble on something new if I discuss the chief with him, but...
Hah, why couldn't I trust Baekho Lee? It felt like if I revealed everything and tried to work with him, I would only end up getting stabbed in the back in the end.
Even still, he was an incredible ally, and it would be a waste to cut ties with him.
"All right, that's it."
"Eh? But what about the tree island? I was just getting into it."
"We're in the middle of exploring it. Do you know how shocked I was to get dragged here out of nowhere?"
"Still, it's good you're here. Honestly, Hyeonbyeol looked like she was going to cry when she asked me if you were dead or not. I was so confused."
Well, since this guy was outside the walls, he probably only heard the news about me from Hyeonbyeol. It didn't seem like he read the forum posts that much either.
"Anyway, bro, I'm off."
"Huh, how come? We still have a lot of time left."
"Even so, I think it'd be best for me to step out early today."
"What do you mean?"
I honestly couldn't understand what he meant, but Baekho just grinned at me. "Give my extra time to Hyeonbyeol today. Even if she's a good actress... No, I'm pretty sure she didn't even try to act. I think she was really shocked by the news."
"Ah..."
"Well, I'll leave you to it."
"Baekho, wait."
When I called out to stop him from leaving, Baekho tilted his head.
I thought for a moment before opening my mouth. I could be making a mistake here, but...
"I'm not smart."
"...Sorry? I think I heard you wrong."
I ignored Baekho's obvious confusion and carried on. "Having a lot of secrets isn't being smart."
"...Then what?"
"It's just being afraid."
You and me...
We were the type of guys who always thought the worst before all else.
***
Baekho left early for the day, and Hyeonbyeol returned soon after.
"Did you have a good talk?"
"Yeah."
"But he left early today, didn't he?"
Her question was blunt, so I gave a blunt answer. "He told me to spend time with you."
"...Wh-what?! What is he talking about?!"
"Why are you so flustered? This isn't the first time he's spouted nonsense."
"That's true... Not the first time... Right..."
Even as she said that, Hyeonbyeol fanned her face with her hand like she was overheating. It had been a while since I last saw her do something like that.
For some reason, the sight made me feel a little mischievous. "Were you that worried about me?" I teased, not bothering to hide my grin.
Hyeonbyeol narrowed her eyes into a glare. "...Are you picking a fight?"
"Uh... No? More importantly, how were those fighting words?"
"Seriously... Hanging out with a weirdo like Baekho Lee is making you weird too."
That shut me right up. I was only trying to joke around, so why was she so annoyed?
I didn't know, but I quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, how have you been? Are things going all right on your end?"
"Yeah. Things haven't really changed too much. I'm still working under Countess Peprok, gaining her trust bit by bit."
"How is the countess?"
"...She's a kind woman. She's also an upright one. But recently, she's been a bit annoying."
"Annoying?"
"Do you really not know? It's because of Bjorn Yandel."
"Ah..." Although it was never my intention, I had somehow ended up convincing everyone—including Ragna—that I was dead twice now.
"Well, still, it's not all bad. I read the post you mentioned about time in the labyrinth, and it looks like a lot of people buy that person's story? There are a lot of clicks and comments on it as well. The news will probably spread through the entire city in a few days."
"That's a relief."
"Yes, it is. If theories about his survival took even a little longer to crop up, all of his wealth and property could've been repossessed. The construction of House Yandel would've stopped as well."
Yeah, really.
What an incredible relief that—
"...You know I only said it was a relief because that means the countess will stop annoying you with her moping, right?"
"Ohhh, is that so?"
Hah... so she wasn't even bothering to hide her suspicion anymore and had graduated to openly baiting me.
If I ever ran into her outside, I'd need to show her what a true barbarian was like so that she'd never doubt Bjorn Yandel ever again.
"Hansu, what are you thinking right now?"
"...Nothing?"
"Hm... I thought I saw an ominous gleam in your eyes."
"What are you talking about, a gleam in my eyes?"
We were the type of guys who always thought the worst before all else.
***
Baekho left early for the day, and Hyeonbyeol returned soon after.
"Did you have a good talk?"
"Yeah."
"But he left early today, didn't he?"
Her question was blunt, so I gave a blunt answer. "He told me to spend time with you."
"...Wh-what?! What is he talking about?!"
"Why are you so flustered? This isn't the first time he's spouted nonsense."
"That's true... Not the first time... Right..."
Even as she said that, Hyeonbyeol fanned her face with her hand like she was overheating. It had been a while since I last saw her do something like that.
For some reason, the sight made me feel a little mischievous. "Were you that worried about me?" I teased, not bothering to hide my grin.
Hyeonbyeol narrowed her eyes into a glare. "...Are you picking a fight?"
"Uh... No? More importantly, how were those fighting words?"
"Seriously... Hanging out with a weirdo like Baekho Lee is making you weird too."
That shut me right up. I was only trying to joke around, so why was she so annoyed?
