Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

As the words suggest, a dark shadow immediately pounced on me as I fell to the ground.

The other shadowy creature, which hadn't attacked earlier, raised its right arm, ready to deliver a fatal blow.

The pupils narrowed.

In the present scene, the passage of time becomes helplessly slow.

Memories of the past flooded my mind like a thousand horses galloping. Scenes I witnessed up to this day replayed in my mind like a revolving lantern, without missing a single one.

The most radiant and dazzling of all was the encounter with the person I had longed for.

(——)

And then, the smile of a certain goddess, whom I cherish most, still bestows blessings upon me at this moment.

"!"

The next instant, I used all my strength to move my body again.

I leaped up from the surface of the dungeon and charged toward the shadowy figure who was about to strike with his right arm.

A long, black arm sliced ​​off a piece of my skin from beside my cheek, but I still gripped my bare right fist and slammed it into the enemy's face.

A heavy, shattering sound echoed all around.

"...!"

With a powerful right punch, he shattered the mirror-like surface of the enemy's face, piercing through his head as well.

A black, viscous liquid, like sludge, gushed from the back of his head, piercing through the wound. Zhan Ying and I crossed our arms, convulsed briefly, then lost all strength, his knees buckling as he collapsed to his knees.

"--snort!"

With lightning speed.

I pulled my arm from the monster's face and, with lightning speed, engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the remaining monster, which was frozen in place after seeing its companion fall.

I ran quickly, picking up the short sword as I went, and re-equipping myself.

I charged forward like a hare darting across the land, leaping into the enemy's arms.

The shadowy creature swayed as if to meet the attack, but I moved faster than it.

A dagger flashed.

A slash that swept diagonally upwards sliced ​​through the enemy's chest.

Inside the cut chest, the "magic stone," cleaved in two, emitted a mournful light before shattering.

"——!"

It let out a muffled, dying scream, and the monster's pitch-black body turned to dust.

I remained motionless in the position of wielding the dagger, watching as a large amount of dust collapsed until the very last moment, when I suddenly lost all my strength and gasped for breath roughly.

"Ha, ha, ha"

I let my lungs breathe and looked up at the ceiling.

My taut nerves snapped, and exhaustion washed over me instantly. Undoubtedly, this was a life-or-death battle, and my body finally gave way. I half-opened my eyes, absentmindedly listening to my rapidly beating heart.

Is something wrong with my body?

I was able to defeat monsters that were otherwise impossible to defeat. Was my ability to overturn the common sense that others had taught me due to the rapid growth of my [ability stats]?

I don't know what's wrong with my body.

A barrage of questions flooded my mind, but then my knees buckled, and I nearly collapsed, realizing I was nearing my physical limit. I suppressed the endless questions and began to move my body, which was almost entirely covered in injuries.

We must get out of here as soon as possible.

Reminded by this call of reason, I walked toward the entrance to the hall.

However, it was as if it was telling me "you can't escape"... *sizzle*.

“——”

My breathing stopped instantly. I looked up and saw spiderweb-like cracks appearing on the walls to my right and left. In just a short while, four more War Shadows had spawned in the dungeon, twice as many as before.

This is one of the reasons why Miss Eina warned me so seriously not to approach the lower floors without preparation.

Starting from the 6th floor—no, the 5th floor—the frequency of monster spawns in the dungeon will increase significantly.

As I stood there speechless, misfortune struck again when I heard several low growls.

Looking back, deep within the only entrance and exit, the eyes of numerous ferocious beasts emerged.

(——……Ahhh.)

One after another, the monsters from the 6th floor began to invade the hall.

The only exit was blocked, leaving no way to retreat—a situation known as a dead end. Zhan Ying also began to take action, and I was quickly surrounded by the monster horde.

Even so, my mind remained surprisingly calm.

"..."

I slowly walked forward and bent down beside the corpses of the War Shadows I had just slaughtered.

I reached out to the "Shadow's Finger Blade" that was dropped when I turned to dust.

I picked up one of the three fingers and attached this makeshift weapon to my left hand. As I gripped the dagger, which had no hilt and was essentially just a blade, my palm was instantly slashed, and blood began to drip out.

—I'll show you.

Gripping the two weapons tightly, I glared fiercely.

Faced with an undeniable predicament, what arose in my heart was not the thought of giving up, but the determination and ambition to never die.

I have a high place I want to reach.

There's no time to stumble around in places like this.

As the monsters surrounded me, emitting threatening roars, I reaffirmed my resolve.

As if driven by a burning imprint on my back, I raised my weapon.

Then, I suddenly charged into the approaching horde of monsters.

Book 1, Chapter 4: So, I want to become his strength.

The sound of time passing by echoed coldly in the room.

The clock on the wall indicates that it is five o'clock in the morning.

Hestia paced back and forth in the same spot in the hidden room of the headquarters—the church.

