novelraw Chapter 87 : Here's the Disguiser I Was Looking For.
Chapter 87 : Here's the Disguiser I Was Looking For.
Here's the Disguiser I Was Looking For.
After finishing my business at the Adventurer's Guild archives, I headed straight to the training grounds of the "Golden Chain" mansion.
The reason was simple. It was to join up before Barkal caused any incidents, so I could avoid as much trouble as possible.
As expected.
Barkal was on the verge of causing some kind of incident.
I saw three unfamiliar faces, and one of them was gripping a sword, ready to swing it.
What on earth are they trying to pull?
At that moment of confusion, Barkal subdued the man with the sword.
Crash, thud.
The man went down with a tremendous sound. Sensing that the atmosphere was getting tense, I stepped forward to break things up.
"Disguiser...!"
At that moment, stranger A spoke up.
Disguiser?
Hearing this guy's words, I checked the fallen man's body and saw a "mark."
The mark of a broken mask.
No doubt about it. It's the tattoo that the rank-and-file members of the "Disguiser" organization carve onto themselves.
I was frustrated, lacking information, but this worked out great!
Get him!
Barkal! Grab that bastard!
* * *
The man suspected of belonging to the "Disguiser," was named Ebel. After tying him up securely, I asked about the situation and why there were people in the training grounds.
"I-I'll explain."
At those words, a woman stepped forward.
"My name is Miriam. I'm a messenger sent by Balthazar de Rancher."
Balthazar de Rancher?
I looked toward Barkal.
Are you acquainted?
I gave him a look, but Barkal shook his head.
"He is one of the noblemen who rule over Odheim."
Once Miriam added that explanation, I finally let out a sigh.
Ah, so she was sent by a noble.
Miriam continued to explain. All three people gathered here were sent by nobles.
But among them, this man named "Ebel," she said, was a stranger to them.
Let's get back to the main subject.
I stared at the man called "Ebel," who looked like a Disguiser. The "cracked mask" was definite proof that he was a Disguiser.
Why did this guy approach us?
Maybe he's just after money or fame? Things were pretty chaotic in Odheim recently, after all.
Or maybe someone put out a "request".
The "Disguiser" are the kind of people who dabble in all sorts of dirty work.
Tsk.
Clicking my tongue inwardly, I spoke to Barkal.
"I want to speak to the rat. Barkal, send the other two away."
"The rat? What will you talk about?"
Barkal let out a deep breath and grinned.
"If it's something that requires strength, leave it to me!"
"It's not a matter of strength."
As I replied, Barkal looked disappointed.
"Understood, brother. I'll leave the rat to you then."
Whoosh.
Barkal lightly tossed the "Disguiser" to me as if throwing a light sack.
I grabbed the guy by the scruff of his neck and started dragging him away.
"L-let go...! Let go of me!"
He thrashed and wriggled in resistance. Ignoring him, I took him to a quiet place where no one was watching.
I would have liked to ask this guy about the "fragment" that No Logout had, but I doubted he'd know anything.
Of course.
The "Disguiser" is an organization that's closer to a collection of scattered dots than a coherent group. They rarely show their faces to each other, exchanging only information to keep their identities secret.
In such an organization, the mark that proves you're a Disguiser. How lowly a position must the one who carves such a mark have within the group?
So this guy is a minion.
And what would a minion know, really?
"I'm not one of those Disguisers! That guy is lying about me!"
Ebel shouted desperately, defending himself.
I gave no reply. I simply stared him down, silently, and pulled out the "Blood-Colored Awl"
I kept in my clothes.
The longer my gaze, the more Ebel's Adam's apple bobbed. Sweat started to roll down his forehead, and his body began to tremble.
"W-what... are you planning?"
Still, I said nothing. Maybe that wordless silence made it even more intimidating, because he spoke once more.
"It's true! I swear...."
Ebel tried to force a smile, but it twisted on his lips like a spasm. The air in the room seemed to grow thick, tightening around his throat.
Only then did I open my lips, slowly.
Low.
But with clear pronunciation.
"The black blade has not yet rusted."
As I spoke, ebel's eyes widened in shock.
It was because faint light leaked from the "cracked mask" tattoo on his body.
A code usually not revealed to minions.
It's a password shared only among those in higher ranks.
Minions do not know the code, but when their tattoo glows, it means the other party is far above their station—a senior in the organization.
"A-a comrade...?"
"I won't ask who sent you."
With a single slice of the "Blood-Colored Awl", the ropes Barkal had haphazardly tied were instantly cut.
Relief and fear flashed across Ebel's face as he clutched his freed wrists.
"Since you targeted a fellow member, consider this assignment null and void."
