Chapter 16 - Going Full Force into the Dungeon.
[Chapter Size: 2317 Words.]
Lucius POV
Ishtar Family Headquarters.
Upon realizing the kind of predicament I was in, my mind began to search for the best solution. However, this process was interrupted by a sharp pain that struck my brain, accompanied by a swirling dizziness.
"Damn hangover! I need to drink something," I cursed, feeling the effects of the previous night and a dry throat.
With careful movements, I got up, gently shifting the brunette's body to the side, eager to escape the situation. As I reached the bedside, I noticed my state, especially my member down there.
"That nymphomaniac goddess took everything she could from my little Lucius all night long. Wild, very wild!" I muttered quietly, recalling the events.
I managed to get up and reach my clothes on a table in the luxurious room. However, while I dressed and planned to slip away, a sensual voice called out to me.
"So, are you leaving already?" The teasing tone in her voice sent shivers down my spine.
'In recent days, I may have provoked powerful families and stronger individuals than me, but now I'm really in a life-threatening situation here...' I cursed my luck.
I turned to face Ishtar, who stared at me completely naked and inviting, expecting me to submit. I laughed nervously.
"I wanted to go to the dungeon this morning. I'm a bit late to meet my friends..." I told her, trying to sound casual.
"Hmmm, let's do this: you go back to bed and satisfy me a little more. Then, you can leave," she proposed with eyes shining like amethysts.
'She wants to charm me? What a vixen!' I exclaimed internally.
'What do I do now? It seems her enchantment doesn't work on me!' I thought as I looked into her eyes...
I won't deny that she's quite attractive, but the fact that she's a goddess of love gives me a certain discomfort. I prefer more exclusive things, and I must be the thousandth man she's slept with in a year?
'I'm lucky she's a goddess and can't get STDs. At least that, I don't have to worry about. I wouldn't want little Lucius to catch some disease,' I reflected.
'Obviously, her charm isn't working on me. But if I don't pretend here now, she'll definitely kill me,' I thought frustrated, opting for my best option.
With no better alternative, I made an idiotic face the best way I could, as if I were drooling over her, and went to bed with this crazy woman, promising never to return.
She looked at me strangely when she noticed my expression, but forgot about it after she started moaning with my caresses.
Two hours later, I walked through the streets of Orario, in the middle of the morning. I passed by an armor shop to buy better equipment, spending the rest of my money on leather armor. Then, I returned to the church, which was empty, took a bath, grabbed my sword, and put on my new armor with a small supply bag.
Finally, I set out to go to the dungeon, determined to practically live there in the coming days to recover all the money spent in a single night.
'Of the 21,000 valis, only 300 remain...' I lamented a bit.
It didn't take long to enter the crowd of adventurers in the Hall. With no sign of Bell, I continued my way through the stairs to the first tunnels.
"Let's have a productive day today!" I said to myself.
Sighing as I looked at the tunnels, I started running.
Spotting the first goblins, I raised my hands and cast my first spell of the day.
And I didn't stop, casting my series of spells for every monster I encountered, spending the next hours on the upper floors, circling between the seventh and ninth floors.
Twelve hours later...
*Thread* "That was good!" I couldn't help but exclaim in my exhausted state as I drank a bottle of water.
I opened the system to see the result in the dungeon, and my expression was excited after an intense day:
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---Status---
• Strength: I87 -> H113
• Endurance: H116 -> H149
• Dexterity: I99 -> H125
• Agility: H121 -> H150
• Magic: G262 -> E402
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[Mission 10,000 Firebolt: Cast 10,000 Firebolts! | {Progress 2111 -> 3,624/10,000} (36%) | {Reward: The User Can Cast Spells Without Chanting.}] (Lucius Cast: 1513)
[System Points: 30,431] (Lucius Gained 12,412 points)
Since I managed to leave the Pleasure District, I only changed my route for a moment, but my day can be summed up as spending all my time in the dungeon.
