A mischievous voice echoed.
"Who! Who's there?"
Canoe and his two henchmen instantly stood back-to-back, forming a triangular stance.
"Who's pretending to be a ghost? Come out!"
Canoe shouted menacingly.
Suddenly, two figures, one big and one small, emerged from the shadows.
"Surprised? Didn't expect this, did you?"
Ryou said with a teasing expression.
"You! How dare you trick me!"
Canoe immediately pointed his double-edged short sword at Ryou.
"Don't be hasty, old man, there's an even bigger surprise and shock waiting for you."
As he spoke, he threw Lily towards them.
Caught off guard, the three were knocked to the ground.
Canoe quickly got up and grabbed Lily's hair.
"Damn it! How dare you conspire with outsiders against me!"
"Canoe-sama! I didn't! I didn't..."
Lily was about to explain, but Ryou clapped his hands.
"Congratulations, you got it right! She made a deal with me to lure you three idiots here so we could finish you off, and then she'd be completely free."
"You despicable human! How dare you!"
Canoe, not waiting for Lily to defend herself, slammed her to the ground, stepping on her chest, and aimed his short sword at her heart.
"I advise you, instead of dealing with her, you'd better take care of yourself."
Ryou said, pulling out two monster-attracting devices and throwing them in front of them.
"This! This is!"
Canoe's face changed as he looked at the two objects.
It seemed these two devices had been exposed to the air for a while, so the nearby monsters were surely rushing over.
Just as an ominous thought flashed through Canoe's mind, it turned into reality.
Squeak! Squeak!
With a piercing noise, fiery red man-eating ants crawled in from the clearing entrance.
One, two... eight, nine...
The man-eating ants kept crawling in, seemingly endless.
In just a few seconds, over a dozen man-eating ants had already crawled in, emitting that piercing noise as if calling their distant companions.
To make matters worse, cracks appeared in the stone walls, and more man-eating ants crawled out.
"Are you crazy! Do you know what you're doing? Do you want to die together?"
Canoe shouted in terror.
"No, no! Old man, only you will die here."
Facing the endless sea of man-eating ants, Ryou remained extremely relaxed.
"Well, I'll be going now. Good luck!"
Ryou smiled and waved at Canoe and his men in the clearing's area.
Then Ryou protected his head and face with his hands, leaned forward, and stomped hard.
Boom!
The ground cracked, and he charged towards the entrance like a heavy tank.
Countless man-eating ants tried to stop him, but their sharp pincers, which could easily cut through leather armor, couldn't harm Ryou's skin. They only left white marks without breaking the skin.
Just like that, he charged out the entrance, brushing off the man-eating ants' attacks.
Canoe and his men were stunned by this reckless move.
"Damn it! He's not a rookie adventurer!"
Canoe furiously kicked Lily lying on the ground.
"Boss, forget about her! Think of a way out!"
Canoe's henchman cried out in panic.
Among them, only Canoe was LV2, making it nearly impossible to break through the encirclement of so many man-eating ants.
"Damn it!"
Canoe considered using Lily as bait, but with only one entrance, the bait would be useless.
"We're charging through!"
He decided almost instantly.
"Boss! How are we supposed to charge through so many man-eating ants?"
Canoe's henchman, seeing the dense swarm of ants, was trembling.
"If you want to die, stay here!"
Canoe cursed and led the charge, with his henchmen reluctantly following him in a desperate charge against the ant horde.
Perhaps it was the dire situation that triggered Canoe's potential, or maybe it was the advantage of his LV2 attributes, or possibly a stroke of fate's favor.
Amazingly, Canoe broke through!
Though he was covered in blood, had lost his left eye, and had his right wrist severed, he miraculously escaped from the sea of ants.
As for his two henchmen, they were torn to pieces by the man-eating ants halfway through.
"Damn you, bastard! Just wait, when I get back, you'll pay!"
The surviving Canoe cursed as he walked away.
However, his luck seemed to have run out.
As he turned a corner, a massive shadow instantly enveloped him.
"Why is there a floor boss here!? No!..."
Accompanied by the sound of flesh being torn apart, Canoe's scream was abruptly cut off.
Meanwhile, Lily lay on the ground, unable to move, covered in wounds.
Seeing the man-eating ants slowly surrounding her, Lily's face showed a look of despair.
Her life flashed before her eyes like a revolving lantern.
Becoming an orphan, being forced to become a supporter, constantly exploited by adventurers, finally escaping only to be taken in by an elderly couple, only for adventurers to find her, destroy the couple's shop, and plunge her back into darkness...
"Dear gods, since you allowed Lily to be born in this world, why won't you bestow even a tiny bit of blessing upon her?"
"Lily didn't want to become such a dirty person."
"Lily tried, but even that small bit of happiness was snatched away in an instant."