I didn't know, but I quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, how have you been? Are things going all right on your end?"
"Yeah. Things haven't really changed too much. I'm still working under Countess Peprok, gaining her trust bit by bit."
"How is the countess?"
"...She's a kind woman. She's also an upright one. But recently, she's been a bit annoying."
"Annoying?"
"Do you really not know? It's because of Bjorn Yandel."
"Ah..." Although it was never my intention, I had somehow ended up convincing everyone—including Ragna—that I was dead twice now.
"Well, still, it's not all bad. I read the post you mentioned about time in the labyrinth, and it looks like a lot of people buy that person's story? There are a lot of clicks and comments on it as well. The news will probably spread through the entire city in a few days."
"That's a relief."
"Yes, it is. If theories about his survival took even a little longer to crop up, all of his wealth and property could've been repossessed. The construction of House Yandel would've stopped as well."
Yeah, really.
What an incredible relief that—
"...You know I only said it was a relief because that means the countess will stop annoying you with her moping, right?"
"Ohhh, is that so?"
Hah... so she wasn't even bothering to hide her suspicion anymore and had graduated to openly baiting me.
If I ever ran into her outside, I'd need to show her what a true barbarian was like so that she'd never doubt Bjorn Yandel ever again.
"Hansu, what are you thinking right now?"
"...Nothing?"
"Hm... I thought I saw an ominous gleam in your eyes."
"What are you talking about, a gleam in my eyes?"
I quickly shut her down before she could figure out where my mind had gone, and after that, I passed the time reading books and chatting with her.
"Hansu, it's time for you to leave."
"Oh, right. It's already time."
It was soon time for the Round Table to open, so we went our separate ways and left the chat room. Back in Hansu Lee's room, I scrolled through the bulletin board for a bit then entered the Round Table just before it closed.
As always, I donned my blue suit and a lion mask.
I used to think the mask looked a little funny, but I had gotten used to it now. I even thought it suited me pretty well.
All right, now that I'd changed clothes...
Step, step.
A short walk down the hallway brought me to the Round Table, where all the other members except for me were already seated.
"Seriously, how does that even make sense? It's obviously a lie."
"Oh? I'm not so sure. I myself read the comments on that post, and even Didigo said that the probability is quite high, no?"
"Haha, I know that one! Didigo is the user doing some weird, high-concept roleplay, right?"
"That's right. But even though they're a bit weird, they're not someone whose opinion you can dismiss out of hand."
"True. They're suspiciously accurate when it comes to stuff like... Ah!"
As soon as I entered, the others all stopped talking and turned to me in greeting.
Well, all except Clown, of course.
"Pshehe, welcome back, Mr. Lion."
Clown got up from his seat and bowed at me like a medieval aristocrat. I spared him a single glance before ignoring him and sitting down.
Looks like Parav is going first today.
As I sat down, I eyed the person in the seat next to me out of the corner of my eye only to be surprised with Goblin.
Did he actually want to be first this time?
If so, I was a little curious as to why, but I figured that would become apparent once we got started. And on that note...
"Then, let's begin."
Since there was nothing else to say, I kicked off the meeting.
"I trust that everyone read the post on the forums today," Goblin began. "Well, there is a high probability that everything written in that post is true."
"...So?"
"...That's my information?"
The other members all looked flabbergasted by Goblin's statement.
"You're not even confirming that it's true, but just saying that there's a high probability?"
"Pshehe, then I'll go next. Goblin's mental capacity has a high probability of only being one kilobyte!"
"Hehe, Mr. Clown, you saw that in that post, right? It was really funny. Didn't that other guy look like a total moron?"
"P-Pshehe..." Clown flashed an awkward smile at Butterfly's agreement. However, it seemed Goblin had anticipated the complaints and mocking.
"Then I'll give you proof that what that post said is likely to be true."
As Goblin went on, uncowed, the looks in the other members' eyes sharpened.
"...Proof?"
"Oh, so you did have something more?"
"Well... Even if he's an airhead, he wouldn't have brought this up without something to back it up."
As everyone's attention returned to him, Goblin began to explain his evidence. "I've always been good at navigating the internet. I loved getting into fights online and my main skill in the real world was doxxing people."
"...What does that have to do with the proof you mentioned?"
"Before this meeting opened up, I went through all the comments and posts the author of the post in question ever made. I combed through any crumbs of information they left behind while thinking they were totally anonymous and combined them all together."
"...So?"
"I don't know exactly who they are, but the person who wrote that post is a member of the Hektz Clan."
To be honest, I was kind of blown away.
The other members were staring at Goblin like, What the hell is this guy talking about? but I knew that what he was saying was true.
...It's possible to figure something like that out from a few posts?
This was a talent I didn't know Goblin had.
"I don't know what to make of that."
"The Hektz clan were one of the groups who followed Bjorn Yandel into the new hidden area..."