At my words, ebel nodded frantically and replied in a trembling voice. It seemed he was now fully convinced I was a Disguiser superior.
"Y-yes! I'll remember that!"
I slowly reached out and placed my hand on his shoulder.
I barely touched him, but Ebel's body stiffened, and his breathing became so thin it was barely audible.
"And."
After a brief pause, I spoke in a low voice.
"Relay this to the other Fingers: The butterfly has been found, prepare for the masquerade ball."
My words spread a strange resonance through the air.
"The butterfly" is a secret code used only among Disguisers.
It means a treasure, or an "item," of a grade high enough to be under national control, has been found.
That made Ebel's eyes open wide. He bowed so deeply that his forehead touched the ground.
"T-the butterfly...! I never thought a lowly grunt like me would get to hear that...!"
Ebel's voice was filled with a mix of terror and awe.
"T-the masquerade ball! I'll be sure to relay the word! The other Fingers will surely be delighted as well!"
"When the schedule is set, send me the time and place. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Ebel nodded vigorously. After checking once more that his ropes were untied, I let him go.
Once the masquerade ball is scheduled, he'll send me the time and location.
What is a masquerade ball?
It's simple. The "Fingers"—the ruling class of the criminal organization called "Disguiser."
Before one of the Fingers handles something big, this is the act of calling the other executives together for a consultation.
Surely, plenty of information that the minions don't know will gather there. And if that happens, we can storm the place and scour every corner for that "fragment."
"Haa."
What would Barkal or Serena think if they found out I knew such secrets about a clandestine criminal organization?
But what can I do.
This criminal organization called the "Disguiser"... is a group that was created by my own hands.
* * *
【Dungeon God First Community Contest – New Organization Planning】
An event out of the blue, posted by the management. An unexpected event popped up, asking for secret organizations or guild settings for "Dungeon God".
It became a hot topic in the community. Maybe people were hyped that their own ideas could become part of the game, so everyone freaked out.
Who would bother with something like this?
I said that, but somehow I found myself opening the application window.
Why?
【Players who participate will receive an in-game achievement!】
I couldn't resist an achievement.
Since I tried to collect every possible thing in-game, I instantly entered the contest.
At first, I was only going to include the bare minimum settings just to get the "achievement".
But human psychology is funny.
As I added a little, my urge to create kept growing, and I piled in even more.
【Congratulations! Your entry has been selected!】
Next thing I knew, I got an email saying my entry had been chosen.
What came out of that was the organization called "Disguiser."
Tsk.
If I'd known, I would've made a more upstanding group. Then again, who could have predicted this?
* * *
After returning from touring her father's hometown, "Odheim,"
Serena returned to the Golden Chain mansion and joined up with us.
Seeing Barkal's uneasy expression, she asked me,
"Did something happen?"
Did something happen? Plenty did. Barkal had his own personal run-ins, and I found out that the "criminal organization"
I created was running around, more active than ever.
"And who is this...?"
The person Serena asked about was the woman who introduced herself as "Miriam."
She was huddled in a corner, intimidated by Barkal, but her gaze was directed this way.
"She's a messenger sent by one of the nobles from Odheim."
I gave Serena a brief introduction to Miriam. Serena nodded in understanding.
"Ahh..."
Then she looked straight at me.
"I think I get it."
About what?
"I don't think she came here to give us good news..."
Serena smiled wryly.
"Should we hurry and pack our things? It seems like we might have to run away at dawn!"
Just what kind of impression—no, what does she really think of our adventurer party, "Dungeon God", to make her say things like this?
But I had nothing to say. I suppose this was the result of all the time we'd spent together.
"N-no, we didn't come with bad news!"
Hearing Serena's words, miriam started to roll her eyes anxiously before opening her mouth again.
"M-my master, Lord Balthazar, wished to speak with you all, having been impressed by your skills!"
"A conversation?"
"Yes!"
About what?
"I think he wants to hire you as guards for a noble! A-and if you wish, he said he'd recommend you for a knight's title depending on the duration of your employment!"
"Wow...! He'd recommend us for knighthood?"
Serena covered her mouth in surprise and looked over at me.
"This noble, balthazar, must really think highly of us! It's not often that an adventurer gets recommended for knighthood!"
Sometimes.
I'm just amazed at Serena's empathy.
You're a noble yourself. And from a "saint-producing family" at that.
A "knight" title must mean nothing to you.
"Y-yes, that's right. Lord Balthazar really thinks the best of you all!"
Gaining confidence from Serena's words, miriam added on.
"That's not what I'm curious about."
I asked Miriam,
"How did you recognize the mark of the Disguiser?"
---