Chapter 40 - A Call
After exiting the Trial Tower, Sheila immediately went ahead as fast as she possibly could while hiding her presence from her mother. When she arrived in the room where there's a laundry washing machine, she stripped her clothes off even with the underwear while wrapping herself with the towel from the side. She put the bloody clothes into the washing machine and went into the bathroom to finally take a long warm bath.
An hour later, Sheila came out of the bathroom with a refreshing face with towel wrapping around her seducing body. It was good timing on her part since the washing machine was also done doing its job the moment she left the bathroom after having her fill with a wonderful bath. She picked up the now clean clothes from the washing machine, and she hangs it to a rod to let it dry before leaving the room to her bedroom.
After wearing a new set of clothes, she lay down on the bed while pondering on one particular topic. It was about the key, Trial Tower's Key. At first, she wanted to give to her junior secretly due to how she becomes an annoyance to her life. It was merely to prank her and then she would take it back later on. She thought if her junior were busy with pondering on what happens to her, she wouldn't have any time to stalk her then. It was a genius plan, alright?
That was also merely a jest thought, no way she would do that. Even as a prank, it would be too foolish to let out the secret about the existence of Trial Tower to other people. She still hasn't figured out how does the green creature from back then came from when she killed it in alleyways.
The corpse of the goblin didn't disappear like in the Trial Tower. She has a few thoughts regarding this, but she couldn't put her finger on particular stuff, and so she decides to keep it quiet for now and see how it goes and if she is right on the mark, great and also problematic. But one thing that she could say is that the monster that spawned in Trial Tower isn't real. Obviously, a real living being wouldn't disappear when they died like some sort of game. When one died, they left the corpse behind.
A correct example is a goblin that she met in the alleyways. It didn't break into a fragment of glittering light before disappearing entirely into the void like in the Trial Tower, the corpse of the goblin remained. It also makes sense that she felt an urge to vomit because she had killed a living being, a monster or not; it is still a living being who breathes life. And the reason she didn't feel anything when she killed tons of it in the Trial Tower is due to how they didn't feel like a real living being. It's like they didn't have any soul, a hollow living being.
But if that was so for the goblin, then how about the slime? She had never seen or killed one before she even got the leveling system. This is one of the reason that she couldn't understand the full picture of it. Is it merely a monster that was created by the system for her? A slime seems simple to create since it was just made of a mass of water that turned into jelly. But what was the core? She couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she tried to think with all her brainpower.
It's like trying to understand the whole puzzle with just a piece of it. Sheila also has this worry that one day the system would disappear out of nowhere like how it did when it appears on her phone, and she would just return to a normal and boring life. The system didn't answer nor talk to her anymore after the time when she asked one question.
She had also been wondering if the leveling system also has a class like in classic RPG games. In another RPG games, it was called a job. Either way, it is an essential thing. Maybe, like how she got a new skill when the attribute point reach 20, and perhaps if she leveled up until 20 and that's when the class change would make its appearance? Currently, she's level 14; it was still six levels away to go.
She kind of went stray from her original path, but what was it again? Oh yes, she was pondering on whether to give the key to Ria or not. She has to come to a conclusion now, or if it gets any later, it would be more dangerous, or so her sixth sense warns her. She didn't know what kind of 'dangerous' it is but yes, it should be a sick one since she didn't get this kind of warning when she fights against the Goblin Shaman.
But she didn't know how to go for this, should she randomly bring the subject to her in school or only talk to her in some secluded spot. Or rather, maybe she could call and invite her here instead? That sounds like something she would do; she nodded her head at her suggestion before picking up her phone on the table by the bedside and dial a familiar number. A familiar ringtone starts to play the moment the call went on, but it wasn't long before Ria pick up.
"Sheila? How are you?"
"Yes, it's me, and I'm doing good. Thanks for asking and by the way, do you have something to do today?"
"I'm just resting right now, so I don't have anything particular to do at the moment. Why?"
"Could you come to my place then? I have something to say to you."
"Something for me? Why don't you just said it over the phone? I'll tell you this; I won't come over just to play the game!"
"It's not about the game! It's really important, so just come over! Or I'll spread your embarrassing moment at school—"
"Alright, alright, I will come over now. Geez, No need to be hasty, Sheila~."
"Then I'll be waiting. See you later."
***
After hanging up the phone call from Sheila, Ria went to her closet to find suitable comfy clothes. Once she was done, she left her bedroom and went downstairs. Before she could open the front door, her mother shows up behind her.
"Oh? Are you leaving? Where to?"
"Sheila told me to come over; she didn't say what is it about though."
"I see, have fun there then."
While Ria was walking on the way to Sheila's home, she was also pondering on something. She didn't know when, but she started to notice that something seem to have changed when she looked at Sheila. She didn't know what it was, but for sure, there's something. But even so, why did she call her to come to her place? She said it was something important and yet it couldn't be explained over the phone. Oh? Is today that time of a month for her? No, she already checked the date, but it was not today. Hmm, is it about the reason behind her acting weird for some days now?
Did she find herself a boyfriend?! No way! She can't believe for that quiet girl to have already found a boy, no! She must have gotten trick! She needs to find a way to tell Sheila that she is being tricked but how? While Ria was pondering over random nonsense that she comes up with, she didn't know that soon she's going to find out a lot more important and vital information than she had expected. It was also the day where her ordinary life started going on a different path, a path where the only supernatural exists and trouble everywhere.