Chapter 9: The Inertia Difficult to Deviate From!
Hearing Luke's words, everyone in the adventurer team couldn't help but cast pitying glances at Liliruca.
An entire floor of monsters had been slaughtered.
One could imagine how heavy this ruthless person's killing intent was.
After all, besides providing experience points for adventurers, the only valuable thing about monsters in the Dungeon was their magic stones.
Yet, Luke had killed so many monsters without stopping to collect any magic stones.
If he wanted experience points quickly, with his strength, he could easily farm high-level monsters on lower floors.
But Luke insisted on staying on the third floor, tirelessly slaughtering these small fry.
So, others subconsciously assumed he was a bloodthirsty killing machine, naturally feeling sympathetic towards Liliruca, whom he had personally requested to stay behind.
However, some felt sympathy, while others felt schadenfreude.
Before leaving the third floor with the team, Eric deliberately lagged half a step behind, sidled up to Liliruca, and said with a teasing expression, "Well well, Pallum brat, your luck is pretty good! To have such a powerful expert take an interest in you really makes this great one envious and jealous!"
"If Eric-sama is envious... you can stay behind with me..."
Clutching her sleeve tightly, Liliruca kept her head down, her entire face hidden within the hood of her robe.
Only her slightly resentful voice could be heard coming from the shadows of the hood, "Or Eric-sama could go talk to that sama, take Liliruca's place to stay behind. Liliruca wouldn't mind."
"Hahaha... Me, stay behind instead of you? Are all Pallums as humorous as you?"
Clutching his stomach and laughing exaggeratedly for a couple of moments, Eric then turned without any reluctance and headed towards the stairs leading to the upper floor.
As he walked, he waved his hand, "Right, about your share... Come find me for it when you get out of the Dungeon alive."
And if Liliruca couldn't get out of the Dungeon alive, she naturally wouldn't be able to ask him for her share.
In Eric's eyes, this Pallum, singled out by Luke to stay behind, had practically been sentenced to death.
Probably, later, after all the monsters on the third floor were killed, this poor little thing would be used for sword practice?
But this was also a fitting way for her to die, matching her status.
The useless Pallum could at least bloom one last time before death, becoming this killing maniac's practice target...
Thinking this, Eric couldn't help but feel much better.
The earlier annoyance from arguing with his teammate over the Pallum supporter completely dissipated.
After Eric left, only Liliruca, standing at the staircase entrance, and Luke, continuously moving through the monster horde, reaping monster lives, remained on the third floor of the Dungeon.
"Um... adventurer-sama..."
After standing blankly in place for a while, realizing Luke wasn't paying her any attention, Liliruca had to speak up first, "May I ask, you asking me to stay behind... what did you want me to do?"
As she asked this question, Liliruca's mood also became suspended.
As a Pallum, naturally short in stature, compared to the equally short dwarves, she lacked their strong physique.
Moreover, Liliruca herself didn't possess any powerful offensive skills and was female.
So, she had always been bullied by those around her.
The only difference was that as a child, she was bullied by peers, and now, she was bullied by other members within her Familia.
It was precisely because of this ingrained thinking that she never thought Luke asking her to stay behind had any good intentions from the start.
"What did I want you to do? That's quite a foolish question, Liliruca-san. Doesn't sound like a question someone as clever as you would ask."
Casually splitting a moth-shaped monster before him in two, Luke continued killing monsters while saying, "As a supporter, I shouldn't need to tell you what you're supposed to do."
A supporter's job was primarily to help adventurer team members extract the magic stones from inside dead monsters.
On one hand, if the magic stones weren't extracted promptly, the monster corpses would be absorbed back by the Dungeon.
On the other hand, with someone specifically responsible for digging out magic stones, other members could focus entirely on combat, greatly increasing the efficiency of both floor clearing and monster hunting.
And as a professional supporter, Liliruca certainly understood what a qualified supporter should do.
But...
"Is just that enough?"
Liliruca had already prepared herself to face the his harassment, even bracing for him to make unreasonable demands like "use your body for my sword practice."
