"Alright."
Isagi didn't refuse.
Because he had indeed asked her to help deliver letters before, and also—
"Did Lord Hermes send you?"
"Mm..."
"How pitiful."
It wasn't just Isagi; Ryuu had always thought Asfi was pitiful.
Hermes was also an unreliable god.
Isagi had never met him, but according to his Familia senior and Goddess Astrea, he was "a guy similar to Loki."
One could only imagine.
And what was worse than Loki was that this guy often came up with all sorts of bizarre ideas and then made the children of his Familia run errands for him.
The Hermes Familia was a very special Familia to begin with.
They were the Guild's messengers, responsible for communications between the city and the rest of the world. At the same time, they would also help the Guild carry out some secret "missions."
One could say they were overwhelmingly busy.
And as the Familia's captain, Asfi never had a moment's rest, so busy that even Ryuu thought she was "too pitiful."
The woman did indeed look like an "overworked corporate drone suffering from too many business trips and too much overtime."
Beneath her slightly curled, light blue short hair was an intelligent and somewhat serious beautiful face. If she were to change into an office lady uniform, she would be the standard "strict, ice-queen section chief."
A perfect score.
Because Isagi quite liked storylines where you go on business trips with an older-sister-type boss.
That was roughly the impression she gave.
Moreover, Asfi did wear glasses. Her attire, however, was quite otherworldly. She always wore a long, grayish-white cloak and a light-colored striped dress, with various small pouches hanging from her waist, their contents a mystery.
What was noteworthy were her shoes. Below her long, slender, fair legs was a magical item called the [Flying Boots].
It allowed a person to fly in the sky.
This was neither the power of magic nor a skill, but a "Miraculous Creation" brought about by Asfi's development ability, [Mystery].
In addition to this, the woman had many other wondrous little gadgets, such as the [Hades Helmet] that could turn a person invisible, a [Harp] that could use melodies to attract specific monsters, and various kinds of explosives...
"Don't worry, I won't hold you back..."
"No!"
Isagi felt that Asfi's joining was a huge reinforcement.
Because it was very simple.
"Doesn't this mean Lefiya can fly in the sky and cast magic?!"
"Exactly!"
You see, the two girls immediately understood his idea. A "Magic Bomber," huh?! Isn't that invincible?!
Only Asfi showed a shocked expression.
What does that mean?!
Did she come here to be some kind of "flying mount" for the elf girl?!
!
Looking at the boy and girls who were already in a heated discussion.
Asfi felt a headache coming on. For some reason, she suddenly felt that Isagi wasn't a "reliable guy" either. Inexplicably, he even had the feel of that incredibly vexing, always-daydreaming god (Hermes).
It can't be, can it?!
She had originally thought that going to the Dungeon with the boy this time would be a vacation of sorts—because she wouldn't need to participate in much combat.
Asfi, of course, knew that anomalies would occur in the Dungeon Isagi was in. Lord Hermes was also very interested in this, so he had her tag along to "experience it" and see what the situation was really like.
But she was Level 4, after all.
But looking at the current situation, this isn't going to turn into some "terrifying and arduous" journey, is it?!
It's been so, so, so long—she couldn't even remember how long it's been since she had a vacation!
Please, no!!
...
"Don't worry, Miss Asfi, I actually think it's alright..."
Walking past the starting path.
Following the familiar route through the Dungeon's caverns, they spent some time and arrived at the 4th Floor of the Dungeon.
Isagi, of course, also felt sorry for the "corporate drone big sister," so he comforted her.
In his view!
The Dungeon changing due to the influence of his skill was actually alright—it was nothing more than a bit more terrain, the monsters becoming a bit more annoying, and there being more BOSSes...
That's about it, right?
So, for this adventure, at most, during a BOSS fight, Asfi would need to carry Lefiya and fly around in the sky while she cast magic.
The rest of the time.
They could relax and chill, just treat it as a "[Goblin Kingdom] Seven-Day Adventure Tour."
