However, Ryou also discovered many issues.
During his battles with the hellhounds, he identified another of his weaknesses: his surprisingly low resistance to magical attacks.
It seemed as if his newly reached 20 points in endurance suddenly lost their effectiveness.
Endurance provides physical resilience, or what is known as physical resistance.
As for how to enhance his resistance to magical attacks, Ryou first thought of the concept of magic resistance from the Fate series.
Secondly, the blessings in this world, upon leveling up, can develop various abilities, one of which is 'magic defense.'
The most comprehensive solution, however, would be to restore the downgraded Noble Phantasm Crying Warmonger to its original level.
The complete version of Crying Warmonger restores health and mana after successfully withstanding an enemy attack, then nullifies and reflects the same type of attack.
It is essentially an altered version of a certain Berserker's(Hercules) famous Noble Phantasm 'God Hand,' with each having its own merits.
If Ryou could obtain both these Noble Phantasms, he would be immune to attacks below A-rank, essentially making him nearly invincible.
Of course, for now, Ryou could only dream about it.
As for the downgraded Crying Warmonger, it seemed he was missing a crucial element. Besides lacking the required base attributes, there was also a core component missing, preventing him from restoring the Noble Phantasm to its original level.
With the restoration of the Noble Phantasm seemingly out of reach and no clear method to increase his magic resistance, the only ways Ryou could think of were through the development of abilities granted by blessings and through equipment.
After ten days of tedious monster hunting, Ryou had accumulated over twelve thousand energy points.
Once he amassed twenty thousand points, he could exchange them for a piece of purple equipment that enhances magic resistance.
Meanwhile, Ryou identified another problem.
He lacked AOE (area-of-effect) capabilities, meaning he didn't have the means for group attacks. In the terminology of the FGO mobile game, he didn't possess an anti-army Noble Phantasm.
This wasn't an issue in the arena, but in the dungeon where monsters appeared in groups, it left him struggling.
Additionally, he had too many secrets, making it unsuitable for him to team up with others.
"If only Shishou were here."
Ryou couldn't help but miss the powerful and knowledgeable Queen of the Land of Shadow.
Scathach, who wielded the primordial Runes, was one of the strongest magus in the Type-Moon universe.
The primordial Runes have near-universal applicability, making them one of the most suitable magical systems for Ryou.
Unfortunately, Scáthach was elusive, and in these ten days, he hadn't even caught a glimpse of her.
This made it difficult for Ryou to even bring up the idea of learning the primordial Runes from her.
However, nothing happens overnight. Ryou diligently trained in the dungeon while patiently waiting for Scáthach's appearance.
Given that Scathach had wisdom comparable to foresight, she would undoubtedly come to him at an appropriate time.
Ryou believed that he only needed to patiently wait and steadily grow stronger in the meantime.
So he thoroughly established himself at the boundary between the eleventh and tenth floors, except for the weekends when he had agreed to cook for Mama Mia.
Every day, he would grind monsters until sunset.
"Don't underestimate the terrifying perseverance of a shut-in turned hardcore grinder!"
Grinding his way through was nothing. With a Noble Phantasm and a system in hand, Ryou felt no need to worry.
Thus, with Ryou's diligent daily monster grinding, it only took three days for his strength and agility to both break through 20 points!
At this moment, his attribute panel became:
[
Name: Nguyen Ryou
Race: Human
Class: None
Level: Unranked
Base Attributes:
Strength: 20.1 (E)
Agility: 20.3 (E)
Endurance: 21.5 (E)
Mana: 18.8 (E-)
(Average attribute for a normal person, except for mana, is 10. Below 10 is F-, between 15 and 20 is E-, and so on)
Luck: ???
Class Skills: None
Personal Skills:
Basic Cold Weapon Mastery (31%)
Mana Burst E (37%)
Noble Phantasms:
Crying Warmonger (B, downgraded) ]
At that moment, just like when his endurance broke through to 20 points, he felt a transformative change within his body.
Boom!
Ryou threw a punch, and the immense power generated a terrifying gust of wind that swept forward, extending for over ten meters before gradually dissipating.
Compared to 19.9, the mere increase of 0.1 made Ryou feel like his strength had more than tripled. Adding the threefold increase from 10 to 19, his strength had increased tenfold overall.
