What, Did They Take Gunpowder?

Chun's tone and attitude were as if she had become a completely different person, filled with a fanaticism that instilled fear in others.

What do you want to do?

Leo almost instinctively pressed his hand on the Starlight at his waist, looking at Tsubaki with a wary expression.

Chun's behavior at this moment made him very suspicious that this person was planning to steal his beloved sword.

However, Chun herself was completely unaware of her own behavior and continued talking excitedly.

"Just one look! Just one look!" Tsubaki said, her excitement bordering on incoherent, as she approached Leo. "I can smell it! This is the scent of forging skills that even surpass mine! This intense iron smell and the scorching heat of flames... only a near-perfect creation can exude this!"

What kind of weird descriptions are these?

Leo didn't understand, but he roughly figured it out. This strongest blacksmith in Orario must have seen something in the Starlight with his own eyesight and discovered that this sword was extraordinary, which was why he was so excited and thrilled.

"No... can you calm down first?" Leo took a few steps back, his eyes twitching, and said, "With your fanatical attitude, it's hard for me to feel comfortable letting you see Starlight."

It wasn't that Leo was stingy or miserly, but Chun's current appearance was truly unsettling, even more so than those unscrupulous merchants in Rivira Town. The desire in her eyes was almost overflowing, making it hard for Leo to believe that she wasn't trying to take advantage of the situation to steal the special weapon he had finally obtained.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm the captain of the Hephaestus Familia. Would I really steal your weapon?" Chun said somewhat anxiously. "Let me take a look. If this sword breaks in my hands, I'll immediately compensate you with ten top-tier level one equipment pieces, plus ten of the highest quality magic swords. How about that?"

Upon hearing this, not only Leo, but even Ais standing next to him widened her eyes slightly.

Ten top-tier, first-grade equipment pieces—ten first-level special weapons—would cost over a hundred million Valis just to forge, and each piece would sell for over a hundred million Valis, totaling at least a billion Valis. Not to mention the highest quality magic swords. As Orario's strongest blacksmith, Tsubaki's forging skills are arguably world-class. If she were to forge these magic swords herself, each one would likely rival first-grade equipment, and the magic they unleashed could severely injure even a first-level adventurer.

Ten top-tier level 1 equipment pieces, plus ten highest quality magic swords, could easily fetch over a billion or two billion Valis. The price of Starlight, which Leo bought for 500 million Valis, is several times higher.

Of course, that's not how it's calculated. Leo spent 500 million Valis to buy Starlight, but firstly, it was the price that Loki negotiated down using his godlike bargaining skills, and secondly, the craftsmanship and materials of this sword are priceless and hard to find. Otherwise, Loki wouldn't have needed to exhaust his connections to prepare this weapon.

In other words, the value of Starlight is definitely more than 500 million Valis. Even if the price were increased tenfold, it would not be possible to find a second weapon of the same quality.

It was personally crafted by a reclusive, rare Great Fairy, employing a miracle of craftsmanship akin to that of a god, and imbued with his own blessing, ensuring it would never wear out or break. These qualities alone cannot be bought with money.

The 500 million Valis was merely the price Leo paid; Loki paid with a vast amount of favors and connections, which money couldn't buy. Therefore, although Leo was taken aback by Tsubaki's offer, Leo still shook his head.

"Forget it, this is enough for me. I don't need any other top-tier equipment, nor do I need any magic sword."

Upon hearing this, Chun wanted to say something more, but was stopped by Finn suddenly spoke up.

"Everything is ready, we can set off."

At Finn's command, everyone immediately stood up straight, forcing Tsubaki to reluctantly give up the pursuit. Leo breathed a sigh of relief, and even Ais, standing beside him, relaxed.

Soon after, under the watchful eyes of everyone present, the expeditionary force composed of Loki and the Hephaestus Familia officially set off, stepping into the Babel Tower and entering the Dungeon.

This time, Leo's position has changed significantly compared to the last expedition.

The biggest change is that this time he is not a member of the Second Unit responsible for transporting supplies, but along with the other officers of the clan, he has been incorporated into the First Unit, the vanguard, which is the main fighting force of the faction and is responsible for clearing the way.

