Money Can Buy Everything

048 The Leaping Jester

As Heathcliff's words rang out, they immediately prompted gasps from the crowd. Everyone stared in astonishment at Momo and Asuna, trying to ascertain whether this news was true or false.

Asuna suddenly gripped Momo's hand tightly, as if she was about to stand up and explain. However, Momo gently held her waist, urging her to remain seated.

"Momo!"

Asuna looked at Momo in surprise, but he just smiled and shook his head, keeping his eyes on Heathcliff.

Seeing Momo's confident demeanor, Asuna breathed a sigh of relief. With Momo by her side, she felt reassured.

"Well then?"

Momo didn't erupt in anger, nor did he immediately refute the accusation. Instead, he seemed genuinely interested, as if he was hearing an intriguing story, and he eagerly asked Heathcliff for more information.

"Well then?"

Heathcliff was momentarily stunned, repeating, "Well then?"

Kirito, who had been standing up to defend Momo, decided to remain silent for now. He wanted to see how things would unfold.

A tall African American man named Agil, who stood two meters tall, observed the situation with surprise. He rubbed his chin, seemingly intrigued by Momo's reaction.

In the corner of the room, Argo, with her hood up, briefly revealed a mischievous smile before hiding it again. She was curious to see how Momo would handle this situation.

"What's the meaning of this? What's your attitude? I, Heathcliff, am questioning you! Are you or are you not a traitor? Are you working with Kayaba Akihiko?" Heathcliff yelled in frustration.

"Well, what does it mean?" Momo remained calm, smiling. His nonchalant attitude left Heathcliff flustered, and he couldn't find a response.

"You don't want to answer?" Heathcliff's anger made him laugh. "What's the meaning of this? Feeling guilty? Ready to confess? Haha! I thought you were someone, but it turns out you're just trash. Admit it now, and we might spare you as a murderer!"

Momo finally seemed to understand. "Oh, I see. You want money?"

"That's right, we want money! Hand over all the money and weapons you've earned by exploiting the game's settings! Only then can we forgive you and spare you as a killer!"

Momo nodded and said, "You could have just asked for money, why go through all this trouble? Isn't this basically robbery? I have 1000 Col here. If you want to rob me..."

"...then come and try your luck."

With those final words, Momo's warm smile vanished, replaced by a pair of sharp, piercing eyes.

Heathcliff's gaze shifted to the money pouch that Momo had taken out. Greed flickered in his eyes as he approached Momo, saying, "1000 Col won't be enough! You must have more than that on you!"

"I happen to know that you're together with that female blacksmith. She's earned quite a bit of money these days. Hand over all that money! And the weapons you and your woman have on you, too!"

Momo casually tossed the money pouch with 1000 Col into Heathcliff's hand. The weighty pouch caused Heathcliff to stagger, but his face turned even redder with excitement.

"What else? Hand it all over!"

"But that money was hard-earned by Lizbeth. Without her permission, I can't use this Col."

"So, you're saying the money is on you, right? Then, hurry up and give it to me! Lizbeth's blacksmithing skill is so high; she must be an insider who's exploiting the bug to level up. So, her money should also go to me!"

"Give it to you?"

"Yes, give it to me!"

Momo pulled out another money pouch, this one with the conspicuous label "5000." It seemed to capture all of Heathcliff's attention.

"Give it to you? Why should I give it to you? Isn't there a 'why' after this, like what you intend to do with this money?"

"Why do something with it? It's my money, it belongs to me!"

Heathcliff's hand reached for the money pouch, but his words abruptly stopped when he felt countless eyes on him.

"Disgusting," Kirito couldn't help but sneer. Argo, in the distance, chimed in with a playful tone, "Isn't this just extortion? I thought Heathcliff would come up with some grandiose reason for taking the money, like distributing it among other players or something."

"No, he must have had a reason in mind, but Momo's gold blinded him and revealed his true nature," another player remarked.

Listening to the comments from the others, Momo flicked his wrist, and the money pouch containing 5000 Col disappeared. Then, he clicked the "Item Transfer and Organization" button, and the pouch with 1000 Col in Heathcliff's hand also returned to Momo.

Momo had merely handed the money pouch to Heathcliff, and before confirming the transaction, Heathcliff was already feeling triumphant.

"So, it was all about protection money? In that case, it's a pity, Heathcliff. I don't think your mediocre skills are qualified to protect me."

"What did you say!"

Enraged, Heathcliff reached for his sword, but a flash of white light sent him flying as if hit by a car. He crashed heavily into the center of the square.

When the others looked toward the source of the light, Asuna had already sheathed her sword.

"Momo, why waste so many words on him? I couldn't bear to watch this jest even further than this."