In response to this, as Asfi looked at the towering [Border Fortress] that suddenly appeared before her, a bad feeling had already quietly surfaced in her heart.
"I hope the boy is right."
Regarding the Dungeon's anomaly, the Guild actually had some "video footage."
It was also a wondrous little gadget created using [Mystery], which had recorded the pale city walls, the goblin camps, and so on...
Asfi had seen it all before coming.
But compared to the illusory images projected by the item, everything before her was so real it was simply breathtaking.
Pushing open the city gate, they passed through a pitch-black corridor.
The stench of rot and blood was mixed together, but the monster corpses that had once littered the ground had all disappeared—they had already been fully "collected" by Lefiya.
And Isagi and the two girls.
Just followed the familiar path, holding Magic Stone lanterns, and arrived at the elevator on the side of the large pit.
As the iron chains made a noisy "clank clank" sound, Asfi felt that everything was unreal to the extreme.
An [Elevator] was nothing strange.
The city had them, and elevators powered by Magic Stones were even more advanced, found in Babel and the high-rise buildings of some wealthy Familias or merchant guilds.
But in the Dungeon...
No, how is this to the extent of "a bit more terrain"?!
This is practically another world, okay?!
Especially.
When Asfi followed the boy and girls to the bottom of the pit, passed through the opened shortcut, and arrived on the 5th Floor, looking at the tall, wide, pale castle before her, the woman couldn't help but wonder how goblins could have built such a structure in the Dungeon.
Perhaps, it was a question one shouldn't ponder?
Right, the terrain inside the Dungeon was always changing anyway. It was nothing more than the natural scenery of deserts, dense forests, and canyons being replaced by a man-made castle.
It's no big deal.
Mhm, mhm... reasonable, very reasonable! Looking at it this way, it seems the boy was right!!
And those stronger monsters, as well as more powerful beings like the "Monster Rex," were even more normal.
Thinking this way, Asfi also felt that Isagi's skill that caused the Dungeon anomaly didn't seem so strange after all.
At least it was within the realm of comprehension...
As if!
A pitch-black blade suddenly jutted out from the ground, almost right in front of Asfi. Fortunately, the woman was habitually floating in mid-air with her flying boots, so she dodged this strike with a rapid sideways movement that a human would be incapable of.
What the hell?!
[The Lightless King Who Was Conquered by the Pale, Apheisisamna].
The long name once again surfaced in everyone's minds.
Asfi was currently flying in mid-air. Looking down, she saw the pitch-black color continuously spreading from beneath the hall floor, and, emerging from that blackness, was the contour of a giant human face. It had no facial features, only a pure white circle on its face.
"Why did it get bigger?!"
Tiona and Lefiya both exclaimed this at the same time.
Because the Lightless King was indeed much larger than before. The guy was originally about four meters tall, but its head was only about a size larger than a normal person's, and its body was very slender, just like a stick figure.
But now...
Just that big face alone took up at least half the hall.
To this.
Isagi seemed to have an idea.
So he decisively issued the supreme command.
"Run!"
He expertly hoisted Lefiya onto his shoulder, then turned and fled without looking back.
After all, Tiona's speed was only faster than his, not slower. Look, the next second, the Amazon girl had already caught up, even asking if he needed help—not help carrying Lefiya, but help carrying him and Lefiya.
Isagi thought about it and felt it wasn't necessary for now, so he refused.
They hadn't reached that point yet.
Asfi was also stunned for a moment, but she was a Level 4 adventurer after all, and she also had a mysterious item like the flying boots, so her speed was even faster.
Although she was half a beat slower than the boy and girls, she still quickly caught up to them.
"Is that a monster? A Floor Boss? Aren't we going to fight?"
Asfi felt.
Although she had just said she would try not to participate in combat, if they really ran into a troublesome guy, with a Level 4 like her, plus the boy and the others, they should be more than enough to handle it, right?
