Chapter 10: City of Monsters

A sizeable group of xenos were making their way towards the 39th floor of the dungeon.

Gros was carrying Marie while Lyd gave her some water from time to time so she won't dry out.

Ray was scouting the surroundings in the air. And Gryuu was escorting the group from behind.

The vanguard though. They did not need to worry about a thing.

In front of Alfia, a stegosaurus looking monster that had blood red skin spawned and it charged at them.

But it suddenly exploded into pieces as Alfia raised her hand.

"Noisy piece of trash." She clicked her tongue in annoyance. The neurotic and violent woman was getting madder by the second.

Monsters kept on screeching and their noise irked her to no end.

She also wanted to lay down Lars on a bed immediately. He was regenerating slowly, his healing wasn't really comparable to a mermaid's.

But what's important was he was healing. And he is alive. Nobody knew how Alfia would react if say, he was dying.

Slowly, but surely making their way. With Alfia in the front, they made it to the 37th floor of the dungeon.

And the monster rex of the floor spawned. Just like the skeleton warriors called Spartoi in the floor.

It was a skeleton as well, but it was easily 15 meters tall. Even though it didn't have legs and is just floating around.

Alfia then handed Lars to Lyd. "W-we can help." Ray offered.

"You just protect him. Got it?" Alfia gave them a meaningful look.

The xenos immediately nodded, knowing that she'll gut them if he gets harmed.

Alfia then stood in front of the boss, Udaeus. It suddenly took out a massive, black sword.

Udaeus swung its blade at her and she used her magic. "Gospel." The blade suddenly stopped in the air.

Like all of the kinetic energy of the swing just simply disappeared. She then disappeared from her place and reappeared in front of the monster's face.

"Hmph!" With a grunt, she kicked its head and its skull shattered into a thousand pieces.

The xenos watched in awe as a human showed them what overwhelming might means.

"T-that's the monster rex of the 37th floor right? Isn't that a high level 6? It will slaughter all of us." Lyd was flabbergasted.

"She took it down with a single hit." Gros looked pensive.

"You, carry this magic stone and sword." Alfia pointed at Ranye. Her abdomen could be used as a pack horse after all.

"Y-yes ma'am." The arachne immediately used her webs to get them and they continued onwards to the 39th floor.

And when the group arrived, they saw nothing but forest.

Ray flew around as she liked the wide space there

Alfia then left them behind to go to their small house with a garden in front.

"You stupid boy." Alfia put him down on his bed made of leaves and moss.

"Tch, I should've stepped in earlier." Alfia clicked her tongue in regret.

'But he'll resent me for doing so. It was his time to use everything he learned from me.' Alfia was conflicted.

She then thought if she would be like this with her nephew, Bell.

And even though she wants to gouge his eyes out due to it being the same as his father's.

She still considered him as Meteria's most beloved treasure. She died in order to give birth to him.

"I should at least make some progress with the xenos while he recovers. It's what he would want." Alfia sighed.

So she went outside and the xenos who were looking around suddenly straightened up.

"Listen, all of you. Lars decided to take you here to the 39th floor in order to build a true village." Alfia crossed her arms.

The xenos listened intently and they were grateful for that. "I do not know what his plans are for all of you. But he is a kind child." Alfia closed her eyes and she put pressure on them.

Under her, the ground cracked due to her ridiculous amount of mana.

"Betray him, and you will never be able to reincarnate." Alfia squinted her eyes and they sweated heavily.

"Yes ma'am!" Everybody shouted immediately.

"It is good you understand, now. I want all of you to start making dwellings. And take as much edible food as possible.

You will plow the soil near the river and make a farm. Your weaker kin will need food, that's what a community means." Alfia barked orders.

"And the stronger ones, kill as many monsters in the colosseum in the 37th floor. Magic stones will be fed to all of you to make you stronger. Is that clear?" She wanted to turn them into capable soldiers.

Everyone nodded. Gros, Lyd, and Ray then looked at each other. Agreeing that they should go to the colosseum to farm magic stones.

"The second rates with me, we will go and retrieve the other xenos. A decent expedition party will result in your extermination, you need more numbers." Alfia ordered and she started walking back to the entrance to the 38th floor.

Every xenos who were level 3 and 4 immediately followed her so they could recruit more xenos.

"W-we're going to make a city." Lyd realized. Gros, Gryuu, and Ray then nodded slowly.

"Do you think that Lars will bring us to the surface?" Ray questioned.

"Bah, we should just stay here. Being in contact with humans will just endanger us!" Gros did not want to interact with humans.

"Growl." (You don't make that decision, ms. Alfia and Lars does.) Gryuu snorted.

Gros got embarrased at that and Lyd remembered something.

"But how will our benefactor know about this!? I forgot about informing them." Lyd took out a magic item.

It was a crystal ball and Ray immediately grabbed his arm.

"Let ms. Alfia know of this first... Or Lars when he wakes up. We don't know if they would like this." Ray looked at him seriously.

"Y-you're right. Thanks for stopping me." Lyd scratched his head sheepishly.

"Come on then, let us go back to the 37th floor and get as many magic stones as possible." Gros urged them to go.

His eyes also burned with determination. It didn't feel good to be protected by humans. Especially when Alfia takes Lars' decisions seriously.

And he didn't even have a falna. "Ms. Alfia is correct. We need to grow stronger for the weaker children." Lyd nodded at them.

The trio then made their way towards the colosseum in the 37th floor.

