Chương 56: Chapter 53

When Adam glanced down at his body after arriving at the seaside beach resort, he was greeted by the horrifying sight of himself wearing an absurdly tiny speedo. The thing was barely a step above a string thong. He'd seen dental floss thicker than the swimsuit clinging to his body.

"You like the swimsuits we picked out for you?" a hearty voice called from behind him. Adam spun around, ready to punch the speaker square in the jaw. Instead, he found a floating semi-transparent screen with Dumas's disproportionately large head taking up nearly seventy percent of the display.

"You might as well have given us tissue paper to cover ourselves."

"Is it really that bad?" Dumas asked.

"I had my employees research Earth's swimwear trends, and these were their recommendations." Adam gave him a flat look.

"Did they do their research using porn?"

"I... don't think so?"

"Whatcha guys talking about?" Mei walked up beside Adam with Granessa following close behind. Both women had thrown oversized T-shirts over their swimsuits, the shirts hanging all the way to their knees to hide whatever ridiculous outfits Dumas had originally given them.

"I was asking Dumas why his employees dressed us in porno costumes." Mei glanced down at herself.

"I mean... they are a little small. But I've cosplayed in similar swimsuits before." She shrugged as if it were completely normal.

"I don't care for these swimsuits," Granessa said.

"They provide no combat benefits." Adam rubbed a hand down his face.

"Whatever. Just change them."

"Sure, sure." Dumas snapped his fingers. Their outfits shimmered and transformed. Mei's became a cute pink one-piece swimsuit with a frilly skirt attached. Granessa's changed into a scaled bikini that resembled lightweight armor. Adam, however, was still wearing the exact same ridiculous speedo.

"... Hey! Change mine too!"

"Sorry. Can't." Dumas spread his hands helplessly.

"Your cursed gloves are interfering with my ability to alter reality around you. Frankly, it's a miracle we managed to alter your body enough to summon your consciousness here in the first place." Adam frowned.

"My what?"

"Cursed gloves," Dumas repeated.

"You didn't realize?"

"Why are my gloves cursed?" He simply shrugged.

"I don't know. I'm not part of the Development Department."

"... Okay. Then what do you know about them?"

"I can't answer that either. All I can tell you is that my authority can't affect anything connected to those gloves. Since you can't remove them because of the curse, I can't change anything they're attached to." Adam looked down at himself before glaring back at the floating screen.

"So I'm stuck wearing this? What about when I go back to the tutorial?"

"You don't have to worry about that," Dumas assured him.

"This is a separate space accessed only by your consciousnesses. Your physical bodies are still inside the tutorial completely unaffected by anything that happens here." Granessa tilted her head.

"Does that mean I can die here?" There was an unmistakable note of hope in her voice. Dumas frowned.

"No... no, it does not." She clicked her tongue before giving the sand a disappointed kick, which sent a spray of sand several feet into the air.

"Anyways," Dumas continued, "my associate is waiting for you in the cabana over there. He'll be coordinating the special broadcasts from now on." He started waving goodbye, but Adam raised a hand to stop him.

"Wait. Why is Granessa here? She never signed one of your contracts."

"Ah, she was contacted separately and agreed to appear in this broadcast, along with several future ones." Adam and Mei both turned toward Granessa.

"Oh, yeah." She nodded.

"They asked if I wanted to join you two for something called a broadcast. I agreed after they said one of the broadcasts would let me meet my goddess." Adam narrowed his eyes at Dumas.

"Did you lie to her?"

"What? No, of course not." Dumas looked genuinely offended.

"I told you before. I don't lie. I cheat." He straightened proudly.

"It's true that she'll get to meet the orc goddess during a future event. In fact, a group of gods and goddesses personally requested it. They wanted to meet the boy who accidentally wandered into their domain." Adam blinked.

"Me?"

"Yes." Dumas nodded.

"After a fragment of your soul became attached to Anubis through your mutual connection to the former Pharaoh Hatshepsut, several divine beings took an interest in you. They watched as you comprehended divinities simply by being exposed to their presence." His gaze shifted toward Granessa.

"Those same divine beings also searched your memories through the fragment of your soul attached to Anubis. The orc goddess was especially furious after learning he had cursed one of her followers, particularly one carrying a portion of her divinity. She nearly crippled Anubis permanently." He waved a dismissive hand.

"But we're getting off topic. Go meet my associate. You'll have plenty of opportunities to meet those divine beings during future broadcasts." After dropping that bombshell, the transparent system screen went black before promptly disappearing. Adam glanced over at his two companions. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Hey, wanna trade swimsuits? I think this pink one would look super cute against your blue skin," Mei asked Granessa.

"Does it boost my stats?" Mei's eyes sparkled. She reached into her inventory and pulled out another identical pink swimsuit.

"Here. This one does." Frilly Pink Swimsuit (Super Rare) A magically conjured swimsuit with a surprising effect. Effect: Water Warrior - Eliminates water resistance around the wearer's body, allowing them to move and fight through water as though it were dry land.

"Oh... that's actually a good effect." Granessa accepted the swimsuit and applied it directly from her inventory. One of the conveniences of the inventory system was that clothing could be equipped instantly without having to remove what was already being worn. Her armored bikini shimmered and transformed into the frilly pink one-piece. Despite fitting her perfectly, the swimsuit still clung tightly enough to outline every curve of her absurdly muscular physique.

