The next day, the Bahamut familia woke up early, buzzing with excitement as they prepared to resume their dungeon activities.
The air was filled with anticipation as everyone looked forward to resume experimenting with their newly acquired skills.
However, the cheerful atmosphere quickly faded during breakfast when an unexpected announcement shattered their smiles.
"I'm really sorry; I tried my best," Bahamut said, her voice filled with regret.
The goddess had risen before the others to prepare their favourite breakfast treats, hoping to soften the blow of the news, but the hollow expressions on the children's faces told her that it hadn't worked so well.
The announcement of their new aliases had drained life from them.
"Come on, it's not that bad," Draco said, trying to lift their spirits.
'I could imagine worse.' he thought.
Draco himself had expected something far worse, and while the names were amusing, they weren't too terrible.
Clair was given the alias "Pointy Stick" for her spear-wielding skills, Michalis became "Twin Fang Fury" for his prowess with daggers, Eleni was dubbed "Edger," Nikolaos took on "Bludgeoner," Dimitra was called "Feathered Cupid," Vasileios received the name "Blocky," Vasiliki became "Ice Baby," and Draco himself was labeled "Club Demon."
Draco couldn't help but think that the gods could have been more creative with the aliases.
'They just slapped silly names based on the weapons we used,' he thought.
Eventually, the children were forced to accept their new titles.
The knowledge that these names were temporary and could change with their next level-up provided a glimmer of hope.
After finishing breakfast, the Bahamut familia donned their dungeon gear and bid farewell to Bahamut.
Their first stop was the guild to request new commissions from their advisor, Rose.
As they approached the bustling hall, Draco noticed the chatter around them was predominantly centred on the Bahamut familia.
Fortunately, Draco was wearing his cloak and most people didn't know their faces, allowing them to slip into the guild hall without being overwhelmed.
"Good morning, Rose-san," Draco greeted upon spotting her hurrying about.
"Oh, Draco! You startled me," Rose replied, her eyes weary from her gruelling shifts.
The others echoed his greeting, and Rose waved back, though her expression remained strained.
"Why does the guild seem busier today?" Draco asked, curious.
Normally, adventurers would quickly pick up commissions from the board before diving into the dungeon, but today, many lingered around.
"Are you seriously asking me that?" Rose replied, her tone sour.
It didn't take a genius to connect the dots; they were the talk of the city, and not necessarily in a good way.
'Good thing I wore my cloak,' he thought.
After a brief meeting with Rose, the Bahamut familia took on several commissions, allowing them to explore the 13th to 18th floors of the dungeon freely.
Rose warned them against venturing further, as the 19th to 24th floors were filled with monsters that had poisonous abilities, requiring an abnormal resistance skill to navigate safely.
Among the group, only Draco could explore these higher floors on his own.
He planned to check the difficulty of the 19th to 24th floors for the others after they became accustomed to battling on the 13th to 16th floors.
He believed that the standards for other adventurers didn't necessarily apply to them; he wanted to push his familia to their limits.
The pressure from stronger monsters would help them achieve great feats and maintain their recent title as the fastest levelling familia in Orario.
Once the meeting wrapped up, the Bahamut familia exited the guild, only to be confronted by a group of unknown adventurers blocking their path.
Clair, Michalis, Eleni, Nikolaos, Dimitra, Vasileios, and Vasiliki immediately took a formation, gripping their weapons tightly, ready to react at Draco's signal.
Draco had already instructed them to be prepared, knowing that some adventurers would challenge them to verify their claims or attempt to take them down to boost their own fame.
Such behaviour wasn't uncommon against new and rising familias.
"Who are you all, and what do you want?" Draco asked, keeping his tone calm.
"So you mean to tell me that this young man and the group of kids behind him are the Bahamut familia everyone is talking about?" a burly man stepped forward, his voice booming.
The mention of the Bahamut familia drew the attention of nearby adventurers, both inside and outside the guild hall.
Within moments, all eyes were on them.
'So this is their plan. They want to make a spectacle of us,' Draco thought, unfazed by the attention.
He sensed that most of the group were only level 1 or 2 adventurers, while the burly man speaking was a level 3 like himself.
'The situation is in our favour. If I handle this properly, it should deter similar-minded adventurers,' he thought.
"We are, so what of it?" Draco replied, maintaining his composure.
"Oi oi, you've got to be kidding me. Judging from your appearance, you must be the captain. They said you levelled up twice in four months. Does that make anyone gathered here?" the man mocked, his gaze sweeping across the crowd to rally support.
The crowd murmured, their interest piqued by the man's taunts.
"Are you perhaps suggesting that the gods are liars?" Draco inquired, his question sending another wave of whispers through the gathering crowd.
The man denying their feats in a public setting, could also be interpreted as him calling the gods liars.
The man, realizing the implications of his words, hastily responded, "Oi, I didn't say anything like that!"
"Then what do you mean?" Draco pressed, curious to see how far the man would go.
"What I meant was, you should reveal the treasure that your familia is using to level up so fast," the man stated, a smirk playing on his lips.
"Think about it, everyone. Is there any way for these brats to level up so quickly without some kind of treasure aiding them?" the man accused.
Although this wasn't true, there were some adventurers who actually believed that this was the case.
"So why don't you peacefully reveal, no hand it over for your safety" the man threatened.
Draco couldn't help but roll his eyes internally, thinking 'Is this guy perhaps a moron'.
'In the thousand years since adventurers have existed, such an item hasn't been documented or proven to exist. Why would anyone believe that a newbie familia would somehow come into possession of such a thing?' he pondered, underestimating just how foolish some people could become.
"Are you done spouting nonsense? If so, please make way. We have work to do in the dungeon," Draco replied, offering them an exit.
In truth, he immediately wanted to teach the man a lesson in public, but he didn't want his familia to be associated with violence so early in their journey.
Thus, he decided to at least give him only one warning.
"As you can all see, they deny it and have the gall to be cocky. How can we let such arrogance go unpunished? How can we allow such a familia to remain in our beautiful city?" the man bellowed, attempting to incite the crowd further.
'Sigh, I guess it can't be helped. I can use that skill now,' Draco thought, a grin creeping onto his face as he prepared for what was to come.
He had hoped the man wouldn't back down, allowing him the opportunity to set an example.
"I hope you're ready to pay for slandering the name of my familia and the dignity of our goddess. We had no enmity yet you approached us and spouted ridiculous accusations publicly without proof. What familia would tolerate such an insult?" Draco stated firmly, his reptilian pupils dilating.
"What are you going to do about it? Hit me? Do you think your measly familia can handle all of us? How arrogant!" the man retorted, gesturing to the number of adventurers behind him.
'Good. Now the guild might not penalize us for retaliation,' Draco thought, feeling a rush of excitement.
Without hesitation, Draco activated his "Dragon Aura" skill.....