STGB Episode 545
Ghost 3
After sharing the information, I looked around.
“……!”
“……!”
Okay, it’s clear that the ordinary explorers are going to lose their minds over this.
“In just two months…….”
“Two Single Numbers……?”
“……Really?”
Well, one came from the Graphas necklace, and the other was a lucky drp from the Rift Guardian I took down…
But I wasn’t lying.
These items could only be obtained from Mana Stones found on Basement Floor 1 or by defeating ‘Guardian’ monsters.
Whoooosh—!
As the green light shone brightly, a moment of silence fell over the table.
Everyone reacted differently to the light.
Before, everyone had been shocked by the content of the information.
“How on earth did you even get information about that place…?”
“As far as I know, fewer than 120 people have even descended that far…”
“Huh… don’t tell me… you were in there?”
Some were curious about my identity.
“Pssit, how foolish. Is there anywhere in this world that Mr. Lion’s eyes don’t reach? Didn’t you see earlier? He even knew the details of what happened in the 8th floor rift-something that was top secret, known to less than 50 people.”
“Well… now that you mention it, the first time information about that place leaked was through a member of the Hex Clan. It’s hard to deny the possibility of an informant among them.”
Some acted as though it wasn’t surprising at all.
And then…
“If that’s the case, then this informant must be close to Bjorn Jandel.”
Deer Horns, a member of the royal family, had a glint in his eye—as if he’d just found a clue.
What will he do even if he knows?
I shifted my gaze to observe the reaction of Fox Mask—Versil.
Though her mask concealed her expression, her eyes held no suspicion.
On the contrary…
Anxiety and confusion.
I caught a glimpse of those emotions.
Does she think I’ve planted a mole in the clan?
Well, I’ll know for sure once the community closes today. Last time during the Misha incident, she came to me immediately, rambling about a traitor.
Anyway, that’s enough about Versil.
Swish.
I looked to the side to check on the goblin.
Honestly, he’s the one who worries me the most.
Unlike the others, who were carried away by the atmosphere, the goblin remained silent, deep in thought.
Yes, he is just sitting there…
But for some reason, he makes me feel uneasy.
Even though I had clearly proven to the Round Table that I wasn’t Bjorn Jandel, there are always those with absurd intuition.
And the Goblin… he feels like that kind of guy.
So…
“Deer.”
I turned to Deer Horns, who was speaking, and changed the topic.
“How long are you going to stay like that?”
“……?”
“It’s your turn again.”
Come on, let’s move on.
I’ve got plenty more to share.
***
First round.
“The Basement Floor 1 Records Archive spawns every type of monster, including Rift Guardians.”
Second round.
“The Basement Floor 1 Records Archive contains numerous newly discovered variants, some of which are hybrid monsters.”
“Um… Hybrid monsters?”
Normally, I wouldn’t have entertained such a question, but I answered kindly.
“Monsters that possess skills from multiple monster types. They also drop Essences. For example, an Ogre’s passive combined with a Troll’s active.”
“……!!”
“That’s… ridiculous!”
“W-wait! Does that mean we can create entirely new Essence combinations?”
A few members shouted in disbelief, but I didn’t need to convince them.
The gemstone would prove the truth either way.
Whoooosh—!
With each pulse of the green gemstone’s light, the murmurs grew louder.
And then…
Flash—!
A greed brighter than the gem’s light flickered in their eyes.
It was only natural.
What player could hear about a goldmine of a hunting ground like this and stay calm?
“Pssit… This is getting interesting.”
“Maybe for you. But I doubt Noark would find it amusing. Whatever they hear, they’ll be left sucking their thumbs anyway.”
The Clown and Deer Horns started to bicker. Of course, there was nothing heart-stirring about it.
‘Well, watching kids bicker is always entertaining.’
And it seemed others felt the same—no one stepped in to stop them, merely observing with amusement.
“Ah! Just like the Raphdonian explorers who’ve been stuck on the 8th and 9th floors for over a year, right? Pfft.”
“Didn’t you hear Mr. Lion? If what he says is true, there’s no reason to even go to the 8th or 9th floors anymore.”
“Oh, maybe so. But what does that matter?”
