STGB Episode 504
Basement(1)
Do you know what’s most important when it comes to lying?
It’s not about crafting a logical story, nor is it about relying on the trust you’ve built.
It’s your expression.
“T-this is… some kind of misunderstanding…!”
No one’s going to be convinced with a face like that.
“I was just guessing, but it really is human blood after all.”
There are professional liars who can even control the subtle movements of their facial muscles, but fortunately this guy wasn’t one of them.
“…Th-that means this is… a misunder—!”
“Versil.”
There was no need to beat around the bush, so I just called Versil to cast a verification spell on him.
But…
“This man is stronger than he looks.”
Unfortunately, the magic failed.
If someone’s resistance to magic and mental stats exceed a certain level, this spell doesn’t work well.
Well, it’s understandable.
Even though it’s a small clan of about 20 people that I’ve never heard of, he is the leader, so he should be at least this competent.
“What should we do?” Versil asked me
What should we do?
There are plenty of witnesses around, so there’s no need to focus on just one.
“Try it on that guy.”
I pointed at a timid-looking archer, and Versil cast the spell again.
“It worked.”
Yes, I had a feeling it would.
“You there.”
“…Yes, Baron…”
“Tell me what happened here.”
The archer’s face turned pale as he glanced between me and the clan leader, trying to gauge the situation.
“Well… um, that is…”
It was time to raise the pressure.
“Seeing how you can’t speak properly, that ‘misunderstanding’ line was a lie, wasn’t it?”
I spoke in a cold tone, and the clan leader bit his lip and nodded.
“Jason, it’s okay. Tell him.”
“Yes… understood.”
The archer, who was busy reading the room, finally opened his mouth.
As it turned out, he wasn’t entirely making up the misunderstanding.
To summarize, these guys were the ones who discovered this place first.
But shortly afterwards a team of six explorers showed up, and that’s when the incident began.
“Did they covet your findings?”
“Not exactly, but…”
“Stop beating around the bush and just speak.”
“Well…”
It would have been better if they had seen nothing, but the group of explorers realized that the clan had discovered something.
At least, that’s what they thought.
So, fearing that the information would leak, they detained the explorers.
“That’s when the accident happened.”
“An accident?”
“They fiercely resisted and ended up killing one of our men first…”
That triggered a fight, and ultimately, the group of explorers ended their lives in the dark cavern.
“Where are the bodies?”
“…We stripped them of their gear and dissolved the remains using acid.”
So that’s what happened. No wonder I smelled a strange odour.
“Everything I’ve told you is true. Please believe me. They attacked us first…”
What are you saying, kid?
“If they had surrendered peacefully, would you have just let them go?”
“Well, that…”
Seeing the archer struggle and eventually trail off indicated he knew he was lying.
Then, the leader, who had been silent until now, stepped forward.
“So, what’s wrong with that?”
“Huh?”
“Do you think those six would have acted differently? If we had been outnumbered, it would have been us who were killed and robbed.”
His logic wasn’t entirely nonsensical.
But…
“That’s all there is to it. No one can blame us for it. Not even you, Baron Jandel!”
He’s got some nerve using that logic in front of me.
“Then, by that same logic, I could kill you all here and face no consequences, correct? Because no one would be left to blame me.”
When I turned his own words back on him, his eyes widened in disbelief.
“If you were to do something like that, your reputation—!”
“What, you’d spread rumors as a ghost?”
“…!”
Looks like he’s finally realized:
The giant, Jandel’s son, Bjorn, isn’t the shining beacon of virtue the rumors make him out to be.
“Anyway, that’s enough talking.”
With that, I ended the conversation and called a meeting of my team members.
There was only one item on the agenda.
“What do you think we should do with them? Speak your mind.”
“I say kill them.”
Erwin voiced her opinion without hesitation.
“Misha, what about you?”
“Well… I guess… maybe killing them would… be the right thing…?”
“I agree with Karlstein.”
Misha and Versil both thought we should kill them. Auyen and Aynar were in favor of letting them live.
Then…
“I also think we should spare them.”
Unexpectedly, Amelia voted to let them live.
So, I had to ask,
“Why?”
“If you want them to face judgment, handing them over to the explorer’s Guild is the proper procedure.”
Seriously…?
I never would’ve expected such a by-the-book statement out of her.
I stared at Amelia, a bit stunned, and she turned her gaze away.
“And…”
“…?”
“It would be better for you that way.”
“…What?”
“It’s only my opinion, so don’t take it too much to heart.”
“No, not that. You’re saying it’d be better for me? What do you mean by that?”
I asked seriously, and Amelia fell silent in thought. Then she gave me her answer.
“Jandel, don’t take offense, but listen. You’re in a very unstable state right now.”
