These Won't Stump Him

As the door behind them closed softly, Leo and Lefiya, having left Finn's office, suddenly fell into silence.

Neither of them spoke, or rather, they didn't know what to say.

There was no other way. Before this, the two were basically nodding acquaintances, or even less. Apart from being in the same clan's headquarters and exchanging greetings when they saw each other, they had never spent time alone together like this.

Now, suddenly having two people team up to explore the Dungeon together, that sense of unfamiliarity just won't go away.

So, for a moment, neither Leo nor Lefiya knew what to say, and they both fell silent.

Fortunately, this period of silence did not last long.

"Are you busy today?" Leo finally broke the silence, asking Lefiya, "If you have something to take care of, how about we set off tomorrow?"

Upon hearing this, Lefiya quickly shook her head.

"I'm fine. I've already taken care of the tasks that needed to be prioritized. The rest can wait."

Although Lefiya isn't exactly free right now, the busiest period since returning from the expedition is over, so she still has time to explore Dungeon with her teammates.

Other members of the clan began entering the Dungeon together a few days ago. Some, like Ais and Bete Loga, who were never idle, even continued to venture into the Dungeon on the second or third day after their return from the expedition, rain or shine. Only non-combatants like Lefiya or members who needed to be on duty or patrolling would stay at the base camp.

Even those like Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya Viridis, who aren't going to the Dungeon, have started wandering around outside these days, showing that the busiest period has indeed passed.

That's why Finn and the others assigned Lefiya to Leo; those clan leaders knew the situation within their clans better than anyone else.

"In that case, shall we head to the Dungeon now?"

Leo glanced at the sky outside and realized it was still early; it wasn't too late to enter the Dungeon.

After all, it's still breakfast time, not even eight o'clock yet. Even though it's two or three hours later than the usual time to enter the Dungeon before dawn, it's not a big deal, and we can still complete the raid normally.

"Okay." Lefiya naturally had no objections and said, "I'll go back and pack my luggage now."

With that, Lefiya bowed slightly to Leo, then jogged out and left the place.

Leo watched the other person leave before descending the tower a while later.

Central Plaza in front of the Babel Tower.

When Leo and Lefiya arrived here together, their attire had changed somewhat.

Leo carried his small straight sword, and instead of the several bags of various sizes hanging from his waist as before, he only carried an emergency pouch and nothing else, making him look much lighter.

Lefiya, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. Not only did she have a staff that was over ten feet long hanging from her waist, but she also had a bag slung over her shoulder and an even bigger backpack on her back that was taller than her. She looked like she was being crushed by a rock, making one wonder if she would collapse under the weight of the huge backpack at any moment.

Leo, walking beside Lefiya, had this concern and spoke up more than once.

"Do you want me to carry it for you? This backpack must be quite heavy."

The backpack wasn't actually filled with much stuff yet, since Leo and his companion hadn't even entered the Dungeon, and they hadn't earned any Magic Stone or dropped items.

However, at Lefiya's insistence, many of the things Leo had been carrying were transferred to this backpack, adding to its weight.

For example, the small shield that Leo used to love was now packed in this backpack, along with the elixirs needed for supplies, as well as the water and food for rest stops along the way—all of which Lefiya had taken.

This inevitably made Leo feel somewhat guilty.

It's not right to leave all these things, which are things you would use yourself, to a girl to carry.

However, Lefiya refused as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Carrying luggage is the support staff's job. Mr. Leo is a combatant; he only needs to focus on combat. All other tasks should be the responsibility of the support staff."

Lefiya was clearly used to this job and role, and her expression remained unchanged.

"Besides, don't let my appearance fool you, I'm still only a Level 2. Carrying a suitcase like this is quite easy for me."

That's the truth.

Although she wasn't a combatant, her body had already undergone a transformation. Even though Lefiya looked frail and delicate, her physical abilities were still far superior to those Lv.1 novice adventurers.

So don't assume she's having a hard time just because she's carrying a backpack bigger than herself. Actually, she's quite relaxed and doesn't feel tired or heavy at all.

Let alone her, even if someone else were to carry this backpack, they wouldn't find it too heavy.

"There are many people like me, Mr. Leo, you really don't need to worry too much about me."

As Lefiya said, there were many other people around her carrying huge backpacks, who were probably supporters from her team.

Some of these supporters, like Lefiya, were teenage girls, while others looked to be under ten years old, probably Prum, yet they still carried backpacks no smaller than Lefiya's, appearing completely unfazed and showing no signs of carrying a burden.

Ultimately, they are people who have received Blessing of the Gods, so even if their ability level is low, they are still stronger than ordinary people.

It's just a backpack about the size of a person; even those Lv.1s with low stats can carry it, so it's no problem for Lefiya, a Lv.2, to carry it, and it could even be several times larger.

"All right."

Leo knew he was worrying unnecessarily; seeing a girl carrying such a big backpack made him feel like he shouldn't just be watching.

However, this is influenced by outdated ideas. In reality, many seemingly delicate little girls can easily carry such large backpacks around everywhere.

Even those who have not received Falna, as long as they are not naturally Prum or mediocre humans, can easily bear such a burden.

Dwarves, orcs, and Amazons—among these three races, even the women are physically stronger than an adult human male, so there's no need to worry about such trivial matters.

And so, led by Leo, Lefiya entered the Dungeon.

As a key figure in the Second Army of the Familia, Lefiya had followed the Familia's expeditionary force into the Dungeon many times, even venturing deep into the lower levels. So even when she entered the Dungeon, this non-combatant remained expressionless, clearly showing that she was used to the sights of the Dungeon.

However, as Leo continued to descend to the lower floors, a look of confusion would occasionally appear on Lefiya's face.