"Ah, I prefer using my mouth to using my hands."

Most of the onlookers expressed disdain for Heathcliff's actions. Some even said, "I thought something serious was going to happen, but it turns out he's just greedy for money."

While Heathcliff had initially questioned Momo and Asuna, most people in the room knew of their reputation. However, when Heathcliff accused Lizbeth, the majority of them felt repulsed. Lizbeth may have taken money, but her prices for services were much lower than the NPC blacksmith, and she worked tirelessly from morning till night, often neglecting to eat or drink. She was clearly dedicated to helping all the players improve their strength.

Every player in the room had weapons that had been forged, enhanced, or repaired by Lizbeth. Accusing Lizbeth was a step too far for many, and they were now questioning Heathcliff's judgment.

While some expressed their disdain for Heathcliff openly, others were amazed at Asuna's speed. Her swift, almost effortless strike left them wondering if they had underestimated Heathcliff's baseless accusations.

"Damn it! Hey, what's your attitude, all of you? I exposed two traitors among us! They even attacked people, and you're not standing by my side!"

"Momo, Asuna, regardless of what Heathcliff said, you shouldn't have resorted to violence, right? Heathcliff was just suspicious," Diavel chimed in, attempting to mediate.

Momo smirked and said, "You're right, just suspicion. I was just wondering, Diavel, why did you instigate Heathcliff to sow discord? What's your motive?"

The crowd fell silent, and then their eyes widened. They turned to look at Diavel instinctively.

Diavel took a step back and immediately retorted, "What are you talking about, Momo? Where did you get such an idea? You're just sowing discord with baseless accusations!"

"Oh, how interesting. Heathcliff questions me, and it's just suspicion. But when I question you, it's sowing discord? When did the standards of judgment become so biased in your favor, just because you're a knight?"

"Well, you're right. Knights are the embodiment of fairness and justice. We leave justice and fairness in your hands," Momo added with a smirk.

"Ha!"

Argo couldn't help but laugh. After Momo's subtle explanation, she understood what was going on. It was clear that Diavel wanted to establish his authority, so he had Heathcliff approach Momo and Asuna.

Most likely, Diavel wouldn't actually want to antagonize Momo but would act as a peacemaker, trying to de-escalate the situation. This would allow him to display his magnanimity and potentially gain the gratitude of the powerful Momo and Asuna.

However, Diavel had made one crucial mistake: he underestimated Momo. Momo wasn't one to be taken advantage of.

Facing the skeptical gazes of the crowd, Diavel sighed and tried to sound calm. "Alright, I chose my words poorly. Momo, you don't need to get angry. To be fair, Heathcliff was hasty and made baseless accusations."

Heathcliff widened his eyes, looking at Diavel, seemingly unable to believe that Diavel was throwing him under the bus.

Diavel shot Heathcliff a fierce glare. If it weren't for Heathcliff being blinded by a few thousand Col, he wouldn't have lost the trust of the others to this extent.

Heathcliff's baseless accusations weren't about logic but rather about rallying everyone to sow doubt and use the power of the majority to pressure Momo and Asuna. The truth didn't matter; it was about who the majority believed.

In essence, Heathcliff's goal was to manipulate everyone into doubting and using the power of the majority to oppress Momo and Asuna. It didn't matter what the truth was. People tend to yield to a strong force, even if it means admitting to faults they didn't commit, rather than facing isolation from the majority.

Unfortunately for Heathcliff, he was dealing with Momo.

The key in these situations was to see whom the majority believed. People were often gullible, especially in situations of baseless accusations without evidence from either side. It all came down to the personal charisma of the accusers, who was more worthy of trust.

Now, the accusers were Momo and Heathcliff.

One was a charismatic, handsome guy with a friendly smile, and the other was an obnoxious man who couldn't resist the allure of money.

Who do you think people would instinctively believe?

Furthermore, Momo had a lovely lady by his side—Asuna. Would you trust Asuna or Heathcliff?

Heathcliff could just go to hell.

Diavel conceded, making it clear that he wanted to put this behind them. He believed that Momo would understand his intentions.

Indeed, Momo did understand Diavel's intentions, but did Diavel have Momo's agreement to end it here?

Momo wouldn't go back and bite someone for no reason. That's a dog's behavior.

"Is that so?" Momo's face displayed an innocent and puzzled smile as he asked, "But, Heathcliff told me yesterday that you wanted to deal with me, asked me for 10,000 Col to resolve the matter, and offered to help me become the leader of the strategy meeting."

"However, I refused yesterday because I didn't have enough money. But today, I've gathered the 10,000 Col."

Momo pulled out a money pouch with the number "10,000" on it and asked, "Heathcliff, does the deal continue?"