Chapter 246: The Tacit Understanding Reached

The moment Asagiri said that, the atmosphere in the room, which had only just begun to settle, immediately erupted into whispers and discussion once more.

Even so, no one dared voice open opposition. Fearing his strength, they could only mutter under their breath.

"What is this? Making our teammates leave and gather on another floor? Then how are we supposed to investigate and clear the Dungeon?"

"Yeah. Some of the Players who fell into confusion must already be parasitized, right? How could the normal Players among them possibly dare stay with them?"

"Is this not just a blanket solution? Sacrificing everyone all at once..."

Unlike the teams that had members who had fallen into confusion, the normal Player teams, after thinking it over briefly, actually showed support for Asagiri’s proposal.

"It seems fine. No matter how you look at it, Players who fell into confusion are unstable factors."

"Anyway, I do not want to spend the danger period tense and on edge, wondering whether a parasitized Player might suddenly attack."

"If you have to blame someone, then blame them for being suspicious in the first place."

...

Asagiri listened to the discussions around the room, then raised a hand to signal for silence.

Once the room quieted down, he spoke slowly.

"All members of our team are high level Players, so when we entered this Dungeon, we received special hints from the system."

As soon as he said that, Iwanaga Kotoko quietly observed the reactions of everyone present.

Quite a few Players looked surprised when they heard the term "special hints," while the man in the white suit and his teammates showed no reaction at all. That meant they either already knew high level Players had such privileges, or there was someone like that among them as well.

"One of the special hints we received was this."

[Please do not have close contact with "them" for too long.]

"The ’them’ referred to here should mean parasitized Players."

Asagiri swept his gaze over the room, his tone calm.

"During the danger period, staying in the same room already satisfies both ’close contact’ and ’for too long.’ Therefore, any Player who has fallen into confusion and is suspected of being parasitized cannot remain in the same room as a normal Player during the danger period."

"Not even their own teammates."

A Player hesitated for a moment, then asked, "But sitting here together right now also fits that condition, does it not?"

"It does."

Asagiri nodded first, then smiled faintly.

"Then let me ask you this. So far, why has not a single incident happened here?"

"Why?"

"Because the hint about avoiding being alone was never directly tied to the act of parasitism itself."

Asagiri’s voice remained even, but every word landed heavily.

"Some people have already fallen into confusion even while their teammates were beside them. That proves one thing. Acting alone is not a prerequisite for parasitism."

"Then why did the public hint specifically tell Players not to act alone?"

"The answer is simple."

"It was never a hint to prevent parasitism itself. It was a hint that allows us to counter parasitism to some extent."

The Players present all fell silent, listening carefully.

Asagiri continued.

"Think about it from the perspective of the entity behind the parasitism. What is its ideal situation?"

"It wants the Player it parasitizes to remain unsuspected. It wants that Player to stay hidden among us without drawing attention. Then, as time passes, our physical stamina declines, our mental state worsens, and only then does it strike at the most critical moment."

"That is the outcome it wants."

"And because we are all gathered here right now, even if a Player suddenly falls into confusion, everyone nearby will immediately notice. In a situation where exposure is guaranteed, it has no reason to waste one of its limited parasitism attempts."

The moment he finished, the man in the white suit cooperated perfectly and raised a question in a puzzled tone.

"So, if I understand correctly, concentrating the suspected Players onto one floor is the method we are using to counter that?"

"No. Not just that."

Asagiri replied at once, then said something that sent a chill through the room.

"The countermeasure... is me."

The man in the white suit’s expression changed. He sounded genuinely astonished.

"You mean... you can move freely even during the danger period?"

"That is correct."

"Really?! Then that changes everything. In that case, we can actively deal with parasitized Players!"

Hearing the exchange between the man in the white suit and Asagiri, Yuuki Asuna, Iwanaga Kotoko, and Kato Megumi all had the same thought.

These two were clearly performing a comedy act together.

It was obvious that Asagiri and the man in the white suit had already reached a tacit understanding.

And because they were not teammates, the effect of their act was even better.

When this Dungeon ended, Asagiri, who had controlled the discussion from start to finish and effectively directed the movement of all Players present, would without question receive an enormous contribution bonus in the final evaluation.

After letting the Players digest the information for a few seconds, Asagiri continued in a level tone.

"A total of thirteen Players who have previously fallen into confusion will all be moved to the seventh floor."

