Uriel was enjoying the feeling of catching his breath, even if he was doing so on top of a pile of wooden boards that, despite being in absolute ruin, felt like the most comfortable bed he could have asked for.
The sound of footsteps creaking on the floor was heard. Ininise slowly approached Uriel and sat beside him.
Uriel looked at her. Her hair was a little messy, but aside from that she was perfectly fine. He had done well—he had escaped with her and she hadn't been harmed at all. He couldn't have been more satisfied with himself.
He was happy.
"Do you want to rest for a while too?"
Ininise let out a small laugh.
"I haven't done anything except rest."
Ininise studied Uriel carefully. She looked somewhat worried.
I definitely don't look very good… and my back still feels numb and cold.
"Excuse me, could you sit for a moment? I want to check your wounds."
I just hope this isn't going to hurt too much.
"Ahhhhh… alright, just wait."
Uriel took a bit of air before getting up so Ininise could examine him.
Ininise remained silent for a few moments while analyzing the wounds. However, as time passed, Uriel began to grow a little impatient.
"So? How does it look? Very bad?"
"No, quite the opposite. You're surprisingly well for someone who took two arrow hits."
Uriel felt a bit proud. He thought he had made the right decision by choosing Resilient Skin as his first skill. Any other ability probably wouldn't have allowed him to withstand the punishment he had endured.
"Mmmm… we're a bit lucky. If I remove the poisoned flesh quickly, you'll be as good as new."
"WHAT?!"
A chill ran down Uriel's spine.
Those arrows had poison? But… was that even possible? Did a C-rank class get access to things like that?
Ininise laughed.
Oh.
It was a joke.
Thank goodness. He had almost died from the shock.
"Don't worry, I wasn't serious. I'll just bandage you a bit and you'll be as good as new… If you don't mind, could you show me your back?"
"Sure, no problem."
Uriel dismissed his armor. Only the clothes he had arrived with remained. Quickly, he took off his shirt so Ininise could examine his wounds.
Ininise's hand moved between his back and a small bag she had with her. That caught Uriel's attention.
"Can you bring objects into the tower?" he asked with genuine curiosity.
Ininise continued treating Uriel while she spoke. It seemed like she had done this many times before.
"Yes, but only certain ones. Food, clothes, medicine… things like that. Weapons and personal equipment that could give an advantage are forbidden, so I made sure to bring a small first-aid kit… I didn't want someone to get hurt and not be ready to help them."
Uriel smiled.
"You're really a kind person, Ininise."
However, despite the compliment, Ininise seemed even sadder.
"I don't know… I only bring trouble to everyone. It was already like that in… my world, and it's still the same here."
Uriel thought about Ininise. She was, without a doubt, a very mysterious person. There were many things he didn't understand: why she was being chased or why she was climbing the tower. Although he suspected it was precisely because of that—to escape the people who wanted to harm her.
In a way, he felt they weren't very different from each other. Both of them were climbing the tower out of desperation, mostly to try to escape or solve the problems in their lives.
"No, that's not true. You're very helpful. Right now you're helping with my wounds, and earlier, when we faced those things, you completely wiped them out."
Without meaning to, Uriel remembered the scene with a bit of excitement.
Ininise fell silent.
"But that meant I couldn't help anyone when we were ambushed."
Her words came out filled with sadness. Without a doubt, this was something that had caused her deep regret.
It's true that right now, as she is, she wouldn't be very helpful in combat. But she proved useful by treating my wounds. Her combat ability will still be valuable while we climb the tower, as long as she doesn't push herself until she exhausts her reserves.
Uriel remembered how she looked while casting Magic Missile.
She had looked truly beautiful, like one of those fantasy mages or like a magical girl from those shows his classmates used to talk about back when he still went to school. She looked like a real heroine. Despite not being physically imposing, she had stood fearlessly in front of the monsters attacking them.
She was brave, kind, and considerate.
Uriel had nothing but praise to describe her.
But Uriel stopped himself from thinking further. He had to respond with something—and not something as ridiculous as what had just passed through his mind.
"It's fine, don't worry about it. You just need to be more careful. And trust me, I'm sure that one day everyone will be begging for the help of Ininise, the most powerful mage."
"Thank you."
Ininise paused for a moment and leaned closer, resting her face lightly against Uriel's back.
"Thank you… really."
Honestly, Uriel was a little surprised that his words had such an effect.
Uriel said nothing, even though he felt very embarrassed, but he was glad he had made her feel at least a little better.
"Excuse me, lift your arms a bit."
"Oh… y-yes, alright."
Uriel raised his arms, and a piece of cloth that seemed to be a bandage wrapped around his chest and back.
"Good. In a few minutes or hours it'll be completely fine."
"That fast?"
Ininise nodded.
"Yes. Malach got injured shortly after we entered because he let his guard down, but after some time he was fine. I think it has something to do with the physical enhancements we receive here in the tower. Maybe tanks and warriors heal even faster."
Uriel thought the explanation made sense.
When he looked at his own body, he realized he was no longer malnourished. Quite the opposite—his body now looked fairly muscular. Not excessively so, but it was a huge change compared to before.
Honestly, he hoped that continuing to level up wouldn't turn him into a massive pile of muscles. That would be tragic for him. Women usually didn't like excessively muscular guys.
There were still many things he didn't understand about the tower, but he was sure he would learn them sooner or later. He also didn't know much about the people who had saved his life and who were now his traveling companions, but at least that was something Uriel felt he could resolve soon.
"Hey, Ininise."
"Yes? Tell me."
"Who were you before you started climbing the tower? You seem like someone very important."
Ininise remained silent for a while, but eventually she answered.
"I…"
"It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
Uriel didn't want to force her to tell him something she didn't want to share.
"Oh, no, it's not that I don't want to tell you. You risked your life for me… I know I can tell you. It's just that it's a bit long. You see, I…"
"I…"
Alright… now I'm really curious.
"I am an oracle of the God of Duality."