jdhmnovel Chapter 180 180: Advancing Deeper
Chapter 180 180: Advancing Deeper
Food was absolutely the best way to relieve fatigue.
Especially while drinking hot soup.
The most immediate feeling was that his stamina was rapidly recovering.
After resolving the lunch issue, they didn't rush to head to Floor 14 for exploration. Instead, they chose to rest in place. Ron himself had no problem.
But what about his teammates?
"You all take a short break."
"At this floor, we probably won't run into mutated monsters. I'll head to Floor 14 first to scout ahead." He quickly made his decision.
Facing the curious gazes of the girls present, Ron smiled and explained, "This will speed up our overall efficiency. After all… the expedition target is only the end of the mid-level floors."
"If we take too long, it'll easily make the Guild suspicious."
"…"
That was indeed reasonable.
At least Tione, who was relatively calm and rational, felt a surge of surprise when she heard Ron's cautious judgment.
How should she put it?
Probably that his steady and cautious way of doing things wasn't much different from their own Familia captain.
Perhaps, the fact that Ron's special talent hadn't been exposed to Orario's wider view had a lot to do with this cautiousness.
If the Guild were to find out, what kind of consequences it would bring—she couldn't see that far yet, but she knew one thing clearly: Ron's life afterward would definitely not be peaceful.
Familias scrambling to cooperate with him…
They might even resort to certain coercive methods. At the very least, if the Freya Familia learned of it, they would absolutely take further action.
As for danger?
Even though Evilus had been wiped out on the surface, within the vast labyrinth city of Orario, their remnants were still active in the shadows.
A special talent capable of boosting an adventurer's strength would absolutely become a thorn in the eyes of those remnants!
"Hmm…"
"If I didn't see how young you look, it'd be hard to imagine you're this composed." Tione didn't hesitate to praise Ron.
No one disliked smart people.
What's more—this was probably one of the few chances she had to evaluate him as a "senior." Once this expedition ended…
Ron would definitely ascend directly to Level 4!
For safety reasons, the Amazon girl looked at her younger sister Tiona and decisively said, "Tiona, you accompany Ron to Floor 14."
"Do your best to ensure his safety."
Even just in the mid-level floors, the monsters Ron encountered were already at this level. If he went to the lower floors, how much help would his uniqueness bring to the Familia?
Tione was looking forward to it.
"No problem!"
"Um… I can join the fight too, right? These never-before-seen monsters already look really interesting just from appearance."
With a completely different personality, recalling the strength of those Giant Dogs, Tiona was already itching to try. And since Ron had chosen to head deeper alone to scout—that also meant… the chances of encountering danger would increase. She could use safety as a reason to step in and test the strength of those special monsters!
"I want to go too."
Even though her body was full of fatigue, Lefiya didn't want to miss such an opportunity to train herself. Besides, if Ron went alone, she felt somewhat uneasy.
In terms of close combat, she might indeed not match Ron. But the key point—she was a mage!
Ignoring combat endurance, and focusing purely on the destructive power of magic, releasing attacks comparable to Level 5—something Lefiya felt was easily within her reach.
"Then…"
"Let's arrange it like this for now."
Ron had no objections.
No one would refuse one-on-one time with beautiful girls—even if there was Tiona acting like a third wheel. Meanwhile, looking at his own Familia members—it was obvious they were exhausted.
After all, two of them were Level 2, and even Mikoto, who was stronger, had only just reached Level 3. Forcing a deeper advance would instead create danger.
After deciding to explore deeper floors,
Ron took the lead, stepping forward toward the passage not far ahead that connected to deeper levels. Only high-intensity combat—could bring greater growth in strength!
Grinding.
With no safety concerns, he naturally intended to maximize the support of the Loki Familia.
"…"
"It's here."
Compared to the upper floors of the Dungeon, the cave environment of the mid-level floors was clearly more spacious. The lighting still came from the Dungeon's faint ambient glow, making visibility gradually dim.
Looking ahead—at this nearly pitch-black staircase leading to deeper floors.
That feeling of malice from the Dungeon, which had only recently faded, surged back into his mind once again—stronger than when he first stepped onto the brink of death!
For adventurers, the first priority was to find a way to survive.
Under normal circumstances, if he felt this kind of viscous, tide-like malice that simply couldn't be shaken off, Ron would absolutely stop exploring.
He knew—something bad was definitely waiting ahead!
"What's wrong?"
Noticing Ron's steps halt at the entrance of the staircase, Tiona cast him a curious look. Especially when she saw the gradually serious expression on his face—even if she didn't want to think too much, she realized something was off.
"Do you have concerns about going deeper?"
"Not exactly."
"It's just… I've never felt such intense malice before." Ron shook his head lightly. This malice was even comparable to that of an ancient dragon.
What bad intentions could the Dungeon have?
If he had to say… it was probably trying, without holding anything back, to completely kill him within the Dungeon!
"Don't worry."
"I've got safety covered. Don't underestimate me—I'm a Level 5 adventurer, after all. Exploring the mid-level floors… is absolutely more than manageable!"
Though when she said the latter part, the Amazon girl's confidence was clearly a bit lacking. That was, of course, assuming they didn't encounter something like the mutated floor boss—Lansseax.
Even at the same level, or even if she were slightly stronger, soloing a floor boss was still an extremely difficult challenge for an adventurer.
"…"
"Then let's give it a try."
Ron could sense the confidence in Tiona's tone.
Moreover, the floor was right in front of them. No matter what, he had to continue deeper—whether for the expedition or for the future he sought.
Ron knew there was no such thing as retreat!
His gaze swept over the two girls behind him: "If things don't go smoothly, we'll retreat back to Floor 13 and reconsider our strategy."
"I can't wait anymore."
She really couldn't wait—to fight those mutated monsters. As for the malice Ron sensed, it was probably due to the special nature of his talent.
Some kind of warning effect?
Tiona couldn't figure it out.
She didn't stay at the rear of the team. Instead, she took the lead, stepping into the staircase passage and advancing deeper into the Dungeon.
It was just… for some reason, this girl from the Country of Blood and Fighting felt that this staircase seemed far longer than any path she had encountered in her past explorations.
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