The Trio Back In The Dungeon - I

Back to the Dungeon...

After their first encounter with the group of Evolved Goblins, healing Raul's wounds and recuperating Lefiya's magic power,-

the trio continued their way deeper towards the inner part of the dungeon floor. And currently...

*KREEEE!~*

"You're mine! Haaaa!~"

*Shiiiing!*

*Punchiii~*

*Thud* *Thud*

The ultimately average human Raul and the cute loli elf Lefiya are currently engaged in a two versus two battle against the same Evolved Goblins.

While a few meters away from them was Ash who was just standing calmly and was just looking at the fight in front of him while at the same time, keeping his senses up for any surprises that might occur.

He was also being attentive to any notifications from Wise about some possible red flags within the map's perimeter limit.

*GRAAAAWR!~*

"Arcs Ray!"

*Swooosh!*

*KREEEE-*

*Bang!*

*Thud*

And not long after, both were successful in slaying their respective opponents.

"Huff... huff~"

"Haaaa~"

Although each of them was only facing an opponent respectively, Raul was panting lightly from exerting a certain amount of effort and strength while in Lefiya's case,-

her breathing was uneven due to anxiety and disbelief for having her first one-on-one fight.

She didn't know that she was capable of taking down an evolved Goblin on her own... or was it just because of having not much confidence in herself...

*Clap!* *Clap!* *Clap!*

"Hmm?"

Raul and Lefiya were awoken from their stupor by a series of crisp sounds behind them. It was then they saw Ash calmly walking towards them while clapping his hands...

"Well, good work you two..."

He said in delight. And although they couldn't see it since the lower part of his face was covered with a scarf, both could see that he was smiling beneath it.

"Haaa~ Hehehe"

"... Well, it was only thanks to you Ash-san that we were able to deal with those Goblins easily compared to how we did when we first arrive in the dungeon."

While the ultimately average human Raul laughed and expressed his joy as if he had just achieved an impossible feat,-

Lefiya on the other hand voiced out her gratitude after feeling a sense of great accomplishment that she was able to dispatch a Goblin on her own. She herself still couldn't believe it.

It was during the time when they had just defeated the first group of Evolved Goblins they met along the way that both-

Lefiya and Raul almost decided to go back to the surface after facing the harsh reality that they were still too weak and couldn't do much on their own.

However, after a few words from Ash and after asking if their resolve is that shallow to get stronger that they decided to continue.

Of course, he also took a bit of time telling them an effective way on how to better deal with the Evolved Goblins with their strength.

With Ash's experience, although it wasn't that too long ago when he himself was too weak and too inexperienced in fighting,-

his experiences and strength were honed through the numerous life and death fights that got him to where he is now.

"Hahaha, I just pointed out some things, no big deal. It was your own effort in the end that you managed to successfully slay those monsters easily..."

Ash just cracked a smile beneath the scarf and calmly said.

Approaching the two who were currently slumped to the ground, he slightly bents and stretches out his palms and gave them a gentle pat on both of their heads in acknowledgment.

Both were elated feeling his palms on them. Although they both knew that it was coming from a stranger they had just met, they were still delighted that their effort was acknowledged by someone.

"Then let's rest here for a while. You need to recover even a little so we can go on further."

Ash proposed which earned a nod from Lefiya and Raul.

They were already adventurers for quite some time so they knew that they needed to replenish their strengths before proceeding to avoid any accidents.

Aside from that, they also knew that the Dungeon can be treacherous most of the time as it would somehow find a chance and means to slaughter anyone at any time within the premises.

After gathering the monster crystals from the Goblins that they had just defeated and stashing them in their pouches, they went to find a good place and settled for a good break.

---

"Mm~ this is amazing! Mm~ hey Lefiya Mm~ try this, it's delicious!..."

Ash, Lefiya, and Raul were currently sitting on the ground within the Dungeon enjoying a good meal.

They originally planned to only take a few moments before resuming until they heard Lefiya's stomach growling from hunger.

*Gulp*

"R-Raul-san, slow down, the food isn't going anywhere..."

After gulping a mouthful of water from a bottle she brought with her in her bag,-

and after seeing Raul stuffing his mouth with the food Ash shared with them as if it's going to be the last thing he does before he dies, Lefiya couldn't help but scold him lightly.

She then turned to Ash with an apologizing face for the unsightly appearance Raul's having and bowed her head lightly before starting to eat as well.

"Hahaha, eat, eat more. There is still enough food for all of us."

Ash shook his head expressing that he doesn't mind and only laughed at Raul's silly and Lefiya's formal and uptight behavior.

It was fortunate that he was able to buy food and beverages in his system in exchange for a few points so he could get food at any time.

After deciding that they'll take a long break and have a meal, and after seeing both of them taking out each of their own meal from their bag,-

Ash also bought two buckets of seemingly freshly cooked Fried Chicken with a bowl of piping hot gravy and shared it with them.

"Ash-san, aren't you hungry as well?"

"Right, Mm~ you should Mm~ eat as well Ash-san Mm~"

Seeing that Ash still had a scarf that covered the lower part of his face and was just sitting with them in a lax manner, Lefiya and Raul couldn't help but ask.

"Hm?... Oh right, I was just about to." Ash said.

"Mm~ yeah, before I finished all of them. Hahaha" jested Raul before laughing out loud and hurriedly got back to feasting.

Ash then unhurriedly removed the scarf on his and folded it neatly before setting it aside.

"By the way, Ash san. How did you-..."

"What's wrong? How did I what?"

Hearing Lefiya's words, Ash turned his eyes towards her wondering why she didn't finish her words, only to see her in a daze with her mouth agape and covered it with her hand not long after.

'...Figures...'

Ash could only smile bitterly since he knew that look coming from her. He had already seen it many times and in fact, it wasn't too long ago that he saw that kind of look from Eina too.

"Hmm? Hey, Lefiya. What's wrong with you?"

While chowing messily on the food in front of him. Raul noticed Lefiya suddenly acting weird all of a sudden and couldn't help but ask.

"Lefiya? Hey, Lefiya?"

"Lefiya?"

"Hoho~... you got hots for Ash-san already?"

Raul hadn't noticed what transpired before noticing her. And after he tried to call out to her many times but hadn't succeeded in getting her attention, he got that sudden urge on teasing her.

In front of him, clearly, a look of deep awe was written on her face while being dazed from what she saw from her eyes. He wanted to tease her even more when...

"Our little Lefiya is dazing~... Could it be that she had fallen in love with you at first sight Ash-san? Hahaha- pftweh!..."

*Cough!* *Cough!*

Raul's snicker turned to madly laughing afterward, clearly enjoying teasing Lefiya even more but when he finally turned to see Ash,-

he couldn't help but spit out what food he had in his mouth and wildly coughed. And after patting his chest, he turned back towards Lefiya and then back to Ash.

His gaze landed at him for a few minutes before...

*Pak!*

'What the hell!?'

Raul forcefully slap himself and cursed inwardly when he finally found out why Lefiya was behaving abnormally.

'I almost turned and found myself in the wrong path, dammit!'