"Two ninety-six... Two ninety-seven... Two ninety-eight..."
'Co on... I'm dying here!'
"Three hundred." General Zerha counted and Kati dropped to the floor. "Didn't expect you to get there. Good job!" She clapped her hands while comfortably seated with her legs crossed on the lying Gryphon.
The Beastman was panting for air.
"I can't... Believe... I got... Three hundred."
"Mm!" She nodded. "You're getting there. Might develop Heat Resistance on the next set."
Despite being exhausted, Kati pushed himself off the ground.
'The sand burning... It's not as bad as it was earlier. Still-'
"Asking yourself if this is necessary?"
"Yes."
"It is."
Kati stared for a bit before nodding and looking away.
'Wonder if the first guy is made to train like a slave too...'
"Anything on your mind?"
"Yeah."
"What is it?"
"Why was I chosen?" Kati lied.
"Mmm..." She brought a finger to her chin. "Are you asking what you are a Candidate for?"
The Beastman nodded.
"Huh. I was wondering when you were finally going to ask. Why now? You didn't ask once inside the Dungeon."
Kati stared into the distance for a bit.
There wasn't much that could be seen inside the sandstorm though.
The sand wasn't blinding him anymore. He hadn't developed a Passive Skill for it, but it was still nice to notice.
'Resistance is strange. Your body starts doing so that a very slow rate. At one point, when you can Resist maybe... Twenty percent of it, a Passive Skill is developed and Resistance shoots up-'
"I asked you a question."
Kati had been conversing with Zerha for a while now. And even though most of that ti was spent blind her, he still knew what kind of conversation she entertained and what kind she disliked.
"I've heard of stories like these, in my past life."
"Have you now?"
"Yeah. We're what those stories refer to as... Reincarnators? We died once upon a ti, and got Reborn as Monsters. The usual story is about people getting Summoned in another world as Heroes or sothing. Is that sothing that happens? In the Human Realm?"
"Who knows." Zerha answered honestly as she shrugged her shoulders. "There are Heroes, but whether they are from this world or not, I do not know."
"And we're the Heroes' enemies? Makes it hard to be a Protagonist then, haha." Kati really wanted to put the Protagonist word in there, since it usually made the conversation more entertaining for Zerha.
As he had expected, she smiled at the ntion.
"Different Protagonists for different kinds of stories, right? Your words."
"Very true." Kati nodded.
"So why are you only asking now?"
Because I feared the answer?
Because there was an answer I longed for, and one I dreaded?
No. Kati couldn't say that, right?
Now wasn't the ti for honesty.
"Because it didn't matter. Now that I'm not in the Dungeon anymore, it does."
"Aha. Well, you were Reborn inside the Monster Realm by the Demon Lord Of Pride. Can you guess what happens next?"
"Beco Demon King?"
"Yes! Well, you wouldn't be able to do it as you are. It would take a long ti too, but that's the goal."
"Is that what Gaavah wants?"
"You'll refer to him as Lord Gaavah."
"Is that what Lord Gaavah wants?"
"Yes. For one of you to rise and beco the next Demon King. What else?"
"What else...?" Kati muttered as he raised his gaze towards the hidden sky. "Guess I expected sothing different."
"What did you expect? It's obvious that that's what he wants, isn't it? Why would he go through all that trouble otherwise? Haha!"
'Mm... She doesn't know either? She's convinced that that's the answer, but she didn't get it from him. Which ans...' A slight smile appeared on the Beastman's face. 'It might be sothing different. Sothing... More interesting and complex.'
"Anyways, get back to it now. I'll need you to Develop Heat Resistance in the next hour."
"Not much I can do about that..." Kati muttered as he scratched his head.
"Don't think you can?"
"I don't know."
"You definitely won't make it with that attitude."
"Hm?"
"As my Candidate, it's my job to raise you into soone worthy of becoming the next Demon King." Zerha hopped off the Gryphon. "Get it?" She walked closer, and the sand below Kati started trembling. "You'll have to rise above all the Monsters in this Realm. Above all of them. Above the Dragons and the Elves. Above the Fiends and the Beasts. Above ." Zerha suddenly grabbed Kati's wrist once the distance had been closed and pulled down. The Beastman imdiately fell to its knees. "Above my Lord." With him on his knees, Zerha could stare from above. Well, just barely. "Get it? No slacking, Kati."
The Beastman slowly nodded as he stared into her deep blue eyes.
"Good." She smiled. "Chop chop then." She turned around and started walking away.
"How about I train my swordsmanship instead?"
"That works too."
Kati took out his sword from his Inventory and started training.
'His movents aren't too bad. Of course, he lacks the Stats to actually hit targets with significant strength but... This isn't bad.' General Zerha thought to herself.
'Trippy... Thinking that soone else went through this sa thing, and that eight others will go through it again. Much worse, thinking that there are others in the Human Realm who could be going through it too. I wonder if we're from the sa era? We must be, right-'
"Focus. Your movents are getting sloppier."
"Mm." Kati nodded as he took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the sword.
'Demon King... Does that an that we're fated to lose? Since we're on the side of Evil and Monsters?' The Beastman thought as it swung its sword repeatedly. 'There's no way, right? Mm... I guess the Villain does win from ti to ti, but it's rather. Even I never wrote a story where the Villain wins. But it's not impossible, right?'
"I SAID FOCUS!"
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