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Chapter 38: The Adventurer's Flower
The newly joined Hyacine, although mainly responsible for healing and support, was also capable of fighting after adapting to the rhythm of combat in the Dungeon.
Finally, it was Aiden's turn. The moment Furina pressed her palm, stained with divine blood, onto his back, the brilliant light that erupted lit up the room as if it were day.
"My heavens..."
Furina stared dumbfounded at the rows of rapidly climbing numbers, almost forgetting to copy them down after the update was complete. When she handed the parchment filled with text to the three waiting outside, everyone was shocked by the contents. In just one week, Aiden's total ability scores had risen to a level they couldn't comprehend.
Name: Aiden
Race: Human
Level: Lv.1
Basic Abilities:
• Strength: F-371 → S-960 (+589)
• Endurance: F-345 → B-824 (+479)
• Dexterity: F-381 → A-890 (+509)
• Agility: E-406 → S-960 (+554)
• Magic: D-506 → S-999 (+493)
Development Abilities:
• Abnormal Resistance: S
Magic:
• [Ripple of the Past]
• [Everlasting Flames]
Skills:
• [Descender]
• [Trailblazer]
• [Abyss Gazed Back]
Three S-rank ability scores. Among them, the Magic value had reached the theoretical limit. Aiden's growth this week as "jaw-dropping" would be too conservative. In less than half a month, he had grown from an unknown mortal to someone sufficient to level up to Level 2. This wasn't just breaking records; this was taking the one-year leveling record set by Ais Wallenstein, throwing it on the ground, and crushing it with unreasonable force.
"Aiden-dear... you're really amazing."
Hyacine held the parchment, her clear eyes full of wonder. Although she hadn't been in this world for long, thanks to Eina's careful teaching and her own understanding, she already had a clear perception of the adventurer profession. She knew very well how slowly other adventurers improved their ability scores; every point of growth was accompanied by sweat and blood. Even the "Sword Princess," hailed as a peerless genius, took a whole year to complete the leap from Level 1 to Level 2. And Aiden took less than half a month.
"I can feel that I'm far from reaching my limit," Aiden said, looking at his palm and feeling the power surging endlessly within him. His gaze finally landed on his skill list.
His eyes lingered on the skill [Trailblazer] for a long time. Everyone had their potential limits; talent varied from high to low. He didn't consider himself a one-in-a-million peerless genius whose potential was even more terrifying than Ais, who possessed Spirit blood. So the answer could only lie in his skills. Only the "Skills" brought by the Falna could break the rules and allow him to surpass the limits a mortal should have, time and time again.
The description of [Trailblazer] was that it increased experience gain efficiency when exploring the unknown. But who was to say that as his domain continuously "blazed trails," this skill couldn't also increase his own "potential"?
So, the next goal was clear. While continuing to train his ability scores, he needed to find a way to achieve a sufficient "Grand Feat" to prepare for leveling up. Speaking of this, a wry smile appeared on Aiden's face.
"A Grand Feat..."
He had already defeated Level 2 Kairagi while being a lower level, and more than one at that. But the Feat condition for leveling up on his status board still hadn't been met. Obviously, regarding the judgment of the Falna, with his current ability scores, defeating one or two Kairagi—while somewhat difficult—was far from being considered a life-or-death Grand Feat.
And a "Feat" wasn't something simple. It was either a magnificent act of surpassing oneself, or a splendid battle to the death against an absolute powerhouse that would be recorded in history. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many adventurers stuck at the edge of leveling up simply because they lacked a Feat. Where was he supposed to find such an opponent?
Just as Aiden was worrying about how to obtain a "Feat," a meeting that would affect the entire Familia was being held inside "Twilight Manor" in Orario's 8th District.
In the Loki Familia's executive meeting room, the atmosphere was solemn. Sitting at the head of the long table was the Familia's Captain, the Prum "Braver," Finn Deimne. The main god, Loki, was as informal as ever, sitting on the table with her legs crossed. Between her slender fingers, she was playing with a peculiar flower emitting a faint glow. It was the Artifact—Adventurer's Flower.
This meeting was attended not only by the three giants—Finn, Riveria, and Gareth—but also by the first-string core members: Ais, Bete, Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya. Even Raul Nord (High Novice), Anakitty Autumn (Alnwick), and Alicia Forestlight (Elven Earth) from the second-string core were sitting at the end of the long table. Such a complete lineup demonstrated the extreme importance of this topic.
This Artifact was a drop obtained by a Level 2 member of the Familia while exploring the Upper Floors, after working together with companions to kill a Kairagi. When he realized the effect of this strange object, he immediately reported it to Captain Finn. And Finn, the moment he got his hands on it, realized the subversive impact this item could have on the entire adventurer system. Because even he, who had reached the limits of Level 6, could clearly feel a tiny, yet definitely existing, increase in his vitality and durability after equipping this "Adventurer's Flower." This improvement was negligible and couldn't change his combat power much. But the meaning it represented was enough to drive any adventurer seeking strength into madness. It meant that even adventurers who had reached their level cap had the possibility of continuing to grow stronger.
Faced with this unprecedented wonder, the executives in the conference room couldn't hide their excitement. Especially Ais Wallenstein, who yearned for strength and cared only about getting stronger, the sword, and killing monsters. She stared unblinkingly at the Artifact in Loki's hand. Her beautiful golden eyes revealed her desire without concealment. Recently, she had felt a bottleneck. The magnitude of increase in her ability scores each time was becoming smaller and smaller. She was nearing the limit of her path at Level 5. This distressed her. But the appearance of the Artifact allowed her to see the possibility of continuing to grow stronger.
"I'm gettin' more and more curious," Loki laughed with her characteristic Kansai intonation, swinging her legs. "Just what kind of rare skill could trigger such a huge possibility? And who exactly is that kid?"
"Indeed," Gareth said in a booming voice, his thick arms crossed over his chest. "To make the Dungeon spit out treasures like this... it's unheard of."
The others nodded one after another, expressing similar curiosity.
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