But she never expected Luke would only make such a simple request.
"What else? What did you think I wanted you to stay behind for, Liliruca-san?"
Continuously reaping the lives of monsters blocking his path, Luke saw Liliruca still hadn't acted and couldn't help urging her, "If you don't make a move soon, these monster corpses will be absorbed back by the Dungeon again. At that time, I'll be demanding compensation from you, for my lost magic stones."
"Compensation?!"
Although Luke was killing low-level monsters, so the value of their magic stones wasn't very high, the sheer number he killed was staggering.
In just a short while, dozens of monsters had fallen by his hand.
If the magic stones inside these monsters were converted into Valis, it would definitely not be a small sum...
Hearing Luke say he would demand compensation, Liliruca immediately pulled out a dagger specifically used for extracting magic stones from her bosom, pulled over a monster corpse, and started digging.
However, while digging magic stones from the monster's body, her mouth wasn't idle either.
"Why does adventurer-sama know Liliruca's name? We shouldn't have met before. After all, with rare features like your black hair and black eyes, once seen, Liliruca would absolutely never forget."
"I just heard others talk about you before. The Pallum girl supporter completely enveloped in a robe, and... also a habitual thief skilled in transformation magic, who has scammed quite a few Lv.1 novice adventurers. Even some veterans have fallen for it. With such distinct characteristics, you must be the only one like that in the entire Orario."
"You...!"
Her carefully hidden secret being exposed by Luke in one sentence, the expression on Liliruca's face instantly turned deathly pale.
In her agitation, she even forgot the honorific for Luke.
"You don't need to be too nervous. I don't care what you've done before." Seeing Liliruca was somewhat overly agitated, Luke said lightly, "I just want you to understand one thing: I have absolutely no ill intentions towards you. And when you're in front of me, you don't need to hide anything. Just be yourself."
"...I see. Then I really must thank adventurer-sama for your kindness."
Taking two deep breaths to calm the rapid heartbeat caused by her secret being suddenly exposed, Liliruca then raised her head and smiled, thanking Luke.
Though there was a hint of insincerity.
After all, having a carefully hidden secret exposed, especially when the content was somewhat embarrassing, wasn't a pleasant feeling.
"Haha, you're welcome."
Showing no sign of embarrassment, Luke smiled magnanimously, accepting Liliruca's thanks.
"One more thing, Liliruca-san. My name is Luke Starr. Stop with the 'Adventurer-sama,' it sounds weird."
Weird?
That's exactly what I want, for you to feel weird!
Secretly peeking at the man's figure leaping among the monsters, Liliruca drawled, "Understood, Luke-sama."
"I told you, stop calling me sama... It sounds strange, it's embarrassing, okay?"
Hearing Liliruca call him Luke-sama, Luke felt a headache coming on and protested, suddenly finding this little one unexpectedly mischievous.
But Liliruca clearly paid no attention to his protest, just focusing on digging out magic stones.
"What's wrong with being called sama? Liliruca wishes everyone would call me Liliruca-sama!"
"Okay then, Liliruca-sama, please stop talking. This is really too awkward."
"Alright, Luke-sama."
"I... Forget it, call me whatever you want..."
...
Half an hour later, the vast third floor of the Dungeon was once again completely cleared by Luke from end to end.
The number of monster corpses fallen along the way totaled no less than a thousand.
Among them, aside from a small portion that the Dungeon reclaimed before magic stones could be extracted, Liliruca had collected a total of three large cowhide bags full of magic stones.
"Luke-sama, this is everything. Can I leave now?"
Handing all three cowhide bags to Luke, who was standing aside panting, leaning on his black longsword, Liliruca was now eager to leave this Dungeon floor, or more accurately, to leave this man's presence.
Although he hadn't shown any ill intentions towards her so far, and his attitude could even be considered reasonably amiable, having someone nearby who knew your most shameful secrets would make anyone feel uncomfortable.
However, even though Liliruca wanted to leave, Luke wasn't prepared to let her go so easily.
