〈 Chapter 95 〉 Interim Reward
*
“So this is a virtual space, right?”
My colleague, feeling the mood settle a bit, was what Elsie blurted out.
My unease about that was short-lived, as fortunately, Elsie wasn’t causing any grand chaos.
She was just devouring food from Basilium without a care in the world.
“A space where you can eat to your heart’s content, how nice.”
Elsie was walking around, arms full of skewers she bought from a street vendor.
The problem was, that this wasn’t her first meal of the day.
From the restaurant where we first met, to all the other places she wanted to try.
She’d eaten an amount that was simply unfathomable for a human.
‘Of course, since it’s a virtual space, it doesn’t matter.’
What she devoured didn’t cost a dime in the real world.
And she didn’t have to worry about gaining weight, so she seemed giddy about munching away to her heart’s content.
It felt a bit excessive, though.
‘Seriously, how much can her stomach hold?’
By the way, only those like me who had a direct contract with the gods could intervene to an extent in the Trial Space.
Everything else was implemented in a form just like in reality.
That meant the amount she was consuming now was the same as what she could eat outside.
“What should we try next?”
Still going for more, huh?
By this point, it was a little shocking.
“But it feels like we’ve tried almost all the food in this city…?”
I also had to consume quite a bit to keep up with her.
This was already the fifth time I had asked the divine being to empty my stomach.
At first, it felt a bit burdensome to call upon a god for such trivial matters, but by the third time, I realized it was no trivial issue.
“Seems Basilium isn’t such a big city after all. It felt huge two years ago, though.”
No, Basilium is definitely a large city.
It’s one of the top five cities of mankind.
The problem was Elsie’s stomach was just excessively big.
However, recalling how Elsie acted outside lately, it felt a bit odd.
She wasn’t eating much at all; in fact, she was eating less than Yusera.
I wondered if her appetite had completely changed, but seeing her today, it didn’t seem so.
“Why were you holding back outside while eating so well here?”
At that, Elsie suddenly paused.
She turned her gaze away and said,
“That’s… a bit embarrassing to explain.”
After asking, I felt a bit intrusive myself.
If I happened to meet Gwen again later, I could just ask her then.
“By the way, it’d be great if we could eat the cafeteria food like this anytime.”
“If we get the chance next time, let’s do that.”
I felt wary about asking the god to change the background back to the school.
The contract with him was to help conceal my identity.
Asking for such trivial things was outside that range.
“Really? We could eat all those tasty foods as much as we want?”
It seemed like she had been holding back quite a bit.
Of course, I agreed that the school’s food was indeed tasty.
But…
‘Still, Miss Weiss’s food is better.’
Just as I was thinking about whether the god could recreate Weiss’s cooking…
“Were you just thinking of someone?”
“No, not at all.”
For some reason, my instincts sensed danger at that moment.
I was trying my best to force a smile, albeit awkwardly.
Elsie neatly tossed all the emptied skewers onto the roadside.
If it were reality, I would’ve scolded her, but since this wasn’t real, it didn’t matter.
“Is that so? I feel like I’ve eaten enough now, but… I might’ve walked too much because my legs hurt a bit.”
We had indeed walked quite a distance.
But I wasn’t sure if Elsie would genuinely feel pain in her legs from that.
Her stamina stats were already far beyond that of an ordinary person.
‘But, I guess it could happen.’
It wasn’t a usual day, considering we had just engaged in intense combat right before this.
Maybe the aftereffects were still lingering.
‘Asking the god for a recovery feels a bit too much…’
Thinking back, it seemed Elsie wanted to enjoy food without reservations in this space.
So it was probably time to wrap things up.
Her mood seemed quite lifted, too.
“Um, shall we take a little break then…”
“Shall we leave the trial now?”
“Pardon?”
Upon my casual suggestion, Elsie looked at me with a serious face.
Did she still have more stuff she wanted to eat?
A sense of dread began to creep in.
“Um, Allen? You don’t look so good…”
“Maybe I ate too much. My stomach’s feeling a bit off.”
“Well, then there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Elsie licked her lips, ultimately resigned.
Thank goodness.
“Well then, let’s aim for the next opportunity.”
“Right, the next one…”
That was when it happened.
The landscape of the trial began to collapse.
‘I haven’t even asked to be let out yet!’
And in front of me appeared the Great Tree.
*
“What’s going on?”
Suddenly moved before the Great Tree, I asked the god.
Then, I heard its voice.
I apologize for the abrupt summoning. However, I couldn’t just keep watching anymore…
“You couldn’t just keep watching?”
I have one thing to ask. Do you, by any chance, like men? In a romantic sense.