Upon returning to the surface, it was already night, almost 22 hours. Without thinking about spending more money, I took my crystal bags directly to the church.
I'm almost tripling my status since I left my old family, and I'm happy to finally leave Rank I and enter H after years, all in just 4 days since I returned to the dungeon. I'm very excited to level up in a few weeks if it continues at this pace.
I returned to the church, and everyone was asleep. So, I settled into my usual spot after a quick shower, going to bed early. I woke up even earlier with Hestia clinging to Bell on the couch.
So, once again, I headed to the dungeon as soon as I got ready, equipping everything I needed.
I left my crystal bags next to the couch with a note so that Hestia could take them to the guild and sell, taking her 30% as a family tax.
I never doubted that she wouldn't do exactly that. She might be quite childish, but she's a good person who takes care of and cares for the family.
Heading to the dungeon, I planned to focus on leveling up in the coming days at the fastest pace possible. Thus, my next few days were busy, spending 12 to 16 hours in the dungeon.
Unable to speak with my family since the celebration, I left before Bell and Hestia woke up in the morning, as I always went out to buy my supplies and eat out, or when I returned with my day finished, they were always sleeping at that time. If they woke up in the middle of the night, they never bothered to wake me.
Other than that, nothing extraordinary happened. I kept my pace, casting spells and killing with my sword, all easily on the upper floors. I encountered many groups of adventurers or individuals, but I never came across Bell since I stayed on the upper floors while he explored the intermediates with Lili.
After five days of constant evolution and battles, I stopped tonight to finally stop shouting "Firebolt" here and there.
I opened the Status after five days.
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---Status---
• Strength: H113 -> 248
• Endurance: H149 -> 314
• Dexterity: H125 -> 255
• Agility: H150 -> 295
• Magic: E402 -> 1.302
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[Mission 10,000 FireBolt: Cast 10,000 Firebolts! | {Progress 10,000/10,000} | {Reward: The User Can Cast Spells Without Chanting.}] (!Mission Completed!)
[System Points: 92,481] (Lucius Gained 62,060 points)
"Hahaha!" I laughed like a madman with the results, raising my hand as fireballs shot out of it, without worrying about continuing to shout.
I still maintained the half-second interval for each shot, but it was incredibly satisfying to have complete control over the attacks. I felt powerful and began to believe that I would do well on the intermediate floors when I decided to venture into them.
In terms of magic, I noticed a significant increase in the strength of my attacks after reaching 1,342 magic points.
"I'm sure I can kill an Orc with two shots now, instead of three." I thought confidently.
However, not everything was rosy. Something wasn't going so well for me. Even with the great boost in my stats, I realized that I was much weaker physically compared to Bell. In a direct confrontation, I could lose if I wasn't careful, especially if he managed to get close to me.
"Not to mention it won't be long before he reaches level 2..." I murmured.
Aware that Bell would level up in two weeks, at least that was my assumption, I didn't plan to rush if the opportunity to level up appeared for me. I intended to wait for the gods to choose Bell's nickname, like "Little Rookie," before making any decisions. This choice would be made at the next Denatus.
After that, there would be another meeting to assign nicknames to adventurers who leveled up, scheduled to take place three months later. If I wasn't mistaken, Bell would reach level 4 by then. Why wait until that moment for my own level-up? First, I didn't know if I could surpass my family member so quickly. Second, I didn't want to draw attention from my old family, especially because of Hestia. It would be suspicious that the children of the Goddess Hestia were leveling up so easily one after the other. Despite being an adventurer for 2 years, my old God would notice my rapid evolution, considering the state I left the family in.
Anyway, both Bell and I would be reaching level 2 soon. With his growing fame, my evolution might not be as obvious, as everyone would be focused on the record holder.
But first and foremost, I needed to strive to catch up with Bell. I would change my combat tactics, now that I had reached an unprecedented rank in magic in this generation. It was time to focus on evolving my physical stats.
