Chapter 235.2 – Tutorial 56th Floor (2)
[No, I will heed the advice of the gods.]
Despite my continuous provoking, Karin remained firm in her stance. That was too bad, but I’d thought that provoking Karin would’ve been an effective thod.
If Karin kept trying to refuse so stubbornly, I’d have no choice but to use force.
“Alright, alright. I won’t ask you to fight, so co out.”
[No.]
I wondered if I should, once again, try to taunt Karin with an “Are you scared?”, but I refrained from doing so in fear of pissing off the dragon. It’d be disadvantageous if I did sothing stupid in this circumstance. I was already told that my actions here would determine my next stage, so I’d have to watch my mouth.
“But we have to talk face-to-face. Co out. I promise I won’t co at you.”
[You’re a terrible liar.]
Damn it. It must have been obvious again. I’d never thought that my lying skills were this horrendous, but I guess my excitent about eting a dragon was hard to mask.
For now, I’d have to give up on my dream of fighting a dragon; after all, you can’t fight soone who refuses to et you.
Gripping the crystal ball in my hand, I maneuver my way out of the cave.
[Where are you going?] Karin asked through the crystal ball.
Was it possible that the crystal ball could transmit not only voices but also visibility of the surrounding environnt?
“It’s better to talk in front of a waterfall than a slly, dreary cave full of year-old bat shit.”
Karin remained silent as I plopped down in front of the waterfall. I rummaged through my inventory to pull out a simple chair and tent as space for to think.
Currently, Karin seed upset. One of my friends used to sulk in silence, and it seed as though Karin was doing the sa.
By the ti I finished propping up the cave, Karin hadn’t said a single word to .
Settling myself down into a comfortable position on the chair, I picked up the crystal ball and asked, “Is the cave your ho?”
From rumors, dragons were supposed to live in obscure places, and this waterfall cave fit that very definition. It was massive and had a high ceiling with no stalactites that could interfere with movent. In addition, it had a familiar stank, a dragon’s unique, subtle sll.
It was similar to Idy’s sll that I’ve beco able to recognize after living with her for a long ti. The sll emanating from the cave was slightly different, though. It had a much stronger fishy sll that Idy’s body odor, and at first, I’d thought it was rely the cave’s natural odor, but now that I think about it, it might’ve been the sll of a dragon.
[....] Karin mumbled sothing incomprehensible, and then, once more, reverted to being dead silent.
Shortly after the question left my mouth, I realized I’d made a mistake. The question could’ve been taken in two possible ways. Was the cave her ho? Or could the cave be even considered a house?
I thought of ways to relieve the dragon’s bad mood, but gave up and just decided to have a al. I made a bonfire and took out a package of food from my inventory.
* * * * * *
After eating my fill, I went inside the tent to lie down and peacefully watch the hypnotizing waterfall.
It was a bad habit to lie down right after eating, but I was too tired to care that much.
Suddenly, Ahbooboo whispered into my ear, [Warrior.]
Co to think of it, I’d completely forgotten that Ahbooboo existed. Once the stage was cleared, Ahbooboo and Seregia were automatically moved into my inventory. Perhaps that was why Ahbooboo had remained quiet.
[Warrior, is it really a dragon beyond that crystal ball?] Ahbooboo asked.
[That’s what it says, yes.] replied Seregia.
Ahbooboo’s whispering made feel anxious, and I humd in response to his question.
[Couldn’t it be a lie?]
[No, I don’t think so.]
I didn’t think it was a lie either. Ahbooboo hesitated for a mont before saying to , [If it’s really a dragon, then it’s best to make him feel better.]
[Why?] Seregia questioned.
[Dragons are very stingy creatures.] Ahbooboo complained and elaborated on various stories about stingy dragons.
One of the slanderous stories that Ahbooboo ntioned was about a founding emperor who called himself a dragon. When a dragon ca to visit the emperor’s funeral, it had endlessly spouted sarcastic and unflattering comnts on the emperor. The stories portrayed dragons as cheap and shaful.
I decided to take Ahbooboo’s advice to lighten up Karin’s mood that had been damaged in the cave incident. But it was slightly too late to apologize for my slip of the tongue.
“Hey,” I spoke to the crystal ball.
[What?] Karin answered, and a wave of relief washed over .
“You’re not upset, are you?”
[...No.]
“Right? You didn’t get offended when I asked if that cave was your ho, did you?”
Sohow, the things I said to the dragon ended up being pretty similar to the things I’d said to my silently sulking friend back in middle school.
“I knew it. Is there any person who would get upset about that?”
Oh wait, Karin’s not a person. Damn, I ended up talking too much again. Fortunately for , Karin didn’t point out my mistake.
[Of course not! That cave is not my ho!] Karin exclaid indignantly.
This was unexpected. I hadn’t thought Karin would deny the assumption that the cave was her ho since it harbored the scent of a dragon. Even a couple hundred cave salamanders wouldn’t have been able to make the cave sll that bad.
