Chapter 406 - 405: Squidward

Chapter 406: Chapter 405: Squidward

The light gradually faded. Three long tables appeared out of thin air in front of Seraphina Sinclair, arranged in a triangular formation.

Behind each of the three long tables sat a figure... no, how could these be called people?

Behind the long table directly facing Seraphina Sinclair sat what looked like an... octopus, wearing a chef’s hat.

Seraphina Sinclair didn’t know what exactly to call it. The being’s body was a deep, dark purple, and its skin was covered in fine wrinkles.

Several thick tentacles hung down from its neck, two of which rested deftly on the tabletop. And its eyes—three huge, cloudy yellow pupils—were currently staring unblinkingly at Seraphina Sinclair.

By human standards, it was undoubtedly ugly as sin.

Behind the long table to the left sat a nearly perfect equilateral metal pyramid. If it weren’t for the mouth on it, Seraphina Sinclair would have thought someone had just placed a block of metal there.

And behind the table to the right sat the most normal-looking figure, from Seraphina’s perspective: an old man in his twilight years with a full head of white hair.

Seraphina Sinclair suddenly understood something.

These beings, like the waiter, were all chefs. And based on what she had learned from her time with the waiter...

...the three beings before her might not actually look the way she perceived them.

The waiter had chosen a human "skin," and these three beings had each chosen a skin they liked as well.

It was just that their aesthetic tastes...

From Seraphina Sinclair’s perspective, they were nothing to write home about.

At this moment, the octopus was staring at her unblinkingly. The surface of the metal pyramid was smooth, giving nothing away. Only the old man offered Seraphina a smile.

The waiter respectfully stepped aside, lowering his head in silence.

"So you’re the one... who wants to borrow the Undying Fire Lamp?"

Seraphina Sinclair couldn’t quite tell who had spoken. After all, the three beings before her were each stranger than the last. Although they all had mouths, that didn’t necessarily mean they needed to open them to speak.

In any case, she hadn’t seen whose mouth had moved.

’But... I have to answer anyway.’

She nodded, her tone neither servile nor arrogant. "I am. I need a vessel to preserve the Dragon Heart Golden Flame."

"Hah..."

This time, Seraphina Sinclair saw clearly. It was the Squidward before her who was scoffing at her.

"Preserve? A mere C-level human like you... thinks you’re worthy of discussing the preservation of a Holy Flame with us? Worthy of using the Undying Fire Lamp? What a colossal waste of a precious treasure."

It was Squidward speaking again.

’But... a C-level human?’

’Am I already a C-level human now?’

Seraphina Sinclair found the term interesting, and she began to wonder how these ranks were determined.

’Is it based on my overall power? Or is it based on the level of monsters I can kill?’

Seraphina leaned more toward the former.

She suppressed her thoughts, forcing her attention back to Squidward’s question. Frowning slightly, she said, "Whether I am worthy or not is perhaps not decided by rank alone. Since you all were willing to appear, you must have seen the bargaining chips I possess.

"The flame belongs to me. That is the most important prerequisite. The Stardust Gallery is willing to invest in the future, and what I bring is a future with a Holy Flame, and..."

Seraphina Sinclair paused, her gaze sweeping over the massive Dragon Corpse behind her. "...the achievement of hunting an S-Class Great Dragon. Regardless of how much cunning was involved, it at least proves that I have the luck and the ability to acquire top-tier resources. Isn’t that worth this one investment from you?"

Squidward’s three yellow pupils contracted slightly. It seemed he hadn’t expected this tiny human before him to be so eloquent.

In truth, the reason they had come was precisely because the waiter had explained that the one who needed to be evaluated... was a human.

For a human to have successfully hunted a Great Dragon before her people had even made contact with this world—what a miracle that was.

Only Squidward himself knew just how much astonishment he had concealed behind his words, "a mere C-level human."

’How long has it been since this round of integration began...?’

’And yet a creature has already reached C-level. Among all the Species from before, we’ve never seen any creature progress at this speed!’

’Can humans... truly create miracles?’

Squidward didn’t voice a single one of these thoughts, but he knew that when they heard Chef 881 say that the one who possessed the flame was a human, the look they had exchanged showed their mutual astonishment.

This was also why they were willing to come and meet this person themselves.

But that was all it was—a meeting.

From the first integration until now, how many species had produced astonishingly brilliant individuals?

But of these brilliant individuals, how many could truly make it to the end and touch the threshold of a Demigod?

Most of them fell along the path of their growth, either devoured by more powerful beings or lost in Strength, ultimately turning to dust.

They had seen too many so-called geniuses and miracles.

However, this human was calmer and more articulate than they had imagined.

After a brief silence, the old man on the right spoke. "Child, you’ve made a good point. Luck, and the ability to seize that luck, are indeed part of one’s power. This Dragon Corpse and this Dragon Heart Golden Flame are both proof of your capabilities."

The old man paused, his cloudy yet exceptionally bright eyes fixed on Seraphina Sinclair. ℯ

"But investment, especially in the future, requires more than just these things. It requires the potential for growth. You do have great potential, but growing is not easy.

"The last spot in the Undying Fire Lamp is exceptionally precious. Many beings far more powerful than you currently are covet it, hoping to preserve the exotic flames they’ve painstakingly found. What they can offer in the present is far more appealing than the future you promise."

Seraphina Sinclair’s heart sank slightly.

She knew he was speaking the truth.

’Besides this flame and the future, I have almost nothing.’

’The things inside the Silver Moon Earrings... these three beings probably wouldn’t give any of them a second glance.’

Just as this thought emerged, Seraphina’s train of thought seemed to halt for a moment.

Then she immediately realized, ’Would they really not give any of it a second glance?’

’They certainly wouldn’t care about the E-level or D-level materials I have, but what about the item I drew from the Mist Lottery... Yog-Sothoth’s Door Key?’

’Even though it’s incomplete, it’s an SSS-level item!’

Seraphina knew it might be of great use in the future, but she was also aware that collecting the two remaining fragments would be next to impossible.

’In that case...’

’Rather than hold onto this unknown item whose purpose I won’t even know until I collect the other two pieces, I’m better off using it now to trade for a clear future!’

Her mind made up, only one question remained.

’I’m well aware of the principle of not flaunting one’s wealth. If I rashly take out an item like this, they... Squidward, the pyramid, and the old man... they wouldn’t try to snatch it from me, would they?’

’They seem immeasurably powerful, far beyond what I can handle right now.’

But Seraphina quickly realized that they were of the same Species as the waiter. They were also NPCs. They would absolutely not attack her.