King got back to the room and sat on the edge of the bed.
Eli was already there, standing near the window, watching the street below. He turned when King entered and read the look on his face without needing a prompt.
"Let me guess, the fight with Vile?," Eli said.
"Yeah." King leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. "I ran the name. And they made reference to a cave of some sort. Still, nothing came up."
"You're certain, Master King?"
"I haven't missed a noteworthy NPC in this game from my hundred playthroughs. Including every significant player encounter from after the gamification. The name Vile the Sightless doesn't exist in either category."
Eli considered that. "Which leaves one option."
"The encounter happened before the game became real. Before any of this, and insignificant enough that I hadn't taken it into accunt." King looked at the floor. "If Vile knew me from that period, they didn't know King. They knew Abel."
The room was quiet for a moment.
