Chapter 263: Floor Collapse?
Liam examined the weapon again and confirmed his initial opinion.
"From my perspective, compared to a standard weapon in Orario, this thing's durability isn't very good."
"But its durability is only slightly worse than a regular weapon," the student argued. "It's perfectly fine to use as a main weapon!"
Liam shook his head. "That's not what I mean. For an adventurer, sustained combat capability is far more important than a momentary burst of power. This is especially true during an expedition. If your weapon breaks, it's almost equivalent to losing half your life."
Liam went on to explain the values of adventurers in the Dungeon and the situations they face.
"Many adventurers, like those in the Loki Familia, will spend at least half a month, sometimes a full month or more, on a single expedition. In that scenario, the destruction of a primary weapon is a fatal blow. The deeper the floor, the more exhausted everyone is, physically and mentally. Even if you have a smith with you, watching your weapon break down bit by bit puts an incredible strain on your psyche..."
Hearing Liam's explanation, the surrounding students had a sudden realization. A moment later, they shivered with secondhand fear. They were all vividly imagining the scene Liam described. If they were on an expedition in that sunless dungeon, their weapons steadily breaking, their supplies dwindling, facing unknown enemies and unknown dangers... that kind of pressure would be enough to drive anyone insane.
Liam looked at the crowd again. "Therefore, first-tier adventurers prize 'Indestructible' weapons above all else. They are willing to sacrifice a bit of sharpness just to have one."
As for adventurers below the first tier, if they had enough money, they would naturally also consider an Indestructible weapon. Even if they couldn't afford one, they would still prioritize a more durable product.
"Furthermore, for adventurers, they spend as much as they earn," Liam continued. "Weapons, armor, items, medical supplies, and so on. The income they get from the Dungeon is generally all consumed by their expenses. This is especially true for adventurers who want to conquer even deeper floors."
This was the current reality for adventurers. Just look at the Loki Familia: because they were constantly on long expeditions, their finances were always tight. Not only that, but when Ais was still in the Familia, she, the Amazon twins, Bete, and the others were either frequently destroying their weapons or constantly burning through consumable items like Magic Swords. Because of this, their funds were always stretched thin. It was only after they started taking rotating shifts to guard the Grand Casino that their finances had stabilized.
"Gieg! It looks like you've done a lot of homework on the Dungeon. That's amazing!"
"Incredible. We really didn't consider the adventurers' perspective. If we could just put ourselves in their shoes, maybe we could create much better work!"
The students began to praise Liam one by one, leaving him feeling a bit helpless.
Nina was filled with admiration. This new student was incredible in every way. She wanted to learn as much as she could from him.
After school, Nina was leaving the building when she ran into her demi-human friends.
"Nina! Are you going to join the Guild recruitment tests with us?"
Nina shook her head apologetically. "I already got a 'C' on the assessment. Besides, I have my own goals now. I don't want to just be a support staff member."
A simple desk job at the Guild wasn't enough for her. She wanted to be more useful. She wanted to be stronger. That kind of comfortable, stable job where you could see your entire future laid out... she didn't want it. She wanted to experience the unknown. She wanted to become a powerful existence, just like Gieg.
At the thought of him, Nina felt her heart beat faster. It seemed she was starting to fall for him. She thought about how Gieg had already decided his path, while she was still so lost. She knew she wanted to be an adventurer, to be someone useful who could make a difference. But as for which Familia to join, she still had no idea.
While the Falna given by the gods was the same, the development abilities, skills, and magic one acquired were entirely dependent on the individual. But different Familias had different environments, and that could also have a major impact on her future. It was just like with educational institutions; when it came to learning, there was no better environment than the Academy.
Time passed. It was now Liam's tenth day at the Academy and the morning of the seventh day of the Dungeon internship.
The Third Squad was gathered in the lounge of their dormitory, brimming with confidence. They had analyzed their team's combat power. Even without Gieg intervening, as long as Iglin and the others cooperated, they could definitely reach the 15th Floor, which was the deepest floor the Academy allowed them to go. For this special internship, they wanted to test the strength of the 15th Floor and, at the same time, test their own limits.
Iglin looked at the others. "Alright everyone, let's try for the 15th Floor today!"
No one had any objections. After confirming Gieg's expression, Iglin led the way toward the Guild. The Academy students now made it a habit to stop by the Guild before every trip to the Dungeon. Only after receiving their internship permits could they officially set out.
As for other adventurers in Orario, only the more meticulous ones would visit the Guild first. The headquarters usually provided real-time updates on the latest information from the Dungeon, such as when a Monster Party occurred on a certain floor, or when a floor boss was killed. It also posted various quests and requests.
Liam went to handle the paperwork and glanced at the internal info board. He saw the status of the 17th-floor boss, Goliath. It looked like it wouldn't respawn for another two days.
Then he saw Eina in the main hall, clearly looking for someone. Obviously, she was looking for Nina. But Liam was currently in his "Gieg" persona, and in this identity, he couldn't exactly tell her about Nina's situation. He wasn't equipped to handle this kind of family drama right now. Maybe he could try to mend their relationship later when he had the chance.
As Liam and his team were walking out of the Guild, he noticed the other adventurers were giving them dirty looks. It seemed they were still unhappy with the Academy students.
After leaving the Guild, they headed for the Dungeon.
"I just saw a piece of intel that you should all pay attention to," Liam said. "The 17th-floor boss, Goliath, will probably respawn in two days."
Iglin looked confused. "Gieg, why should we care about Goliath? The deepest we're going is the 15th Floor."
