Orario, West District.
A plainly dressed young man squatted by the roadside, lifted a water flask, gulped down a few mouthfuls, then gnawed on a rock-hard piece of bread.
"Roy, failed again?"
The fruit shop owner beside him asked with amused interest.
The young man waved his hand. "Don't even mention it. Last time, the Ganesha Familia at least let me go in and take a look. This time, the Loki Familia straight-up hung a sign at the entrance: No unauthorized persons or dogs allowed."
The fruit shop owner burst out laughing. This kid really aimed high. One of Orario's strongest Familias like the Loki Familia—how could it possibly be that easy to join?
"I'm telling you, with your talent, you could succeed no matter what you do. Why be so obsessed with becoming an adventurer?" the fruit shop owner said.
He had personally witnessed Roy save a shop that was on the verge of bankruptcy using an ingenious method.
It was a general store that had overstocked its goods, causing its cash flow to collapse. The owner couldn't even afford next month's rent. Roy's suggestion to the owner was simple—hold a lottery.
Customers could spend a small amount of money to draw a ticket. The winning rate was 100%, but the third-, fourth-, and lower-tier prizes were all items the shop couldn't sell anyway—glass marbles, paper sheets, and similar junk.
The first prize, however, was equipment the shop owner had used back when he was an adventurer: a sword advertised as the best in the entire village, worth a million valis. It instantly attracted countless low-level adventurers.
Naturally, no one ever won the first prize, but all the unsellable junk was completely cleared out. In just five days, the shop owner made a huge profit.
Roy only took a small service fee.
Other shop owners were so jealous their eyes practically turned purple. They quickly followed suit, and the lottery method swept across the entire city. Very few people knew that it was the work of a fifteen-year-old boy.
That was why the fruit shop owner could tell—this boy's knowledge and life experience didn't match his youthful appearance at all. It was as if the body of a teenager housed a sixty- or seventy-year-old monster.
"You wouldn't understand,"
Roy said with a melancholic expression. "If you spent your whole life in a world full of ordinary people, and someone suddenly told you that transcendent power existed, you'd go crazy chasing it too."
The fruit shop owner didn't understand those strange words, but he could feel Roy's resolve.
"Forget it. Want to buy some apples?"
He pointed at the newly stocked fruit.
Roy shook his head vigorously and turned away. He didn't have the authority of Return by Death.
That's right—he was a transmigrator.
In his previous life, he was an utterly ordinary financial-industry wage slave. After one brutal 996 overtime shift, he encountered a dump truck and fought with all his might—only to be completely defeated.
This world was the same one from an anime in his previous life: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?
Rather than transmigration, his case was closer to reincarnation. Unfortunately, when he was three years old, his parents were killed by monsters that rushed out of the deep mountains, and their house was destroyed as well. In the blink of an eye—both parents gone, no home, no possessions.
All alone, he was taken in by the village chief.
Over the years, he used knowledge from his previous life to help the village develop rapidly. Half a month ago, he finally persuaded his guardian—the village chief—to let him leave the village and come to the adventurer capital known as the center of the world: Orario.
Three thousand years ago, a labyrinth suddenly appeared in the Lower World—the Dungeon—one of the world's three great secret realms. Countless monsters poured out, threatening the world.
Today, most Dungeon entrances had been sealed, leaving only the entrance beneath Babel Tower in Orario.
The gods gathered here and bestowed their blessings upon mortals, granting them transcendent power. These people were known as adventurers, and they entered the Dungeon to experience thrilling and deadly adventures.
Relying on knowledge from his previous life, Roy was confident he could become a wealthy tycoon—but what would be the point?
Who doesn't dream of becoming transcendent?
Yet after arriving in Orario, reality hit him hard. A king among kings in the countryside, a nobody in the city.
After being rejected by seven or eight Familias in a row, Roy finally accepted the truth—he wasn't the kind of protagonist who could stand by the roadside, release a domineering aura, and have countless people kneel before him.
Elves—powerful magic race.
Canine beastmen—naturally sharp senses.
Wolf beastmen—incredible speed.
Dwarves—overwhelming strength.
Amazons—all female, warlike and extremely bold, dressed scantily, fond of reproducing with strong men… absolutely irresistible.
…
With so many outstanding choices, why would anyone recruit a teenage ordinary human?
What's more, he was the most ordinary of the ordinary.
Raul of the Loki Familia had no skills, no magic, no outstanding abilities, and his magic stat was permanently zero.
His title: "The Everyman."
Roy felt he was even more average than Raul.
Perhaps his last hope lay in the cheat that had been loading for over ten years.
[Panel Awakening 99.8%… 99.9%…]
Roy waited nervously. This damned progress bar had been stuck at 99% since he was nine years old, with the final 1% refusing to move.
Today, it finally did.
[Ding!]
[…100%. Panel awakening complete!]
A panel visible only to him appeared before his eyes. Roy's eyes lit up as a warm current surged through his body. He felt strength fill every inch of him—like he could punch a cow to death with a single blow.
Name: Roy
Level: 1
Strength: 0 (I)
Endurance: 0 (I)
Dexterity: 0 (I)
Agility: 0 (I)
Magic: 0 (I)
Skills: None
Magic: None
…
Seeing his status panel, Roy's heart skipped a beat.
"Is this… the gods' blessing?"
He had become a Level 1 adventurer.
It seemed the system itself had become his "god." Looking again at his stats—an all-I panel.
Adventurer stats ranged from 0 to 999 and were divided into ranks from I to S, totaling ten tiers
(I: 0–99, H: 100–199 … A: 800–899, S: 900–999).
While hurrying back to his residence, Roy explored his cheat. It was simple—he possessed the gods' blessing and could enter instances to grind monsters and level up.
[Demon Slayer Instance: Hunt Upper Rank Two, Douma. Reward: 600 attribute points, Bronze Treasure Chest!]
[Titan Instance: Wall Maria is about to be breached. For every Titan slain, gain 30–100 attribute points based on its physical ability. Reach 30 kills to trigger a special reward!]
[World Instance: Akame ga Kill!]
…
Looking at the listed instance quests, the excitement on Roy's face grew stronger.
A DanMachi version of Solo Leveling?
When he returned to his doghouse—a tent set up along a wide street in the residential district—a pleasant fragrance greeted him. Roy immediately became alert.
Someone was inside.
He carried almost all valuables on him. Someone actually broke into his doghouse—just how desperate were they? Roy curled his lips.
But when he peeked inside, he froze.
A blonde elf girl lay on his bed. Her pointed ears were crystal-clear, her eyes tightly shut, brows knitted together. Her breathtakingly beautiful face showed signs of pain and struggle, and from time to time, she let out soft, pained moans.