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Chapter 55: The Shocked Eina
Although everyone could tell Aiden was changing the subject stiffly, no one punctured the delicate atmosphere.
Tifa and Hyacine exchanged a knowing look and agreed with smiles.
Robin stood where she was, wearing a smile of elegant composure, as if that small interlude had never happened.
However, the rosy tint quietly spreading to her earlobes silently betrayed the turbulence in her heart.
Furina pouted, glaring at Aiden with great dissatisfaction.
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The next morning, as the first rays of sunlight pierced the clouds and plated Orario with a soft golden edge, the members of the Focalors Familia were already packed and ready.
After eating the breakfast Tifa lovingly prepared, Aiden led Robin, Tifa, and Hyacine toward the Guild Headquarters located in the Seventh District—the Pantheon.
The streets in the early morning were already bustling. Adventurers carrying various weapons walked in twos and threes, either rushing toward the Dungeon or restocking supplies at roadside stalls.
Passing through the magnificent arches, the great hall of the Pantheon, spacious enough to hold an army, revealed itself.
The massive quest board was crowded with people, long lines formed at the Magic Stone exchange windows, and Guild staff in uniform shuttled back and forth, busy but orderly.
Aiden familiarly led the three to the reception area for rookie adventurers and found that familiar figure.
"Good morning, Miss Eina." Aiden smiled and greeted her.
"It's Mr. Aiden. Good morning." Eina looked up. Seeing Aiden's group, a kind smile appeared on her face. "Going to the Dungeon today as well? Or is there something else you need to consult about?"
"Well, I have something fairly important to trouble you with." Aiden scratched his cheek and spoke in a relaxed tone. "I'm here to report my level up."
The smile on Eina's face hadn't completely faded yet. Hearing this, she simply nodded out of habit. "Okay, level up... Huh?"
Her brain seemed to take a few seconds to process the meaning of that sentence. Immediately after, she jerked her head up, her beautiful eyes widening instantly, filled with disbelief.
"Wh-What? You leveled up to Lv.2?"
Her exclamation went a bit out of control. The volume wasn't high, but in the relatively quiet consultation area, it seemed particularly abrupt, immediately attracting the curious gazes of several nearby adventurers.
Eina reacted instantly. Blushing, she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. With her other hand, she rapidly gestured for Aiden and the others to "follow me," then turned and trotted to lead them into an internal private consultation room.
Bang.
Closing the door to shut out all external sights and sounds, Eina finally let out a long sigh of relief.
She leaned against the door, her chest still heaving slightly. Clearly, she hadn't recovered from the shock.
"Mr. Aiden, say that again. You leveled up to Lv.2?" She confirmed once more.
"Yes," Aiden answered affirmatively.
Receiving a definite answer, Eina's expression became extremely complex.
She circled Aiden twice, as if observing a rare species, muttering incessantly, "Impossible... How is this possible..."
"If I remember correctly, it's been less than a month since you registered as an adventurer and came to Orario, right?"
She stopped, crossed her arms, and looked at Aiden with a scrutinizing gaze. "How could you level up so quickly?"
As a veteran Guild employee, she had seen countless geniuses, including the "Sword Princess" of the Loki Familia. But even Ais Wallenstein took a full year to go from Lv.1 to Lv.2.
Leveling up in less than a month... this wasn't something that could be described as genius anymore. This was a myth.
Although she was happy for Aiden's growth, above that joy was an incomprehensible curiosity and confusion.
"Didn't I tell you before?" Aiden spread his hands, a relaxed smile on his face. "Before coming to Orario, I underwent long-term training in the outside world and accumulated enough experience points. After coming here, I luckily completed a Feat in the Dungeon, so leveling up was just a natural progression."
He attributed the reason to a prepared explanation, trying to make things sound a bit more logical.
"Is that so..." Eina accepted this explanation with skepticism. After all, there was no more reasonable explanation to be found.
She took a deep breath, trying hard to calm her excitement. Finally, a sincere look of congratulation appeared on her face. "Congratulations, Mr. Aiden. From today on, you are a Third-Class Adventurer. With this, your Familia's rank can also be increased."
She sat back behind her desk and took out a brand-new file from the drawer. This was an archive specifically used to record adventurers' level-up experiences.
"Then, according to regulations, I need to record your level-up process. The Guild collects the adventures of all adventurers and selects some to publish, in order to motivate other adventurers and provide some reference experience."
She explained while preparing to write. "Of course, this is just basic information and relies entirely on the adventurer's voluntary cooperation. You have the right to conceal your specific personal ability values, magic, and skills."
Aiden nodded to show he understood.
Eina asked, "So, what was the specific 'Feat' that allowed you to meet the level-up conditions?"
Aiden thought for a moment and said, "On the 12th Floor of the Dungeon, I single-handedly defeated a Lv.2 Blazing Axe Mitachurl."
"Lv.1 challenging..." Eina repeated as she wrote, but halfway through, the tip of her pen suddenly stopped.
The air seemed to freeze.
Clatter.
Accompanied by a light sound, the quill in her hand slipped from her fingers and fell onto the polished wooden floor.
"...A Lv.1 challenging a Lv.2 Blazing Axe Mitachurl, winning, and successfully obtaining a Feat? Y-You're not joking, are you?"
Eina was completely dumbfounded. She froze in her seat, staring at Aiden with her mouth agape.
She had recorded the level-up experiences of countless adventurers, many of whom were brilliant and talented. But she rarely heard of anyone soloing a monster of a higher level; most relied on the power of a team to besiege higher-level monsters.
A Lv.1 soloing a Lv.2 monster... this was already beyond the scope of her knowledge and experience.
This wasn't a challenge; this was sheer suicide.
Not only that, but Aiden and his group had pushed from the 1st Floor to the 12th Floor of the Dungeon in less than a month. Such a progression speed was equally insane, enough to leave anyone speechless.
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