Zorro, Lobo, Goblin, Reina, Butterfly, y luego Auril Gavis y y yo.
The seven of us were sitting while a disturbing static electrified the room that housed the Round Table. However, honestly, how else could we have withstood a bomb like that? Everyone present was seasoned veterans who had been sucked into a strange world years ago and had been stuck here ever since.
«¿Ir...»
«...home?»
And it was because they had been in this place so long that they knew it even better than most. Opening the Gate of the Abyss to return home was almost impossible. Therefore, for the most part, they had accepted their new lots and had tried their best to live a satisfying life here.
But now...
«What's happening? Don't you like that award?»
Things had changed.
The source of this turmoil was Auril Gavis, the man who created Dungeon and Stone. That man had suddenly declared that he could make the impossible possible. That if we played his game and won, he would give one of us a ticket home as a reward.
«Hmm, I thought that would be enough as compensation».
It was an offer that any other player would have been quick to accept like a moth attracted by a flame, but the Round Table members were calmer than expected. To be fair, who were these people if not individuals who had managed to carve out a niche for themselves in this brutal and deadly world? They knew better than anyone that the surest response to something that seemed too good to be true was suspicion.
«...first I want to hear what the game is about».
«If we have to agree to play before you tell us what it is, then I decline...».
So instead of wagging their tails and running away, they decided to gather information first to make an informed decision.
«Wait for you to accept without knowing what you are accessing? Oh no, I never would», Auril Gavis responded magnanimously. «The game I have prepared is very simple».
It was truly strange. If you heard him talk, you thought he was any nice neighborhood grandpa, but for those of us around the table, that wasn't the case at all.
As Auril Gavis paused, the maskless faces around us tensed.
What kind of game would it be? He wasn't senile enough to tell us to get up and kill each other here and now, was he?
The old man's voice cut off my musings. «It's a contest».
The game ended up being one that no one present could have expected.
«¿Un… contest?»
«It's exactly the kind of contest you're thinking about right now, so don't look at me so suspiciously», he chided.
«It wasn't... I'm just curious how it will work...».
«Ah, I haven't told you that yet. You just have to answer my questions correctly. True or false, you just have to select one of those two».
«A contest of true or false...» Goblin exclaimed in a low voice, worried.
Auril Gavis expanded a little more. Although I wasn't sure if I could call it elaborate.
«The contest will continue until only one person remains. Oh, besides, you can quit whenever you want».
«Eh...?» Butterfly seemed to take that as an insult, a sentiment that was shared by the other members. Not even being eliminated, but surrendering in a true or false contest? What was he playing?
«Are you saying you hope there's a scenario where we have to give up?»
In response to Queen's question, the old man gave a vague answer. «Who knows? I simply want to leave the option open in case you make that decision. I respect your freedom of choice».
Respect our freedom? Lie. We had been dragged here while playing a video game in the comfort of our homes.
My desire to curse him was overwhelming, but I swallowed it. Doing so would be of no use to me.
«In any case, I think I have given a proper explanation, so if you want to join, please say so now». The old man proceeded to ask which of us chose, and the others hurried to decide.
«Are you honest when you say there is no penalty for abandoning or being eliminated?».
«Don't worry. Hadn't I already told you? This game is intended to be compensation for taking off your masks».
«So if so... I will participate too».
Queen, the last one who was still weighing her options, finally joined the game, and with that, everyone was in.
Oh, except me, of course.
«I'm sorry, but you can't play», he said, turning to me. «But don't get too angry. You can't come home like that anyway, can you?».
More than «I can't», it was like he had no intention of letting me do it. I needed him to continue making me stronger so that one day I would open the Gate of the Abyss.
«So Leon isn't like the rest of us? How interesting».
The sharp look in Mariposa's eyes intensified, but Auril Gavis soon clapped his hands to regain her attention.
«Let's not waste any more time and get to it».
Suddenly I realized that there were now two shovels in front of everyone, one with an «O» and one with an «X». It was like a real live minigame.
...This old man is definitely planning something.
I would have to wait and see what his angle was.
«Okay, so the first question.»
And as soon as the game started, I immediately understood why the old man made sure to clarify that we could quit in the middle.
«The fox is a magician: true or false?».
Someone gasped.
«If it is true, put the 'O', and if not, the 'X'», instructed Auril Gavis.
It wasn't about getting the answer right.
Restlessness invaded the room again. Although he tried his best to control his expression, Fox couldn't completely mask his surprise.
«Uh...» Goblin, who knew perfectly well who he was, seemed even more bewildered when he looked at her.
It seemed that Queen had also realized the true purpose of this game. «Hmm...»
The other two apparently hadn't caught on yet, however.
«Heh... Can't we put the same palette that Fox puts? The question is about her».
«Hoh, no reason mala strategy.»
And so, everyone's attention was focused on Fox. He took a moment to think about his options before lifting a paddle.
«It's the 'O'.»
«So you really are a magician. You fit the mold. Hey, teacher? Shouldn't you tell us if we're right now?».
At Mariposa's question, Auril Gavis nodded. «Congratulations. You have all been right. So, we will move on to the next question. Goblin is a paladin».
That's when Wolf and Butterfly also realized what was happening.
The room became so quiet that no one passing by would believe a game was being played inside. In the silence, people raised the paddle with the «O» on it, and the round advanced.
