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17.42% Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos / Chapter 407: Dead Zone

Capítulo 407: Dead Zone

There were no distinguishable differences between the 25th, 26th, and 27th floors other than the density of the monsters the group faced. After realizing the ridiculous amount of OP he could earn on the floors, Vahn had the group progress through the floors at a somewhat slower pace than they had originally intended. Knowing that he could convert the magic cores into useful and unique items, even Riveria didn't have any complaints and they systematically hunted every single monster within Vahn's range of detection as they made their way deeper into the floors. Other than a break for lunch, the group had been in combat for nearly fourteen hours and everyone was able to experience the support capabilities of having Vahn in the group.

Vahn's own energy regeneration was quite high, with the support of [Mantra of Eternity], [Yggrasil's Favor], and [Spirit Healing] constantly working to replenish his reserves. Using [Hands of Nirvana], in conjunction with his domain, Vahn was able to recover the stamina of everyone within the entire group while also directly recovering the mana of the mages within the group. His detection range was inarguably some of the best that anyone in the group had ever seen and his backline support using his bow was exceptional. Even when someone suffered the rare injury, Vahn would simply turn into his Xuánwǔ form before transplanting the injury to his own body, which would rapidly regenerate without the need for using any consumable items. For their nine-member group, Vahn could sustain the entire party almost indefinitely, assuming they weren't thrown into an unexpected situation.

The only thing Vahn couldn't actually deal with was the mental strain everyone, including himself, faced by fighting such long engagements. Though he could use his [Hands of Nirvana] to help calm their minds, Vahn knew there was a real mental burden that people faced when going through stress for long periods of time. Even if his energy and stamina were filled to the brim, Vahn had often 'collapsed' in the past because of the mental burdens he had faced. Other than mana, or energy, there were also factors such as Spiritual Energy and Mental Energy, which Vahn had no methods of restoring at the moment.

By the time the group had reached the staircase leading down to the 28th floor, everyone was mentally exhausted so Vahn decided to call it a day. Though they weren't making progress as quickly as he'd like, he now had a reserve pool of 299,316OP after purchasing the final two [Effigy of the Hero]s for Riveria and Ais. Vahn's ability to scout and track enemies allowed to 'efficiently' hunt monsters so he was assuming they would be able to make up for lost time when they finally reached the 30th floor tomorrow. The 28th and 29th floor were actually considered 'dead zones' within the Dungeon, so they wouldn't actually take too much time to pass through because of the low number of monsters they would face along the way.

Other than a few random monsters, such as Devil Mosquitos and Light Quartzes, they wouldn't face any real opposition on the next two floors at all. Of course, the complacency some groups would have when finally reaching this point, had led to several party wipes because of the few variants that would sometimes patrol the floors. One example was the Merman Tyrants that would appear occasionally and often led groups of more than a hundred Mermen into battle. Vahn had experienced fighting the organized groups of monsters on the 26th floor and knew they could be somewhat problematic if you couldn't deal with their Captains quickly. They had a strange method of communication that allowed them to strategize and try to get an advantage.

Unfortunately, they weren't able to do much once they had fallen into Vahn's detection range and he was able to deal with them by firing explosive arrows into the water. Vahn discovered that the concussive wave of an explosion was even more effective in water, so he had switched to explosive arrows for dealing with the various fish-type monsters populating the floors. Though they looked somewhat intimidating with their humanoid forms, blue-scaled figures, webbed hands and feet, and the various natural weapons at their disposal, they weren't able to accomplish much against the organized party commanded by Vahn. Each Merman was, on average, a Level 2 monster so they couldn't oppose a party where the median level was around four.

---

After setting up camp, the party sat around and enjoyed a meal together while talking about what they thought of the progress the group was making. Since it was Vahn's first time in command, he was very receptive to their input and took into consideration everything that had been brought forth. Riveria was especially interested in his ability to 'create' items and had been pestering him about the specifics for nearly the entire meal. Vahn couldn't actually explain things to her, as doing so would get them all killed in the process, but he could still disclose a small amount of information while playing it off as the influence of his Pseudo-Divinity. He also stated that there were several things he needed to keep a secret, as they were important to keep himself and the people around him safe.

