Tower of Babel.
It was a towering structure built on top of the Dungeon, acting as a suppressing tool to monitor and keep monsters from escaping. Only the Main Gods of the top Familias were qualified to live on the 50th and topmost floor of the Tower of Babel.
Currently, Loki Familia and Freya Familia are recognized as the strongest Familias in Orario, replacing the Zeus Familia and Hera Familia of the past.
In other words, the exclusive rooms on the 50th floor were only suitable for Loki and Freya. However, Loki preferred to live with her Familia children and resided in Twilight Manor, leaving her room in the Tower of Babel empty.
On the other hand, Freya occupied the most luxurious room in the entire Tower of Babel. It was equipped with murals, carpets, chandeliers, wardrobes, and other decorations more lavish than a five-star hotel.
There was an observation deck offering a panoramic view of Orario, from a location inaccessible by any other building.
Freya stood at the window of the observation deck.
The rectangular glass replaced the walls, clearly highlighting her beautiful figure. She had long silver hair, purple eyes, and skin as white as freshly fallen snow.
Freya possessed a perfect golden ratio, enough to make one think the golden ratio originated from her. Her attire was primarily black and red, exposing much of her stomach and chest. She also wore two flower-like ornaments in her hair.
Her beauty made mortals and even gods lose their sanity.
Her eyes suddenly narrowed, focusing on a white-haired youth dressed in white, standing out starkly among the other adventurers.
"Charlie Avalon... It's truly unprecedented for a soul to be so pure yet tainted by darkness. And with such qualifications... He's even better than Bell Cranel."
"Why would such a treasure fall into the hands of that madwoman?"
The madwoman Freya referred to was none other than Hera.
"Are all white-haired youths lately blessed with talent and captivating souls? It seems luck isn't on my side; I missed both of them."
"Unlike Bell Cranel's soul, which is pure and innocent like a naïve child who hasn't seen the world, Charlie Avalon's soul is filled with justice but now tainted by darkness, distorted by the world's cruelty. Yet, he hasn't fully fallen into corruption and madness, causing his soul to not completely mix light and darkness into one."
Freya possessed an innate ability to see the colors and brilliance of souls, called Discerning Eye. As this ability was passive, she could use it even with her Arcanum sealed.
Thanks to Discerning Eye, she claimed talented individuals before anyone else. She could also vaguely estimate an adventurer's status by seeing them. Thus, she was astonished to see the EX rank in all of Charlie's basic abilities.
"Hera and Hestia, you are both so fortunate." Freya didn't hide her jealousy.
Before discovering Charlie, Freya had first been interested in another white-haired boy who had a bright and radiant soul.
Later, Freya asked Ottar to bring her any information he could find.
The boy's name was Bell Cranel, and he had applied to her Familia but was rejected at the gates of Folkvangr. Freya could never be mad at those who guarded the gate that day. Besides, Freya Familia never recruited openly and had never done so.
From the information her Familia gathered, Freya learned that Bell had approached every Familia he could find, starting with the top ones like Freya Familia and Loki Familia. When they rejected him, Bell moved on to the next tier, like Ganesha Familia.
In short, Bell had tried every day to join a Familia, but none accepted him.
Some Familias turned him down politely, but most were much harsher. Bell had been outright driven away, called weak, called small, and even spat on multiple times.
When Freya wanted to invite Bell into her Familia, she was a step too late. Hestia had beaten her to it, recruiting the almost desperate Bell into Hestia Familia.
"Just based on soul quality, Bell Cranel is slightly better than Charlie Avalon. However, Charlie Avalon's qualifications are immeasurable, even with Discerning Eye."
"If I had to use an analogy to describe their potential, Bell Cranel is a Eiyuu (Hero/Great Hero), while Charlie Avalon is a Yuusha (Brave Hero/Champion). Both of them are beings that shouldn't exist in the same era. As expected, the lower world never fails to excite me."
Touching her lips with her finger, Freya flashed a passionate smile.
❀❀❀
Charlie walked calmly in the narrow corridors of Dungeon Floor 7. Light emanated from the ceiling, illuminating the pale green walls in all directions.
"Strange, why do I suddenly have chills? Never mind, maybe people are cursing me because of my closeness to Aiz."
Not paying much attention to the sudden chills, Charlie drew the Sword of Damocles as he spotted a monster ahead.
The monster had four legs, two slender arms, and two large eyes. Its body resembled a giant red ant.
Charlie had read the monster introduction book and memorized all known monster types.
The monster ahead was called Killer Ants.
Killer Ants were famously dubbed Rookie Killers, ranking near the top of the most dangerous enemies for Level 1 adventurers. They fought in swarms, used pheromones to attract allies in emergencies, and were responsible for more beginner adventurer deaths than any other monster on the Upper Floors.
With thick skin as armor and sharp jaws capable of cutting through both armor and bone, Killer Ants were a fearsome opponent.
Fighting one was an achievement, defeating a handful meant flirting with danger, and facing a horde was a death sentence.
At least, Killer Ants were very dangerous for most beginner adventurers, but Charlie was an exception.
"Giii!!!!"
Sensing the approach of a living being, dozens of Killer Ants rushed toward Charlie without hesitation, moving at incredible speed.
"Screaming before attacking... What kind of bad habit is that?" Charlie sneered.
"Lightning Divine Protection."
Using Spirit Art, he enchanted his body with lightning. Yellow lightning sparks enveloped his body.
*RUMBLE*
*WHOOSH*
*Pu-chi* *Pu-chi* *Pu-chi*
In the next second, Charlie moved at high speed and attacked the horde of Killer Ants.
As his figure appeared behind the Killer Ants, purple fluid gushed from the headless Killer Ants, and their bodies collapsed to the ground.
In the blink of an eye, Charlie wiped out dozens of Killer Ants.
"After reaching Level 2, my body can withstand the power of lightning. If I meet Bete Loga again, I won't be paralyzed after using Lightning Spirit Art just once."
"By the way, I looked like Pikachu earlier. Forget it, no one knows what Pikachu is in this world. So, I don't have to worry about how I look when using Lightning Spirit Art."
Among the five basic natural elements: water, fire, lightning, earth, and wind—there was no doubt that lightning had the strongest destructive attribute and the fastest speed.
The reason Charlie rarely used Lightning Spirit Art and more often used Wind Spirit Art was that his body wasn't strong enough to withstand lightning itself.
He only used it in desperate situations when facing strong opponents, such as when saving Aphrodite from a Griffin or fighting Bete's rampage.
But now Charlie found he no longer felt side effects when attacking with Lightning Spirit Art.
"That means I'm stronger than before. With Spirit Art, I'm unbeatable among Level 2 and Level 3 adventurers. As for Level 4... I'll test my strength in the coliseum run by Ganesha Familia if I get the chance."
Charlie stopped thinking about the matter as a larger horde of Killer Ants approached.
"I must not get arrogant."
After calming his swelling mentality, he took the initiative to charge at the Killer Ants.
*Pu-chi* *Pu-chi* *Pu-chi*
With the sharpness of the Sword of Damocles, the Killer Ants' thick skin couldn't withstand a single slash, and they died in a fury.