The End, The Return Journey, The Homecoming

"Mr. Leo!"

Miss Ais!

Some distance from the Gray Forest, very close to the entrance to the 49th Floor, Lefiya and Lefiya Viridis's tearful cries rang out, instantly making the surrounding atmosphere incredibly oppressive.

To avoid the self-destruction of the female monster and the widespread attack from the exploding pollen, Finn and his group, along with the rest of the expeditionary force, moved to a safe distance away from the battlefield before halting their retreat.

However, they had only just stopped and hadn't had time to take any further action when the incredibly spectacular explosion suddenly occurred. It not only shook the entire 50th Floor, but the aftershocks also reached here, causing everyone to raise their hands to shield themselves from the hot wind and impact.

The surrounding temperature was rising at an alarming rate, becoming incredibly hot.

The field of vision was also surrounded by flames, completely dyed red.

Everyone was shaken, unable to believe that they had been so far away and had still been affected by the aftershocks of the explosion.

What would have happened if we hadn't retreated in time?

The thought of this problem made everyone feel a mix of lingering fear and complicated emotions as they looked at Finn.

As it turned out, the commander's instructions were correct.

Without his insistence on evacuation, they would certainly have suffered heavy casualties by now.

But when I thought about how I had been swept away by the aftershocks of the explosion, what must be happening to Leo and Ais, who were covering our retreat and were right in the eye of the blast?

Those who held this thought, such as Lefiya and Lefiya Viridis, couldn't help but let out cries that sounded like sobs.

"Ais ----"

"Leo the Kid----"

Riveria and Gareth were also in a terrible mood, staring intently at the epicenter of the explosion ahead, their hands gripping their wands and spare weapons so tightly they turned white.

"Will they be alright?"

"----Who knows?"

Even the usually boisterous Tiona was muttering to herself, while Tione was even more irritable, grabbing her hair and looking like she wanted to vent her anger but didn't know who to vent it on.

"Damn it----!"

Bete Loga stomped on the stone beneath his feet and cursed, though it was unclear whether he was cursing himself or someone else.

"Leo ----"

Even Raul, who had regained consciousness, showed a sad expression. The cat-girl Anakitty and the elf beauty Alicia were beside him, and they both fell silent.

The entire expeditionary force was plunged into a somber mood. Some were disappointed, some were annoyed, some were regretful, and some were ashamed of themselves, but without exception, they all kept their eyes fixed on the front.

There, a massive fireball had formed a dome, scattering everything in the surrounding area, igniting the Gray Forest, and turning it into a sea of fire, a blazing inferno.

The fire nearly spread to the entire 50th Floor, causing flames to rise everywhere in this supposedly safe floor, and black smoke even swirled into thick, rain-cloud-like formations on the dome.

An unknown amount of time passed, when suddenly someone in the expeditionary force exclaimed in surprise.

"Look there!"

Everyone present was startled and looked up sharply in the direction the man was pointing.

The next second, everyone saw it.

Amidst the slowly burning flames, two figures supported each other as they slowly walked towards this place.

The boy was covered in dust and dirt, and the jade on the short, emerald-colored staff he held had lost its luster.

The girl's equipment was damaged all over, and her skin was stained grayish-black, but the silver military knife she held in her hand still gleamed.

The two looked disheveled, but their eyes remained as bright and sharp as ever; one had a faint smile on his lips, while the other was utterly indifferent.

As the two figures slowly approached, the members of the expeditionary force trembled with overwhelming excitement.

With a cheer from Tiona, everyone was completely overwhelmed by excitement and rushed towards the two.

"Call----"

Finn, whose face had been tense the whole time, let out a heavy sigh and smiled.

Half an hour later, the excitement gradually subsided, and everyone had to face a harsh reality.

That is, despite no one sacrificing themselves in the attack by these unknown monsters, they paid a heavy price.

Leaving aside Leo and Ais, the rest of the group were either injured or lost their weapons in the fight against the worm monsters, and they had almost run out of spare weapons, making it impossible for them to continue fighting.