As she had a plethora of secrets of her own, Riveria wasn't in a position to force the issue and spent the final part of the meal in silent contemplation. Freed up from her cross-examination, Vahn spent the rest of the meal goofing off with the rest of the girls before finally retiring for the night. Haruhime had somehow managed to win over Fenrir at some point throughout the evening so, when it finally came time for bed, Vahn was in a difficult situation where she was asking to sleep in his tent. As they had their own sleeping bags, Vahn didn't think it would be an issue until it devolved into a situation where several of the other girls also wanted to share the tent.

Before things got out of hand, it was actually Fenrir who held up both of her paws in a grabbing gesture with her claws extended as she said, "Vahn has already played with everyone else. Fenrir will keep Harume out of trouble so stay in your own tents! Everyone has to be fair or Vahn will be the one that has to suffer!" Vahn hadn't realized it before, but it seemed like Fenrir had somehow become his 'Vahnguard' in lieu of Tina. It might be because of their exposure to each other, combined with the fact that he actually brought her along to keep the other girls in check, but Fenrir had taken the role of his 'guardian' all of a sudden.

Though it seemed like Ais wanted to complain, she eventually just 'picked' up Lefiya like a flustered hug pillow before carrying her off to their shared tent. Vahn fought the urge to laugh after witnessing the adorable sight before wishing the other girls a pleasant night and retiring to his tent with Fenrir and Haruhime. When they entered, Haruhime had a somewhat mischevious smile on her face and her eyes were shining a bright golden color. Contrary to his expectations, instead of causing any trouble, Haruhime obediently laid out her own sleeping bag nearby Vahn's before crawling into it after wishing him a good night.

When he had laid down himself, Fenrir actually took the spot in between him and Haruhime instead of sleeping on his chest as per usual. Having her cuddle up to his side inspired a protective instinct in Vahn so he 'shielded' her by hugging her from behind. From his vantage point, he could see the glowing eyes of Haruhime staring back at him and they eventually fell asleep, separated by the very awake Fenrir. The night passed uneventfully and Vahn awoke early the next morning before helping Fenrir change her clothes and prepare for the coming day. She seemed to be abnormally tired and kept sending annoyed glances at the elegantly smiling Haruhime who was also changing nonchalantly within Vahn's tent.

Though she was supposed to be in her 'growth phase', Vahn noticed that Haruhime's body hadn't changed much in the last few months, even though she was training often and also adventuring into the Dungeon. She was still around 152cm tall with fair white skin, long golden hair that reached beyond her plump little bottom, a pair of long golden tails with tufts of pale yellow fur on the end, bushy curved ears with a fair amount of fluff, and a pair of budding breasts that were slightly whiter than the rest of her body. Other than her tail splitting into two, and her body becoming slightly more toned, she hadn't changed much at all and Vahn was wondering if it was the effect of his [Hands of Nirvana]. He knew it was supposed to be able to fight against the signs of aging, to the point where it could even slow physical development, but he didn't think it would have such a drastic effect on someone that he had only sparingly used the technique on...

Haruhime had noticed Vahn's 'appraising' look and made no attempts to hide her body at all as she slowly changed out of her sleepwear and into the combat attire that Vahn had customized for her. She still felt a little awkward to have such a short skirt, since she was used to wearing traditional kimonos, but it beat being stuck in a brothel and having to wear loose clothing that often 'exposed' her body. Now that her life had changed so drastically, Haruhime only ever wanted to truly expose herself to Vahn and, seeing that he was looking at her, made her heart palpitate powerfully in her chest. She could feel the everpresent warmth located within her heart and felt power spreading through her body the longer he looked at her.

Vahn noticed Haruhime's aura flaring up greatly and showed a wry smile as he said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to gawk for so long...I was thinking about..." Haruhime shook her head and had a lovely smile on her face as she said in a sing-song tone, "Vahn, everything that I am, everything that I will be, they are all for you~. If you want to look at my body, even if you want to touch it, you don't even have to ask...it makes me happy knowing I can win your affections, even if but for a moment~." Vahn swallowed hard at Haruhime's words, but it was Fenrir who replied as she said, "Harume is a sneaky girl..."