"Queen, what do you think?" Deer asked. "Since you have a close relationship with the GM, you should know quite a bit about who made that post."
Queen nodded, looking shocked. "...It's hard to believe, but Mr. Goblin's theory matches ours."
"Seriously?"
"Yes. However... there's something I don't get. We were able to come to that conclusion only after recovering deleted posts and comments..."
"Did those deleted posts give away the poster's identity?"
"There were quite a few of them, and they were all related to the Hektz clan. Most of them were about how the clan had good benefits and other words of praise, but they always deleted them right before the community closed every month."
Hah... Were they seriously advertising their clan here?
It was unbelievable, but as Queen backed Goblin up, the members began to see him in a new light.
"Haha...that's a relief. So my investigation was sound."
...What the hell was this guy?
I quickly shut her down before she could figure out where my mind had gone, and after that, I passed the time reading books and chatting with her.
"Hansu, it's time for you to leave."
"Oh, right. It's already time."
It was soon time for the Round Table to open, so we went our separate ways and left the chat room. Back in Hansu Lee's room, I scrolled through the bulletin board for a bit then entered the Round Table just before it closed.
As always, I donned my blue suit and a lion mask.
I used to think the mask looked a little funny, but I had gotten used to it now. I even thought it suited me pretty well.
All right, now that I'd changed clothes...
Step, step.
A short walk down the hallway brought me to the Round Table, where all the other members except for me were already seated.
"Seriously, how does that even make sense? It's obviously a lie."
"Oh? I'm not so sure. I myself read the comments on that post, and even Didigo said that the probability is quite high, no?"
"Haha, I know that one! Didigo is the user doing some weird, high-concept roleplay, right?"
"That's right. But even though they're a bit weird, they're not someone whose opinion you can dismiss out of hand."
"True. They're suspiciously accurate when it comes to stuff like... Ah!"
As soon as I entered, the others all stopped talking and turned to me in greeting.
Well, all except Clown, of course.
"Pshehe, welcome back, Mr. Lion."
Clown got up from his seat and bowed at me like a medieval aristocrat. I spared him a single glance before ignoring him and sitting down.
Looks like Parav is going first today.
As I sat down, I eyed the person in the seat next to me out of the corner of my eye only to be surprised with Goblin.
Did he actually want to be first this time?
If so, I was a little curious as to why, but I figured that would become apparent once we got started. And on that note...
"Then, let's begin."
Since there was nothing else to say, I kicked off the meeting.
"I trust that everyone read the post on the forums today," Goblin began. "Well, there is a high probability that everything written in that post is true."
"...So?"
"...That's my information?"
The other members all looked flabbergasted by Goblin's statement.
"You're not even confirming that it's true, but just saying that there's a high probability?"
"Pshehe, then I'll go next. Goblin's mental capacity has a high probability of only being one kilobyte!"
"Hehe, Mr. Clown, you saw that in that post, right? It was really funny. Didn't that other guy look like a total moron?"
"P-Pshehe..." Clown flashed an awkward smile at Butterfly's agreement. However, it seemed Goblin had anticipated the complaints and mocking.
"Then I'll give you proof that what that post said is likely to be true."
As Goblin went on, uncowed, the looks in the other members' eyes sharpened.
"...Proof?"
"Oh, so you did have something more?"
"Well... Even if he's an airhead, he wouldn't have brought this up without something to back it up."
As everyone's attention returned to him, Goblin began to explain his evidence. "I've always been good at navigating the internet. I loved getting into fights online and my main skill in the real world was doxxing people."
"...What does that have to do with the proof you mentioned?"
"Before this meeting opened up, I went through all the comments and posts the author of the post in question ever made. I combed through any crumbs of information they left behind while thinking they were totally anonymous and combined them all together."
"...So?"
"I don't know exactly who they are, but the person who wrote that post is a member of the Hektz Clan."
To be honest, I was kind of blown away.
The other members were staring at Goblin like, What the hell is this guy talking about? but I knew that what he was saying was true.
...It's possible to figure something like that out from a few posts?
This was a talent I didn't know Goblin had.
"I don't know what to make of that."
"The Hektz clan were one of the groups who followed Bjorn Yandel into the new hidden area..."
"Queen, what do you think?" Deer asked. "Since you have a close relationship with the GM, you should know quite a bit about who made that post."
Queen nodded, looking shocked. "...It's hard to believe, but Mr. Goblin's theory matches ours."
"Seriously?"
"Yes. However... there's something I don't get. We were able to come to that conclusion only after recovering deleted posts and comments..."
"Did those deleted posts give away the poster's identity?"
"There were quite a few of them, and they were all related to the Hektz clan. Most of them were about how the clan had good benefits and other words of praise, but they always deleted them right before the community closed every month."
Hah... Were they seriously advertising their clan here?
It was unbelievable, but as Queen backed Goblin up, the members began to see him in a new light.
"Haha...that's a relief. So my investigation was sound."
...What the hell was this guy?