"As my supporter, you naturally have a share in these three cowhide bags. But now is not the time to distribute the spoils. Get ready quickly."
"Ready for what?"
Not understanding what Luke meant at first, Liliruca tilted her head, seeming about to ask something more.
Just then...
"They're here!"
Before Liliruca's question could leave her lips, Luke pulled up his longsword, his gaze towards the surroundings instantly becoming incomparably cold and sharp.
"Guwaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
The unique monster roars characteristic of the Dungeon once again echoed through this third-floor space.
"...H-how is that possible?!"
Witnessing this Goblin that had just been born from the nearby cave wall, Liliruca couldn't help but show an expression of disbelief.
"Weren't the monsters on this floor just cleared? Why have new monsters appeared again? And how can the spawn speed be so fast?"
"I think... this is probably because of me."
Gripping the hilt, Luke casually answered Liliruca's question while forcing his exhausted body to charge at full speed towards the newly appeared monsters.
"After all, I'm quite the 'outsider'..."
"Outsider? Luke-sama, are you from outside Orario?"
"Mm, in a certain sense, that's not wrong... But this Dungeon's hospitality is truly so enthusiastic it leaves me somewhat overwhelmed."
Shaking his head with a wry smile, Luke raised his blade and began a new round of slaughter among the monster horde.
Although his stamina was almost depleted by now, and his physical attributes were starting to decline accordingly, the sword technique honed through continuous combat had become increasingly perfect, like a piece of rough jade, becoming more dazzlingly radiant the more it was polished.
And Luke relied precisely on the superb sword technique he grasped to dare continue staying within this Dungeon that seemed to give him "special attention."
...
In the evening, at the entrance of the Dungeon's first floor, two figures, one tall and one short, leaned on each other, staggering out of the Dungeon.
It was Luke and Liliruca.
To say they leaned on each other wasn't quite right.
In reality, it was the almost completely exhausted Luke leaning unilaterally on Liliruca, being supported by her out of the Dungeon.
It was only due to the significant height difference between them that it created the illusion of mutual support.
"Thanks for your hard work, Liliruca."
Leaning on the girl's petite shoulder, Luke smiled and raised his hand, wanting to pat her head.
"Don't!"
Tilting her head away to dodge Luke's touch, Liliruca's slightly disgusted voice came from under the hood immediately after, "Luke-sama is covered in blood. Considering the large harvest of magic stones today, although I can kindly let you lean a bit, patting my head is definitely out... It's too disgusting."
Disgusting...
His raised hand instantly froze.
The next moment, Luke looked down at himself, indeed covered in the foul-smelling blood of monsters.
He hadn't felt it much before while in high-intensity combat with tense nerves, but now that he relaxed, even Luke himself found the smell on his body somewhat unbearable.
Especially the wet, sticky feeling of the blood made his entire body feel as if ants were crawling all over him, extremely uncomfortable.
Seeing Luke's expression turn somewhat sour, Liliruca thought for a moment and said, "But I remember Tower of Babel seems to have baths specifically opened for adventurers... If Luke-sama needs it, consider it a return gift for today's generous reward, Liliruca can take you there?"
"Please do, Liliruca!"
...
Tower of Babel, Seventh Floor.
"Splash—"
Luke slowly sat down into the single-person bathtub.
The slightly scalding temperature made all the muscles in his body relax, and the fatigue brought by the long, continuous battle in the Dungeon also dissipated somewhat.
"System."
After enjoying the comfort of the hot water for a moment, Luke leaned against the edge of the bathtub and called up the system interface.
[Name: Luke Starr]
[Race: Human - Adventurer Lv.1 (1000/1000) - Hestia Familia]
[Age: 23]
[Height: 176cm]
[Weight: 64kg]
[Spirit: 10 (10)]
[Strength: 10 (10)]
[Agility: 10 (10)]
[Endurance: 10 (10)]
[Constitution: 10 (10)]
[Job Legacy: [Black Swordsman]]
[Energy: 220.05/1000000"]
Compared to before, the basic attributes hadn't changed at all, though the experience bar for Lv.1 Adventurer was full.