As a Level 5 adventurer and a newly promoted member of the Familia, it was inevitable that Leo would be incorporated into the main force's First Division. Therefore, unlike last time, he did not stay with Lefiya Viridis and Lefiya, but instead stayed closely with Ais.

Of course, there are also things that haven't changed, namely that he is still designated as a back-line Mage, responsible for standing still and dealing damage.

There's no way around it; there are just too many melee fighters in the main force.

Ais is a swordsman who can serve as a vanguard to clear the way and tank monsters, or as a midfielder providing guerrilla support. Tiona is the quintessential vanguard warrior; no one is better suited to clearing the way than her large twin blades. Tione can also serve as a vanguard or midfielder. Bete Loga, with his extraordinary speed, often serves as a midfielder, occasionally as a vanguard. Even Finn and Gareth are vanguards or midfielders; even when they serve as defenders, they are responsible for commanding or protecting Mage, and they have absolutely no ranged attack capabilities.

Of all the first-tier adventurers in the entire Loki Familia, only Riveria Ljos Alf was suitable to serve as a ranged support. There was no shortage of front-line and mid-line support personnel. If Finn hadn't specially created an elven army for her to command, and if Riveria Ljos Alf herself hadn't been Orario's strongest Mage with unparalleled magical firepower, this team with only one person serving as a ranged support would have been absolutely abnormal.

Under these circumstances, after including Leo in the main force, Finn and his two companions almost without hesitation placed him in the rear guard position, allowing him and Riveria Ljos Alf to take on the responsibility of ranged damage, greatly making up for the team's missing parts.

This position is only temporary. Once we reach the 18th Floor and the two forces officially reunite, we can use Mage from the Second Army to fill the gap. However, this position will definitely be reset once we reach the 50th Floor.

After all, once they reach the 50th Floor, most of the expeditionary force will have to stay there and set up camp. The conquest of the unexplored area— the 59th Floor —will be carried out by a small number of elites. At that time, the entire team's combat strength will consist of only a group of first-level adventurers, with at most a few supporters. Leo will definitely still be assigned to the rear guard position to complete the formation once again.

Thanks to this, although Leo was in the vanguard responsible for clearing the way and was still a main combat force in this expedition, he had almost no chance to draw his sword. His duty was still to use magic to support the front and use powerful firepower to annihilate the enemy. If he wanted to draw his sword and rush to the front line to fight like Ais, not only would Riveria Ljos Alf standing next to him disagree, but even Finn, who was in charge of the overall situation, would not agree.

That's how group operations work; everyone must fulfill their duties, stay within the bounds of tactical authority, and avoid acting independently. Otherwise, disrupting the pre-determined strategy is a minor matter, but causing an accident or hindering the entire team would be a major disaster. Therefore, Leo could only obediently stay in the rearguard position, only responsible for casting spells, without any opportunity to use Starlight. Although Starlight, besides being a sword, also functions as a staff and can be used to amplify magic, it's not Leo boasting; with his current firepower, even without using a wand for amplification, his magic was more than enough to use all the way to the 50th Floor. Using Starlight before the 50th Floor would be a complete waste of its potential.

Therefore, Leo did not draw his sword at all, casting magic with his bare hands the whole way. He even reduced his output to minimize the loss of mental energy, maintaining a balance between the speed at which his mental energy recovered autonomously based on his "Mind Healing" ability and the speed at which it was consumed when casting magic. This ensured that his mental energy was always abundant and not wasted at all.

Even though Leo deliberately reduced his output, his firepower was still sufficient before 50th Floor, which shows just how strong he is now. It's just a pity that even if Leo deliberately controlled his output like this, he still didn't have many opportunities to attack.

Because before he can make a move, Bete Loga, Tiona, Tione, and the others, who are already poised to attack, will rush out and instantly eliminate all the monsters that appear in front of them, greatly reducing the number of times Leo has to make a move.

"No... have they lost their minds?"

The Leo people were completely bewildered as they watched Bete Loga and his men charge into the monster horde time and time again with menacing expressions, wreaking havoc.

