Gauss had expected him to make some other request and had mentally prepared himself.
But he never anticipated hearing an entirely unrelated question.
It had a certain "yes or no" aesthetic to it - answer or not.
So for a moment, he was stunned.
Seeing Gauss's prolonged silence, a trace of disappointment flashed across the half-snake person's face before being quickly concealed behind a facade of indifference.
"My apologies. If it's inconvenient then—"
"No no! It's just that our team has another member. I need to consult her opinion before giving you an answer."
Seeing the half-snake person about to leave, Gauss quickly called out to stop him.
Given the half-snake's movement speed, even a moment's delay might have let him get away.
However, Gauss was genuinely surprised by the half-snake's request to join.A bronze-ranked professional with an obvious three-star badge, and a priest class similar to clerics - how could such a person fail to find a permanent team? This truly puzzled him.
But the confusion lingered only briefly in his heart. He didn't actually suspect the half-snake person.
Before today, they'd only interacted three times, but Gauss could already sense that beneath the difficult-to-approach exterior lay a decent character.
The first time was at the inn, facing the manager's blatant refusal to let him stay. The half-snake hadn't shown the slightest anger, simply leaving quietly.
The second time was in the Maze's first layer against a group of hostile adventurers. Despite having overwhelming advantage, he hadn't gone for the kill, merely administering light punishment before letting them leave.
He'd even given the bracelet that caused the dispute to Gauss, who'd merely observed without intervening.
The third and final time was after Gauss lost consciousness—
This was the incident that most revealed his moral character.
Facing an unconscious, completely defenseless Gauss, he could have easily killed him and looted all his belongings, gaining at least triple-digit gold coins worth of spoils.
After all, the death of some unknown level 2 professional in the Maze wouldn't cause any waves. Beyond Aria grieving, no one else would care.
But he hadn't done so.
The result showed Gauss emerged completely unharmed, without even the slightest loss of property.
In the deceitful world of adventurers, this was practically saint-level morality.
As for whether it might have been because Aria was nearby and he simply hadn't had time to act?
That was even more absurd.
A level 3 professional at minimum, of the keen-sensed half-snake race—if he didn't want to be discovered, he had ten thousand ways to avoid Aria.
Gauss even suspected he might have actively sought out Aria.
Why he subsequently traveled with Aria to leave the Maze and return to Barry might also have been out of concern—not trusting a level 1 little druid escorting an unconscious teammate to safely avoid ill-intentioned adventurers.
Several interactions had left Gauss with an excellent impression of the half-snake adventurer.
The only puzzle was—why was he so good to Gauss? Almost excessively so?
Gauss didn't believe the half-snake adventurer treated all human adventurers this way. Otherwise, he'd have no time for anything but being a "goodwill ambassador" helping others.
He could only speculate that perhaps some of his actions had earned the other's approval?
"Actually, my teammate Aria is here too, though she's handling other matters now. Would you come with me later to hear her opinion?"
Although Aria recently deferred to Gauss's opinions on most matters beyond enforcing dietary restrictions per doctor's orders, adding new members to their team wasn't something he could decide alone.
"Only proper." The half-snake secretly sighed in relief. "I'm Serlandul. No need for introductions—I know you, Gauss."
The half-snake Serlandul extended a hand.
"Hello, Serlandul."
Gauss shook it.
"Shall we meet back here in two hours, at noon?"
When he parted with Aria, their agreed meeting time was two hours later.
"Good. Then we'll meet in two hours." Serlandul waved at Gauss before quickly slithering away.
Gauss also headed toward his training room, holding his access card.
After putting some distance between them, Serlandul reflected on his encounter with Gauss, still feeling somewhat incredulous.
Why had he, usually so composed, impulsively blurted out a team request?
He'd long prepared himself to become a lone adventurer.
But having spoken, he didn't dwell on it excessively.
Upon reflection, it wasn't entirely because of the faint aura of camaraderie Gauss emitted.