Hearing Fenrir's words, Haruhime covered her mouth with her hand and giggled in a girlish manner before continuing to wear her clothes without commenting. She did, however, angle her back to Vahn as her tails danced about playfully as if trying to entice him. Vahn shook his head in mock exasperation as he fixed the belt to Fenrir's waist before using a hard brush to comb through the bristly fur of her tail. Because of her 'ageless' trait, Fenrir's body never changed regardless of how much time passed. Even if Vahn styled her hair, it would revert back to the unkempt mess that it was usually in after around two hours, even if she wasn't doing anything. This meant that Fenrir always had a reason to be spoiled by the people around her because she liked to look neat and proper since she was in a phase where she tried to emulate some of the more mature girls in the Manor.

Once the two girls were ready, Vahn helped pack up the camp after passing out some crepes for the girls to eat for breakfast. They were going to be making the push to the 30th floor this morning before finally beginning their hunt for Bloodsaurus. For the next 3-4 days, they would do nothing but harvest the materials from monsters on the 30th floor in order to procure ingredients for use by the Alliance in the future. Even if they only hunted a few dozens per day, the amount of wealth the group would be able to accumulate in this short trip would easily breach more than a billion Valis. Vahn also suspected that Bloodsaurus would be worth a healthy amount of OP, so he was looking forward to large boon they would obtain soon. He didn't actually plan to sell any of the items the obtained, but it was still considered part of the Alliance's wealth, as they wouldn't have to purchase the items off the market in the future.

Vahn's actual ability to procure wealth, when traveling with an expeditionary party, was likely to be unrivaled in the entire City. Most expeditions came to an end relatively early, as there was only so much that could be carried back to the surface on carts, but Vahn was able to completely ignore this restriction. As long as they made the proper preparations, Vahn could allow an expedition to stay within the Dungeon indefinitely. Assuming he was able to convert the magic cores into OP, Vahn could infinitely replenish the food stores of the expedition and even purchase building materials if they wanted to build a temporary base within the floors. When he accompanied the Loki Familia in the future, the only limit they would likely face would be the waves of monsters crashing against the forces of the Familia. Vahn wouldn't 'steal' the job of other Supporters, but he would make sure the expedition ran a lot smoother, at least for himself and his direct allies.

Once everyone had their fill, Vahn gave the order to proceed into the 28th floor and the group took their first step into the 'dead zone'. There were still pools of water located in the various rooms, but they were spaced far apart and Vahn couldn't sense many presences at all. Even after they cleared three rooms, and several passageways, they had only come across a total of nineteen enemies, all Devil Mosquitos. They were monsters that grew up to 20cm in length and were quite fast considering they were on the lower end of Level 2.

Devil Mosquitos had long, needle-like, mouths that were capable of penetrating through steel armor when they charged into Adventurers. They were able to suck nearly an entire liter of blood in just a few short seconds, so they were some of the most detested monsters in the entire Dungeon. Fortunately, they were incredibly weak and most Adventurers could kill them by simply swatting them with their fists. Fenrir had managed to catch one in her paws, even though she shredded parts of it, and bit off its head before commenting that it didn't taste good.

Since there were so few enemies, Vahn made the decision to let Fenrir and Haruhime deal with the monsters while Tiona and Ais supported them in the middle distance. Tione was moved to the rear guard with Ryuu, even though it wasn't likely they would be ambushed from behind. Through his domain, Vahn would be able to detect if any enemies were trying to sneak up on them and he could even track the movement of energy in the Dungeon to determine where traps, hazzards, and Monster Parties would be located.

Though nobody really dropped their guards, this made their progress through the 28th and 29th floor somewhat casual. It had only taken them a total of three hours to clear both floors and, by the time they were on the staircase leading to the 30th floor, they had only come across 327 monsters. Vahn's OP had only increased by an additional 13,080 points, so he wasn't very fond of the two floors and would do his best to bypass them quickly in the future. He now had a total of 312,396OP in his reserves and, before the group actually proceeded into the 30th floor proper, Vahn decided to update Fenrir's and Haruhime's Status Boards so that he could keep track of how much they progressed over the next few days.

