Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary!

Chapter 692: All is good [3]

[The tragedy of Malia and the people responsible for it]

The headline of the article was simple, and yet, the moment I saw it, I felt a sinking feeling as I reached for the paper and quietly opened it.

The paper crackled between my fingers.

Within the silent room, it was the only sound that I heard.

“…..”

The Guild Master didn’t say a single word as he watched me read. He simply sat there with his legs crossed, and though my eyes were on the article, I could feel his gaze resting on the side of my face the entire time.

I didn’t pay much attention to him and just skimmed through all the unnecessary parts of the paper, getting to the key points.

The more I read, the more my heart sank.

“…This is quite troublesome, isn’t it?”

I put the paper down and looked up to see the Guild Master smiling at me.

However, I could tell that the smile wasn’t a warm one as I pressed my lips together.

It was a perfectly shaped smile. A business-like smile. The corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly, while the corners of his eyes crinkled just enough to complete the expression.

And that was exactly what was wrong with it.

It was a smile that had been put on. It was the type of smile that made it hard to determine his true intentions.

‘But I should’ve seen this coming.’

In short, I was one of the people being targeted by the article. It went into detail about how I’d been present in Malia, only to suddenly disappear when everything went to hell, leaving everyone else behind. There was plenty of speculation. Some believed I’d run away. Others thought I was dead. Then there were the more outrageous theories claiming that I was the Butcher.

What nonsense…

“Don’t mind the crazy theories about you being the Butcher. The identity of the one behind the Butcher has already been revealed. I also more or less have an understanding of what has happened. Soran has filled me in on the situation.”

The Guild Master’s voice remained soft.

His legs crossed as he leaned back against the chair.

“It’s been revealed that the cause behind the ‘Butcher’ incident was the strange knife later found in the Butcher’s possession. It appears to be a powerful anomalous object that consumes the mind of whoever wields it, granting them immense power.”

“…Oh.”

I tried to feign ignorance, but the Guild Master seemed to have seen through the entire situation.

“I take it the knife originally belonged to you, and that everything you’ve done was part of infiltrating the people behind the Team Leader’s kidnapping. From what I’ve been told, you’ve managed to stir up quite a mess.”

“…..”

I neither denied nor confirmed.

“Ah, take it as some ramblings from an old man. I’m just making speculations. They could be totally false.”

The Guild Master chuckled, but the chuckle only made the back of my neck tingle as he shifted his attention back to the newspaper.

He had checked every corner of this room before saying a single word to me. At the time, I’d assumed it was just him scanning the place out of curiosity. Now, a small part of me couldn’t help but wonder if it was just to make sure that no one else would hear this conversation.

For some reason, that thought didn’t comfort me at all.

‘Is he…?’

Interlocking his fingers, the Guild Master leaned forward.

“Everything is beside the point. What truly matters is the fact that you’re now under the scrutiny of the entire world. It might be true that you may have gone elsewhere to resolve the entire situation, but…”

He stopped, his body leaning closer.

“Unless you explicitly explain what you’ve done, there’s no way for us to create a good explanation for your disappearance. Perhaps you were looking for the main culprit behind the knife, but where is he?”

The Guild Master’s gaze became even more pressing.

“There’s nothing.”

Despite his calm tone, the very air seemed to be tenser than ever.

It was strange.

He hadn’t raised his voice. He hadn’t moved from his seat. And yet, the room felt smaller than it had a minute ago, the walls just a little closer, the air pressing down against my shoulders like a sort of hand.

“There’s nothing that can sustain your disappearance, and that’s the problem. The entire world has witnessed the events that occurred in Malia. They know that you weren’t there, and who took care of the matters. And that is the problem.”

The Guild Master repeated, his tone finally showing signs of change.

“You’re not someone who can fail. You told me that you’d never fail. And yet…” His tone lowered even further, making it hard for me to keep a straight face as I nearly lowered my gaze to look away from the Guild Master, afraid to see it.

“…You’ve failed.”

I had trouble swallowing now.

“That’s the problem. You who should never fail… failed.”

Failed.

Right, I did ‘fail’ in the eye of the public.

This much was true.

But…

“Haa.”

I found myself almost scoffing at the words. Just barely, I managed to hold myself back, making it seem as though I was letting out a long breath.

Right…

‘He’s always been like this.’

I was quite well aware of the Guild Master’s personality and priority. It was for this reason that I found this situation to be somewhat amusing. Even though he had figured out everything that had happened, he wasn’t bothered at all by it.

Not by the knife. Not by the organisation. Not even by the fact that I could’ve died out there.

None of it mattered to him.

There was only one thing that he valued, and that was my worth.

He wasn’t angry that I had nearly died.

He was troubled that my value had dropped.

“These next few days will be very important to clear your image. With this stain on your reputation, the ‘invincible’ image that we’ve created will crumble before the public’s eyes, and you will no longer interest people as you did in the past. You’ll be seen as competent, but nothing like in the past. Given the situation, do you think it’s possible to restore your value back to what it was?”

“…It’ll be difficult.”

I answered calmly, yet again surprising myself with how calm the words flowing out of my mouth were. It was good, though. This was better than me just suddenly laughing at him and saying something crazy.

With this newfound calmness, I continued, “There’s always been a relatively negative opinion of me on the internet. Even if you do somehow manage to find a good excuse for my absence, the negative voices will continue to remain. If you ask me, the best option would be to remain silent and silence everyone through actions.”

“Actions?”

The Guild Master raised his brow.

Just as his lips opened again, I spoke.

“…I am good at what I do.”

The room fell silent, and the Guild Master blinked slowly.

He seemed surprised by my words.

Or to be more precise, my arrogance.

But was this truly arrogance?

“The results speak for themselves.”

The world thought I had failed, but had I truly failed?

Was what I had achieved considered a failure? Was Soran’s presence a result of my failure? Was Rowan’s sister’s presence a result of my failure?

…Was the doctor’s death a result of my failure?

No…

It wasn’t that.

“I’m not just good.”

I paused, staring straight at the Guild Master.

“I’m very fucking good at what I do.”

To the point where I struggled to believe there was anyone at my level.

“…..”

“What the public perceives as my worth is not even a fraction of my true worth. You of all people should be aware of this.”

So why…?

“Why are you doubting me?”

Me who is worth so much.

“…..”

I licked my lips, my gaze never leaving the Guild Master’s. His expression was impassive, and I was having a hard time trying to make sense of it. But he didn’t show anything.

There was nothing I could pick up from his gaze.

Just two dark eyes quietly weighing me, the way a merchant weighs goods upon a scale.

He seemed to be calculating.

Deciding what to make of my words.

And it was the silence that followed that felt the most stifling. Neither he nor I said a single word as we just stared at each other.

One second.

Five seconds.

Ten.

The silence stretched and stretched, coiling itself around my throat, and just as it started to become even more suffocating, a sudden chime interrupted us.

Trrr! Trrr⎯!

Finally pulling his gaze away from me, the Guild Master reached for his pocket, where he pulled out his phone. And as his eyes fell on the message that appeared, for the first time since seeing him today, his expression changed.

I didn’t know what was written on that screen, but I didn’t need to.

Watching a man whose face hadn’t so much as twitched through this entire conversation change expression now…

I had the sudden urge to smile.

‘Right, it should be about time.’

The Guild Master looked at me, his eyes blinking slowly as if trying to determine if I had anything to do with the situation.

All I offered him back was a blank look.

And eventually, his lips parted.

“Kyle…”

His words echoed quietly in the room.

“…He’s been found.”