The Prime Minister of Rafdonia, or to put it plainly, the second most powerful person in the entire country.
Marquis Tercerion had worried me for a long time. After all, it was the same man who tricked me into leading a suicide mission with a smile on my face. I looked like a thorn in his side.
On the other hand, there are many things he has done that don't make sense to me.
An example was my glorious return. As a marquis with tremendous influence and power, he could have easily prevented the ceremony from taking place if he had wanted to, but instead the event went smoothly. What's more, his insistence on getting his daughter, Ragna, to pass the Evil Spirit Incorporation Law was questionable. He was an enemy of mine that I had a hard time understanding.
«I'll try to be as brief as possible».
However, Baekho's explanation resolved most of my questions, at least to some extent.
«First of all, the reason why the marquis announced that Bjorn Yandel was an evil spirit and tried to pass a policy to accept evil spirits into society was actually because of me».
Baekho had attempted to use my reputation and fame to elevate the status of evil spirits, who were considered innately evil. It was a ridiculous plan, but it could have worked. For example, Ragna: The main reason I was so interested in passing the policy was because he knew me. I was the perfect pawn to play with if I wanted to prove that evil spirits could be good people.
«But why did you want to give legal status to evil spirits?».
«To give more power to the players. Only in this way can we face the royal family».
Their goal was to overthrow the monarchy, then. Did you think there was no other way to get past the tenth floor?
«But why the marquis? I don't see why I would agree to help you in the first place».
«Oh that? It's because I blackmailed him».
«...Did you do what?»
«His son is also a player.»
I was really surprised to hear that. No wonder the marquis was so willing to betray the royal family. I had no idea there was such a juicy backstory to all of this.
Is there a player who appeared in this world as the son of such a powerful house from the beginning? How can that be fair...?
Players who started at Noark would probably wither and die if they found out about this. But that wasn't important now.
«After realizing the trouble the marquis would have if his son were known to be an evil spirit, I used it to threaten him».
Baekho Lee blackmailed the marquis, who in turn tried to protect his son.
«You need time to get your affairs in order before such news spreads. It's not like I have other children. If his son is killed, the marquis will have no one left. When that happens, how do you think the rest of his family will react?»
«Needless to say. Everyone would aspire to be his successor».
«Exactly. They may not try to kill him, but their entire house would never be the same.»
«But I still don't understand it. Wouldn't you rather have another relative inherit your title rather than an evil spirit?»
«I already told you, right now, the marquis is trying to buy time. I'm sure he spends his nights squeezing out all the juice he can».
Yes, okay, too much information, thanks. How old was the marquis? Did you have anything left in the tank at this point?
Maybe bringing Ragna back into your life is a plan B...
While playing with that possibility, Baekho suddenly apologized. «By the way, I'm sorry, brother. It's probably my fault the marchioness sent you on that search».
«...What are you talking about?»
«When you came back alive and made it clear that you wanted to announce that you were not an evil spirit, my entire plan to use you as an example to push a policy of accepting evil spirits fell apart. In order not to fail me, he must have secretly tried to kill you before it could affect the plan».
So when I came back and declared that Bjorn Yandel was not an evil spirit, that ruined the plan.
«Then he contacted me and told me he had no choice.»
Baekho thought he couldn't blame the marquis for this, as he had technically made a logical decision for the sake of his plan. Instead, Baekho decided that they could simply not use me in their plans going forward. After all, they had already announced that I was not an evil spirit, so I was of no use to them anymore.
«But that's when he asked me if I could kill you. I can't go into details, but he thinks you'll be a big problem for us in the future».
I got goosebumps. It seemed that somehow my life had already been in grave danger by the time I returned to the present.
«At that time, I told him I would think about it», Baekho admitted. «The conditions he gave me weren't that bad either».
«Is that why you said last time that you were glad to know who I was now...?».
«Hahaha... you realize quickly».
I had almost died without realizing it.
«As it turned out, Bjorn Yandel was actually my older brother. So of course I said no to the marquis. I also warned him not to even bother you. What do you think? Don't you think that makes up for what I did?»
I had to admit it. The fact that the marquis couldn't lay a finger on me at least until his son's matter was resolved was a huge help.
