Elmo couldn't help but wonder if there had been anyone wounded from the fight with the orcs, but from the lack of cries of pain, he got the sense that they might have been able to get through that assault without anything serious happening.
Yet at the same time, he was afraid to look around or to ask. As just because he didn't hear any cries of pain, didn't mean that no one got injured. Some did their best to avoid crying out in pain while others could easily be unconscious. Or have been killed.
Elin was mostly afraid of that last option. He didn't want to see anyone having been killed like that if it was possible. Even the mere thought of it was enough to make his stomach twist in an unpleasant way.
So, following Kim was an easy enough decision. Especially since there was something about what she'd said that made him want to go, even if he wasn't part of the competition that had brought him to this world.
Elmo also thought that Jonas and Elin were fully on board as well. Until they were well on their way to climbing the slope.
"So, what's the plan then?" Jonas asked. "Are you going to try to talk with it or are we acting like the sacrifices to appease a dangerous deity-like being that could still rain destruction down on the others?"
Kim briefly glanced at Jonas as he moved up next ot her on the slope. "Getting a little dark, aren't we?"
Jonas shrugged. "Hey, I have no idea what you're thinking. Just that conventional wisdom would say that this is a bad idea."
"Then why are you accompanying me?" Kim asked, her tone making Elmo wonder if she was serious or was being rhetorical.
"Simple. You're part of our group. So, if you want to walk into the mouth of the lion, so to speak, then we should go with you. If nothing else, who's to say that we can't get a secret challenge completion out of this?" Jonas asked with a smirk.
"Well, any idea about what we should ask the dragon?" Kim asked.
"You don't have an idea yourself?" Jonas asked, sounding a little surprised.
"Hey, I have a few topics I want to talk with it about," Kim protested. "I was merely asking so I'd know if there was anything else we should ask it."
"Does the dragon have a name?" Elin asked.
Elmo had to work hard to hold in the laughter that threatened to break out of him at that question. He wasn't sure why Elin wanted to know that, but as far as Elmo knew, every intelligent being would have a name, if only to identify themselves from each other.
Although, it was possible that some didn't care to do that, but he couldn't say that he knew of any specific examples right off the top of his head.
"I'm sure it does, but you can ask the dragon when we reach it," Jonas replied, no hint of mocking or amusement in his voice. "Keep in mind, just because it has a name, doesn't mean it'll be something we can understand."
"Why's that?" Elin asked.
"Because it's a dragon," Kim replied casually. "From all I know about dragons is that they have their own language, and their language might not be something that we'd be able to understand. So, if they have a name in that language, there's a good chance we won't be able to understand what it is."
"I see," Elin replied nodding.
"Do you think there might be a portal that is bringing orcs here, like with the goblins in the dungeon we started in?" Elmo asked, feeling like this might be the best time to get that thought off of his mind.
"Where'd that idea come from?" Jonas asked, sounding more surprised than Elmo would have liked.
However, Elmo merely shrugged. If Jonas was surprised at the question, he didn't feel like trying to go through all the details about why he thought that there might be a portal. He had a feeling if he did that, he might end up feeling less like part of the group again.
"Just the way they charged at us felt weird, I guess," Elmo said, not sure how else to put it. Although, that only covered a portion of why he thought there might be aportal.
"Well, I doubt there'd be a portal set up by whoever is in charge of this competition," Kim remarked. "I mean, they didn't announce it, like they did with the one in the dungeon. So, if ther is one, it would have to have just been barely created. Which I don't think would have allowed that many orcs to go through in that period of time."
Elmo wasn't sure how to respond to that. He certainly couldn't argue against the logic behind it, even though he didn't think that it would be quite that simple. Especially since they didn't know what those who ran this competition could do. After all, it wasn't like they had been given a manual or explanation about what to expect from this.
Elmo immersed himself in his own thoughts, not paying attention to what the others said after that, or if they fell silent themselves. The orcs were merely a catalyst for him about what the people running this competition might do. Or were even capable of in the first place.
He felt like he was dancing to a tune that wasn't familiar, nor did he know the steps to the dance he could tell he was expected to dance. Only if he didn't somehow accomplish it, then he might not be able to survive, let alone return to the life he once lived.
Then before he knew it, the dragon was right in front of them.
While Elmo had the feeling that the dragon hadn't moved since it had first come into their sight, it wasn't like he could say for certain. As, after climbing the slope themselves, their perspective had changed. Now they were at the top of the slope themselves, and could also see the top of it clearly, where they couldn't when they were down where the rest of the camp was.
The dragon itself was at least fifteen feet high from where it stood, from the ground to the top of it's front shoulders. It's wings were flat against it's back, and it's scales were more of a blue-green when seen up close, rather than the blue they looked from a distance. The dragon's eyes were a mixute of red and yellow to the point where it almost felt like they were orbs of fire themselves.
"What do you want?" the dragon asked in a bored tone, it's voice a rich baritone.
"We were wondering if you had any plans of attacking our camp," Kim asked bluntly.
The dragon looked at Kim closely, to the point where Elmo started to worry that the dragon was going to eat Kim for simply asking that question. Once it decided she was edible, at least.
Then the dragon sighed, making Elmo take a step back involuntarily. He couldn't be sure what the dragon intended, but he was ready to start running at a moment's notice.
"Don't worry," the dragon replied, settling down on the ground, almost lazily. "Attacking that many humans would be too much work and too little reward for it."
Elmo felt himself take a little amount of courage from that statement, although he couldn't help but wonder if the dragon still might try to much on them, since they had so graciously made themselves closer to it, making eating them take less effort than it would have taken otherwise.
"Do you have any idea why the orcs charged at us from so far away?" Jonas asked, surprising Elmo.
As far as Elmo was concerned, there wasn't a reason, since there wasn't anything else that had happened, other than the dragon appearing afterwards.
The dragon shook it's head, almost like it was shaking off water. "I try not to get involved in the affairs of lesser creatures. What they do, or why, is not anything I'm concerned with," the dragon replied calmly. "Though, they did appear there a few minutes before they started running down the mountain. I'm not sure if that had anything to do with it, but that's not something I'm used to seeing."
"If that's the case, would you know about the location of a fire dragon?" Kim asked, nearly making Elmo choke on his own breathing.
As he stared at Kim incredulously, he couldn't help but worry that the dragon wouldn't react very well to that question. Especially when he found out they were looking to slay that dragon. After all, wouldn't dragons be opposed to people killing other dragons?
The dragon regarded Kim calmly. "Why do you think I would know about the location of such an abomination? And what makes you think that an abomination like that exists right now?" the dragon asked, it's voice almost a menacing growl.
"We've only recently learned that a fire dragon exists and have been searching for it," Kim replied, as if she didn't see the warning signs Elmo did.
"And how do you know that it's a fire dragon you're searching for?"
At this, Elmo was a little surprised that Kim hesitated for a brief moment before responding. He would have expected her to lay out everything, regardless of their earlier discussion about what to disclose to the people on this world about the competition.
"I'm sorry," Kim replied. "I'm not at liberty to answer that. There's too many other factors involved that I can't tell you what you want to know without divulging what we can't say."
The dragon made a sound at Kim's response, one that almost sounded like a groan. Although, Elmo was certain that it meant the dragon was going to attack.
Maybe I should have remained with the rest of the camp, Elmo said to himself silently, realizing just how intimidating he found the dragon. Even though it didn't seem hostile to them, he couldn't get his mind past the fact about how easily the dragon could eat them, especially him, before they could really do anything.
"They started another of those ridiculous competitions, haven't they?" the dragon said, almost like he was complaining about something. "All four of you have a system, don't you?"