Riezel Brynhart
Affiliation: Loki Familia
Race: Human
Age: 17
Profession: Adventurer
Current Floor: 51st Floor
Notable Achievement: Riezel, an adventurer affiliated with the Loki Familia, embarked on a deep floor expedition with his familiar and actively participated in numerous floor boss battles spanning over a month and a half. Eventually, he officially leveled up to Level 5.
...
When this announcement was posted on the bulletin board in the first-floor lobby of the Guild main building, everyone who saw it had their eyes opened wide.
They gathered in front of the bulletin board, double-checking the information and even questioning the Guild staff at the counter.
The result was always the same.
The information was accurate, without a doubt.
As a result, the Guild exploded.
"Is this a joke or something?"
"Getting to Level 5 in, what, a month and a half? Are you freaking kidding me?"
"Trickster Swordsman has become a first-class adventurer, huh?"
"He was just a normal dude who got blessed three months ago, wasn't he? This is fucking bullshit, man!"
People were clamoring.
People were arguing.
People were in disbelief.
People were jealous.
Riezel reaching Level 5 and becoming a first-class adventurer caused a stir much greater than any of his previous deeds. Unfortunately, this time, the severity of the situation was completely different from before.
In the past, whether reaching Level 2, Level 3, or even Level 4, although shocking and impressive, Riezel had only become a second-class adventurer and a third-class adventurer.
In Orario, there were still quite a few adventurers in these classes.
Therefore, even though he rapidly rose with a speed that amazed and sparked envy and jealousy, he only became one among the many high-class adventurers.
In the eyes of many, while Riezel was undoubtedly worth attention, what difference did it make if he reached Level 4? Adventurers at this level were not rare, and they didn't pose a threat to others or their familia.
Therefore, various gods might have been interested in this rapidly rising rookie, adventurers would discuss his feats as a topic more than once, but the appearance of a Level 4 adventurer was, for many, just a not-so-significant and rare event.
In Orario, people reached Level 4 every now and then; it was nothing extraordinary.
Riezel was just one of them, albeit with a significantly faster level-up speed, considered talented and full of potential.
However, this time was different.
"Dude, we're talking Level 5 here! They're top adventurers in Orario, boasting powerful strength that only a few well-known big familias can have!
"All in just a month and a half, huh? If it's true, that's wild, y'know?"
"What a damn joke!"
Becoming a Level 5 first-class adventurer was not just like becoming an adventurer at any other level. Being at this level not only made anyone one of the top experts in Orario but also put one at the level of leading figures in top familias, even among those well-known and influential familias.
Take Hephaestus Familia for example.
It was famous in Orario alongside Loki Familia and Freya Familia as the best blacksmith familia of Orario. Tsubaki, the captain of this familia with the alias 'Cyclops', held the status of Level 5 first-class adventurer.
Meanwhile, the majority of top familias in Orario, trailing just behind Loki Familia and Freya Familia in both fame and strength, also followed the same pattern. Without exception, the higher-ups of these familias, holding the position of captain, were also Level 5 first-class adventurers.
It could be said that the reason these familias held a powerful position in Orario was because they had Level 5 first-class adventurers.
As for Level 6 and above, besides Loki Familia and Freya Familia, no other familia in Orario had adventurers at this level.
This was why Loki Familia and Freya Familia were considered Orario's strongest familias because only they possessed Level 6 adventurers. Apart from these two familias, all the other top familias in Orario, without exception, had their highest combat power limited to Level 5.
At this moment, Riezel managed to become such a high-level presence in just a short month and a half, even though he was just an ordinary person without a blessing three months ago.
The commotion caused by this was beyond anything in the past.
Thanks to this, news of Riezel's rapid level-up spread to the higher-ups of various familias and gods at an astonishing speed.
Soon enough, these familia higher-ups and gods were obviously blown away by the news.
===
"Lady Freya."
In the suite at the top of Babel, Ottar once again visited, reporting to the Goddess of Beauty, who stood by the large French windows.
"Riezel Brynhart has become Level 5."
Upon hearing that information, Freya, dressed in a black sheer evening dress, halted her actions of swaying the wine glass in front of the French windows.
"...He has become a first-class adventurer already?" Freya spoke in a hushed tone.
