Chapter 67: The Gamble
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 67: The Gamble
The damp smell of the sewer hung in the air.
The moment I stepped into the back alley, touts swarmed me from all sides.
“Hey, you. Come over here.”
“How old are you?”
Even though it was still broad daylight, the brothels were already open for business.
“Is that your uncle next to you? Or your big brother?”
“They both look like a couple of stiffs.”
The madams cackled amongst themselves.
“Got something good. Wanna take a hit?”
A boy who looked no older than a middle schooler by modern standards approached and offered me a smoke. It wasn't the kind of tobacco wizards sometimes used to stay awake, but a hallucinogenic drug. Like marijuana.
“No, thank you.”
I had been to the back alleys once before, when I’d gone to the black market to buy scrolls before my second Labyrinth dive.
Back then, it had been just as crowded with people soliciting business.
But there was one major difference between then and now.
It’s like a beehive on high alert.
Sharp glares followed us from every direction.
Thugs with nasty looks on their faces were posted throughout the alley, watching us carefully.
I could see some of them chanting to send messages.
This reaction had to be because of Enver.
If I had come alone, it wouldn't have been like this.
Even though I’d made a name for myself on the 3rd Floor, how could they possibly recognize me on sight in a place with no internet? I wasn't some celebrity.
I had only been living in Sohen for a month.
So, the wariness of these Blackdog underlings had to be because of Enver.
What did that mean?
Blackdog knows who Enver is.
This guy’s identity was practically public knowledge.
And it wasn't just the Blackdog executives; even the grunts standing guard in the back alleys knew who he was?
Of course, the low-level guys probably didn't know Enver was a possessor, but they at least seemed to know he was a member of the Blue Team, a group their bosses disliked.
That had to be why they were on guard and sending messages.
A figurehead. A front man.
That was likely Enver’s position.
He was the one who recruited Isel, wasn't he? And now he was the one personally trying to recruit me.
Recruiting a new possessor or a possessor’s underling for that secretive club of his would require extreme caution.
They would obviously be loath to reveal their own identities, yet they still needed to earn the other party's trust…
So they gave Enver a professorship and pushed him to the forefront.
That was a reasonable assumption.
Being a university professor provided a certain degree of credibility.
That’s why Isel knew him, why the Blackdog grunts in the alley knew him, and why he was the one who had approached me.
That raised a question.
Why did Enver follow me here?
Enver must know that Blackdog was aware of his identity.
Coming here would be a considerable risk, yet he’d taken that risk to follow me. It felt off.
Was it because of his slip of the tongue earlier? Was he worried his position would be jeopardized if Blackdog found out, so he wanted to monitor my every word from right beside me?
Hmm.
That was possible.
But even so, his actions felt excessive.
From persuading the members at the Abyss assembly, to his slip of the tongue, and now to following me here.
What was making him so anxious and impatient?
To solve this, I had to return to the fundamental question that had been nagging me ever since the Berten estate.
Why can't Enver's club let me go to Blackdog?
Enver's club and Blackdog were hostile toward each other, but they had reached some sort of agreement. They weren't like South American gangs, having shootouts in the streets.
So, was there any reason for them to so desperately try to stop me from joining Blackdog?
Let's say, for the sake of argument, I did become a member of Blackdog.
What serious harm would that cause Enver's club?
None at all.
They would simply lose out on a potential gain.
All that would happen is they’d lose a valuable asset and source of possessor knowledge to Blackdog.
Was Enver really going to these lengths just because he didn't want to lose that?
Perhaps I needed to revise my premise.
My joining Blackdog could cause serious harm to Enver's club.
At least, that's what Enver believed.
Why would that be?
For example, let's assume Enver's club and Blackdog were competing for a specific resource.
Something like…
What if the number of people who can return to the real world after killing the Labyrinth Master is limited?
That was a plausible theory.
The exit gate only allowed four people to escape, and in the game, players could only form a four-person party.
If that were the case, it would make sense why Enver, the club's lead recruiter, was so desperate to get me.
My resume—revealing a new magic book binding method, killing an Eight-Tailed Fox Spirit Deep Layer member, and crushing the professors' team at the Berten estate—must have looked very appealing.
If I had more hidden possessor knowledge, if I could pull off more plays like that in the future…
'Maybe Caleb will defeat the Labyrinth Master and share one of the only four escape tickets with poor old Enver.'
