In DanMachi, Freya Had Her Eyes on Me from the Start!

Monsters rarely appeared here. With mountains and water, it was far safer than the other floors, where monsters could spawn at any moment.

As a result, many adventurers chose to rest here, since it was relatively safe.

Over time, someone discovered a "business opportunity," and a town called Rivira Town came into existence on the eighteenth floor.

It was a "dungeon town" built by adventurers, where they could rest and trade.

However, prices here were much higher than on the surface. Adventurer-related items were several times more expensive, but because it was difficult to ensure a stable supply of goods in the Dungeon, they could still be sold even at astronomical prices.

And while this was a safe floor, it was not absolutely safe. It was sometimes attacked and damaged by monsters, so Rivira Town had been rebuilt many times.

[ Rivira Town · 331st Generation ]

Having arrived at this "dungeon town," Cao Ye saw those words written on a sign at the entrance.

The 331st generation. That meant this town had been destroyed 330 times.

Cao Ye could not help looking inside. There were many houses around, and more than eighty percent of them were made of wood, probably using timber gathered locally.

Besides being easy to obtain, it was also because no one knew when the town would be destroyed again. There was no need to build it too well; as long as people could live in it, that was enough.

There were quite a few stalls in town, and Cao Ye gave them a few glances.

Most of them sold weapons and equipment, and the prices were absurdly high—more than several times higher than in Orario.

It made Cao Ye's heart itch. With his Imaginary Space, he could easily carry large quantities of goods here. A weapon worth 1,000 Valis could sell for more than 5,000 Valis here, perhaps even higher.

"Friend, is this your first time in Rivira Town?"

"Hm?"

A man's voice came from behind him, and Cao Ye turned around.

The man was a big fellow with a broad build. He wore a black eyepatch over one eye and a vest-like shirt, staring at Cao Ye with a "smile" across his face.

However, Cao Ye saw greed in that smile. He had probably been mistaken for easy prey.

"My name is Bors. I'm the boss of this town. And you are?"

"Cao Ye, an adventurer~"

Hearing Cao Ye's answer, Bors was briefly speechless. Damn, other than his name, the guy had not revealed anything at all.

Still, that was normal. When traveling outside—especially in this Dungeon, where there were no rules to speak of—most adventurers were wary of strangers.

"Cao Ye, right? I can tell this is your first time in Rivira Town."

"It is."

"I, Bors, love making friends. It's fate that we met today, so let me buy you a drink."

"A drink?"

"That's right. Even though this is the Dungeon, for adventurers, alcohol is naturally indispensable."

"It won't be cheap, will it~"

Cao Ye looked at Bors. With the prices here, it could no longer simply be called price gouging.

Bors was not surprised by Cao Ye's words. After all, Rivira Town's prices were well known throughout Orario.

"What are you saying? Meeting is fate. This round is on me."

"Really?"

"Of course it is. Ask around Rivira Town—who doesn't know that I, Bors, never lie?"

As for Bors's claim, Cao Ye figured it was best to just listen. Taking it seriously was how you lost.

Bors was the local thug boss of Rivira Town. He never lied? Then what about all the unlucky people he had scammed over the years?

Still, Cao Ye did not expose him. He followed Bors through the street and arrived at a tavern.

Bang—

"Boss, bring out the drinks! I made a new friend today, so we have to drink properly."

The moment he entered, Bors shouted. There were quite a few people in the tavern, and naturally, they all knew Bors.

Hearing him, they all looked toward Cao Ye beside him.

Looking at Cao Ye's "frail" build, they were curious. For Bors to value him so highly, he had to be someone special. After all, Bors never got up early unless there was profit to be made.

Bang—

Bors led Cao Ye to an empty seat and sat down with a bold, sprawling posture.

Anyone who did not know better might have thought he owned the place.

Before long, two large mugs of liquor were brought over. Cao Ye took one look—it was rum. He had often drunk it with the dwarf tavern owner back in Orario, since the man was particularly fond of it.

"Come on, brother. Don't be shy."

When the drinks arrived, Bors immediately picked up his own mug.

"Sure~"

Cao Ye had no idea what Bors was planning, but it would have been awkward not to drink after coming this far.

In any case, he was immune to all "negative effects." Even if something had been added to the alcohol, he was not worried. And even if there really was danger, he could protect himself.

With Reverse Cursed Technique, killing him would be difficult unless his head was cut off.

Seeing Bors act so "enthusiastically," everyone around them was baffled. Had the sun risen in the west today?

At the table, Bors downed an entire huge mug of rum in one go, putting on a show of straightforwardness.

Monster Attack on the Town!