As long as Luke defeated one more opponent of a higher level or exceptional strength, obtaining high-quality [Excellia], he could successfully advance to Lv.2 and break the attribute limit.
However, Luke's focus wasn't on his attribute panel.
His attention was entirely captured by a prompt appearing on the system interface.
[Ding! Detect absorbable energy. Commence collection?]
This prompt had suddenly appeared while Luke was hunting monsters in the Dungeon earlier, but at that time, he was surrounded by monsters.
Even if he heard the system notification, he couldn't free his hands, so only now did he have time to check.
Absorbable energy...
Staring at the words in the prompt, after pondering for a moment, Luke reached over, grabbed the leather bag placed by the bathtub edge, and took out a pale purple crystal.
It was precisely the magic stone obtained from inside a Dungeon monster.
Opening his hand, gazing at the crystal clear magic stone lying quietly in his palm, Luke chose 'Confirm' without hesitation.
"Absorb!"
[Ding! Commencing energy collection.]
Under Luke's watch, the originally thumb-sized magic stone quickly shrank to the size of a grain of rice, then vanished completely, as if melting into the air.
And as the magic stone disappeared, on the system panel's energy section, the value, originally only 220, began to rise at a speed visible to the naked eye, finally stopping at 251.37/1000000.
Seeing that just one magic stone dug out from a low-level monster increased the energy by over 30 points, a fiery glint couldn't help but flash in Luke's eyes.
Once the energy accumulated to 1,000,000 points, it could support the system in performing one plane transition!
He originally thought he could only wait for the system to slowly collect energy autonomously.
He hadn't expected this kind of operation...
Forcibly resisting the urge to have the system absorb all the remaining magic stones in the bag, Luke took a deep breath, put down the bag, looked back at the system interface, and simultaneously opened the exclusive skill tree for the [Black Swordsman] legacy.
The six skills on the bottom row, besides the golden, already activated [One-Handed Sword], and the bright silver [Sword Bone] and [Sword Pressure], the remaining three white skill boxes were currently flickering with a faint golden light.
His finger slid over these skills one by one, and the system's voice sounded in Luke's ear.
[Ding! Congratulations Host, skill [Balance] unlocked, current Lv.1]
[Ding! Congratulations Host, skill [Insight] unlocked, current Lv.1]
[Ding! Congratulations Host, skill [Swift Reflexes] unlocked, current Lv.1]
Following the series of system prompts, all the skills on the bottom row of the skill tree were successfully activated.
Four gleaming gold passive skills, two bright silver talent passive skills—it looked quite magnificent.
After admiring the activated skill tree for a while, Luke began to understand the effects of the new skills one by one.
[[Insight] Lv.1 (0/5000): Small increase in observation ability when holding a sword, small enhancement to combat intuition, small increase in sixth sense, small increase in evasion rate against surprise attacks.]
[[Balance] Lv.1 (0/5000): Small increase in sense of balance when holding a sword, small increase in three-dimensional maneuverability, small increase in agility.]
[[Swift Reflexes] Lv.1 (0/5000): Small increase in agility attribute when using sword skills, small increase in evasion rate when attacked by sword skills;
Small increase in nerve reflex speed when holding a sword, small enhancement to combat intuition.]
Looking at these three quite practical passive skills, Luke felt that if he went into the third floor of the Dungeon again now, he could at least last for another hour.
And up until now, having activated all the basic skills on the bottom layer of the skill tree, Luke had finally formally entered the [Black Swordsman] job.
This was precisely why Lv.1 was called 'Rudimentary' by the system.
...
After taking a bath and having the bloodstains on his clothes professionally cleaned, Luke exchanged most of the remaining magic stones and materials for Valis, then bought a large pile of groceries and walked out of Tower of Babel, treading on the evening glow.
Although he had given half of the magic stones and monster drop materials to Liliruca before parting ways, even so, Luke's earnings were still quite substantial.