"Yes." Ottar solemnly said. "It seems Goddess Loki went to the Guild early in the morning to report the matter. After confirmation from the Guild, the news has already been announced."
"Loki, huh..." Freya swayed the wine glass and chuckled lightly. "She seems eager to show off in front of us."
"Allen already knows about this." Ottar continued, seemingly unaffected by her teasing. "He's not in a good mood and raging in the wilderness, venting his frustration."
"Fufu, let him be..." Freya shook her head with a chuckle. "That child has always been one to hold a grudge. Last time, he did some hateful things on my orders and ended up getting hurt. Now, the one he fought with has leveled up to Level 5, so it's only natural he's in a bad mood."
"What about Riezel Brynhart?" Ottar asked with his head down. "Loki Familia gained an executive-level combat power. For us, it's not something to be happy about."
After all, Freya Familia and Loki Familia were rivals. Suddenly having an additional first-class adventurer in Loki Familia was not advantageous for Freya Familia.
Freya, not indifferent to the situation, pointed her slender and fair fingers at her chin before turning to Ottar.
"What do you think?" Freya asked Ottar. "About Riezel Brynhart."
Without much hesitation, Ottar gave his answer.
"If you see him as a threat, I am willing to make a move."
Implying that if she gave the order, he wouldn't hesitate to eliminate this threat.
"That won't do..." Freya sighed with a smile. "Just look at Loki's behavior. That boy is her treasure now. If we casually harm him, our familia might end up in a full-scale war."
Such a situation would be avoided deliberately by both sides and even the Guild, as the city manager, would not allow it.
In principle, the Guild strictly prohibited big familia from engaging in conflicts within Orario because each big familia played a significant role in the city. Business-type familia naturally contributed to the city's economic development, and exploration-type familia provided the strength needed for the Guild's various tasks, especially dungeon-related tasks.
Furthermore, Loki Familia and Freya Familia, being the strongest, were the mainstays in dungeon exploration and city defense.
Therefore, as the city manager, the Guild wouldn't silently watch these two big familias clash without intervening.
"Starting a war, that shouldn't happen." Freya looked at Ottar, her expression unchanged. "Anyway, I'm asking you like this is not from our familia's perspective but more like wanting to hear your personal opinion."
Hearing that, Ottar raised his head.
"Personal opinion?"
"Yes..." Freya's lips curled up. "Don't need to consider my thoughts. For you, Ottar, how is Riezel Brynhart as a person?"
At her question, Ottar fell into silence.
Freya, unfazed, just smiled at him and waited.
After a while, Ottar spoke.
"I'm looking forward to it."
His face remained firm and calm, but in his eyes, there was a newfound fighting intent that hadn't been there before.
"If he can truly continue to grow, perhaps one day, he could replace Finn as my opponent."
How high this evaluation was, anyone hearing Ottar's words would understand.
No choice.
"Can't believe Orario's only Level 7 would make such an evaluation." Freya's smile on her face deepened.
"He's worthy of it."
The man regarded as the city's ultimate weapon admitted.
"Well, let's not worry about him for now." Freya took a sip of wine. "I also want to see if he can catch up to you."
She was curious about Riezel—very, very curious.
A soul as peculiar as his, she had never seen in her entire life.
She was eager to know what lay deep within his soul.
This curiosity and thirst to explore made her feel both refreshed and amazed.
In the past, with her Discerning Eye, she always gathered souls with extraordinary radiance, being infatuated with heroes possessing such souls. But this kind of feeling, not infatuation, not admiration, but purely curiosity, an itching desire to explore the unknown, something she had never experienced before.
Freya's attitude toward Riezel was currently in a state of curiosity and observation.
Support and read advanced chapters at:
pat*reon.com/VALRRR
The same discussion wasn't just happening within Freya Familia.
Many familias received the related news and successively paid attention to Riezel's situation. Even Loki Familia stirred up quite a bit because he truly reached Level 5.
"Mr. Riezel already hitting Level 5..."
"His strength has long surpassed that of a first-class adventurer, right?"
"Got ourselves a new executive in the familia. Our power's skyrocketed big time."
"Think we can outdo Freya Familia now?"
"Nah, not really. They got a Level 7 hanging around."
