Meski Lex tak bisa menembus strategi tanpa akhir yang mungkin dipakai Dao Lord, dia bisa menembak beberapa tipuan level permukaan - paling tidak menurut standar Dao Lord. Baginya, sebagai tuan rumah, di tengah kehadiran begitu luar biasa dan rombongan seperti ini, ditantang terang-terangan oleh tamu acak justru bukan hal acak.
Mungkin mereka benar-benar kesal dengan perbuatan Wu Kong, tapi ini juga jelas merupakan pengujian. Yang bisa dikatakan Lex hanyalah: para Dao Lord ini jauh lebih pintar darinya, atau jauh terlalu bodoh. Mengapa mereka menantangnya padahal dia bisa dengan mudah mendatangkan mereka ke tempat begitu istimewa, sambil juga menampung tokoh-tokoh yang sama sekali tak terjangkau di pesta yang sama?
Mungkin mereka menembus kekuatan aslinya dan ingin mengungkapkannya, atau mereka terlalu bodoh untuk menyimpulkan bahwa siapa pun yang mampu melakukan hal seperti itu jelas harus memiliki kekuatan yang cukup. Pilihan lain: mereka cuma ingin pamer.
Ada Grizzly tampan yang bisa memikat tamu wanita, wanita biru memikat yang bahana bisa menggetarkan hati Lex, belum lagi tamu mengesankan tak terhitung. Kehadiran rombongan bergengsi seperti ini mungkin menggoda siapa pun untuk pamer sedikit demi menarik perhatian. Tapi kenapa mereka justru memilih mencari masalah dengan orang yang berusaha memastikan tidak ada perebutan? Jawabannya: karena mereka bodoh, itu sebabnya.
"Tuan-tamu terhormat, sepertinya ada kesalahpahaman," kata Pengelola Inn hangat, senyumnya tak pudar, cahaya di matanya tak redup. "Aku di sini sebagai tuan rumahmu. Tujuanku memastikan kalian semua mendapat pengalaman menyenangkan, itulah sebabku campur tangan menghentikan apa yang hanya kurasa lelucon tak berbahaya.
"Yang bukan tugasku: memeluk erat kalian dan memastikan hal terkecil pun tak menyinggung. Tuan terhormat, ini pesta dengan banyak tamu lain. Selama aku di sini untuk memastikan aturan etiket dasar ditaati, aku tak punya obat untuk mereka yang tersakiti padahal tak ada kerugian.
"Jika kau tak tahan dengan kehadiran atau tindakan orang lain, atau mungkin kau merasa pelayananku kurang, maka aku hanya bisa meminta maaf - serta memberitahukan bahwa kau bebas pergi kapan saja. Atau, jika kau ingin mengurus urusan tertentu sendiri, dan mencari kompensasi, silakan. Cuma ingat: sebagaimana aku campur tangan menghentikan kesalahan Wu Kong, aku terpaksa campur tangan lagi jika aturan dilanggar.
"Dan jika, lewat tindakan tak beruntung, aku tak bisa menyelamatkanmu dari konsekuensi tindakanmu sendiri, dan kau akhirnya merusak taman ini dalam bentuk, cara, atau apapun... maka seharusnya kau tahu bahwa syarat mengadakan pesta ini adalah Eclipse boleh membunuh siapa pun yang merusak taman miliknya. Kau boleh menguji kebenaran kata-kataku sendiri jika kau ragu."
Sepanjang itu, Pengelola Inn tak pernah menghapus senyumnya, dan bicara seolah benar-benar peduli pada kesejahteraan tamunya. Pesannya jelas: siapa pun yang ingin mencari masalah, lakukan dengan risiko sendiri. Juga, beberapa orang benar-benar perlu belajar menerima lelucon.
Kediaman menyusul kata-kata Pengelola Inn, semua menunggu apakah ada yang terus menantang.
Tantangan tak harus berupa pertarungan - bisa banyak hal. Pertanyaan hanya apakah ada yang benar-benar berani, dan jika ya, bagaimana reaksi Pengelola Inn.
Nulli terus memberinya tatapan provocative, seolah dia sangat tereksitasi oleh kata-katanya, dan tak pernah puas dengan ketegasan diplomatiknya. Crusty mengabaikan semuanya, menatap bunga-bunga yang dikumpulkan Eclipse. Eclipse menunggu seseorang memulai pertarungan, dan Ventura mempelajari tulang Voidmaw yang diambilnya dari Voidmaw.
Sepertinya tak satu pun dari mereka benar-benar menganggap serius probe atau ancaman itu, dan malah memperlakukannya seperti permainan, dan Dao Lord lain seperti anak-anak.
"Tunggu dulu," tiba-tiba Bridget berkata, mengabaikan konfrontasi. "Pengelola Inn bilang kau tak menagih Wu Kong untuk klon-klon lain nya, kan? Tapi aku baru mencari seluruh kedai ini... selain pekerja dan kita, tak ada orang tambahan. Berarti... salah satu dari kita sebenarnya klon Wu Kong yang bersembunyi?"
Meski pertanyaannya ditujukan ke Ballom, pertanyaan itu mendatangkan kekediban baru saat seluruh kelompok menatap ke arah Wu Kong, yang kini memasang ekspresi datar.
Dia berjuang dalam hati. Masalahnya bukan Pengelola Inn - meski Pengelola Inn mengorbankan Wu Kong, dia juga membelanya, jadi dia tak khawatir menyinggungnya. Yang mengkhawatirkannya adalah tatapan penasaran Ratu Primordial.
