Chương 23: Chapter 22 - Question Game

In the last room on the right of The Bumbling Magician's third story, Ren, Elowen, Varrin, and Lorelle stood listening to Mr. Jester's question. Midday sunlight streamed in through the room's only window, the sole source of light catching on the scattered shards of the shattered statuette, making the little fragments glitter like fallen stars across the worn floorboards. Something about that name spoken seemed strange to Ren, like it carried a sort of power or weight with it, but he couldn't put his finger on it.'

Medici...' he thought, looking back at his friends, but they all seemed stumped too. Ren shook his head and answered honestly, "No. I've never heard that name before." Mr. Jester's eyes drifted from Ren to the others, studying each of them in turn. Varrin met his gaze evenly and gave s confident shake of his head, Elowen only frowned in confusion, and Lorelle offered a small, apologetic shrug. None of them knew anyone by the name 'Medici' either.

Presumably happy with their answer, the jester nodded and clapped his hands together.

"Ok!"

"…Who's that?" Ren asked carefully.

"Is that your question?" Mr. Jester said with a grin.

"No—" Ren quickly cut himself off, then turned to his friends.

"What should I ask?"

"Hmm," Elowen said, closing her eyes as she contemplated. Beside her, Varrin fell into thought as well. He rested his chin against his knuckles, elbow braced against his crossed arm with an effortless grace, his striking grey eyes unfocused as he stared at the far wall. Lorelle stayed quiet, hands clasped together at her waist as she faced the colourful Mr. Jester. Turning inward, Ren focused on analysing the situation fully, as they had little room for mistakes if they didn't want to waste time. Mr.

Jester had already proven that vague questions would only ever be met with equally vague truths. Whatever, or whoever, this Medici was, the jester seemed to find them of some interest, so it would be nice to know whether the question pertained to them specifically or was simply a blanket question. Then there was the far bigger matter at hand, too. Someone knew they were transmigrators. It could've been a lucky guess, but Mr. Jester said someone had told him, and somehow that someone knew for certain.

That meant there really was someone with knowledge of worlds overlapping and intersecting, or bleeding into one another or however it worked, Ren didn't know at all, but if such a person existed, then the possibility of return wasn't just a fantasy. His fingers curled slowly into a fist. If the person who told Mr. Jester of their transmigration had the means to send them back, then everything else was just a distraction. Dangerous, time-wasting nonsense that pulled him further from Yumè.

Ren's eyes hardened and he looked back, glancing between Elowen and Varrin.

"If this jester's informant can't send us back," he said quietly, "there's no point continuing this I don't think."

"Agreed," Elowen replied, nodding immediately.

"We should confirm their capability before putting all our eggs into one basket."' Don't eggs usually go in one basket?' Ren thought before dismissing it as unimportant and turning to the silver-haired boy.

"What about you Varrin?" He simply nodded so Ren turned back to Mr. Jester and began to form a carefully structured question, doing his best to ensure there were no loopholes the colourful man could exploit.

"Does the person who told you about our transmigration," he asked once he was ready, "have the means to leave this world and return to ours?"

"Oho," Mr. Jester's grin widened as he clapped his hands together again.

"Now that is a great question." You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. The brightly dressed man rocked back on his heels, the bells on his hat chiming softly as he tilted his head.

"Yes. The one who informed me of your… peculiar circumstances does indeed possess the means to do that." Ren's breath caught, as hope filled his body.

"But," Mr. Jester continued, his smile never faltering one bit, "judging by how little you seem to understand about the bigger picture, I rather doubt that means would be up to your standards." He laughed, clearly enjoying himself, but Ren still wanted to hold onto the hope Mr. Jester had just given him.

"Explain," Ren said, trying not to sound like he was begging.

"Ah-ah," Mr. Jester said, holding up a finger.

"It's not your turn for questions any more, its mine!" He suddenly spun and threw his arms wide.

"But, truth be told, I have another proposition for you!" Varrin immediately narrowed his eyes, something that didn't escape the jester's notice.

"Oh don't be so cautious pretty boy!" he said with a laugh before fake pouting.

"Don't you trust little old me?"

"Not in the slightest," Varrin answered in a flat tone, completely unimpressed.

"Bah!" Mr. Jester said, waving a dismissive hand in the party's direct.