"Dear gods, what did Lily do wrong to deserve this? To become someone she despises yet is powerless to change?"
Lily lay on the ground, lamenting and complaining about her tragic and unfortunate life.
However, although the man-eating ants surrounded her, they did not attack. Instead, it seemed as though they were waiting for something.
Thud!
Suddenly, the ground vibrated violently, as if some colossal being had appeared.
Even Lily, lying on the ground waiting to die, couldn't help but turn her head slightly.
A terrifying figure instantly came into her view.
It was three times the size of a regular man-eating ant, larger than a warhorse. Its lower body was that of a man-eating ant, but its upper body resembled a human female.
"The floor boss, the Ant Queen!"
"To die at the hands of a floor boss, is this the gods' way of favoring me, letting me die more gloriously?"
Lily smiled bitterly.
With the arrival of the Ant Queen, the man-eating ants made their way, allowing the queen to walk unimpeded to Lily's side.
Ryou had naturally encountered this Ant Queen as well, but he used the stealth effect of his ring to evade it instantly.
Though he could kill the Ant Queen with some effort since it was a grand gift for Canoe and his men, how could Ryou take away their prize?
Smelling the sour stench, Lily slowly closed her eyes, a relieved smile appearing on her face.
"It's all about to end soon..."
"Lily is going to die here..."
At that moment, a commotion interrupted the Ant Queen, who was preparing to feast.
Boom!
A crescent-shaped white light slashed through, instantly turning the man-eating ants at the clearing's entrance into ashes, with magic stones clattering to the ground.
Lily instinctively opened her eyes.
She saw two unfamiliar figures at the entrance.
One was a pigman warrior, about two meters tall, with a giant sword on his back, resembling an iron statue.
The other was a white-haired boy in black heavy armor, also wielding a giant sword.
"Hmm? An Ant Queen? This floor boss may be LV3, but it specializes in healing and summoning, making it a perfect opponent," the pigman said, turning to look at the white-haired boy beside him.
"Bell, I'll leave it to you. I won't interfere. Show your worth to the goddess!"
The pigman warrior crossed his arms and stood by, watching coldly.
"Yes, teacher!"
The white-haired boy charged at the Ant Queen.
Seeing the figure in black armor, Lily, who had fallen into despair, suddenly felt a ray of light shine into her heart.
"Ha!"
With a shout, the white-haired boy spun his giant sword like a wheel.
As he moved, the man-eating ants died upon contact, wounded upon touch.
Seemingly provoked by the boy's actions, the Ant Queen let out a piercing roar, and then abandoned Lily. Its six long limbs moved swiftly as it rushed at the white-haired boy.
Bell faced the Ant Queen head-on and attacked.
They clashed like thunder and lightning, entangling each other immediately.
Bell's attacks were wild yet precise, blocking most of the Ant Queen's strikes with his giant sword.
After a fierce battle, Bell was covered in wounds, though mostly superficial. The Ant Queen, however, had three of its six legs severed, and a massive wound stretched from its humanoid upper body's shoulder to its abdomen, nearly splitting it in two.
The Ant Queen retreated suddenly, emitting a sharp cry.
The remaining man-eating ants charged at him in a suicidal frenzy.
Momentarily, the boy was held back by the ants.
Taking advantage of this, the Ant Queen began using healing magic, with its wounds starting to heal visibly.
It seemed the effort might be in vain.
"Not a chance!"
Bell suddenly threw his giant sword like a spear at the Ant Queen.
Squeak!
Caught off guard, the Ant Queen was pierced through the chest by the sword. With a shrill scream, it turned to ashes.
Thud!
A massive magic stone fell from the air.
"Teacher, I did it!"
Bell excitedly shouted to the pigman warrior.
Wham!
The pigman warrior rewarded him with a punch.
"Idiot! How can a warrior casually discard his weapon!"
"S-sorry!"
Be immediately bowed in apology.
He didn't notice the fleeting smile on the pigman warrior's face.
The pigman warrior and the white-haired boy were none other than Ottar and Bell.
The goddess had entrusted this boy to him for training, and initially, Ottar had refused.
Cowardly, timid, and habitually apologizing at the slightest issue, Bell was like a rabbit.
He didn't resemble a warrior at all.
That was Ottar's initial assessment. If it weren't for his absolute loyalty to the goddess Freya, Ottar might have only given a half-hearted effort.
However, over time, Bell's virtues began to shine through.
Setting aside his terrifyingly strong talent, he lacked the arrogance typical of prodigies, being humble and polite instead.
He was so kind-hearted it bordered on stubbornness, often considered a pushover.
While not a perfect warrior, he was undoubtedly the best teammate. You could trust your back to him completely.
This was extremely rare within Freya's Familia.