We haven't even reached the deeper levels yet, so there's no need for these outstanding Level 1 adventurers to take action. Even the Second Army doesn't need to lift a finger. The ordinary Level 3 members can handle it, allowing them to accumulate experience points from killing enemies.

But this time, Bete Loga, Tiona, Tione, and the others, who usually reserved opportunities for ordinary members, couldn't suppress their impulses. Every time a monster appeared, they would immediately rush out, as if they had been waiting for this day for a long time, leaving Ais somewhat stunned. "It's all because of you guys."

Riveria Ljos Alf gave Leo and Ais a disapproving look and sighed.

"They went crazy this time because you two caught up with and overtook them."

As mentioned before, Bete Loga and the others had already put in a lot of effort in order to catch up with Leo and Ais in this expedition.

They had been waiting for this day with great eagerness, so much so that as soon as they entered the Dungeon, they unleashed the pent-up resentment and motivation within them, not even willing to give up a single Goblin to anyone else, rushing forward to kill the enemy.

... Not to mention Bete Loga and his group, even Raul and his group were quite restless.

Finn shook his head at the sight.

Although they weren't quite on par with Bete Loga, Tiona, and Tione, Raul, Anakitty, and Alicia were equally eager to fight. As soon as they saw a monster appear nearby, they would rush to take it down, their actions much more hasty and swift than usual.

"As expected of adventurers from the strongest familia, they're so energetic."

Chun watched with great interest, drawing her katana from her waist as she did so. With a casual swing, she unleashed a stunning flash of light, instantly cleaving a monster that had darted in from the side in two.

Her movements were so crisp and efficient that she didn't seem like a blacksmith who only swung a hammer all day; she was more like a battle-hardened warrior, making one marvel at her status as the city's strongest blacksmith.

The blacksmiths of the Hephaestus Familia brought by Tsubaki were equally skilled. They didn't need any guards and each relied on their own abilities to repel the monsters that attacked them. They were also able to calmly deal with abnormal situations, follow Finn's instructions, and cooperated very well with the Loki Familia. It was hard to tell that they were working together for the first time.

However, these people were still blacksmiths after all. Once they entered the Dungeon, they felt like they had entered some kind of treasure vault. They were nothing like the Loki Familia members who were always on high alert. As soon as they found a monster or place that could drop rare materials, they would immediately leave the group to get them. Even Tsubaki would rush out with her eyes lit up when she saw a rare monster. Finn had told her off several times, but she didn't learn her lesson. It wasn't until Riveria Ljos Alf couldn't stand it anymore and hit her with her wand that she finally behaved a little. It was inexplicably exhausting.

Naturally, Leo was completely entangled with this fanatical weapon forger. She repeatedly approached Leo, trying every possible way to get Leo to lend her Starlight. To this end, she even sneaked into Leo's tent at night to steal it. Ais, who accidentally witnessed this scene in the middle of the night, was greatly shaken and almost drew her sword to kill him.

"Is there really such a rush?"

Leo was both amused and exasperated watching Bete Loga and the others constantly stealing monsters.

Please, you're all level 5 already. Even if you kill monsters like crazy, how much experience points can you possibly get from these weak monsters?

Even if you kill a lot more, given the strength of these monsters, the experience points gained probably wouldn't be enough to improve your proficiency in even one of your basic abilities, right?

Especially during this expedition, there was no floor owner to get in the way.

The 17th Floor's master Goliath, was recently killed by Leo with two sword strikes under the pretext of testing his sword, and there was still more than a week left before the end of the production interval. The 27th Floor's master, Amphisbaena, was also defeated two weeks ago, and there were still two weeks left before the end of the production interval.

The floor master of the 37th Floor, Udaeus, was defeated by Leo and Ais in a joint attack less than half a month ago, and the three-month production interval was still a long way off.

As for Balor, the floor master of the 49th Floor who was defeated by the Freya Familia... the nine-month production interval is still counting down, and only about half of it has passed so far.

In other words, up to the 50th Floor, no matter how hard Bete Loga and his team tried, their achievements were negligible.

"Really..."

Leo thought about it and finally decided not to stop it.

Let them vent their energy.

Anyway, this expedition is still a long way off.