After what happened yesterday, Yuna started eating again and became more lively. Life had returned to her eyes and voice, her complexion also looked much better than before.
She also asked if she could accompany me outside, obviously I forbade her in doing so since her constitution is still weak from all those days she went without eating nor drinking. Thankfully, she didn't complain about me being too strict with her.
I wonder why, but I feel like a father watching over his kid. Maybe it's because mentally, I'm 17 years older than her. Even though we are just the same age here.
Just like that, a week has passed and Yuna has returned to full health. But the moment I allowed her to go out, she immediately asked for a troublesome request.
「Let me get this straight, you want me to train you in both spells and arts.」Grey
To my question, Yuna nodded without saying a word.
Honestly, I don't have any problems training her since God has imprinted into my 『Memory』everything I need in order to master all attributes and classes. The problem is her reason.
Is it for revenge? Self-improvement? To vent out frustration?
I guess it's better to ask her directly.
「Yuna, why?」Grey
「What do you mean "why"?」Yuna
「Why do you want to get stronger?」Grey
「Do you remember what you told me before, about the destruction of the village. You said that someone might be behind it, so I want to get stronger so that I can make that someone pay for what they did.」Yuna
So it is for revenge after all.
「Also, I don't want to lose anyone anymore. That's why I will become strong so that I can protect those who are precious to me.」Yuna
I see. So she's "that" kind of girl. A shounen protagonist.
I see no harm in training her. It would also serve as training for me if ever I want to have a party in the future. And with that kind of resolve, I don't think she will back down even if I say no.
「Take a pick.」Grey
I took out all the armament rings I have from 『Storage』and lined it in front of her. Each of these rings contains different weapon categories for different classes, so I'll let her decide what her class will be.
And as for the attribute, that's something she's born with so there's nothing I can do about that.
Yuna took her time picking out the best weapon for her. She lifted the weapons and took them for a try. In the end, she settled with the daggers since most of the other weapon types are just too heavy for her.
「This means your class will be "Assassin".」Grey
Asassins excel in swift and flexible movements, with Yuna's light and slender body type, along with the fact that she has the acuity of an elf, it would be the perfect class for her.
And with daggers like this...
-----------------------------------
[〔Equipment〕]
[Name]Divine Dagger
[Type]Weapon [Category]Shortsword
[Power Value]100,000 [Grade]Divine
[Ability]『Bleeding Edge』『Divine Trial』
-----------------------------------
[〔Ability〕]
[Name]Bleeding Edge
[Description]
Any wounds inflicted upon an enemy will enlarge multiple times, depending on the combat power of the user. The wounds would also cease to be healed as long as the user has mana.
-----------------------------------
... getting stronger wouldn't be a problem.
But there's still another problem left, I don't know if the Dungeon's adjustments apply to Yuna as well. It was in the description that it is made for God's retainer, me, I don't know if it will work for other people.
Currently, my opponents are Greater Golems, Minotaur Generals, Skeleton Kings, and Vampire Kings. All of my opponents are C-rank at the weakest. Taking Yuna without confirming things would be too risky.
Think, Grey... think, there must be some way she can train in there...
「Umm... If I'm interfering with your training, it's alright if you don't train me, I will be alright by myself.」Yuna
Seeing my hesitation, Yuna voiced out a suggestion with a voice filled with worry.
Huh? Is she worried that she might be bothering me? But I don't really mind though. Well anyways, let's clear up the misunderstanding before things get worse, and I could get her opinion
「Ummm, if you think you're being a bother, that's not the case at all.」Grey
「Oh, sorry, I thought that you might be troubled because of me... so... I jusー」Yuna
「Don't worry about it. It's just, you see...」Grey
I told Yuna everything about the Dungeon and what I know about it. I also told her that I intend to train her in there and the risks of doing it. In the end she replied 「I'm fine with testing your theory, After all, I won't become stronger if I remain afraid of taking risk.」
She really is a bold one, I'll give her that. The more she voices her opinions, the more she sounded like a shounen protagonist. I wonder if she will give speeches about the power of friendship one day.
Anyway, we're currently entering the dungeon. I'm still worried about her but if worse comes to worst, I will just use a divine potion on her.
The moment we took a step in the dungeon's main space, the dungeon torchstones started glowing in succession. By now, I've gotten used to this scene already but it looks like a certain someone here is excited by it.
「Uwaaa～ They're glowing! They're really glowing!」Yuna
Cute, she looks like she's on her first field trip. Her ears are even twitching.
Seeing her like this, you won't be able to tell what she has been through. There isn't even a trace of grief in her eyes. I wonder if she really is alright.
「Grey, look! The crystals are glowing!」Yuna
Well, if ever she goes back to how she was a week ago, then I'll just give her another scolding. Right now, what matters is that she's happy.