That was an out-of-the-blue question.
But it wasn’t particularly difficult to answer.
No, I’m more of an ordinary guy who likes women.
The memories of Sung Yoo-rang that entered my mind confirmed that.
He, too, had seen romance with the opposite sex.
But why was this being asked so suddenly?
There’s no issue with your physical functions, so why…?
I was completely at a loss for words myself.
“Is there a problem?”
That’s a given… No, it’s not a problem. I’m simply reminded that there are still humans in this world that I don’t understand.
Humans that are beyond comprehension.
From what I personally witnessed of Elsie’s eating habits, I understood that statement.
If it’s difficult for human beings, how much more for a god?
“I can understand that.”
I was just trying to calm down, but it seems I have no choice. I called you here for another purpose.
Another purpose?
The only purpose I could think of was one.
“Is the God of Chains back?”
I had previously asked to be informed when he returned.
If he really returned, it was quite earlier than anticipated.
But the answer was negative.
No, the God of Chains is still resting. The duration of his rest doesn’t seem to have changed much from what I mentioned before.
Then what was the matter?
I summoned you because there is something I want to inform you about. It’s related to my trial.
“Trial?”
I could only harden my expression.
While it was true that the trial’s assistance helped me be here, I didn’t have particularly good memories of it.
‘Besides, I never thought this place would still function as a trial!’
After the contract with the Magic Towers, this place’s main role had become a training ground for Hero Academy candidates.
I hadn’t heard of anyone having conversations with gods in this space, indicating it had lost its trial function.
So why was it suddenly referring to a trial for me?
You don’t need to be too concerned. It’s just a trivial trial. In fact, my trial has been progressing without you even realizing it.
“Progressing already?”
Yes, my trial has naturally integrated into the Hero Academy’s curriculum. That was also part of the contract made with the Magic Tower.
This was news to me.
However, if this fact could now be disclosed to me…
“Does that mean I’ve passed the trial?”
Passed… not exactly. But you have made some achievements. The reason I summoned you today was to give you your interim reward.
“Interim reward?”
It was a bit disappointing not to pass the trial, but hearing about the existence of an interim reward felt quite promising.
Yes, I will deliver it right now.
With those words, I looked up at the Great Tree.
To see if any fruits were falling.
And sure enough, I spotted one fruit falling.
‘A blue one?’
It was of the same grade as the Awakening Pill I received from the second trial.
However, considering this was an interim reward, it wasn’t really bad.
I used Wind’s Power to safely catch it.
‘I wonder what it contains this time.’
It certainly seemed like something tangible was inside based on the clinking sound.
But it felt quite light.
I inserted my finger into the gap of the fruit and opened it.
‘What’s this?’
Once again, there were plenty of pill-like objects inside.
The difference from before was that these were all wrapped up nicely.
No, they seemed more like vitamins…
‘Vitamins?’
At that moment, I realized what this was.
“Excuse me?”
When weighing its usefulness, it wouldn’t be useless.
But whether it was related to my combat ability…
Of course, it is related. Pregnancy leads to a temporary loss of combat ability.
That was undeniably true.
However…
‘Are you my dad now?’
I placed my hand on my forehead, looking at the Great Tree.
The divine being then made a defensive remark.
Please don’t view it that way. I’m only authorized to give rewards; it’s not my will to select it. However…
At that moment, I thought I heard a hissing sound from somewhere.
And the god continued speaking.
I personally believe this is the item you need the most. Regardless of whether it’s your will or someone else’s.
“Wait a minute, what do you mean by that…”
Then I wish you safety. You still have trials left to overcome.
In the next moment, I found myself emerging from the lake.
“Allen?”
Elsie looked at me, puzzled.
“What’s with all that stuff you’re holding?”
“It’s just ordinary pills.”
Ordinary pills? There’s no such thing in this world.
Nevertheless, I put those items into my inventory as naturally as possible.
“Well then, let’s head back to the dormitory.”
I once again extended my sleeve towards Elsie.
Just as I was about to pull out Night’s Shadow from my inventory…
Suddenly, I felt warmth in my hand.
“Elsie?”
For some reason, she was holding my hand.
“What’s the big deal? We can hold hands as comrades, right?”
Well, she had a point.
Thinking otherwise would be the odd part.
I tried my best not to focus on Elsie’s hand as I pulled out Night’s Shadow.
‘By the way, there are still trials remaining…’
Since it was tied to the Hero Academy, there wouldn’t be any significant risks involved.
But if I could gain rewards from it, that was quite exciting.
I added figuring out the contents of the third trial to my list of things to do.
*