"You'll all warm up to me soon enough!"

"Anyway, I have a lead on Medici, and I also have all the answers to your lovely little questions." Ren's jaw tightened as the name's power seemed to leak into his head.

"I don't really care about that guy," he said, slightly irritated.

"And weren't we playing your question game to get the answers?"

"IIII've grown bored of that now!" the jester said with a smile. Ren frowned slightly.

"What's the cost?"

"I'm so glad you asked!" Mr. Jester responded, his smile beaming as he began to pace the room, his boots tapping lightly against the wooden floor.

"You see, Medici is very elusive, very rude about it too, and I was totally going to follow up on the promising lead myself, but then—" He stopped and gasped dramatically.

"Inspiration struck!" The brightly dressed jester clasped his hands to his chest.

"An epic! A grand tale, tragic and beautiful! A work chronicling my eternal love for Miss Lady!" Ren and the others stared at him in disbelief.

"If I don't write it now, this very moment," Mr. Jester continued solemnly, brining a sad hand to his chest, "I fear the brilliance may fade."

"…So?" Ren asked, staring at him.

"So!" Mr. Jester snapped his fingers and spun on his heel before levelling a finger straight at him.

"You guys will handle all the legwork for me, the menial tasks and such, then I'll answer your questions in return once you finish them!" The jester flashed a bright smile and shot them a thumbs up with both hands.

"What kind of menial tasks?" Ren pressed as his worry started growing.

"Oh, you know," Mr. Jester said airily, "stalking suspicious individuals. Investigating places of interest. Maybe a bit of infiltration."

"Possibly assassinating key cult figures." Ren's eye twitched.' In what world is all that the usual?'

"And of course," Mr. Jester continued happily, utterly unfazed, "I'll provide everything you need, from equipment to information. You're broke, yes? This is the perfect opportunity for you guys!" He gestured proudly around the bare room.

"You can stay here and I'll cover meals, and so long as you sleep under my roof, your safety is guaranteed! Plenty of free real estate to go around, too, as you can see."

"You'll be safe because I'm here after all!" the jester finished triumphantly, puffing out his chest.

"No," Varrin answered without hesitation.

"Not a chance we'll be staying here."

"What?" Mr. Jester gasped as he recoiled slightly at his comment.

"That rejection hurts my heart!"

"We don't need you," the silver-haired boy continued calmly, "you've already confirmed a method exists, we can find it ourselves."

"Relying on you could create unnecessary risks with this person you're hunting," Elowen added, nodding earnestly in agreement.

"And that wouldn't be wise..." As much as Ren hated to admit it, as much as he hated leaving behind a thread that might lead him back to Yumè, Varrin and Elowen were right. Placing trust in this mysterious, brightly dressed jester could drag them all into far more trouble than they were equipped to handle. And besides...

"I'm also not sure in which world assassinations would count as menial tasks," Ren said, "but it's usually frowned upon to kill random people." Lorelle seemed to agree with that greatly, nodding her head so fervently her hair swayed over her shoulders. Mr. Jester looked between the four of them, his exaggerated-looking smile faltering for the first time since they'd entered.

"Is this your final answer..?" he asked, voice oddly small.

"Yes," Varrin answered with finality. Mr. Jester buried his face in his hands.

"Aww, now I've done it! I've gone and made a mess of things again…" He let the silence hang for a second, then the jester peeked up at them through his fingers.

"Alright," he said, his tone already brightening with a natural cheer, "you can go now, if that's what you want~" Ren lingered a moment longer, his brow furrowing as he already began to second-guess their decision to leave.

"That's it?" he asked.

"You're just going to let us go?"

"Well, I can't very well keep you here, can I?" Mr. Jester moaned sadly, slumping dramatically as if the weight of the world had landed on his shoulders. His head then tilted, and a spark of hope crept into his voice.

"Unless that's what you secretly want…?"

"No," Varrin said simply, turning toward the door and pulling it open. Without another word, Elowen and Lorelle moved to follow, filing out of the room after the silver-haired boy. But before Ren fully left the room after them, he glanced back at the destitute jester and saw him wave goodbye, a grin back in place like nothing ever happened. Ren returned the gesture, then stepped out and closed the door behind him fully.