“Yes, I see. I thought you were offended since you didn’t talk all of a sudden.”
[There was just a lot of work to do!]
Karin had previously ntioned I was a lousy liar, but it seed that she, too, was also pretty awful at lying. Unlike her usual ek manner of speaking, she had angrily shouted when she lied.
“You must have a lot of responsibilities to work for the Vaccine as soone who has a higher position than a regular apostle. That’s amazing”
Although my praise for Karin was insincere, the dragon seed to enjoy it thoroughly. Through my nonsensical talking and not-so-subtle complints, I was able to change the atmosphere into a more friendly one.
However, I was curious about one thing. In comparison to other apostles, Karin was rather kind. Other apostles didn’t even attempt to hide their feelings of contempt when they saw . They treated , fought , and saw as a re stepping stool. I would’ve thought that Karin, being a prideful dragon, would’ve also been more inclined to have this attitude. Maybe the preconceived notion that dragons were all arrogant wasn’t all that accurate.
I decided to ask Karin about it.
[The world is changing. You can’t be obsessed with that outdated idea forever. There are dragons that are sticking with the attitude you ntioned, but I am not one of them.]
The world was changing?
[The world is beginning to judge people by their abilities rather than their species. Take a lower-class tribe, for example. Can you say with 100 percent certainty that every mber has descended from that ethnic group? The ti has co for us to evaluate individuals based on their skills.] Karin said, and I listened to her quietly.
[Of course, your species does have an impact on your behavior and abilities, which makes it difficult to avoid the resulting stigma. Typically, the rumors aren’t too far off from the truth, so it’s easier to judge people based on species. I also have prejudices, and you’ve reminded of the preconceptions I’ve had about the human race. But the world is evolving rapidly, and I’ll try my best to keep up with it, too.]
Karin’s voice took on a serious edge, and listening to the story, Karin finally began to seem more like a dragon.
Looking back at it, it seed that I also had strong prejudices based on race. It was sothing Idy had pointed out several tis, but I paid her opinion no attention.
Most of the people I t while clearing stages had strong tribal characteristics. But, there was very little difference in the behaviors of various species. For , who’d have to face various types of people in the future, it was an opportunity to rethink my preconceptions.
There was still one more thing that Karin ntioned that had bothered . ‘The world is changing.’
“What do you an by the world is changing?”
Of course, the Earth was facing a cataclysmic upheaval, but it wasn’t likely that the dragon, who belonged to the influential vaccine war, would say the world was changing because of it.
[I’ve heard you’re one of the first challengers to enter the planet’s source and generate tutorials.]
“No, I’m not asking about the change of the Earth, I’m asking about the change of the world you’re talking about.”
[It’s not that different. I’m changing, just like your hotown is changing. The wind of change is beginning to blow. Think about it like that.]
Karin’s words made it seem like the monster of the source, the vaccine war, and the tutorial system had just appeared. Was it only that monsters were spawning and tutorials were being carried out, or were the gods and systems changing, too?
I asked for more details, but Karin drew the line there. The dragon told that changes were taking place, but didn’t care to elaborate on them.
[You should take into consideration that the concept of change I ntioned is slightly different from how humans understand it.]
I supposed that was inevitable; our lives and experiences were different. It was natural to view things in a slightly different manner.
I thought for a mont about what Karin said, and how the information would affect .
In so ways, a change was beneficial. For my goal, it’d be better to have a chaotic situation where the conditions were continuously changing than to have everything already solidified.
* * * * * *
After a good night’s rest, it was ti to start working again! Following breakfast, the sleeping bags were put back into my inventory.
[Want to go to the next stage?] Karin asked.
I folded up my tent and nodded my head in response to her question.
[Then, I’lldecide which stage is right for you. Is there a kind of stage that you want to avoid? If there is, I ‘ll make sure you won’t encounter it.]
I was amazed; what a nice thing to say. Maybe it’s because we’d gotten closer after spending a night together.
“Remove a stage where I need to lead and motivate a lot of people or where I need to maintain good relationships. Oh, and religious ones, too.”
Hearing my answer, Karin asked why.
“Why? It’s just awkward and uncomfortable.”
I wasn’t confident in those situations. Leading people had never been my strong suit. It was a stage the that had appeared several tis on the 40th floor, but I cleared it by using brute force at every critical mont.
[Okay, I’ll consider it.]
I thanked Karin and climbed into the portal that had appeared on the floor.
“Move.”
* * * * * *
The 56th floor was a place with stunning scenery. Under the brightly coloured sky was a vast field that stretched far into the horizon. And, there was a crowd? People had gathered beneath the tower I stood on.
“Apostle!”
“Apostle! Please take us away!”
“God’s apostle!”
Below, the crowd had been shouting at . When I saw a mass of over a thousand people screaming at , I felt motion sick,
[The 56th floor stage has begun]
[Stage Mission: Understanding the sect]
“You... That slly, oversized, lizard bastard actually dared to trick ?!”
[I told you to be careful.]
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