The pink frills contrasted so sharply with her towering frame and rippling muscles that the result was strangely cute. Granessa handed her armored bikini to Mei, who equipped it just as quickly. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the orc woman, Mei smiled at Adam.

"Well? How do we look?" Adam stared for a moment before answering. The two women standing together on the pristine white beach, crystal-clear waves washing around their ankles beneath the bright afternoon sun, looked like they belonged in a world-class swimsuit photoshoot. Granessa's eight-foot-plus blue body, packed with enough muscle to wrestle monsters barehanded, somehow made the frilly pink swimsuit work.

The contrast between her intimidating physique and the cute outfit gave off what Mei would undoubtedly call "gap moe." Beside her, Mei looked almost petite despite being taller than most human women. She barely reached Granessa's chest. Her tanned skin paired surprisingly well with the silver scales of the armored bikini, which reflected the sunlight and the turquoise water until she almost seemed to glow.

"Cute and sexy," Adam admitted.

"But... did you get taller, Mei?" It wasn't by much. Maybe an inch or two. Still, she definitely seemed slightly taller than when they'd first entered the tutorial. Somewhere over six feet tall.

"That's to be expected. Your stats remodel your body to better match your increased power." The unfamiliar voice came from farther down the beach. All three turned toward the nearby cabana just as a man in a tailored business suit stepped out into the sunlight. He stood around six foot two with neatly combed dark hair and thick black-rimmed glasses. His features were reasonably handsome, carrying the refined air of an older businessman rather than a warrior.

"Pleasure to meet you all. I'm Desmond, Vice Head of the Tutorial Administration Department and former Law Coder." He offered his hand with the polished smile of someone who had introduced himself thousands of times before. None of them shook it. Without the slightest hint of embarrassment, Desmond lowered his hand and continued as though nothing unusual had happened.

"Yes, as I was saying. Whenever your stats increase, not just your primary stats from Stat Ups, but also your hidden stats that naturally improve through leveling or under certain special conditions, your body gradually remodels itself to better reflect that strength. Given enough time and enough levels, someone may end up looking vastly different from the person who first entered the Game."

"Really?" Mei's eyes lit up.

"So could I keep getting taller? Like... as tall as Granessa?"

"It depends entirely on what the system considers to be the ideal body for your accumulated stats." He paused, studying each of them carefully before giving his assessment.

"That said, I doubt any of you will experience particularly dramatic changes. Adam and Mei are already extremely close to the peak of human physical perfection. Granessa, meanwhile, still has some room to grow, though she's already approaching orc perfection." Mei blinked.

"Eh...? She can still get bigger?" Desmond nodded matter-of-factly.

"Of course. You met Gracie, didn't you? He possesses what most orcs would consider a perfect physique." The three of them immediately pictured Gracie's towering ten-foot frame, limbs as thick as tree trunks, and massive tusk-like fangs that looked more like polished weapons than teeth. Then they looked back at Granessa. She was only around eight feet tall, her muscles slightly leaner, and her fangs barely extended past her lips.

"I think I like you better this way," Mei said honestly.

"Actually, Uncle has a growth defect," Granessa replied.

"Dad's even bigger than he is. But since my mom was human, I probably won't grow as large as either of them." Mei instinctively started to ask why she had said was, only to remember Granessa had already told them her mother had passed away. Fortunately, Desmond gestured toward the cabana before she could accidentally say something insensitive.

"Now that everyone's here, shall we? There are a few things to go over before today's broadcast begins." They followed Desmond into the beach cabana. The interior was surprisingly modern despite the tropical fantasy setting. A polished wooden table sat in the center beneath a ceiling fan lazily spinning overhead, while comfortable beach chairs were arranged around it. Hovering nearby was a small spherical drone with a single oversized camera lens dominating its front like a giant eyeball.

The lens continuously shifted from person to person, quietly tracking their every movement. Desmond gestured toward it.

"This is 3Y3. He'll be in charge of filming today's broadcast." All three of them blinked as they looked at the nameplate floating above the little machine. 3Y3, Recording Drone (Legendary NPC) - Lv.??? Adam tilted his head.

"He's... alive?"

"Beep!" Desmond smiled.

"He says,'Of course I'm alive.' 3Y3 is a Mechanius, a mechanical lifeform."

"Like a Transformer?" Mei asked.

"Beep beep!" Desmond chuckled.

"He says,'I'm nothing like those fraudsters. I'm a real living robot.'""Oh." Mei nodded thoughtfully.

"Cool." The little drone bobbed up and down proudly before spinning in a quick circle, as though pleased with the compliment.

"Now then," Desmond continued, clapping his hands together once.

"Before we begin, I'd like to give you a brief overview of today's Seaside Chat. There are three sections." He reached into his briefcase and produced three neatly organized memo folders, handing one to each of them. Across the front, bold letters read: Seaside Chat Tutorial Broadcast: Peek Inside the Impossible - Episode 1 Interview with Earth's Strongest Duo and Their Undying Companion Desmond raised a finger.

"Inside you'll find a list of the planned interview questions. If there are any you'd rather not answer, simply mark them and we'll skip over them during the broadcast." He raised a second finger.

"You'll also find several promotional lines we'd like you to memorize. They're short, so it shouldn't take long." Finally, he held up a third finger.

"And at the end is an outline of today's planned 'surprise event.' I won't spoil anything beyond what's written there." Adam, Mei, and Granessa each opened their folders and quietly began reading through the contents, curiosity growing with every page.