「Waaa～ I wonder how much these crystals cost.」Yuna
Looks like she's totally forgotten what we're here for.
Hmmm... any moment now... Ah!
「Yuna!」Grey
「Hmm?」Yuna
「Stay behind me, they're here.」Grey
Inside the shadows, multiple figures slowly rose. Clad in silver armor and equipped with sharp swords, also known as the headless knights, Dullahans.
Dullahans are supposed to be D-rank warrior-type monsters and the last time I fought them was more than a year ago. Seems like the dungeon spawns monsters depending on our average combat power.
「Yuna, since close-quarters-combat is bad for you with these opponents, just focus on casting spells. Don't worry I'll protect you if they get too close.」 Grey
「O... okay.」Yuna
As long as Yuna deals damage to them, even if I take them down, it should still be considered as a dangerous situation and Yuna's mana capacity should still increase.
「"Ice Lance"!」Yuna
An icicle appeared in front of Yuna out of thin air and flew towards a dullahan in front her, hitting its chestplate.
"Ice Lance", huh? So she can easily cast a basic-level spell. But with a proficiency of 10%, she should also be able to cast low-level spells.
「"Ice Lance"!"Ice Lance"!"Ice Lance"!"Ice Lance"!」Yuna
Yuna continued firing spell after spell but all of it did little to no damage. Seeing this, Yuna seemed a bit crestfallen.
「Even if your attacks aren't working, keep firing. Remember, you're opponents are D-ranks, of course it'd be difficult to damage them with your current level.」Grey
「...」Yuna
「But, one day, I believe that you will be able to take them down in one hit. So don't disappoint me and make that day into a reality!」Grey
「Y-Yes!」Yuna
With a little speech of mine, I was able to restore Yuna's morale and she continued to fire spells towards the dullahans.
Hmm... what's this? Am I the shounen protagonist now?
Jokes aside, it seems like it will take a while until Yuna reaches her goal, until then I'll be sure to support her with all I've got.
The day continued with a lot of breaks and a lot of dullahans eating my fist. In the end Yuna wasn't able to practice assassination arts.
The day after that, we switched to training outside in order for Yuna to polish her spells and practice assassination arts. Then tomorrow came and we went to training in the dungeon, then in the wild, and the cycle went on and on.
Ever since that day, another year and three months have passed. And right now...
「Haah!"Fatal Stream"!」Yuna
... we are fighting the dullahans in the dungeon once again, only this time, Yuna is the one taking the lead.
Countless slashes rained down upon the dullahan's body, a few seconds later, it was turned into minced armor. It's chest, arms, legs, every part of its body was cut up cleanly.
「"Icicle Shotgun"!」Yuna
Following the defeat of a dullahan, she quickly changed targets and fired a mid-level ice spell on another dullahan and killed it instantly.
"Icicle Shotgun"is a spell I taught Yuna a few months ago, it's basically the same as firing multiple "Ice Lance"simultaneously.
This past year, Yuna had been improving quickly. While it may have something to do with me training her, it also shows how high her adaptability is. With Yuna's current strength, she would have no problem facing 7 or 8 dullahans at the same time.
And her strength isn't the only thing that grew, she also grew a lot in the right places. Two lumps of fat that weren't there last year suddenly appeared before I noticed.
Now that I look at her carefully, with her silky silver hair, sapphire eyes, pink lips, and having grown in the right places, Yuna might be the most beautiful girl I've met. But then again, I don't know the standards of beauty in this world.
But she would surely be on the level of a beauty queen back on Earth. Yeah, I'm sure of iー
Thud clang clang
「Haah... Haah...」Yuna
Oh, looks like she's done with her training. Better stop having these weird thoughts before she notices.
「Yuna, here.」Grey
「Ah, thanks.」Yuna
Even though she was tired, Yuna's reflexes were fast enough to catch the water jug and towel I threw to her.
「You did a great job out there.」Grey
「But I'm still no match when it comes to you.」Yuna
「Haha, you don't have to compare yourself to me, you know? After all, I'm already at B-rank when you started training. Considering that you were only at G-rank a year ago, your growth is already amazing.」Grey
「But it's all thanks to you that I was able to get this strong, you even lent me these amazing daggers.」Yuna
The problem with Yuna is sometimes when you praise her, she'll always find a way to return the compliment to you. I don't think I'll ever win against her in this aspect. Really, what a troublesome girl she is.
「Also, because of you, I am finally able to take down these dullahans in one hit, that's why, Grey, I'm really thankful that you were the one that saved me.」Yuna
But with a girl like her, no matter how troublesome she is, I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching over her.
