At that moment, Yuri walked calmly toward the dungeon.
His skill value had reached the limit of 2,000 points, but in the absence of any great achievements, he couldn't level up. He had originally planned to rely only on his swordsmanship and physical strength to fight the floor boss on the 18th floor.
It was obvious why Eina didn't give him the map—how could a novice adventurer venture into the intermediate floors of the dungeon?
That meant, if Yuri wanted to reach the 18th floor, he would have to do it blindly.
"But what a pain... this will waste a lot of time. I need to think of another way. Where can I get a map of the intermediate levels?"
Several ideas ran through Yuri's mind, but at that moment, he noticed a certain orange-haired girl in line to enter the dungeon.
"Lefiya?"
Yuri frowned as he looked at her. Why was she here alone?
(Wait! Don't tell me she's planning to go into the dungeon alone?) Yuri thought, surprised.
Lefiya had performed poorly during the Loki Familia's last expedition due to her failure to execute parallel chanting and her fear of monsters.
Yuri smiled, seeing the great opportunity in front of him.
"I found my map!"
After getting in line and finally entering the dungeon, he hurried, trying to catch up with Lefiya before she reached the intermediate area.
Eventually, after walking quickly for a while, Yuri heard a girl's voice chanting not far ahead:
"Release a ray of light, limbs of the sacred tree. You are the archer of the forest. Fire, Fairy Shooter! Pierce, Absolute Precision—Arrow, Arcs Ray!"
Yuri listened closely to the chant and the quality of the magic cast—and in an instant, he copied the spell: [Arcs Ray].
After [Ariel], Yuri had gained a new magic.
It was also a single-target spell that could track enemies.
Although Yuri didn't have Lefiya's Fairy Cannon to double the power of attack magic, even so, his [Arcs Ray] was bound to be powerful.
Yuri walked slowly. When he saw a magic stone on the ground and the frightened expression on the elf girl's face, he knew she hadn't reached her goal yet.
She had probably cast her spell just in time to kill the monster before it got to her.
The best mages can perform actions such as dodging, moving, and defending while chanting. That way, they become a moving force—not just a sitting target.
This technique of executing multiple actions simultaneously is known as "parallel chanting."
"Lefiya..."
Yuri appeared before the elf girl. Feeling a bit embarrassed, she quickly straightened up and pretended everything was fine.
Ever since Yuri and Ais had started training together, Lefiya's affection for him had dropped more than halfway!
"If you keep acting like this, you'll never learn 'parallel chanting,'" Yuri said plainly.
"I have a method that can help you overcome your fear and learn it quickly."
"Really?"
Upon hearing Yuri's tempting offer, the elf couldn't help but look at him.
"Yes. As long as you show me the way to the eighteenth floor, I'll help you."
"Deal!"
Lefiya agreed immediately. All she had to do was guide him. She had participated in many expeditions and had gone deep into the lower levels, so she was very familiar with the route.
"So, Yuri, how are you going to help me?"
Lefiya asked curiously, and the next moment, Yuri clapped his hands.
"Wood Style—Wooden Prison," Yuri said as wooden branches grew around Lefiya.
"Despite being archaic and barbaric, the best way to overcome fear is to face it head-on."
"Don't worry, Lefiya. This wooden cage is tougher than most metals."
Yuri's words came off as weak reassurance, and it looked like the simple elf girl wanted to teach him a lesson in Elvish profanity.
Unfortunately, she missed her chance.
Immediately, several monsters surrounded the cage and began attacking it fiercely.
The horrifying sight terrified the elf and made her scream. Under Yuri's gaze, she ended up crying, curling up pitifully and helplessly.
"Lefiya! Lefiya!"
Yuri called out her name, which made the girl, eyes shut tight, suddenly feel a bit safer.
"Think of your purpose as an adventurer!"
"Think of your dreams!"
"Think of your companions!"
Yuri was quite confident in his talk-no-jutsu.
"If a monster ever hurts your comrades because of your weakness—or if they die in the dungeon because of your cowardice—won't you regret it for the rest of your life?"
"You are Lefiya! You are the disciple of Riveria Ljos Alf, and the only mage in the entire Loki Familia capable of joining a leading expedition at Level 3!"
"So why are you so afraid of them?"
Yuri's words gave the elf the strength to grit her teeth and open her eyes. She was still scared, but after hearing the voice of that infuriating guy, she felt inexplicably comforted—like there was something behind her, giving her the strength to face the fear head-on.
Yes! These monsters are nothing.
Yes! As long as I chant, these monsters are just bugs that can be easily crushed!
Surrounded by monsters, the elf gathered her courage and began to chant with determination.
When an arrow of light flew and killed the first monster, Lefiya suddenly felt that the invisible wall holding her back had crumbled.
The fear vanished from her eyes as her mind focused fully on chanting and obliteration.
After the last monster turned to ash, the wooden cage disappeared.
The elf seemed to lose all her strength and collapsed backward, her legs weak—falling into his arms, which radiated a peace and warmth she had never felt before.
"That's how it should be."
(End of Chapter)
Give me some power stones there you go~😉
Do you want to know why I didn't post anything here for so long?The reason was something completely stupid.I formatted my phone and my PC because somehow they got a virus and some unemployed person with nothing to do kept hacking some of my accounts... The problem is that I forgot to save the password for my email linked to this account in my notebook... Literally today I remembered that my old phone, which hasn't been on since last year, still had that account saved, all I needed to do was recharge its battery, turn it on, and then change the email password.