The Brilliant Starlight of That Time

After explaining everything that needed to be explained, Riveria left.

She gave Leo three days, after which she would come to check on Leo to see how well he had learned. If he satisfied her, she would personally teach Leo for a few days.

Leo readily agreed. After watching Riveria leave, he immediately began flipping through the magic textbooks, memorizing them at a glance.

Before receiving Blessing of the Gods, Leo naturally wouldn't have been able to do such a thing, but after two Level Ascension, his abilities in all aspects have surpassed those of ordinary humans, and his memory has also greatly increased, making him vastly different from before.

The existence of Blessing of the Gods is to continuously tap into the potential of the human body, to discover the various powers that could have been reached but could not be touched, and in this process, to continuously expand this potential and enhance its capacity through the miracle of "Level Ascension," so that it can reach new peaks and new realms.

The gods say that this process is getting closer and closer to them, closer and closer to their realm. Therefore, the higher the level of a person, the closer they are to the realm of the gods, and even their lifespan will be increased accordingly, and the signs of aging will be delayed.

Faced with such a miracle, a mere increase in memory is nothing, not to mention that Leo is also a skilled magician; the stronger his mental strength, the better it is for improving his memory.

Under these circumstances, Leo memorized the knowledge points in the book at a speed that he could never have achieved before, and slowly realized how true Riveria's assessment that "you can't use magic at all" was.

Before seeing this information, he truly had no idea that there were so many tricks and techniques involved in using magic.

Learning just one or two of these tips and tricks might not create a significant difference between you and other Mage, but once you learn more, your advantage in using magic will become more and more obvious, eventually leading to a qualitative change.

Leo learned many tips for using magical firepower from the book. These tips would teach him how to better concentrate firepower, increase the range of magic, increase damage, and make the originally scattered magical power more lethal.

"If I had learned these techniques for applying magic beforehand, the battle against Goliath would have been much easier, wouldn't it?"

After learning about these tips, when Leo looked back at his performance in the battle against Goliath, Leo felt that he was just like a clueless recruit. Just as Riveria said, he was simply using magic without any sense of grace or composure, like a Mage.

Although he has always considered himself a magic swordsman rather than Mage, with his current abilities, he could easily specialize in the role of a defensive Mage.

His magical firepower had already reached Lv.5 level under normal circumstances. He had even learned the development ability "Mage", which could only be learned by high-level Mage. Even though he only had one spell, [Meteor Dance] was very versatile. Depending on how it was used, it could do things that only a variety of spells could do. So even if he gave up melee combat and directly played the role of a back-line Mage, Leo would be fine.

In fact, Finn and the others planned to assign Leo to the rearguard position in this expeditionary force.

Unfortunately, if Leo were to engage in close combat, he would simply be a Lv.3 midfielder or center-back, which wouldn't be of much help to Loki Familia's expeditionary force.

However, if Leo were to specialize in the role of a defense Mage, he would be no different from a level 5 defense Mage.

After all, his output ability is undeniable, genuinely comparable to Lv.5, and could even be further improved depending on the situation. Not placing him in the position of a back-line Mage would be a waste of his talent.

This is why Riveria hurriedly brought Leo here. Only by laying a solid foundation can he fulfill his role as a rear guard Mage, and perhaps even become the person with the highest output ability in the entire expeditionary force besides her.

Leo was unaware of Finn and the others' plans, but this knowledge of magic was invaluable to him. He realized this and accepted everything without hesitation, striving to memorize and learn it.

During this time, several members of the group also visited the library. They were quite surprised to see Leo sitting at his desk, engrossed in his studies, but in the end, they did not choose to disturb Leo. They simply greeted him and left on their own.

Leo paid little attention to the outside world, completely immersed in the world of the book, and even forgot to eat lunch.

Fortunately, he himself had forgotten, but someone else remembered for him.

"----for you."

A pair of slender, fair hands were suddenly extended in front of Leo, and a special fragrance wafted into Leo nose.

Leo was taken aback at first, then realized that a familiar figure was sitting opposite him.

"Ais?"

Leo uttered a stunned sound.

A blonde, golden-eyed girl appeared before Leo at some point, her transparent eyes fixed on him, and she offered him a fried snack.