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[[Stats]]

Name: [Vahn Mason]

Age: 15

Race: Human, *sealed*

Parameter: [Danmachi: 1-4]

-Level:3(3)

-Power: 1906+(H198)->(G207)

-Endurance: 2221+(F327)->(F338)

-Dexterity: 1807+(G213)->(F346)

-Agility: 1959+(G226)->(G228)

-Magic: 3562+(SSS1604)->(SSS1639)

Total:11455+(2838)

Soul Tier: 3 (Lord Soul)

[Karma]: 8,213

[OP]: 312,396

[Valis]: 419,583,990

Skills: [Will of the Emperor:SSS], [Rakshasa Body:E], [Keeper of the Akashic Tome:B], [Eyes of Truth: B],[Bow Mastery:S], [Stealth:B], [Chainbreaker:S], [Heart of the Eternal Flame:SS], [Prometheus:A], [Call of the Reaper:A],[Yggdrasil's Favor:S], [Veil of the Traveler: S], [Featherfoot:B], [Hands of Nirvana:S], [Metallurgy:B], [Fist Strike:B], [Friend of Spirits:A]

Magic: [Thria*Mimos:C], [Shundo:B]

Development Skills: [Wound Transfer:S], [Spirit Healing:A], [Swordsman:A], [Master Smith:H], [Mixing:C], [Mentor:B]

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[[STATUS]]

Name: [Fenrir]

Level:2(+)

POW: D582->C616

END: E470->D513

DEX: B801->B840

AGI: C671->B705

MAG: G275->F335

Skills: [Lunar Cry:C], [Freezing Roar:B], [Chainbreaker:C], [Devour:SS], [Huntress:A]

Development Abilities: -

Magic: -

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[[STATUS]]

Name: Sanjouno Haruhime

Race: Renard

LV. 2

POW: 440+(I43)->(H122)

END: 648+(I77)->(H149)

DEX: 698+(I80)->(H183)

AGI: 1053+(H153)->(G267)

MAG: 1548+(G218)->(E401)<---(A/N: This makes Haruhime almost the same MAG as Lefiya UwU)

Skill: [Inari:Innate(E)], [Prometheus's Blessing:A], [Heroic Strike:F], [Featherfoot:B]

Magic: [Uchide no Kozuchi:B], [Kokonoe:C], [Icicle Edge:D->C]

Development Skill: [Moon Priestess:Innate(sealed)], [Spirit Healing:B], [Hunter:I->H], [Mage(sealed)]

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He recorded their updated information, alongside his own, in a journal before snapping it shut and giving the order to progress into the 30th floor. The reason he hadn't updated everyone's status boards was due to the fact that, even though they had killed thousands of enemies on the way down, it was very unlikely that Ais, Tiona, or Tione, had earned even a single point in their parameters along the way. They were simply too strong compared to the monsters so it was almost a waste of time to even fight them, though it wasn't bad for skill development and increasing combat proficiency.

Vahn was considering helping the girls undergo 'Nirvana', so that he could increase their potential, but he was somewhat hesitant after seeing the effects of his basic massage on Haruhime. If he 'revitalized' their bodies like he had done Tsubaki, Vahn was worried they would end up looking closer to children than actual adults. It was a very different experience seeing them in real life, as compared to the cartoonish designs of the characters in the manga, and Vahn knew they were nowhere near the development of their future selves. Ais had a long way to go before she was a 'beautiful woman', and her current appearance was closer to an adorable, and exquisitely designed doll.

Since Vahn himself didn't actually 'age', it wouldn't be that much of a problem in the near future but, after a few years passed and they still looked very young, it would probably become a point of contention. Vahn had a strange image in his mind where, after around fourteen years passed, he would have his own daughters looks nearly the same age as their mothers. He couldn't keep his children from developing, so they were bound to be similar in appearance after enough time passed. Even if it wasn't a real concern, Vahn couldn't help but think about it since it painted such a peculiar image within his mind.

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The feeling of taking an overleveled party into a novice dungeon...','Vahn's OP','In Time(tm)')

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Capítulo 408: Boon

After making their preparations, Vahn gave the order to proceed into the 30th floor and their hunt for Bloodsaurus finally began. Though it wasn't a 'dead zone' like the last two floors, there weren't that many enemies present on the 30th floor either and each room was spaced out a great distance from each other. If not for the fact that Vahn was able to detect the presence of enemies, it would take a much longer period of time to actually locate a Bloodsaurus. Fortunately, it only took around ten minutes before they found a pair of the monstrous creatures and Vahn got his first look at the 'fat cow' that would become the cornerstone of the Alliance.

