Missha Karlstein is a traitor.
Since Butterfly first made that claim, Fox had been doing its best to investigate further. To be honest, he would have done it even without me having to ask him, since, whether he liked it or not, he was going to work with Missha for the foreseeable future. He was sure that the idea of one of his allies being a traitor did not sit well with him.
However, his question was risky.
«I think this is the second time you've asked about Missha Karlstein?». Butterfly observed, with an inquisitive tone in her voice and a similar look in her eyes. It was as if he was looking through Fox's mask at the person beyond. «You are very interested in that beast woman».
«...¿Y?»
«Heh... I was just pointing it out».
There was a possibility that by the time today's Roundtable ended, all other members would leave with the suspicion that «Fox = Bjorn Yandel's ally». He also shared a lot of information about Basement One Plant with those present. Honestly, it was practically a fact that she was currently there.
Another reason why I need to make sure that as many members of the Armin Adventurer Group and the Hektz Clan get home alive as possible.
Just as you can hide a tree in a forest, you can hide a person in a crowd. By maximizing the number of survivors, he could increase the chances that Versyl's identity would remain hidden. That, however, was a problem that would have to wait until later.
«So can I go now?»
The other members began to ask their own questions.
«Who gave you the Round Table entry code?» reina asked, curious to know how Butterfly had suddenly been able to join our exclusive group.
Even Black spoke for the first time since our Truth game began. But if I was surprised to hear her speak, her question stunned me. «Do you think Missha Karlstein represents a danger to Bjorn Yandel's life?»
What the hell was this?
I found it difficult to discern why he had asked that question. Still, in the end it worked in my favor.
«Hmm... It seems like everyone is curious about Missha Karlstein.»
Thanks to Black, everyone's suspicions about Versyl diminished a bit. Well, it would be more accurate to say that his suspicions were now divided between two people.
«It seems like those are the only three questions...». Butterfly giggled and made to think things over. «Hmm, what should I do...?».
Now it depended on her.
If he answered Black's question or Fox's, he would get the confirmation he had been looking for. Meanwhile, if he chose Queen's, he would have to wait until the next round. And since there were no guarantees that we would continue in the third round, there was a real chance that I would never get an answer to my question.
«Since two people have asked me the same thing, I guess the right thing to do is to answer one of them, right?», hummed the mysterious Butterfly, whom I had no hope of locating in the real world. I felt a flash of relief as soon as the words left his mouth.
Of course, that feeling was short-lived.
There are things that are like that. Things you desperately wanted to know and at the same time wanted to never learn.
«Okay, so which of you two should I respond to...?». Butterfly lengthened things a bit, clearly playing with his captive audience. «Hey, I'm in a good mood. Since you have both asked similar questions, I will answer both».
At first glance, it might seem like she was being generous. However, this offer only served to worsen my suspicions. Let's face it: businesses never lose money when they have a BOGO event. She had a reason for doing this, and that reason had to involve some kind of net gain on her part.
Still, the fact that that was my first thought... Is it because I'm this broken?
It wasn't a question I could answer myself, so I stopped thinking about it for the moment and focused on the conversation taking place in front of me.
«Missha Karlstein», Butterfly said. He seemed to be enjoying the attention, because he increased the suspense a little more before getting into the matter. «Has received orders. Orders from a certain person to return to Bjorn Yandel's side. However, those orders did not in any way involve killing Bjorn Yandel».
I was talking about Baekho Lee and the Renaissance Stone.
I was wondering if you had called Missha a traitor for another reason, but I guess it was this one. But how does he know all this? Is Butterfly on Baekho's team? For starters, Baekho was the one who gave me my Round Table invitation code, so it wouldn't be too far-fetched...
«Can I ask what those orders were?»
«Oh that? From what I heard, they were nothing special. He was only tasked with staying by her side and reporting any information».
«And the payment you received in return?»
«Who knows? Maybe she's the only one who... Ah, okay, I can't lie here. Well, I'll leave it to your imagination».
If my suspicions were correct, there was a good chance that the Renaissance Stone itself was the reward.
The fact was that Baekho Lee was an incredibly cunning bastard. After terrorizing Missha by saying that I was destined to die or something, I would have offered her the Renaissance Stone in exchange for being a spy. And all along, his real goal was simply to pass the Renaissance Stone to me.
Well, thanks to this conversation, I had managed to learn one thing.
«And they didn't give him any other orders?»
«No, none at all. Not that I know of».
Baekho Lee's machinations began and ended with the Renaissance Stone. Oh, he was probably up to something else behind the scenes, of course, but the probability of Missha getting caught up in that plan was also low.
The problem is... why is he telling us all this so willingly?
If Butterfly was on Baekho Lee's side, there was a plausible explanation: Baekho knew I was Leon.
He's trying to give me information.
His goal had not changed. I wanted him to stop worrying about this world. That's why I deliberately leaked the fact that Missha was a traitor. Because maybe, just maybe, that might be enough to break my trust in others and make me shut down. I wouldn't lose anything by trying, anyway.
