The Mysterious Figure's Commission

Babel Tower, Central Plaza ----

Leo and Ais walked together from the direction of North Main Street and entered the square.

Neither of them invited the other; it was as if it were only natural that they would walk together once they learned that the other's plans were to enter the Dungeon.

The passersby naturally noticed the two's arrival and began to whisper among themselves.

Leo unsurprisingly found that he had become more conspicuous and easier for people around him to recognize.

Even though he had put on the hood of his cloak to cover the upper half of his face, people around him could still recognize him by his attire, pointing and whispering about him and casting all sorts of strange glances at him.

Certainly----

"Having this person by your side is probably a major factor in being recognized, isn't it?"

Thinking this, Leo glanced at the blonde girl beside him.

Unlike him, Ais remained dressed in her usual attire throughout. Her beauty, which rivaled even that of a goddess, constantly attracted the attention of those around her. In addition, she was also recently part of the rumors, having joined forces with Leo to defeat Udaeus and successfully advanced to Lv.6. In some ways, she was even more noticed than Leo.

Both of them were recently prominent figures, and their simultaneous appearance in the Central Plaza was no different from top celebrities showing up on the street in broad daylight. If it weren't for their status as first-level adventurers, they might already be surrounded by countless people.

"----What's wrong?"

Perhaps noticing Leo's gaze, Ais looked over, tilted her head, and asked a question.

"Nothing."

Leo shook his head, brushing it off, leaving Ais somewhat confused.

Leo didn't look at the girl again, but instead told himself to get used to it as he continued walking towards the Babel Tower.

He decided to ignore the surrounding chatter, but he still couldn't help but hear some comments.

"They've only just leveled up, and they're already planning to go back into the Dungeon?"

"You're wrong. It's precisely because we just leveled up that we need to enter the Dungeon, right?"

"Yes, one has advanced to Lv.5 and the other to Lv.6. Their strength must have increased a lot. How can they not take some time to adapt?"

"I really envy these geniuses; they can level up so easily, especially Leo Eligos, who went from Lv.1 to Lv.1 in less than three months."

Reaching Lv.5, he transformed from a novice adventurer into a first-level adventurer. The gods truly favored him.

"Of course! You have no idea how excited those gods are every time they hear news of his upgrade; it's like a celebration."

"I heard there are even gods betting on how long it will take him to level up next time."

"----That's exactly what those bored gods would do."

"What's the big deal? If Leo Eligos wasn't a member of Loki Familia, those gods would probably be even more insane by now."

"Are they going crazy trying to poach our partners?"

"Is that even a question?"

Similar comments kept coming from all directions, and even if Leo didn't want to hear them, he couldn't help but hear some of them.

He's now at Lv.5, and his five senses are far more acute than the average person's. His hearing is so advanced that he can faintly hear a mosquito flying by from ten meters away, let alone these voices, which he can hear even if they're very quiet.

He had originally intended to ignore it, but the topics being discussed by some people caught his attention.

"Things seem to be getting really unsettled at the guild today."

"Many people ran over there, and they seemed particularly agitated."

"It seems something happened in the Dungeon; someone's companion is trapped there."

"I've heard that too. The Dungeon seems to be quite unsettled lately. The upper levels are alright, but there seem to be quite a few unusual occurrences in the middle levels."

"Haven't you noticed that the guild has recently issued several quests, asking adventurers to investigate the unusually high number of monsters on a certain floor?"

Which floor is it?

"It seems to be the 24th Floor."

Upon hearing this, Leo paused in his tracks.

"---- Leo?"

Ais had no choice but to stop with Leo, and a greater sense of doubt appeared in her gaze as she looked at him.

"Sorry." Leo quickly regained his composure, smiled at Ais, and said, "Let's hurry into the Dungeon."

Ais looked at Leo for a while, and although she felt he was acting strangely today, she still nodded in agreement with his statement.

So the two quickened their pace and entered the Babel Tower, stepping into the Dungeon.

