Completed treatment of an important figure: Alfia. Intervention Points +5000
"...Huh? What the hell—why so much?"
Xien blanked out. His "teacher" clearly wasn't just some random strong Level 7.
Only now did he truly grasp her standing.
For the system to award that many Intervention Points, she had to be a plot-critical figure—someone tightly bound to the world's core events. He'd assumed she was merely a powerful Lv7…
Turns out she wasn't just a genius.
She was a key genius.
Xien was thrilled.
He'd solved his teacher's physical problem and earned an absurd amount of Intervention Points.
A double win.
That Night — Astraea Familia Bathhouse
After a long day, the members finally relaxed in the bathhouse, savoring rare downtime.
And when people are together like this, the best entertainment—aside from the hidden spring scenery no one admits they're staring at—is gossip.
The conversation was still raging.
"That really was terrifying… Xien almost died. I still can't imagine that scene…"
"Seriously. A Level 5 ambushing and assassinating a Level 1… Those bastards. I want to tear them apart one by one."
"Yeah… but honestly, isn't it because Ryuu left Xien behind that it happened?"
A discordant voice cut in.
Naturally, it came from the far eastern black-haired beauty:
Kaguya.
"Hey, Kaguya—how can you say that? It was an emergency. Ryuu notified everyone immediately. What was wrong with that?"
"Exactly. If you're blaming anyone, blame those trash for being so vile—"
Kaguya snorted.
"No matter what, she bears responsibility."
"Let her reflect properly."
"A precious new member of the familia nearly died because of her momentary decision—do you want that kind of mistake happening twice?"
"And as a senior, indulging a newbie's 'heroics' in a dangerous situation isn't 'maturity,' either."
"..."
Kaguya's words choked everyone into silence.
Ryuu—already drowning in guilt—was hit the hardest.
She was practically being scolded into shutting down.
"Ehh, now's not the time to blame each other!"
A loud, shameless voice broke the tension.
Naked and proud, Alise stood with hands on hips, brimming with confidence.
"It didn't get that far, did it?"
"And besides, Xien got even stronger because of it—so isn't that like… a blessing in disguise?"
"Everyone should be happy!"
The group didn't know what to say.
Was she free-spirited?
Or just an idiot?
But thanks to her disruption, the mood loosened.
Meanwhile, Ryuu quietly finished up in her stall and left.
"Ryuu!"
"Kaguya, seriously—"
"Let her go," Kaguya said flatly.
"She needs to think."
"Why has Astraea Familia managed to stand in Orario until now…?"
To be fair, people felt Kaguya was being harsh.
But they couldn't say she was entirely wrong.
Xien was a newbie of less than a month. Wanting to contribute after being nurtured by the team wasn't wrong.
But Ryuu, as a senior, had failed to make him understand "know your limits."
That failure nearly got him killed.
From that angle, it was her dereliction.
Ryuu understood that clearly.
That's why she was eating herself alive now.
Kaguya's intention was to burn this lesson into her.
Astraea Familia wasn't small by Orario standards—but their enemies weren't weak either.
To expose vulnerabilities so completely, so easily, was unacceptable.
There could not be a next time.
Back in her room, Ryuu curled into bed.
Only faint sobbing could be heard.
Her heart twisted in conflict.
Maybe only in moments like this did she reveal her fragile side.
That night passed without incident.
Next Day — Hephaestus Familia
At the Hephaestus Familia's base, two members of Astraea Familia came to visit the captain of the smiths.
One was Xien.
The other was Captain Alise, accompanying him.
They were here for equipment.
Alise needed maintenance and repairs.
Xien wanted to see if his own gear could be fixed.
Though the immediate aftermath of the incident had calmed, everyone still felt it was wiser to stay cautious.
And since Alise's equipment needed servicing anyway, they came together.
The smith—Tsubaki—took one look at Xien's near-destroyed weapon and broke into a cold sweat.
It had almost been cut cleanly in half.
The cut surface was smooth like a mirror.
It was close to scrap.
From that damage alone, it was obvious:
This was a single strike from someone with overwhelming superiority.
At minimum, not below Level 4.
Normally, if your gear ended up like this, the wearer wouldn't survive.
Tsubaki turned and stared at Xien—her eye full of confusion.
This guy… is supposed to be a harmless healer?
Xien gave a wry smile at the "are you even human?" look.
"It really was a fatal wound."
"But you've probably heard—my ability strengthened."
"Though it happened in a desperate near-death situation I never want to experience again."
Tsubaki sighed.
"That must've been hell."
"But I didn't expect them to be this rampant."
She looked at him with a mix of sympathy and grim realism.
A healer—already a prime target—combined with an unusually "special" familia…
This kid's life felt like dancing on a wire over a cliff.
One misstep and he'd die on the spot.
These past few days, they'd basically been front-line personnel.
Always in danger.
She ran her hand over the half-ruined weapon and spoke:
"Fixing it will take real work."
"But since it didn't do its job properly, I'm not blameless either."
"So I'll waive the repair fee."
"And while I'm at it, I'll reinforce it for you."
Her compassion showed.
And she was also following the intention of her goddess—because the phenomenon that day had left even their well-informed goddess shocked speechless.
A presence like Xien?
There was no reason not to pull him closer.
"Really? Then—thank you, Sister Tsubaki."
Xien understood the weight of that kindness.
Astraea Familia's finances were never great.
Saving money was saving lives.
He accepted this debt.
Tsubaki laughed.
"Of course."
"From the wear and damage on this weapon… I can tell you used it properly."
