Chapter 572: The Last Gathering (2)

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 572: The Last Gathering (2)

Survival—that was the ultimate excuse I had at my disposal. I needed to survive in this damn world, so any action I took in pursuit of that goal could thus be justified as necessary.

"...I see."

Crescent was merely a victim of said "necessary action."

"There needs to be a body..."

When I first came to the Round Table, I'd been a nobody with nothing to show for it. Death lurked around every corner of this dangerous world, and I spent long nights in bars trying to get the information necessary to stay alive.

That was why I'd put on the lion mask.

To obtain the information I needed, I'd dangled someone's greatest wish right in front of them and used it to play them like a fiddle. Sincerity was a sin in this world, after all. The moment you let your guard slip, you'd be ripped apart accordingly. And the more power I could get my hands on, the safer my comrades and I would be. That was what I truly believed back then.

"That part is definitely different from the legends..."

But what about now?

Although I still worried about my survival constantly, I was much stronger now. I'd become the chieftain of a tribe and a nobleman. In fact, House Yandel was even part of a non-human alliance of aristocrats, Melbeth. Thanks to all that, I didn't need to rely so heavily on the information from the Round Table anymore.

And yet, I was still donning this lion mask and deceiving them. Why was that?

The answer soon came to me.

Queen. Clown. Wolf, who seemed to have some sort of connection to Auril Gavis, the mysterious Black, and Butterfly. I wanted to benefit from the information they brought here. Yeah, that part was genuine. But...

"...Thanks to you, I can now let go of this foolish dream of mine."

It hit me right then.

I could no longer use survival as an excuse. Just as how a white piece of paper couldn't sit next to a puddle of black ink forever and remain unstained...

"However, I cannot seem to feel any gratitude toward you."

This was who I was now. Someone who lied, who made threats, so long as it was to my advantage. After years of toil, my only priority living to see the next day, I'd ended up becoming the type of person I used to hate.

A heavy silence ensued. Even Clown, who would usually mock Crescent and say it was his fault for getting tricked in the first place, didn't say a word, instead just watching.

"I..." Crescent finally broke the long silence and got up from his seat. "I... am going to go now. There's nothing more for me here."

And with that, Crescent really did leave, not giving any of us a chance to respond.

"Huh...? H-He's really gone...?"

This was an anonymous group where no one knew anyone else's name. Once we left here today, there was no guarantee we'd ever meet again in the future. But despite knowing that, in the end, I wasn't able to say it.

I wasn't able to say sorry.

If I did, it might come back to bite me. That was the thought that lingered in my mind.

***

Even after Crescent left the Round Table, our final meeting continued. Although that might seem harsh, it was honestly to be expected given the nature of this place. The relationships we had with the people here were purely professional.

"Pshe, he's really gone. No fun."

Everyone gritted their teeth and ignored Clown's nonsense as the second round began. Deer was once again the first to go.

"Tell me..."

However, rather than share information, Deer looked me directly in the eye and asked, "Do you think this is a game? Do you?"

The sense I got from him was that he wasn't all that friendly with anyone in general, but seeing Crescent leave like that must have been a shock to his system, as he glared at me with open hostility.

"Mr. Deer... P-Please calm down..."

Goblin tried to stop Deer, and the other members also looked on with worry. However, Deer didn't back down.

"Is this all just some form of perverted entertainment to you...? Finding someone desperate and giving them hope, only to take it away? Is that why you only mentioned it now? Because today is going to be the last day?"

If I were to defend myself, that wasn't the reason I did it. The real reason I'd finally spoken up today was out of a sense of duty... No, I supposed it was closer to a sense of guilt.

And the reason I put so much emphasis on needing to be "entertained" at the Round Table? It was simply a way to flesh out the character of Lion. Or rather, to manipulate the other members and control the flow of the conversation as I pleased.

"Lion, there is no doubt you are someone far more powerful than I am. However, I still must say what needs to be said: You are just a broken man."

I had already heard those same words multiple times in the past. When Baekho Lee said it, I just let it roll right off of me. But at that moment, it was becoming apparent that there had to be some sort of fault in me that these people were picking up on.

I was broken. Even by the standards of this savage world, I had already crossed a line.

And as if to confirm it...

Should I use killing intent?

The first thought that came to mind after Deer said all of that was, What would Lion do? In my head, I could see myself saying, "interesting," and employing a bit of killing intent. Because that was the easiest path forward, and the one that would be most beneficial for me to take.

"Pshehe, how about you stop there? It's hard to listen to your whining. Know your place, Deer."