In the corridors of Twilight Manor, members chatted while walking, their tones and expressions filled with excitement.
"Aah dammit! Got caught up after all!"
Upon receiving the news, Tiona immediately let out a lament.
"Don't shout. Instead of screaming about being caught up, think about how not to get surpassed so quickly." Tione seemed calm about it.
"Tch." Bete, hearing every member discussing Riezel, scowled and walked away from the manor.
"Miss Ais! Mr. Riezel reached Level 5!" Lefiya said excitedly as she ran into Ais in the cafeteria.
"Hmm." Ais, who had long been aware of this, had the smallest reaction. There was only a slight ripple in her eyes as if contemplating something.
As for the higher-ups of the familia, they were currently gathered in Finn's office discussing the same topic.
"Though expected, when something like this really happens, it makes you want to yell, huh?" Gareth remarked as he sat with arms crossed on a chair, making it creak under the weight it wasn't supposed to bear.
"Only a month and a half has passed..." Riveria stood next to a desk, holding the Guild's report in her hand. She looked at the information about Riezel recorded on it. "That skill called 'Fool's Obsession' is really too absurd."
"I wonder if his growth speed will slow down..." Finn took a sip of the drink on the table and chuckled. "If it doesn't, maybe soon even we'll be caught up, right?"
"Guhaha! Isn't that a good thing?" Gareth laughed. "But, that kid still has a long way to go."
"It shouldn't happen so quickly this time, right?" Riveria commented. "It's not that easy to reach Level 6."
Indeed, reaching Level 6 was no easy feat.
The exploits that could make a Level 5 level up were not comparable to those of the earlier levels. At this level, taking risks and achieving significant exploits was a challenging task.
If the risk was too low, and the opponent was not strong enough, then accumulating a decent high-rank excelia was impossible. If the risk was too high, and the opponent too strong, it was equivalent to walking into a death trap.
At Level 5, facing necessary risks and challenging powerful opponents meant facing considerable danger. The magnitude of the risk and the strength of the opponent were easily understood.
One wrong move, fail to achieve the exploit, and one would end up dead—a loss not worth the gain.
This was also why there were only a few Level 6 adventurers in Orario, and all of them concentrated on Loki Familia and Freya Familia. It was because those who challenged powerful opponents and took sufficient risks either died or did not succeed.
Before Level 5, adventurers could rely on familia seniors, teamwork, and parties to easily defeat strong opponents and accumulate enough high-rank excelia. But once at Level 5, even with help from Level 6 adventurers, it was not so easy to accumulate enough exploits for leveling up.
Looking at Ais, Bete, Tiona, and Tione, who had been Level 5 for quite some time—at least several years—they had participated in countless dungeon expeditions and defeated many powerful monsters. Yet, they still hadn't accumulated enough exploits for leveling up.
Loki Familia participated in at least two to three floor boss battles during each expedition. Udaeus, classified as Level 6, and Balor, classified as Level 7, were clearly stronger than Loki Familia's executive, making them capable of providing the necessary high-rank excelia for exploits.
However, despite numerous attempts to defeat them, they still couldn't level up. This demonstrated how difficult it was to reach Level 6.
If the executives chose to defeat Udaeus or Balor alone, there was a possibility of achieving a significant exploit and leveling up successfully. However, since they were in a party, the excelia would be split, making it much harder for them to accumulate enough exploits.
Especially when it came to taking down the Level 7 floor boss, Balor, the three top executives of Loki Familia were the main force. The executives could only assist from the sidelines, with the bulk of excelia concentrated on the bodies of the three top executives, while the other executives received only a meager share.
With these factors stacking up, leveling up from Level 5 to Level 6 proved to be quite challenging. If one wanted to achieve Level 6, one had to be willing to risk it all, and there was no other way.
One careless move could end up losing their life.
"With Riezel's growth speed, no matter what, leveling up is definitely easier for him than for others." Finn said with a grin. "I don't think this level will be a hurdle for him."
With the assistance of a skill like 'Fool's Obsession' accelerating his growth, Riezel's rate of exploit accumulation was undoubtedly faster than others. Because of this, Finn didn't believe Riezel would be stuck at this level like the rest of the executives.