Most adventurers who joined Freya did so for her unparalleled beauty. They saw all their Familia members as rivals, wishing for their demise. It was uncommon to find someone who wouldn't stab you in the back, let alone protect it or cooperate as a team.
Even Ottar himself was like this. He had almost always been a solo adventurer from LV1 to LV7.
The feeling of entrusting his back to someone else was novel to him.
Gradually, Ottar changed his opinion of Bell.
Though immature, he was dependable.
That was his new evaluation, and he almost poured everything he had into teaching Bell, including dungeon exploration, monster-fighting techniques, and even combat skills.
Do not underestimate these seemingly trivial details. Sometimes, they could save your life in a critical moment.
Especially since this knowledge came from the only LV7 in Orario, the 'King' Ottar.
If he compiled it into a book and auctioned it, it would fetch an astronomical price.
Under Ottar's meticulous guidance and with Bell's extraordinary talent, Bell grew rapidly, almost as if riding a rocket.
By now, he could independently defeat a floor boss like the LV3 Ant Queen.
"When we get back, let the goddess update your status. You should have reached LV2 by now," Ottar said, patting Bell on the shoulder.
"Yes, teacher! Thank you for your guidance."
The sincere white-haired boy seemed greatly encouraged, standing tall and bowing deeply.
"Collect the magic stone and bring it back. As for that Pallum..."
Ottar glanced coldly at Lily, about to tell Bell to leave her be.
But Bell ran over to Lily.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt? Can you stand?"
Bell asked, extending a hand.
Ottar swallowed his words and shook his head helplessly.
Lily grabbed Bell's hand and stood up, surprising him with her next action.
She hugged his waist tightly, and tears poured out like a waterfall.
"Thank you! Thank you so much!..."
Lily cried and thanked him repeatedly as if she was grateful not only for saving her life but also her soul.
"Don't cry! Don't cry!"
Bell, who had never been this close to a girl, blushed furiously and flailed awkwardly.
At that moment, Ottar's eyes suddenly turned sharp.
"Who's there!"
He drew his giant sword with a reverse grip and dashed like a black lightning bolt towards a corner, sweeping his sword at the seemingly empty spot.
Clang!
A loud clash echoed, and sparks flew.
In the shadows, a figure suddenly appeared: Ryou had returned.
His hands were crossed blocking Ohta's enormous sword. Sparks continually flew from the blue-quality gauntlets issued by the system he wore. Upon closer inspection, a significant crack had already marred the gauntlet's toughest part, evidence of damage from Ottar's casual strike.
"It's you," Ottar said, withdrawing his sword with an expressionless face, though surprise flickered in his eyes.
"Don't misunderstand; I lured that floor master here as prey," Ryou said with a smile, seemingly unfazed by Ottar's earlier attack.
"Kid, let's go," Ottar said, giving Ryou a deep look before turning to summon Bell to depart.
"Yes, teacher!"
Bell quickly supported Lili and followed Ottar out.
As he passed Ryou, he bowed deeply.
"Thank you for your help! I'll never forget this kindness!"
To Bell, Ryou was the benefactor who had pulled him from the abyss in his darkest moment and the figure he tirelessly pursued. However, Lili trembled beside him, avoiding Ryous gaze as she clung tightly to Bell's clothing.
Ryou's actions had left a profound psychological impact on her.
As the three figures gradually faded, Ryou's smile faded too, replaced by a serious expression as he retrieved a healing potion from the system and drank it.
"As expected of Orario's only level 7; the power gap between level 5 is immense."
Unbeknownst to him, a cold sweat covered his forehead. His hands were fractured from Ottar's casual strike. Despite using magic and the pre-drawn 'Guardian' rune, he was severely injured.
"My preparations were correct," Ryou mused.
The Loki Familia had dispatched three level 6 adventurers to match Ottar's level 7 prowess, and the Demi Spirits avatar on the fifty-ninth floor had nearly wiped out Loki Familia's elite team, indicating its strength far exceeded Ottar's.
After undergoing demonic transformation, how much stronger would the avatar become? The thought sent chills down his spine.
...
Life seemed normal again, with only sporadic news reminding Ryou that the world kept turning. For instance, the biggest news was the upcoming Monster Festival, celebrating humans' expulsion of monsters from the surface.
Hosted by the Ganesha Familia and supported by the Guild and major familias, the festival aimed to boost mortal morale.
Another news piece, though less influential, caused a stir among adventure-focused familias: the Freya Familia had recruited Bell Cranel, who had risen from level 1 to 2 in under a month, a feat previously unheard of.
Familias initially disbelieved, accusing Bell of cheating. Yet, unlike the original story, Bell had joined the prestigious Freya Familia, under level 7 Ottar's tutelage.
Despite jealousy and doubt, familias hypocritically offered their congratulations.
=====
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