If that were the case, he should have teamed up with other half-snake kin.
Beyond Gauss being the first human whose eyes held no strange light when looking at him, the greater factor was likely the mutual trust he sensed between Gauss and the druid girl, which he deeply envied.
Learning from the druid that Gauss's coma resulted from covering his teammates' retreat only deepened his favorable impression.
Ultimately, though he shunned contact with strangers, he still yearned for the mutual trust of a fixed team.
His special identity and past betrayals had left a thorn in his heart, preventing him from taking that step.
Now, having broken that barrier through momentary impulse—perhaps it wasn't a bad thing.
Gauss arrived at the training room and swiped his card to enter.
The interior space was more spacious than expected.
The smooth walls' material was hard to identify, faintly revealing intricate magical protective patterns—clearly far stronger than ordinary walls, possibly with additional functions.
But that made sense, given their intended users were professionals.
If not sufficiently sturdy, the training rooms wouldn't last long before being destroyed.
According to staff's brief introduction, besides fixed targets, the training room offered many moving targets simulating various creatures.
Gauss picked up the instruction manual from the entrance shelf.
After a quick scan, he understood how to summon targets matching his clearance level.
Currently, his three monthly trial sessions only permitted summoning up to level 2 challenge targets.
Higher-level tests required either elevated permissions or spending contribution points.
Gauss summoned a level 2 target.
White sand surged from the distant floor, rapidly coalescing in the air.
A 2-3 meter long white construct resembling a rock crocodile appeared before Gauss. It roared before beginning to aggressively crawl around the area.
"Such impressive functionality," Gauss marveled inwardly.
Visiting the Spellcasters Association truly broadened his horizons.
So this was how the other professionals "dined so well."
This training room would greatly assist skill practice.
Pity he only had three monthly sessions limited to one hour each.
And this was just the basic training room—the advanced ones on higher floors must be even more astonishing.
"Must make the most of my time." With that thought, Gauss didn't delay further.
He drew his Hundred Bone Staff as a warm-up.
"Magic Missile!"
A cerulean missile shot forth, accurately striking the white construct.
The construct only simulated level 2 monster defenses—its movement speed and combat tactics remained rigid and simplistic.
It couldn't truly be considered a level 2 monster.
"Burst!"
The magic missile exploded.
White sand particles scattered everywhere.
The missile breached its armor but couldn't achieve a one-hit kill.
This aligned with his experience fighting mud statues.
His current magic missile could kill level 2 monsters but not instantly—requiring finding defensive weak points and expending effort.
Still, this was already incredible for most level 2 spellcasters.
"That's about it for now," Gauss mused.
But upon reaching higher professional levels, there should be ways to enhance the magic missile's power.
This "magic iaijutsu" was quite handy—if he could continuously boost its power, it could remain a staple.
After briefly testing several other skills, Gauss proceeded to today's main event—his racial talent: [Ghost Form].
This was Gauss's first blue-quality talent.
And in Gauss's vision, that blue hue appeared particularly deep and vivid.
Though uncertain whether color depth correlated with talent strength, it was undeniably pleasing to behold.
Gauss took a deep breath.
Channeling an ancient, mysterious power within his body.
"Vibrate!!"
Just as he'd witnessed in the Maze's second-layer Spider-Demon nest,
pale mystical energy began emanating from Gauss's body.
A chill swept through him, his thoughts becoming crystal-clear.
The pale energy rapidly transformed his entire form.
His originally black short hair turned snow-white upon contact with the energy, growing rapidly until reaching chest-length.
Simultaneously, two small ivory-colored curved horns slowly formed above his forehead.
His skin lost its healthy hue, becoming deathly pale yet visibly toughened in texture.
Gauss clenched his fists, joints cracking like thunder.
Tremendous power coursed through his veins.
"Did I get taller again?"
He quickly noticed his elevated perspective.
