Chapter 77 (1/2)

Randidly folded his arms, his eyes narrowing. The only reason he had remained this long was that he couldn’t set aside his nagging feeling that she would be incredibly useful to have on his side. Even still… he was still made nervous by-

But then her shoulders slumped, and her whole demeanor changed. Tears began to form in the corners of her eyes.

“I… I’m really glad I met you. You are the first person… you are the first person to really see me. To see me. Everyone else is just blinded by the skills, and….” She sniffed, and then looked at Randidly with an odd expression. “How attractive do you think I am? Be honest.”

With his eyes fixed on the table between them, Randidly was almost squirming. Give him a sphinx with infinite mana any day. This aspect of life was something he was simply never good at. His experiences in the dungeon taught him how to act in life, but never how to interact.

“Honestly…?” Randidly said tentatively, and Raina nodded. He shrugged helplessly. “...honestly, rather plain…your body is very…. Uh…. well endowed, but your face…. Although that changes when you smile. But I can’t be sure that’s not the skill…”

Raina leaned forward, her hair swinging to cover her face. The table was silent for almost a minute, before she straightened, a strange look on her face.

“That… hurt more than I expected it to. I’m not… I mean that’s how I used to be, but ever since the system came…” She shook her head, seemingly very sad. “I’ve felt lost though, unsure of who I was. What I wanted to be. What I had become. Thank you, you’ve helped me remember. Plain, ha.”

Raina stood, her smile sad, but still making Randidly want to smile back at her. And ultimately, that made him not trust her. She put a business card down on the table.

“This is my address. If you want… we can talk again. I’d really, really like to talk again. Please visit.” Then, to Randidly’s surprise, she leaned over, and pressed her lips against Randidly’s cheek. He stood still. His perception had seen her coming, and he had ample time to React, and his Agility was so high that it would have been simple to evade her, but he was simply surprised.

Randidly had obviously had girlfriends before, and sex, but… those had always moved slowly, building over time. This sudden kiss… left him at a loss.

What had him most stunned was that there was no familiar influence of her charm on him. It was a genuine moment, without a skill.

Raina pulled back, and they looked at each other for several seconds.

Then she tried to smile, but failed. “You…. you’re not going to visit, are you….?”

Randidly shook his head slowly. This woman… he could not trust her. She left then, Matilda allowing the other two into the room, who looked with wide eyes at Randidly.

Karlito was the first to speak. “Randidly, man… on your cheek… that lipstick… did Raina…?”

Sighing, Randidly stood, and walked out into the night, leaving the people behind. Feeling annoyed, he scaled a nearby apartment building, quickly climbing 20 stories to the roof. There, he let out a long sigh.

He really needed to work on his people skills. If only the system had skills for that…

A notification popped up, a welcome distraction from his current annoyance.

Congratulations! Your Thorn Lvl 4 is ready to level up. Due to diet and influence, Thorn wonders whether he is a Lone Hunter, or a Team Trapper.

As mulled over these choices, another notification popped up.

Congratulations! Your Arbor Lvl 2 is ready to level up. Due to diet and influence, Arbor wonders whether he is simply a Lonely Tower, or a Pillar of the Community?

Randidly narrowed his eyes at the timing. It was strange enough that both were leveling at the same time, due to the seemingly increased difficulty for his Soul Plants to level, but they also both had similar references. Were they developing a symbiotic relationship with each other…?

That didn’t sound right, otherwise there would likely be more of a connection between the two levels. Randidly supposed that without his presence, both had been forced to be exposed to more humans. Perhaps they were simply wondering what their purpose was, in the grand scheme of things.

This was a lot more likely for Arbor, with its higher Brain Function, but still…

Because he wasn’t sure of the effects of either, Randidly split the difference. Arbor… well, all he really knew about the thing was that it was vain. As such, it seemed to make more sense that it would be a part of a community. Meanwhile, Thorn was designed to lurk, and slaughter monsters, which meant Randidly preferred it as a Lone Hunter.

Satisfied, Randidly made both of his selections.

Thorn is now Lvl 5. Physicality has increased by 3. Brain Function has increased by 2. Particularity has increased by 1. Thorn has learned the skill Thorny Whip.

Arbor is now Lvl 3. Magical Aptitude has increased by 1. Brain Function has increased by 1. Particularity has increased by 4. Arbor has learned the skill Aura of Arbor.

Randidly looked at the ultimate results from the level ups, slightly aggrieved.

Thorn (Blood)

Lvl 5

Survivability: 8

Physicality: 10

Magical Aptitude:2

Brain Function:6

Particularity:9

Battle Ability:18

Special Skills: Flexibility, Strangle, Dig, Thorny Whip

Arbor (Attention)