__Few hours later__

"Urgh, fuck..." Lars woke up and he has a searing headache. Phantom pain also assaulted his left arm.

He slowly opened his eyes. "An unfamiliar ceiling... Just kidding, this is my house?" Lars thought that Alfia brought him back.

Lars remembered what happened and he frowned when he checked that his arm really was gone.

"My leg!" Lars couldn't feel his legs as they got too damaged by the breath of the green dragon.

"What got into me? I didn't back off, even when the odds were against me." Lars rubbed his head due to his headache.

"That's for later, ugh. My head is killing me." Lars started eating magic stones to recover his mind.

He slowly stood up, his legs were busted. But thankfully, he could still walk.

Making his way outside, he saw that the xenos were building houses by using the dungeon's lumber.

Goblins were doing the farming while the hobgoblins made standard log cabins.

"Lars-chi! You're awake, wait. Can you even walk in that condition!?" Lyd who has returned with his team to rest saw him.

"I'm fine Lyd." Lars waved his concern off and the lizardman thought he knew his body best.

"Here, Lars. Marie insisted in giving these to you." Ray gave him some vials of her blood.

"She didn't need to... But I will gratefully accept." Lars started drinking them and he felt a lot better after doing so.

Supplementing his regeneration with mermaid's blood that can even reattach limbs.

His skin started to peel off and raw, pink skin began to grow. The muscles on his legs also repaired themselves faster.

"I can breathe much easier now." Lars sighed in relief as his hurting ribs that were fractured started to fuse again.

"You're crazy, Lars. You fought monsters without a falna." Gros looked at him incredulously.

"Well, something just made me do it. Haha." He laughed awkwardly.

'They also don't know about my special skill I guess. But I think it changed...' Lars suspected.

"Miss Alfia must be on her way back, they gathered all the hidden villages of the xenos." Lyd explained to him as Lars seemed to be looking for something, or someone.

"Ahh, thanks for telling me. I'll go on and rest for now." Lars went back to his house after waving goodbye.

Taking a wooden bowl, Lars took a seat on the dining table. "Growing boys need to eat." He put his hand above the bowl.

He then took out magic stones like it was some kind of cereal. "Now, I just need some milk..."

"Wait, does that female fomoire I saw earlier produce milk? Better ask later." Lars thought that eating some magic stone cereal without milk is unacceptable.

"Now... Why did I suddenly gain new abilities? And what are they?" Lars tried to remember his battle.

One of his new abilities increased his size and aggression like crazy. His physical and magic resistance also skyrocketed.

"It was like all of my specs continued to grow, the more damage I took." Lars hummed in thought.

He then wondered if it was the thing that made him keep going too. Not really knowing what was on his back.

But as he ate the magic stones like it was cap'n crunch, he heard a commotion outside.

"Hmm? Is Alfia back?" Lars looked outside and he locked eyes with her mismatched eyes.

'Shit, she's pissed...' Lars waved awkwardly and he almost had a heart attack when Alfia appeared in front of him suddenly.

"Jesus! Woman... You oughta approach people more carefully." Lars caught his breath.

"You... You are too reckless." Alfia glared at him and she started giving him a noogie.

"Ow! Ow! You gorilla woman! It hurts! My skull has a fracture you know!?" He cried out in pain

"Shut up and accept it without resisting." Alfia kept at it, turning it into his punishment.

After a minute, she stopped and he was tearing up due to the pain.

"All in all, we recruited 3 more hidden villages. We're approximately in the 150's." Alfia thought that was a logical number.

Their hidden villages aren't really that big. And it was located in the higher floors as well. So the floors weren't that big.

Unlike in the 39th floor which is as large as Orario. Maybe even bigger.

"You won't be pulling something like that again for some time." Alfia looked at him with annoyance.

She stared at his arm and winced. "My arm... I think it'll grow back, just like a lizard." Lars remembered the lizardmen he ate back then.

And not to mention that he also consumed Marie's blood. Which was like the best wine he ever tasted.

"You need more training. There were a lot of things you should have avoided. Like the swarm of Iguazu." Alfia squinted her eyes.

"Ahaha... I'm still a bit too slow?" Lars thought she was being unreasonable.

"And your little stunt with the green dragon. Magic and ranged attacks like that should be dodged, not blocked." She started giving him a lesson.

Though, he thought that she just cared for his safety. Not holding it against her.

"Thanks for the tips, Alfia. I would've died at the very next floor I walk to without you." He didn't exaggerate.

She blinked in surprise. "Hmph, it's good that you know..." Alfia had a small smile on her face.

"And aren't you forgetting something?" Alfia raised a brow. He was stumped, as far as he knew. There was nothing that he forgot.

"I should've been more careful?" He started guessing and she just stared at him.

"Sorry for being reckless?" He looked at her sheepishly as she just stood there, menacingly.

"No, foolish boy. Welcome back." Alfia's expression softened and he blinked in surprise.

She looked so vulnerable, so... Normal in that moment. Like a next door big sister that worried about him.

"I'm back home, Alfia." He hugged her and this time, she was the one that got surprised.

Alfia might be human, but she doesn't like people touching her at all. Just like elves in that regard.

Even elf royalty doesn't have anything on Alfia's love of personal space. She'd kill anyone who would violate it.

"Welcome home, Lars." She hugged him back. Her words and actions, surprising even herself.

'I have grown softer... But maybe it isn't so bad.' Alfia had a soft smile on her face as she closed her eyes.

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Thanks for reading everyone, ciao.