124 [124] Rivira!

Boom~

The overwhelming flames directly enveloped the three-headed hellhound.

In an instant, the previously menacing three-headed hellhound was severely wounded.

It suffered severe burns all over its body, and these flames were its own.

"How is this possible?"

Finn couldn't help but shout in disbelief.

Not only him, but everyone else was equally shocked.

"This is August's skill, Full Counter."

Ais took on the role of explaining at this moment.

"Full Counter?"

"Yes, August can rebound back any offensive magical power directed at him with several times the force, and this counterattack is unrelated to strength."

One sentence left everyone dumbfounded.

Especially Riveria, August's skill was simply too overpowered, almost the nemesis of all mages.

It could rebound all offensive magical powers, and it was unrelated to strength.

This meant that as long as there was magic in front of him, it was like his weapon. It was truly terrifying.

"Why? Then what about my future..."

Lefiya, who already harbored hostility towards August, suddenly felt her heart turn cold.

She was a mage. All her strength came from magic. Now that August had such a skill, could she surpass him and teach him a lesson?

At this moment, August, holding Zanpakuto, walked step by step towards the three-headed hellhound.

*ROOOOOAR*

Watching August getting closer, the three-headed hellhound roared, but its injuries made it more like a toothless paper tiger.

Splurt~

The Zanpakuto blade pierced directly through the headthree-headed hellhound's middle head.

Powerful dark magic flowed directly into the three-headed hellhound's body. In a breath's time, it completely destroyed the three-headed hellhound's life.

With a 'thud,' the three-headed hellhound turned into a black eye, leaving only a magical stone.

"So strong~"

Tione looked at August, who effortlessly dealt with the three-headed hellhound, with surprise.

After all, August was currently only level 3. Facing an enhanced variant of a level 3 monster, he easily killed it. This meant that August had long surpassed regular monsters.

"It's really surprising. Loki was right, he is a monster."

"Yeah."

Finn and Riveria didn't know how to express their feelings at the moment.

Although there was Loki's warning beforehand, witnessing it with their own eyes was still shocking.

Among the crowd, Aki, looking at the majestic August, had a glint in her eyes.

He was so cool, incredibly strong, terrifying potential, and handsome. There was only one man like him in the entire Orario.

Thinking back to what Finn had told her yesterday, she was already smitten.

Although she wouldn't be his only woman, attaching herself to such a powerful man, even if she was just a lover, what did it matter?

Different from human concepts, as an catgirl, Aki had genes that worshipped the strong. Submitting and attaching oneself to the strong was only natural.

The strong had everything, and the weak had nothing. This was the law of the world.

"August, it seems you're not far from leveling up. Do you want to go to the deeper levels?"

Finn spoke because he wanted to see how strong August really was.

"Sure, but if we go deeper, we might not be able to return to Orario today."

"It's okay. We can stay overnight in Rivira."

"Finn, the prices in that town are ridiculously high."

"It's okay. I'll personally cover the expenses this time."

"Then it's not a problem."

Finn was both amused and helpless at August's behavior. Although the collaboration with Hephaestus Familia had ended, the profits from the collaboration, before and after, amounted to nearly 400 million valis.

With such a huge sum, how could August be short of money?

Thus, the group crossed the 17th floor's crystal wall and finally arrived at the 18th floor.

Having been exhausted from grinding monsters on the 35th floor, August had made up his mind not to return to the dungeon for at least three to five days. However, fate had other plans, and he found himself back here sooner than expected.

Arriving at the Rivira, Finn noticed that something was off in the atmosphere.

Meanwhile, August, with interest, looked at the sign at the entrance of the town. It had a line of words with a series of numbers behind it.

[Rivira, No. 3340]

August was full of surprise. 3340 meant that this town had been destroyed more than 3,300 times.

This made one marvel at the peculiar nature of time.

"Huh? 3340, rebuilt again."

Tiona, having also glanced over due to August's attention, laughed when she saw the number.

August expressed his amazement. The use of the word 'again' was particularly fitting.

"By the way, Goliath on the 17th floor hasn't respawned. I thought I could make a good profit."

Tiona sighed as she walked, now burdened with a debt of 120 million for forging new weapons.

"Adventurers from Rivira regularly go to clear Goliath. They say it's to clear the passage and protect the town's safety."

Finn smiled faintly, but the others all rolled their eyes.

"Those bastards are clearly doing it for money. They're protecting the town's safety? With this town getting destroyed every three days, rebuilding has become a routine."

Tiona sneered at this. The drop items from the floor bosses were high-priced, and many people set up stalls around. They sold ordinary weapons, armor, and daily necessities, but the prices were mostly ten times higher than in Orario.

Here, even a regular rye bread was considered a luxury item because everything in the dungeon was scarce.

That's why some specialized merchants came to buy here and sell in Orario, making nearly ten times the profit.

Of course, adventurers weren't fools. Except when they were truly desperate, no one would spend money here.

But the dungeon wasn't a good place either. No one knew what would happen the next second.

Every day, people had to purchase here due to irresistible circumstances.

Regarding this place, August had only been here once or twice. He carried various delicacies and drinks with him, along with his treasury. He would never be in a situation where he had no choice.

Therefore, even if they entered the 18th floor, most of the time they just passed through. At most, they would take a bath in the pond and pool.

---

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