She thought that because she wasn't completely aware of what her own status was to the people watching this competition.
August's surprise was matched by the entire crowd that watched the two interact.
Every question he asked was met with thousands or even tens of thousands of nodding heads as people wondered the exact same things.
And every answer that Eris gave surprised them even more.
Holy Clan geniuses were existences that were like the heavens to normal dragons in Arulion. The social hierarchy had become so embedded in their minds that seeing one of such godly beings talk to a commoner as an equal was preposterous to every single one of them.
Hell, it wasn't even them alone. From commoners to other Holy Clan members, everyone was dumbfounded by the interaction between the two.
She didn't think much of it, but to everyone else, her words were a direct acknowledgment of August's talent.
For a Holy Clan genius to say those kinds of things to a commoner was something that had quite literally never happened before in Arulion's written history.
It was only natural for everyone to be surprised.
Compared to the audience, August was actually applaudable for being able to regain his senses so fast.
"So basically, what you're saying is that you saw the final boss and you need help fighting it."
He summed it up well. Eris nodded in response.
"And, you chose me because everyone else sucks."
Eris nodded again. That was right about the best way to put it.
"What do you need my help with?"
"You'll find out when we get there. I don't feel like explaining."
It was a poor excuse, but what was August supposed to do about it?
At the end of the day, Eris was still far too strong for him. Her offer to work together was really a demand that he didn't have the right to refuse.
"If I say no, I'll die, right?"
He asked just for confirmation's sake.
"You won't die since we're in the arena, but the next time you wake up, you'll definitely be in a hospital bed," Eris confirmed casually.
"That is, in fact, a situation that I don't want to be in."
August sighed.
Well, looking at the bright side, it was beneficial for him if they teamed up too. He would have an easy time getting to the center of the labyrinth with a 4th class protector, and if the final boss fight was going to be scaled to Eris' level anyway, it was better to be on her side than to fight alone.
As if she sensed his acceptance, Eris released the restraints holding August down.
Her pressure also disappeared, giving his mana freedom of reign.
'Dangerous.'
The most dangerous part was her bloodline.
The Azure Dragon blood lineage was amazing. It was beyond many others, but, it was still the lineage of a Holy Dragon.
In terms of bloodline alone, the first Dark Dragon was just as powerful as Qinglong.
Even his massive bloodline strength could only be equal to theirs.
'I'll have to learn more about Holy Clan geniuses.'
A lot of his stigmas about them were disproven with Eris' existence alone. If he was going to properly fight them and perhaps even recruit them to his cause, then he needed to stop viewing them through a colored lens.
"Great. It's good that you're agreeable. It would have been a pain if you said no."
Eris was in a situation where she needed him to say yes, because she didn't want to waste time looking for other people at this point in the competition.
After all, judging by the amount of time that had passed, they were likely in its final stretches.
There were bound to be only a few people left.
August cracked his neck with another sigh.
"Do you know the way back to the center?"
"When we get back to where I was, sure, but I lost a lot of ground whileI waschasing you,"Eris replied.
It made sense. DisregardingAugust'soriginal random movements that took them further away from their goal, she probably had to do a lot of twists and turns toperfectlyend up on the other side of the door when he opened it.
August nodded without much of an expression since he somewhat expected it.
"Follow me, then."
The path back the way he camewouldn'twork again. When the wall swallowed him,the mechanism he usedto enter was also broken.
Itdidn'tmatter, though, since August understood how to get back there through the righthand doorthathe'dopened before.
He led Eris out of it and rushed through the hallsonce more, this time with a far stronger genius on his tail.
They took one turn after the other, arriving on a completely different route thanthe onethey were both taking before.
Still, it rejoined to their previous trajectoryeventually, and only at that point did Eris realize where they were.
Shehadlet August lead her because she knew he would only be sabotaging himself by playinganytricks at this juncture.
Yet, she found it hard to believethat they were actuallymaking progress. In her eyes,August'smovements seemed random, and they cut through many barriers thatwould'vecaused others to turn around.
He was able to manipulate the maze to his advantageunlikeanyone else.
And,with that ability,not only did he getthem back on track, heeven returned them to their previous position without a problem.
Inthis ever-changing maze where the corridors they saw were never thecorridors they traversed, this was more impressive than August could ever imagine.
The two made their way through the final stretch before the boss room when it happened to them.
Maps that showed them where the other participants were appeared before them, causing them to stopin their tracks.
"This is…"
"Well,it'sobvious which ones are us. The two over there seem to be fighting, and the last one…well, I guesshe'llbe a problem later,"August said.
Eris nodded.
Their dots were moving until they stopped. As for the other two,they'dbeen in the same spot for several seconds and were still there despite the change.
If the two of themwere able toinstantly recognize what the map was, then it was the same for everyone else.
"But, only five left, huh…?"
August was definitely surprised, but it made more sense when he remembered thatthere were only thirteen of themat the start.
'Plus, therearen'tmany important people.'
Mostof thenoble clan geniuses participating in this roundweren'tworth much.
Nevertheless, August and Eris were the closest to thecenter of the labyrinthby a large margin.
And now that they knew where everyone else was, they surelyweren'tgoing tostop.
Now was the best opportunitythey'dhave.
If they waited any longer,thenthe others would arriveandthey'dhave to deal with many more annoyances.
Looking at each other and nodding, the two started running once again.
With every second, they approached closer to the last step.
But theyweren'tthe only ones.
Unlike Valerie and Remelia, who were still fighting, Mikaelwas usingthe map to its fullest to find his way to where August and Eris were.
Itwouldn'tbe long before he arrived.
The only question was…
Would those two be able to defeat the boss before he did?