「Haah... All these praises from you are making me hungry, how about we have lunch to celebrate you fulfilling your promise.」Grey
「Ah! Then I'll have curry and omurice.」Yuna
「Kay, kay, since it's a celebration for you, I'll cook anything you want.」Grey
「Really!? Then I'll also have hamburg steak... and pudding... and....」Yuna
She acts all mature when fighting and all, but she acts like a kid when it comes to food. Yup, I really won't get tired of watching over her.
When we returned to the house, I immediately started to prepare lunch, with Yuna's help, of course. Ever since Yuna came to my life, she has been helping me with all the chores, it goes without saying that she also helps me with hunting and foraging.
By the way, since last year, the house has received a lot of renovations. With two people living in it, it would only make sense that we'll make a few changes here and there.
With the renovation of the house, it goes without saying that I got better at controlling earth and plant attribute magic. I also got better with other attributes and classes as well. Too bad, practicing another attribute or class won't increase your mana quality since it only changes the type of mana flowing, not the mana flow itself, of course, it's another case if your proficiency with that other attribute or class is higher than your original ones.
After having lunch, we came back to the dungeon but before we reached the main area, the dungeon started shaking and mana started oozing out of the dungeon torchstones.
「W-What's happening?!」Yuna
Yuna who had no idea what was happening was panicking in worry that the dungeon might collapse. As for me, I knew exactly what was going on.
「Grey, what are you spacing out for?! Hurry up, the dungeon will collapse!」Yuna
「Don't worry, it won't.」Grey
「What do you mean?」Yuna
「It's not collapsing, the dungeon is just reverting to what it originally was.」Grey
Dungeons are basically natural structures that transformed into monster spawn house due to excess mana, and once they're cleared, they will just revert to their original form.
「So it's been three years, huh?」Grey
「What are you talking about, Grey?」Yuna
「Remember what I told you about this dungeon, that it will be gone after more or less three years? That's what is currently happening right now.」Grey
I've already told Yuna everything I know about the dungeon and everything about me, save for the reincarnation part. So with what I told her, she should be able to tell the situation by now.
「Then that means!」Yuna
「Yep, it's time for our reward.」Grey
Other than the treasures found inside dungeons, the ones who cleared it will have their mana increase, the amount of increase will depend on the dungeon's difficulty. It might not be instant, but over the course of one week, their mana will increase in a pace that won't cause harm to their soul.
As the only ones who kept challenging this dungeon, the two of us will have our long awaited mana boost.
The mana from the dungeon torchstone quickly swirled around us and entered our body. The gushing of mana towards my soul created a warm and comfortable sensation throughout my whole body. After the whole ordeal, our bodies felt the same but our mana capacity sure was expanding.
Since then, we have spent our time on hunting and training. After a whole week, it's time to check our statuses.
「『Appraisal』!」Grey
-----------------------------------
[〔Anthronoid〕]
[Name]Grey Silverdrake
[Race]Human
[Sex]Male
[Age]16
[Status]Healthy
[Mana Capacity]3,782 [Mana Quality]B
[Combat Power]5,874 [Threat Level]S
[Attribute]Wind [Spell Proficiency]74%
[Class]Brawler [Art Proficiency]71%
[Physical Enhancement]79%
[Ability]『Memory』『Appraisal』『Storage』
-----------------------------------
[〔Anthronoid〕]
[Name]Yuna
[Race]Elf
[Sex]Female
[Age]15
[Status]Healthy
[Mana Capacity]1,922 [Mana Quality]C
[Combat Power]2,425 [Threat Level]B
[Attribute]Ice [Spell Proficiency]61%
[Class]Assassin [Art Proficiency]58%
[Physical Enhancement]63%
[Ability]『Detection』
-----------------------------------
「Grey, how was it?」Yuna
When I was appraising myself, Yuna asked if I could appraise her too. Of course, as a gentleman, I can't say no to a lady, and a beautiful one at that.
「Did I not get stronger after all?」Yuna
Seeing me space out, Yuna asked a question worriedly.
「Actually it's the opposite, in fact, you got too strong!」Grey
Before the dungeon reverted, Yuna's combat power was about 1,100, and now she's well past at 2,400! She's become at least 10 times more powerful!
As for me, I only went from about 4,500 to 5,874. My mana increased about the same amount as Yuna but since my combat power is much higher than Yuna's, I barely got twice as strong!
I was so depressed that day that it was almost as if my soul left my body the whole day.
The next day, Yuna and I started packing our things and tidying up the house. Since the dungeon already reverted to how it was, there's no more reason to stay here.
After all, I still have to fulfill my promise with God and my promise to the villagers that died more than a year ago. I swear, I'll find whoever is responsible for it.
After packing everything up, I set up a barrier around the house so that it won't get destroyed while we're away. Who knows, we might go back here after some time.
Now, everything should be set.
「Are you ready Yuna?」Grey
「Yes!」Yuna
「Then let's depart!」Grey
We're coming, Merusia!
CHAPTER 5 END