"Ron."
"Then I'll call you that."
After a brief introduction, the half-elf girl stood up from the guild counter and led Ron toward the resting area on the side of the Adventurers' Guild hall.
Before starting their formal conversation, Eina poured two cups of hot black tea from the bar counter.
She placed one in front of Ron and said with a relaxed smile, "Sorry, the guild only has black tea. If you're not used to it, you can add some sugar."
"Thank you."
"We don't need to pay for it, right?"
Considering that he would need to pay a consultation fee later, Ron asked seriously as he looked at the young girl before him—gracefully sipping her black tea.
It was a precaution to avoid the awkward situation of not having enough money and having to ask Hephaestus to cover the bill.
However, after hearing this, the smile on Eina's delicate face grew even brighter. "Don't worry, this is an employee benefit of the guild."
"As for you~"
"You'll most likely be an adventurer I'm in charge of, so I still have this little privilege."
The corners of the girl's eyes curved into a pleasing arc, and her clear, water-like eyes were filled with a hint of slyness. "So let's get back to the question you wanted to consult about."
"Mr. Ron."
"The Dungeon is far more dangerous than you imagine. I hope you can take what comes next seriously."
"Of course."
Ron nodded solemnly, then added, "A truly qualified adventurer isn't defined by how strong they are, but by whether they can return safely from the Dungeon."
In Orario, where adventurers constantly chased after power.
This was the first time Eina had heard such a fresh and unconventional explanation. She straightened her posture slightly, set the teacup back on the table, and looked at him with curiosity.
"So that's the reason you're being cautious?"
"Or maybe I'm just afraid of dying."
Ron smiled and shrugged. Even though Hephaestus had an easygoing personality, it was impossible not to feel at least a little restrained when actually interacting with her.
After all, no matter what, she was still a god.
As an ordinary person, it was impossible to lie in front of a god. If she started probing into his background, what would he do then?
If his identity as a transmigrator were exposed, Hephaestus might still be fine—but if the fun-loving gods of Orario found out that other worlds existed…
He could not imagine just how crazy those gods, bored to the point of excess, might become!
"You're… quite honest."
Eina could not help letting out a light laugh, yet at the same time she saw in Ron something different from other adventurers—a contradiction he possessed.
Worried about encountering danger in the Dungeon, yet still wanting to become an adventurer.
After the brief easing of tension between them, she began to get to the point:
The safe area of the Dungeon was called the Starting Path. Broad, spiraling staircases connected to the subterranean caverns, spacious enough to accommodate thousands of people.
Following that were the areas known as the Upper Floors, Floors 1 to 12.
The monsters in the shallow floors were distributed in a fairly standard pattern. Most were Goblins, Kobolds, Dungeon Lizards, and similar creatures, with an overall low level of danger.
Even an ordinary adult male could kill them as long as he had a weapon.
It was not until Floor 5 that there was a chance of encountering an elite monster known as the "War Shadow," dubbed a rookie killer due to its high mobility and lethal power.
And as one ventured deeper into the Dungeon, the level of danger would rise sharply.
For example, there were insect-type monsters with hard shells such as the killer ants, which would call for companions when in danger and might even trigger a "Monster Stampede."
There were also many other monsters like Blue Papilio, Purple Moth, Imps, and more.
Compared to the relatively limited coverage in the original work, Eina's explanation was much more detailed, allowing Ron to take it all in within a short amount of time.
For a rookie adventurer, mastering this information was entirely sufficient.
After all, burdened with the anomaly brought about by the "Dungeon's Hatred," Ron felt that rashly heading into deeper areas was nothing more than gambling with his own life.
Finally.
He looked at Eina in front of him and asked once more, "If something unexpected happens in the Dungeon, how should it be handled?"
"Very simple."
The girl paused briefly, then said with utmost seriousness, "Run."
"Do everything you can to break away from the monsters' pursuit and leave the area where the anomaly occurred. This is absolutely not something a rookie adventurer can handle."
But as she said this, Eina smiled faintly.
"Still, you can rest assured. At least in the past two years, I haven't heard of any unexpected situations occurring."
"…"
Then in the future, there would probably be more of them.
Afterwards, Ron added silently in his heart that, at present, he still had not figured out how much uncertainty the "Dungeon's Hatred" could bring to his exploration.
It seemed that only by truly going there would he be able to obtain a more accurate answer.
He nodded seriously. "Thank you, Miss Eina, for the explanation. At the very least—now I already have a basic understanding of the monsters on the upper floors of the Dungeon."
"No need."
"This is part of my job."
She had not expected Ron to be so solemn. The girl hurriedly waved her hands, having a fairly good impression of Ron, who was polite in both words and conduct and occasionally displayed a bit of dry humor.
She offered a well-intentioned reminder: "The Dungeon is really dangerous. Please don't push yourself!"
"I will be careful."
After finishing all the black tea in his cup, Ron had no intention of lingering in the Adventurers' Guild any longer. Basically, he had already asked everything he needed to ask.
As for information about "Dungeon anomalies," as an ordinary staff member, the information Eina could access was also limited.
However, combining this with the plot of the original DanMachi work, the floor boss Black Goliath that the protagonist Bell encountered on the 17th floor was precisely a product of an anomaly.
'Surely I won't run into nothing but monsters of that level, right?'
...
Leaving the Adventurers' Guild premises, Ron followed the street back along the same route toward the "Hephaestus Weapon Branch." He did not even need to wait before he spotted a conspicuous figure.
The girl's petite body was holding a fully packed set of equipment.
Upon noticing Ron's arrival, Hestia hurriedly waved. A dependable composure flowed over her youthful face, though her manner was a deliberately assumed maturity.
"Ron!"
"The temporary familia base has already been arranged, including daily necessities and the like."
As if recalling something, she brought it up, wanting to establish the image of a mature goddess. "How did your conversation with the staff at the Adventurers' Guild go?"
"I've already grasped the Dungeon's floor monsters."
"As for the specifics, the changes caused by the 'Dungeon's Hatred'—I'll only have a rough understanding after I go there myself."
Ron did not conceal anything.
If all else failed, he would just crawl around on the first floor. Surely under the torment of this ridiculous Dungeon, something like a goblin-lord-level monster from some anime wouldn't appear, right?
Thinking of Hestia's concern for him, he immediately added, "If I encounter danger that I can't handle, running away is also a form of tactical retreat!"
"That way of thinking is correct."
The girl nodded, giving high praise.
She looked at Ron, who was half a head taller than herself. Her confident tone carried a hint of excitement. "But you can rest assured—before you set off to explore the Dungeon,"
"I've already found you an instructor!"