Standing approximately five meters in height, Vahn saw a pair of two reptilian creatures this thick, blood red, hide that was covered in wart-like protrusions. They had large, squarish, heads and long tails that got progressively thinner until taking on a whip-like quality. Each one was rated at the peak of Level 2, though there were a fair amount that would even reach Level 3, so they were relatively strong monsters that typically only traveled in small groups. Because of this, Vahn was inspired to fight on his own since it was a good opportunity to test his skills against monsters similar in level to him. Though he could probably end the fight very quickly by using his Xuánwǔ form, Vahn wanted to see how his normal strength compared to the large monsters before him.

Before the three tyrants at the front of the group went forth to slay the Bloodsaurus, Vahn brought them to a stop and said, "Wait, since there aren't that many enemies on this floor I think it's a good opportunity to earn exillia for the weaker members in the party. Though I don't mind sitting in the backline and supporting everyone, I need to improve my own strength as well or it would be a problem in the future."

Tiona, hearing Vahn's words, stretched her body in a lazy manner and said in a laid-back tone, "Sounds good to me~!" Tione and Ais also didn't have any problems with the arrangement, as they had actually killed thousands of monsters on the trip down. It was also good to watch how others fought so that you could have a better understanding of your own capabilities and help polish each other's skills. Ais had already taken Haruhime under her wing in the past and, now that Vahn was also going to have her and Fenrir fight, Ais wanted to see how fast she was able to grow.

Though it might not have any effect, since the emblem didn't glow when other allies were nearby, Vahn still placed his 'Mentor's Mark' on Haruhime's hand and Fenrir's upper arm. Haruhime stared at the 'cute' image of Vahn on the back of her hand and chuckled before unsheathing her [Sakura Blossom]. Fenrir was also happy to have the mark on her upper arm and patted it happily with her paws a few times before assuming a low stance with her butt up in the air. She had 'copied' Vahn's crouching attack in his Báihǔ form and often started fights in the somewhat awkward pose.

As for Vahn, he was loosening his joints as he casually walked toward the pair of Bloodsaurus that finally noticed the presence of the group. He was going to fight one of them on his own while leaving the second one for Haruhime and Fenrir to deal with. Since it would be over the moment he used his Xuánwǔ form, Vahn took on his old favorite transformation before crouching low, similar to Fenrir's emulation of him, in his Báihǔ form. Vahn preferred the agility of the form as it also made his Shundo more of an omnidirectional skill since he could easily vault of walls by finding his footing using his claws. With flames forming on his forearms, and his claws glowing a fiery orange, Vahn used Shundo to appear beneath the furthest Bloodsaurus before passing his superhot claws through the durable hide of the monster.

The Bloodsaurus roared out in pain before trying to slam its body down to crush Vahn beneath it. He was able to easily evade the blow and assume a position near the back of the Bloodsaurus where its whip-like tail was exposed. As his claws wouldn't be able to do the job properly, Vahn pulled out one of the mithril blades he kept in his inventory and cut off the entire length of its tail with a swift slash. Since it had lost its counterbalance, the Bloodsaurus fell forward and struggled to try and regain its footing as Vahn leaped high into the sky before spinning several times and planting both of his feet into the head of the monster, forcing it into the ground. Before it was able to recover, Vahn buried his hand into the base of its neck and pulled out the magic core contained within amidst the smell of burning flesh.

Though he was supposed to be trying to 'harvest' them, Vahn wanted to fight at least one Bloodsaurus in the normal way to see how strong they were. Now that he knew they weren't actually that big a threat, Vahn could formulate a plan to deal with the others as efficiently as possible. If it came down to it, he could even use [Enkidu] and just immobilize the monsters before using his [Hands of Nirvana] to lull them to sleep. Since that wouldn't really allow his parameters to develop at all, Vahn set aside that method for if they weren't able to gather a satisfactory amount of resources within the allotted time.

After tossing the magic core into his inventory, Vahn sold it through the system and obtained 2,703OP for a single Bloodsaurus. With a happy smile on his face, he then sat down and patiently watched the ongoing battle between Haruhime, Fenrir, and the remaining Bloodsaurus. Though the girls had never worked together as a duo, they were surprisingly well-coordinated, at least as far as Haruhime was concerned. Making use of her ability to read the 'tempo' of a fight, Haruhime was able to easily follow up Fenrir's movements while drawing the attention of the Bloodsaurus to strike empty space. Fenrir herself, as expected, was able to make use of the gaps created to eventually climb up on the side of the Bloodsaurus.

