Finn could only smile bitterly, unable to come up with a good solution on the spot.
Gareth sat in his dwarf-fitted high-backed chair as usual, stroking his thick beard over and over.
"So the Expedition went from a round trip to a one-way ticket, huh? That's... not exactly funny."
"Didn't expect you of all people to crack dark jokes, Riveria."
The royal elf shot the annoying dwarf an irritated glance and let out a cold huff.
"I was just trying to lighten the mood since it got so heavy. If you don't want to hear it, I can shut up."
Loki waved her hand weakly.
"Mama Riveria, I think you have a fundamental misunderstanding of the word 'humor'..."
"Just... stop. I feel worse after hearing that."
Finn laced his fingers together beneath his nose, eyes narrowed in thought for a long moment, before speaking up abruptly:
"What if... and I'm just saying what if."
"If we still wanted to go ahead with the Expedition as planned, it's not like there's absolutely no way..."
"?"
Loki cracked her eyes open slightly.
"You mean... a joint Expedition?"
Finn nodded.
"Yeah, but given how tense things are in the city right now, I think... even if I proposed it at the council, neither the Familias nor the Guild would agree."
Loki's lips curled into a cold smirk.
"At the end of the day, all of this traces back to those Evilus bastards."
"In that case..."
With that, Loki sprang off the sofa in one fluid motion and strode toward the door.
"Let me go have a chat with that lovesick idiot and Astraea first..."
...
...
The Dungeon, Middle Floors.
From deep within the dim, sprawling cavern, the hoarse roars of monsters echoed continuously.
But what followed was a barrage of deafening explosions punctuated by someone's wild yelling, shattering the oppressive silence.
The blasts ripped through the labyrinth of tunnels and chambers, reverberating across the entire floor.
"The hell is that? Those explosions..."
"The city's a powder keg right now. You'd think people coming down here to make a buck could at least keep a low profile. Unbelievable."
A member of an adventurer party had just picked up a Magic Stone dropped by a monster when he grumbled to his companion in a low voice.
His companion glanced at him, eyes passing over the jagged tear clawed into his leather armor, and replied flatly:
"Anyone who's made it this deep is at least a Lv. 2 veteran. Everyone knows what they're doing."
"If he wants to make noise, that's his problem. And if it actually draws those Evilus psychos over..."
He paused, his voice betraying no emotion.
"That's not necessarily bad for us. At least it'd buy us time to pull back."
His companion stood up, gazing toward the direction of the explosions, mulling it over...
"Besides, think about it from another angle. If someone's got the balls to go this wild, they're either an idiot who can't read the room, or... they're not worried. Which one do you think this guy is?"
Considering how deep they were, the adventurer clutching his Magic Stone glanced down at the savage claw marks on his armor that had nearly cost him his life, and clicked his tongue.
"If it were me being that reckless... it'd be because I had the strength to back it up."
"There you go. Seriously, instead of worrying about someone else's business, how about you clean up your own mess first?"
"Like you're any better off than me."
"Shut up, Minotaur incoming!"
"Shit!"
...
Not too far from that adventurer party, in a secluded, spacious cavern.
Leon hooked his staff onto the side of his pack, dropped into a wide stance, and started hurling truck-tire-sized orange Fireballs with alternating hands, rapid-fire, into the swarm of monsters charging at him.
"Fireball! Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!"
Explosion after explosion rocked the chamber without end, dark purple mushroom clouds blooming one after another across the vast space. Waves of searing heat rolled outward, shattered rock sprayed in every direction, and even the ceiling and walls shuddered from the concussive force.
After a solid half-minute of continuous bombardment, only when every last monster had been consumed by flames did Leon reluctantly stop, wanting more.
"Now THAT's satisfying!"
He stood with his arms hanging naturally at his sides, cloak snapping in the hot wind.
Gazing at the inferno blazing before him, the corners of his mouth beneath the mask shot upward uncontrollably.
"Whew..."
He took a deep breath and swiftly calmed the surging Magic inside him, murmuring with narrowed eyes:
"After hitting Lv. 3, Fireball's power jumped up another tier."
"Broken Basic Abilities, enhanced Development Abilities, multiple skill amplifications, plus the all-around boost from leveling up..."
"Even with the power penalty from Instant Cast, and even though Fireball's base coefficient is only short-chant level..."
"At my current strength, even after two layers of reduction, it's already hitting above my weight class."
"And not just barely above Lv. 4, either. This is on par with a top-tier Magic-specialized Lv. 4 mage's attacks!"
He looked down at his palm, where a few sparks danced and flickered like tiny sprites.
Then his fingers snapped shut into a fist, his lips curving in satisfaction.
"After two level-ups' worth of stacking... finally. I've finally reached the point where I can punch above my level as standard."
"Instant Cast, long-range, above-level magic bombardment. You scared yet?!"
He pressed a hand to his forehead, a low laugh slipping out that he could barely contain.
"Heh... heheh... ahahahahaha..."
The laughter spiraled out of control, erupting into wild, unrestrained cackling that echoed again and again through the smoke-filled cavern.
If anyone had wandered in from the tunnels just then, they'd probably have mistaken the "creature" before them for some terrifying monster, or a lurking Evilus operative.
A blazing sea of fire. Countless charred, twisted monster remains. Eerie shadows stretching and writhing with the flames. And in the middle of it all, a pitch-black figure clutching his forehead, laughing like a madman...
Layer upon layer, the scene pushed the cavern's atmosphere into deeply unhinged territory.
...
After carrying on for a good while, Leon's laughter finally tapered off. The manic expression faded, replaced by his usual composure, as he got to work cleaning up the battlefield with practiced efficiency.
"Can't forget where I came from just 'cause I struck it rich. Every little bit adds up. Making money... no shame in that."
He muttered to himself, crouching down and drawing his spare Carving Knife to extract Magic Stones with quick, clean cuts.
These days, with Fireball's power climbing higher and higher, fewer and fewer monsters survived intact under his hands. Most were vaporized outright in the explosions, leaving only their Magic Stones scattered on the ground.
Far from being bothered by this, Leon was actually pleased. With enough practice, once he nailed down that sweet spot of just the right amount of power, it would save him a massive amount of cleanup work.
He was quite satisfied with that.
...
...
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