"Hey, what's gotten into Bors?"

"What do you mean?"

"He's being so generous, buying someone drinks. Usually, he'd be lucky not to scam a drink out of someone. What's this about?"

"Do you know the person he invited?"

"The person he invited? Who is he?"

He glanced at Cao Ye, who was drinking with Bors, still looking utterly confused.

On the other hand, the other man seemed to have seen through Bors's intentions.

"That kid isn't an ordinary adventurer."

"Then who is he?"

"You know that pretty boy everyone was talking about before, the one supposedly being kept by the goddess Freya?"

"I know. Wait, you mean..."

The man's eyes instantly widened. He looked at Cao Ye again in disbelief.

Being kept by the goddess Freya was something every male adventurer in Orario would not even dare dream of. She was a goddess of beauty, and her Familia was the strongest in Orario.

What did people live for, if not "money" and "power"?

If he had become the goddess of beauty's pretty boy, would he still lack money?

And with the Freya Familia as his backing, even if he was weak, the Freya Familia alone would make everyone else keep their distance.

What everyone else spent their entire lives striving for, he had obtained just like that. Who could possibly reason with that?

"So Bors is trying to build a connection with him?"

"The Freya Familia are all ruthless people, and every one of them looks down their nose at others. Bors couldn't even get near them, but compared to those monsters, this guy is much easier to approach."

"That makes sense~"

Watching the two of them chatting so happily, he nodded.

If Bors really managed to establish a connection with the Freya Familia, he would make a fortune. After all, all he had spent was some cheap liquor.

As for the Freya Familia, even their name alone was a deterrent in Orario.

Meanwhile, as Cao Ye watched Bors continuously "introduce" Rivira Town to him, he began to form a few guesses.

Just like that, after several rounds of drinks, Bors was already feeling woozy, while Cao Ye's expression had not changed at all.

For the current Cao Ye, as long as he did not want to get drunk, any alcohol was no different from water. Drunkenness also counted as a "negative effect."

"Brother, I'm truly so happy to have met you today."

Bors's face was flushed red at the table, and even his speech had become slurred. He had clearly drunk too much.

"I'm happy too. I just got here, and someone already bought me drinks."

"It's just one round of drinks. From now on, as long as you say the word in Rivira Town, I'll cover all your expenses."

"That won't be necessary. I can't accept rewards without merit. You may be the boss here, but it wouldn't be right to make your subordinates suffer losses."

"You really are my good brother, always thinking of me."

Cao Ye merely smiled at Bors's shameless attempt to get closer to him and said nothing else.

After this drinking session, Cao Ye had figured it out. Bors simply wanted to build a connection with him.

It was understandable. The Freya Familia behind him was a colossal force in Orario, while Bors was only the thug boss of an "adventurer town."

As long as Bors could establish a connection with him, he would not need Cao Ye to do anything. Just borrowing the Freya Familia's name would be enough for Bors to make a fortune.

Bang—

At that moment, the tavern doors were suddenly smashed open, and a cat-eared demi-human rushed inside.

After sweeping his gaze around the tavern, the catman spotted the dazed Bors at the table and hurried over.

"Bors, you're still drinking? Something happened."

He snatched the mug from Bors's hand and spoke to him with dissatisfaction.

"Hm? What happened?"

Bors did not take it seriously. This was Rivira Town. What could possibly happen?

Seeing him like this, the catman was speechless. Just how much had he drunk?

"Monsters are coming. They're probably headed for Rivira Town."

"Hm? Monsters are coming?"

The catman's words instantly sobered Bors up by thirty percent, and he abruptly stood.

Many of the people drinking nearby also changed expressions upon hearing that.

Roar—

Howl—

Rumble—

The roars and howls of monsters, along with explosions, came from outside.

Now, everyone was certain. The monsters really had come.

"It hasn't even been that long, and those monsters are back again. Damn it, Hendi, notify everyone. Prepare for battle and take those bastards out as fast as possible."

"Everyone has already been notified, but there are no mages in town."

"Hm? No mages?"

"I've already checked. There really aren't any."

"This is going to be troublesome."

Bors's expression darkened slightly. Monster attacks like this were nothing unusual for Rivira Town. A so-called safe floor was not actually that safe.

Unlike fighting in the Dungeon, they not only had to kill the monsters here, but also protect the town.

If it was destroyed, rebuilding it would require enormous manpower and resources. That all cost Valis.

And for clearing large numbers of monsters, nothing worked better than powerful magic. As long as they bought the mages enough time to chant, the resulting power could match the efforts of an entire group.

Bang—

"Something's wrong! The monsters have charged into town!"