Chapter 40
Chapter 40
6. Tutorial and Status Window -4
Step. Step.
"The moment I became certain was when Mentor Noah Won hesitated, as if trying to avoid hunting the plants. At first I suspected it was because of the 『Elf』 the person next to me mentioned, but⋯⋯ judging by your reaction when you whispered about environmental protection, you don't seem to be an environmental activist."
I tracked Elijah with my eyes as she walked in circles around me. She slowly explained how she had become certain.
"So there must be something to the act of hunting plants. The tutorial, which was oddly sloppy, might hold a hidden secret. That's what I thought, and it seems I was right."
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
"I figured out the location and the conditions too. Hah⋯⋯ But what really matters is what you can actually get, isn't it? Is it a treasure valuable enough to tempt even you, Mentor?"
"⋯⋯Yes, it is."
I admitted it readily. Saying "No, it's not valuable at all" here would just make me look ridiculous.
Whirr.
The iris of Elijah's left eye narrowed minutely, then relaxed. Like a camera aperture operating. As if peering into my expression.
I moved the conversation forward to figure out her intentions.
"If you clear out all the 『Erect Violets』 in the tutorial stage, you can obtain an item that lets you designate a higher-ranked hunter as a mentor and communicate with them."
"Aha. Then it truly is a treasure vault. Growth methods, future threats, which stocks are going to take off—from a position looking down from above, all of it would be clearly visible. Maybe you could even receive a 『Skill』 beyond D-rank level⋯⋯."
"You seem to have something you want to say."
"Yes. There's something I want to say, and something I want to do. That's why, instead of snatching the Hidden Piece or selling the information, I called you out, Mentor."
So now she was getting to the point. What was she going to demand? Credits? I'd have to wriggle out of that with bartering somehow. If she wanted something too excessive, I'd have to cut it off cleanly and refuse.
But what came back wasn't a negotiation.
Elijah pointed a finger up at the sky above.
"I want to go up. There's nothing down below."
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
"And I know that if someone with nothing to their name wants to seize something, they have to shoulder that much risk⋯⋯ Even if I starve to death, I have to look far ahead and move like a madwoman."
Her words were close to a vow.
I could tell instinctively. Elijah was ambitious, and in wanting to rise upward, she was the same kind as me. She had a clear drive for self-improvement.
Elijah took a few steps toward me and looked up at me as she spoke. We were close enough to hear each other's breathing, yet no breath came from her.
"I don't have a 『Skill』. If you open my Status Window, it's completely empty. But as you've seen, I'm strong. I can perform at a high level because I have this body made by science and technology."
"That's⋯⋯"
"Yes, for me—at the D-rank level, acquiring a 『Skill』 isn't a big advantage. That's what I concluded. So then⋯⋯ is there really any need to face a mentor from above the sky directly?"
Poke.
Elijah poked my chest with her finger. Then she grinned.
"I'm going to look far ahead. That's exactly why, instead of grabbing the immediate Hidden Piece, I chose to build a connection with someone who already knows about it. Let's be friends."
"Friends?"
It was a completely out-of-the-blue word choice.
"Yes, friends. Does your world not have the concept of friends, by any chance?"
"⋯⋯You're talking as if I already owe you my friendship?"
"Aw, you won't accept?"
Elijah clasped her hands behind her back and tilted her head slightly to the side. Swish—her blonde hair scattered like a curtain. The flow of the conversation was calculated, but her eyes weren't. She was quite playful, like a fairy.
I thought for a moment, and the conclusion came immediately.
Of course I should accept.
There was no reason to refuse when she was saying she'd drop out of the Hidden Piece bidding auction, and finding a hunter like her wouldn't be easy either. And before all that, I simply wanted to.
With this, she was the second person to concede the tutorial to me. But Elijah was different from Sohye. She wasn't trying to leave it with me and run away like Sohye had. She was putting it forward strictly as a condition of a deal.
So I liked it.
