Momentary bursts of ambition, sustained by continuous effort.
This Dungeon, imbued with "Souls-like" attributes, when broken down was just an alternate real-life Souls game where you could only log in once per day.
As a complete rookie adventurer,
he'd managed to kill an elite monster camping the entrance, even if it cost him his [Rebirth] charge.
In Xyros's book, that was a pretty solid result. He climbed the complex spiral stairs through the Starting Path and exited Babel.
The warm sunlight was almost blinding.
'Successfully survived half an hour in the Souls-like Dungeon Speedrun Challenge.'
After all, without enough soul fragments to recharge his resurrection, if he ran into another elite Goblin, or any other Dungeon-enhanced monster…
one slip-up and he'd be done for in that Dungeon.
"Honestly, this isn't bad."
"First stop, the Guild. Cash in this magic stone for Valis!"
Living off his goddess's hard-earned money made Xyros uncomfortable.
He didn't know the exact value, but it should at least cover food. With that thought, he headed in the opposite direction from the tide of adventurers.
Towards the Pantheon.
The Guild in the early morning was pretty empty. A few figures in staff uniforms were cleaning the hall.
Xyros's gaze landed on the half-elf girl processing documents at the counter.
"Morning, Miss Eina."
"Oh."
The busy girl looked up. A flicker of confusion in her eyes cleared as she recognized Xyros's features, a gentle smile spreading across her delicate face.
After tidying up the documents,
she asked with a smile, "Mr. Xyros, heading to the Dungeon?"
"…"
"Already done."
The young man added, expression unchanged.
Hearing this, Eina looked up at the clock on the wall. The hands were conveniently pointing to 8 o'clock. "That was quick…"
"Did you run into trouble in the Dungeon?"
"Not exactly trouble."
"Just… from a safety standpoint, it felt like a bad time to continue exploring."
Xyros could only be vague.
He couldn't exactly say he'd barely started exploring and immediately ran into an elite with combat skills, a Goblin jock, could he?
Remembering why he came to the Guild,
he pulled out a magic stone slightly larger than an adult's thumb. "Miss Eina, how much Valis would this stone be worth?"
"One moment."
This fits his cautious personality.
But his level of prudence was a bit much. Monsters on the upper floors shouldn't pose that much threat to a new adventurer.
However.
Those thoughts vanished the moment the girl saw the size of the magic stone.
A monster's strength determined the size and purity of its magic stone. This stone Xyros brought was clearly anything but ordinary!
"This is…"
Based on size alone, Eina couldn't identify the specific type.
But the only possibility she could think of, racking her brain, was the powerful monster that appeared from the 5th floor onward, the infamous "newbie killer", the War Shadow.
The girl stood up from behind the counter.
Then her eyes landed on Xyros's pierced armor. Eina opened her mouth, but found she didn't know what to say.
"Are you okay?!"
"If I weren't, I'd be in the Pure White Sanatorium, not here chatting happily with you, Miss Eina."
[Rebirth] could indeed resurrect.
But it didn't rewind time. It just healed fatal injuries. It did nothing for external things like weapons and armor.
Xyros's tone was light, trying to brush it off with a joke.
He didn't expect the usually gentle half-elf's expression to turn unusually serious. "I know you don't want me to worry, Mr. Xyros."
"But jokes like that… you really can't make them."
"I know."
"This armor is from the Hephaestus Familia. It's got good defense. It just looks scary because it's damaged."
Xyros's smile was warm and sincere.
Only after confirming that the adventurer under her care was physically fine did Eina finally relax. The concern in her eyes was unmistakably genuine.
"Did you run into the newbie killer? A War Shadow?"
"Probably."
"It was definitely strong. My stamina was pretty much shot. If I'd kept going, I was worried about the worst-case scenario."
"You're… both strong and lucky."
The girl looked at Xyros incredulously, her mind flashing back to yesterday when he'd been asking her for detailed information about monster distribution in the Dungeon.
Back then, Eina had thought Xyros was different from other adventurers. His cautiousness didn't seem like that of a rookie.
But the result was right in front of her:
Which rookie adventurer talks about "playing it safe" and "safety first" in the Dungeon, then the very next day heads straight to the dangerous areas past the 5th floor?
And even manages to kill the newbie killer, a War Shadow?
Putting aside the recklessness of the act, Eina could definitely see potential in Xyros that most new adventurers in Orario simply didn't have!
Her expression was a mix of exasperation.
"And..."
"Is this what you meant by 'safety first' in the Dungeon?"
Growing up always came with misunderstandings.
Xyros nodded, his expression unchanged. If he'd really been prioritizing safety, he'd probably still be down in the Dungeon fighting elites right now.
"As your advisor, I want you to think more about your own safety."
"Or… think about the people who care about you too." The girl added with a muttered murmur, only realizing after she'd said it how ambiguous that sounded.
Eina pushed up her glasses, trying to hide her sudden fluster.
"It's just… if too many new adventurers under my guidance don't make it back from the Dungeon, it causes some… problems for my work too."
"I'll be careful."
Well, looking at it that way,
Eina's special concern seemed… reasonable again.
Being something of a connoisseur of… let's say, narrative-driven games, Xyros knew how to smooth things over. "I won't take any risky explorations from now on. Wouldn't want Miss Eina to worry."
"Alright, alright."
"I'll go exchange this for Valis for you. If you want tea, feel free to help yourself in the lounge."
The girl's expression finally softened.
She went to the counter, had a brief conversation with the staff at the exchange, and then handed the converted Valis to Xyros, who was waiting.
Eina explained, "The War Shadow's magic stone exchanges for 1,000 Valis."
"But those monsters have more valuable material drops too. I hope you won't risk your life just because you're short on money!"
"Thank you, Miss Eina."
The Valis from the drop exceeded his expectations.
Given the prices at affordable restaurants in Orario, today's harvest could at least cover dinner for himself and Hestia.
Just as he was about to leave,
Wanting to confirm Xyros had actually taken her words to heart, the girl raised an eyebrow. "Can you tell me what your next exploration goal is?"
"Mm."
This time, Xyros's attitude was completely sincere:
"To safely conquer the 1st floor of the Dungeon."