Just like when she dealt with the Mammoth Fools, the fight was over shortly after Fenrir took the monster's back. Her unstoppable claws were capable of rending its flesh without any major effort at all, and her teeth allowed her to bite through its thick hide and solid bones as if she were eating pudding. It wasn't a case of where she had to put in a great effort to eventually bite through a hard object, Fenrir simply chomped down before effortlessly nomming away on the back of the Bloodsaurus. After discovering that she could disable monsters by biting through their spines, it wasn't long before their target had collapsed to the ground after having become completely immobile.

While it had been thrashing about to try and remove Fenrir's from its back, Haruhime had used her [Sakura Blossom] to skillfully sever the tendons in one of the Bloodsaurus's legs before using her [Icicle Edge] to disable the other. Without the ability to thrash around in any meaningful way, the Bloodsaurus had no choice but to accept its fate. After it had fallen, ignoring any sense of propriety, both Fenrir and Haruhime 'trotted' over to Vahn with happy expressions on their faces as he patted their fluffy-eared heads. They had managed to defeat the Bloodsaurus without actually killing it, so now they would be able to harvest it for a plethora of valuable items.

Not just Haruhime and Fenrir, but even the girls from the Loki Familia were now able to obtain benefits from the 'secret' rewards list. Vahn had been doing his best to keep track of the drops everyone had obtained so that they would be able to redeem the equivalent points when they returned to the surface. Being able to subjugate an entire Bloodsaurus, and obtain its loot, was a huge boon for the two girls and they were quite happy given the situation. Their combined efforts had brought the fight to an end within two minutes, which showed they shouldn't have any real difficulty fighting the somewhat powerful monsters. Haruhime's and Fenrir's Innates were simply too suited for combat, especially Fenrir with her unstoppable claws and ability to bite through and devour anything.

While Vahn eased the mind of the Bloodsaurus and lulled it into a deep sleep, Riveria was walking the girls through how to properly harvest the materials that could be collected from the body before it finally succumbed to its wounds. They began to remove parts, such as the claws and large teeth, and had even cut open the side of the Bloodsaurus to pull out its spleen, which was a very valuable mixing ingredient worth nearly 100KV. After he had finished pacifying the monster, Vahn performed a small funeral rite before fulfilling the most important part of their purpose for coming to the 30th floor and drained a large amount of the monster's blood before storing it into his inventory.

He managed to do this by finding a large artery connected to the main blood flow from the heart and setting out a massive container to store it. It was a somewhat delicate process, much different than the normal method by far, but Vahn was able to take care of it easily and collected nearly 800 liters of blood from a single Bloodsaurus before it turned into purple dust and vanished entirely. Vahn was very relieved when he didn't accumulate any negative karma and offered a secondary prayer to thank the monster for its contribution to ensuring that his family would be kept safe in the future.

Since he hadn't actually gained much from killing the Bloodsaurus, Vahn decided to leave the coming battles to Haruhime and Fenrir. For larger groups, the higher leveled girls began a rotation to thin out the numbers and accumulate points for future benefits of their own. Even Ryuu got involved and they started, against Riveria's counsel, gambling to determine who would be able to face the next batch. As the largest group to appear had only been five monsters, the group wasn't in much danger even if they were slacking off. Vahn himself was constantly paying attention to the surroundings and, when Riveria had consulted him about the behavior of the girls, he simply said, "We're going to be here for a few days so I don't mind them having a bit of fun with things. As long as they are responsive to orders during an emergency situation, it should be perfectly fine."

After a momentary period of contemplation, Riveria nodded her head in agreement and began making casual conversation with Vahn about various subjects she was interested in. Vahn was somewhat surprised that she was taking the initiative to talk about things so he indulged and asked a few questions of his own. Riveria had lived for 97 years and had traveled to several other territories before arriving in Orario so she was a veritable wealth of information. As for Riveria, she considered Vahn's thought process to be 'fresh' and borderline 'revolutionary', so she was very eager to get his input on matters that had long bothered her.

