NABC Chapter 33
Chapter 33
The sun was gradually setting.
A considerable amount of time had been wasted in the city streets, moving from the first floor to the second.
It was a time that felt awkward to do anything more.
Just then, someone approached me.
There was no reason not to respond.
“This way.”
I followed the woman into a certain tavern.
A roughly arranged round table, wooden barrel chairs surrounding it, and various races drunkenly chatting filled the atmosphere.
The ambiance was distinctly different.
It seemed she had been here before as she naturally brought back some beer.
For the price, one coin bought two glasses of beer.
I couldn’t help but click my tongue at the unexpectedly steep price.
“What’s your name?”
“Error Player.”
“Error Player? That’s unique. I’m Lee Seol-ah.”
Lee Seol-ah smiled gently as she handed me the beer.
“You just registered as a gladiator, right? You must be quite hungry.”
“A bit. I am hungry.”
“.......”
The corners of Lee Seol-ah’s eyes twitched.
It was just for a moment, but she couldn’t avoid my gaze.
‘You started it by speaking first.’@@@@
She wasn’t from another dimension.
I didn’t feel the need to bend over backward for an Earthling.
Lee Seol-ah quickly composed herself and led me to a seat.
“...It’s not like I buy just anyone a drink. Getting gold is not easy.”
Lee Seol-ah expertly ordered food.
I glanced at the menu.
Nothing really looked appetizing.
“.......”
The establishment was shabbier than other restaurants, and the state of the customers was disheveled.
Having scanned everything, I quickly realized this was a tavern for low-tier players.
A restaurant using cheap prices as its weapon.
The quality of the meals was, of course, not good.
It was at a level that could only be considered acceptable if you were genuinely starving for a meal or if you ended up ordering snacks after just drinking beer for too long.
‘Is this the average living standard of Earthlings?’
That said, it wasn’t filled with Earthlings alone.
There were other races as well.
More players than I expected seemed to prioritize price over taste.
That must mean surviving on the second floor was quite tough.
“Aren’t you going to eat?”
“I’m on a diet.”
“.......”
She had confidently said she would treat me, but it seemed like it was quite an expensive expenditure for her.
I tore a piece of bread in half and handed it to Lee Seol-ah.
“We can share.”
“You don’t seem that hungry?”
“I’m on a diet too.”
Lee Seol-ah didn’t refuse my offer.
As we shared a piece of bread, I waited for her to speak.
There had to be a reason she approached me.
“You seemed to be looking at the recruitment announcement earlier.”
Just as I expected, Lee Seol-ah was the one to bring it up first.
I chewed on the bread and responded.
“I felt like I couldn’t just sit still. So I was checking out the matches.”
“...You made a quick decision, huh? While everyone knows, it’s not easy to decide.”
“Is that so?”
“Most people go a day or two without food and end up sleeping outside, then register as gladiators late. They keep putting it off.”
Lee Seol-ah took a sip of her beer.
Lee Seol-ah asked back, seemingly surprised that I would refuse.
“We can do the Griffin Hunt match together and collect the prize money. Once a week is a bit dangerous, so we can aim for every four days. Then we can gather enough money to live. You won’t become a slave.”
“.......”
Should I be honest?
That her fate looked quite dire?
Jo Seohui had told me.
The reason Earthlings were shunned by players from other dimensions.
‘Since they stab others in the back without hesitation, why would other players like them?’
The only way for Earthlings to grow stronger is by absorbing the souls of others.
Excluding cases where they receive bonus points, which are extremely rare.
Desperate Earthlings inevitably resort to betrayal.
Once, both you and I.
─ Imagine that happening repeatedly across dimensions. How do you think the reputation of Earthlings would fare?
Even though they were weak, and thus of little use as teammates, having an Earthling around meant everyone had to be cautious about getting stabbed in the back.
Naturally, their treatment would worsen.
‘Just because they are from the same Earth, do you think they won’t stab you in the back?’
They might actually be more prone to betrayal.
In a 3v3 team battle, when deciding the opponent,
to survive, I had to somehow manage to engage in battle with a weaker team.
I had watched with my own eyes as the loyalty built over a week crumbled in less than ten minutes.
‘But team up with a girl I just met today?’
If I was going to play solo while cosplaying as a dragon, I’d do that instead.
I wouldn’t do something that foolish.
‘And if I were to team up with someone from Earth, I’d rather do it with those who came up with me from the first floor.’
For example, Kim Min-seong and Lee Su-jeong.
There would be less resistance since I knew their faces.
Lee Seol-ah looked at me with a surprised expression, as if she couldn’t believe I was refusing her offer.
“...Are you really going to refuse my proposal? Why? I don’t get it.”
“It’s not a refusal. I just need time to think.”
“That’s a refusal.”
Lee Seol-ah’s tone sharpened in an instant.
She seemed annoyed that things weren’t going as she wanted.
“It’s not a bad proposal for you. I’m telling you it’s not a loss at all!”
“Whether it’s a loss or not is up to me to decide.”
Seeing Lee Seol-ah’s demeanor change to one of hostility made me want to laugh.
‘Tsk tsk. I’m refusing to save you guys.’
Jo Seohui had asked me.
To help Earthlings as much as possible.
This wasn’t an implication to take responsibility.
If there’s no reason to kill, don’t kill, and if you can save them, do so.
It was about drawing the line early to avoid any reason to kill.
In another sense, I was honoring Jo Seohui’s request.
‘And she doesn’t even realize that.’
Behind Lee Seol-ah, a man appeared.
He was obviously the team leader.
“Lee Seol-ah. You haven’t managed to convince him yet?”
“...No.”
“You foolish girl. Get out of here.”
The man roughly shoved Lee Seol-ah aside and took her place.
Lee Seol-ah didn’t say a word and was pushed away.
‘The atmosphere has suddenly turned bleak.’
Regardless of everything, sitting across from a pretty girl is much better than being with a man who hasn’t even shaved his beard properly.
He spoke.
“Let’s cut to the chase. Join my team.”
His eyes were burning with intensity.
He glared at me with a threatening expression that seemed to imply he would not hesitate to resort to violence if I refused to join the team.