'Which ones?!'
Out of respect for Grumpy and his determination to fulfill his "role," I didn't yell as much as I'd like, so I asked in the most controlled way I could. Yes, that was the most controlled I could manage.
[We could use Grumpy as an occasional secret boss by using his "soul" on an NPC.]
....
...
...
Okay, I give up. What's the difference between doing that and using him as a boss? And what do you mean by NPC?
[We would make his existence not just about fighting, but we would transform him into a character, like in the games. More specifically, he would be the character who occasionally assists the protagonists when they enter a seemingly dead end. Sometimes showing them paths, sometimes explicitly helping in fights, and sometimes fighting against them.]
'So you basically want to use Grumpy as a secret character or something like that?'
[Something along those lines, yes.] We would give him a specific physical body, similar to the NPC/secret boss on the second floor, and let him decide when, how, and how he would act when he appeared. Unless you deem him necessary in a certain place, at a certain time. In addition, we would allow him to enter and exit the dungeon's core without necessarily having to be defeated.
...It's not a bad idea, although I still feel something is missing.
[But how would that affect my current "body," and technically my main body? My existence was created for that specific body (the first floor boss), if I leave that body wouldn't I basically cease to exist?]
That was one of my doubts too.
[Generally yes. But in this case I'm suggesting we transform, or if you prefer, promote you from a floor boss to something like an executive of the dungeon itself.]
'Is that possible?'
[Within the dungeon and the area of influence, anything you desire is, technically, possible to do.]
'Provided that Authority is sufficient and certain conditions are met?'
[Correct.]
...
.....
'What do you want to do, Grumpy? If you want, you also have the option of just wiping your memories every time you come here, like the mini-bosses, so you'd barely remember the times you were defeated, and thus the stress on you would be reduced.'
The ball of energy that would reveal Grumpy's soul remained silent for a while, a relatively long time, until it finally made up its mind.
'I...'
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Connor's POV
My head was killing me.
In my whole life I'd only drunk alcohol a few times, but one particular time gave me a terrible headache; to this day, that's the only time I've ever had a hangover.
But the headache I was feeling now was much worse than that time, much worse than when I was sick and Master Diem and Kamila took turns taking care of me.
I felt like my eyes were heavy; just opening them was difficult, and the light almost blinded me when we finally managed to open them. I needed a few moments lying there, blinking and looking at the ceiling until I realized that I knew, and yet didn't recognize, this ceiling.
'Ah yes, this is the ceiling of the cabin near the lake.'
That explained the smell of pine with a slight touch of lemon that I was smelling. Inhaling deeply the scent, I felt the pain in my body lessen, but the headache continued. This was strange; usually here, any pain would pass quite quickly.
'?' But why am I he–!!!!!!!'
It was only then that I remembered, the joint attack, the stones, the goblins, the blood, the flesh puppets, Him, and especially my friends.
Throwing the blanket aside, I got up with my heart pounding in my chest and went as fast as I could to the door. It was unexpected luck that my body was still weak and therefore slower, because before I reached it, the door opened and one of Mr. Andreas' subordinates entered.
He looked at me surprised, and so did I, but I quickly let the surprise pass.
–Where are the others?!.
Only when I spoke did he recover from his astonishment. I was also a little surprised at how easily my voice came out. Neither low nor high, and without any stuttering, even though I was sure I had been unconscious for a while.
–Everything is alright, Mr. Connor, your friends are here too, look. – he said, pointing behind me.
Turning around, I realized I was in the largest room of the cabin, but instead of just one huge bed, there were four other small ones besides mine.
'Now I understand why I hadn't fully recognized the place immediately. I think I've only been in here a couple of times since the master and I discovered this place.'
I thought, glancing briefly around the room before my gaze fell on them. Max and Mav were on the left, their beds almost touching, and completely unconscious.
Mav was much better, if his "slight" snoring and the way he slept were any indication. Max still had some dark spots on his face, but much better than before, and his nose had been put back in place with more care than my hasty treatment.
Anna and Cali were also doing better. Well, I don't remember them suffering so many injuries, but at least they both seemed to be sleeping without problems.
Although Cali seemed to be having a particularly bad dream, judging by how slightly she was moving under the covers. And Anna worried me a little since she was hardly moving; even her breathing only made the covers move very slightly.
'I hope this indicates that she's recovering well.'
Without the crystal tablet, there was no way to know their "status," and after we finished using it, it broke and disappeared, so I can only hope they get well soon.
–Calmer now, sir. Connor? – It was only when he spoke that I remembered there was someone else in the room.
–Ah! Yes, sorry about that. – I replied, quite embarrassed by how I had acted a moment ago.
–Oh, and you don't need to call me 'sir,' after all, you're older, Mr. Bern, aren't you? – I asked nervously, it's not comfortable having someone who's only a few years younger than your father calling you 'sir.'
–Yes, thank you for remembering my name. And I believe I can't refuse that, after all, you are the representative of your group of friends, and the five of you are among the most responsible for the success of this mission. – the man, who must certainly be a little over 30, replied directly, kindly, and firmly.
'Perhaps that's how the servants of nobles are?'
I don't know why I thought of that, but the way Mr. Bern acted made me think of it.
–We only managed this because everyone held off the goblins; otherwise, things would have gone very wrong quickly. Believe me, I know this. – I replied, being completely sincere.
Our participation was important, yes.
Crucial even, there's no denying that. But all of this was a combined effort from everyone, and I'm sure we weren't the most important of this group of over 50 people.
–I imagine, but I'm not just referring to you defeating the goblin leaders. Thanks to you, the number of goblins we had to deal with was smaller than expected. Despite the episode with the meat puppets, which no one could have predicted, it's undeniable that your group contributed the most, especially you, sir.
–N-no, we—
He interrupted me by raising his hand before I could answer.
–That doesn't matter now, and this isn't the place to have this conversation. Do you want to wait until they wake up, or would you prefer to join the other representatives to discuss how to pursue them?.
–Huh?, oh well, woohoo!!!
It was only when he said that that I realized they were still tired. I think what was keeping me upright was both the adrenaline from the shock of not seeing the others and a certain embarrassment at being praised.
But now that I saw everyone was well, and implicitly that the mission was a success, the energy that kept me standing vanished and I almost fell to the ground.
Luckily, Mr. Bern caught me before I hit the floor.
–I think you should rest a little longer, sir. I'll let them know you're awake and ask them to bring you something to eat. – he said, helping me back to bed.
–Sorry and thank you.
–No need to thank me. As I said, you and your friends are the ones who helped the most with everything, that's normal. – he said, turning and going to the door.
–Oh, just one more thing!. – I gave a small groan, but not loud enough to wake them.
–Yes, what os sir?.
–How long have we been unconscious? – It might seem a bit silly to ask this, but it's important, after all, Anna has a deadline to show that we managed to get past the goblins and "open" the way to the supposed second floor.
–Not long. If we were outside the Ordeal, you would certainly still be in a coma for longer, much longer time. But here all of you, or rather you, have recovered in just a few hours, it's only 3 PM.
The attack mission started early in the evening when there was still some sun, and the whole fight must have lasted more or less until midnight, at a low estimate, so we, or rather I, have been sleeping continuously for about 14 hours.
'Would that be considered fast outside the Trial?'
It's a good thing Mr. Bern had already left when I thought of that; I'm sure my face was stuck in a very strange grimace.