She thought that because she wasn't completely aware of what her own status was to the people watching this competition.
August's surprise was matched by the entire crowd that watched the two interact.
Every question he asked was met with thousands or even tens of thousands of nodding heads as people wondered the exact same things.
And every answer that Eris gave surprised them even more.
Holy Clan geniuses were existences that were like the heavens to normal dragons in Arulion. The social hierarchy had become so embedded in their minds that seeing one of such godly beings talk to a commoner as an equal was preposterous to every single one of them.
Hell, it wasn't even them alone. From commoners to other Holy Clan members, everyone was dumbfounded by the interaction between the two.
She didn't think much of it, but to everyone else, her words were a direct acknowledgment of August's talent.
For a Holy Clan genius to say those kinds of things to a commoner was something that had quite literally never happened before in Arulion's written history.
It was only natural for everyone to be surprised.
Compared to the audience, August was actually applaudable for being able to regain his senses so fast.
"So basically, what you're saying is that you saw the final boss and you need help fighting it."
He summed it up well. Eris nodded in response.
"And, you chose me because everyone else sucks."
Eris nodded again. That was right about the best way to put it.
"What do you need my help with?"
"You'll find out when we get there. I don't feel like explaining."
It was a poor excuse, but what was August supposed to do about it?
At the end of the day, Eris was still far too strong for him. Her offer to work together was really a demand that he didn't have the right to refuse.
"If I say no, I'll die, right?"
He asked just for confirmation's sake.
"You won't die since we're in the arena, but the next time you wake up, you'll definitely be in a hospital bed," Eris confirmed casually.
"That is, in fact, a situation that I don't want to be in."
August sighed.
Well, looking at the bright side, it was beneficial for him if they teamed up too. He would have an easy time getting to the center of the labyrinth with a 4th class protector, and if the final boss fight was going to be scaled to Eris' level anyway, it was better to be on her side than to fight alone.
As if she sensed his acceptance, Eris released the restraints holding August down.
Her pressure also disappeared, giving his mana freedom of reign.
'Dangerous.'
The most dangerous part was her bloodline.
The Azure Dragon blood lineage was amazing. It was beyond many others, but, it was still the lineage of a Holy Dragon.
In terms of bloodline alone, the first Dark Dragon was just as powerful as Qinglong.
Even his massive bloodline strength could only be equal to theirs.
'I'll have to learn more about Holy Clan geniuses.'
A lot of his stigmas about them were disproven with Eris' existence alone. If he was going to properly fight them and perhaps even recruit them to his cause, then he needed to stop viewing them through a colored lens.
"Great. It's good that you're agreeable. It would have been a pain if you said no."
Eris was in a situation where she needed him to say yes, because she didn't want to waste time looking for other people at this point in the competition.
After all, judging by the amount of time that had passed, they were likely in its final stretches.
There were bound to be only a few people left.
August cracked his neck with another sigh.
"Do you know the way back to the center?"
"When we get back to where I was, sure, but I lost a lot of ground whileI waschasing you,"Eris replied.
It made sense. DisregardingAugust'soriginal random movements that took them further away from their goal, she probably had to do a lot of twists and turns toperfectlyend up on the other side of the door when he opened it.
August nodded without much of an expression since he somewhat expected it.
"Follow me, then."
The path back the way he camewouldn'twork again. When the wall swallowed him,the mechanism he usedto enter was also broken.
Itdidn'tmatter, though, since August understood how to get back there through the righthand doorthathe'dopened before.
He led Eris out of it and rushed through the hallsonce more, this time with a far stronger genius on his tail.
They took one turn after the other, arriving on a completely different route thanthe onethey were both taking before.
Still, it rejoined to their previous trajectoryeventually, and only at that point did Eris realize where they were.
Shehadlet August lead her because she knew he would only be sabotaging himself by playinganytricks at this juncture.
Yet, she found it hard to believethat they were actuallymaking progress. In her eyes,August'smovements seemed random, and they cut through many barriers thatwould'vecaused others to turn around.
He was able to manipulate the maze to his advantageunlikeanyone else.
And,with that ability,not only did he getthem back on track, heeven returned them to their previous position without a problem.
Inthis ever-changing maze where the corridors they saw were never thecorridors they traversed, this was more impressive than August could ever imagine.
The two made their way through the final stretch before the boss room when it happened to them.
Maps that showed them where the other participants were appeared before them, causing them to stopin their tracks.
"This is…"
"Well,it'sobvious which ones are us. The two over there seem to be fighting, and the last one…well, I guesshe'llbe a problem later,"August said.
Eris nodded.
Their dots were moving until they stopped. As for the other two,they'dbeen in the same spot for several seconds and were still there despite the change.
If the two of themwere able toinstantly recognize what the map was, then it was the same for everyone else.
"But, only five left, huh…?"
August was definitely surprised, but it made more sense when he remembered thatthere were only thirteen of themat the start.
'Plus, therearen'tmany important people.'
Mostof thenoble clan geniuses participating in this roundweren'tworth much.
Nevertheless, August and Eris were the closest to thecenter of the labyrinthby a large margin.
And now that they knew where everyone else was, they surelyweren'tgoing tostop.
Now was the best opportunitythey'dhave.
If they waited any longer,thenthe others would arriveandthey'dhave to deal with many more annoyances.
Looking at each other and nodding, the two started running once again.
With every second, they approached closer to the last step.
But theyweren'tthe only ones.
Unlike Valerie and Remelia, who were still fighting, Mikaelwas usingthe map to its fullest to find his way to where August and Eris were.
Itwouldn'tbe long before he arrived.
The only question was…
Would those two be able to defeat the boss before he did?
