CH 209

#77. The Black Merchants’ Identity

It was strange for Mimir to acknowledge his identity so readily when he had been trying to hide it all along, but Kim Jin-Woo remained calm.

“Speak.” He didn’t say much. He quietly released the power in his grasp and asked Mimir to explain himself.

“I’ll explain everything.” The imp, having barely been released from Kim Jin-Woo’s grasp, coughed dryly for a long time before finally picking himself up and speaking. “After the final battle, everything was a mess. The responsibility and pride that supported the Underworld disappeared, and all that remained were beasts blinded by their spoils of war. What could a mere Keeper like me do?”

Mimir referred to that time as a barbaric period when dignity and pride were hard to find without lowering one’s standards.

The Usurper had established the Noble hierarchy and distributed the Power Fragments to those who had helped him drive out the nine Lords, and the Lords’ stashes had all been raided in the process.

The Eternal Treasury was one of them; thus, Mimir couldn’t help but lament that he had failed his mission, saying, “The best I could do was grab some of the most precious treasures and run away before the Usurper’s forces could close in on me.”

Mimir further stated that he had been waiting for the right moment while avoiding the Usurper’s gaze. He showed a deeply moved expression, saying that he had been eagerly waiting for the return of the Lord’s successor so that he could return to the most glorious days of the Underworld.

However, Kim Jin-Woo snorted. Too many of Mimir’s past activities didn't match with his words, making them hard to believe. If he hadn’t discovered the Mystical Spear’s memories by chance, Mimir probably would have continued to put on the facade of a Black Merchant until the very end.

“I was simply waiting for the right moment.” Perhaps noticing Kim Jin-Woo’s feelings, Mimir appealed against his unjust assumption.

“The treasures bestowed upon the Deep Floor Nobles by the Usurper were originally mine, no, Milord’s. They aren’t objects that those unworthy Nobles who know nothing of their true value should own.” Mimir seemed completely sincere as he criticized the Nobles’ ignorance and the Usurper’s ruthlessness.

However, from Kim Jin-Woo’s point of view, Mimir’s problem seemed to arise from the fact that he was obsessed with the treasures themselves, rather than due to his loyalty to his past master.

“So, I made up my mind!” Mimir hyped himself up, suddenly speaking loudly with an excited but somehow wretched expression. “No matter how long it took, I’d recover all the lost treasures!”

He seemed almost drunk on his own excitement, before he saw Kim Jin-Woo’s expressionless face and quickly calmed himself down. He said, “That’s the reason why the Black Merchants were formed, and it’s also my lifelong dream.”

Mimir then fell silent, as if he had finished saying his piece. Kim Jin-Woo looked at him with a frown.

Knowing the reason for the creation of the Black Merchants was certainly a welcome piece of information, but it wasn’t necessarily an important one. Thus, Kim Jin-Woo continued to press Mimir with a cold expression. “I’ve not yet heard a reason for your apostasy.”

Mimir’s attempts to hide his true identity thus far was nothing but suspicious in Kim Jin-Woo’s eyes.

“What do you mean apostasy!?” Mimir cried as he leapt to his stumpy feet. “I was just waiting for the right moment. To call it an apostasy... Certainly, Milord can’t be unaware of how much I helped Milord grow through thick and thin, but this is definitely saddening to hear.”

This time, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t deny Mimir’s words. Thanks to Mimir, who had come in the guise of a Black Merchant and always appeared at the perfect time with the right solutions, he was able to stand where he was now. Even he knew that much.

“Even if you had a reason for doing so, if you had informed me of these circumstances in advance, there would have been no unnecessary suspicion between us. Your attitude seemed to be one of weighing my side and the Usurper’s,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

That was the reason he was putting so much pressure on Mimir. It was because, from his point of view, the Black Merchants as an organization and the Black Merchant himself as an individual were no different from bats: Beings that would turn their backs and save themselves deep inside the darkness. That was the kind of existence they were in his eyes.

“I’ve never thought of such a thing,” Mimir insisted.

“Can you swear by the Mysteries of the Underworld?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“That…”

Seeing the bewildered expression on Mimir’s face, Kim Jin-Woo knew that his guess was correct.

Mimir was completely different from his summons, such as Morrigan and Heimdall. It was just a wild guess, but Mimir had probably never been sincerely loyal to the One-Eyed Lord in the first place. Rather, he was a being driven by obsession over his precious treasures, as opposed to loyalty to his Lord. That was the nature of the imp named Mimir.

“I was just afraid that the Lord would draw the attention of the Usurper because of me.” Mimir suddenly went on to explain how tenacious and cruel the Usurper was, perhaps in order to change the subject. “Although I’ve been holding my breath for many years under the guise of a Black Merchant, the Usurper has thoroughly erased all traces of the past. Thus, I had no choice but to be extra careful so as not to catch the Usurper’s attention.”

Even with the Eyes of Truth, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t look into the imp’s mind. However, he hadn’t expected to believe Mimir’s expressions of sincerity just because Mimir had said more than expected, anyway. Thus, he decided to ask about something else. “I want to know more about the Usurper.”

“I don’t know much about it myself. The Usurper has never revealed himself,” Mimir replied.

Kim Jin-Woo thought it was rather absurd that Mimir was so fearful of the Usurper despite never having seen him.

However, Mimir declined to comment further on whether he was genuinely afraid of the Usurper. Instead, he said, “If you would like to know more about the Usurper, I’m afraid you’d have to talk to the Deep Floor Dukes, at the very least.”

