Interlude

As the colossal Floor Boss fell like a giant doll,

Falan stared blankly, somewhat helpless. This was the difference between large Familias and small Familias.

Setting aside the adventurers' levels for the moment, core members such as Captain Mia and Vice-Captain Ottar

had been chatting beside him just now and had not gone up to help at all!

Yet a group of Lv. 2s and Lv. 3s had faced a powerful Floor Boss like Goliath and forcibly defeated it.

Even though Captain Mia had told him that Goliath's enormous size affected its reactions and speed,

without strict discipline, facing such a colossal monster would probably have thrown them into chaos from the very start, right?

"Well? I hope you'll have a little more faith in our Freya Familia."

"Mm. I've always had faith."

Falan replied somewhat tongue-tied to Captain Mia's words.

"So, what next?"

"We're going to the 18th Floor, one of the Dungeon's rare Safe Floors."

"Mm, mm."

Falan nodded, then followed the Freya Familia onward.

Then, on the 18th Floor, he used his 'Backpack.'

He pulled the Freya Familia's camping equipment out from a single Backpack slot.

This was followed by everyone's cheers, since they had originally harbored doubts about someone's ability.

After all, a 'Backpack' capable of storing a thousand slots had never existed in their previous understanding.

Even though, during this time, people like Golan had served as both guards and overseers,

confirming that Falan's 'Backpack' truly possessed such an ability, more than half of them still had their doubts.

Now that they were already inside the Dungeon, he could still take out items so easily.

Even if they had not quite believed it at first, they could now do without the expedition's support personnel and still have somewhere to stay.

This gradually forced them to trust Falan, this 'Big Backpack.'

It was also that night that Falan understood why the Freya Familia chose to stay on the 18th Floor on the first day of an expedition.

Or rather, from what he had heard, practically all Familias on expeditions stayed on the 18th Floor first.

Because this was the last, and only, resting place on an expedition route. Even with the Freya Familia's strength as one of Orario's twin giants,

they might be able to reach the twentieth or even thirtieth floor on the first day, yet they still chose to rest on the 18th Floor.

For example, he also understood why he was called the 'Big Backpack.'

It was because the Freya Familia had arranged for Vice-Captain Ottar to treat him as a 'Big Backpack' starting tomorrow, carrying him on his back and protecting him as they entered the deep floors. After all, the deep floors and even the lowest floors were far more difficult than the middle and upper floors.

If the middle floors were merely visited by fewer people,

then the deep floors were now scarcely touched by human traces.

The lowest floors had become even more unknown after the Zeus Familia and Hera Familia were destroyed, ushering in an era ruled by the Evils Familia.

Everything remained only on paper. To the current Freya Familia, everything was still shrouded in mist.

In such a dangerous Dungeon, the Freya Familia had no energy to spare too many people to protect Falan, a chattering Lv. 1.

So they decided to have the strong and sturdy Lv. 6 Vice-Captain Ottar carry him on his back and protect him at all times.

After all, Falan was currently loaded with all the Freya Familia's expedition supplies.

With Ottar carrying him around and protecting him as well, the title 'Big Backpack' truly lived up to its name.

Falan could only smile wryly in silence when he heard that. In a sense, this was also the arrogance of a large Familia, wasn't it?

Of course, he would not say that to the Freya Familia's adventurers. After all, although it was only the first day of the expedition,

he had been accepted and had already integrated among them. He and the Freya Familia's adventurers could now be considered friends.

Aside from treating him as their 'Big Backpack,' the Freya Familia as a whole still respected him quite a bit.

Besides, they would tell him about their experiences exploring, as well as their past exploits.

Even Falan could not help being drawn into laughing with them.

So this was good enough... Falan thought to himself.

From the helplessness when he had first transmigrated here, striving to survive,

to being cared for by everyone at the Golden Ring, and then becoming an adventurer,

he was now protected by the Freya Familia, one of Orario's twin giants, and had no worries about life in this world.

This kind of life was actually already acceptable to him.

"By the way, the 18th Floor clearly has streets. Why aren't we staying there?"

When Falan raised this question, he learned that lodging and food on the 18th Floor cost much more than they did on the surface.

Some people would even see their customers as a 'large Familia expedition' and try to carve off a chunk of profit from them.

So most adventurers would not go to the streets here to buy things unless it was truly necessary.

Hearing that, Falan understood a little more about the importance of his Big Backpack in present-day Orario.

The things here were indeed expensive, but there was good reason for that expense.

Those adventurers had dragged vast amounts of goods all the way here.

Did they not have to expend labor? Did they not have to pay a price? Did they not have to bear the losses from wear and tear along the way?

Of course, there were two sides to this matter. At the very least, they were indeed not very friendly toward adventurers who had come here after suffering a disaster.