What does this mean? Previously, lifting 100 kilograms was his limit, risking a spinal injury. Now, he could easily lift a ton.
This enhancement was comprehensive, even slightly increasing his overall physical strength.
After all, having strength without robustness would mean injuring himself before lifting anything heavy.
Similarly, as his agility reached 20, his speed, flexibility, and neural reaction speed underwent dramatic changes.
Ryou lightly jumped onto a stone wall and began running swiftly.
Amazingly, he ran smoothly at a 90° angle to the ground without any sign of falling.
At this moment, a monster respawned. A hellhound landed, its bloody mouth wide open, and an orange-red fireball flew towards him.
Ryou instinctively focused his gaze. To his surprise, it seemed as if the world had slowed down.
No, it wasn't the world slowing down; he had developed dynamic vision!
A calm smile appeared on his face. He charged towards the fireball without dodging it.
At the last moment, he could feel the high temperature of the fireball, which singed his eyebrows.
With a casual bend and sidestep, he easily evaded the fireball, barely losing any speed, and directly reached the hellhound's head.
He leaped down and punched the hellhound's head with a powerful blow.
The hellhound, still looking around, had its head smashed into the ground by an unstoppable force.
Without even a howl, the hellhound turned into a magic stone.
Feeling as light as a feather, Ryou clenched his fist tightly.
He had taken another big step forward!
He then realized that the hellhounds on the thirteenth floor could no longer pose a significant threat to him.
The danger of the hellhounds lay in their fireball spell, a long-range magical attack not seen on the first twelve floors, and the fact that they respawned in groups of four or more.
But now, they posed no threat to him. He could take out a hellhound with one punch, and he could easily dodge the fireballs with simple gymnastics moves.
So, Ryou hammered his left fist into his right palm and had an epiphany.
It was time to venture to the lower floors!
Wait, how could he call it reckless? The actions of an adventurer couldn't be called reckless!
With a light and joyful heart, Ryou set off on his adventure.
And then he encountered an 'old friend'...
Apart from the safe floors, the dungeon's difficulty increases progressively—a fact acknowledged by all adventurers and the guild.
Perhaps because the energy used by the dungeon to spawn monsters diminishes as it ascends toward the surface, the strength of the monsters weakens.
Below the twelfth floor, the danger inevitably increases step by step.
However, for a solo adventurer like Ryou, there's also the issue of compatibility.
Hellhounds, with their magical attacks and large numbers, pose a significant threat to him.
In contrast, his 'old friend,' in the eyes of the now vastly stronger Ryou—whose power has increased more than tenfold—was hardly worth mentioning.
The fifteenth floor, the Rock Maze.
This floor was filled with enormous, neatly stacked, and polished stone blocks.
"Even in another world, you guys don't forget your old profession of building mazes, huh? You are diligent!"
Although Ryou was sighing, his tone sounded more like he was mocking.
Moo!
The familiar bellow of a bull and the familiar figure—the Minotaur, wielding a stone axe, let out a roaring cry and charged at him.
As it neared him, the Minotaur raised its stone axe and swung it down at his head, as if to split him in two.
"In that case, I won't hold back."
A cold smile spread across Ryou's face.
He didn't dodge; instead, he met the stone axe head-on with his bare hand.
Clang!
Sparks flew, and the Minotaur's stone axe could not descend any further.
"Looks like my strength is greater now!" Ryou said, as mana glowed around his arm.
In the Minotaur's slightly terrified eyes, Ryou crushed the stone axe with his hand.
Before the Minotaur could react, he leapt lightly and delivered a sharp sidekick to its face.
Accompanied by the sound of bones cracking, the massive bovine face was deformed, and the four to five-hundred kilogram body collapsed to the side.
Ryou did not pursue. He looked at his hand, now covered in calluses, once smooth and white.
Then he glanced at the massive figure that had once nearly killed him and saw a clear look of fear in the Minotaur's blood-red eyes.
So, I have become stronger!
Ryou clenched his fist tightly.
The path to the peak was still distant, but he was steadily growing stronger!
Without wasting any more time, Ryou sent the Minotaur back to the dungeon with a single punch.
A magic stone the size of a fist fell to the ground.