By the time the day had come to an end, the group had killed a total of 61 Bloodsaurus and a few miscellaneous monsters that had wandered into the 30th floor from different floors. Of the 61 Bloodsaurus hunted, they had managed to safely procure ingredients from 29 of them, which was actually very good considering it was rare to be able to harvest more than 10% of the total resources on a standard expedition. Just converting the drop items, materials, hide, and blood into Valis would net them in the ballpark of 174 million Valis, so they were making good progress considering it had only been a few hours since they had started. This was enough to even keep an S-Rank Familia afloat for more than a month, so it was a major boon for the group and had invalidated any complaints Riveria might have had about the situation. As for Vahn, he was happy to have received an additional 119,547OP to add to his ever increasing reserves.

After backtracking to the staircase between the 29th and 30th floors, Vahn had everyone set up camp before setting out a few basins for them to be able to wash their bodies. Though he couldn't be sure, Vahn was almost positive the monster girl he had seen was an enemy so he had shamelessly taken the mana-infused water that was in the pool and stored it into his inventory. He could see the mana contained within but was unable to understand how it was able to retain the energy without it diffusing into the atmosphere over time. He wanted to research the principles behind it before replacing his onsen water with the revitalizing liquid in order to benefit the girls living within the Manor. Seeing how happy everyone was while currently using it in their baths, Vahn felt like it would be a worthwhile subject for future research.

Vahn had also taken a bath as well, though he had shared a basin with just Fenrir and had helped clean her body as she happily splashed in the water. Because of the changes he had noticed in her behavior, Vahn had been paying special attention to her for the last few days and she was in an especially good mood, at least when she wasn't 'protecting' him from the other girls. Vahn had experimented with trying to be more receptive to the girls, which is why he allowed them to gamble, and he noticed that Fenrir had released a lot of her tensions and wasn't as abrasive as before. From this experiment, though it would require further testing, Vahn was able to verify that Fenrir was indeed able to sense his train of thought through the bond they shared as Master and Subordinate.

Because he had initially brought her along as a failsafe to prevent anything from happening between him and the other girls, Fenrir had been proactively keeping them away from him. She even showed a remarkable degree of perception and intelligence in order to complete her mission and had even compromised with the girls to regulate them. Since she was typically very anti-social, this was a red flag in Vahn's mind and had been one of the reasons he had noticed her strange behavior. Now that he had decided not to mind how the girls were acting, Fenrir did a 180 and was now acting much more casually while also trying to get spoiled by him at the same time.

When she was 'on guard' earlier, Fenrir had also stayed in formation and did her best to not deviate from the role she had been assigned. After Vahn loosened up the restrictions, she reverted back to her old self and was proactively seeking his praise after the end of every fight. Vahn didn't know how much she was influenced by his own thought process, but he decided he would need to take his subordinates into consideration when he acted in the future. He didn't want to accidentally reshape their behavior to suit his interest and was even worried that Anubis's 'strange' behavior was actually a result of being exposed to him during a period of time where he lacked restraint.

If it turned out that she only acted that way because of the subconscious thoughts within his mind, Vahn wasn't sure how he would react. Since she was a goddess, Vahn assumed she was less constrained than a familiar like Fenrir, but he was still somewhat worried about it. He still recalled the time when he had given her a few orders and how she followed them, even when she was a bit conflicted about why she was behaving as she did. Vahn planned to have a long talk with her in the future, just like he planned to do with the other girls, to find out a bit about her past actions and behaviors. If her 'deviancy' had been present for a long time, he would be able to verify that his actions might have 'guided' her, but weren't the determinant factor for how she acted.

Because she wasn't being on guard against the girls, a situation occurred when it came time for bed as Fenrir easily acceded to the request of other girls to sleep in Vahn's tent. Just like when she had let them stay with him during their first night at the Manor, Fenrir 'assigned' sleeping positions to Tiona, Ais, Lefiya, and Haruhime. Ryuu and Tione looked like they wanted to stay in the tent as well, but it was already pushing the limit with five people. Vahn, feeling bad that they were left out, ended up purchasing a larger tent that had one large room and two smaller rooms on the side.

After helping clean up the extra tents lying around, everyone in the party moved into Vahn's large tent before sharing several futons that had been strung together instead of using sleeping bags. Riveria ended up staying in one of the side rooms, but everyone else shared the same bed and Vahn got to enjoy the experience of being surrounded by the fragrant girls while enjoying the ambient heat from their bodies. Everyone had enough sense to not try anything sexual, as Tione, Haruhime, and Fenrir were present, so it was a pleasant experience and made Vahn feel much closer to the girls. Ryuu had been restraining herself the entire trip, so she ended up procuring a spot at his side while, for the first time since they had known each other, Tione ended up on his right...