“…You really don’t get it? If this info spreads, the royal family will reconsider the ban, and fully support explorers’ growth. If that happens, Norark’s downfall is only a matter of time.”
“Ohhh, is that so? Wow, I’m so scared I might cry.”
Deer Horns sneered at the Clown’s indifferent response.
“Hah, I guess someone like you wouldn’t care. You go around boasting to your enemies about failures in your own group. To you, this is probably just entertainment—”
“Pssit? I never said this was fun because of that reason.”
Cutting him off, the Clown laughed and added:
“Why do you assume this is good news for the royal family?”
“…What are you talking about?”
“You really don’t know?”
The Clown dramatically shrugged and turned his gaze to me.
Meeting my gaze, he gave a friendly nod before turning back to Deer Horns.
“Why do you think Mr. Lion shared this info at the roundtable? You’ve got a brain—try using it.”
“……”
Deer Horns fell silent.
Instead, someone else spoke in his place.
“To obstruct the royal family.”
It was Queen, who had been quietly listening.
“That’s the only reason I can think of.”
The other members nodded in agreement.
“I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought so.”
“……Mr. Lion must’ve known exactly what would happen if this got out.”
“He’s never been this blunt before.”
I had shared the information after the royal family’s ban.
And it was enticing enough to undermine that very ban.
Given the circumstances, the members had already pieced together my intentions.
Not that it mattered much.
“Pssit, and yet, here you are, acting all high and mighty without even realizing it. Don’t you find that hilarious?”
“…You’re interpreting things too favorably. Mayve he is helping the royal family. They just don’t know how valuable the Basement Floor 1 is.”
“Hmm… Really? let’s see which one of us is misinterpreting things .”
With the clown’s last remark, all eyes turned to me.
No one spoke, but their gazes all asked the same question:
Which of the two is true?
They wanted me to clarify.
But I kept my lips sealed, and the tension grew.
“So…”
Finally, someone took the lead.
Surprisingly, it was Black.
“What’s the truth?”
I was a little surprised.
I figured someone would speak up, but not her.
She always stayed silent unless it was her turn to speak.
“Mr. Lion, are you on the royal family’s side? Or Noark’s?” Black asked boldly, her expression unreadable behind her mask.
I responded softly.
“You’re out of line.”
There was no killing intent in my tone, but Black flinched and lowered her gaze.
Though she quickly forced herself to meet my eyes again.
‘Huh, she’s got some guts.’
I filed that detail away in my mental notes, then continued.
As if impressed by her guts.
“But I’ll answer.”
I kept my eyes on Black as I placed my hand on the gem.
And in that moment—
Gulp.
Someone gulped.
All eyes were on me now.
The Clown seemed to be hoping I was on Noark’s side. while Deer Horns hoped the opposite.
The rest just wanted the truth.
But…
“The royal family and Norarc.”
I declared clearly for all to hear.
“I am on neither side.”
I wasn’t lying.
Norark is my enemy.
The first time I lost a companion, it was to Orcules’ Dragon Slayer, and because of them, I had to deal with that mess on the 1st Floor.
In the process, Daria—Erwin’s sister—died.
And as for the royal family…
‘They don’t even need an explanation.’
The cold fury I felt that day still hasn’t faded.
One day, they will pay.
And as if to confirm it:
Shwaaaaaa—!
The gem glowed with a brilliant green. And for some reason, it also looked a little brighter than usual.”
Someone asked, seemingly fascinated:
“Then why…”
It was Deer Horns.
“Mr. Lion, why did you share that information with us?”
A natural question for someone from the royal family, accustomed to political battles.
A mysterious, powerful man in a lion’s mask.
On no side, just dropped a bomb that disrupted the royal plans.
My answer was simple
As always.
Tap. Tap.
I knocked on the armrest twice before speaking.
“Because…”
As always.
Tap. Tap.
I knocked on the armrest twice before speaking.
“Because it’s fun…”
***
The roundtable ended quietly after that, but I had no regrets.
I had more than enough time to explain what a jackpot the records archive was.
And everyone else had run out of things to say, too.
The timing to end it was perfect.
