Ep. 52 - Deep Floors, Archer

We were on the 37th floor, just outside the 5th wall, when I suddenly remembered something important.

"Hey, Finn! How much time will the supplies last you?"

"Should last us up to one month, why?"

I did some quick considerations in my head, then said: "We should rest a bit on the 39th floor. The next safe room will be floor 50, then probably nothing until the 60's. Not ideal. We should rest up there then arrive to the 50th for the night. We will start the real dive tomorrow and I don't know how much ground we can cover with this amount of people. It will be pretty hard since I want to get to the 70's or 80's."

He thought a little before nodding. "Usually we would take a couple of days just to reach this point, so it's fine. Now, you should concentrate on finding your way through the White Palace."

"Hm… Yes, finding my way… Not my style, at least not here." I lowered Loki on the ground and signaled to the gang. "I like going really simply about this floor. Straight forward."

I punched the wall and opened a passage that would be able to fit a decent amount of people in it. I then blasted any monster I found on the other side. I repeated the process until we were outside the central area of the floor.

"If it's anything like last time, the Juggernaut should spawn anytime. You guys take care of it please. Oh, it might be a black variant, so be careful." I said to the gang. Ais was also with them. She wasn't as strong as them, but my dear daughter was still strong enough.

I smashed the last wall and entered the central area. The Udaeus did not respawn yet, thanks to yours truly. However, as I expected, the Dungeon acted like a bitch and spawned in a black version of the Juggernaut. Jaune started giving directions.

The thing was absolutely suppressed. Its body was constantly being cut, holed out, or beaten. Ais even supported the gang by shooting lasers at the thing to distract it, then used magic to relocate to a new shooting position. She learned so well, I am proud of her.

Oh, Nora just crushed its spine with a flaming hammer. Ouch, that must hurt.

"Hey, uhm, Tula? Are we supposed to do anything in this expedition? Because it looks like you guys have it pretty much under control." said Finn.

"Oh, Finn. You guys are needed to take care of any small fry that pass through us. To be honest, most of you guys aren't actually needed, so I will open a spatial gate to the mansion on the 39th floor so that we can send some people back. Also, you are here to make this expedition official, otherwise it would just be a group of ten random Adventurers, a little girl, and a Goddess exploring the deep floors. Do it for the public!" I said, sporting my best smile. I have nothing against him, I just don't really care.

Well, I have apparently been too insensitive as my words caused an arrow to fly at me. I didn't even bother to look at it and let it hit me. The arrowhead snapped. I took it in hand and examined it.

"Pretty good, damascus. Why would you ever do that?" I asked, looking at the one who let loose the arrow.

"This is too much. You've been here for a week and think you can just do as you like?" he said.

"Ah. This is why I was thinking about going to Ereshkigal. She didn't have other adventurers. Look here, random archer dude. I don't care about your opinion.I admit that I have been insensitive and could have put it in a better way, but can you deny that you are adding nothing to this expedition?" He didn't answer. "Sorry, I should have phrased it differently. If, by any chance, there is a monster that we can't handle, can you?" I looked around. "I will make this really clear. We are in the Dungeon with a Goddess that is constantly causing black monsters to spawn. My group can handle them, probably until the 80th floor, then I'll have to step in if we want to delve deeper. Not one of you can face off against the monsters on the 60's." I paused a moment then continued. "We, meaning Finn, Loki, and I, will be sending people back to the mansion so that the lower level adventures can be safe, spend their time more effectively, and reduce the amount of people in the group. In the event a monster that we can't handle appears, escaping will be a priority. A big group like right now will only be a nuisance."

No one else talked. I was right, they knew. We were obviously the strongest in the Familia and we were just playing around for now. I can handle pretty much anything that comes at me, but the others? No, they can't. Keeping so many people with us will just increase possible casualties. I can easily trasmat to the ship those with bracelets or wristbands, meaning the gang, Ais, and Loki, but the others will have to run through a spatial gate. This is to be absolutely safe and certain nothing will happen. Loki said it in her pep talk: follow the orders and nothing too bad will happen.

Let's just forget about the fact that I was shot with an arrow.

We continued walking in silence except for the occasional giggle as the gang destroyed every monster we encountered. We reached the 39th floor pretty quickly and set up a temporary campsite. I placed a beacon to trasmat down our table, armchairs, and some snacks to eat while waiting. I got an extra armchair for Loki.

I decided to do something actually useful for once and started consulting a 3D render of the Dungeon until the 80th floor. MoonRay managed to scan only until there. I may look and act like I wing everything, but in reality I actually think about what I do. A robot brain helps with making decisions in split seconds.