It's a relief, I guess...
I didn't expect to receive such good news, but I kept my expression as expressionless as possible as I said: «And? What else is there?».
If I missed that I was happy with it, I could miss a bigger payday.
Baekho Lee proceeded to list other things he could do for me in an attempt to convince me to help him. One was unexpectedly helpful.
«If you want me to kill someone, tell me. I'll be sure to do it in no time».
«Really? Then kill the marquis».
«Yeah, about that... Even if I kill the bastard, he'll just resurface in the palace.»
«...Reappear? What are you talking about?
«Oh, right. I guess you don't know because it wasn't in the game. Anyway, there is a royal relic that can revive you, and the marquis is currently keeping it.»
«¿Y el conde Alminus?»
«That guy is also complicated because he has a dragonian by his side. The little bastard specializes in defense... If he had enough time, he would be able to get over him and kill the count, but... doing that in the city would be a bit...»
What the hell? Before I spoke with such confidence.
«So who can you kill?» I thought it would be quicker to ask him that. Baekho seemed hurt by my question as he lowered his head.
«Come on, it's not my fault. It's just that the guys you choose are a bit exaggerated... Why do you choose them all?», he grumbled. His depression, of course, was short-lived. It wasn't long before he was back in top shape, full of energy and with his mouth open again. «Oh! What do you think of this? I heard you're going to raid Dreadfear. How about I join you and...?»
«It is not necessary.
"¿What?
«I know you'd be helpful in the raid, but revealing that we're friends would only complicate things.».
«Oh... then I can dress up.»
«That does not matter. I can defeat the boss without you anyway».
Baekho was speechless. At this point, it would be best if I told him what I wanted.
«Can you give me money?»
«How much do you need?»
«A billion stones?»
«That's too much for me...»
«So five hundred million?»
«I don't really have much right now, so...»
«...One hundred million.»
«…En reality, he's been spending a lot lately, so…»
What's wrong with this guy? How can he have less money than me?
«Then give me equipment. What numbered objects do you have?»
«Um... I can't give you anything since they are all basic items for me.»
Was there anything you could do for me? He had no money or equipment. «Baekho, are you talking?»
He couldn't even respond.
«How about an essence, then? It would be incredibly helpful if you could get me one. For example, from Bellarios».
«Big Brother... There is a war right now...»
«Baekho, why are you just listing ways you can't help me?»
«...B-good! I'll try. Next time the maze opens, I'll try.»
Yes, that was better. Why was he pretending to be weak and helpless?
Who would have imagined that he would be able to skip the grinding for Bellarios like this?
It seemed like the options weren't so slim after all. Which meant it was time to move on to the next favor he could do me.
«Baekho, could you answer some of my questions?»
«Yes! Anything!»
«How did you find out I was Bjorn Yandel?»
«How? It was thanks to the GM. As soon as they banned me, the GM invited me to a chat room. He told me that you had threatened him to unseat me».
What... happened?
«I was very surprised to hear that. I didn't understand exactly what was going on, so I pretended we were allies, and the GM was kind enough to let some things slip.»
So the GM ended up leaking information to Baekho as well. How faint-hearted.
«First, he mentioned that you wear a lion mask on the Round Table».
So it started with my role as Lion at the Round Table.
«That wasn't too strange, but he suddenly asked me questions about you.»
Then the GM released the most critical information.
«He asked me why you were gone two years. He even asked me if we were together the whole time. But why would you ask me all that?». Baekho started to smile. «And that's when I realized».
Of course he would realize who I was at that moment. Bjorn Yandel's return directly coincided with Mr. León's return to the Round Table. Even some people at the Round Table had come to that same conclusion.
«I see.» I'd end up punching something if I had to hear anything else about that useless GM, so I moved on to my next question. «So when the capital was on fire, what happened to Fallen Scholar? The two ended up disappearing together».
This was something I had been wondering about for a while. How did the two go from being willing to kill each other to being teammates?
«Oh, that?» He shrugged. «Nothing in particular. He just said that he was an otherworldly evil spirit and that his goal was to open the Gate of the Abyss, so he wanted us to ally. And since I was looking for a magician at the time, I accepted».
