## Chapter 111 – (2)
I was caught in a dilemma.
‘Should I save him?’
It wasn’t simply a matter of not wanting to, or a problem with my mindset.
It was just that this genre was Constellation fiction, so I was thinking this way.
‘If I take down the mascot and save the man, I’ll attract the attention of the Constellations.’
Of course, not many Constellations would pay attention to a tutorial mission, but this department store had special beings mixed in, including the protagonist.
That’s why the reputations of some Constellations watching this place were no joke.
Plus, if I defeat that mascot now, the future I know will change a little.
‘…Huh?’
For a moment, I was taken aback by my own thoughts.
Was I such a cold-hearted person?
Of course, I had made people die or even killed them while doing quests before, but most of them deserved it.
If you asked if the man being attacked by the mascot was that kind of person, the answer was no.
He was just a reckless and careless man.
“…”
I pondered for a moment before shouting.
“Go up to the second floor if you don’t want to die!”
My shout finally snapped the people on the first floor out of it, and they started running to the second floor.
While I was yelling harshly for them to run to the second floor, I jumped down to the first floor.
The ceiling was quite high, and some people gasped in surprise as they saw me falling, but this height was nothing to me.
My physical abilities were now beyond human limits.
I ran straight towards the mascot.
Of course, with so many eyes watching, I ran at a speed that would make me seem like a moderately fast person.
Then, I grabbed the mascot’s arm and kicked its body.
Thwack, rip.
The mascot’s arm tore off and was pulled out far too easily.
And then I led the man to the bathroom in the corner of the first floor.
The mascot stared blankly at its torn arm and me, and then headed to the second floor where many people were gathered.
The fact that it went to the second floor instead of me, who was closer, meant I passed the test.
As proof, a small reaction came.
[The Goddess of Justice is impressed by your sense of justice in saving the man.]
Fortunately, only one Constellation sent me a message, so it didn’t seem to attract much attention.
“Th-thank you…thank…”
“Shut up.”
I silenced the man, who was giving his thanks through tear-filled eyes, with harsh words, and took out a ring from my inventory and put it on my hand.
Then, I pulled out the mascot’s arm that was stuck in the man’s arm in one swift motion.
“Keuheup…”
I used healing magic on the man, who was obediently keeping his mouth shut.
I hadn’t originally planned to do this, but I figured that since there were fewer Constellations paying attention than I thought, and the mascot had gone to the second floor, the other Constellations’ attention would have shifted there, so I gave him special treatment.
And, on the other hand, I was curious.
It was a rare, serious injury.
A large wound where his arm was pierced by thin, awl-like claws.
I wondered how much could be healed with a level 1 healing spell.
As I used the healing spell, the wound on his arm quickly healed, and it seemed to have healed to the point where at least the bleeding stopped.
“How is it?”
“Huh…? It still hurts, but it’s much better…”
The man looked blankly at his arm in confusion.
He still couldn’t move his arm properly, probably because the inside of his arm hadn’t healed completely, but the man’s expression suddenly became peaceful, as if the pain had been significantly alleviated.
He himself seemed bewildered by the change.
It was quite a healing power for a level 1 spell.
Enough to turn a serious injury into a minor one.
It consumed a lot of internal energy or mana, but it did its job properly.
“…”
I stayed quiet for a while, but since no messages came back from the Constellations, it seemed that no one had seen me use the healing spell, as I had expected.
At least, no one except this man in front of me.
“Shut up and hide.”
“Yes, sir.”
I left the bathroom, leaving the man who was covering his mouth with his hand.
My next destination was already decided.
According to the original story, the protagonist and the members of the protagonist’s party would definitely be there.
In the corner of the second floor, in the ground parking lot.
***
I slowly entered through the back door of the parking lot.
The parking lot was already full of people.
Everyone must have had the same thought.
They wanted to get out of this nightmarish place as soon as possible, so they gathered in the parking lot where their cars were.
But they couldn’t leave by car.
Because there were monsters with eerie appearances, incomparable to the mascots, roaming outside.
I even saw some creatures that looked like the orcs I missed a little.
People were hiding inside their cars, or hiding behind cars or pillars, praying that the mascots wouldn’t come.
That’s why they stood out even more.
Unlike the other people, a brave pair of men and women were holding brooms and mops, holding their breath near the entrance.