'I'd better go all-in on recruiting him and start building a close relationship right now.'
…Was that what was going through Enver's mind?
Or how about this?
Let's say Professor Dalstream's hypothesis was correct: the Labyrinth is a battlefield between otherworld possessors and the Labyrinth Master, and all possessors will go home once the war is over.
But…
What if Blackdog doesn't want to return to the real world?
That was possible.
These were people who had amassed enough wealth and power to rule the underworld like kings.
If they could just handle the two-week rule, life here might be much better for them.
Or maybe they'd been possessors for much longer than I had and had grown attached to this place.
So, what if they were actively trying to stop other possessors, like Enver's club, from defeating the Labyrinth Master?
What if they were on the side of protecting the Labyrinth Master?
I didn't know.
There were plenty of possible scenarios, but nothing was certain yet.
I just hoped I could get something useful today, anything at all.
*
There were three main entrances to Blackdog's secret base.
One was the Blackdog Bank headquarters.
Another was the Blackdog Strip Club.
The last one was a casino.
The casino was the farthest from the magic university, but that's where I led Enver.
Because I had someone stationed there in advance.
“Yeeeeeeah!”
Back Attack, that is.
The cheers were loud enough to be heard outside.
When we went inside, I saw him playing a game of "Paintball Dodge."
It was a game of chance where you won the pot if you successfully dodged with an agility roll.
Back Attack… Looks like you've already been hit a few times.
His face was splattered with red and blue paint.
I hoped he hadn't lost too much.
“...!”
When Back Attack’s eyes met mine, he grinned.
We exchanged signals with a look.
Get ready, Back Attack.
First, I scanned our surroundings. The hall was monitored by magical devices called Watchers.
They were human-head-sized spheres that floated in the air, a superior version of the Wizard's Eye.
They had a wide field of vision and excellent stealth detection abilities.
From a control room on the second floor, they were used to monitor the first floor of the casino and prevent any trouble.
Eleven of them in total.
More than I expected, but it was fine.
I looked up, scanning the area beyond the second-floor railing.
Just as I thought, none over there.
There were no Watchers on the second floor, only a line of guards.
If the first floor of the casino was the business area for regular customers, the second floor was the administrative and management space where the casino's owner and employees worked.
Secret business meetings took place up there, so they didn't use Watchers in order not to inconvenience their clients.
Shall we get started then?
I gave Back Attack a wink.
A single blink was the signal.
“Whoa! Brother!”
Suddenly, Back Attack rushed toward me with his arms wide open, like we were long-lost family members reuniting after fifty years.
He shoved Enver aside and threw his arms around me in a tight hug.
“You finally came to the casino!”
“Wh-what the…”
A startled Enver stumbled back as Back Attack pushed me against the casino wall. I pulled an item from my pocket.
A Wizard's Eye.
Shielded by Back Attack's body, I opened the lid. Speaking to Enver over Back Attack's shoulder, I said, “He's one of my party members. He’s been pestering me to come to the casino for ages.”
Back Attack lightly touched the Wizard's Eye as it emerged from the bottle.
'Invisibility.'
Normally, this would be useless on the first floor.
Can you imagine how damaging it would be to the establishment's credibility if someone could just infiltrate a casino like this using an invisibility skill?
The coverage provided by the Watchers, operating 24/7, could be described as 'perfect.'
Not only would an invisible person be detected, but even a small scouting tool like a Wizard's Eye would be spotted within a second or two.
A person couldn't fit into the tiny blind spots of the Watchers' vision.
And a Wizard's Eye moved too slowly to evade the Watchers' swift rotations and mobility.
Therefore, the security at the Blackdog casino was impenetrable.
Unless, of course, a wizard were to stop time itself.
Like this.
[Your turn. Time remaining: 60 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■■■]
“Move.”
*
Using turn-based psychokinesis, I placed the invisible Wizard's Eye on the second-floor railing.
Then, I ended my turn.
Now, even I couldn't see it. Because…
“Here.”
I had placed the 'bottle,' which acts as the screen for the Wizard's Eye, in Back Attack's hand.
The Wizard's Eye would now consider Back Attack its master. Only the master can see it while it's invisible.
Back Attack immediately pocketed the bottle.
“Brother, I’m all played out for today, so I’m gonna head out.”