"Because the Dungeon is an unpredictable place where anything can happen. For example, a floor collapse."
Nina froze, then tensed up. "That can actually happen?"
"Yes. On top of that, the adventurers on the 18th Floor sometimes get lazy. After they kill Goliath, they can't be bothered to report it right away just to save trouble. So, it's possible Goliath has already respawned."
Kris grunted in dissatisfaction. "What do you mean, 'can't be bothered'? Isn't that totally irresponsible?"
Liam shrugged. "If you want to send a message from inside the Dungeon, you either have to use an expensive, special-type communication magic stone, which costs a lot of Valis per use, or you have to dispatch an adventurer to run all the way to the surface to inform the Guild."
Liam's explanation left Kris and the others speechless. They're willing to delay a critical report just to save a magic stone and some Valis? The people there were too cheap.
After their grumbling session, Liam and the team continued their descent. They already had excellent coordination on the upper floors and wasted no time. They reached the 15th Floor with high efficiency.
The body of a Crystal Mantis looked as if it were composed entirely of crystal. Such monsters were obviously extremely hard and had outstanding defense against sharp weapons. Of course, a blunt weapon could easily destroy them. Iglin, wielding his heavy hammer, shattered three of them in a single blow.
Liam remained in the rear guard, only stepping in to support his teammates just before they were about to get hit. The coordination between the members of the Third Squad was becoming more and more seamless.
"This is great! The Third Squad is handling the 15th Floor with ease!"
They hadn't encountered a Minotaur these past few days. The Minotaur was a high-tier Level 2 monster, possessing extremely powerful melee capabilities. It was a top-class threat even among Level 2s.
As the team took a break, Nina and the others began collecting the drop items.
Liam looked at the relaxing Reche and the others. "Everyone, don't let your guard down. Be prepared for a Monster Party. Of course, I'm just saying the probability is high. It could be some other dangerous situation."
"A Monster Party? You've got to be kidding me."
As Academy students, they had heard of the Dungeon's Monster Parties. Just about every adventurer knew about them. It was an irregular, massive spawn of monsters, more than enough to pose a mortal threat to an entire party.
"Sssskkk..."
"Kiiiikiki..."
"Wraaaaaa..."
Piercing shrieks suddenly erupted from the ceiling. A crimson light glowed, and chunks of rock began to fall. The ceiling of this floor was spawning vast numbers of Evil Bats.
The combined screeches of the monsters overlapped, creating a noise so intense that it forced Iglin and the others to their knees. Evil Bats began to spawn from the walls as well as the ceiling. It was just as he'd said: the Dungeon might have its own will, and it was filled with malice toward adventurers. This situation was clearly targeting their team.
Amidst the mass spawning, the entire floor began to tremble. Cracks appeared in the ceiling, followed by a shower of rubble. A massive boulder, more than ten meters in diameter, broke loose and plummeted toward Liam and his team.
Liam's left hand gripped the hilt of his katana. He sighed.
Except for him, everyone else was completely incapacitated. A single Evil Bat's screech was just an annoyance. But when there were enough of them, their cries could create a resonance with terrifying destructive power. A ten-meter boulder was not something a Level 2 could destroy.
He slashed upward. A wave of sword qi flew from his blade, cleanly slicing the boulder apart. The massive rock instantly shattered into thousands of tiny fragments that scattered in all directions.
He glanced down at his teammates, then surveyed their surroundings. The path back to the 14th Floor was now completely blocked. And the sheer amount of rock clogging the passage was clearly not something a Level 2 team could clear.
He could have blamed the noise for masking his attack on the boulder, but now... If he wanted to maintain his disguise, his only choice was to lead them deeper.
"That was so dangerous..." Nina said, her face pale as she looked around. They had all been forced to their knees, completely helpless, due to the intense sound waves.
"It looks like the sonic resonance caused a cave-in. Captain, what do we do now?"
The others all looked to Liam. They were waiting for him to make the decision.
"What are our supplies?"
"Three healing potions, three mind potions, and four stamina potions. We also have enough food and water for the five of us for two meals."
For Dungeon combat, the typical rations were dried meat and cooked rice. The main criteria were high calories, filling, and easy to eat.
Liam looked at each of them. "Then we head to the 18th Floor. Compared to trying to dig our way out of the 15th, it's obviously safer to go to the 18th."
Iglin gripped his warhammer. "Alright! We'll go to the 18th Floor! Let's show those guys who looked down on us what we're made of!"
If they stayed on the 15th to dig, they would have to fight off monsters spawning from every direction. The risk was too high. Going to the 18th Floor, where they could be resupplied and where Liam was already very familiar with the route, was the safer bet.
"We don't actually have to fight our way through every single floor to get there," Liam said. "I remember there are vertical pitfalls in the middle floors. As long as we find one, we can jump straight down to the next level."
The team, which had been bracing for a desperate fight, let out a collective sigh of relief.
"That's great! If so, the pressure on us will be much less!"
From the 16th Floor onward, the monster strength increased again. They encountered Horned Rabbits, which were incredibly fast, but Reche could handle them. Iglin was able to block and defeat the warrior-type monsters. Although this was supposed to be training for the students, Liam would still step in to provide support at the opportune moment.
The rest of the time, his main focus was on researching his own Oni Power.
Now on the seventh day, Liam decided to keep the suppressor device unsealed 24/7. His physical abilities were enhanced, his sensitivity to dark magic was heightened, and with it came a growing thirst for battle. Removing the restraints again, Liam felt his desire for combat burn even stronger.