"Please wait a moment, let me see... Total value... Wha-!... Cough cough, sorry, total value 230,000 Valis?! Do you wish to exchange it all?"
Recalling the expression of the pointy-eared elf Guild staff member at the counter when exchanging Valis earlier—so shocked it could almost be called horrified—Luke couldn't help but feel like laughing.
At the same time, a question was pondering in his mind.
Hestia, nicknamed the Goddess of Poverty by other gods, always used to living hard days—what kind of expression would she show later when she saw so much Valis?
...Ah, I can't take it, just thinking about it suddenly makes me feel so expectant!
Tightening the money pouch hanging at his waist, Luke quickened his pace.
Traveling from the Familia residential area near Tower of Babel to the poor district located at the outer periphery of the entire Labyrinth City, Luke returned to the ruined church.
Carrying a large pile of groceries and some exquisite small trinkets he bought on impulse that girls should like, Luke was just about to turn sideways and push open the statue blocking the basement door when he discovered the statue had already been pushed open a crack, and the basement door was also open.
Simultaneously, relying on his 10 points of Constitution, Luke could faintly hear the sound of conversation and laughter coming from the basement.
Is it Hestia's god friends...
Raising an eyebrow, Luke didn't think too much of it and headed down the stairs into the basement.
"Kami-sama, I'm ba—...ck..."
However, just as he entered the basement, the smile on his face froze.
"...?"
In the small basement, a petite girl sat on the edge of the bed, her proper face adorned with a sweet smile.
Cute black twin tails hung behind her.
Underneath the back-revealing white one-piece hip-hugging dress were curves that completely belied her petite figure...
The girl was indeed Hestia.
Completely unsurprising to Luke.
But the person currently chatting and laughing with her was not some god friend, but someone Luke never expected.
White hair with an extraordinary temperament.
Although he really didn't want to admit it, a cute yet handsome face that was definitely more popular than his own ordinary looks.
Dressed in rough cloth clothes...
Isn't this the f***ing white-haired boy Bell Cranel?!
Why is he here?
In an instant, numerous thoughts flashed through Luke's mind.
Then he took a deep breath, forcibly squeezed a smile onto his face, and looked at Hestia, "Kami-sama, this is...?"
"Luke-kun!"
Seeing Luke standing at the staircase entrance, Hestia couldn't be bothered to chat with Bell anymore.
She immediately jumped off the bed and ran barefoot on the ground to his side.
"How was it, how was it? Was your first time in the Dungeon smooth? Did you get hurt anywhere? Are you hungry? Which floor did you reach?..."
Looking down at Hestia who was fussing over him, touching him here and there, Luke shook his head, put down the grocery bag he was holding, then grabbed Hestia's hands firmly, stopping her from continuing her random touching.
"Rest assured, Kami-sama, I'm fine."
"Good that you're fine, good that you're fine..."
Seeing Luke indeed didn't seem to have any issues, Hestia finally breathed a sigh of relief, a happy smile appearing on her face subsequently.
"Woohoo! As expected of Luke-kun! Looking so confident and at ease!"
"Confident and at ease... I wouldn't say that."
Recalling his glorious history of almost being taken out by a single Goblin right after entering the Dungeon yesterday, Luke honestly shook his head, denying the 'confident and at ease' description.
Then he turned to look at Bell Cranel sitting nervously on the sofa and asked again, "Kami-sama, who is this white-haired kid sitting on the sofa?"
White-haired kid...
Hearing Luke's term for him, Bell wanted to retort, but subconsciously felt somewhat afraid to speak up.
This man in the black coat before him seemed to possess an invisible sharpness, like one might get cut just by brushing against him.
"Ah, you mean this child?"
Under Luke's questioning, Hestia put on a mysterious expression.
After a moment's pause, she continued, "This child's name is Bell, Bell Cranel. I found him on the street when I came back this afternoon. Since he hadn't joined another Familia, I kept him... Just like you, Bell is now also a member of the Hestia Familia. You two must get along well!"
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