"I will personally supervise them."

"If any one of them makes a suspicious move, then my teammates and I will eliminate them immediately."

The Players present were stunned for a moment, then many of them could not help but feel a trace of awe.

Good lord.

This black clothed Player was really something else.

Thirteen Players, all suspected of being parasitized, all gathered onto the same floor as his own team?

How much confidence in his own strength did it take to make a decision like that? 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The few Players who had still been unconvinced by Asagiri seizing control of the discussion and repeatedly deciding everyone’s course of action now felt completely reassured.

He was strong.

He was smart.

And rather than pushing the greatest danger onto others, he had taken the most dangerous position for himself.

Yes, everyone understood very well that this would also increase his own evaluation at the end of the Dungeon.

But which Player entered a Dungeon without caring about that?

If he could truly lead them to clear the Dungeon, then there was nothing more to say. They only needed to obey.

...

After the meeting ended, the group gathered in the executive conference room on the fourth floor.

Yuuki Asuna rummaged through boxes and cabinets in search of useful information, then tucked her flaxen hair back behind her ear and looked curiously at Asagiri, who was also searching through the room.

"By the way, that man in the white suit said he had a method to identify parasitized Players. Why did we not ask him exactly what kind of method it was? If we understood the principle, maybe we could also..."

"He does not have such an ability."

Asagiri waved a hand casually, smiling as he spoke.

"He was lying."

"Huh?"

Yuuki Asuna froze for a moment, then frowned.

"You mean... he was lying on purpose? But why would he tell a lie like that?"

Sitting on the table in the conference room and idly swinging her legs, Iwanaga Kotoko answered flatly first.

"Probably to stop Players who had fallen into confusion, or their teammates, from trying to conceal it."

Kato Megumi tilted her head slightly.

"Would someone really do that? Even if they have fallen into confusion and become a suspected parasite, it is not like they are immediately going to be killed. If they are not parasitized, then that is naturally good. But if they truly are parasitized and still choose to hide it, then the ones in the most danger would be their own teammates, right?"

"That is just how people are."

Iwanaga Kotoko cupped her cheeks in both hands and replied softly.

"Most people, even Players who have survived several Dungeons and made it to the third stage, cannot remain absolutely rational."

"Imagine your teammate, someone you have already gone through several Dungeons with, suddenly begging you after briefly falling into confusion. They tell you not to report it, because they do not want to be isolated on the seventh floor with the suspected parasitized Players."

"If it were you, could you coldly refuse?"

"But if he lied, he also said that his ability could only be used once every five hours."

Kato Megumi still looked confused.

"If he already claimed that, then if the others ask him to use it..."

"He just has to avoid using it in front of everyone."

Asagiri smiled and explained.

"He can wait until after the next danger period, privately approach each of the stronger teams, claim that he still has one use left, and then ask whether anyone in their team fell into confusion."

Kato Megumi nodded faintly, half understanding, then asked again in a soft voice,

"But then what? If he does not really have that ability, then he cannot provide any result at all, can he?"

"He does not need to."

Asagiri shook his head and chuckled lightly.

"As long as the parasitized Players believe he really has such an ability, their reactions will already give him enough information."

"If a Player only fell into confusion but was not parasitized, then that person would absolutely want to be checked. After all, that would reassure their teammates and clear away suspicion."

"But if they are truly parasitized, then of course they would not want to be checked."

"Of course, if we assume parasitized Players are merely split bodies of a larger main entity, and that they are willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the main body’s goals, then they may instead wait until after the ’verification’ is supposedly used up and only then launch an attack, ensuring that the white suit man’s fake ability, which ’can only be used once every five hours,’ has been exhausted."

"But from the other side, he can also deliberately announce that a certain Player has already been identified as parasitized, then observe that Player’s reaction and draw conclusions from there."

"Hmm..."

Yuuki Asuna thought for a moment, then said softly,

"But that only works if the parasites are successfully fooled by his lie, right? Otherwise it is meaningless."

"Whether he fooled them or not..."

Asagiri smiled faintly and leaned back slightly.

"We will know during the next danger period."

After all, to a parasite, a prophet whose identity could supposedly be verified was exactly the kind of person they would want to eliminate first.

.....

[If you don’t want to wait for the next update, read 50 Chapters ahead on P@treon.]

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