The road leading to the deepest part of the seventeenth floor was dark and long. Two parties of fully armed adventurers steadily made their way through the Abyss.
Their goal was clear: the floor boss of the seventeenth floor, Goliath.
With a level 4 veteran adventurer leading them, the parties were in high spirits. The sounds of monsters being cleared out rang out now and then as they chatted and gathered spoils.
"You guys have no idea! Someone actually called me heartless yesterday!"
The gruff voice echoed through the tunnel. It belonged to Old Bill, who wore an indignant expression.
"Those bastards should ask around first. Who else is willing to deal with floor bosses for the rookies?"
"Let's be honest. If the other guy hadn't cut into your profits, would you old coot have organized people to take on Goliath?"
The adventurers in the party had known Old Bill for a long time, and they didn't hesitate to call him out.
"Besides, the floor boss's drop materials are pretty enticing too."
Hearing his companions tease him again and again, Old Bill's eyes widened like a bull's. He was just about to show off his legendary sharp tongue when—
"Roooar!"
A deafening roar came from deep within the cavern, shaking dust from the walls.
The adventurers, who had been chatting and laughing, grew solemn. They tightened their grips on their weapons and warily looked toward the veteran adventurer at the head of the party.
"Captain, was that just now...?"
The captain furrowed his brow and speculated.
"It sounded like Goliath, but..."
Old Bill, standing nearby, slapped his thigh. His face was full of frantic urgency.
"The profiteers from the eighteenth floor must've made the first move! Those impatient dogs!"
At Old Bill's words, the others in the party began to grow restless.
The two captains at the front sensed something was wrong. They quickly urged everyone to pick up the pace and ran toward the huge cavern where the floor boss was.
Floor bosses were officially called Dungeon Lone Kings by the Guild. They were enormous monsters that appeared only once every so often.
Not only were they far larger than the monsters on the same floor, they also specialized in certain traits, with such overwhelming strength that even adventurers of the same level hesitated to face them.
The floor boss deep on the seventeenth floor, Goliath, was a giant specialized in durability. Its defense alone was comparable to that of a level 5 adventurer.
Even a well-coordinated team would normally need quite some time to defeat it.
Now, a bunch of greedy profiteers were only going to disrupt their plans and make the fight harder.
But when they rushed into the cavern, panting, the multi-party battle they had expected was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, they witnessed a jaw-dropping scene: a single adventurer fighting the floor boss.
The area was a mess. The once-smooth ground lay shattered.
Amid the clouds of dust, the floor boss, standing eight or nine meters tall, looked utterly battered and let out the roar of a trapped beast.
Its two thick, once-proud arms hung limply at its sides, swinging mechanically with its body.
Bloodied all over and covered in wounds deep enough to expose bone, it had stained the ground red with its flowing blood, yet it still struggled with fury in its eyes.
The giant charged again with the desperation of someone who had nothing left to lose, but the adventurer slipped close and danced around it with ghostlike steps, evading it with ease.
His movements were as graceful as a bullfighter riling up the crowd.
With a thunderous crash, Goliath, carried forward by its own momentum, smashed into the cavern wall. The shockwave nearly knocked the onlookers off their feet.
At the same time, the adventurer with the longsword flashed back into view and added two more wounds to the creature's broad back.
They were deep, but not fatal.
"Roooar!"
The roar rang through the cavern again.
But unlike before, Old Bill and the others couldn't help feeling that the floor boss sounded just a little... pitiful.
"S-so strong! He's completely toying with the floor boss!"
"He crippled Goliath's attacks without killing it? Which familia's veteran adventurer is fooling around like this?"
"That's strange. I don't recognize him. Anyone who can take on a floor boss alone has to be an experienced level 4 at the very least, right?"
After hearing Old Bill and the others' guesses, the two captains exchanged glances and smiled bitterly.
Level 4?
They were both level 4 adventurers who had been promoted years ago, but if either of them had to fight Goliath alone, it would be little different from asking for death.
And the man wasn't merely winning. He was playing with Goliath as if it were a wild bull.
The center of the battlefield was where Goliath's attacks grew weaker and weaker.
The ferocity pain had stirred up was bound to fade. With its blood nearly drained, even its roars sounded weak.
Heavy footsteps drew closer. The giant leaped with the last of its strength, hoping its size would let it turn the tables.
The shadow above Kashu steadily grew, but all it did was make him shake his head and grumble again.
"How could an attack like that possibly hit me? Do the monsters in the Dungeon not have brains?"
Magic surged. Kashu stomped on a gust of wind beneath his feet to accelerate, and his body vanished in a flash, leaving Goliath to crash heavily into a pile of rubble.
Dust billowed. A gust of wind swept past, and Kashu returned as quickly as he had disappeared.
He stopped behind Goliath's head. Sensing that the monster was completely exhausted and could no longer fight, he casually drove his sword into its skull.
The towering giant crumbled into ash and vanished, leaving behind a magic stone taller than a person. It hit the ground with a crisp clatter.
Kashu casually dismissed his longsword and examined the ridiculously huge magic stone before him, while the corner of his eye swept over Old Bill and the others watching from a distance.
The Guild forbade adventurers from stealing one another's kills, but if no one found out, that was another matter.
"Which familia are you with?"
Kashu's calm voice broke the cavern's eerie silence.
As soon as Old Bill and the others heard him speak, they hurried to greet him with smiles plastered on their faces.
"Allow us to answer, sir. We're members of the Vanir Familia."
Kashu nodded in understanding, then took two Minotaur magic stones from his pocket and pointed behind Old Bill and the others.
"I'd like to buy a length of rope from you. Will these be enough?"
Old Bill's eyes darted around. He quickly waved his hands with a cheerful smile.
"It's just a few odds and ends. How could we take money from you, sir?"
Without waiting for Kashu to refuse, he turned and deftly pulled out a length of rope, then tossed it over from a distance.
Kashu caught the rope and, seemingly without a care, turned around to pack up Goliath's magic stone.
Old Bill discreetly exchanged glances with the two captains. The group sensibly skirted around the center of the cavern and continued on toward the eighteenth floor.
Twilight Manor.
Kashu pushed open the living room door once again.
It was rare, but this time Loki wasn't drinking.
Instead, she was sprawled facedown across the meeting table, snoring like a thunderclap.
"Heh... heh heh... Ais-chan, come on, let me see if you're developing well."
"Fwoo~"
"Ugh..."
The human and the beast both looked disgusted. It was easy to imagine what Loki was dreaming about.
Kashu walked over, picked up the dead-drunk Loki, and shook her back and forth like a rag doll.
"Hey, it's not even dark yet. Wake up. Now's not the time to daydream."
"Who's there! Which fool dares show disrespect to a god?!"
Still half-asleep, Loki flailed her arms and legs. After barely managing to open her bleary eyes and see who was in front of her, she let out a huge yawn.
"You got back a lot earlier than yesterday. Didn't you say you were going to check out the eighteenth floor?"
Kashu smiled and shook his head as he explained.
"I took out a whole bunch of Minotaurs and a floor boss. There were too many magic stones, so I came back early to cash them in."
As he spoke, he unclipped two bulging money pouches from the small of his back and showed off the glittering valis inside.
"You must be bored hanging around the home base by yourself. Lunch is on me. Let's go get steak."
Loki shot her head up. Her drowsy expression cleared instantly, and her eyes lit up.
If that's what you're talking about, I'm wide awake.
"Sure! You've got good taste, kid! Lead the way!"
"Wait!"
Loki's leg, which had just started moving, froze. Her voice trembled with disbelief.
"What did you just say you took out all by yourself?!"
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