Chapter 16 (1/2)
Chapter 16 – Day 5, 5th Floor Hunger
The next moment, the stone statue melted down.
[Please step away from me.]
Just like an ice cream in summer, the stone statue became a puddleand started to form a shape on the floor. It was a large plate that was one metre in height. The square plate filled 1/5th of the entire floor.
The stone statue, which was no much smaller than before, stood on top of the 'stage.'Even so, the statue was still three metres tall.
[Originally, I wanted to do a tournament but there is a s.p.a.ce constraint. Some people will also want to take a break. Those who are willing can come up at any time.]
As soon as the stone statue finished talking, dozens of people rushed towards the stage at once. There were the words 'no risk' so they thought there was nothing to lose. The man who was first on the stage was the one who had neared the statue to question it. The people behind him were pushed out.
[Then, we will now begin.]
The very next moment, a number came up in front of me. The man on the stage asked with a confused expression.
”Eh? What is this number three?”
The statue answered everyone, not just the man.
[The number in front of you is the number of compet.i.tors you will have to defeat in order to get the talent on top of this stage. With a minimum of two people, the number has been a.s.signed as fairly as possible considering your abilities and grades.]
Some people were sulking.
[Now, please come up on stage to challenge this person.]
A man immediately jumped onto the stage. He had a confident expression. It wasn't hard to guess the reason why.
“Does he have a higher number?”
”Yes.” It was like Yang Su-jin thought. The number was the same as a person's strength. The man on stage had unintentionally said 'three.' Therefore, those with a higher number would feel confident.
[Even if your HP becomes zero, there is no out. Now. Start.]
The fight began. The man with the number three was pushed back. it was almost one-sided as his health fell to the bottom.
”Eek!” He swung a fist at the opponent's chest.
”Heh!” The opponent snorted like it was ludicrous&h.e.l.lip; Then his complexion gradually changed and he spat up blood. There was a needle in his chest where the number three man had punched. Even though it wasn't deep, the opponent's HP decreased in a very short amount of time.
“Poison?”
“Poison.”
[You have won the match. Who will be the next challenger? If a challenger doesn't appear in less than a minute, then he will get half the talent!]
I took my eyes off the stage and moved further into a back corner.
“Aren't you watching?” Yang Su-jin asked. There was no need to do so. The man only had a three. Rather, it was better to wait until the fervour had died down. Didn't they know that the poison and needles were equipment that they were throwing away when it was needed for future dungeon progression?
[You have lost.]
It wasn't surprising. The number three man had quickly received another challenger. He was showing signs of weariness. The opponent also knew his trick so he couldn't use it again.
[Now! Do we have a next challenger? If your number is 'two' then you only have to win once!]
That was impossible. I pulled out the cloth bag. There were three thick books.
[Learn Programming Efficiently]
[The Basics of Mathematical Problem Solving]
[Advanced English: Reading]
”Ah&h.e.l.lip;” Yang Su-jin's face was filled with shock. The talents you could get inside a dungeon were limited. But&h.e.l.lip; what if I took books from different fields and read them? Would I be able to gain different abilities?
“Check the situation on stage. Tell me immediately if it seems like someone is going to get the talent.”
”Ah, yes!”
I started with 'Learn Programming Efficiently.'
[Talent has been acquired.]
[Talent – Reading Comprehension:The ability to read words faster. Understand the meaning of words will rise according to the level. Memory, thinking power and concentration have slightly increased.]
I continued reading.
[Reading Comprehension. Lv 1. 34/100]
I didn't receive programming. I had expected it, but it was worth trying. In the previous dungeon floors, I had tried wrestling with the air or swinging a fist at the wall. If I could raise the level of Punching then I would stay in the dungeon until I could no longer hold out.
However, it was useless. The level didn't increase because the experience rise was too slow. A condition was that the action needed to be valid.
In the case of programming, the talent didn't appear because I was merely skimming a theoretical book. Then&h.e.l.lip; What about the second book? The Basics of Mathematical Problem Solving. It was the easiest mathematics book for beginners.
Mathematics. It was an area I wasn't particularly good at in middle or high school, but would there be some results since it was all in my head?
[Talent has been acquired.]
[Talent – Mathematics:The ability to clearly understand numbers, volume and s.p.a.ce problems related to various objects and phenomena will rise according to the level. Thinking power, spatial perception and insight have slightly increased.]
Okay. Although it was slow, experience was definitely rising as I read the book. Now I was down to the last book. Advanced English: Reading.If I could get Mathematics then of course this should work.
The question was, what would the result show up as?
[Talent has been acquired.]
[Talent – Language Acquisition:The ability to learn languages other than your native language. Language acquisition will become faster and more accurate. Thinking power has slightly increased.]
[Talent has been acquired.]