Ridiculous Lie

Kai did not have any idea about the strength of a 5th-floor Contestant.

The only thing he did know was that he could complete his Kill Count by killing either ten 4th-floor Contestants or one 5th-floor Contestant. That didn't give him an accurate estimate, as the strength of a Contestant did not depend only on his Stats. Yet, in lack of other data, he could make a far-fetched guess that a Contestant from the 5th-floor was indeed stronger than ten of the 4th-floor.

Then came his Perception.

It had failed miserably to notify him about this danger. His team members had told him during his Initiation mission that the higher the danger, the more susceptible his Perception would become. So, following that logic, the moment he had entered the house, his Perception should have been screaming bloody murder.

But Sonia had added more to it. 'It's also a double-edged sword,' she had told him. 'The higher the gap between you and the other Contestant, the higher will be the chances for Perception to fail. If your attacker has an overwhelming advantage over you in Perception, he, or she, can easily trick you too.'

If it was only this, then Kai wouldn't have named Robin a monster.

The thing was, Selene was within him. Her Perception was even higher than him. It was her highest Stat. Yet, even she had failed to notice a Contestant's presence. Then didn't that mean…

Kai licked his lips, sweat drenching his back, chest, and ass alike.

He looked at Robin, who had stopped after just taking a step out of the kitchen. This Robin had taken the appearance of a muscular, red-haired adult man in his early twenties. He was wearing a loose white t-shirt over airy blue shorts.

Kai could have never found out that this man was a Contestant if it wasn't for Robin to stop pretending and tricking Kai's Perception.

But the stunned silence of this monster seemed out of place. Kai, and though it looked ridiculous, imagined Robin's green eyes were trembling the same as his as he looked at them. "What happened?" Kurt demanded. "Bring the tea or have you prepared it for the air?"

Robin slowly, taking one small step after another, approached them and placed the tray on the table. There were only two teacups on it, and Kurt didn't look happy about it.

"Didn't you look for how many guests there are?" Kurt said gruffly. "Well, it doesn't matter. Serve them first. I will have mine later." Robin did as he was told. He placed both teacups in front of them, but his eyes never left Petyr's face.

Kai's heart thumped. 'Has he noticed something?' he thought, being unaware of the tricks available to the higher-floor Contestants. 'Why is he giving such a look to Petyr?'

"You two drink," Kurt said, standing up. "Let me bring the map. Maybe it will be of some help to you." The old man left the room, walking with brisk steps.

There was an odd silence in the room, with Robin standing beside the table, looking down at Petyr. Kai was ready to burst with his most potent power, though he didn't know if it was of any use. He too looked at Petyr, who drank the tea, not knowing what monster was standing near them. Inside him, Selene shuddered like a leaf, sending tremors after tremors, as goosebumps rose over his skin.

Then it happened.

Robin suddenly fell to his knees, his head pressing down on the floor. Kai gaped, his mouth feeling dry and sandy. 'What's happening?' he wondered.

"Contestant Red Sun greets His Noble Presence," Robin whispered, still not daring to lift his head.

'His Noble Presence?' Kai thought, confused to his core. Then he saw Robin's back. It was drenched with sweat, much like his. It was also then that he noticed a slight tremor in Robin's body. And when Kai put two and two together, his jaw fell open.

'Oh, my fucking god!' Kai exclaimed. 'How could I forget that? Petyr doesn't have Stats. So, like I couldn't sense Robin's presence, Robin must not have sensed Petyr's too. That's why he brought two cups of tea. Only when he saw Petyr did he realize that there is one more Contestant. A Contestant whose Perception is so high, that even his Perception got tricked.'

The situation was so laughable, and yet equally terrifying, that Kai did not know what to do. One wrong step, one wrong word, and Robin would annihilate them to hide his shame. Kai stared at Petyr, who was calm despite the strange turn of events. 'I hope Petyr has realized what kind of mess we are into,' he thought. 'Don't fuck it up, Petyr.'

Petyr turned out to be calmer than Kai had thought him to be. He sipped his tea, looking down at Robin. For a few seconds, Petyr said nothing, and Kai noticed Robin's ears becoming red, and his knuckles going white.

"Which floor?" Petyr asked, putting the cup on the table.

Robin sighed, standing back up. "9th floor, Sun and Moon organization, my lord," he said, then trembled, hastily adding more to his words. "It's a small organization. You must have not heard of it."

"Guess my floor," Petyr said, smiling.

Kai and Robin both shivered, seeing that smile. It had an authority behind it, a sense of unmatched power lingering around at the corner of his mouth.

"I… I dare not do such blasphemy, my lord," Robin said, his breathing going awry. "I dare not."

"Do it," Petyr said, chuckling. "I command it. Take your best shot."

Robin bowed. "For you to fool my Perception," he said meekly, "you must be from the 12th floor."

Petyr laughed. Robin staggered back, his face becoming pale as he saw Petyr shaking his head. "Good guess," Petyr said. "But not correct."

And that only meant one thing. Petyr was from a floor higher than the 12th. The sheer ridiculousness of the lie made Kai tremble. How far could they stretch this lie? The question struck his mind like a hammer.

Robin took an audible gulp. "I wonder what brought you to this place, my lord," he said, trying to smile. "Is he your disciple?"

Robin looked at Kai for the first time as if he wasn't even worth a matter of discussion.

Petyr nodded. "This little one has quite a Worth," he said, slyly.

Robin raised his eyebrows, and realization dawned on him. "Oh! So, my lord is preparing him for the Tournament of Worth," he said, nodding to himself. "Well, now I know who will be the winner. But… I don't know if throwing him against three 4th-floor Contestants is a good idea."

'Three?!' Kai's eyes widened. 'Where's this third one come from?'