Chapter 247: The Wolf War's True Intent — Who's the Sacrificial Goat?
A great discovery: if I read something with mind games and then write while feeling smarter myself, I can keep my motivation up.
At this point, I can't help thinking this guy really is an idiot.
Well, seeing it for myself did make me realize, "Ah, so there are a lot of those kinds of people," but if you're running a large clan, the officer-class members are naturally competent—or rather, a lot of them are gamers used to this kind of management.
In other words, even when people keep butting in, the helm doesn't veer off course. And against Schwarz Vulf, which is still capable of making sensible decisions, this idiot went and slapped down a veto right to their faces.
This time Psyger-100 doesn't merely twitch an eyebrow. She visibly frowns, then slowly opens her mouth.
Psyger-100: "Haaah... Yeah, fine. I'll ask, at least... Why?"
Pencilgon: "We're not exactly Schwarz Vulf's errand runners, you know? If somebody tells us to hand over information for free, we're not about to go, 'Oh, certainly, right away,' are we...?"
???: "We've been accommodating you in all sorts of ways!"
Heh heh heh, idiot. Haven't you noticed that your clan leader's face is saying, I'd really rather you didn't butt in?
Every time you shove your way forward, another land mine gets buried under your feet. And those mines are custom-made by a bastard who takes pleasure in screwing people over.
Pencilgon: "Accommodating us? With that little? That's a pretty harsh joke... If you had an information advantage on the level of the Library or SF-Zoo, sure, but there are plenty of clans with nothing going for them except money. You undewstand? Standy-standy-standy?"
Kyo the Ultimate: "Ah, she stole my bit."
Oikatzo: "The obnoxiousness is a straight-up superior version, though."
Sunraku: "She couldn't complain even if someone punched her for that."
The moment I handed the baton over to Pencilgon, control of the conversation became hers.
Pencilgon: "The Library isn't only about analysis; it also has a guild-like side as an information broker. Yeah, sure, they're worth getting friendly with even if it means handing over Unique Monster information."
Psyger-100: "........."
Pencilgon: "And SF-Zoo has been a liiittle naughty lately, but their know-how when it comes to animal-type monsters is in a class of its own. Even I was impressed when I heard they'd tracked the markings and pinned down Lycagon's appearance pattern."
That place is genuinely competent despite all the problems it has... or rather, apparently there are suspicions that some of its members actually work in related fields in real life.
I've even heard that somebody asked them about a pet's illness and got an answer backed by serious professional knowledge.
Pencilgon: "It's not like we're saying we won't share information about Unique Monsters, either. In fact, the Library has made public all the information we provided them about Wethermon the Tombguard."
Sunraku: "And I gave them a fair amount about Lycagon's behavior patterns too, didn't I?"
We keep pricking them with needles of legitimacy. They want to answer back, but one careless remark will get snatched up by Pencilgon.
The ones who understand that just sit there and take it. The ones who don't understand are the ones who keep trying to push forward.
???: "Leader, would you leave this to me?"
Here it—
((((There it is—!!))))
I can say this with absolute certainty: at this exact moment, all four members on Wolfgang's side were feeling the exact same thing, whether it showed on their faces or not.
Rebellius: "Ah, I should introduce myself first. I'm Rebellius, sub-leader of Clan Schwarz Vulf."
Sunraku: "O-Ohhh... Nice to meet you."
I answer while desperately holding back the urge to laugh.
Pencilgon deserves credit for showing absolutely no change on her face.
Kyotimate isn't showing anything on her face either... no, wait, her ears are wagging like crazy.
And Oikatzo, you bastard, learn how to make a poker face. You're forcing your expression so stiff that you look like you're making an ahegao face with a pickled plum in your mouth.
Psyger-100 watches me, lets out one sigh, then silently nods to Rebellius-something, who has for some reason stepped forward wearing a smug look.
Taking that as permission to handle things, Rebe-something's smugness deepens even further. I stare at him through my salmon mask and send him a word of sympathy in my head.
Poor Re-something. This time, you're the scapegoat.
The clock winds back even farther, to before the negotiations with Schwarz Vulf began.
Oikatzo: "...Uh, so basically?"
Pencilgon: "Momo-chan and I... are secretly working together behind the scenes."
Sunraku: "Hear that, Kyotimate? Tomorrow's negotiations just became ninety percent farce."
Kyo the Ultimate: "I'm gonna need a more detailed explanation, I think."
That was such a brutally awful spoiler that I almost don't know what to say.
Still, we should question her properly before making a final judgment. Depending on the circumstances, we might have to tie some weights to her and dump her in the ocean... no, never mind.
Pencilgon: "Momo-chan's quick to go out of control, but she's also quick to cool down again. That's both her flaw and one of her good points. And fundamentally, she's a moderate."