In the same vein, when Clown started barking at Deer like a guard dog, I stayed silent to wait and see how this would play out.

"...That's funny. Clown, do you think he'll give a damn about you if you kiss up to him enough?"

"I already know the answer to that, so mind your own business. Pshe, how about you quit moaning and get on with your turn already? Everyone is waiting on you."

Deer responded to Clown's haughty instructions by quietly standing up from his seat.

"What? Oh," Clown huffed, "are you going to leave too?"

"I'm not going to stay here and let that man use me for his own amusement in the hopes that he might throw me his table scraps in the end—"

"Then just leave already," Clown said coldly. "Don't waste any more of our time."

Deer stared at Clown for a long moment. Then, he took a breath and spoke. "This wasn't how it used to be." And with that cryptic statement, he was gone.

Everyone held their breaths as another silence fell over the room.

"Ahaha... things have gotten weird again!" Wolf said in an attempt to break the ice, letting out an awkward laugh. "Everyone got along pretty well when Master was here! But what can you do? He's not here anymore."

"Pshe, he's really gone. No fun."

Everyone gritted their teeth and ignored Clown's nonsense as the second round began. Deer was once again the first to go.

"Tell me..."

However, rather than share information, Deer looked me directly in the eye and asked, "Do you think this is a game? Do you?"

The sense I got from him was that he wasn't all that friendly with anyone in general, but seeing Crescent leave like that must have been a shock to his system, as he glared at me with open hostility.

"Mr. Deer... P-Please calm down..."

Goblin tried to stop Deer, and the other members also looked on with worry. However, Deer didn't back down.

"Is this all just some form of perverted entertainment to you...? Finding someone desperate and giving them hope, only to take it away? Is that why you only mentioned it now? Because today is going to be the last day?"

If I were to defend myself, that wasn't the reason I did it. The real reason I'd finally spoken up today was out of a sense of duty... No, I supposed it was closer to a sense of guilt.

And the reason I put so much emphasis on needing to be "entertained" at the Round Table? It was simply a way to flesh out the character of Lion. Or rather, to manipulate the other members and control the flow of the conversation as I pleased.

"Lion, there is no doubt you are someone far more powerful than I am. However, I still must say what needs to be said: You are just a broken man."

I had already heard those same words multiple times in the past. When Baekho Lee said it, I just let it roll right off of me. But at that moment, it was becoming apparent that there had to be some sort of fault in me that these people were picking up on.

I was broken. Even by the standards of this savage world, I had already crossed a line.

And as if to confirm it...

Should I use killing intent?

The first thought that came to mind after Deer said all of that was, What would Lion do? In my head, I could see myself saying, "interesting," and employing a bit of killing intent. Because that was the easiest path forward, and the one that would be most beneficial for me to take.

"Pshehe, how about you stop there? It's hard to listen to your whining. Know your place, Deer."

In the same vein, when Clown started barking at Deer like a guard dog, I stayed silent to wait and see how this would play out.

"...That's funny. Clown, do you think he'll give a damn about you if you kiss up to him enough?"

"I already know the answer to that, so mind your own business. Pshe, how about you quit moaning and get on with your turn already? Everyone is waiting on you."

Deer responded to Clown's haughty instructions ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠by quietly standing up from his seat.

"What? Oh," Clown huffed, "are you going to leave too?"

"I'm not going to stay here and let that man use me for his own amusement in the hopes that he might throw me his table scraps in the end—"

"Then just leave already," Clown said coldly. "Don't waste any more of our time."

Deer stared at Clown for a long moment. Then, he took a breath and spoke. "This wasn't how it used to be." And with that cryptic statement, he was gone.

Everyone held their breaths as another silence fell over the room.

"Ahaha... things have gotten weird again!" Wolf said in an attempt to break the ice, letting out an awkward laugh. "Everyone got along pretty well when Master was here! But what can you do? He's not here anymore."

There he went, bringing up the Master as usual.

"We've somehow ended up two members short, but let's keep going. Wouldn't it be disappointing to end things on that note? We won't be able to meet like this again in the future—"

"Instead of that... how about we try out the idea Crescent mentioned earlier?"

The suggestion came from Butterfly, who had been watching my confrontation with Crescent and Deer like the world's best drama.

"But in this version, there's no skips—we need to be honest no matter what," she continued. "Oh, with the exception of anything that might reveal our identities. How about it? I think that'll be a good way to lighten the mood again."

"...I'm fine with that, but isn't 'might reveal our identities' too subjective of a criterion?"

