Chapter 124: The Eccentric Player (Part 2)
"Jommo's Inn is located in the Lower City and has been open in Pentos for many years," Quhuru introduced. "Originally, this inn wasn't anything special, but last year, a very well-connected owner bought it and started offering a service to find work for sellswords in the tavern.
Because of Jommo's Inn's extremely high efficiency, in less than half a year, it became the largest sellsword activity center in Pentos, even earning the nickname 'Sellsword Guild.'"
It sounded like the work of a player, but it was too early. Ian shook his head inwardly. "So that mysterious owner..."
"He's a man of Symon Tetrus, the third son of Magister Tetrus. Uh, the one whose betrothed was stolen by Prince Hazan, and who then challenged Hazan to a trial," Quhuru blurted out.
Cuckold, huh? Ian nodded to Quhuru, signaling him to continue.
"The earliest trace of Kinvara Tem's activity that we found in Pentos appeared at this inn," Quhuru quickly changed the subject. "He posted a contract at Jommo's Inn."
"Do you know the details?"
"No," Quhuru shook his head. "It was just a very ordinary contract, completely inconspicuous at Jommo's Inn. If it weren't for the fact that the name Kinvara Tem, the contract poster, has no meaning in Valyrian, and the innkeeper hadn't given it a second glance, probably no one would have noticed it at all."
If it's just that among the many bounty contracts at Jommo's Inn, there's one contract with a Valyrian spelling of the poster's name that sounds similar to Kinvara Tem, we can rule out the possibility of it being a bait-and-switch tactic.
Its audience is too small. The number of American players participating in this game is less than one-fifth of the total. He'd also need to happen to know the reference, happen to start in Pentos, and happen to see the name at Jommo's Inn. Even then, seeing the name spelled in Valyrian might not be enough to make him realize—even a master baiter couldn't catch that fish.
So, is this really a code agreed upon by Tem's allies?
"Who accepted the contract?" Ian asked immediately.
"No one. A week later, Kinvara Tem returned to Jommo's Inn and canceled the contract. Of course, cancellations without a valid reason don't refund the deposit."
"How much deposit did he pay? What was the bounty for that contract?"
"The deposit was one-third of the bounty, two gold dragons," Quhuru replied.
Invalid information. Too many professions can afford two gold dragons at the start; this cannot be used to determine the person's starting profession.
"And then?"
"Then, that name reappeared most recently at the red temple."
"But the first file you gave me said he and his small crew made a fortune," Ian said, puzzled.
"Yes, but by then he wasn't calling himself Kinvara Tem anymore."
"What?"
"In just one month, Kinvara Tem changed his name three times. We don't know what his real name is, so we chose the first one he used. But judging from your friend Darren Grafton's reaction, Kinvara Tem is his real name, isn't it?"
Ian rubbed his nose. Changing his name three times in one month—that sounds so much like someone from back home...
"But since no one saw his face and he changed his name, how did you know this person was him?"
"Heh heh," Quhuru suddenly revealed a smug expression. "Ian, you know that Symon Tetrus, the owner of Jommo's Inn, is a member of the Volantene faction. He's made such a big move in Pentos, Magister Illyrio couldn't possibly be unaware.
Jommo's Inn has always been a key target of our surveillance, so we've deployed more people around there.
And it just so happens that after Kinvara Tem canceled his contract at Jommo's Inn and collected his deposit, our people saw him meeting up with a swordsman named Myles Shar on a neighboring street.
Afterwards, Myles Shar appeared in a new gang, and the leader of that new gang always wears a mask. Judging from his build, that person should undoubtedly be Kinvara Tem."
"Impressive." Ian suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He couldn't help but feel grateful that his previous actions had been carried out at crossroads where few people were paying attention. "So, and then?"
"Then, just as the report stated, Tem used various means to make coin and expand his influence at the docks. Of course, after this period of in-depth investigation, we discovered some new things."
"For example?"
"One of the sellsword knights in Tem's gang once tried to see Magister Illyrio, but was directly refused by the guards of the manse."
That's too normal. Which player who starts in Pentos isn't aiming for Daenerys Targaryen? Ian thought to himself.
"You might not know, but for a while, a large number of Westerosi hedge knights visited Magister Illyrio's properties, claiming they were there to seek refuge with the Beggar..." Quhuru abruptly paused, swallowing the rest of his words. He glanced at Ian, and seeing that Ian wasn't angry, continued,
"They came to seek refuge with His Grace Viserys, using all sorts of tricks, each desperately trying to prove their worth, but unfortunately, none of them could get past Steward Mills."
No, I already knew that when I arrived in Pentos and your Unsullied guards pointed spears at my nose.
"And after those opportunists were rejected, for some reason, a lot of conflict broke out among them. The opportunists hunted each other, committing numerous murders in a very short time.
It was during that period that Tem's gang, taking advantage of Pentos's slave ban, became a tool of House Haucot and rapidly grew in strength."
"Given this trend, how could you not find them?" Ian laughed.
"They rose quickly, but they fell even faster. That's just how these small gangs are," Quhuru shrugged, his expression full of disdain. "In late October, they suffered a fatal blow.
Their opponents took advantage of Magister Tetrus's counterattack against the slave ban, bringing annihilation to Tem's gang overnight. After that, Tem's gang disappeared without a trace, and Tem himself vanished until he appeared at the red temple."
To suffer a devastating blow for revealing his player identity without sufficient strength, then disappear for over a month and suddenly reappear at the red temple to reveal his identity again—this isn't some cultivation novel! Did he break through a realm and announce his triumphant return?
Ian shook his head. It was too absurd. Regardless of whether Tem was connected to Symon Tetrus, his self-disclosure at the red temple was ridiculous. There was definitely more to it than met the eye; they needed to investigate further.
"Tell me about his enemies. What's the story with that group that cornered Tem and the others?" Ian temporarily set aside his thoughts on Tem and asked about the other player group.
After all, players are enemies.
(End of Chapter)
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