Chapter 48
[Kurururu… Human, you cannot move anymore. Now I can do as I wish.]
I felt my heart sink. I was terrified.
That lizard was dying while gushing out blood like that. Still, it seemed her head was filled with thoughts of wanting to do something to me.
“Just kill me! You lunatic lizard!”
[Kuk. Kuk. I won’t kill you. I will take you as my husband.]
Oh my…
That lizard’s s.e.x drive was… No, her obsession with having a spare husband was just out there.
Idaltaru slowly crawled her way across the floor towards me.
It seemed that it was difficult for her to move as well. She was crawling on the floor using her remaining arm.
When I was in middle school, I was absolutely shocked and terrified from watching a scene from a horror movie where a girl with long hair that covered her face had crawled out of a well.
With that scene stuck in my head, I was scared to sleep every night for the week after.
However, the terrifying sight in front of me at this very moment was… It felt like the memory could never fade even after decades.
Idaltaru was slow, but she didn’t stop. She continued to crawl towards me.
‘What should I do now?
Should I bite my tongue and die to protect my virginity?
No. It was not time to worry about keeping my virginity yet.
I needed to get a grip.
Let’s think about what I can do at this moment.
My head could still think.
My hand… My right hand could still move.
I wasn’t certain about my shoulder, but I definitely can feel up to the elbow at least.
Ways I could attack…
I used all my of Blink allowances.
I still needed to wait until it can be used again.
I still had Talaria’s Wing.
G.o.d’s power skills did not require my stamina or mana.
I could use it just fine.
Are there any weapons left…
d.a.m.n it… I could almost see the handgun that I had handed over to Park Jung-ah.
I opened the inventory and checked to see if there were any weapons that I could bring out and use immediately.
I had a hook and a heat stone.
Could I use… the hook?
I think the heat stone would be better.
This hook was to be used with a rope, so its tip was too dull.
Lizardman was basically a type of reptile.
It had to be.
Reptiles were cold blooded, so they are weak against changes in temperature.
That’s right. The heat stone was the one.
Just you try to come and touch me.
I’m going to shove this lump of flame into your neck.’
I brought out the heat stone from the inventory and held it in my right hand to hide in.
It was exuding high temperatures of heat, so I felt pain in my palm. However, I could manage to not bat an eye from the pain caused by a burn like this.
After getting a hold of myself and making a plan, it felt like even my eyesight was clear and focused again.
Idaltaru was still crawling towards me…
[Kururu…]
I realized something that I didn’t know until just a moment ago.
Idaltaru was, even while she was crawling, mumbling something endlessly on her own.
[Kururu… I’m going to make you my husband.]
‘That’s what you were mumbling about!’
I tightly held onto the heat stone and watched Idaltaru crawl towards me.
Before long, she came near where I was.
While feeling the heat from the heat stone on my right hand, I focused on Idaltaru’s movements.
Idaltaru was crawling toward me at a constant speed. However, all of sudden, her speed decreased, and then she stopped, unable to move her arm.
It seemed she also had reached her limit.
Considering the damage she sustained from my attacks and the stamina she exhausted from running amok until now, it was a miracle that she was still alive and moving like that in the first place.
However, it seemed this was the end.
It was fortunate for me.
[Keruk. Keruk. You said you think I am strong and magnificent.]
[You didn’t speak badly of me. You didn’t call me a coward. You didn’t say my combat style is underhanded. You didn’t curse me or called me a servant of the devil. You acknowledged me.]
[I have waited a very long time. I finally met a partner. Although you are a human of short stature, you are a strong male. I most definitely will…]
[I am going to have you as my husband…]
To the very end’s end, she mumbled things that was making my backbone overcome with spookiness and chill. In the end, in that crawling pose, her breathing stopped.
She was so close that she could reach my body if she extended her arm towards me.
‘That runt… Could it be that she had been shunned by her own kind?
She possessed a special ability. She had a defensive tendency that was not typical of lizardmen. Also, she had the t.i.tle that contained the word, ‘stealthy.’
I somehow felt that it must have been the case for her.
It must have been the reason why she showed such a big response to my praises and was overjoyed.
I felt bitter. I felt sorry.
Of course, if she was still alive, I would have tried to kill her in any way I could.
Even if she had her circ.u.mstances, I didn’t want to mate with her.
I dropped the heat stone that I had been holding in my right hand. I clapped my palm on the floor and dusted it off.
I wiggled my body to crawl a little towards her and then extended my right hand.
She still had her yellow eyes wide open and was looking at me. I closed her eyes for her.
