I Possessed a Game Where I Die If I Don’t Clear the Tower - Chapter 53

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 53. A Choice for the Adventurer Guild
Malorik Bancroft, Master of the Adventurer Guild, had been finding life difficult lately.
Though Lord Camilia was somewhat unhinged and the city itself was backward, the position of Adventurer Guild Master in Nidst was what one might call a cushy post.
He could simply sit in his guild office and adventurers would seek him out on their own, while the fees from mana stone and byproduct trades flowed in like clockwork every month.
So he had thought that if possible, he would like to live out his days as the branch master of Nidst.
That was true until exactly one month ago.
Everything changed after that day when monsters from the 1st Floor of The Tower came pouring out.
The reincarnated Lord Camilia had been committing increasingly outlandish acts—to the point where he almost preferred her when she was a mage obsessed with research.
Ransacking the Adventurer Guild and dragging out the High Priest who had been hiding was honestly just the beginning of her eccentricity.
There was the Tower’s caretaker casually coming and going from The Tower whenever bored, the tax reforms where she rounded up the Mayor and officials and threw them into the Mines, the battles with the mad demon worshippers of the Pantheon that destroyed the 2nd Floor Seal—the list went on.
What he disliked most was that she summoned him, the Adventurer Guild Master, whenever she felt bored.
Today was no exception. A messenger bird sent by the Castle’s Steward had just arrived, chirping insistently that he must come to the Castle at once.
‘Why is she calling for me again…’
Yet he couldn’t refuse to go.
Malorik dragged his feet toward the Castle like a pig being led to slaughter.
As he passed through the castle gates, the Steward emerged to greet him as always.
“Welcome. Your complexion looks much brighter—it seems you’ve been doing well.”
It was unclear whether he was teasing or probing.
Though irritated, Malorik knew better than to cross swords with the true power behind the throne, especially one rumored to have regained Lord Camilia’s favor.
Malorik glanced at the bright curtains and the increased fresh flower arrangements before offering a perfunctory greeting.
“I’m doing as well as ever. The Castle looks far more vibrant than when I last visited—it’s quite pleasant to see.”
It wasn’t sarcasm about how he was enjoying his newfound power after pushing out the Head Maid, but merely polite conversation.
Zehar Al Rashid, aware of this, smiled shyly in return.
“What’s the point of decorating? The one who should be seeing it is too busy to even glance at curtains.”
This too was not a boast about how Lord Camilia favored him so much that she had entrusted him with all authority over the Inner Castle, but rather a lament that there was no one to appreciate his work.
Thus, the two of them exchanged these verbal jabs with good humor and shared laughter as they entered the Audience Chamber together.
Unlike the brightly decorated exterior, the Audience Chamber was oppressively dim.
The corridors of thick granite were grand yet dark, and the dais at its end was equally austere, devoid of any ornamental flourishes.
There was only a single stone chair, made from a material so ancient that even its style had been forgotten by history.
Though the chair’s occupant had not yet appeared, Malorik found himself growing tense, swallowing dryly several times.
Zehar Al Rashid offered the Guild Master a light smile
(certainly not a mocking one)
before ascending the dais.
As he took his position beside the chair, the door behind the dais opened and Lord Camilia entered.
As always, she wore not a single piece of jewelry.
Her dress was a simple robe with short sleeves and hem—the sort a young maiden might wear.
Yet it did not strike one as austere.
For her face was so radiant that the fabric itself faded from view.
To borrow the flowery language of a lazy bard, her beauty was so divine that such praise seemed insufficient.
Yet Malorik’s appreciation upon beholding that perfect visage leaned far more toward contempt than admiration.
‘What good is a pretty shell when the thing inside is an ancient monster?’
He hunched his shoulders as much as possible and forced a pitiful expression to conceal his true thoughts.
“What business did you summon me for, Lord Camilia? If it concerns the surveillance of the 3rd Floor Seal Chamber, my people are working very diligently on that.”
