Over two hours later,
"Move out!"
With Anakitty and Raul finishing the last watch, Loki Familia's expedition camp broke down. At Finn's single command, the entire force of dozens once again marched forward.
Their next destination: the Lower Floors of the Dungeon.
Everyone knew the divisions well:
The first 12 floors: the Upper Floors.
Floors 13 through 24: the Middle Floors.
Floors 25 through 36: the Lower Floors.
From the 37th floor onward: the Deep Floors.
The Guild had specifically drawn these lines to match danger levels with adventurers' Falna ranks.
Indeed, the Upper, Middle, Lower, and Deep Floors corresponded respectively to the minimum challenge standard for Levels 1 through 4.
In other words,
"Starting from the 25th Floor, you'll need to be at least Level 3 just to barely survive here."
"Based on that, I'll be adjusting our marching formation."
Before departure, Captain Finn gathered everyone and explained in detail the formation he'd worked out with Riveria and Gareth the night before.
"Line, as a Level 2 healer, you'll accompany the supply convoy."
"Raul, Anakitty, Alicia, Cruz, you four Level 4s will each command a squad and continue perimeter patrol."
"The executives, including myself and the other Level 5s, will stay with the support group, guarding the supplies."
"And when necessary, Ais, Bete, Tiona, Tione, you rush to support any squad as quickly as possible."
"Now for the squad assignments, "
"Raul, you and…"
"Alicia, you'll lead with…"
"Anakitty, you'll join with Aether, Lumine, and Lefiya as a four-person team."
At that, Finn turned a small smile toward Aether and Lumine.
"I trust your strength. You two proved yourselves yesterday, so I'm looking forward to even brighter results from you."
Then he faced Lefiya and Anakitty.
"You two as well. Especially you, Lefiya…"
"Y-yes!"
"You've got talent. What you lack is real combat experience. Be brave, don't make your teammates worry too much."
"Mhm~…"The elven girl lowered her head, embarrassed, but still answered.
At that moment,
"Don't worry, Lefiya."
Lumine, standing beside the golden-eyed elf, gently patted her shoulder with a warm smile.
"If we run into monsters, just chant your spells without hesitation. I'll protect you."
For some reason, Lefiya's heart skipped like a startled deer.
And then,
No, no! My heart already belongs to Miss Ais. I can't… but still…
Lumine-sama is so cool…
Her genius-mage brain spun off into its own wild delusion segment before she even realized it.
Now, as the squads finalized their positions, Aether and Anakitty exchanged glances over Lefiya, who was still clasping her cheeks, muttering "Uwaaaa~" as if floating through the air.
"…Lefiya, are you okay?"
The black-haired catgirl finally couldn't help asking.
Seriously, at this rate, the girl might walk straight off the stairs ahead!
Speaking of which,
Crystal stairs leading down into the 25th Floor… if something like this existed back on Earth, people wouldn't believe it.
Aether, more focused on Lumine's presence than Lefiya's daze, looked ahead at the descent. The stairway shimmered like a palace of crystal ice.
And this was all real crystal.
Minutes later, they reached the end of the stairway.
The slope was gentle enough for supply wagons to pass with ease.
The formation hadn't yet fully expanded when faint whooo~ sounds of wind whistled up from the cavernous depths below.
The further they went down, the stronger the wind became.
The atmosphere was like walking through an underground tunnel beneath a great river, cool and refreshing.
And since the crystal walls glowed faintly, there wasn't even a need for magic stone lamps.
Normally, the Dungeon was windless. No matter how vast, it was still sealed underground.
So why was there wind here, starting on the 25th Floor?
"Fwaaah~"
As the expedition stepped into open space, the sight before them spread wide, more breathtaking than even the Great Tree Labyrinth.
At the far end, framed by uneven terraces and narrow paths linking them, a massive phenomenon thundered in ceaseless motion.
A waterfall.
Not just any waterfall, but a colossal torrent over 400 meters wide, height incalculable, its waters glowing a deep emerald blue.
This was the Great Fall.
The source of the Lower Floors' winds.
It seemed to gather all of Orario's underground water, plunging through Floors 25 to 27. Even from the stairway, adventurers could already hear the roar of its descent.
And around that awe-inspiring sight,
Shhhhhh~
Mist spread far and wide, and in its haze, shapes glided: half-bird sirens and harpies beating their wings, while down in the waters, mermaids and lamias lurked.
This was the Water City, the hallmark of the Lower Floors. More beautiful than the Great Tree Labyrinth, yet far deadlier.
For Aether,
Yeah… this kind of place, you definitely want to travel with an experienced expedition first, just to learn the routes.
These endless narrow bridges, flanked by monster-filled waters on both sides… even finding the "proper route" would be a nightmare alone.
Luckily…
"Let's get moving."
Veteran Finn gave the order.
"Our goal lies deeper, not here. We'll pass through quickly."
"All units advance in defensive formation."
"Understood!"
=============
129+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon! Patreon.com/Veltoria [remove brackets]
250 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter
Add to Library to support