Upon entering the Dungeon, the two quickened their pace, soon leaving the crowd behind and continuing down the proper route.

With their current strength, navigating the upper realms is child's play for them; they don't even need to worry about encountering monsters.

They didn't even intend to make a move. Even when a monster suddenly appeared in front of them and made a sound at them, they acted as if they hadn't seen or heard it. They turned into two gusts of wind and quickly swept past before the monster could react, leaving no afterimage.

Under these circumstances, Leo and Ais arrived at the 10th foggy area in less than an hour.

Layer.

Upon reaching this point, Leo was the first to stop.

Ais seemed surprised that Leo would suddenly stop again, and after leaping forward a distance, she finally came to a halt.

But this time, before Ais could speak, Leo spoke first.

"Don't you intend to show yourself?"

This statement was clearly not directed at Ais.

Ais's expression hardened, and without hesitation, she reached out and grasped the hilt of the sword at her waist.

The surroundings became completely silent, with nothing but a thick white fog.

But it is precisely because of this quietness that it proves there is something wrong here.

The cries of monsters and the ubiquitous footsteps seem to have vanished here; only the sound of the wind blowing across the grassland remains clear.

Leo didn't seem to be in a hurry, and stood there quietly waiting.

Ais listened intently for a moment, then suddenly turned around and faced a certain direction.

"----who?"

The girl's cool, questioning voice was met with a swaying mist.

"As expected of someone whose reputation is growing ever stronger, this little trick couldn't fool you."

A hoarse, almost drafty voice rang out, and a dark figure slowly emerged from the swaying white mist.

It was a person dressed entirely in a black robe.

From the outside, the other party's gender was unclear, and the body was unusually thin, as if there was no flesh and blood under the robe. Even under the clothes and hat, nothing could be seen. The hands were covered with gloves with intricate patterns. No part of the skin was exposed. Rather than a person, it was more like a humanoid figure in black clothes moving like a person, exuding an extremely weak sense of presence.

"It's a pleasure to meet you two from the Loki Familia," the man in black said in a deep voice. "I've long admired your names and have come all this way to pay my respects. I apologize for any impoliteness."

The other person's tone was quite polite, suggesting they were highly educated and well-mannered, or rather, very particular. Leo aside, Ais remained completely on guard.

"Who are you?"

Ais continued to question him, and even though she didn't sense any hostility from the man, she still dared not let her guard down.

This is, after all, Dungeon, a place beyond the reach of guild order, where double-crossing is commonplace. Even if you don't want to believe that anyone would be foolish enough to target a first-tier adventurer of the Loki Familia for such a thing, it's always wise to be cautious and vigilant.

Moreover, given the other party's obviously suspicious attire and clandestine entrance, who wouldn't be wary?

Ais is just naturally naive, not stupid. As an adventurer who has spent years in Dungeon, her experience is far richer than Leo's.

However, it's obvious that since the other party made their appearance in this way, they certainly wouldn't reveal their identity.

"Who I am is not important; what matters is what I'm about to say," the man in black said. "You two have already met Lulune Louis, haven't you?"

Upon hearing this, Ais's expression changed instantly.

"You're the mysterious client who commissioned Lulune Louis to collect the goods on the 18th Floor, aren't you?"

Leo, who had been silent all along, finally spoke, and what he said made Ais's expression change again, and her grip on the sword hilt tightened.

"Yes, it was me." The man in black didn't hide anything and readily admitted, "Not long ago, I was the one who commissioned Lulune Louis of the Hermes Familia to collect goods from the 18th Floor, and I was also the one who commissioned Hassanna Dorria of the Ganesha Familia to collect goods."

"I sent those two to bring the Jewel Fetus to the surface."

"I just never imagined that not only would all our efforts be in vain, but it would also lead to the death of Hassanal Dorria. Thinking about it, I really feel sorry for the god Ganesha."

Upon hearing this, Ais couldn't help but step forward, as if she wanted to ask something.