Lord Camilia stared at him in silence for a long moment, her expression unreadable, before the corners of her lips curved upward.
“Diligently? Since when did merely maintaining the status quo become the definition of diligence?”
“Forgive me, but if we were to do anything beyond our usual duties, wouldn’t that be a betrayal of your trust? We remain in this land only by your gracious permission.”
“Adventurer Guild Master… no, rather, Malorik Bancroft, what is it you wish to do with the Adventurer Guild?”
“Wish to do with it? Why, I simply wish to follow your orders and—”
“I’m not speaking of the Nidst branch of the Adventurer Guild. I’m asking what you wish to do with the Adventurer Guild itself.”
Opalescent eyes swept from Malorik’s head to his feet in one deliberate motion.
It was a cold, appraisal-like gaze, as though she were assessing merchandise.
A chill ran down his spine and he nearly stumbled backward reflexively, but he forced himself to stand firm, unwilling to show his fear.
As if reading his every thought, Lord Camilia smiled and spoke softly.
“Have you ever thought about changing the Guild? If you haven’t, you’re free to leave now.”
“….”
Malorik couldn’t make sense of the situation at all.
What was Lord Camilia thinking, bringing up something like this?
‘I have no idea what trap this old monster might be laying. I can’t answer carelessly…’
But by the time he regained his composure, his mouth had already opened.
“What would change if I answered yes?”
“What would change, you ask.”
A brilliant crimson smile curved across Lord Camilia’s pallid, bloodless skin.
“A great many things would change, Malorik. A great many things indeed.”
She whispered toward him as he swallowed hard.
“Let us have a proper conversation. A long one.”
‘So this old man does harbor some ambition after all.’
I smiled as I watched the Adventurer Guild Master’s curiosity bloom at her proposal.
Whether it was befitting of a Lord’s smile, I couldn’t say, but I chose to believe that the charm of immortality had done its work regardless.
I examined the clockwork plans turning methodically in my mind before opening my mouth.
“The current Adventurer Guild is far too pro-Fallum Empire. To be frank, I find it distasteful.”
“The Guild as a whole isn’t entirely the Empire’s puppet. It’s merely that certain branches and branch leaders have somewhat biased leanings.”
“I’m aware. If the Adventurer Guild were truly the Empire’s tool, I wouldn’t have allowed it to take root in my lands.”
I interlaced my fingers and rested them on my lap as I continued.
“But things have changed considerably lately, haven’t they? I understand the factions are at odds with one another.”
“How could you possibly know that, Lord Camilia?”
How? I’ve cleared the related Quests over twenty times.
‘The setting had them divided into three factions fighting each other, didn’t it?’
The pro-Fallum faction, seeking to expand territory in alliance with the Empire.
The neutral faction, believing the Adventurer Guild should remain an independent organization.
The anti-Fallum faction, hostile to the Empire and attempting to draw in other external forces.
Depending on which of these three factions I allied with, the game’s situation would shift dynamically—quite entertaining, really.
For reference, the neutral faction was the most hopeless among the three.
Though they had numbers, they lacked an adventurer or branch leader capable of serving as a unifying force.
Even when I chose the neutral faction and emerged victorious, the outcome was far from satisfactory.
The price of seizing control of the Adventurer Guild was steep: the Nidst Adventurer Guild branch withered completely, and with internal reorganization consuming all attention, the quality of adventurers plummeted.
A fitting dark fantasy ending—hopeless, dreamless, and scarred.
‘In the game, the neutral faction was destined to collapse no matter what. But this isn’t a game anymore, is it?’
If the neutral faction failed because they lacked an adventurer to rally around, then I simply needed to create one.
I possessed the ability to do so.
Through the system, I could raise my own level and that of my companions.
‘If this bald man had just reached level 8—no, level 10—the outcome would have been completely different.’
I gazed at the trembling man before me and spoke softly.
“Malorik Bancroft. I’m considering giving you a chance.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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