---

Deep within an undisclosed area of the Dungeon, a diminutive figure sat around on a small stone chair while surrounded by several large pillars where thousands of yellow crystals, reminiscent of magic stones, were embedded. The figure looked very thin and frail and was wearing a black cloak covering its entire body while its face was adorned with a black and orange mask that created a jagged spiral pattern. It sat there upon the stone chair while tapping a black gauntleted finger against the armrest as it contemplated the information it had received earlier in the day. One of the primary targets of its Master was currently in the Dungeon, well within their operative range, but it was far too soon for them to take any action against him.

Though their plan was nearing completion, there were still more than three years before things were ready to be taken to the next phase in their operation. They didn't have the forces to divert to try and capture the person of interest, Vahn Mason, and it was currently struggling with how best to proceed. The figure had been tasked to capture the boy alive and bring him to its Master, but there was almost no method it could think of to actually complete its task. It could muster some of its pawns to take action, but the target was currently being escorted by powerful first-class Adventurers and there was a minimal chance of success.

It had seen, through its observation network installed throughout the Dungeon, how fast the target was and knew it would be nearly impossible to lock him down. Any method to trap the target would likely result in its death or, as had been observed previously, the target would be able to move through the very walls of the Dungeon by some unknown method. The most problematic thing of all was that, even when it had tried to order one of its pawns to take action, the figure was met with a rebuttal and told to find someone else instead.

Based on the information they had obtained about Vahn Mason, it thought the best course of action to take would be to lure it into a plot by potentially using a 'woman' as bait. The target seemed to be licentious by nature and even traveled with a group that exclusively consisted of beautiful women. If they could take advantage of his nature, they might be able to capture the target without much of a fight...

Releasing a long and shrill sigh, the masked figure picked up a blue orb within its hand that contained a small creature. Though there was no one around to hear its words, it still spoke out to the void in a contemplative fashion, "Vahn Mason...Sage Aldrnari...what a troublesome mortal..." Placing the small orb into its robe, the masked figure stood up and walked into an adjacent room where several mirrors were embedded into the walls of the Dungeon itself. Each one showed a different floor of the Dungeon and the image was constantly changing to the viewpoint of other rooms and corridors. They had designed it so that there were various glow stones and crystals spread throughout the Dungeon, which were often overlooked by Adventurers, that were actually magic tools used to record images and transmit them to the mirrors connected to this room.

The figures master had told it to not provoke the humanoid monsters known as the Xenos, as they were technically comrades by fate, but now it was considering how best to make use of the foolish creatures that sought the sun. When it had received information about Vahn earlier, the figure learned that he had moved into an area they had been observing recently and tamed a Green Dragon through an unknown method. This wouldn't have been nearly as impressive a feat if not for the fact that the Green Dragon was actually a nascent Xenos that hadn't fully formed its intelligence. Since Vahn seemed to have an interest in taming such creatures, the figure was now considering if it could use one of the Xenos under observation to lure the boy into a trap...

Regardless of if it was a success, Vahn would either end up in their hands, or he would end up dead. The masked figure didn't share his Master's interest in the boy and saw him more as a threat to their plans than a potential ally to aid them in their cause. Though it would do its best to serve its Master, it didn't care if Vahn ended up dying while putting up a futile resistance. It was better to remove him from the equation entirely, especially considering they were about to transition into the next phase of their plan.

After swiping through several images, the figure stopped on one which showed a small village hidden deep within the 20th floor of the Dungeon. There were several humanoid monsters reflected within its view and the figure was considering which would be the most useful. Since Vahn seemed to be 'weak' against women, the figure waved its hand through several candidates and compared them to the information it had received about Vahn's companions. Though it didn't often interact with the Xenos, they were all under observation since many were comparable to first class adventurers and would make worth pawns for their future plans. After passing through more than twenty different images, the figure stopped its hand before placing its gauntleted palm against the surface of the mirror and releasing a shrill laugh...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Fenrir is the nemesis of large monsters~!','Casually earning 174MV...','Within the Darkness lurks even more Darkness')

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