The passage leading from the sixteenth floor to the seventeenth floor of the dungeon.
Alice and the other two were making their way leisurely toward the seventeenth floor. Ais was diligently practicing control over her wind magic, while Lefiya focused on honing her mana control.
Meanwhile, Alice gazed around her surroundings with wide-eyed wonder.
The underground labyrinth of the seventeenth floor was unlike any other. Instead of a sprawling maze, it consisted of a single massive platform—no branching paths, no hidden chambers.
Compared to the other floors, each vast enough to resemble a city, this one felt incredibly small, spanning less than five kilometers in any direction.
The space was compact, and there was only a single monster here.
A creature known as the Floor Boss.
Among humans, different races possessed different innate attributes. Elves were born with mana, while humans had none. Dwarves were naturally stronger, and animal-kin had a variety of special abilities depending on their tribe.
Monsters, too, had racial differences. Some were faster, others had tougher defenses, each with their own traits.
But a Floor Boss was different.
To put it in gaming terms, it was the difference between common mobs and a boss monster. Even at the same level, their fundamental nature was entirely distinct.
The giant known as Goliath was the first Floor Boss of this underground dungeon. Enormous in size, with a body as hard as stone, possessing immense strength and ferocious attack power—it was a foe rivaling a Level 4 adventurer.
Alice was deeply curious about this giant called Goliath.
In her memories, the Alice from Gensokyo had a giant doll named Goliath. Though the Goliath Doll was huge, it was also quite cute. And without a doubt, it was powerful.
Creating Alice's dolls required a crucial core, crafted from magic crystals. To make a Goliath Doll, she would need an enormous magic crystal capable of supporting its construction.
Obviously, no crystal of that size existed in Orario. Whether the Floor Boss Goliath would drop such a material, Alice didn't know, but if it did, that would be a nice bonus.
Moreover, Alice wanted to experience fighting a giant enemy—to understand its attacks, how to strike it, and learn its strengths and weaknesses.
She had been targeted by the Apollo Familia. Their captain had even ambushed her on the road.
Though she'd defeated him with a self-destruct-like attack, it felt a bit like a fluke. If her opponent had been truly serious, her lack of combat awareness, close-quarters skill, and battle experience would have been major liabilities.
She could, of course, report it to the Guild. As an ordinary person not affiliated with a Familia, the Guild would, in principle, help her by punishing the Apollo Familia.
But being "ordinary" wasn't really about whether you'd joined a Familia or not. When Lili was young, working at a regular shop, it was trashed by members of the Soma Familia, and the Guild hadn't lifted a finger.
In the end, in this city, the gods' words held the most weight. Given the strength Alice had displayed, many deities were probably curious to see what would happen if she clashed with the Apollo Familia.
So, the Guild's punishment wouldn't really achieve much.
Knowing that a fight with the Apollo Familia was inevitable, Alice assessed her own strength. To deal with Hyakinthos, she'd had to use herself as bait, lure him in close, and defeat him with a self-destruct tactic. Next time, it wouldn't just be Hyakinthos—it would be the entire Apollo Familia.
Alice felt completely outmatched.
Even with her mana allowing multiple self-destruct-style attacks, her enemies wouldn't foolishly rush in again.
She didn't believe for a second they lacked mages or, at the very least, archers. Her magic was potent, but at her current level, she could only handle Level 3 opponents. A Level 4 was questionable.
Therefore, facing the Apollo Familia head-on seemed impossible.
Her current strength wasn't enough. Alice needed to grow stronger.
Without a Falna, she couldn't level up by achieving great feats. While learning magic and cultivating her mana would make her stronger, it was a gradual process. It wouldn't grant her a sudden power boost in a short time.
According to Ais, the Giant Goliath was roughly equivalent to a Level 4 adventurer.
In the Loki Familia, Alice had managed to escape from a holding-back Bete and had even pressured the Level 3 Lefiya. She had defeated Hyakinthos. But she still didn't have a clear grasp of her own full combat potential.
So, this was a perfect opportunity—a Level 4 Giant Goliath. Plus, she had the Level 5 Ais backing her up. Safety wasn't a concern; Alice could go all out against Goliath.
When Alice proposed this and asked for her help, Ais agreed without a second thought. In Ais's view, Alice, who had given her hope of becoming stronger, was her benefactor. Whatever Alice asked, Ais would agree, regardless of the danger.
As for Lefiya, when she heard Alice planned to challenge Goliath, she immediately objected. Of course, Alice completely ignored her. Even now, Lefiya trailed behind them with a sullen look.
"Alice-chan, if it's about the Apollo Familia, we can help you! Even if you don't want to join a Familia, I'd still help you without hesitation!" Lefiya said, following close behind. She felt deeply puzzled by Alice's refusal to join a Familia. While she respected Alice's choice, she simply couldn't understand it.
But as Lefiya said, if the Apollo Familia really made a move on Alice, she would absolutely step in.
Though her concurrent chanting was still a work in progress, Lefiya was confident she'd mastered the key to it and would perfect the technique soon.
Once her chanting was streamlined, combined with her [Elf Ring], her power would reach unprecedented heights. Frankly, the Apollo Familia didn't intimidate her, even at Level 3.
Hearing Lefiya's words, Alice smiled faintly.
"This time it's the Apollo Familia. What about next time, and the time after that? I haven't joined a Familia, so I can't level up. I have my own path to strength. It might be slow, but it's steady and smooth, without any bottlenecks."
"And even if I call it slow, from your perspective, it might not seem that way at all."
"Most importantly, I used to just train slowly and wait. But now, I won't just sit back and let enemies come to me one by one."
"When defeating foes, doing so with overwhelming force is always the best choice."
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