Sial, rencananya diam-diam agar dia tak terlihat saat menyusup ke taman. Sekarang terasa seperti dia diawasi ekstra. Dia memberik satu Dao Lord yang mengeluh tadi tatapan kebencian. Ini jauh dari selesai.
Setelah itu... dua tamu lain yang hadir, yang menemani Gubernur, dan memiliki hubungan serta pengaruh berabad-abad, tiba-tiba berubah jadi Wu Kong.
"Aku keberatan pernyataan itu - aku bayar kehadiran semua klonku," kata Wu Kong. Hal lain sepenuhnya bahwa dia sempat mencoba menyebarkan rambut tak terhitung di seluruh kedai tanpa mengubahnya jadi klon, tapi mereka terus dibersihkan.
Sial Pengelola Inn dan kebersihan sempurnanya!
Gubernur, yang hingga tadi fokus penuh pada dinamika antara Pengelola Inn dan Eclipse, tiba-tiba berekspresi berbeda. Apa? Bahkan dia tertipu oleh monyet itu? Berapa organisasi yang telah disusupi klonnya? Semuanya?
While Lex could not see through the endless strategies that Dao Lords may employ, he could see through some surface level ploys - at least by Dao Lord standards. For him, as the host, in such an incredible setting and company, to be so blatantly challenged by some random guests was actually not so random.
Maybe they were genuinely upset about Wu Kong’s actions, but this was also clearly a probe. All Lex could say was that either these Dao Lords were way smarter than him, or way too dumb. Why would they challenge him when he could so easily bring them to such an incredible place, while also hosting some entirely out of reach characters in the same party?
Either they saw through his real strength and wanted to reveal it, or they were too dumb to come to the conclusion that anyone who could do such a thing would clearly have to have sufficient power. Another option could also be that they just wanted to show off.
There was a handsome Grizzly who could attract the female guests, an enchanting blue lady who could make even Lex’s heart stir, not to mention countless other impressive guests. Being in the presence of such illustrious company may entice anyone to show off a little to attract some attention. But why would they choose to pick a fight with the one guy trying to make sure no fight erupts? The answer was because they were stupid, that’s why.
"Dear guests, it seems like there has been some kind of misunderstanding," the Innkeeper said warmly, his smile never fading, the light in his eyes never dimming. "I am here, as your host. My purpose here is to ensure you all have a pleasant experience, which is exactly why I stepped in to stop what I can only assume is a harmless prank.
"What I am not here to do is hold your hand and make sure that the mildest occurrence won’t offend you. Dear guest, this is a party with many other guests here as well. While I am here to make sure that the basic rules of etiquette are followed, I have no salve for those who suffer when no harm has been done.
"If you cannot abide by the presence or actions of others, or perhaps if you find my hospitality lacking, then I can only apologise to you - as well as inform you that you are free to leave whenever you wish. Or, maybe, if you wish to take certain matters into your own hands, and seek compensation, then feel free to do so. Just know that as I stepped in to stop Wu Kong from wrongdoing, I will be forced to step in if any rules are broken.
"And if, through some unfortunate actions, I am not able to save you from the consequences of your own actions, and you end up damaging the garden in any way, shape, or form... then I should have you know that the condition to arrange this party was that Eclipse can kill whoever harms her garden. You may test the veracity of my statements yourself if you find my words questionable."
Throughout, the Innkeeper never dropped his smile, and kept talking as if he was utterly concerned for his guests wellbeing. However, the message was clear: if anyone wants to pick a fight, they need to do so at their own risk. Also, some people really needed to learn how to take a joke.
Silence followed the Innkeepers words, as everyone waited to see if anyone would continue to challenge the Innkeeper.
A challenge need not be a fight - it could be many things. The only question was if anyone would truly have the guts to do it, and if so, how would the Innkeeper react.
Nulli kept giving the Innkeeper provocative looks, as if she was incredibly thrilled by his words, and could not get enough of his diplomatic firmness. Crusty was ignoring the lot of the, staring instead at the flowers Eclipse had collected. Eclipse was waiting for someone to start a fight, and Ventura was studying Voidmaw’s ribs which he had taken from Voidmaw.
It seemed that none of them actually took the probe or threat seriously at all, and instead were treating this like a game, and the other Dao Lords like children.
"Wait a minute," Bridget suddenly said, ignoring the confrontation. "The Innkeeper said you’re not charging Wu Kong for his other clones, right? But I just searched this entire tavern... besides the workers and us, there are no extra people. Does that mean... one of us is actually Wu Kong’s clone in disguise?"
Although she addressed the question to Ballom, the question itself ushered in a new bout of silence as the entire group stared towards Wu Kong, who now had a deadpan expression.
He was struggling internally. The issue was not the Innkeeper - although the Innkeeper had thrown Wu Kong under the bus, he had also defended him, so he was not worried about offending him. No, he was worried about the curious looks the Primordial Queen was giving him.
Dammit, his plan was to lay low so that she didn’t notice him when he slipped into the garden. Now it felt like he was under extra supervision. He gave that one Dao Lord who complained a hateful look. This was far from over.
After that... two other guests who were attending the party, who had accompanied the Governor, and had longstanding relationships and influence going back thousands of years, suddenly morphed into Wu Kong.
"I resent that statement - I paid for the attendance of all my clones," Wu Kong said. It was another matter entirely that he had tried to spread countless hairs across the tavern without transforming them into clones, but they kept getting cleaned up.
Damn that Innkeeper and his impeccable cleanliness!
The Governor, who was up until now focused entirely on the dynamic between the Innkeeper and Eclipse, suddenly had a change of expression. What the hell? Even he had been fooled by the monkey? How many organisations had he infiltrated with his clones? All of them?
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