The gang saw the render and got serious. It was planning time.

"Three days ago we arrived at the 49th floor. The monsters were already starting to get more… Interesting. We could have pushed it until the 59th floor or so before I had to step in. Now, with one more level, we should easily be able to go until the late 60's without taking too much time. The problem comes after that. Ais won't be able to do much to the monsters and you guys might have to group up to deal with single enemies. Now, the render shows that there should be a safe zone on either the 61st or 62nd floor. We will be setting up camp and a beacon there. You will grind a little until you level up or feel comfortable with going onto lower floors. We will hold another planning session when we get to the safe zone in the 60's. For now, just enjoy the Dungeon and don't worry about the group. I'm there standing guard so nothing will happen."

Loki then asked something: "First, do you always hold these meetings? You don't really strike me as the cautious type. Second, how do you have such a detailed map of the Dungeon?"

"Loki, I am very cautious. I don't want my friends, wives, or new daughter to die after all. I always consider pros and cons, what I can gain and what it will cost me, how to use my pieces efficiently. I do plan things, but usually do it mentally or when I am alone, so it looks to you like I am winging things and just doing whatever comes to mind. Sometimes I do that, I admit, but I usually have an underlying plan. As for the map, it's magic, to put it simply. If you don't believe me, you can call Riveria to examine this table. You'll be surprised." I said.

"Yeah, Loki. He tries way too hard. We are usually strong enough to do as we like, but he still has plans or at least ideas to deal with unexpected situations. He only looks like an idiot, but he's good at what he does." said Jaune

"I feel hurt, I look like an idiot?"

"Yup, you do. But you're our idiot." said Weiss, sipping on some tea.

"I can stand that. There you have it Loki. I had even planned how to enter the Familia in case I didn't win the spar or failed to catch your interest, just so you know. But, I'm glad you welcomed us." I said, passing a cookie to Ais and one to Loki. She took it and took a small bite.

"I see. Seems like my kidnapper will not only be strong but intelligent as well. How lucky I am." she said with a smile.

"Kidnapper? Oh, you got another one? Well, welcome to the gang, Loki." said Ren, understanding the situation. Soon Nora, Yang, Ruby, Pyrrha, Weiss, and Blake dragged her away for some girl talk.

"Man. You already have three wives. Be careful or you'll end up with not having enough space on the ship." said Sun.

"Yeah, I know. I swear that I wouldn't usually do this but that MPH curse is seriously affecting me. You don't realize it because you are still low-level. I'm already over 100000 and the curse only became stronger. I just hear a constant voice in my head telling me to collect and take. It's seriously annoying."

"This is serious then. If it is seriously affecting you so much then we need to find a solution. I guess you have already tried with this world's magic?" asked Jaune

"Yes and no. I tried fixing the ritual after I got some new eye powers, but I couldn't find any way to do it. I recently got the Goddess of Magic's knowledge as you know. I still haven't tried since we spent the last three days doing other things and it just slipped my mind. I will when we get back to the surface or a long break. If I actually get an idea, I might spend over an hour just writing, not ideal in the Dungeon."

"You are right. Wouldn't be good if you had to fight while creating a ritual. Well, I guess it's still fine for now if you can maintain your sanity. You should talk to us in case the voice gets worse." said Ren.

"Thanks. Don't worry too much. I will soon find a solution, I am sure. Look, here come the girls, act like nothing is up, please. Don't want to worry them too much." They all nodded then smiled at the incoming group. "Welcome back. Had a nice chat?"

Loki had a little blush and a smile. It didn't bode well for me. "I missed a few important parts, huh? Mind filling me in?" I asked with a scary smile on my face.

Weiss shivered a little and said: "W-well… Since you are going to kidnap her, I thought it would be good to tell her a few of our secrets… And she might be one of us, so…"

I tried not to freak out. "How much did you tell Loki?"

"Oh, the part about you guys not being from around here and being immortal and unkillable. That's about it." the Goddess said.

"That's about it, huh. Okay, that means that I will kidnap you for sure. Don't worry it will be fun and we can set up some ritual to continue to update statuses and admit new members to the Familia. You just need to find a manager. I would propose a Goddess like Ereshkigal. She has no children of her own and has descended recently. Pull her in with the excuse of gaining experience and hope for the best." I said. Like this, the blonde Goddess should learn more about this stuff and be happier. Two birds with one stone.

Anyway, it was time to send some people home. I went with Loki to find Finn.

We saw him with Gareth and Riveria.

