Chapter 39 : Unexpected Alliances and Explosive Dreams

"Yoshh, Megumin. Let's take a walk around the city center then!"

"Wait, Kazuma, look! There's a group of adventurers from Loki Familia."

Kazuma and Megumin, who were eager to go on their date, suddenly noticed the Loki Familia group. Although they were a little behind schedule by three days, Loki Familia was finally ready to explore the dungeon again after resting for two weeks.

Dozens of adventurers from Loki Familia were fully geared up, while at the back of the group, many adventurers were carrying large backpacks packed with supplies for their extended dungeon exploration.

"Geeh... Loki Familia again? Why do I always run into them whenever I leave the manor?"

The adventurers from Loki Familia marched boldly toward the dungeon. Even though they had just suffered a major defeat, it wasn't enough to tarnish their reputation as one of the strongest familias in Orario.

Adventurers around the dungeon instinctively stepped back, parting the way for Loki Familia. The group stood out among the crowd, drawing the attention of all nearby adventurers. But Kazuma and Megumin, was just as noticeable as Loki Familia.

The Loki Familia group stopped in their tracks when they noticed Kazuma and Megumin. They stared at them with expressions that were difficult full of complexity.

On one hand, they still held a grudge against Aqua Familia for causing Loki Familia to lose their home. On the other hand, they also felt a bit grateful, as Aqua Familia had helped one of their key adventurers, Aiz, acquire an impressive skill.

The adventurers around the dungeon began to sense something was off when Loki Familia suddenly stopped and shifted their gaze toward Kazuma and Megumin. Of course, the adventurers knew who they were. The pair came from Aqua Familia, the bitter rivals of Loki Familia. Or at least, that's how the adventurers watching the scene saw it.

Finn, the captain of Loki Familia, stepped out of the front line and approached Kazuma and Megumin alone, with his spear in his hand.

"Hi, Satou Kazuma and Megumin from Aqua Familia."

Finn greeted them with a wide smile, his eyes showing no trace of hostility.

"What do you want?"

"You don't have to be so tense. I just wanted to thank you."

Kazuma took a step back, adopting a defensive stance while holding Megumin even tighter. Despite Finn's friendly demeanor, Kazuma remained cautious.

Just because someone looks harmless, it doesn't rule out the possibility that they might be dangerous. Kazuma had experienced this firsthand.

The most terrifying people aren't the ones who openly declare that they're dangerous, but those who can hide their true nature by pretending to be good. Exactly—like the tranquility girl. They are the embodiment of two-faced individuals.

"Thank you? I don't recall doing anything that would make Loki Familia feel the need to thank me."

Kazuma responded to Finn with a confused expression. He had expected Loki Familia to cause trouble for him, but he never imagined they would thank him. While Kazuma was still puzzled, Megumin leaned closer and whispered something into his ear, speaking in a voice only he could hear.

"Kazuma, Kazuma, you might not know this because you were still asleep at the time, but Hestia and Bell came to our manor to thank us. Bell said he was really grateful because of your advice, and because of that, he and Aiz were able to get the skill The Power of Friendship. Well, I don't really understand what The Power of Friendship is, but Bell was so happy because it was his first skill."

After hearing new information from Megumin, Kazuma's mind started working at lightning speed to process the new details. Eventually, he realized what he must have done to make Loki Familia thank him.

'No way. Could something like that really happen?'

'I was just talking nonsense to those two. How did they end up getting the Power of Friendship skill just because I told them some bullshit story? Are they really that naive, trusting my words to the point where they made it a reality?'

'Well, I'm not religious, but I've heard a popular phrase from the Bible: As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.'

'It's a simple sentence, but it really resonated in my mind the first time I heard it. A heart filled with doubt will only lead to failure, while a heart full of faith will breed courage and action.'

In simple terms, sooner or later, whatever is in a person's mind will become reality. If someone constantly thinks they can't do something, they'll never be able to do it. On the other hand, if someone believes they can do something, they'll eventually make it happen, even if, at that moment, they have no idea how to get there.

The source? Me. Trust me, bro.

Although a bit late, Kazuma tried to put on a poker face and spoke to Finn.

"Oh... are you talking about Aiz?"

"Yeah, thanks to your advice, Aiz has become much stronger, and with this, Loki Familia will continue to grow stronger. If you ever need help in the future, just let us know. Loki Familia will be there for you."

Since they were in a public place with many people watching, Finn didn't want to reveal too much about Loki Familia's situation. After saying what he needed to, Finn turned and walked away, leaving Kazuma behind.

All the adventurers who were watching were stunned when they overheard the conversation between them.

The adventurers thought there would be a conflict between them, but it turned out that the they had a good relationship, to the point where Loki Familia promised to help Aqua Familia if they ever needed it. The onlookers were completely bewildered, their minds spinning with confusion.

As Finn left Kazuma to return to his position, Kazuma also decided to leave the area and go for a walk with Megumin.

The dungeon, located in the heart of Orario, was always bustling with people. Not only adventurers came and went, but also merchants looking for opportunities to sell their goods around the dungeon.

After walking a little farther from the dungeon entrance, Kazuma and Megumin came across various stalls selling all kinds of items, from food and equipment to loot from the dungeon.

"Everyone, who wants to buy this? It's food only found on floor 18! Who's interested?"

"Kazuma, Kazuma, look over there!"

Megumin pointed toward a stall not far from them. She couldn't contain her curiosity when she heard someone was selling food from the dungeon.

Megumin had only ever explored the first floor, so naturally, she had no idea what the 18th floor of the dungeon was like. She just assumed that every floor in the dungeon was as cramped as the first floor. Because of that, she couldn't imagine what kind of food could be found in such a narrow place.

Kazuma, still carrying Megumin, walked toward the stall. As soon as the merchant saw who was approaching, he could already smell the scent of potential customers.

"Welcome, customers! What can I get you?"

"What are you selling?"

Megumin asked the merchant in a slightly high-pitched tone.

"Little girl, I'm selling various foods from the 18th floor that just came out. There are different kinds of berries that can be used to make alcohol, a very sweet honey cloud, and also a rare fruit, there's only one left here—Crystal Drop."

"Don't call me little girl!"

Megumin got a little angry when she heard the merchant call her that, so much so that she completely missed the rest of his sales pitch.

"Uncle, did these foods really grow in the dungeon?"

Kazuma asked, a little skeptical about the merchant's claims. From what he was selling, it seemed more likely these foods came from a fruit orchard rather than a dungeon.

"Young man, you don't know about the 18th floor?"

"Yeah, what's so special about the 18th floor?"

"The 18th floor of the dungeon is a safe point where no monsters appear. It's so large that it even has forests and a town inside. That's why there are so many fruits growing there."

"What?? There's a forest and a town in there?"

Megumin's eyes widened when she heard about the dungeon being so vast it had a forest and a town inside.

"Kazuma, let's go there later, we can..."

Kazuma quickly covered Megumin's mouth before she could say something foolish. They had known each other for quite some time, and even though Kazuma didn't have the mind-reading ability like Vanir, he already knew what Megumin was about to say.

She must be thinking about using her Explosion magic inside the dungeon.

Normally, dungeons are very cramped places, making it impossible to use Explosion magic there. Because of that, both in this world and the previous one, Kazuma and his party rarely went to dungeons—mainly because Megumin, the party's main damage dealer, refused to enter them.

But after hearing about the vast floor of the dungeon, Megumin started to see the potential of using her Explosion magic there. Her view of the dungeon was beginning to take a more positive turn.

(To Be Continued)