Originally around 180cm, his [Ghost Form] apparently boosted him past 200cm.
Though he remained lean and lanky—even more so than normal.
Fortunately, his strength and other physical attributes increased rather than decreased.
Next, his visual perception changed—colors appeared more muted.
Yet certain special objects' key colors became more prominent.
Like the wall's magic patterns and distant target construct appeared exceptionally clear, almost appearing in slow motion.
Gauss pushed off with his feet, his figure flashing ghostlike to another spot.
"My movement speed increased!"
Though augmented by [Enhanced Jump], this was still significantly faster than before.
Apparently [Ghost Form] emphasized explosive speed in its physical enhancements?
Gauss quickly concluded.
He checked his status panel.
Unfortunately.
In [Ghost Form], his six core attributes displayed as question marks.
Apparently deemed an abnormal state preventing normal display.
Beyond physical enhancement, his mana flow accelerated dramatically, entwined with the pale energy.
Gauss suddenly had a peculiar notion. To test it,
he sidestepped and leapt.
"Magic Missile!"
Mid-air, blue energy coalesced at his right index fingertip.
"Whoosh!!"
The energy shot forth, accurately striking the still-crawling white construct.
"BOOM!!" Milky shockwaves rippled across the construct's surface.
The finger-launched missile blasted a massive hole through the construct, sending it tumbling twice before its form disintegrated into white sand.
"I'm so strong!" Gauss inhaled sharply.
His intuition proved correct.
[Ghost Form] significantly boosted his magical capabilities too.
The pale energy seemed to entwine with his mana, providing amplification.
That explained why he could now cast spells freely while moving, and why his magic missile's power increased.
This offensive capability must rank among the strongest even at level 3, right?
After all, magic missile was only a 1st-circle spell—level 3 spellcasters could use 2nd-circle spells.
Yet Gauss judged most level 3 professionals couldn't easily one-shot level 2 monsters—while eventual victory wasn't difficult, instant kills were rare.
But what intrigued Gauss wasn't just the increased magical power—but his newfound ability to cast spells freely while moving.
This was exceptionally valuable.
Because spellcasting required intense concentration.
Most maintained relatively fixed postures to improve success rates.
"Whew—"
Feeling his rapidly depleting energy reserves, Gauss exhaled deeply.
He first deactivated [Ghost Form].
This racial talent's enhancement effects were indeed dramatic—virtually transformative.
But the energy consumption proved equally staggering.
Just a few actions had drained most of his stamina.
Though his Energy Storage Gland served as backup reserves, prolonged use remained impossible. Attempting to sustain [Ghost Form] through food intake was equally impractical.
Meaning once activated, [Ghost Form] demanded swift resolution!
Either the enemy dies, or I do.
"Seems this talent's useless against ordinary foes or manageable opponents. It only shines against superior enemies," Gauss analyzed coolly.
Of course, not excessively superior—[Ghost Form] had limits.
Against overwhelmingly powerful monsters, activating it would only ensure a more dignified death.
After resting briefly in the training room and replenishing energy, Gauss didn't waste remaining time—summoning other targets to practice additional skills and spells.
An hour passed in a blink.
Gauss exited the room.
Heading toward the lobby where he'd met the half-snake earlier.
Though still thirty minutes early, with nothing else to do, he might as well wait there.
To his surprise, the half-snake arrived even earlier.
Already seated in a corner reading.
"You're here early."
"Just arrived," Serlandul closed his book.
Gauss smiled faintly without comment.
He suspected Serlandul would claim recent arrival regardless when he came.
Serlandul set his book down, serpentine pupils slightly contracting as they lingered on Gauss.
'Dude, you...'
He paused mentally.
Though only an hour apart, Gauss's aura... seemed to have strengthened slightly.
So, was this an illusion?
PS: Another chapter around 11pm-midnight tonight (likely late—I find my writing speed hard to estimate accurately whenever I give timelines).