"I mean, we have the gem here, so what's the problem? If you refuse to answer, all you have to do is put your hand on it and say something. Then we'll know whether you're trying to weasel out of taking your turn or if you really can't."

"Shouldn't you make sure everyone is on board first?" Queen was quick to cut her off and try to get things back on track.

The eyes shining through Butterfly's mask narrowed. "Heh, you're doing it again, old lady."

"...Old lady?"

"If nothing else, I can tell that you're older than me at least."

Unfortunately, Queen wasn't able to argue with that.

Still staring right at Queen, Butterfly took the lead and directed everyone to vote.

"Six for and two against."

Surprisingly enough, most people were in favor of her plan. The only ones who voted against it were Queen and Black.

"Lion, you were for it...? Why?"

"Pshehe, Queen, do you still not know him? It's because this will be more fun!"

Fun had nothing to do with it. It was just that I also had something I wanted to confirm before leaving the Round Table for the final time.

Queen sighed. "In any case, since it has come to this, I will accept the group's decision. But before we start, let's make the rules clear."

At Queen's request, we had a short discussion to iron out the procedure.

"In summary, on each person's turn, they will receive one question from every other person at the table. They then get to decide which question they want to answer. That should about cover it."

"How much longer are we going to sit around? Let's get moving, sister," Butterfly needled.

"...Ms. Fox, could you start us off?"

"Yes. Of course."

As Fox took the role of answerer with a nod, everyone took turns asking her questions.

"I remember that you used to have a lot of faith in Master a while ago... do you still feel the same?" Wolf, as he was wont to do, brought up Master whenever he got the chance.

"I... will pass." Goblin passed. As someone proficient in all sorts of trickery, I found this a very disappointing play on his part. If he really wanted to help Fox, it would've been much better for him to play up an unimportant question as important so she could answer it instead of the others.

In any case, most of us—including me—passed, and in the end, Fox got only two questions.

"You seem to know in great detail what's happening on Basement Floor One. Are you perhaps there right now?"

"...Wouldn't that reveal my identity?"

"Heh, but how would I be able to narrow down who you are when there's so many people?"

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

"...I'll answer a question now." Once we were all done, Fox then chose one of the two questions she received. "You asked if I still thought of Master as a good person."

"Oh, so you chose my question," Wolf rumbled, pleased.

"My answer to you is 'no.' I didn't know that Master was Auril Gavis back then."

"Hmm... The only reason he has a bad reputation is because of the palace's wicked trickery, but I understand. That's disappointing."

With that, Fox's turn was over.

Wolf then received a total of four questions.

"I will answer Queen's question. Your theory is correct. Sir Auril Gavis does have the power to stop Ghost Busters from closing."

My ears pricked up the moment I heard that.

Doesn't that imply Auril Gavis had something to do with the server shutting down ...?

If that was the case, just what was that old man scheming now? The thought bothered me, but there was nothing I could do about it in my present state.

"Then next is Goblin."

Goblin got more questions than Fox, but less than Wolf, and of the three questions...

"I-I'll answer Ms. Fox's question. The Grand Archbishop of the Church of Reatlas doesn't have much longer to live. The next grand archbishop will be selected from the group of young saints..."

Although this could be considered insider information, none of us were really interested. It was obvious to everyone that he had used Fox's question as the out it was to get through his turn.

"Then it's now Queen's turn, pshehe."

Queen went after Goblin and received the most questions at five. She went on to answer the question on all of our minds.

"This knowledge will likely reach your ears in the near future, so I may as well say it here. A certain item is required to run this spiritual dimension, and that item has started to slowly lose power."

"...Is that why the community is closing?"

"Yes. We've looked for a way to fix it, but we weren't able to come up with a viable solution."

"Auril Gavis... Then what you're saying is that if he helps, it'd be possible to revive this place..."

"Yes. However, that doesn't seem likely."

With that, Queen's turn ended. We skipped Crescent's empty seat and over to Butterfly.

"Heh... but does anyone have any questions for me?"

This was the real reason I voted for this game of Truth. I had the information I needed from Butterfly. However, instead of asking her myself, I sat back and waited.

"Yes, I have one."

Sure enough, Fox immediately raised her hand to ask the question in my stead.

"You told us that Missha Karlstein is a traitor... I want to hear about that in more detail."

There he went, bringing up the Master as usual.

"We've somehow ended up two members short, but let's keep going. Wouldn't it be disappointing to end things on that note? We won't be able to meet like this again in the future—"

"Instead of that... how about we try out the idea Crescent mentioned earlier?"

The suggestion came from Butterfly, who had been watching my confrontation with Crescent and Deer like the world's best drama.