«The queen has never set foot in the labyrinth».
«O» was the answer to the third question.
«Wolf is the captain of a clan».
«O» again for the fourth.
«Mariposa is a citizen of Noark».
And as expected, «O» was the answer to the fifth question as well.
At this point, I was almost starting to wonder why «X» was even an option to start with.
«Alright, then it's time for the sixth question.»
With the first round over, the old man's gaze slid back to Fox, and everyone knew what that look meant. By now, we had all realized that this was not just a game of true or false. It was a scheme to expose people's identities disguised as a simple game of true or false. With the true nature of the game now in the public domain and one round behind us, it was obvious that the difficulty of the questions would go up in the next round.
«I'll say it one last time: I respect your freedom of choice, so if you want to quit, you can do it whenever you want».
Respect our freedom...
Although he had previously dismissed it as a cruel joke, the weight of those words was different this time. He had even offered the members a sort of «test» round, so to speak. Any doubt as to whether he knew our true identities had already been erased from the minds of everyone present. The quality of personal information disclosed would begin to increase with each turn.
«What happens... if we give up here?»
Auril Gavis answered Queen's question without wasting a second. «Nothing. Ah, but since we're going to continue with the game, you'll have to leave. One spectator is enough».
«And what guarantee do we have that he'll actually send us home at the end of this?».
«What can I say here to make them believe me? Faith is the only antidote to doubt».
«If you can produce any type of supporting evidence-»
«If you can't trust me, then you only have one thing left to do: leave. So what will you choose?»
You'd think those were the words of a con artist, but Queen couldn't afford to get up and leave now.
Auril Gavis chuckled. «I knew you would stay. The fact is, this is your only chance to get home, right?».
Reina did not respond.
«Relax. It will all be worth it if you stay here until the end and emerge victorious. Oh, or do I give you some time to think while I go check with our mutual friend? About whether I should proceed with this or not, of course. Like old times, when you...»
«Okay... Continue».
Queen cut him off with obvious disgust, and Auril Gavis nodded and continued his game with palpable joy.
Since no one made the slightest noise except to move their paddles, it only took them about three minutes to finish another round.
«Zorro has killed an innocent adventurer to steal his money».
«Goblin has received a prophecy from Reatlas before».
«Lobo currently resides in District Seven».
«Queen is a noble».
«Butterfly is a member of Orcules.»
She wasn't sure why Fox was the only one being asked such a question about her past, but the second round ended in a flash.
«...Eh, Master? I'll stop here!»
Butterfly resigned.
«For some reason, I have a feeling my name will come up in the next round. Well, not that I need to hide it, but it's a bit... well, you know? Especially since I'm still not sure you can actually send us back home».
«I understand your decision. So could you go?»
Butterfly nodded to his request and then turned to the rest of us to say goodbye happily. «Let's all see each other sometime in the outside world!».
The fact that he was only about twenty years old gave him a bubbly and friendly air. However, and perhaps it was because I had learned from this game that she was a citizen of Noark and a member of the criminal organization Orcules...
Why does that sound like a threat?
He couldn't ignore the pang of foreboding he felt. Although he still didn't know who he was, it was impossible for him to be a normal person.
«I... am also going to stop here».
In any case, it seemed that watching Butterfly cut her losses and leave brought her to her senses, as Fox also announced that he was resigning.
«Hmm, I didn't expect you to make that decision, Miss Fox. Wasn't she once more desperate to come back than anyone else?».
«I was... but after I died and came back, it all started to seem silly to me. The life I have now is worth it». After that incredibly sincere response, Fox nodded to Auril Gavis. «Still, I'm grateful to you for what you did for me then. No matter what your intentions were, if you hadn't taken me in, I wouldn't be alive today.»
«...Don't even mention it. Even without me, you would have been fine on your own, Miss Fox».
«So could you take a moment to say goodbye before I leave?»
«Do what you want.»
At that moment, Fox turned and looked everyone in the eyes: the Wolf, the Goblin, the Queen, and then me.
«I guess we somehow ended up with a smaller group. It's a shame. I didn't think we'd go our separate ways without a proper farewell».
«...Me neither», Queen was slow to admit.
«Still, it's good to see each other's faces. It seems that we finally connect as human beings».
«Is it... is it like that?»
«Yeah. At least for me, although I admit it scared me a little at first. But whether you end up coming home or not, I hope you live a good life. Really».
Queen remained silent at Fox's blessing. It was obvious what he was thinking. He must have been wondering why Fox would say that, what his point of view was. But in the end, she was forced to acknowledge that there was no hidden agenda at work.
«Thank you», he whispered.
Fox smiled at Queen before looking at the next person. She jumped over Wolf, with whom she had only a brief relationship, and landed on Goblin for only a moment. However, maybe she thought she could talk to him outside, because she didn't say a farewell word to him before looking at me.
«To be honest... I have something to tell you. Can?» When I gave him permission to continue with a small nod, Fox asked quietly: «If your life is really boring, how about you take off your mask and make a friend?».
Eh…
«Then your life here will be much more interesting».
Wait, why was he assuming I didn't have friends?
I wasn't sure, but my lips twisted as I heard the next words come out of his mouth.
«Same as mine».
Thank you.