I like people like this. People who can run full speed toward a goal until the very end. It's not that I dislike people who aren't like that, but still⋯⋯ don't people naturally keep close those they can communicate with?
Like Eve.
I prefer someone who can say "Yeah, this much is expected of you" over someone who says "You don't need to work that hard." That's why I never purely hated that bastard Sergios either. Just looking at the calluses on that spear-wielder's hands, you could gauge the magnitude of his effort.
Grab. I smiled and took Elijah's hand, shaking it.
"Let's be friends. I like people like you."
"Ah⋯⋯ haha. Great. I'm glad it worked out. I really do seem to have a good eye for people."
Maybe Elijah's culture didn't have handshakes, or something. When I took her hand, she seemed a little awkward. She withdrew her hand with a swish and said.
"You don't have to be so formal with me."
"Then⋯⋯ should I? You don't have to be formal with me either."
"I'd rather stay formal, though?"
"⋯⋯⋯⋯?"
Guess not.
Maybe I should have thought a bit more before getting friendly.
I dried out the seeds of the remaining Erect Violets in the tutorial stage.
[Hunt completion confirmed.]
[Your team's record is 1st place.]
[Temporary access to higher-tier information through a mentor is now possible in this area.]
[Please designate a mentor within the time limit, starting with the 1st place team (2 members).]
I obtained the 『Telescope』 once again.
"Hoo."
Elijah let out a short breath and stretched her arms out long.
Shrrrk—wires were sucked back into Elijah's fingertips and stowed away. She had said she'd help voluntarily when it came to grinding up the flowers, so I'd accepted her help briefly, and in a good way, I couldn't quite gauge her.
How strong she was, how far she could go.
That cutting power that diced the plants in one go was clearly outstanding. It didn't matter if there was more than one target—I'd even seen her bisect three at once. That alone was enough to put her in the upper-middle of D-rank.
But she seemed to be hiding one more move beyond that.
The most likely candidate was the tube on her back, about 1.5 times her own height. I didn't know what was inside, but when she took that out, it would mean she was getting serious.
I asked casually.
"Since we're already registered as a team by the System, want to go see the seniors together?"
"No. If I did that, everything I said before would become a lie! Even if Noah allowed it. I don't want to."
After I accepted her offer of friendship, Elijah had become—how should I put it—much more playful in communication. She seemed a bit excited.
Almost as if she'd never made a friend in her life.
"Did you just think something rude?"
"Not at all."
"You're not a good actor, you know."
"You must have seen wrong."
What are you going to do if I insist?
Elijah let out a small laugh and waved at me. Then she said "See you next time" and vanished coolly.
"Contact me whenever. I'll do the same."
Leaving just those words behind.
I don't know how my relationship with Elijah will turn out. I still don't know what she wants, or what goal she's running toward. But I have a pretty good feeling about it.
If possible, I hope it becomes a relationship where we can each get what we want. Like Sohye and I did.
`
Now, then.
It was time to use the 『Telescope』. This was the second time. The first contact, I'd chosen 『Sky Roamer』 and⋯⋯ obtained the skill Azure Wind Wanderer.
As I gripped it again, the world trembled.
Ruuuumble—!!
The sky shook and the sun sank. The celestial sphere was covered in darkness, and soon five stars rose on the pitch-black canvas.
A-rank, 『Flame That Burns All Vegetation』.
B-rank, 『Sky Roamer』, 『Shattering Lord』, 『Night Moth』.
C-rank, 『Glass Sword Lord』.
Before the five candidates, I stood once again at a crossroads of choice.
The first thing to consider was whether I could endure an A-rank hunter this time. After mulling it over, I soon reached a judgment. I didn't think I could.
I had a basis for that judgment: my earlier struggle with the 'Curse of the Sun God Apollo'. Thinking back, I'd managed to suppress it easily thanks to the other skills in my body and the antibodies I already had.
