Chapter 53: Cadmus's Spring

Chapter 53: Cadmus's Spring

The 50th Floor was a safe floor where monsters didn't spawn.

There were quite a few safe floors like this in the dungeon. While it wasn't guaranteed that no monsters would appear, fewer monsters were coming from other floors, so staying on a safe floor reduced the chances of sudden accidents or attacks. That was why these safe floors became the preferred resting areas for adventurers in the dungeon.

The Loki Familia occupied a cliff on the 50th Floor, which was easily guarded and hard to attack, making it their camp.

The camp had been mostly set up, and the familia members had finished their busy tasks, gathering around the campfire for a meal.

A large pot sat on the fire in the center of the camp, and everyone gathered around it, relaxing and chatting while eating.

Riezel sat in a corner, holding a bowl of soup. Before he could take more than a few sips, a helpless expression appeared on his face.

"Hum! Hum! Now let's see where you're going to run." Tiona sat to his left, looking like she had caught him, wearing a smug expression.

"Seriously, I just got scolded by Captain." Tione, sitting on Tiona's side, was a bit annoyed, chewing on wild fruits to satisfy her hunger and frustration.

"..."

Ais sat on the right, not holding soup or wild fruits, just munching on her rations, looking like she wasn't getting much nutrition.

As for Lefiya, she had already broken.

"Aahh... Sitting between Mr. Riezel and Miss Ais..."

The Elf sandwiched between Riezel and Ais seemed inexplicably happy, with a blush of happiness on her face.

Looking at this scene, Riezel looked around.

Sure enough, many people cast envious and jealous glances at him, even Bete was grinning angrily, seemingly eager to deliver divine punishment to him, who was surrounded by the land of warmth and tenderness.

'...Let's just ignore it.' Riezel could only bury himself in his soup, pretending he didn't see anything.

When everyone had eaten their fill, Finn, as the leader of the expedition party, finally spoke up.

"I'll say a few words first."

His voice captured everyone's attention.

"Firstly, thanks for your hard work, everyone." Finn, with a smile rarely seen since entering the dungeon, continued. "We've safely reached the 50th Floor this time, without any casualties or losses. This alone is worth celebrating. But, the real test is still in front of us."

He toned down his smile a bit.

"Our goal has never been reaching the 50th Floor, but rather the unexplored territory—59th Floor."

This was a floor Loki Familia had yet to conquer.

The highest floor Loki Familia had reached was the 58th. Therefore, exploring and conquering the 59th Floor became the familia's primary objective.

"No doubt, the floor we're about to reach is an area untouched by many familia in Orario, not even Freya Familia has entered the 59th Floor."

Finn's words echoed in everyone's ears, causing them to hold their breath.

"If our familia can successfully reach the 59th Floor, exploring this unknown territory, regardless of the loot, our reputation alone will make us famous throughout Orario, etching our names into history."

For large familia like Loki Familia, dungeon exploration was no longer just about gaining wealth and power; fame was also essential.

"First-class adventurers will be the main priority of this commission, with only a few of them being dispatched, while the rest will stay back at the camp."

Finn began selecting the commission's participants. Naturally, the first to be considered were the top executives and executives. Since the priority was on first-class adventurers, they couldn't escape.

"Gareth, Bete, and I will form one party, and bring in a Level 4 as a supporter."

"Ais, Tiona, Tione, you three will be in a party together, and find a reliable supporter as well."

"Riveria will stay at the camp, responsible for defending it."

As Finn made his arrangements, the participants nodded in succession. However, Bete, with a frown, voiced his concerns.

"Oy, oy, is it okay not to have a Level 6 in the second party?"

Facing a Level 6 dragon species monster stronger than the 37th Floor's floor boss, it was indeed worrisome that the second party didn't have a Level 6 member.

Finn, however, seemed to have considered this thoroughly.

"Are you okay with this, Ais?" Finn, ignoring Bete's complaint, turned to Ais and calmly asked.

"No problem." Ais replied with an expressionless face, leaving Bete speechless.

Everyone knew why Finn specifically asked Ais. It was because her strength was no less than that of Level 6. With her Level 5 status and Ariel, she could undoubtedly display power comparable to Level 6.

With Ais in the second party, even facing a strong dragon wouldn't pose too much of a problem.

Riezel, on the other hand, seemed to have noticed something fishy.

'Is Captain grouping them like this to toughen up the familia executive's capabilities?

The Level 5 executives were destined to be the backbone of the familia. Whether it was Ais or the Amazoness sisters, they were all still young, not even eighteen yet. At this age, in Riezel's previous life, they wouldn't even have finished high school yet.

To give these future backbones of the familia as much training as possible and develop their independent act capabilities, Finn deliberately arranged for these three girls to form a party.

As for Bete, who was also a Level 5, his age was already twenty-two and had experienced much more than others, so he didn't need much worrying about.

The only problem was that relying solely on these three girls to act, even if they were strong, was a bit concerning in terms of their approach to situations.

After all, these three weren't the type to calmly handle emergencies and make proper arrangements and decisions. Having only these three in action was bound to lead to some unexpected events.

"Then..." Finn turned his head to Riezel. "Riezel, go with them."

With those words, everyone's attention once again focused on Riezel.

"Me?" Riezel was taken aback.

"Yup." Finn nodded with a faint smile. "Since what we need is the 'strength' of first-class adventurers, with your strength, do you think you can escape this commission?"

Everyone understood the implied meaning in Finn's words. His point was straightforward. Like Ais, he believed that Riezel already possessed strength not inferior to Level 5.

It wasn't just Finn who thought so. After discussions among familia's top executives, such as Riveria and Gareth, they unanimously agreed that Riezel now had strength comparable to Level 5.

Therefore, this time, Finn not only wanted to train Ais, Tiona, and Tione but also to focus on training Riezel.