The woman, Eun-jeong, had her hair in a ponytail and was staring at the entrance with a serious expression.
Next to her, the protagonist, Jae-hoon, was trembling and looking around nervously in an unstable posture.
But seeing him holding the broom tightly, I couldn’t tell if he was brave or not.
‘Was it around this time in the original story?’
In the original story, I would have made a sexually harassing remark to Eun-jeong around this time.
It was the moment when I would instantly become unpopular with the readers.
Of course, I would keep my mouth shut now.
I had realized that words didn’t come out as I intended as soon as I opened my mouth.
There was no need to stir up trouble unnecessarily.
“…That person who just came… is that him?”
“Ah… the one who was swearing on the second floor…?”
It seemed that I had already made a strong impression on some people.
Silence ensued again, and then someone said to the people in the parking lot in a joyful voice.
“Doesn’t that mean we only have to hold out for two more minutes?”
Yes, that’s right.
The content of the tutorial quest was to survive the mascots for only 10 minutes.
But in the world of webtoons, setting up such a cliché was bound to bring misfortune.
“It’s coming…”
No sooner had he spoken than a cute bear mascot appeared beyond the transparent glass door.
The mascot, with one arm missing, gave an even more eerie feeling.
“Kyaa!”
“Shhh! Hide, for just two minutes…”
Some people screamed at the sight.
The mascot, hearing the shrill scream, turned its head and suddenly ran quickly, pushing its body against the glass door at the entrance and entering.
Now it was the two people’s turn.
“Heuaap!”
Thwack!
Eun-jeong and Jae-hoon powerfully swung down the weapons they were holding.
Then the mascot, with its head blown off, collapsed powerlessly.
That’s how it was.
Even if it wasn’t the two of them, anyone who had the courage to fight could have defeated it easily.
That’s why many Constellations don’t get involved or even watch the tutorial.
“I-is it really down? Is it over?”
“Those two people…”
“What about the monsters outside? Do we have to fight those too?”
The people who had entrusted everything to the two and were hiding peeked their heads out one by one and looked at the fallen mascot.
The two people who had defeated the mascot were frozen, staring blankly into the air.
Their eyes must have been filled with messages of praise from the Constellations and reward messages for clearing the tutorial excellently.
A scene from the original story came to mind.
And surprisingly, I was also given a reward.
[You are recognized as a contributor to the tutorial mission.]
[You have acquired a stronghold right.]
It seemed that tearing off the arm was recognized.
A stronghold right, huh.
Not bad.
If I do well, it might help me form a party with the two of them.
The problem was that I wasn’t in a state where I could speak friendly enough to form a party right now.
“Eun-jeong, are the gods talking to you too?”
“Yeah, they’re telling me to become their incarnation?”
It was one of the characteristics of Constellation fiction.
They watched all these situations from above and chose people to become their incarnations and supported them.
Constellations don’t support everyone.
They generously provided support only to those who amused them or who they liked.
To the Constellations, this was a kind of game.
In the original story, the two chose their Constellations here.
And they regretted it for quite a long time.
It was understandable.
After all, a Constellation who decided on an incarnation with just the tutorial was a low-level Constellation with nothing special.
‘Is this the timing?’
I had been waiting for the timing to naturally help the two and join them.
And now was the moment.
I calmed my breathing and spoke slowly.
“Excuse me, you two.”
The two turned to look at me as I spoke.
Their expressions were mixed with wariness, wondering who I was, but it wasn’t bad yet.
“Put the incarnation on hold. It’s just the tutorial, right?”
“…How do you know that? No… now that I hear it, you’re right.”
Jae-hoon nodded.
He understood my words and nodded.
However, Eun-jeong looked at me with a strange expression, as if she couldn’t believe my words that had suddenly appeared.
To give such Eun-jeong faith, I opened my mouth.
“See that arm? I did that, but it’s pretty, is your boyfriendㅡ”
I closed my mouth the moment I realized that strange words were coming out.
Without even realizing it, I was naturally flirting.
And with a very cheesy and somewhat creepy voice.
I barely managed to hold it in, but it was already too late.
“…Ah, yes…”
Eun-jeong’s expression slowly hardened and became cold.
I felt that things had gone wrong from the start.