After all, weren't they adventuring here before with two Level 2s and one Level 3?
To this.
Isagi felt that if it were the previous Lightless King, with Asfi's help, they should have been able to take it on. But now...
It was hard to say, really hard to say.
This guy was a cheater to begin with, coming with [Wall-Hacks] and [Vision]. He still hadn't found a way to counter its cheats—Isagi guessed there was probably a follow-up questline he needed to do.
Most likely, it involved that goblin, Pal, who had guided him and the girls down the small path before.
And the current Lightless King not only had cheats, but also stats!
In the long corridor.
Lefiya, who was being carried upside down by Isagi, saw a spear suddenly pierce through the corridor wall at the far end and get thrown towards them.
"Raise the cup as a shield, the lid that breaks evil!"
She expertly raised her staff, directly chanting the defensive magic.
However.
The sky-blue barrier that could completely withstand the Meat Cup Princess's flurry of slashes shattered less than two seconds after the pitch-black spear touched it!
Fortunately, in the time they bought, Isagi and the others had already run past the corner and into another long corridor.
Well, now it was confirmed.
The stats of this cheating Lightless King had been buffed too much. It was now at least Level 4 to start!
A world of difference from before, when it was around the same Level 3 as the Meat Cup Princess!
!
Why did this happen?
The two girls didn't understand. They certainly couldn't connect it to the god who had been sent back in the Dungeon before.
But Isagi knew, that was very likely the reason.
During the [Great Feud] era, the Dark Gods were devoured by the Dungeon, giving birth to a powerful monster called the [Great Evil], comparable to a deep-level Monster Rex.
Well.
This is what you call biting the hand that feeds you. What happened to the "affinity increase"?!
Is the Dungeon a yandere?!
"Eh?!"
Lefiya's voice suddenly came from behind again.
"Watch out!!"
Isagi turned his head to look and saw that the spear just thrown by the Lightless King had actually turned a corner in the corridor and was once again "chasing" after him.
"?"
Experimentally, he did some "S"-shaped snake-like weaving, and Isagi discovered that the spear, like a pitch-black swimming snake, constantly adjusted the direction of its tip according to his position.
Damn it!
Having [Wall-Hacks] and [Vision] isn't enough, after leveling up you have to add [Aimbot] too, is that it?!
You win!!
Now Isagi could only have Tiona carry him. There was no choice, she was Level 3 and ran fast. If it were him, he would have been caught up by the aimbotting spear behind him sooner or later.
As a result, Asfi, flying on the side, saw the boy lying on the petite Amazon girl, with the elf girl still hoisted on his shoulder.
What is this all about!
However...
This wasn't a solution either, because while Tiona ran fast, it would just take a little longer for the pursuing spear to catch up.
And!
It seemed the [Stone That Obscures the Lightless] that previously prevented the Lightless King from seeing through them had also lost its effect. Every so often, a greatsword would slash out from the side of the wall, making it feel like some kind of horror game.
Fortunately, the greatsword didn't have aimbot, otherwise they really wouldn't be able to hold on!!
Seeing the spear behind them about to catch up.
Isagi looked at the dark city outside the corridor window and, as if he had thought of something, called for Asfi, who was flying above, to come over.
Then.
He had Tiona jump up and grab onto the flying big sister.
"Break through!"
With the boy's words.
The woman, suddenly feeling a lot heavier, could only charge head-on, crashing through the window on the side of the corridor and into the world outside the castle.
"Ah..."
Is this the first time I've felt like I'm flying?
Inside the giant cavern, the distant [Circular Colosseum] and the pale, towering walls were so conspicuous.
In contrast.
Was the "governor's" castle they were originally in, and the sprawling, chaotic town built around it over a long time.
Down below, in the streets and plazas, under the pale green fluorescence, the piled-up fragments of goblins and kobolds, and the chaotic battlefield, were still there.
Seeing such a scene for the first time, Asfi was even somewhat dazed.
Especially when she turned her head back.
