It was morning inside the 18th floor of the dungeon, and the adventurer city of Rivira was just starting to wake up. Other adventurers were already active outside the town. The morning air carried a fresh scent as I relaxed high up in a tree.
There was much for me to see in this world and many people to meet, but before I could significantly impact the world, I knew I had to get stronger. So far, many of the people I had encountered were greedy adventurers with no concern for the greater good.
It's a harsh reality for a mere man to accept that only 1% can make a real difference in this city, while the rest are just rubbish unworthy of attention.
"Where is the guy you mentioned yesterday?" a childish voice asked from beneath the tree where I was hidden. Looking down, I noticed a group of female adventurers I had spied on yesterday during their lunch.
They looked around for any sign of me until I dropped from the tree, making them jump as the loud thud startled them.
"BAAAH!! WHO ARE YOU?!" the little elf girl screeched in fear as she began to charge her staff with magic. Before she could do anything, I knocked the staff from her hands with my strength.
The others were surprised by my ability, but they quickly calmed the elf down. However, that masked girl seemed to dislike me as she went to retrieve the staff.
"Niall! What were you doing at the top of a tree? Don't tell me you slept there all night after refusing a tent in our camp," a pink-haired girl, Emma Flores, spoke to me as if she had known me for years.
She grabbed my hands with a sparkle in her eyes. She was pretty; there was no point in lying about that. Meanwhile, the rest of her familia stared at me with both confusion and pity. They seemed to know exactly what was going to happen.
The pink-haired girl bombarded me with questions, but I ignored them all and gently pushed her aside. As I approached Karen, the others looked at us as if they had seen a ghost.
"DON'T TELL ME YOU TWO ARE BOYFRIEND AND GIRLFRIEND?!" Emma screamed behind us, her voice a mix of emotions. This was exactly why I never liked dealing with female adventurers—or just females in general.
Karen's face turned red despite her attempt to stay calm, while I simply ignored all the noise from the girls and started walking away. The girls fell silent and then began following me.
As we made our way toward the surface, their gossip filled the air behind me. An armored girl who looked like a Valkyrie approached me from the side.
"You should apologize to Primo, you know? I understand she can be difficult to handle, but she wouldn't have cast any magic. I wouldn't have let that happen." I gave her a sidelong glance, making it clear I wasn't interested in listening.
With a sigh, she fell back, and another girl stepped forward. I swore they were taking turns on purpose. This time, it was a girl who looked like a boy, carrying a heavy sword on her back. Judging by her expression, she wanted to fight me.
"Your behavior isn't very heroic, but I wonder if your strength is. Why don't we test it out right here? I've been wanting to smack you for using your magic on Primo, even if you are supposed to be our new ally."
Some of the girls were upset, but I didn't care. I stopped in my tracks, and the entire group looked at me.
"Karen, when I agreed to deal with Aeshma and his goons, that didn't mean I was obligated to tolerate the foolishness of some of the girls here. Leo, let's have a duel since I can see that's what you want."
"Wait, maybe we shouldn't..." Emma began, but Leo quickly cut her off. The tomboyish girl had a grin plastered on her face as she drew the greatsword from her back.
"Hermes did say he could be difficult to handle..." Karen murmured, and the entire group moved to a safe spot to spectate the upcoming duel. The duel was set to take place in a flat area surrounded by trees, while the girls watched from the shadows.
"Ready, set, go!" Leo yelled, charging at me. Her greatsword was aimed at my body, the sheer force of it creating a wind current. Some of the girls started cheering for their friend, but that all stopped when I used my ability once.
BAM
"GAH!!"
Leo was sent flying to the ground, blood streaming from her nose. I had held back significantly to avoid hurting her too much. Gasps broke the short-lived silence as Leo struggled to move.
I approached her and offered my hand. With a doubtful look, she accepted it and smiled. "You're strong... too strong for me to handle. Although you don't have the character of a hero, you have the freedom to choose whatever path you want."
I nodded, unimpressed by the platitudes she was spouting. It felt like someone rich telling you that money wasn't important. Leo and I hadn't started on the best of terms, but I saw a hint of respect in her eyes as I helped her up.
"What's up with her over there?" I pointed at the little elf girl, who I found incredibly annoying. She was staring at me like I was a ghost. The masked girl quickly approached her, leading her away while giving me a death glare.
"Just ignore them... they can be a bit weird, hehe! So, if we're done with the duels and drama, it's about time for us to ascend to the surface," Emma said, brightening the mood. The group continued its march to the surface.
I went with the flow this time, walking alongside Emma on my right and a girl named Lucia on my left. With her brown hair, brown eyes, and green outfit, she looked somewhat like an elf. She was quite polite.
"How do you guys plan to handle this? A group attack on Aeshma Familia, or do you want to send me in alone? Either way, I'm fine with both outcomes, just don't send me into a bloodbath without proper information."
Emma gently smiled at my comment. "I don't think you could handle them alone, Niall. Enoch gave us an ultimatum a few days ago, and we have just a week to respond. We plan to ambush them and hand them over to the guild. Aeshma will be dealt with after we take care of his familia members first."
So, they wanted to solve this problem as peacefully as possible, but I wasn't going to allow that. Solving things peacefully in Orario was impossible, given the number of murderers, rapists, and general scum hiding in the shadows.
And I never trusted the guild or its system. You could never trust an organization that had betrayed both the Zeus and Hera Familias, despite all they had done for the guild. I was planning to massacre the entire Aeshma Familia and see if I could strip Aeshma of his divinity, making him mortal.
"Yeah, sounds good... I need to know their location so I can maybe scout the place and search for any evidence." I lied blatantly, but the girls seemed to buy it. Emma nodded, and we continued our ascent to the surface.
I couldn't be bothered to get to know all the girls, but the most noticeable among them was a cat girl with pale pink hair, cat ears, and a tail. Her appearance was oddly pleasing to others, as she often received gifts whenever she wandered around.
She tried to approach me once, but that female knight stopped her. "Sorry about them... also, mind telling me why your eyes look like that? And what do you use to keep your skin so soft? I've tried creams, but nothing has worked."
Emma spoke while she touched my hand repeatedly. The other girls stared at her strangely, but she didn't seem to care.
"My eyes are an odd anomaly I was born with. My mother is a cat beastkin, and my father was human. As for my skin... it's just always been soft." She seemed interested in my explanation, as did the others.
"Do you like music? I adore it, especially the charms that come with it. I used to sing a lot of songs from my homeland. Maybe I could sing something for you if you don't mind, or would you like to sing along with me?"
I thought for a moment and decided it was better for her to pick a song. "Gina, could you sing a song from your homeland? I'm not fond of music, so my knowledge of it is limited. You'll probably pick the best one."
Gina nodded with a smile and began singing. Her voice was pleasant to listen to, and the entire group fell into a quiet reverie as we listened to her singing on our way.