He clapped me on the shoulder nonchalantly.
“Win big!”
Now the guards were coming down.
Honestly, I had planned to kill a few hours here, but thanks to Professor Enver, things were moving along quickly.
One of the guards was the shift manager in charge of the hall.
“Professor Enver.”
The manager addressed both Enver and me.
“Please come upstairs with your companion for a moment.”
“…”
“Let's go.”
I followed the guards with Enver.
As we climbed the stairs, Enver suddenly spoke to me.
“Caleb, this is a dangerous place, so it's best to say as little as possible. I'll find out what you want to know. I can't tell you myself, but it's fine if they're the ones who say it.”
His expression was rather grim.
“So, even if I say something strange, I need you to just listen quietly, Caleb. It's for your own good.”
Yeah, I could practically hear the gears turning in his head on the way here.
So he's come up with a plan, has he?
*
When we entered the management office, a massive orc berserker appeared.
“My name is Krom.”
Despite his brutish appearance, his manner of speech was polite. He extended a forearm as thick as my torso and shook our hands, first Enver's, then mine.
Was this orc a possessor?
Probably not.
If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't be the first one at the meeting table when a wizard with a record of killing an eight-tailed fox spirit adventurer from the Deep Layers showed up with an executive from a hostile faction.
“I heard a student was coming. I see it was you, Caleb.”
But, as expected, he knew who I was.
“It's a pleasure to meet a university professor and the famous low-floor wizard at the same time. To be honest, this is a completely unexpected situation, so I'm quite surprised…”
Krom stroked his chin and asked, “To what extent should I be open in our conversation?”
His cool gaze was fixed on Enver. The question was for him, too.
That made sense.
In the orc's eyes, it must look like I had already been recruited into Enver's club.
And…
“You can be completely open and speak freely. This young man,” Enver said, patting my shoulder, “is ‘our new recruit.’”
Ha!
I almost burst out laughing.
“He knows that Blackdog is the possessors' main base, so please, speak comfortably.”
Enver!
You're quite the gambler, aren't you?
'I'll just pretend Caleb has already joined our assembly.'
That's what Enver had decided.
It was an incredibly risky move, but if it succeeded, he could turn this crisis into an opportunity.
If I were an assembly member, it would be perfectly natural for Enver to teach me about Blackdog.
His earlier slip of the tongue would simply be covered up.
And if Blackdog perceived me as an assembly member, they would no longer try to approach me.
Then he could safely draw me into his assembly.
To achieve that, all Enver had to do was get through this meeting unscathed.
That was it.
If I questioned him about it later, he could claim it was to protect me.
And that wouldn't be a complete lie. The assembly and Blackdog had an agreement not to attack each other.
If I started blabbering about possessors here, Blackdog would see me as a threat, and the best way to protect me from that would have been to pretend I was an assembly member.
…He would try to persuade me with that kind of logic.
So, Enver just needed to get through this meeting.
He just needed to make sure I didn't reveal that he was pulling a massive scam on Blackdog. That's why he'd told me to keep quiet.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
But he was a coward. Though he was feigning composure, the tips of his fingers were trembling.
Honestly, Enver…
I think the odds of this gamble failing are very high. Unless I help you.
The reason is that this orc is no pushover.
“…”
Leaning on his hand, lost in thought, he had a completely different air about him than Enver.
The silence stretched on.
Tick. Tock. Tick.
The sound of the wall clock's second hand drifted over the table.
The tension was so sharp you could cut it with a knife.
Enver's Adam's apple bobbed.
It was ironic that this was the largest casino in Sohen.
It felt as if the three of us at this table were playing a game of poker, betting our very lives.
No.
The orc wasn't betting his life. This was his home turf, so he had very little risk. It was just us, putting our lives on the line as we shuffled the cards.
I was tense, too.
For now, I had plenty of options. Should I just watch how the conversation between Enver and the orc played out?
“You've joined a fucked-up group,” the orc’s tone shifted.
“Hey, kid,” he asked me.
“Do you know who the White Lion really is?”
That was the name from Isel's meeting minutes.
The founder of Enver's club, the person at the very top.
But no one in Enver's club knew the White Lion's true identity.
There was no way an orc from Blackdog would know who he was…
“That bastard isn't human.”
What?
“The White Lion is a monster.”
What the hell was he talking about?