“You have no useful information at all,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

Despite those words, however, his eyes flashed like those of a beast that had found its prey. After all, there was no way that a good informant like Mimir would be lacking such critical information. Thus, he grabbed the small imp by his collar and started to head toward the Grand Labyrinth.

“Oh, and one more thing.” Mimir, who had tucked his neck in like a terrapin, whispered softly to Kim Jin-Woo, “I’d like to request a favor from you.”

Despite being in such a situation, Mimir was still as brazen as ever. Kim Jin-Woo had to give it to him. He said, “Speak.”

“Before that…” The imp floundered out of Kim Jin-Woo’s reach and called forth a Big-Headed Dwarf from his procession.

“A Big-Headed Dwarf?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“Yes. He’s one of the dwarves that were involved in the restoration of that particular Grand Labyrinth.” Mimir pushed the Big-Headed Dwarf toward Kim Jin-Woo like some sort of present, before belatedly returning to the previous subject. “But that aside, regarding my escort mercenaries…”

Kim Jin-Woo had been so absorbed by their conversation that he had totally forgotten about the escort mercenaries around him. He looked back belatedly at the mercenaries and nodded. “I’ll arrange a separate place for them to rest. This isn’t an appropriate spot for them.”

The place around them was quiet for the time being, but he never knew when the Moai would invade the boundaries of the Grand Labyrinth again.

However, Mimir shook his head. “No, that’s not it.”

“Then what is it?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

Mimir rolled his eyes for a moment, before whispering softly, “Please kill my escort mercenaries.”

“What?” Kim Jin-Woo exclaimed.

“Among them are tricksters of the Usurper,” Mimir explained.

Kim Jin-Woo acted faster than Mimir had expected, however. Even before he could finish speaking, Kim Jin-Woo threw him into the Grand Labyrinth and immediately turned to attack the mercenaries.

The mercenaries who had just been standing around looking at him belatedly prepared to fight, but they were quickly slaughtered by the forces of the Grand Labyrinth that were circling its perimeter.

“Actually, I didn’t know who among them was a spy. That’s why I brought all those I had been suspicious of at once,” Mimir said.

Kim Jin-Woo frowned at Mimir while brushing off the dirt on his body, remarking, “Looks like you planned this to happen from the beginning.”

“Hehe, it was necessary for Milord too, so please don’t be too harsh on me,” Mimir replied.

Mimir’s brazen attitude was so shameless that Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t help but laugh with a smirk. “What a cheeky bastard.”

***

Mimir returned to the Black Merchants’ headquarters.

“For the time being, it would be best that we maintain our relationship according to what has already been established. Milord is still lacking in power, and thus we have to be conscious of the Usurper’s gaze. It would be best for us to not do anything that may unnecessarily draw his attention.”

Kim Jin-Woo had already received plenty of information from Mimir, so he didn’t hold him back. However, the title of Eternal Treasure Keeper was constantly on his mind.

“When the time comes, even if I don’t bring it to you, the Eternal Treasury will return to the Lord. That was how it was originally designed to be in the first place,” Mimir reassured him.

It wouldn’t be easy for them to meet again any time soon. Now that they had taken care of the spies once and for all, it was the best time for Mimir to go on the move, and he promised that he would create an opportunity for Kim Jin-Woo soon.

“How far can you trust him?” Dominique asked while Kim Jin-Woo was lost in thought. She had already heard everything, and yet she still couldn’t believe the fact that the head of the Black Merchants was Mimir, nor that he was the One-Eyed Lord’s Treasury Keeper.

“I don’t trust anyone outside my own labyrinth,” Kim Jin-Woo responded to her question indifferently. After all, he didn’t believe all of Mimir’s words either; but because what had unfolded thus far lined up perfectly with Mimir’s story, it was hard to doubt his account.

Above everything else, Kim Jin-Woo had now been able to solve the question behind why the Black Merchants, who were known to be terribly obedient toward the Laws of the Underworld, had completely culled the 10th Floor Nobles. If Mimir’s explanation was true, the 10th Floor Nobles had all had at least one or two treasures from the Eternal Treasury.

“Soon, the Counts will be no different from the 10th Floor Barons, so we’ll see how far we can trust his words,” Kim Jin-Woo remarked.

Mimir had made a vague prophecy, stating that the 11th Floor Nobles too would shake the foundations of the Underworld in order to obtain the restored Grand Labyrinth, despite having different reasons from the 10th Floor Nobles.

“I guess time will tell,” he continued. It remained to be seen whether time would be on their side or the enemy’s.

“But what shall we do with the dwarf?” Dominique asked.

Kim Jin-Woo remembered the Big-Headed Dwarf he had received from Mimir at Dominique’s prompt, although he had totally forgotten about it before that because he was too upset by the deep secret behind the Black Merchants.

“Heek!” The Big-Headed Dwarf must have fallen asleep as Kim Jin-Woo’s conversation with Mimir and Dominique dragged on, and only jolted awake when he felt Kim Jin-Woo’s gaze staring at him.

“I-I’m sorry.” The dwarf’s slurred accent, combined with his obnoxiously big head, was laughable, but behind that bizarre appearance was one of the architects of the restored Grand Labyrinth.

“Let’s start off by registering your residence within the Grand Labyrinth,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

Although the labyrinth core of the Big-Headed Dwarves was being held by the Black Merchants, this was the Grand Labyrinth. Kim Jin-Woo was free to increase or decrease the number of races belonging to the Grand Labyrinth as and when he wished.