Chapter 82
In Tiny Letters It Spoke
Seconds passed in silent deliberation.
The gears of Ethan’s mind were churning at an accelerated rate. They didn’t have a lot of time to come up with a ‘solution’ that would yield the best results. In fact, Ethan was beginning to suspect that there really wasn’t a solution for the ‘best results’, but more so one with the ‘least bad’ ones.
The three stories were somewhat vague, though with just enough details in them to portray a full scope. Have to start nicking them one by one, I guess…
“Alright, let’s start with the Merchant,” Ethan broke the silence with 23 minutes left on the clock. “Which of the statements speaks to you as the truth?”
“... probably second?” Ronald mulled. “Maybe the ‘Merchant’ tag is a metaphor for greed? Like the old adage of selling one’s own mother for coin?”
“Same,” Mingzhu said. “Besides, artefacts that amplified magic fiftyfold? What the fuck is that? No way shit like that exists.”
“What about you two?” Ethan turned to Elijah and Delilah.
“Uh,” Elijah mumbled, seeming uncertain for a moment before speaking. “But if he did sell them to the dark mages… why… why isn’t that the crime?”
“...”
“Oh, shit, you’re right,” Mingzhu mumbled. “Maybe the Kingdom never found out?”
“Yeah, maybe,” Elijah nodded.
“Let’s go with the assumption that the selling of the artefacts is a lie,” Ethan said. “Some Noble tasks him with smuggling these artefacts into the Kingdom. If it turned into anything bigger, there probably would have been an indication of it. So, the Merchant bought the artefacts, smuggled them in, and was caught doing that after the fact. It doesn’t say how, so let’s just assume that the Noble in question turned him in. The woman. Which statement do you think is a lie?”
“Isn’t it in the context of it?” Mingzhu said. “If the ancient records showed that the King’s lineage is dubious, then the truth is precisely that?”
“Or it’s a hint that it’s the opposite?” Ronald suggested.
“She didn’t show any hostility toward the King,” Mingzhu said. “So her trying to get revenge… I don’t know, it seems fucking strange.”
“If we consider her statements to be technically true,” Ethan chimed in. “Then it means that the ancient documents weren’t just verified by her, but also by other people. So, it likely means that the ancient documents, at least on the surface, are true. So, we can just take it on the face value that the records show the King’s lineage as questionable.”
“Do you think the cloaked figure here is the same as the Noble in the first story?” Elijah supposed.
"... possibly," Ethan nodded. "It's likely that the Tunnel wouldn't generate just three random stories for us to judge. Again, in some way, our passing judgment here will likely result in a massive shockwave. Alright, the third story. Truth, lie, which one is it?"
“... again, isn’t it in the story itself?” Mingzhu frowned. “He was, technically, attending a meeting when the enemy Kingdom invaded or whatever. Plus, this fucker said that everything they say is technically true–so, that also means that he did take back the castle that was attacked, right?”
“Alright, so, we have three stories,” Ethan said. “All three of whom have secondary instigators–some figure that rallies the stories. There’s one more thing in common that they have. Who can tell me what for five bucks?”
“... the fuck? Are we in school suddenly?”
“Just tell us,” Ronald groaned.
“C’mon,” Ethan grinned. “That’s not fun. Shoot your guesses.”
“...” however, nobody had them even for half a minute. Seeing no point in playing any more, Ethan broke the silence once again.
“They all, one way or another, reflect poorly on our dear King.” Ethan said. “The first story–regardless of which statement was true. If the merchant was selling the artefacts to the dark mages, it means that the King, and his men, are incompetent enough to let it happen. If it is true that the artefacts amplify the magic by fiftyfold, it means that there's someone within the ranks of Nobility who wants it. And if there's one, there's two. And if there's two, there's a plot."
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“...”
“For the woman, his lineage is being questioned directly,” Ethan continued. “If we take this place to be an absolute monarchy, lineage makes up a lot of confidence that the general populace has in their King. Divine Right, bloodlines, all that good, very outdated stuff. So, someone just happened upon some ancient documents that discredit the King right around the time of the first and the third story?
"And, speaking of the third story: if we take the circumstances at face value, one of the King's most trusted men just randomly got information about an assassination attempt on the King, and the enemy's Kingdom just happened to invade right around the time he went to investigate? Nah. Shit like that doesn't happen coincidentally."
“What’s the point of it all, though?” Ronald asked.
“Simple,” Ethan shrugged, finally beginning to connect the dots. “Someone’s staging a coup.”
“... wait–how the fuck did you get to that conclusion?” Mingzhu frowned. “Isn’t it equally possible that none of these stories are related that deeply and are just part of the Tunnel quest or whatever?”