‘I am sorry.
If I knew about this, I would not have tried to talk to you at all.
Actually, this sense of guilt was meaningless.
I knew that, but I still felt sorry.
Her way was wrong to begin with, and it was a relationship that could never be.
[You have cleared Tutorial, h.e.l.l difficulty, Fifth Floor.]
[You are healed of all injuries and status effects.]
[You have received 1000 points for clearing the Floor.]
[You have received 1000 points for being the first to clear the Floor.]
[You cleared more than one floor during a round. You received 1000 points as an extra reward.]
[Many G.o.ds are pleased with your actions. You have received 4700 points.]
[Many G.o.ds are displeased with your actions. 3200 points are deducted.]
[An additional reward is given according to your performance.]
[Many G.o.ds would like to gift you with a skill instead of an additional reward.]
[Votes: 74 yes, 3 no]
[Would you like to accept?]
‘Something feels off. There was definitely a trick hidden here.
A gift from many G.o.ds was different from the power skill from a G.o.d.
Last time, the gift I got through this was the knowledge of the time before Babel.
It certainly was a useful skill, but the intent of the G.o.ds that gifted me with the skill must have been…
It is obvious that it was to test the skill.
Could it be they were just curious about about I would respond to it? Perhaps they did it just for fun of watching me use it?
I could not figure out their true intent. However, it seemed the skill was not given to me with intention of wanting to help me.
Moreover, because of the G.o.ds who were displeased with me, the deduction in my points was 3200, which was staggering.
Also, 74 G.o.ds voted yes for this skill gift.
When I received the knowledge before the time of Babel, 12 G.o.ds voted yes. Considering that, this means many G.o.ds wanted to give me this exact skill.
I didn’t feel safe about this.
Still, it would be awkward to refuse the gift as well.
Refusing the gift feels like it will lead to more G.o.ds being displeased with me. Also, what if it was a good skill?
Let’s just get it for now.
“Yes.”
[You acquired Dead Summoning Lv.???]
I was both anxious and excited with antic.i.p.ation. Both sensations were rising up.
‘Let’s check what it is first.’
“Status Window.’
[Lee Ho-jae (human)]
Lv. 10
Strength: 24
Dexterity: 39
Vitality: 28
Mana: 28
Skill: Battle Focus Lv.11 Willpower Lv.5 Awakening Lv.1 Night Vision Lv.2 Bright Vision Lv.1 Charge Lv.2 Sneak Lv.4 Natural Regeneration Lv.2 Improved Senses Lv.7 Increased Field of Vision Lv.1 Toughened Skin Lv.3 Basic Swordsmanship Lv.7 Basic Shield Skill Lv.4 Basic Hand to Hand Skill Lv.3 Basic Throwing Skill Lv.1 Wind Spirit’s Blessing Lv.2 Knowledge of the Time before Babel Lv.5 Mind Corruption Immunity Lv.1 Pain Resistance Lv.11 Bleed Resistance Lv.5 Faint Resistance Lv.3 Pierce Resistance Lv.2 Poison resistance Lv.4 Paralysis Resistance Lv.6 Heat Resistance Lv.4 Burn Resistance Lv.7 Cold Resistance Lv.4 Frostbite Resistance Lv.3 Blink Emblem Lv.Max Talaria’s Wings Lv.Max, Dead Summoning Lv.???
Extra: G.o.d of Slowness has concerned look.
[Dead Summoning (Lv.???)]
Description: This is a power of a nameless G.o.d. This G.o.d refused to reveal the name to the challengers.
Using an item that contains a part of the dead’s soul as the medium, you can summon the dead for a fixed duration.
This power has a limit imposed by the G.o.d.
Number of times it can be done (5/5)
An incredible skill came up.
‘To think I can summon a dead being back to life…
This goes beyond being a skill that was similar to one from a video game. This belonged in the realm of miracles.
Was it alright to have a ridiculous skill like this show up in this place?
Also, this skill had nothing to do with the Fifth Floor.
Just what were they thinking…
Before long I realized and I looked at Idaltaru’s corpse.
Her corpse was fading and disappearing, and there was a green stone that appeared above her corpse.
[Lizardman Idaltaru’s Soul Stone]
Description: Of all lizardmen living in the Iden swamp, she is the strongest and unluckiest warrior. This is her spirit stone.
You can sell this at the store.
‘It’s not that they gifted me this skill to revive Idaltaru, right? If I revive her, she will charge at me and say she will want to make me her husband.
As long as I am in the right mind, that’s never going to happen again.’
[G.o.d of Slowness is relieved.]