«Oh yeah?» I responded as nonchalantly as I could.
Just like Baekho Lee had been able to spot my lie in an instant the other day, I could also instinctively feel like he was lying to me.
«Yeah. He was a little worried because he looked very old and his teeth were already falling out, but he's more skilled than I thought».
Baekho Lee... What was he hiding?
«Hm, ¿es así?»
Why was he lying to me?
A skilled liar hid lies inside nuggets of truth. By that logic, most of what Baekho Lee had just told me had to be true.
«What is my plan? Very easy. Let's form a team and destroy everything that gets in our way! Whether it's the royal family or the labyrinth, pow pow pow! Ah, that's just a joke. What I'm actually planning to do is...»
I continued to ask him several questions even as I carefully broke down his previous answer, trying to determine which parts were lies and which were truths.
«He just said that he is an evil spirit from another world».
This was the truth, of course, since I already knew it.
«Their goal was to open the Gate to the Abyss».
This was also true.
«He wanted to become an ally.»
That had to be true since they were cooperating with each other now. Otherwise, they wouldn't be working together.
«And since I was looking for a magician at the time anyway, I accepted.»
Since that was the only option left, I came to a conclusion.
Baekho Lee did not join forces with the Fallen Scholar simply because he needed a wizard.
That meant I had a hidden plan and, more importantly, one I was trying to hide. But why?
Is this information you can't tell me for my own good...?
No wait. Baekho's bright and friendly aura almost made me let my guard down again. This guy was a serious headache to deal with.
What else is he hiding from me?
Come to think of it, Baekho Lee hadn't said anything to me in the entire conversation. He promised «to do everything he could» to get me an essence, but that was it. Well, I should probably count the fact that he agreed to return Missha to me on his behalf.
...What a strange and confusing guy. Do you want to help me?
Honestly, I had no idea.
«The royal family is the biggest obstacle to our plan. Countless players are still forced into hiding at this time, and we won't be able to gather them in public until we improve the evil reputation of evil spirits...»
Was Baekho Lee my enemy or my ally?
***
We talked for a while longer, but in the end it was time for him to leave. Baekho still seemed to be within a one-hour logout time limit.
«Big Brother, if you see the GM later, can you ask him about me? I'm pretty sure he also took an early version of the pill. So can you see if there's any way I can extend the time I can stay here?»
«Okay.»
«Thank you. Then I'm leaving! Until next time!»
In the end, Baekho Lee left before I could ask him about the Disc Stone. It was weird to admit it, but I felt a lot better about him for now. I decided I could start worrying and investigate Baekho's secret after he returned Missha to me.
«Is the conversation over now?»
After Baekho Lee left, I spent some time talking to Hyeonbyeol, who had been waiting patiently for the chat room to open.
«Oh yes, thanks.»
«Don't get too close to that guy», he warned me. «Not trustworthy in the least».
«Lo sé.
«...I'm glad to hear it. I was actually just testing him when I asked him to reveal your identity».
«... Putting him to the test?»
«Yeah. He already knows at least a little about your identity, right? So I wanted to test how good he is at keeping a secret. I guess it turned out to be pretty good since he didn't tell me anything.»
«...Ya veo.»
I had a hard time believing that I really just wanted to test him, but I had no evidence to prove otherwise, so I let it go.
We sat around catching up for a while until I finally had to interrupt the conversation. «Hyeonbyeol, I should go now».
I stood up slowly, ending our conversation.
«You always leave at this time, huh?»
That's because that's when the Round Table opens.
«See you next time.»
«Sí.»
After leaving the chat room, I headed straight to the Round Table. I put on the same navy blue suit as always and covered my face with my usual Lion mask. With that, he was ready to leave.
Step step.
I walked down the empty hallway, as always, and entered the main room where the meeting was being held, as always. But-
What's happening?
«Hahaha! Miss Fox, how long!»
Standing at the Round Table with the other known members was someone wearing a mask he had never seen before. Actually...
«Oh, are you Mr. Leon? Nice to meet you».
«Hm...»
«Holaaaaa...»
He wasn't just one rookie, but three.