A True Rhombic Comes in Time

18

"Boop!"

Gomi touched the tip of my nose and giggled.

"You silly! That wasn't a movie. That was a memory! Couldn't you tell?"

"..."

I... I got booped, and I didn't know what to say. I just stared at Gomi, who had a sunny smile on her face as if she was telling me a great secret. We looked at each other, me in disbelief and her with an expectant look. I didn't know why she looked so eager until I had a sudden chilling thought.

W...was she expecting me to boop her too?

Ok, listen. I know this creature saved me and all, and it looked like I might continue to need her since I was now weaponless and still as feeble as ever, but...

"Oh! Ohhhh!" I gasped suddenly, realizing that I haven't looked at my stats since I passed the Test. It should have been the first thing I checked, but I had forgotten about it because so many incredible things had happened.

"Display," I murmured, my voice laced with fear and hope.

A familiar holographic screen appeared in front of me.

[Leah Nowey]

Level 1

Power 41 [Offense: 20] [Defense: 21]

Skill: Moogi

"...!"

My eyes widened at what I saw. Clearly, I still haven't leveled up. But the disappointment I felt was quickly replaced by exhilaration when I saw that my Power value increased.

Perhaps the old me might have felt dissatisfied and screamed, "Ugh, only 20 points?! What the **** and **** hell!"

But instead, the new me who just went through a near-death experience exclaimed in excitement, "Oh my gosh, 20 points?! A whole 20 points?!"

My brain might have been still in shock from the Test because I obviously wasn't even halfway to being a full 100-point Rhombic. Perhaps my mind was unable to accurately process my new stat, but oh well, who cares?

I felt happy. I felt hopeful.

Gomi seemed thrilled as well, but I didn't think it was because she was impressed with my stat. I'm pretty sure it was more because she saw how happy I was.

"Good for you, honey! I'm so proud of you!"

She patted my shoulder encouragingly. It was very odd to be congratulated by a baby, but I also delighted in her genuine compliment. This was such a great moment for me that I didn't mind her strange behavior.

Now, the next fascinating change was my Skill. It was finally visible and it was none other than what Gomi claimed to be.

A Moogi.

"See? I told you I'm a Moogi! And I'm with you!" Gomi announced proudly.

I was about to nod in agreement when a curious thought stopped me. I almost missed it, but it was something I found very peculiar.

I never said out loud the changes in my Power value or the name of my Skill. So how did she know?

I asked, "Wait. You can see my Display? But I should be the only one who can see it."

With a nonchalant shrug, the baby answered.

"Sure I can. And I'll show you mine too."

Shoom.

I have never seen someone else's Display before. I don't think any Rhombic in the entire world would have seen the stat screen other than their own. So it was understandable that I jolted when I saw Gomi's Display pop up.

[Unknown]

Level 7

Power 20 [Offense: 13] [Defense: 7]

Skill: Weaponization

"Woah, holy cow," I whispered.

Gomi wiped her nose with a proud shrug before replying, "Yeah, I know."

My eyes were first drawn to her Level, which was a shocker. Level 7... That was seven times higher than mine. Maybe I should have been embarrassed because she was a baby, or she looked like a baby at least, and she was so much more powerful, but...

Honestly, I was super stoked. Everything pointed to the fact that she belonged to me, so the more powerful she was, the better I would be!

I was actually disappointed that she wasn't Level 100!

Her Power value was on the much lower side, again less than the normal 100, but I wasn't even bothered.

Okay, now that I got that out of the way, it was time for some answers. I had so many questions that my mouth itched.

Firstly, only the Rhombics were known to have these stats, and I did not doubt that Gomi was NOT a Rhombic. Even she explained that she was a Moogi, whatever the hell that meant.

So why did she have a Display of her own? And why was I able to see it?

Then, there was her name. Her screen stated that it was unknown, but the baby said her name was Gomi. Did she lie, or did she just make up some random name for herself?

And lastly, why was it that I became more and more confused the more time I spent with this creature?

***

I came up with a plan. I already spent more than enough time in the Door, so I wanted to get out of here. Thankfully, I had a day off from work today, but I knew Sofia must be getting worried since it was getting pretty late.

And as excited as I was about finally being on the second floor, I was exhausted. I needed some serious rest for both my body and my mind.

So I decided to make this as short and sweet as possible. I needed some answers from this baby who had the attention span of a goldfish, so I told her in a firm voice.

"Gomi, this is what we're gonna do. I'm going to ask you one question at a time, and you're going to answer each of them in a short single sentence, got it?"

"Yes, Ma'am! I'm totally ready!"

"Okay. Let's do this. First question. Are you sure your name is Gomi? Because on your Display, it says it's unknown," I asked, thinking how ridiculous it was that I didn't even know her real name yet.

"...I can't remember. The only name I know is Gomi."

The baby, I suppose I'll have to call her Gomi, looked at me with uncertainty. I felt a little sympathetic because she genuinely looked confused. I believed her that she didn't remember. I couldn't imagine how distressing it must be to lose your memory and forget who you are.

My voice turned a little softer when I asked my next question.

"Well, then we'll just keep that name until you remember. I'm fine with that. Now, the second question. Why do you have a Display?"

"...I don't know. I can't remember."

I was beginning to feel a little guilty now. It appeared that I was continuing to remind her of her sad situation. And I got the feeling that most questions I wanted to ask might receive the answer of "I don't know. I can't remember."

Okay, I was doing this to save me some time, but it wasn't working. I decided that if I wanted to get any information out of her, I needed to ask her something that she must know.

What could I ask... What should I ask...

"Oh!"

I exclaimed, remembering how she... erm booped my nose... and said that what I saw in the test chamber was a memory, not a movie. This was something I definitely needed to find out more about, and it sounded like she knew something about it.

Getting excited, I asked, "I have a question about that thing I saw in the test chamber. You said it's a memory, right? Whose was it? Why did I see it?"

"Oh, that!"

Gomi's eyes sparkled eagerly. As if she was about to tell me a big secret, she leaned forward and whispered, "Here is what you need to know..."