Sincere Concern, Care for Kin

Deep in the night, at the main gate of Twilight Manor.

A group of guards from the Familia surrounded the entrance.

"Are you alright, rookie? Sit down and take a rest first."

"Hey, don't push yourself too hard. Here, drink some water."

"You can tell us what happened."

Everyone at the gate was discussing the situation in a panic.

While offering constant concern to the person in the center, they passed food and water toward him.

Liber, surrounded by the crowd, listened to their worries and felt their care, responding with a gentle smile and a soft tone.

"Thank you all for your concern, but nothing is wrong."

He explained this to those around him, but seeing his condition, no one believed him for a second.

The leather armor covering Liber's body was currently in tatters, and even the casual clothes he wore underneath were torn.

The damaged gear was covered in bloodstains of various shapes, the colors varying in depth, with some already beginning to turn black.

These stains even masked Liber's own body, making it impossible for onlookers to distinguish whether they were his own wounds or the blood of others.

His originally neat, short hair was scattered messily across his forehead and the back of his head.

Blood covered his hair as well, causing the strands to clump together in matted, congealed locks.

His hands hung naturally at his sides, his palms covered in abrasions.

Seeing him arrive at the gate in such a ragged and wretched state had truly given everyone a fright.

The group worried about the injuries he might have sustained, but seeing Liber insist repeatedly that it was nothing serious, they felt it improper to continue crowding him and hindering his return to his room.

They dispersed to continue standing guard at their posts.

Liber walked slowly into the manor.

Watching Liber's disheveled figure gradually disappear into Twilight Manor, the guards exchanged glances.

One member, unable to contain their emotions, exchanged a few words with the others and hurried into the manor as well.

Liber returned to his room and had just begun to wash up and change his clothes when he heard rapid footsteps in the hallway, followed by his door being kicked open.

Liber looked on in astonishment as a furious Loki appeared at his doorway.

Loki entered Liber's room, shut the door behind her, and said with an angry expression, "Which bastard laid a hand on our child? Tell me, and I'll gather the members and slaughter them right now."

Liber watched Loki speak such extreme words in her agitation, his expression shifting from astonishment to embarrassment.

"No one laid a hand on me."

Liber explained awkwardly to Loki.

"Someone rushed to tell me you were covered in wounds. You look like this and you say you weren't bullied? You weren't this wretched when you came back yesterday."

Loki looked at Liber with a grim expression.

"Really, there wasn't. I just went too deep into the Dungeon and the fighting against the monsters was a bit intense."

Hearing the concern from the members and Loki, Liber felt a warmth in his heart and spoke to Loki earnestly.

"Really? Someone reported to me that you were injured. I was so worried when I heard you were in such a state that I rushed right over."

Loki still seemed somewhat unconvinced; when Liber returned from the Dungeon yesterday, his clothes were clean and he looked composed.

Not only was he back so late today, but he was also covered in wounds.

Loki asked suspiciously.

"Since you say there were no other factors, looking at you like this, how exactly did you end up in this state in the Dungeon?"

"I got a bit carried away and stayed in the fifth floor for a while longer, and the combat with the monsters was a bit intense. I don't have any actual wounds; it's just that my equipment looks quite damaged."

Liber said sincerely to Loki.

Loki listened, looking at Liber in astonishment.

"You've already reached the fifth floor?"

Hearing Loki's stunned question, Liber nodded quietly.

Loki put one hand on her hip and pressed her palm to her forehead.

"You've only received your Falna for two or three days, and you've already gone deep into the fifth floor alone. This is just..."

Hearing this, the anger that had been fading in Loki flared up again, and she said through gritted teeth.

By common logic, a rookie adventurer who has just received a Falna usually conducts their initial exploration around the first floor.

Even for the first floor, to explore deeper and more safely, without any accidents, it would take a considerable amount of time even for a three-person party.

As a rookie, one's abilities are not yet mature.

Under such circumstances, it takes time for companions to look after one another, suppress their fear and timidity, and adapt to combat within the Dungeon.

Therefore, it usually takes a considerable amount of time for newcomers to even consider descending to lower floors.

Even then, a rookie party will typically only explore the first four floors and will absolutely never enter the fifth.