When that thing had come rushing at Sergios and me, our resistance hadn't left a single scratch on it. Sergios's Whirlwind Thrust had scattered futilely too.
A mere C-rank skill had crushed all our resistance. If that was the case, then a C-rank hunter who possessed several such skills would surely be on an entirely different level.
But the 『Glass Sword Lord』 I peered at through the Telescope—though it placed a slight load on me, I felt no sense of crisis.
[Temporary access to higher-tier information through a mentor is now possible in this area.]
The 『Telescope』 probably served as a kind of filter, helping me endure even while I peered at them. In other words, the power of the A-rank hunter who had nearly killed me with a single glance⋯⋯ had actually been far greater than what I was seeing now.
It was more than that. If I'd faced them without the filter of the Telescope, I might have simply burned away. Thinking about it that way⋯⋯ whatever I received from that burning giant would likely be more than I deserved.
Then should I go one step down and choose from among the B-rank hunters like before?
There were also things I wanted to ask. Information about 『Master Binder (主縛)』, who appeared to be connected to the [Hunter Alliance], and whether the lineage of 『Martial Arts』 continued even at the higher levels.
To find that out, choosing B-rank—『Sky Roamer』, who had been favorable enough to bestow a skill on me—seemed like the wise decision, but somehow I had a bad feeling.
[C-rank hunter 『Glass Sword Lord』 expresses joy at your reunion.]
I wasn't sure if this judgment was right, but⋯⋯ I decided to choose Glass Sword Lord.
"I will select Glass Sword Lord as my mentor."
[Registration complete.]
[Summoning mentor.]
Soon—my vision was flooded with iridescent light.
A circular dueling ground bathed in sunlight, countless flags fluttering above a stage built of pure white marble. And among those flags, the navy-blue eagle flew highest.
Beneath the flag stood a knight whose entire body was made of glass.
C-rank hunter 『Glass Sword Lord』.
Sunlight struck that brilliant surface and shattered into fragments, and scattered rainbows settled around Glass Sword Lord like clouds. His gaze, fixed straight ahead with his back straight, was lofty and dignified.
But beneath that confident bearing lurked a quiet sharpness.
Clack.
His right hand rested lightly on the longsword's grip. It was so relaxed that there wasn't a trace of tension, but if the Sword Lord merely willed it—he could draw the blade in an instant.
He was definitely stronger than me.
I carefully gauged the Glass Sword Lord's mood and bowed in greeting.
"Hello."
Then Glass Sword Lord placed a hand on my shoulder with a friendly pat.
"Hahaha! Noah Won, ■ how ■ ■ missed you, you don't know ■! Wel■■■! ■■■ ■■■■ from the moment you were reg■■■■■ on the ■■■■ ■■■■■⋯⋯"
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
He said something. No, he said something resembling speech.
To put it in terms of an analogy, it was like Korean and a foreign language mixed together messily at the syllable level. And that foreign language was one I'd never heard before. I couldn't understand it at all.
He did seem to be expressing considerable goodwill toward me, though.
Flustered by the bizarre speech, I looked up at the Glass Sword Lord, and he muttered quietly with an awkward expression.
"Oh dear, does it apply even during mentoring⋯⋯?"
"⋯⋯⋯?"
"You've reached a high enough level for comfortable conversation, but the System's translation function is⋯⋯ a little harsh on ■■■ ■■■■. Perhaps because I am ■■■■, this kind of ■■⋯⋯."
"⋯⋯⋯⋯??"
Glass Sword Lord looked up at the sky once, then down at the ground once.
"First, take th■."
"Ah, yes."
He took out a book and handed it to me. I slowly sounded out the title on the cover of the book in my hands. With the System translator flickering in and out, I had to concentrate for dozens of seconds before I could interpret it, and the identity of that book was—
[Duchy of Selvikia Common Language Study Textbook (Commoner Edition)]
It was a foreign language study textbook.
"By n■xt time, at least master the basic conversation part!"
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
The Glass Sword Lord started me off with homework.