“Maybe,” Ethan said, but there was a reason he was confident. “My guess is that, originally, the party that was here first, voted the merchant and the woman guilty, and the general innocent. Let me ask–in this scenario, what happens?”
“What do you mean?” Ronald quizzed. “To the Kingdom?”
“Yeah.”
“... the General is the most important figure,” Ronald spoke with a frown. “But, for the merchant, the artefacts are still loose, I imagine?”
“And for the woman, the proof of the documents still is there,” Mingzhu added. “So her being guilty doesn’t really do anything.”
“... it’s a puzzle,” Ethan said. “But there isn’t really just one solution–even ‘correct’ solution. I imagine that the most optimal endgame for the Kingdom is to pronounce all three innocent and to be forgiven while also telling the King that there’s a chance it might have all been connected to a potential coup.”
“Alright, why the fuck did you emphasize ‘the Kingdom’ part?” Mingzhu asked.
"Well, because, frankly, I don't give a single fuck about the Kingdom," Ethan shrugged. "What I'm most interested in is how I can squeeze this place dry as much as possible, rewards-wise."
“What do you mean?” Ronald asked.
"If all three are proclaimed innocent," it wasn't Ethan who spoke but rather Elijah. "Then there's a chance that this Tunnel might close. Right?"
“... wow. Clever. You two adults ought to learn something.”
“Fuck you. You can’t learn smarts.”
“What do you mean, Elijah?” Ronald asked.
“If they are cleared, and if the King proves the coup… there would be no scenario that would require our involvement directly after the fact. However, if the Kingdom breaks down, even in a small capacity, because of today, there'd probably be something, still.”
“Yup,” Ethan nodded. “However, this is all still speculation. So, we can either go with the safe route–just declare them all innocent, suggest there might be a coup, and ride off into the sunset. Or…”
“Or you can do some weird shit,” Mingzhu said. “So, do the weird shit.”
“Yeah, whatever,” Ronald shrugged.
“I’ll trust you,” Elijah said.
“You’re the smartest.” Delilah spoke for the first time. Ethan looked at them oddly and shrugged it off–that sort of faith in him was in equal measures inspiring as it was concerning.
The group turned silent as it waited for the remainder of the minutes to pass. It wasn’t a particularly complex puzzle, Ethan mused. Though the initial shock over the unexpected had him a bit worried, once he calmed down, he could relatively easily discern the literal boats of obvious hints that swam on the surface. The biggest hint was the one in the initial description of the quest–that all the stories of the ‘sinners’ would be true. It meant that the events that took place, void of salivating presentation, were true.
That made everything somewhat easy to deliberate upon–the merchant was blackmailed into smuggling in the artefacts, which, by default, meant that he wasn’t actively selling them. Though the others missed this, it was rather normal as their thought process was still very much ‘old-Earth’.
Thus, knowing that the statement of artefacts being able to amplify magic fiftyfold was true, it was easy to extract that they were likely inordinately expensive, if not simply a staged myth, the kind that only a few people would be able to pay. However, there was one more key caveat that Ethan picked up on for his endgame: though the merchant was blackmailed into smuggling the artefacts, nowhere in his statement did he say that the Nobleman, specifically, got him the artefacts. Which meant that the merchant knew where to find them–so to say, that he was a smuggler.
A similar pattern persisted for the woman, as well–as her story was true, it meant that the documents themselves were valid. Which immediately invalidated that she was trying to disgrace the royal family for personal revenge. What was murky about her case, specifically, was the crime: the crime wasn’t that she altered the historical records of the Royal Family, it was that she did so specifically without the Royal Deliberation. It was another clue for the endgame that he was pursuing and one of the key ones.
The last case was actually the most complex one, but it still becomes clearer once the crime is inspected carefully. Though the General’s story was true–he likely did receive information about the King’s assassination and he thus compromised his priorities, that wasn’t the crime–the crime was that he abandoned his post… which he did.
The reason why the others were captivated, so to say, with the stories of the sinners was that they were thinking in terms of human consequences, while Ethan was thinking in terms of ‘what did the quest want from them’. Did it want a peaceful resolution? Did it want complete chaos? No–in reality, the quest didn’t ‘want’ anything, but it did segregate means of dealing with the situation. And though Ethan’s way might not be the most optimal, he was fairly convinced it was the one that would yield the best outcome–for him, specifically.
Soon, the allotted half an hour passed and the time was unfrozen. The three sinners remained kneeling, their heads bowed, as the King turned toward Ethan and others.
“Travellers,” the King spoke. “You have heard their pleas. Tell Us, now. Whom should be punished, and who should be forgiven–if any?”
“...” Ethan stepped forward and took a deep breath. No matter how confident he was, it was still a gamble. But, sometimes, one has to gamble in life. “Your Majesty,” Ethan said. “Our verdict is as follows: all three sinners… should be punished.”