I'm Actually Not Overpowered!

'Gross! Gross! Grooooossssssss!!!'

I felt so disgusted by my own body that it took everything in my willpower to maintain my façade.

Damn, why did I have to be greeted by an entourage of spectators?

'They're even cheering for me now. Shit… I think I'd like to be alone for a moment.'

Of course it wasn't that I wasn't happy about the attention or anything, but…

'This feeling, it's like someone dipped me in a sea of poo! I feel so disgusted that I could die.'

Still, the audience wanted what it wanted, it was my duty as a Hero—or rather, the champion of the Adventurers to play the part.

With an awkward grin on my face, I returned greetings to the warm reception around me.

As I did this, only one thought was constant in my mind.

'I need to get out of here…'

***********************************************

"I-incredible… I still can't believe it."

"It seems you were right, sir."

Gerund was currently standing behind the Vice Guild master, who sat on a comfortable chair in an office.

Seated opposite him, with only a center table between both sides, were Sarah and Byron.

After the incident, there was obviously much to be done.

One was alerting the Guild about the death of the Earth Dragon.

Gerund knew how shocked he was when Zabdel told him that his hunch had been right, after all.

More Adventurers came from the guild to retrieve he corpses of their comrades, while many others joined efforts to carry the Earth Dragon's dead body away from the vicinity.

"That man truly is amazing." Zabdel smiled, remembering how surprised he had been when he saw the Earth Dragon up close.

It was so large, that Zabdel doubted any human could put up a fight against it. Yet…

'If the Guild master was present… even he would lose.'

It just went to show the kind of special being he was.

After everything, Zabdel invited eye-witnesses of the incident, which included Sam's team. However, the man of the hour said he had something important to do, and left.

No one could argue with his words. After all, if someone like him considered it important, then it definitely was.

"One thing I don't understand, though…" Gerund spoke in a conspiratorial manner.

Everyone paused their praise of Sam, and then looked at the buffed-up Adventurer.

"Why did he attack the Earth Dragon from within? That means the interior of Earth Dragons is weaker than normal. He chose a dangerous path… just to kill the Earth Dragon. Why?"

The general assumption of the people was that Sam was strong enough to defeat a Dragon, with or without tricks.

There was no sign of a struggle in Sam's fight.

He had simply breezed through the battle and finished off his opponent quickly.

However, considering what Gerund had said now, then perhaps all they had been impressed by were merely—

"Don't be absurd. There's obviously a reason why Sam did what he did."

It didn't make sense that a person with superior power would go about killing a weaker target in such a roundabout way. Only the weak resorted to such tricks.

"But why didn't he just slice the monster up?" That way, everything would have been resolved quickly.

"He obviously couldn't. If you consider just how great the quality of Earth Dragon scales are… what they can do… Sam probably didn't want to diminish their value."

Gerund's eyes widened in surprise at Zabdel's words. He never thought of it that way.

"T-then—?!"

"That's right. He decided to take it out from within to minimize the damage."

That meant he was simply thinking ahead while doing his best to defeat the dragon. The more Zabdel thought about Sam, the more astounded he was.

"The dead Adventurers totaled seven. They belonged to the team before your party or the other crew arrived. There were supposed to be more deaths, but thanks to Sam, the problem was swiftly taken care of.

"Sam is so amazing!"

"Indeed! Strong, yet kind."

Byron and Sarah once again burst into their hero worship, clamoring for Sam's supremacy.

"The problem is that there was no Quest on the Earth Dragon posted in the Adventurer's Guild. I'm sorry, I can't offer monetary compensation for your exploits." Zabdel sighed as he resumed his serious conversation with Sam's two representatives.

"It's fine. He probably didn't do it for the reward."

"The Earth Dragon is far more valuable. He'll use it well."

That was true.

No one could say the Dragon was the property of the Adventurer's Guild. By all means, every part of its body was Sam's property.

There were no arguments in this department.

"So, what do you plan on doing with the Earth Dragon's corpse?"

"That's up to Sam to decide."

Zabdel nodded with a smile. "You're right."

As such, they discussed other important things—including the details of the awesome incident they had experienced.

Of course, a few 'Sam Supremacy ' was thrown here and there, but the conversation still touched on some relevant issues until it finally came to an end.

One of the things that was guaranteed was the promotion of Sam from his current position to S Rank.

**********************************************

"Haa, finally… sweet solitude."

I wasn't an attention whore. Even someone like me had moments where they just wanted to be alone.

That was exactly the case right now.

After playing an exhausting part in the subjugation of the Earth Dragon, I needed to freshen up… and also leave the gathering crowd.

It wouldn't be good for popularity, but handling everyone's expectations was a no-no for me. Especially at this point.

"Haa… I can't believe they think I'm that strong.".

Sam had developed the habit of speaking to himself, so he was lost in his thought as he considered all that was happening.

'After slaying the monster, I used my left over strength to uproot its teeth as a trophy… something most grown men couldn't dream of doing.'

They were just vastly inferior. The corpse of a Level 70 Monster would still be extremely powerful.

Maybe it was because of the [You Have Leveled Up] adrenaline of that time, but instead of just walking away, I wanted to prove how strong I was to everyone.

By removing the teeth from the jaw, and stating a cool line "I'll be taking this," everyone doubted my capabilities less.

At this point, I had already converted everyone into viewing me with reverence and caution.

As for the Earth Dragon's Scales, it was very difficult—if not impossible—for conventional weapons to do anything.

Still, it was highly valuable, and I knew that the Guild would do everything in their power to process it and make all sorts of cool stuff.

'I used the tooth I took from that Earth Dragon to rip out a scale in front of everyone too…'

They were all amazed by my proficiency in taking care of the corpse, and the extraordinary physical acumen I would have possessed to handle such a task.

Of course, this was all a sham.

'I used Five Seconds Rule, as well as my whole power, just go pull that one scale out…'

It was honestly exhausting, to say the least, but the effects were worth it.

I wasn't sure how they would justify me having to enter the belly of the beast to finish the job, but I was certain everyone viewed me as strong henceforth.

'I should start returning…' Rising from the small hill I rested my back on, I felt a warm breeze envelope me, soothing my frayed nerves.

'I jumped to Level 45, and got a new Skill and Title too…' A smile formed on my face as I finally realized that, without knowing it at the time, I had become quite overpowered.

"I should be about the strongest human in this world…"

But, was that supposed to make me happy in the slightest?

Humans were on the lower end of the food chain, so there was no need comparing myself to them.

If I was to compare myself to my true adversaries, I'd say I was as strong as a Middle-Class Demon.

Of course, it depended on the kind of Middle Class I fought.

Young and inexperienced ones would meet defeat at my hands, but some Middle-Class Demons could even defeat the Earth Dragon I killed without relying on tricks.

Once that came into view, it went to show just how weak I still was.

'I kept a tooth of the dragon as a trophy, though. Who knows, I might be able to scare someone by pointing the jaws of a Dragon at them.

'Let's consider keeping it as proof.'

I began walking away, but before long —just after a few steps—I saw three people standing in front of me.

"Hm?"

The vast wasteland echoed in silence as I looked at the three people in front of me. Their faces were familiar enough to recognize.

There was Asa, the Ranger who had temporarily joined my team.

Gu, the barbarian warrior that still gave me the creeps with his bulky body.

Finally, Liebert, the thin dude with the power of bones.

'What do these guys want with me? I have no money or anything.'

I heard, from my previous world, that once you become popular, you get a lot of people that you went to school with, or that you took exams with; try to leech off benefits from you.

I had no idea what their deal was, but the theory just popped into my head.

"What do you want?"

Ultimately, I had to simply ask.