"I just wonder how much time he'll take..." Finn mused. "Half a year? Or maybe a year?"
He couldn't really estimate the next level-up time for Riezel who climbed from Level 4 to Level 5 in just a month and a half.
"Guhahaha! Maybe he won't need any time at all!" Gareth continued to laugh heartily.
"I just hope he doesn't go too wild..." Riveria added.
She hoped Riezel would slow down a bit. Otherwise, it meant he would take on big risks again.
As an active Level 6, Riveria had the most say in the risks involved in leveling up from Level 5 to Level 6. She just hoped he would be more restrained, take it slow, and grow steadily—that would be the best scenario.
Unfortunately, Riezel seemed anything but restrained; sooner or later, he was bound to get into some serious trouble.
Riveria was a bit worried about that.
"One Ais is already giving us a headache, and now there's another one making things even messier. Hahh... Seriously..." Riveria sighed.
Finn and Gareth exchanged glances at her reaction but remained silent.
Dealing with this kind of stuff was Mama Riveria's job. They, two big guys, weren't cut out for handling such delicate matters.
Anyway, Riveria would find a way to talk to Riezel and maybe keep him in check. That was one less thing for Finn and Gareth to worry about.
"By the way, we need to handle the aftermath of the expedition today..." Finn said while looking at the other two. "We took quite a hit this time, and there wasn't much gain. We need to quickly deal with the loot and come up with a better strategy for the next expedition."
"Yeah..." Gareth nodded. "Those little rascals have rested enough; it's time to touch some grass and get things done."
"We also need to discuss how to deal with those new species of monsters..." Riveria added. "Getting our current tasks sorted out quickly is a good idea."
Upon hearing her words, Finn stood up.
"Yosh, let's call everyone and gather at the main gate."
Riveria and Gareth nodded in agreement.
===
Post-expedition affairs were always the first thing to deal with upon returning from the expedition.
The loot brought back from the dungeon, whether it was magic stones or drop items, needed to be exchanged for money to fund the upcoming activities.
The worn-out weapons and armor, along with the need to replenish items for the many expedition party members, required maintenance. The operation of the familia needed funds, and preparations for the next expedition involved purchasing various supplies—all of which required money.
Therefore, handling the loot became a top priority after returning from an expedition.
During these times, Loki Familia, aside from leaving some members to guard the manor, mobilized almost everyone capable of swiftly processing a large amount of loot in exchange for the needed funds.
Even the executives weren't exempt.
Last time, Riezel couldn't participate in this matter. He just joined the familia during the previous expedition, still a rookie at that time, so the loot management task didn't fall on his shoulders.
But not this time.
Riezel participated in the expedition, successfully leveled up, and became a first-class adventurer just like Ais. As a first-class adventurer in Loki Familia, he was now, just like her, considered an executive and the main force of the familia.
Since he was now an executive and a vital part of the expedition party, it was natural for him to contribute to handling the loot.
After receiving the summons, Riezel immediately headed to the main gate.
"Hey—! Riezel! Over here!"
Seeing Riezel coming out, Tiona immediately waved, beckoning him over.
However, when he looked closely, Riezel noticed Tiona stood out among the group. The other members, seemingly out of respect for the executives, maintained a somewhat delicate distance.
Tiona stood alongside Tione, surrounded by the rest of the members as if they were rallying behind her. She positioned herself right in the middle, with only Ais and Lefiya by her side.
With Tiona's call and wave, all familia members around instantly turned their attention to Riezel.
Honestly, this situation made him a bit uncomfortable. The respectful and admiring looks from the members toward him gave him an itchy feeling on his spine.
"C'mon, come over here already!"
A clueless amazoness was still yelling over there, clearly not planning to let Riezel off the hook.
What could he do? Only one thing, go over.
"Hey."
Riezel greeted Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya, then looked at Ais.
Ais was also looking at him.
As they made eye contact, seemingly recalling the events from last night, both of them smiled slightly, as if on cue.
The difference was that his smile was somewhat plain, while Ais's smile seemed a bit shy.
""??????""
Witnessing this scene, everyone had question marks floating above their heads.
'What's going on with these two?'
Support and read advanced chapters at:
pat*reon.com/VALRRR