"Um—Mr Leo, which floor are we going to?"

Lefiya originally thought that with Leo's current strength, he should still be exploring the first four levels, or at most, he could go deeper into the 5th Floor or sixth level.

It was clear that after entering the 6th floor, Leo still seemed determined to continue going down, and Lefiya couldn't help but ask him a question.

In her view, Leo, who had only been an adventurer for less than half a month, even if he grew rapidly, would still be in the 6th...

Venturing into those layers should be the limit.

To her surprise, the next second, Leo, who was walking in front, gave her a reply that left her utterly astonished.

"Let's go to the 11th Floor."

Dungeon, 11th Floor.

Like the 10th Floor, this place offers a panoramic view of vast, boundless grasslands.

A thick fog perpetually hangs here. Except for the starting point of the wide staircase extending down from the 10th Floor, where the fog doesn't rise, the rest of the area is shrouded in mist, with withered, thick trees scattered Labyrinth's Armory.

It grows all around, and its structure is almost identical to that of the 10th Floor, only larger and more complex.

In fact, the 10th Floor, 11th Floor, and 12th Floor of the Dungeon all have this type of terrain, and the terrain only changes again when you reach the 13th floor, which is the middle level.

Of course, the terrain remained the same, but the monsters that spawned changed.

On the 11th Floor, in addition to orcs, another large monster will appear— the Silverback Ape.

It was an ape-like monster, even larger than a half-orc, with bulging muscles all over its body, covered in white fur except for its dark silver hair that stretched all the way down its back like a tail.

Although it is larger than the orc, it does not have the outstanding "strength" and "endurance" values of the orc, but its "dexterity" and "agility" values are extremely poor. Instead, its abilities in all aspects are very balanced and generally high. To put it simply, it has no weaknesses and is very powerful.

In the upper realms of levels 1-12, aside from a few special beings, the Silverback Ape is practically the monster at the pinnacle. Only experienced adventurers can fight it alone; otherwise, facing such a monster alone is no different from encountering a nightmare.

However, despite this, today a complete novice who had been an adventurer for less than half a month fearlessly drew his sword and attacked the opponent.

"Pfft!"

In the instant the wind howled, a figure swiftly swept past the Silverback Ape's side, the sharp straight sword in its hand easily slicing through the opponent's firm thigh muscles, leaving a large, gruesome wound from which large amounts of blood seeped.

"Googaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa--!"

The Silverback Ape body was as large as a building, let out a shrill howl of pain and stretched out its huge hand to grab Leo, but it could not catch Leo's figure at all.

This isn't because the Silverback Ape is too slow, but because Leo is currently too fast.

In the original story, when the protagonist was dealing with the Silverback Ape, his "agility" had only just reached the D level, yet he was still able to hold his own against the Silverback Ape, let alone Leo.

Leo's "agility" has already reached stage B, which is far superior to that of the Silverback Ape.

Therefore, the Silverback Ape couldn't catch Leo at all and was mercilessly toyed with by the swift and agile Leo.

"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" ----

Leo's figure kept running around the Silverback Ape, his small straight sword slashing out streaks of light, sometimes landing on the Silverback Ape's legs, sometimes on its outstretched hands, and sometimes even on its abdomen and back, constantly causing damage to its opponent.

As Leo heard the increasingly painful cries of the Silverback Ape, Leo attention wasn't entirely on the ape, but rather on the words Ais had said during their sparring session that morning.

"You need to learn one thing: to launch an attack immediately from any position."

"Also, keep your eyes fixed on your opponent, but broaden your field of vision."

"When attacking, you can't hesitate or think for too long. When defending, you need to be accurate and not rely too much on your five senses. You need to cultivate your own combat intuition."

Recalling Ais's words, a hint of understanding gradually appeared in Leo's eyes. He continued to maneuver around the Silverback Ape, but his attacks became increasingly natural.

He is not a swordsmanship genius; even his current extraordinary growth rate is thanks to his identity as a "Transmigrator."

Without this identity, he certainly wouldn't possess such a bug-like skill as [People of the Alien Star].

The [People of the Alien Star] effect only applies to the user's own stats; it doesn't offer any real help to Leo in learning swordsmanship or combat skills.

Therefore, if Leo wants to improve in this area, he can only keep practicing, keep putting it into practice, and keep applying it in battle.

As the saying goes, diligence can make up for lack of talent. In addition, with his physical qualities already there, his reaction and reflex abilities will also improve as his stats increase. As long as he is willing to work hard, Leo believes that these skills will be no challenge for him.

"Pfft!"

As Leo dodged the Silverback Ape's large hand once again, his figure shot out like an arrow, leaping high towards the Silverback Ape's chest. The small straight sword in his hand turned into a flash of light and sliced open the Silverback Ape's neck.

"Gurgle----!"

The Silverback Ape immediately clutched its bleeding neck, its eyes bulging as if struggling to survive.

Leo's attacks, however, did not stop at all.

Leo understood the principle of striking while the iron is hot.

Taking advantage of the Silverback Ape clutching its bleeding neck, Leo leaped high into the air again, stepping on its chest, and then swooped down, shooting towards its head.

"Pfft!"

The next second, the blade of the small straight sword plunged straight into the Silverback Ape's skull, embedding itself deep inside.

All the Silverback Ape's movements stopped at that moment, and its roar abruptly ceased, unable to be uttered any longer.

After a while, the Silverback Ape slowly fell to the ground, crashing heavily to the ground.

Before that, Leo had pulled out the small straight sword that was stuck in the Silverback Ape's head, and with a leap, he jumped to the ground, landing with the Silverback Ape's massive body.