"You haven't eaten, have you?" the girl said softly. "I bought it for you."

Upon hearing this, Leo's gaze shifted to the fried snack.

Those are potato balls, made by coating mashed potatoes with flour and deep-frying them. They appear quite frequently in the original work.

Leo knew that this snack was one of the few foods that the usually unambitious doll girl liked, a snack she secretly enjoyed.

"Thank you." Leo took the serving of fries, smelling the fried aroma, and smiled at the girl, "I was wondering why I hadn't seen you. So you went out to town?"

"----Hmm." Ais nodded and said succinctly, "The expedition is about to begin, and the weapons need maintenance."

Even on ordinary days, the girl often ventures into the Dungeon, so her beloved sword is used quite frequently and requires regular maintenance.

Even though Ais's Desperate is indestructible and won't be completely damaged, its blade will still wear down with frequent use, causing it to become less sharp.

Under normal circumstances, the slight decrease in sharpness wouldn't be a big deal. However, with the expedition approaching, the clan's expeditionary force will be venturing into areas below level 50. Even if the monsters there stand still and let you attack them, weapons with insufficient power would likely be completely ineffective. In addition, the expedition will last a long time and involve a very high frequency of battles. It's best to bring weapons in at their best condition to ensure everyone feels secure. Therefore, the people of the Spring Familia have been reducing their time spent in the Dungeon and repairing their weapons.

"I see."

Leo nodded to indicate that he understood before taking a bite of the fried potato ball in his hand.

The girl kept her eyes fixed on Leo's movements, watching him eat the potato balls without moving.

"Want some?"

Leo looked at Ais like this, and while finding it somewhat amusing, he teased her by making a sound.

"----I don't want to." The girl looked away with difficulty, her delicate face expressionless as if displaying an iron will, and said, "I've already eaten."

I think so too.

Leo nodded in agreement, then ruthlessly devoured all the potato balls in his hand, leaving the girl with a regretful expression.

"You were the first one to arrive when I fainted, weren't you?" Leo finally brought up the incident from last time, looking directly at Ais and saying softly, "Thank you so much, Ais."

"----No trouble at all." Ais shook her head, met Leo's gaze, and said very seriously, "After all, we made an appointment."

That's right, unlike others, Ais was invited by Leo specifically to support him.

Ais remembered this incident and was extremely serious and focused. She never took her eyes off Leo while he was fighting, and her hand was always gripping the hilt of her sword, ready to strike at any moment.

"You succeeded." Ais looked at Leo with an emotion he couldn't understand, and said, "Congratulations on defeating the floor master."

"Just luck." Leo gave a wry smile, pointed to the books in front of him, and said, "See these? Riveria made me read these, to make me realize just how lucky I was to defeat Goliath."

He now truly believes that his success in defeating Goliath was due not to strength, but to luck.

It wasn't that he wanted to belittle himself; it was just that the more he understood how to use magic, the more Leo realized just how reckless and chaotic he had been that day.

Leo himself couldn't believe that he had managed to defeat the floor master through such a relentless, bombardment-style battle; it was all just luck.

However, he didn't believe in himself, while Ais trusted his abilities more than he did.

"That's not true." Ais looked directly at Leo and said with utmost seriousness, "You're very strong."

"In some places, they're even better than me."

This was Ais's most immediate thought after witnessing that battle.

That dazzling meteor that dispelled the darkness and pierced through space was clearly etched in her heart, making it impossible for Ais to forget it for the past day or two.

Not just her, many people remember that scene vividly, remember that dazzling shooting star.

The dazzling Starlight at that time not only illuminated the entire 17th Floor of the Dungeon, but also penetrated the hearts of many people, leaving an unforgettable impression.

"You're level 3 now, right?"

Ais brought it up.

"Um."

Leo confirmed Ais's words.

"----I really envy you."

After a moment of silence, Ais spoke her most honest opinion.

In just half a month, he had leveled up again and become stronger. Ais was indeed envious of Leo.

"Don't worry," Leo said with a smile, as if he could read Ais's mind. "You'll get stronger too."

Ais pursed her lips and remained silent.