Especially among the first-level adventurers, including the constantly weeping Tiona, one or two of them held the main...

All the weapons were dissolved, except for Bete Loga's metal boots, which survived thanks to Ais's magic.

During the retreat, Finn gave a firm order to retreat to a safe distance as quickly as possible: only take the bare minimum of supplies and abandon everything else.

Under these circumstances, it's clear that the strategy for the 59th Floor, which hasn't been reached yet, can no longer be continued.

Let's turn back.

Seeing this situation, Finn had no choice but to give the order.

"This expedition has come to an end."

That's right, this expedition can only go this far; it cannot continue.

With only minimal supplies left and no weapons remaining, the expeditionary force was like a tiger with its teeth pulled out; no matter how fierce it was, it could no longer continue.

We can't expect Finn and his crew to fight monsters below 50th Floor with their bare hands, can we?

Even elixirs and other supplies have become scarce. Even if they manage to fight, how far can they go?

Therefore, the expedition had to be ended and the return journey began.

Naturally, everyone was extremely unwilling to accept this.

I originally came here aiming to reach the 59th Floor, but I ended up failing on the 51st Floor. This is such a huge loss.

The Loki Familia has spent an unknown amount of money on this expedition, yet they only made it to the 51st Floor, failing to even reach the 58th Floor they reached on their last expedition. They also abandoned a large amount of supplies, meaning they can't even recoup their costs. Not to mention, the main weapons of the key combat personnel have all been destroyed, and they'll likely have to spend a fortune to rebuild their weapons when they return.

This situation was heartbreaking, not only for everyone else but even for Leo.

It's important to know that the main weapons of first-level adventurers like Finn are all top-tier items, costing hundreds of millions of Valis to forge. This time, almost all of them were destroyed, resulting in a loss of at least 500 million falies.

The battle against the worm monster consumed far too many weapons and armor, and the abandoned supplies were also of considerable value. After this battle, not only will the clan suffer heavy losses, but each member of the party will also need to bleed heavily to replenish their original equipment.

Leo had initially thought that, thanks to his prior warning, the expeditionary force wouldn't end up in the same predicament as in the original story, but the outcome remained unchanged.

Even he himself was spared from being harmed by the overwhelming dissolving liquid when the female monster self-destructed, thanks to Ais who rushed to his side. Let alone others.

Ultimately, it's because we're not strong enough.

Leo realized this all too well once again.

He was only Lv.3 after all. Even with Lv.5 level magical firepower, which could play a huge role in expeditions, he was still powerless in this super deep realm where even first-level adventurers had to be careful.

If I were already a Level 1 adventurer, capable of instantly killing the female monster at a safe distance, this situation wouldn't have occurred, right?

"I hope that this time when I go back, I can take another step forward."

Leo thought this to himself.

Although the expedition's objectives were not achieved, for him personally, the gains from accompanying the expeditionary force to such an ultra-deep realm were undoubtedly unprecedented.

You should know that he originally only managed to conquer the 17th Floor. He even reached the 18th Floor with the expeditionary force. He hadn't even fully conquered the middle floors, let alone the lower and deeper floors.

Having traversed so many floors to get here, and having defeated countless monsters stronger than himself along the way, Leo was certain that he must have accumulated a great deal of experience points and even accomplished some great feats.

Perhaps, this time when I go back, I'll be able to move on to the next stage; who knows?

With this expectation in mind, Leo and the rest of the expeditionary force embarked on their journey home.

The Loki Familia's expedition has now officially come to an end.

The return journey was similar to the one on the way there, mostly involving a rapid march.

There was no other way; they had little supplies left, and most of the team members had lost their main weapons, greatly reducing the expeditionary force's combat strength. They couldn't afford to waste any more energy fighting the monsters on each floor.