“…Unstable?”
“Have these people harmed you in any way? Have they tried to kill you? No. Even if you let them go free, they pose no threat to you. And yet you’re trying to find reasons to kill them.”
Find reasons…?
She made me sound like some psycho barbarian.
“Emily, I think you’ve got the wrong idea. That’s not—”
“Are you really not?”
It truly wasn’t.
But somehow, looking into Amelia’s eyes, I couldn’t find the words.
Her look wasn’t one of accusation.
It was one of deep concern.
“…The vote is three-to-three.”
Amelia then said,
“Jandel, the final decision is yours.”
What am I supposed to do?
***
Should they die or should they live?
I never imagined I’d be wracking my brain over this.
And maybe… that’s why she stepped in like this.
Because she was genuinely worried about ‘Lee Han-soo,’ who had been fighting in a warrior’s body for years.
“Archer.”
“…Yes?”
I asked him one last question.
“Among your group—whether it’s you or anyone else—has even one person had experience with raiding other explorers?”
“…No. We… we’re not that kind of clan. It’s just that, this time… we all got blinded by greed and lost our judgment.”
“It’s true.”
Got it.
“Versil, take this guy’s testimony again, properly, and record it in a proof orb. Emily, go through their belongings and locate the victims’ identification. Anything else that can serve as evidence for the Guild, gather it up.”
“So that means…”
“Whether we treat them as plunderers or not will be up to the guild’s judgment.”
It was annoying and troublesome.
However, once I made the decision, everything went smoothly.
“Don’t cause any more accidents until the labryinth is closed. The guild will thoroughly investigate this exploration.”
“…Of course!”
Okay, that settles the matter.
“But what was in here?”
“A pillar.”
“A pillar?”
It’ll be quicker if I see it myself.
While Amelia and Versil were digging for testimonies and evidence, I approached the wall and examined the crack.
It definitely wasn’t big enough for me to fit.
‘Are they discriminating against barbarians or something?’
After a brief moment of contemplation, I smashed the wall with my hammer.
Crash! Rumble!
The fragments fell away cleanly.
After hitting the edges a few more times with the hammer, the wall completely collapsed, revealing a path.
And then…
“Wow! It looks just like a portal pillar!”
“It’s fascinating.”
“Will a portal open if I touch it?”
As I continued to examine the area around the pillar with the team, Amelia and Versil joined us.
It seemed they had finished gathering testimonies and evidence.
So I let those guys go.
“Y-you’re telling us to leave, just like that?”
“Yeah. Like I said earlier, don’t cause any trouble.”
He looked confused but quickly gathered his clan members and left. Seeing that Versil cautiously speak up.
“Are you sure it’s fine to let them go like that? They might spread the information around.”
That’s true.
Honestly, part of me thought it would’ve been cleaner to just kill them all.
But…
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It doesn’t matter?”
“This is a place that even those guys managed to find by the third day. They might’ve thought they made some grand discovery, but… in the end, those who are meant to find out will figure it out soon enough.”
“That… does make sense.”
“So stop worrying about that and come here. I want you to use mana detection to see if there’s anything hidden.”
“Alright.”
After that, we did a basic search using magic and other methods, but unfortunately, we found nothing.
However…
“Jandel, I think we should stop here. There’s nothing more to find—”
“Bjorn! There’s something written here!”
A clue turned up in the most unexpected spot.
Aynar had dug around the base of the monument and uncovered some text hidden underneath.
“Nice find.”
“Heh, a warrior’s instincts are no different from magic. It’s one of the reasons why barbarians are a superior race.”
Ignoring Aynar’s nonsense, I crouched down and read the inscription.
“It’s in ancient language…”
“It’s fine. I can read it.”
“Y-you can read ancient language…?”
Oh, guess I never told them that.
But the world is all about ‘show and prove,’ right?
Instead of giving a complicated explanation, I read the ancient text aloud.
“One star, one sun, one moon.”
“On this land that watches over all, everyone shall be the same.”
“I shall look up at you.”
As soon as I finished translating, Versil and Erwin’s expressions changed.
“Jandel, this is…”
“That’s what we heard back then, right?”
“Yeah.”
It was the same inscription we saw on the witch statue back then.
Unfortunately, Aynar didn’t seem to remember.
“…Huh? What are you talking about?”
“It’s a thing.”
We dug deeper under the monument, but there was nothing else. After checking everything we could, we filled the hole and went back outside.
“This is annoying. We still haven’t found any solid leads,”
Amelia seemed frustrated, but I couldn’t relate.
No clues? What do you mean no clues?
‘One star, one sun, one moon.’
This is practically being spoon-fed.
“From now on, we’re heading to the second floor.”
If we hurry, we might be able to enter it during this cycle.
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