Leo reached out and stopped Ais, his gaze fixed on the man in black.

So, you're a member of the guild?

These words stunned Ais.

"You even know this?"

Even the man in black was surprised to hear such words.

"It was Finn —our guild leader—who deduced it," Leo said calmly. "He said that the guild forcibly retrieved the strange Magic Stone we obtained from the new monsters, which is clearly related to something behind these monsters. In addition, both the Ganesha Familia and the Hermes Familia have close ties with the guild, so he boldly speculated that someone in the guild is fighting against what's behind these monsters, and the person who entrusted Lulune Louis and Hassanna Dorria is very likely someone from the guild."

Ais was unaware of these matters.

Finn and the others didn't seem to have told her about this, leaving Ais looking bewildered.

However, the conversation between Leo and the man in black proceeded smoothly.

"As expected of that [Braver], it's really difficult to do anything sneakily under his nose."

The man in black gave a wry smile.

"So?" Leo looked directly at the other person and said, "This time, have you changed your target to us?"

"Don't put it so harshly, it's just a normal adventurer's request." The man in black said calmly, "Since you've already come into contact with those beings, it's undoubtedly most appropriate for you to handle this request."

This time, Ais finally understood what was going on.

Clearly, the person in front of them who had previously commissioned Lulune Louis and Hassanna Dorria wanted to issue another commission.

The recipients of the commission are them, and the content of the commission is clearly related to the events that occurred on the 18th Floor last time.

Those colorful monsters, and—a mysterious woman.

The other party came specifically for these things.

Realizing this, Ais's eyes sharpened.

Leo, however, already knew exactly what the other party wanted to entrust the two of them with.

"According to intelligence, an abnormal surge in monster numbers has occurred on the 24th Floor, resulting in the deaths or injuries of numerous adventurers and members of various clans," the man in black explained his purpose, adding, "I hope you two can investigate this matter and uncover the source of this anomaly."

The matter mentioned by the other party was exactly what Leo had heard in the Central Plaza.

"The number of monsters has increased abnormally—?"

This was the first time Ais had heard of this.

"That's right." The man in black nodded almost imperceptibly and said, "A similar anomaly occurred on the 30th Floor of the Dungeon before this."

"That time, it was Hassanal Dorria of the Ganesha Familia who I commissioned to investigate."

"Then he brought back the green Jewel Fetus from there."

The implication was clear to everyone, not just Leo, but even Ais understood it.

The abnormal surge in the number of monsters that occurred on the 30th Floor is fundamentally related to the green Jewel Fetus.

This time, the same anomaly occurred on the 24th Floor.

That was undoubtedly telling others that the abnormal phenomena on the 24th Floor were very likely related to the green Jewel Fetus.

Even the mysterious woman who appeared on the 18th Floor last time might reappear.

Ais gripped the hilt of the Sword of Desperate at her waist so tightly that her hand turned white.

Leo said nothing, but he also narrowed his eyes.

Seeing this, the man in black continued speaking to himself.

"I will provide you with a generous reward and reliable helpers," the man in black said in a deep voice. "The reward will be given to you after the mission is accomplished. The helpers have already arrived on the 18th Floor and are currently waiting in Rivira Town. Please go there first and meet them."

After speaking, the man in black slightly raised his hood, seemingly looking at Leo and Ais.

"So, are you two willing to accept this commission?"

After the man in black finished speaking, silence returned.

Ais looked at Leo.

Although she didn't say anything, Leo could tell from Ais's eyes that she cared about this matter.

Or rather, it's about caring about what's behind it.

The mysterious woman who once called her "Aria," and the Jewel Fetus that she found so repulsive.

The two seem to have reappeared, Ais can't possibly not go and meet them.

Leo was fully aware of this, and had even guessed that this would be the outcome before he arrived.

He had no reason to refuse.

After all, he also wanted to meet the woman who had threatened to kill him again.

"Good."

Leo then nodded.

"We'll take this commission."