In the current expeditionary force, only a handful of people, such as Ais and Bete Loga, can still exert their full combat power, along with the rearguard Mage, mainly Leo, Riveria, and Lefiya Viridis. Ais has even suffered a considerable physical strain due to excessive use of magic, and is now experiencing soreness all over her body. Although it doesn't prevent her from fighting, it certainly affects her performance.

Therefore, Finn has clearly given the order that the main objective for this return trip is to avoid prolonged battles as much as possible. Fighting should be avoided if possible, and even taking a slightly longer route is acceptable unless absolutely necessary.

With most of the main combat forces having lost their primary weapons, the expeditionary force could encounter danger even in the deeper areas above the 50th Floor. Especially since the Dungeon was watching them closely and could launch a devastating attack at any moment, avoiding combat and returning home as quickly as possible was the best course of action.

Once they leave the deeper layers and reach the lower realms, the pressure on the expeditionary force will decrease significantly, and only then will they be relatively safe.

Thus, under Finn's instructions and led by a limited number of key combatants such as Ais and Bete Loga, the expeditionary force embarked on its return journey at top speed, heading up to the upper floors.

The Mage squad, led by Leo, Riveria, and Lefiya Viridis, reached its peak along the way, with the team becoming increasingly reliant on them, making their magic the primary means of fighting enemies on the return journey.

Of course, with supplies like elixirs running low, Finn also made sure the Mage took turns resting to conserve their mental energy and avoid becoming mentally exhausted.

In this way, the expeditionary force spent about three days leaving the deep realm and another two days leaving the lower realm, returning to the relatively safe middle realm.

By the sixth day, the expeditionary force had returned to the 18th Floor of the Under Resort, finally able to breathe a sigh of relief and get some rest.

However, to avoid any unforeseen complications, the expeditionary force did not linger in the 18th Floor too long, at least not overnight, and immediately embarked on the final leg of their journey out of the Dungeon.

Perhaps because the butterfly effect brought about by Leo, the Transmigrator, had finally materialized, this stretch of road was fraught with danger yet passed through extremely smoothly.

When the expeditionary force left the Dungeon and emerged from the Babel Tower, it was still not dark; it was midday.

The Babel Tower wasn't particularly lively at this time, since most adventurers were still inside the Dungeon and hadn't come out yet.

The return of the Loki Familia still attracted a lot of attention.

"It's the Loki Familia!"

"Have they returned yet?"

"You seem to have returned earlier this time?"

Did their expedition succeed or fail?

"The 59th Floor, have they arrived yet?"

Who knows?

The crowd began to chatter, gradually making the atmosphere noisy and lively.

News of Loki Familia's return from their expedition spread rapidly, reaching all factions in Orario.

The expeditionary force, however, paid no heed to this, only wanting to return to base camp as quickly as possible to wash away their fatigue and filth.

So they headed straight for the northern part of the city, following the bustling North Main Street until they finally saw the Long Mansion located by the roadside.

"We're back!!!"

Tiona was the first to cheer, which brought a look of surprise to the two junior members guarding the gate.

"It's the expeditionary force! The expeditionary force is back!"

"The commander is back! Everyone's back!"

"Quick! Open the door!"

Twilight Manor, a commotion gradually arose, breaking the midday silence.

The gates slowly opened, and the weary expeditionary force finally returned home, their faces beaming with happy and relaxed smiles.

"I'm back----"

Leo and Ais exchanged a glance and laughed.

Even Ais showed a rare relaxed expression, which suddenly improved Lefiya Viridis's mood as she walked beside her.

"You're back!!!"

As everyone entered the Twilight Manor and arrived at the courtyard, a figure pounced at an astonishing speed from Central Tower.

We've missed you guys so much!!!

A celestial being with crimson hair swaying wildly lunged forward like a bullet, heading straight for the female members of the group.

"Hey! Loki?!"

Loki, what are you doing? Let go right now!

"Don't hug me! I'm so tired!"

"Let go of me! You perverted Chief God!"

The female members screamed, gasped, and shouted angrily, creating chaos.

The entire Twilight Manor was enveloped in a noisy atmosphere that lingered for a long time.