Even if a newcomer wanted to venture deeper, the veterans of the Guild and their Familia would certainly stop them from entering the fifth floor.

This is because, starting from the fifth floor of the Dungeon, the level of danger increases exponentially.

Not only do the types of monsters appearing in the labyrinth become more numerous and powerful, but the terrain and scale of the Dungeon are also vastly different from what came before.

The frequency of monster spawns rises sharply, and from the fifth floor onward, the Dungeon's area is immeasurably larger than before.

The fifth floor alone exceeds the size of the central plaza in Orario; with this increase in area, the number of monsters appearing is multiplied compared to previous floors.

The difficulty of exploration is suddenly elevated to an entirely new level.

If a rookie adventurer ventures out alone without guidance, losing their life on this floor is a particularly common occurrence.

In view of this, the fifth floor is considered the first "death line" in the Dungeon where significant casualties occur. Not only will the Familia warn adventurers before they head to the fifth floor, but the Guild staff will also provide reminders.

"You're practically throwing your life away! Even if you have magic, you still need to prioritize your safety. I thought you were a mature child, but it turns out you're just as troublesome as the rest." Loki looked at Liber with intense frustration.

"I'm sorry for making everyone worry."

Liber lowered his head to apologize to Loki.

This caused the various rebukes Loki had been brewing in her gut to get stuck in her throat, leaving her unable to say a word for a long while.

Loki crossed her arms over her chest, took a deep breath, and stared at Liber with a sullen expression.

"I told you before to prioritize safety. With your talent, you would have made a name for yourself in Orario soon enough if you just followed the proper steps. Why are you pushing yourself so hard?"

Liber shook his head, appearing quite relaxed.

"It's not exactly pushing myself to the limit. I specifically reserved some magic so I could quickly disengage from combat if I ran into trouble."

"If I had to say, I was just a bit stimulated. I trained with Ais this morning; despite our ages being nearly the same, the gap in our strength is like a chasm."

He said to Loki with a serious expression.

"Ais started adventuring at eight years old and it took her six years to reach her current strength. How many days has it even been since you received your Falna?"

Loki said to Liber, speechless.

Liber fell silent upon hearing this, though he still had no intention of letting go of his competitive spirit.

"Forget it, as long as you're not seriously hurt, it's fine. Take off your clothes."

Loki lowered her arms and placed her hands on her hips, speaking fiercely to Liber.

Seeing Loki in this state, Liber said helplessly, "I only scraped some skin while gripping my sword to cut down monsters; I really don't have any injuries on my body."

Loki sighed, her tone softening.

"Children have their own ideas, and I'm not so stubborn that I'd stop everyone from striving for improvement. I'm talking about your status, your sta-tus. Since you're working this hard, don't you want to see how much your proficiency has increased?"

Liber gave an awkward smile, then sat on a chair in the room, removed his damaged equipment and casual clothes, and sat down.

Loki stood behind him for a moment, and suddenly the room fell into silence.

Liber felt the figure behind him wasn't moving, so he turned around curiously and saw Loki staring at him with a face full of black lines.

"Where is your sword? I don't have the habit of carrying needles on me."

Liber looked a bit embarrassed. Ripples appeared around him as he drew his Broadsword from his storage space and handed it to Loki.

Loki took the Broadsword lightly, gripped the hilt, and flipped it a few times in her hand, feeling the weight of the blade.

Then, she used the tip of the sword to gently prick her fingertip.

Watching Loki prick her finger, Liber turned his head back and straightened his posture.

He felt Loki's finger tracing along his back.

In the quiet environment, the Falna on Liber's back emitted a faint glow as Loki's fingertip moved across it.

The specific steps were similar to when the Falna was first bestowed: touching Liber's back with divine blood, moving her fingers, and tracing a path on his skin.

Loki first unlocked Liber's Falna, causing the inscription that resembled stone tablets to appear on his otherwise smooth back.

Immediately after, Loki dripped her divine blood onto Liber's back.

The accumulated experience points were extracted by the hand of a "God" and transformed into the foundation for growth.

New sacred characters replaced the old ones, carved into Liber's back.

From this step onward, the status update and the changes in proficiency truly began.

As the process continued, Loki's eyes widened once again.