Chapter 547 Burned
ZIIIIIIII! Arad pushed the tower's door open, staring inside. A large marble spiraling stair reached up into the sky.
"We're going up," He looked back at Amber and Merlin.
"Of course," Merlin replied, "But be careful, the monsters in the second layer are far stronger."
"I'm not asking about that," Arad could barely see the top from there. He might be fine, but he's sure as hell Merlin won't make it to the top.
"Can you climb all of those?" He pointed up.
Merlin looked, "Probably not. My legs would give up without even reaching the middle."
"Then how are we going up?" Amber sighed, "I can't carry you and fly. And this place is too tight to even fly by myself."
"We can rest in the middle," Merlin said with a smile.
Arad looked at them for a second, thinking. Thud! He then approached Amber, staring at her.
"What are you looking at?" She asked with a worried face.
Arad shifted his gaze toward Merlin, "You two don't weigh much, do you?"
"What kind of question is that," Amber gasped.
"I'm heavy!" Merlin replied, smiling with a proud face. "I'm carrying those after all," She shook her hips and squeezed her chest.
Amber stared at her, disappointed, "What are you doing?"
"That won't be a problem," Arad replied, "But try to lose weight in the future."
"What are you saying!" Merlin growled.
"You deserve it," Amber giggled.
Arad pointed at her chest, "Even with Aella's strong back muscles, she often complains that her chest weighs her down in extended aim and rapid movements. Try making them half the current size," He then pointed at her hips, "And if those were muscles, you would be able to climb the stairs, lose the fat, and gain muscles."
Amber started laughing as Merlin glared at Arad with a red face, "And what do you know?"
"I know that Nina has a stronger and better body than you. Magic is good, but you're the one who said I should work on my body and martial skills, so don't slack down." He said with a passive face.
"When you get exhausted, I will carry you." He sighed.
"Arad, stop," Amber kept giggling on the ground, "She's already charred."
Arad stared at her, "You better stop drinking. I still smell beer on you. Alcott said it weakens the heart and reduces stamina in the long run."
"I drink what I like!" Amber gasped.
"Not when you're an adventurer with other people's lives hanging on your performance," He squatted down, glaring at her eyes.
"I take it back!" Amber started flailing her arms, "I take it back. Being with you is going to be bad,"
"I will make sure you drink far less, and you're going to train more," His eyes quickly shifted toward Merlin, and she looked away.
Merlin scratched her chin. ^Forgot, he's a dragon and has different values. Strength is their thing.^
"Fine," Merlin and Amber sighed. It was true that they couldn't get to the second floor in any reasonable amount of time without Arad carrying them.
CLACK! CLACK! They started walking up, and the stairs didn't seem to end.
"Arad, how did you smash that Statue? I thought you lost your powers," Amber asked.
"Dalla's slaps. They worked since I only needed to send a shockwave through the cracks to make them open up," Arad replied, looking back at them.
"Dalla? The S-rank?" Merlin stared at him, "When did you meet her?"
"When I went to the elvish kingdom. She's working as a maid for the queen and her personal guard."
"Really?" Amber gasped, "I heard nothing hurt more than her attacks,"
"You don't say," He sighed.
"Did you fight her?" Merlin looked at him with a teasing smile, "I would have loved to see you slapped around by a maid,"
"For real, those slaps hurt like hell. But I slapped her back until she started crying," He replied.
"No mercy," Amber sighed.
"Why would she need mercy? She's an adventurers and s-rank. It's disrespectful to go easy on her." He looked at them.
"If we fought," Merlin stared at him, "Would you slap me?"
"You're a wizard. I would blow you with a fireball," He replied.
"Beat them with their specialty. Is that some kind of pride?" Amber approached Arad.
"No, I'm learning from them, and the best and fastest way to test my skills is against their masters." He replied, and it was then that Amber understood another fundamental difference between herself and Arad.
Arad doesn't care what he uses as long as it works. That is why he never sticks to one fighting style. He isn't afraid to try new things.
Merlin approached Arad as well, "I would be discouraged if you hit me with a fireball that I would crawl into a ball on my bed and cry,"
"Crying won't help you," Arad replied, "Instead, work on a barrier that stops that spell. Doing that would prevent you from feeling that sadness the next time."
After several minutes of climbing the stairs, Merlin and Amber quickly reached their limit, barely able to stand.
"I can't," Merlin sat down.
"My thighs are burning," Amber sat beside her.
"You're growing old," Merlin glared at her with a grin.
"I don't want to hear this from you," Amber glared at her.
"It has nothing to do with age," Arad turned toward them, "Nina's grandma would put you two to shame,"
"What? You met her family?" Merlins stared at him.
"Yeah," Arad replied, "That crooked back old lady ran so fast that Jack and Lydia couldn't catch her. And I even saw her snapping branches from logs for the fire with her bare hands."
"An old hag?" Amber stared at him.
"Running faster than Jack and Lydia?" Merlin said with a puzzled face. "Won't that make her faster than a horse?"
"She was," Arad replied, "The fastest Grandma I ever saw,"
Amber and Merlin stared at each other, "Barbarians are built differently,"
"They build themselves differently," He approached them, "Come here."
Arad carried Amber on his back and Merlin in his arms and kept climbing the stairs.
"Arad," Amber said, her face resting on Arad's shoulder.
"What?"
"Sorry, we aren't even a quarter of the way up," She looked away, "To make you carry us like children,"
"Don't worry about it," Arad replied.
"Hoi! Merlin, say something," Amber looked down, seeing Merlin licking Arad's chest.
"HOI!" She screamed, "What are you doing, you pervert!" She pulled her staff, smacking Merlin in the head.
"I mean! It's this close to my face," She cried.
"And you!" Amber stared at Arad, "Say something, don't feel sorry for slapping her."
"Well, it's not bothering me, and she isn't harming anyone." Arad looked at Amber, "I didn't see a reason to stop her."
"YOU NEED HELP! IN MORE THAN ONE WAY!" Amber cried.
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