I also needed to change my sword because the one I bought was starting to crack after a week of use, even though my rhythm was more focused on magic.
Quietly leaving the dungeon and returning to the surface, I realized it was the beginning of the night. It was time for a real rest after days of fighting. I decided to order something to eat at the church since I hadn't spoken to my family for almost 6 days. Besides finding them always asleep whenever I tried, today would be a good day to catch up.
I was eager to test my potential as a non-chanting mage, watching a fireball forming in my hand. Now, I had control over it; I no longer needed to shout to fire it, I could shape the ball without releasing it while it floated burning over my hand. It was something amazing, to be honest.
Ignoring the strange looks from some people as they saw me forming fireballs in my hands while walking through the streets, talking, and extinguishing them afterward, I headed to the church, bringing food. Upon arrival, I almost dropped everything with the hysterical scream of my loli goddess, Hestia, when she saw me.
"LUCIUS!! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL THESE DAYS??!! HAVE YOU BEEN WITH DEMETER, HUH? I'M GOING TO END THAT ABUSIVE GODDESS, MAKING MY SON COME HOME SO LATE EVERY DAY!!" Hestia shouted, who was alone in the church when I arrived, thanks to the tracker she kept on me 24 hours a day. She didn't even need to see me to know it was me.
"AHN? Before that, where's Bell?" I asked calmly as I placed the food on the table, after entering the place with an angry goddess.
"Bell went out to eat, probably at the Hostess of Fertility. But first, we need to talk. CAN YOU TELL ME WHERE YOU'VE BEEN ALL THESE DAYS, UNTIL SO LATE AT NIGHT!!" She pouted when talking about Bell, who probably went to eat at the Hostess of Fertility at Syr's request.
Hestia shouted again in the last part, clearly dissatisfied.
"Easy, easy there, I haven't been anywhere, let alone to see Demeter. But I must admit that it didn't happen due to a certain Goddess who doesn't tell me her address. Demeter is my friend now!" I protested to her with a smile, but she ignored it.
"I'll never give you the address! Friend...? Yeah, right!" She grumbled.
"If you didn't go to see Demeter, why couldn't we talk to you in the last few days? I woke up several times during the night and saw you leaning against the wall." She asked, dissatisfied, crossing her arms.
"That was because I wanted to increase my Stats, Goddess Hestia. I've been leaving earlier, when you guys wake up, and coming back when you're already asleep. I'm spending, on average, almost 16 hours in the dungeon. You only saw me today because I finally achieved one of my goals and wanted to rest a bit after working the whole week. Haven't you seen the amount of crystals I left 5 days ago?" I said sincerely.
"That..." She said, quite surprised by my honesty.
"I appreciate that you're making an effort; just don't take unnecessary risks. Life can't be just going to the dungeon!" She protested, concerned, something worthy of a goddess of home and family.
"Sure, but I need to get strong. I've been stuck at this strength level for too long, and I want to improve." I said sincerely.
"I understand... here, 7 thousand valis for the case you left 5 days ago." She said, taking a bag of valis.
"No need, keep it all. I got much more in the last few days. I started selling after finding out that the exchange sector opens quite early, so I started trading even before going to the dungeon." I informed, as I obtained a large amount of valis from the crystals I didn't sell to the system.
"I see, thank you. That helps a lot!" She said, with some pride, after I clarified my financial condition.
"By the way, as your Goddess after all, let me see your Stats! I want to see the results of your effort!" She said, and I sighed.
I could use the system, but still, I went to the bed, took off my shirt, and let her see my back to take a falna sheet for her after putting the energy into the sheet there.
The incredible thing is that she never freaked out about my ability to nullify mana/mental energy expenditure, and that's because it's hidden even from the eyes of the gods, which is good.
But still, I'm waiting for Hestia's sudden explosion when she sees my sheet, as my magic went from I to SSS. Unprecedented.
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