[G.o.d of Adventure is disappointed.]
[G.o.d of Philanthropy is resenting you.]
[G.o.d of Destruction is bored.]
[G.o.d of Duel is strongly criticizing you.]
‘… Let’s just ignore them.
As I thought, even these G.o.ds are not normal.’
I forced myself to ignore the messages and put my hand on the portal, and before long, I was teleported.
I arrived at the green plains that made my heart feel at ease as always. As soon as I got there, I could hear Kiri Kiri’s voice.
“Hmp! This time, you were so mean! Howjae!”
‘Give it a break, will you guys.’
“Hey! What else could I have done? Should I have mated with the lizard there then?”
“Hmp!”
Kiri Kiri was refusing to talk to me. To ease her anger, I needed to use a piece of cake.
I handed her a piece of cake. Although Kiri Kiri looked p.i.s.sed, now she started to smile big again.
“The G.o.ds suddenly showed interest because it was a very rare event in the Tutorial.”
Kiri Kiri said as if it was obvious. She said it with cake creams around her mouth.
‘Event? You guys consider that an event?
Putting my virginity in danger is an event for you guys?’
“Heng. You are probably the first one ever to be proposed by the gate keeper of the Fifth Floor.”
‘Sure. It probably is rare for a warm blooded to be proposed by a cold blooded.
d.a.m.n it all.’
… Anyway, I had something I was curious about.
I had been curious about this for sometime, but I was more sure about this after having fought Idaltaru and other lizardmen.
“No.”
‘You… You are reading my mind now?’
“Uum. That is something I am not supposed to let you know.”
Having said that, Kiri Kiri pressed down her large ears and then tightly closed her eyes.
‘It is not like you are not going to be able to hear things by doing that.’
“There probably are other dimensions or planets besides Earth. Both goblins and lizardmen had their own civilizations and societies. They actually exist in real world or used to exist. Their entire regions have been brought to the Tutorial, or their worlds have been copied into Tutorial. Also, there are other Tutorials in other dimensions. That’s probably why a comment like ‘this is the first time’ or whatever came up. Att.i.tudes that you managers and G.o.ds have clearly show that Earth is not where the very first Tutorials showed up. Also, the monsters that have appeared on Earth are also…”
Kiri Kiri wasn’t moving at all. She was completely petrified.
She was like a stone statue. She was like a drawing on a painting canvas.
She was not showing any response.
It was enough to make me wonder if it was possible for a living being to stay absolutely still like that.
“… Tsk. Nevermind. I’m sorry.”
Kiri Kiri moved immediately.
“Heng. You merely told me your guesses, so it does not matter. However, you must not seriously try to gain information from me based on my responses. If you try it repeatedly, my att.i.tude towards you will change.”
“All right. I won’t anymore.”
There was an incident like this before.
I asked her what happens to the people who died in the Tutorial. Back then, she gave me the answer with the same look on her face.
That response was not because Kiri Kiri was not good at hiding her emotions or expressions.
As always, it was a bonus out of consideration for me.
Kiri Kiri had always been trying her best to give me useful information and help me.
I felt like I threw away her good will.
“I am sorry.”
‘I am sorry towards many today.’
“Still, think about it again.”
“Are you being serious?”
“I am not saying you should do as she wants. You can talk to her. If you are successful in convincing her, she might become a good ally for you.”
‘Honestly, I am not confident about convincing Idaltaru. Let alone convincing her, just calming her down would be impossible.’
“I’ll get going now. As for the items, I’ll buy them next time after collecting points.”
I wanted to change the shield into something a little better.
However, because of negative responses from the G.o.ds, I lost a lot of the points.
I could purchase a little better shield only if I collected more points by clearing the Sixth Floor.
I was about to head to the portal, but Kiri Kiri grabbed me.
“Buy some potions at least.”
“Potions? I still have plenty of them?”
“Ah… You may not have enough?”
I opened the inventory and checked the number of potions I had.
I had plenty.
So far, I have never ended up regretting buying things that Kiri Kiri recommended.
I was sure it would be the same this time.
‘She said I’ll need a lot more potions… I wonder what the theme is for the next floor.’
I was going to learn about it when I got there.
As Kiri Kiri asked, I purchased potions using all of the points I had.
“Be careful! Come back soon! No, you won’t be able to come back soon, but still, come back soon!”
Her words felt ominous somehow. Listening to her escort me on my way out of the green plains, I got onto the portal.
[Before you enter the Sixth Stage, please select the party members.]
[Your current party members (1/5)]
1. Lee Ho-jae