I Installed a Dating App and These Otherworld Virgins Became Obsessed With Me. 237

## Chapter 237 – 237. Tutorial Floor (9)

#237. Tutorial Floor (9)

Slicing through the mummies one by one, I entered the temple and soon encountered the first gatekeeper.

“Goro-ro-rong…”

*Ding-*

「Constellation, you have encountered the 139th Incarnation of the ‘Enigmatic Beast’.」

It was a Sphinx.

The creature, so large it made even the Golem look cute, was asleep as if guarding the door beyond.

Its massive forepaws were big enough to crush me in one go, and the amount of magical power it radiated, befitting a Constellation’s Incarnation, was considerable.

‘Surely… a Sphinx is a monster with the body of a lion and the head of a human, right?’

But this one had the head of a bird. If I had to be precise, it looked more like a Griffin.

‘Did they match the concept to the Temple of Horus?’

Well, whatever.

Whether it had a human head or a bird head, the fact remained that it was a magical beast I had to deal with.

Fortunately, the Sphinx was sound asleep, so deeply that it didn’t notice me approaching.

I didn’t plan to use magic. I already knew that cats had an unnecessary knack for sensing things.

‘Was it even a cat in the first place…?’

Lions are felines, but the head is a bird.

What should I call it then? A lion? A bird?

For a moment, questions and curiosity filled my mind, but I quickly regained my senses.

‘…This is a disease, I tell you.’

Whenever I get distracted by curiosity like that, I become aware that I am a magician, whether I like it or not.

Suppressing my bloodlust as much as possible, I took a stance.

Golden energy flickered over my fist. As I said before, beasts should be beaten with fists.

I didn’t bother trying to control my strength.

“It’s so big, there’s no worry about missing.”

At that moment, a subtle wind stirred around my fist.

*Drdrdr-*

The wind, which had only scattered dust on the floor, soon became a strong gravitational force that could lift even stones, swirling around me.

Within the gravitational pull that was hard even for me to handle, the golden energy darkened. The darkness, whose end could not be fathomed, even looked ominous.

I could feel it.

Beneath the brilliant light that illuminates everything, there lies a shadow that cannot be illuminated by anything.

Emptiness has no substance, and vanity contains nothing. Emptiness will destroy everything as it advances.

「‘Dancing Destroyer’ is watching you with strange eyes.」
「‘Eye Watching the Throne’ is focusing on you.」

Great Prajna Emptiness Extinction Fist (大般若空虛滅盡拳).

The fist, reaching out from the fluctuating black energy, created a gravitational pull as if to swallow everything.

*Kwaaaang!!*

But the fist didn’t reach the Sphinx. Instead, it collided with an unknown, transparent barrier.

The suddenly appearing barrier didn’t even scratch, despite the full-powered fist.

*Ding-*

「Warning, warning, warning.」
「The riddle has not begun.」
「Attacks against each other are prohibited.」

Soon, a new screen appeared before my eyes. The red flashing lights looked like warning lights.

While I was distracted by the screen.

*Kugugung-*

“Haaaahm…”

The Sphinx woke up from its sleep with its massive body.

It was gigantic beyond imagination, even more so than when it was asleep. I had to crane my neck just to see its face.

No matter how I looked at it, it wasn’t the kind of creature that should be appearing on the Tutorial Floor.

“What’s all this commotion, nyaong.”

Only then did I realize the meaning of the red screen that had appeared earlier and the identity of the transparent barrier that had blocked my attack.

No matter how much of a Hidden Dungeon this was, it was still a dungeon on the Tutorial Floor.

If something like that popped out, all the player candidates would die, and that would go against the fairness that the system pursued.

Just as the impossible and the possibility converging infinitely to 0 are distinctly different, as long as it exists within the Tutorial Floor, the possibility of clearing it for the Tutorial candidates cannot be 0%.

“…Human?”

The Sphinx, having woken up, groomed its head with its forepaws as if it were a cat, then cast a strange gaze at me.

Its eyes were unnecessarily sparkling.

“Could it be! Are you a challenger, nyaong?!”

It showed an unexpected reaction.

Originally, Sphinxes are considered to be guardians of pyramids. From its perspective, I was nothing more than an intruder.

It wouldn’t have been strange for it to rush at me to kill me right away.

But it didn’t. Instead, it shouted in a voice full of joy and elation.

*Kung kung-*

As if it was so happy, it kept stomping the floor with its forepaws. Each time, the corridor shook, and I had to cover myself in dust.

My homicidal instincts surged.

“It’s riddle time, nyaong!”

The Sphinx’s tail wagged gently.

It was like a child eager to play.

“If you refuse, I’ll kill you, nyaong! If you get it wrong, I’ll kill you too, nyaong!”

It bared its sharp claws and teeth as if trying to threaten me. But to my eyes, it just looked like a stray cat hissing.

The Sphinx’s riddle, a famous anecdote about making riddle bets with passersby and devouring them if they couldn’t answer.

Needless to say, I had no intention of indulging in such a farce.

“What if I get them all right?”

But until the riddle is over, you can’t harm each other. It’s a kind of protective device for player candidates.

Right now, solving the riddle was the only way out.

Of course, there was no need to take the riddle seriously. The important thing was to end the riddle.

“Kuhuhuhu…!! A human dares to say they can solve all the problems I present, nyaong? How presumptuous, nyaong!”

A grotesque smile spread across the Sphinx’s face.

It already had the expression of someone who thought they had won.

“Good, nyaong! I will ask a total of three questions from now on, nyaong. If you get even one of them wrong, I will devour you, nyaong. But if, by any chance! You answer all the questions correctly, I will obediently open the way…”
“Stop the nonsense and just ask the question.”

Its brow furrowed fiercely.