(It's just too slow, no matter how you look at it...)

She crossed her arms over her chest, her brows furrowed, a look of anxiety on her face.

Last night, she saw that Bell's [ability value] was greatly affected by his infatuation with Ais, which made her very unhappy.

When Hestia returned from the party at the shop where she worked, she was greeted by an empty silence; Bell was not in the hidden room.

Even though she had asked him to go out to eat alone, Hestia was even angrier when no one greeted her. She jumped onto the bed without even taking a shower, intending to go to sleep in a huff. However... ten o'clock, eleven o'clock, twelve o'clock, and Bell still hadn't returned by midnight, which finally made her realize that something was wrong.

She never closed her eyes, filled with resentment and dissatisfaction towards Belle. She threw off the blanket, jumped out of bed, and rushed out of the room to look for someone in the neighborhood.

"Where did you go...!"

Nothing gained.

Unable to find even half a shadow of the boy with his striking white hair, Hestia returned to the room with her last hope, but the boy was still nowhere to be seen.

She hadn't slept all night, running around the streets late at night, which left her looking exhausted. But tension gradually replaced her fatigue.

(Was it because I said those things? But that child is the type who would rather suppress his emotions and endure it than worry others... Normally, he would have already come and kowtowed to me to apologize...)

She remembered the look in Bell's eyes when she said goodbye for the last time, like that of a abandoned little rabbit.

The guilt she felt then lingered in her heart again, but Hestia shook her head.

She told herself that now was not the time to wallow in sadness, sealed her regrets away, and tried to remain calm and think things through.

(But if it wasn't my fault, then the reason Bell hasn't returned yet is...)

Perhaps he got involved in some incident.

Her calm and composed demeanor crumbled like a sandcastle, followed by a cold sweat. Restless, Hestia rushed to the door, intending to search for Bell's whereabouts again.

"—Pfft!"

Just as Hestia was about to reach for the doorknob.

As if timed perfectly, the square door was pushed open and crashed into her.

Hestia slammed her head against the face!

At the same time, a pitiful squeezing sound came from the chest as it was being crushed!

Hestia's faith value increased by 100!

Hestia rubbed her face and squatted down, letting out a muffled groan.

"God, God... I'm sorry..."

The unexpected attack made Hestia tremble with pain, but when she heard the voice above her head, she opened her eyes wide from under her hands.

Knowing that the person who spoke was the very person she had been praying for to be safe, Hestia suddenly stood up.

"Bell!"

As she expected, it was indeed Bell standing in front of her.

A profound sense of relief filled her chest. Hestia looked up at Bell, almost bursting into tears... but upon seeing Bell's face and appearance, she was speechless.

His face, filled with remorse towards Hestia, was drooping with downcast eyebrows. His face was covered in red and brown patches, scars and dirt, and he looked visibly haggard.

Upper body. The simple, thin cloth clothes were so badly damaged that it was unbearable to look at; the skin exposed through the holes was bruised and swollen.

Finally, there was the lower body. The trousers were completely discolored by the splattered mud, and the cuffs were torn and ripped. The worst part was the right knee, which had three lacerations that looked as if it had been ripped open by sharp claws. This black, dirty, and nearly dried-up wound on the knee was the most severe of all the horrific injuries on the body.

Hestia's expression changed drastically, and she pressed Bell for answers:

"How did you get this injury! Were you attacked?"

"No, I wasn't attacked by anyone..."

"What on earth happened?!"

"...I went to the underground city."

Upon hearing his softly spoken words, Hestia instantly forgot her anger and fell silent.

"Idiot! What are you thinking! Going to the dungeon dressed like that... and all night long!"

"……sorry."

Bell is currently wearing no armor whatsoever. In the dungeon, this outfit is practically the same as being naked.

A single attack from a ferocious monster could be fatal. The gruesome scars left on one's body are the best proof of that.

It seems he at least carried a short knife for self-defense... but he was still careless and incredibly foolish.

To challenge a dungeon all night with this gear is not just reckless, it's downright stupid.

"...How could you do something so foolish? You're not the type to give up on yourself like this!"

"..."

Seeing Bell's current miserable state, coupled with the somewhat gloomy atmosphere, Hestia no longer wanted to scold him, but instead asked him in a gentle, admonishing tone.

However, Bell refused to speak. He let his bangs cover his eyes, implying his refusal.

Hestia sighed softly.

"Okay, I won't ask anything. You're quite stubborn; even if I insist on asking you, you won't tell me."

"I'm so sorry..."

"It's alright. Go take a shower first. Although the bleeding seems to have stopped, you still need to clean the wound thoroughly. Get treatment done as soon as you're done."

"...Okay, thank you."

Seeing Bell finally smile, Hestia, though feeling a pang of pain in her heart, also managed a bitter smile.

She made way for Bell, who then walked in with unsteady steps.