"You're the kind of guy I get along with."
"I'll be counting on you in the future—Miracle Man. Hah!"
Then Alise, seeing an opening, rubbed her hands together with a shameless grin.
"So… my maintenance fee too…?"
She got a look of pure contempt.
"Yours is separate."
"Full price. No credit."
"Ahh, how could you do this?! Don't you love me anymore, Tsubaki?!"
Alise fake-sobbed and tried to scam some affection.
Tsubaki pressed her down with one hand.
"Who loves you?! You idiot of justice!"
"Ehe."
"..."
Everything returned to "peace."
Except for the sweat running down Xien's back.
Final Prep — Before Returning to the Dungeon
Training intensity climbed again and again.
Sparring sessions increased.
Any member who had free time got asked by Xien at least once.
Because Ryuu—he didn't know why—was avoiding him.
And he was desperate to grow stronger.
So he took this route.
Everyone spoiled him—almost "whatever you ask, you get."
Seeing him work this hard, who wouldn't be willing?
For several days, he did final preparations to enter the Dungeon again.
He intended to raise every upgradable skill as high as possible—
Like sharpening an axe before chopping wood.
His plan:
Go to the Dungeon, accumulate enough experience, then come back and level up.
Reaching Level 2 would be a massive leap.
With his already strengthened abilities, even facing upper-tier adventurers, he'd at least gain the ability to barely survive—
Instead of being instantly deleted like last time.
Also, once he hit Level 2, the Intervention Points he gained—combined with his existing stock—should be enough to exchange for a combat "qualitative change" ability:
"Transparent World" — the complementary ability tied to Sun Breathing.
For some reason, Orange Cat's system allowed it to be purchased directly, instead of requiring Sun Breathing to be honed to the extreme until it emerged naturally.
Maybe the system considered "Transparent World" and breathing techniques as separate things.
After the last incident, Xien felt he lacked something—
A burst, a trump card, a force that could instantly flip the situation.
He believed that once he had it, with Level 2 strength, he could at least wrestle with Ryuu and the others for real.
At dinner one day, feeling fully prepared, Xien told the captain and Lady Astraea that he wanted to enter the Dungeon again.
Everyone supported him.
But to be safe, Captain Alise assigned him a "bodyguard":
Ryuu, the elf girl.
Ryuu didn't object.
But her subtly trembling hands betrayed her inner turmoil.
That night, Kaguya knocked on Captain Alise's door.
When she saw Alise's usual smile, Kaguya's irritation flared.
"What are you thinking?"
"At a time like this, you still dare to hand Xien over to her?"
Alise looked completely confident.
"Because it's this time, I have to hand him to her."
"If I don't… she might break."
"If her heart gets covered in dust, the justice in her will drift farther and farther away."
Kaguya understood the intention—
But it still felt reckless.
"Even so, it's too dangerous."
"What if last time happens again—"
"It'll be fine."
"Trust them."
"They're our cherished comrades—how could they be that fragile?"
"And besides—given Xien's current ability…"
"If those two attacked him, do you think even if we mobilized the entire familia we could kill them?"
"..."
…That logic was annoyingly hard to refute.
With Xien's insane regeneration, if you couldn't one-shot him, you'd really just get worn down and die.
Kaguya pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Unbelievable. I don't know if you're actually stupid or…"
Alise leaned in with a smug-cute look.
"Eh? You can't say that about your captain. I'll get sad."
"And it's so late… wanna come to my room? I'll show you something really good~"
She got the same "trash" stare.
"Get lost."
Back Into the Dungeon
A few days later, Xien entered the Dungeon again.
This time, only Ryuu went with him.
Everyone else was out hunting traces of the Evil Faction.
They were furious.
Any scrap of intel meant they moved as a unit.
Yes—the threat from the shadows was still unclear.
But that wasn't a reason to freeze.
If anything, with powerful enemies surrounding them, he needed to seize every second to grow stronger.
He never wanted to feel that helplessness again.
And he wasn't going in without a purpose.
He carried a mission—
A task assigned by his teacher.
After truly encountering the monster called "talent"…
Xien finally understood what "more than genius" really meant.
A mage?
No—she should be called an all-round prodigy.
Leaving aside her mana-wave attacks that didn't even require movement, her other capabilities were equally absurd.
Breathing techniques? One look and she could do it.
And the "staff" she used to demonstrate might as well have been a sword.
Spear technique? She could do it—she learned it by watching a junior once.
Short blades? Also.
She could switch jobs into assassin-tier without blinking.
Xien was stunned into silence.
When she heard his plan, he honestly wondered who the real cheater was—him or her.
That wasn't "Level 7" behavior.
Now he understood how she survived the three great quests:
Not luck.
Just overwhelming strength.
He suspected that in today's Orario, the strongest might actually be his teacher.
And clearly, after she witnessed his "photographic memory" (actually the Sharingan's copy ability), she stopped treating him as just a healer.
After half a day of "discipline," she ordered him:
Run a round-trip to the 18th floor.
As for the powerful monsters?
Once she understood Xien's healing limits, she didn't care.
She simply told him:
If you don't bring back a special material unique to the 18th floor, don't come back.
So this time, he had to grind enough experience to level as soon as possible.
Relying on others for protection was never a long-term solution.
Personal strength was the only true path.
Last time proved it.
He almost died.
He didn't want more lessons like that.
And those bastards' debt?
He recorded every line item.
Just wait.
The agony of having his heart torn apart—
He would make them repay it tenfold.
....
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