"Finn, there you are. We need to decide who to send back. Gareth and Riveria should stay as well." said Loki

"So, let's go straight to the point. Anyone lower than Level 3 is automatically out. The problem is the Level 3's: my gang is stronger than the average Adventurer of the same level, by a lot. When they were Level 3, the 50's were their limit in terms of floors. I doubt they will be able to survive an emergency. The guy that attacked me… What Level is he?"

Finn tried to remember then said: "He should be a Level 3, why?"

"That's a problem. Not only he attacked a member of his own Familia, but he can't even understand who is stronger than him. He's a liability I won't bring with me. The rest, you can choose. We are what? 40-odd adventurers and about 15 smiths? Cut it down to around ten adventurers and less than ten smiths. That is the maximum and minimum amount of people to continue safely. When you are done choosing, tell me and I will open the gate."

Riveria then asked: "Why only ten or so adventurers?"

I looked at her with an 'are you stupid' face: "Did you hear me before? Well, let me make it plain and simple. Floor 49 is the deepest me and my group have been. The deeper we go into the dungeon, the harder it is to create a spatial gate, even for me. You are a magician, so you should understand when I tell you that Babel seals off this space. I can bypass it and create a gate. Around floor 60, I will be able to create a gate as big as the entrance to the Twilight Mansion, around 5 meters wide. In case of an emergency, the less adventurers we have, the better. Around 10 adventurers and 5-7 smiths are enough to deal with the small fry we might let through and a small group that I can evacuate pretty easily."

She nodded. I usually have a reason if I give out numbers or times. For example, I said that we might take 5 hours if the group wasn't slow. We are now at the beginning of the deep floors and it took a little less than 6 hours to get here. Usually expedition groups have to fight all the monsters while rotating to conserve their energy, then spend almost a week just to get through the White Palace floor. I just broke through the walls, saving us a lot of time. The problem was the archer: after he shot me, the group slowed down a little, probably due to low morale, which costed us around an hour.

I was going back to the table when I heard a clanking sound. I was too absorbed in my thoughts regarding the ritual to pay attention to my surroundings.

I turned my head and see that the same archer as before was trying to cut me with a sword. I grasped the blade and shattered it.

"What does this mean, archer dude?" I asked. I will kill him. Brutally at that.

"Heh, you monster… You come here and act like you're the boss! We-"

"Stop right there." I checked his mind to see who this 'we' was. Ends up, he's alone, disliked, and overconfident. Since some other Familia members expressed their displeasure at returning to Orario, he got confidence to get rid of me. What a logic. I mean, the rest of the Adventurers understood what I meant after my explanation, but this guy just won't.

"Look, it's the second time you attack me. I let it pass the first time because I didn't express myself correctly. Now? You're dead." I said and used magic to create chains from the ground and the ceiling. "You know, there was this kind of torture aka death sentence in which the victim's limbs were torn off by pulling them. Want to experience it?" as I said that, the chains wrapped around his legs and arms and raised him off the ground. I ignored the shocked audience. "Tell me, archer dude, what is your motive?" I checked his mind again. "Oh, so you are a lolicon pervert… And you were aiming for my daughter… Eternal torture is the only punishment fit for this crime."

I touched the guy's chest and casted a couple of magics: one that will skin him alive, one that will scrape his bones, one that will turn his blood into spearheads, one that will revert the blood flow, and one that will continuously heal him until I am satisfied and decide to kill him. Oh, and I applied an illusion that showed him dozens of magical girls Mil-tan's having their way with him. I then had the chains raise him up for all to see and formed a sentence with magic: "A pervert, a murderer, a nuisance."

To be honest, he wasn't actually a murderer, but he did try to kill me just now, so…

Ah, he started shouting and wriggling around. Music for my ears. I casted an insonorization magic over the table, so that Ais or the gang wouldn't hear the screams, then casted a spell to make his voice louder and added some more text detailing his torture and any crimes he had committed.

I knew I had a smile on my face, and it must have been pretty creepy since the audience was shivering.

"Anyone else is unhappy about my arrangements?" I asked. I didn't even shout. Everyone shook their heads. "Good. I give this guy two minutes then he will have his will broken. Any bets?"

I returned to my table and put Ais on my lap. I hugged my daughter, who was currently reading the same book Blake read the first day at Beacon. Oh, how many memories.

I received a message on my communicator. It was Weiss, asking what the archer guy did to warrant such punishment. I sent a simple response: "Ais."

I saw Weiss' knight summon appear and head for the torture site. I don't see him ending well.