"But in this version, there's no skips—we need to be honest no matter what," she continued. "Oh, with the exception of anything that might reveal our identities. How about it? I think that'll be a good way to lighten the mood again."

"...I'm fine with that, but isn't 'might reveal our identities' too subjective of a criterion?"

"I mean, we have the gem here, so what's the problem? If you refuse to answer, all you have to do is put your hand on it and say something. Then we'll know whether you're trying to weasel out of taking your turn or if you really can't."

"Shouldn't you make sure everyone is on board first?" Queen was quick to cut her off and try to get things back on track.

The eyes shining through Butterfly's mask narrowed. "Heh, you're doing it again, old lady."

"...Old lady?"

"If nothing else, I can tell that you're older than me at least."

Unfortunately, Queen wasn't able to argue with that.

Still staring right at Queen, Butterfly took the lead and directed everyone to vote.

"Six for and two against."

Surprisingly enough, most people were in favor of her plan. The only ones who voted against it were Queen and Black.

"Lion, you were for it...? Why?"

"Pshehe, Queen, do you still not know him? It's because this will be more fun!"

Fun had nothing to do with it. It was just that I also had something I wanted to confirm before leaving the Round Table for the final time.

Queen sighed. "In any case, since it has come to this, I will accept the group's decision. But before we start, let's make the rules clear."

At Queen's request, we had a short discussion to iron out the procedure.

"In summary, on each person's turn, they will receive one question from every other person at the table. They then get to decide which question they want to answer. That should about cover it."

"How much longer are we going to sit around? Let's get moving, sister," Butterfly needled.

"...Ms. Fox, could you start us off?"

"Yes. Of course."

As Fox took the role of answerer with a nod, everyone took turns asking her questions.

"I remember that you used to have a lot of faith in Master a while ago... do you still feel the same?" Wolf, as he was wont to do, brought up Master whenever he got the chance.

"I... will pass." Goblin passed. As someone proficient in all sorts of trickery, I found this a very disappointing play on his part. If he really wanted to help Fox, it would've been much better for him to play up an unimportant question as important so she could answer it instead of the others.

In any case, most of us—including me—passed, and in the end, Fox got only two questions.

"You seem to know in great detail what's happening on Basement Floor One. Are you perhaps there right now?"

"...Wouldn't that reveal my identity?"

"Heh, but how would I be able to narrow down who you are when there's so many people?"

"...I'll answer a question now." Once we were all done, Fox then chose one of the two questions she received. "You asked if I still thought of Master as a good person."

"Oh, so you chose my question," Wolf rumbled, pleased.

"My answer to you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is 'no.' I didn't know that Master was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Auril Gavis back then."

"Hmm... The only reason he has a bad reputation is because of the palace's wicked trickery, but I understand. That's disappointing."

With that, Fox's turn was over.

Wolf then received a total of four questions.

"I will answer Queen's question. Your theory is correct. Sir Auril Gavis does have the power to stop Ghost Busters from closing."

My ears pricked up the moment I heard that.

Doesn't that imply Auril Gavis had something to do with the server shutting down ...?

If that was the case, just what was that old man scheming now? The thought bothered me, but there was nothing I could do about it in my present state.

"Then next is Goblin."

Goblin got more questions than Fox, but less than Wolf, and of the three questions...

"I-I'll answer Ms. Fox's question. The Grand Archbishop of the Church of Reatlas doesn't have much longer to live. The next grand archbishop will be selected from the group of young saints..."

Although this could be considered insider information, none of us were really interested. It was obvious to everyone that he had used Fox's question as the out it was to get through his turn.

"Then it's now Queen's turn, pshehe."

Queen went after Goblin and received the most questions at five. She went on to answer the question on all of our minds.

"This knowledge will likely reach your ears in the near future, so I may as well say it here. A certain item is required to run this spiritual dimension, and that item has started to slowly lose power."

"...Is that why the community is closing?"

"Yes. We've looked for a way to fix it, but we weren't able to come up with a viable solution."

"Auril Gavis... Then what you're saying is that if he helps, it'd be possible to revive this place..."

"Yes. However, that doesn't seem likely."

With that, Queen's turn ended. We skipped Crescent's empty seat and over to Butterfly.

"Heh... but does anyone have any questions for me?"

This was the real reason I voted for this game of Truth. I had the information I needed from Butterfly. However, instead of asking her myself, I sat back and waited.

"Yes, I have one."

Sure enough, Fox immediately raised her hand to ask the question in my stead.

"You told us that Missha Karlstein is a traitor... I want to hear about that in more detail."