Just as Ryou picked up the magic stone, the sound of a cow's bellow came from a distance. Without hesitation, he rushed toward the source of the sound...
...
By the end of the day, Ryou returned to the surface and exchanged the magic stones and dropped items for Valis at the guild, astonishingly obtaining a total of 500,000 Valis!
No wonder higher-level adventurers are wealthier; on the lower floors, a single magic stone might be worth hundreds of thousands of Valis.
Since he couldn't store the gold coins in his storage space in front of others, and 500,000 Valis filled a large sack, Ryou had no choice but to exchange them for diamonds at the guild.
This transaction incurred a 5% handling fee from the guild.
"Gudao-san! You, you, you!"
Just as Ryou was inwardly cursing the guild for its extortionate fees, a stammering, panicked voice rang out.
''Shimata'...,' Ryou turned to look and instantly broke into a cold sweat. (*Oh no.)
Standing behind him was Eina. Ryou had been caught red-handed by this diligent and somewhat strict half-elf girl.
"You... you just became an adventurer. Which floor did you venture to? How could your income for a single day be..." Eina was shocked, but she seemed to hold back and did not mention the exact amount of gold coins Ryou had exchanged.
"Please come with me!"
Eina grabbed Ryou's hand with unyielding determination and led him to a secluded reception room.
"I recall you became an adventurer less than a month ago, yet your day's earnings surpass those of a five-person Lv. 2 team. Can you explain this?"
Eina poured Ryou a cup of tea and immediately began questioning him eagerly. To assert her authority, she leaned forward with her hands on the table.
Eina didn't realize it, but Ryou, sitting opposite her, had a clear view. Due to her movement, her tight-fitting female business suit strained against her full bosom, almost bursting at the seams.
If the guild weren't well-funded and providing high-quality uniforms, the buttons on her chest might have already popped off.
With the sportsmanship of appreciating a fine view, Ryou kept his eyes straight, lightly coughed, and spoke seriously.
"This isn't solely my earnings. It's the combined result of over twenty members of our familia. As the captain of the familia, I naturally shoulder a lot of responsibility!"
He even put on a sorrowful expression as he finished.
"Please answer my question seriously!"
Eina's forehead veins bulged.
"You mentioned your goddess only descended a month ago, right? How did she recruit over twenty members in such a short time without any of them registering at the guild?"
Eina's face was serious as she leaned closer to him, who could even catch a faint floral scent from her.
"Could it be that you're involved in some illegal activities?"
"Sigh," Ryou sighed softly.
"Girls who are too inquisitive are not liked by men."
"That's none of your business!"
Eina's face turned red with embarrassment, and she sat back on the sofa.
"It's no big deal. I just went down to the fifteenth floor by myself," Ryou said nonchalantly.
"The fif-fifteenth floor!?" Even Eina, who was somewhat prepared, was greatly shocked by this revelation.
"But... but you're only..."
"Lv1? Who says an Lv1 can't go down to the fifteenth floor?"
"But there's never been such a precedent..."
"Well, now you've seen one. Let me tell you, although my goddess isn't well-known in Orario, in her homeland, she's famous for her ability to mentor heroes.
Since I'm aiming to be a hero, it's not surprising for an Lv1 to achieve things an Lv3 can do."
"Uh... when you put it that way, it does make sense..."
"By the way, whether you choose to keep this a secret or not is up to you..."
Ryou's gaze suddenly turned serious.
"But I must warn you, if other adventurers find out about this and it causes any trouble, I won't hold back. It would put the guild in a difficult position too."
Seemingly intimidated by his presence, the previously assertive Eina's tone softened. "I-I understand. I won't tell anyone about this."
"Is that so? Well, as a thank-you, how about I cook for you tonight? I happen to be the head chef at the Hostess of Fertility."
"Is... is this an invitation to a date?" Eina asked, lowering her head shyly.
"What are you thinking?"
Ryou replied with a smile, patting her on the head.
"It's just to show my gratitude."
"I understand... Then, I'll gratefully accept."
A complex gleam flashed in Eina's eyes, a mix of regret and relief.
However, Ryou forgot that even if Eina didn't reveal his strength, the sight of him exchanging 500,000 Valis in front of many onlookers had already caught the attention of some interested parties...
======
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