“…I’ll chew you up extra thoroughly, nyaong.”

With intense murderous intent, the first riddle began.

A long, long time ago, there were two gods above the clouds. They were brothers born to the same parents, and their brotherly love was so great that they had never argued even once.

One day, the brothers went down to earth and met a beautiful woman near a lake.

But as their brotherly love was strong, so were their tastes, and ironically, both of them fell in love with the woman at the same time.

Brotherly love was insignificant in the face of love.

The two pushed each other away and began to appeal to the woman.

The competition to win love grew increasingly fierce, and soon the brothers reached the point of drawing swords against each other.

“Here’s the first question, nyaong!”

It shouted, looking at me with a confident expression.

“Guess the names of the two brothers, nyaong!”
“…What?”

Pleased with my reaction, its eyes curved beautifully. Its wagging tail represented its mood.

“Kyahahaha! There’s no way a human could solve a Constellation’s advanced riddle, nyaong! Pay the price for your recklessness, nyaong!”

Ignoring its laughter, I paused to think.

Since it was a riddle from a Constellation, there was a high possibility that it was an anecdote from a specific mythology.

But brothers fighting over a woman was a very common occurrence in mythology. There were dozens that came to mind right away.

The only clues were that they were gods with the same parents who lived above the clouds and met a woman by a lake.

But even so, there were too many possibilities.

The smile on the Sphinx’s face became even more grotesque as it watched me struggle. It was drooling as if it had a hole in its chin.

It was trying to distract me somehow.

Anyway, my goal was to end the riddle. Whether I got it right or wrong, the fact that that bird-brained thing would die by my hand remained unchanged.

So there was no need to try to get the answer right.

I gave a rough answer that came to mind.

“…Bickering Gods?”

It was the answer to a nonsense quiz I had seen in the newspaper a few days ago.

Even I thought it was too insincere an answer.

I thought it would rush at me right away.

“Kuek…!”

But unlike my expectations, its reaction was somewhat strange. It seemed to be bursting with frustration.

“Th-that’s right, nyaong!”
“…?”

Was that really the right answer?

I was dumbfounded for a moment, but it puffed up its body and brought its face closer to me.

“The next question won’t be so easy, nyaong!”

There was a boy who loved hamburgers.

He ate only hamburgers for three meals a day, and he even carried a hamburger-shaped keyring in his bag.

“Here’s the second question, nyaong! What is the boy’s favorite color?!”
“…Burgundy.”

The Sphinx’s eyes widened.

It looked visibly flustered. I was the one who was flustered.

This is a riddle?

“…I didn’t want to use this method, but this is the final question, nyaong.”

Its voice became solemn.

Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous at all.

“Here I go, nyaong! What has 4 legs in the morning, 2 legs at noon, and 3 legs in the evening?!”
“Human.”

Again, it was a question not even worth considering.

A ripple spread across the Sphinx’s eyes.

“Th-that’s wrong, nyaong!”
“What?”
“The answer is a transforming robot, nyaong!!”

In a situation where anyone could see that it was the right answer, it was being stubborn.

Is it out of its mind?

“What kind of nonsense is that…”
“Shut up, nyaong!”

*Ding-*

「The riddle has ended.」
「You answered the riddle incorrectly.」
「‘Curse of the Desert’ is invading your body.」

At that moment, it rushed at me.

The corridor shook as the enormous body moved.

“Die, nyaong!!”

Watching the scene, I lightly loosened my left hand. I didn’t expect to be robbed of the first move.

My right arm was tattered from the fist I had thrown a moment ago, so I couldn’t use it.

‘Curse… Is it roughly a decrease in overall physical abilities and a loss of the five senses?’

For a moment, I felt the strength drain from my body, but I wasn’t worried.

I learned from the last battle with the snake head that ordinary curses don’t work on me.

「Resisted ‘Curse of the Desert’.」

I stepped on the footwork and avoided its attack.

*Kwaang!!*

When its forepaw collided with the floor, a rather cute mark was dented, and stones flew in all directions.

It was a pretty quick movement for something so big.

But it was still too slow by my standards.

“Don’t dodge like a rat, nyaong!! Where did you go, nyaong!!”
“Here.”
“?!”

I leaped in front of its face and immediately threw a punch. It was a fist strengthened only with magic power, internal energy, and auxiliary magic.

*Bbaak!!*

“Nyaoong!!”

With the sensation of flesh tearing, its massive body staggered.

As expected, beasts should be beaten with fists. There’s no particular reason, it just felt good.

It slumped down, bleeding from its broken beak.

As I approached, its eyes began to tremble violently, as if an earthquake had struck.

“I’m going to ask you a riddle now, and if you get it right, I’ll obediently go back.”

I whispered at a distance where I could crush its eyes with just a reach of my hand.

“…Wh-what happens if I get it wrong, nyaong.”
“You die.”

Why are you asking something so obvious?

“How about it?”

*Gulp.*

After hesitating for a moment, it swallowed hard and nodded.

“Okay, here comes the question? There’s no replay, so you have to listen carefully?”
“…”
”What had 4 legs in the morning and at noon, but lost its legs in the evening?”

Hearing the question, it was sweating profusely.

While watching my expression, its eyes were unnecessarily sparkling.

How long had it been, 1 minute? 3 minutes?

“…I-I don’t know, nyaong.”

It acted pitifully and made a cute voice.

It wouldn’t be cute even if it did that with a bird head dripping with blood.

“The answer is you.”
“What does that…”

*Swish.*

Blood splattered along the golden trajectory drawn in the air.

“How can you have legs when your neck and torso are separated?”

*Ding-*

「Constellation, you have defeated the 139th Incarnation of the ‘Enigmatic Beast’.」