So I wrapped it up and left coolly.
‘Yeah, pushing for another round would’ve just made me look desperate.’
Back to Lee Han-soo’s room.
I lazed around on the bed for a bit, then sat in front of the computer and got back to browsing the forum.
Ironically, this was the only way I connected to the outside world.
“Pffft… puhuhuhu… this lunatic…”
Ugh, my pride hurts.
Why is this so funny?
While chuckling like an idiot, I scanned the board—when I noticed a pinned post rising in popularity.
[Everything known so far about the First Basement Archive.]
I clicked in immediately—and the content was solid.
From how to enter the Archive, to the fact that every type of monster and Rift Guardian spawns there, including ‘hybrid monster.’
And most importantly, that Bjorn Jandel had obtained two Single Numbers items there.
The post neatly summarized everything I’d shared at the round table.
The author was…
[BFKILLER]
I’ve never seen that nickname before.
‘I’m pretty sure it’s one of the roundtable members…….’
But
Who?
With ten members now (including me), it was impossible to pinpoint.
‘Well, I wanted the info to spread anyway, so this works out.’
But I didn’t expect it to go public this fast.
I’d assumed it’d take a month or so to circulate.
‘Makes sense. Everyone’s got their goals.’
Wouldn’t be surprising if one of the ten wanted the info to spread.
Anyway, that’s not the point…
Scroll scroll.
I flicked through the comments.
Since it had only just become a trending topic, early replies were mostly about fact-checking.
[YPPL: Dude, at this point, you should just write fiction.]
[gooooooodd2: Desperate for attention, huh?]
[q1q2q3: So where’s the proof? Who’s gonna believe this nonsense without evidence?]
Typical skeptics and trolls.
But gradually, the tone shifted.
[Amer91: Next expedition, I’ll take the route through the Nameless Temple. I bet the bastards who fall for this will be having a nice little picnic over there.
[└AI_DIDIGO: Fact #1: The Nameless Fragment being the key to the Basement Floor 1 is already known by the royal family and major groups.]
[└ScottBANE: Whoa, Didigo, is that true?]
[└Adi: Wait, if the entry method is real, doesn’t that mean the rest might be too?]
[└Amer91: Nah, that’s still… Probably just bait for attention.]
[└Adi: Think about it. Who would make up this much just for a trending post? Just the entry method alone would’ve been enough.]
[└ScottBANE: The more I think about it… the more plausible this post seems. There are players on Basement Floor 1, and they could leak info through Ghost Busters.]
Users who already knew about the entry method began validating the post, slowly turning the tide.
From outright dismissal to cautious belief.
‘Okay, this should be enough to spread the info throughout the city…’
Just as I was feeling satisfied, I paused mid-scroll.
[Pnec: Bunch of idiots. Can’t even swallow what’s being spoon-fed to them.]
[└bigD: What do you mean by that?]
[└Bling0_0: Just a troll. Ignore him.]
[Pnec: Yeah, I wondered when you would show up. What do you know?]
These guys are fighting again. By now, I was familiar with these nicknames, so I kept scrolling through the rest of their conversation.
[Bling0_0: I know plenty—like you’re 1 incher with 1 kb of brain]
[└Pnec: Yeah, sure. Like a brat like you would know anything. Tch. Whether you believe it or not, everything in this post is true.]
[└Bling0_0: …And how can you be so sure?]
[└Pnec: Because I heard it firsthand from a very reliable source not long ago. And if you insult him, I’ll hunt you down and kill you myself.]
Wait, what?
Heard it recently?
‘Is this guy also a round table member?’
As the thought crossed my mind…
[└bigD: What do you mean by that?]
[└(Comment deleted.)]
[Pnec: Yeah, I wondered when you would show up. What do you know?]
[└(Comment deleted.)]
[└Pnec: Yeah, sure. Like a brat like you would know anything. Tch. Whether you believe it or not, everything in this post is true.]
[└(Comment deleted.)]
[└Pnec: Because I heard it firsthand from a very reliable source not long ago. And if you insult him, I’ll hunt you down and kill you myself.]
For some reason, ‘Bling0_0’ had deleted their replies and vanished at lightning speed.
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