«So should we move on to the next person? I think I've already said everything I had to say».
Butterfly's turn ended with that, and Black was next.
«What should I ask...? I don't really know much about you, so I can't ask you anything».
It sounded rude, but most of those present agreed with Butterfly's sentiment. Black didn't talk much and was therefore shrouded in mystery. However, that didn't mean we didn't have any questions.
«Then I'll ask this», Butterfly concluded. «Why did you ask if Missha posed a danger to Bjorn Yandel's life?».
She seemed curious about Black's identity.
The same thing happened to Fox. «Is it in Basement One right now?». He seemed to suspect that Black was someone close.
Queen was the only one who asked a question that had nothing to do with Black's identity. «You once said that Auril Gavis was able to travel to Earth thanks to dimensional magic. Where did you get that information from?».
Surprisingly, all three questions were interesting. If we were to sort them, Queen's question was possibly the most important, but Black was the one who would choose which one to answer.
After a brief pause, all Black said was: «I've never been to Basement One Plant».
Fox's question.
To be fair, if she wasn't one of the people down there with us, that question was the most harmless one I could choose.
«Does that answer your question?» black asked.
«Si ... »
«Pshehe, it's finally my turn!» clown cackled, clearly wanting it.
Do you really like attracting attention that much?
«Very good, ask! I'm sure you all have tons of questions».
Faced with the euphoria of his voice, even I wanted to ignore him and skip his turn.
«How unfortunate! You are so sure that others have questions for you».
«Pshehe! Your pity is all I've ever wanted!»
Ignoring Clown's annoying attitude, we reluctantly relented and asked what was on our minds.
Zorro, Wolf, Goblin, Reina, Black…
Excluding me and Butterfly, all the other members asked a question, and Clown seemed quite pleased.
«Five questions... This is... Isn't it a new record? Pshehe.»
«Does not matter. Choose one and answer it».
«But... Isn't there someone who hasn't said 'step' yet?».
Clown overlooked Queen's complaints and looked at me, apparently waiting for me to ask him something too.
What are you, a preschooler? «The truth is that I have nothing to ask you».
«Hmm... ¿Es así...?»
«Does not matter. Just make it interesting», I added, noting his disappointment. He had said it unconsciously, but he wouldn't call it a mistake. Considering the type of man he was, such a phrase would increase the chances that he would blurt out more useful information.
And that's exactly what happened.
«Something interesting... Well, I can't say no to that. Then I will tell you an interesting story».
Noticing that Clown was now focused solely on me, Queen let out a sigh. «Just answer what has been asked of you». However, despite his words, his eyes did not turn away from Clown. It seemed like he was also curious about Clown's «interesting story».
«On the second day of the eighth month of the New World year 154, Noark's forces, living their lives in a ditch that never saw the light of day, abandoned its walls to go out into the outside world».
And so began the interesting story of Clown.
«The world outside the walls was completely different from what the stories said. There was no Curse of the Witch, and the green forests and fields stretched for miles in all directions.»
«¿Y?»
«The people of Noark went around exploring this mysterious world as if on a quest, and in the end, they found a place to settle.».
«... We don't care about the backstory. Just get to the point...»
«Pshe, keep listening. This is the important part.»
«Continue, then.»
«The people of Noark had a question: Why did the royal family keep their people within the walls? Why weren't they allowed to venture into the outside world?» No one said a word, and he continued weaving his story into silence. «The people of Noark thought about this for a long time, and luckily they were able to find an answer. And recently, they made an important decision...».
Clown tapped his fingers on the table to attract everyone's attention and increase tension. And then, finally, he revealed the climax of his story.
I didn't really understand how the first part related to this, but...
«Invade Rafdonia.»
A great war would soon come.
***
After Noark abandoned its walls, battles between them and Rafdonia's royal family were limited to the interior of the labyrinth. Noark had taken control of the seventh floor and had begun fighting the palace forces, slowly increasing his strength. But if that battle moved to the real world...
«An invasion... Are you sure?»
«Pshehe... Do you think I would lie?»
«When? When is this invasion going to happen?»
«Shocking» wasn't a strong enough word to describe the information Clown had just given us. Everyone was struggling to process it and wanted even a little more detail. But...
«If you are so curious, find out for yourself! It's my turn. Well, maybe I'll change my mind if anyone can contribute anything more interesting than that before today's meeting ends. Pshehe».
Clown fell silent and kept the rest of the information to himself.
It was kind of a disappointment. I thought he would get carried away by the rush of surprising everyone and talk at least a little more.
«Um...» As I sat there, silently picking up my thoughts, Clown turned to me. Then, with almost timid hesitation, he asked: «What did you think...? Did you find it interesting enough?».
To be honest, I didn't understand him at all.
I realize he only told us about the invasion to try to impress me... but why does he want my validation so much? It's not like we're going to see each other again after today.
Still unable to understand it, I replied: «Is that your question?».
Now it was my turn to play questions and answers.