She saw the silhouette of a giant emerge from the dark castle. The pure white halo on its head was as dazzling as a sun in the endless night.
It stretched out its hand.
Wielding the greatsword of no light, it swung a final slash towards them.
Asfi easily dodged it—even with two girls and a boy hanging off her, it was nothing.
And then.
The figure of the black giant retreated back into the castle, leaving only its heart-shaking "roar" in the world.
"The Pale has been extinguished, when the lightless spreads everywhere, you will have nowhere to run, nowhere to run!!"
By this time, Asfi no longer found it "strange" that the monsters here could talk.
Landing in the streets below the castle.
The Lightless King didn't chase after them. This was Isagi's guess, because before, when they came outside the castle, they never encountered those War Shadow monsters or it again.
It seems that as a "roaming BOSS," its activity area was limited.
Otherwise, the subsequent exploration would be unplayable.
And now.
Isagi planned to first go through the elevator in the plaza to the 6th floor's Meat Pit, then walk the "three hundred and sixty-five li road" to check out the [Hybrid Zone] on the 7th floor.
And find Akshi along the way. That guy should be in the [Management Layer] between the 6th and 7th floors.
Originally, they could have used the shortcut in the castle to go straight there, but now they definitely couldn't go back.
As for how to deal with the enhanced Lightless King.
Isagi thought it was simple. If it really came down to it, he would just go to the [Circular Colosseum] and grind until he was Level 3, then come back and face it after leveling up!
But why does this guy only stay in the castle and not come out?
Is it part of the "setting"?
Or maybe...
...
After a short rest, the team set off again.
However.
They still didn't walk. Isagi and the two girls were still "hanging" on Asfi, flying leisurely through the air.
It's really not because they were lazy, nor because they thought it was fun! Isagi had a proper reason!!
It's a simple logic: flying in the sky gives a much wider field of vision, which allows them to see the complex street layout outside the castle more clearly.
Before.
Isagi and the girls hadn't explored here.
Instead, after coming out of the castle, they went straight to the plaza that led to the [Meat Pit].
Isagi was thinking, this town looks quite large, and since there are no monsters, it can't possibly be just an empty scene, right?!
There should be other things, or NPCs, in existence.
Anyway, they had nothing to do right now.
So they just flew around and took a look. What if they found something?
And so, Isagi lay on Asfi's back, the Amazon girl wrapped around his right arm, the elf girl on his left shoulder.
In a very strange posture, the team of four floated in the sky.
For a small moment.
Asfi almost regretted coming here wearing her flying boots.
What is this all about!
Has she really become a "flying carpet"?!
Or a "flying mount"?! Sigh...
Just like that, they circled around the plaza that was clearly in the center of town and had the large hole leading to the [Meat Pit].
And you know what, not long after, the boy and girls really did make a discovery!
"Isagi, look! What's that sparkling over there?!"
It wasn't just sparkling.
Mainly.
Lefiya saw a pile of many Kobold monster corpses deep in a certain alley!
How could she resist going to dig?
That's all Magic Stones! And maybe there will be drop materials!!
And in front of that pile of monster corpses, there was indeed a small, pure white light flashing, like a "star" in the dim alley of the town, attracting attention.
It's just...
When Asfi landed there.
The boy and girls jumped off the big sister. Lefiya immediately ran to dig for Magic Stones.
Tiona naturally went to help.
And Isagi walked up to that "sparkling star," and then discovered that it was indeed a "pick-upable drop," only—
"Kobold Dung Pellet:
An excrement mixed with strange flesh and blood, it looks like it has been air-dried for a long time.
Can be thrown at an enemy. The rich smell will attract the enemy's attention, or drive them away.
If shattered, it will also cause an area-of-effect poison status accumulation.
Strangely, it doesn't have a strong smell, but has a slight fishy meat smell. If you look closely, you can see something seemingly alive writhing inside.
It is said that some guys in the kingdom will collect it for other wonderful uses.
"..."
___
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