Sunraku: "Then why go out of your way to hold negotiations like this?"
Pencilgon: "Because our side is small and already unified, but theirs isn't, right? Their members need to be made to understand a clear result."
Though that's not the only reason, Pencilgon adds, sticking out her tongue.
Pencilgon: "I already told you Schwarz Vulf is split between 'gamers' and 'hardcore SLF-only players,' right?"
Sunraku: "Yeah."
Pencilgon: "That's right, but it's also wrong. Clan Schwarz Vulf is divided along much simpler lines... the 'Psyger-100 faction' and the 'Rebellius faction.'"
What do hardcore players actually want? Firepower, stats, the fact that they're farther ahead and higher up than anybody else... the motive itself can be whatever, but the fundamental principle is basically the feeling that I want to have an advantage over everyone else.
But that raises a question, and that question is the biggest bomb Clan Schwarz Vulf is carrying.
Pencilgon: "Calling them the moderate faction and the hardline faction is also right and wrong. More precisely, it's 'the faction whose goal is defeating Lycagon' and 'the faction whose goal is remaining a top clan.'"
That's right. The entire reason Clan Schwarz Vulf—whose name is usually shortened in speech because the full reading sounds awkward—was founded in the first place was to defeat the Unique Monster Lycagon the Nightslayer.
Dressing themselves in top-tier equipment and reigning as a top clan is a means and a process, not the goal.
Looked at that way, the original Schwarz Vulf wasn't really supposed to be a hardcore-player clan at all. It should have been a clan specialized around a specific objective, like the Library or SF-Zoo.
Sunraku: "Ah... wait. I think I'm starting to see the background here..."
Oikatzo: "Funny, Sunraku. I've got a bad feeling too..."
Pencilgon: "Nfufufu... Exactly. This was never really a clash between Schwarz Vulf and Wolfgang in the first place."
It's Wolfgang plus Schwarz Vulf's moderate faction versus Schwarz Vulf's hardline faction. It isn't a collision between two different clans. It only looks that way; in reality, another clan has stuck its nose into one clan's internal feud.
Pencilgon: "Momo-chan and I are besties, you know. She'd already been sounding me out about all kinds of things from pretty early on."
Clan Schwarz Vulf—or more precisely, the people who joined because they want to defeat Lycagon—only care about defeating Lycagon.
Sure, information about Wethermon or Ctarnidd interests them, and if they're being greedy, they'd like to have it. But that isn't enough reason to put their top priority on the back burner.
Pencilgon: "Honestly, all Momo-chan and her group want from Sunraku-kun and the others is the know-how you have for beating Lycagon. If anything, they're probably more serious about negotiating with SF-Zoo than with us—Wolfgang."
That's rich coming from the very person responsible for making SF-Zoo keep quiet, but pointing it out wouldn't change anything, so I let it slide.
Pencilgon: "But things are different for the players led by Rebellius who want to be 'number one among the players.'"
Human desire is bottomless in the end. They want to be number one, and they want to be the only one.
To people like that, a tiny clan steadily taking down Unique Monsters one after another is a thorn in their side... no, it's like the name sitting at the very top of a rhythm-game leaderboard that you can never overtake no matter how good a score you post.
It's unbelievably annoying, but they still want that information—that score.
Pencilgon: "I'd say the Rebellius faction's goal is to exploit Wolfgang... or maybe absorb us."
What the strong force on the weak usually falls somewhere around there. They can manufacture as many reasons as they want, and under ordinary circumstances, getting to join a top clan would count as "good news."
But we're not playing because we want to mingle with no-lifers. Wolfgang was a friends-only clan to begin with. Honestly, I can't deny that things have started getting a little twisted since Pencilgon seriously began her Demon Lord act, but at the very least, we're not going to celebrate getting swallowed up by a major clan with a cheerful "Yay, we did it!"
Pencilgon: "Momo-chan and I arranged most of today's setup together. An obvious board, a disappointing clan leader... nfufufufu..."
Pencilgon grins as though she's the person enjoying SLF more than anyone else in the world at this exact moment, then declares:
Pencilgon: "We're going to split Clan Schwarz Vulf apart from the inside. Ahh, how wonderfully fun! I can practically hear the strained, discordant symphony already!"
Sunraku: "Hey, Oikatzo. Think it's about time we laid some groundwork like, 'We were being threatened by the Demon Lord in real life'?"
Oikatzo: "Mmm... I don't think anyone's going to believe anything the warheads in the Demon Lord's bazooka say, do you?"
Hahaha. Fine, I'll take that fight.
This is only the preliminary skirmish. I'll blow you away, Mr. Can't-Trigger-a-Unique-On-His-Own!!