Chapter 28: Takemikazuchi Familia

A lot had happened in those three days.

First, given that the Soma Familia now had a guaranteed weekly income of 10 million Valis—amounting to forty million a month—Rex instructed Zanis to reduce the members' mandatory quota. Previously, they had been required to contribute between three to six thousand Valis a week, totaling thirteen to twenty-six thousand a month. Now, that amount was lowered significantly to just one to two thousand Valis a week, or five to nine thousand a month.

Rather than hoarding the excess funds for himself, Rex chose to reinvest some of that weekly income into improving the Familia since he didn't have any real need to burn through ten million Valis every month. Strengthening the Familia's structure and providing better working conditions would yield better long-term results.

The decision was well-received. As the saying goes, a hero does one bad thing, and he becomes the most hated person in the world, while a villain does one good deed, and everyone loves him. 

That sentiment rang true as Zanis announced the lowered quotas. The members, who had long been burdened by financial pressure, practically worshipped him for it as they could now buy more Soma. Their enthusiasm only grew when he followed up with an even bigger declaration—pardoning all outstanding debts owed by Familia members. 

However, he made one thing clear: with the lowered quota, there would be no more excuses. Everyone was expected to meet their contribution without fail.

The first night of selling Soma in Belit Babili also went as well as Zanis had expected. All six bottles sold out in less than an hour after the Pleasure Quarter opened for the night, bringing in a total of 10.8 million Valis. Since the Soma Familia only received forty percent of the profits, they ended up with 4.32 million, while the Ishtar Familia took 5.4 million, along with the added benefit of increased traffic to the Pleasure Quarter.

It was obvious who got the better end of the deal, but that was expected. The Ishtar Familia provided the venue, handled security, and leveraged their elite clientele. The success of the first night led to a surge in demand. On the second night, the price per shot was raised to 100,000 Valis, and this time, eight bottles were brought in. 

Despite the increased price, they still sold out completely, generating a total of 24 million Valis. The Soma Familia collected 9.6 million, while the Ishtar Familia received 12 million, with the Guild taking the remainder.

By the end of just two nights, fourteen of the twenty-seven bottles of Soma wine in stock had already been sold. Soma himself was displeased with the rapid depletion, prompting negotiations between the two Familias. They eventually agreed to limit sales to weekends only, increasing the price per shot to 160,000 Valis. 

Additionally, to prevent another incident like the one on the second night—when a member of the Loki Familia had bought almost half a bottle in shot glasses, poured it into a new bottle, and left—a strict rule was imposed: each person could only purchase one shot per night, and the Berbera would personally feed it to the customer to ensure they drank it on-site.

Zanis also ceased public sales of failed Soma, opting instead to distribute it exclusively through the Ishtar Familia at an even higher price. Surprisingly, this move only heightened its popularity. 

Meanwhile, the blue pap powder was sold anonymously through the Guild, which, as always, took a 10% cut. However, the tax was of little consequence—every one of the ten potions available was sold within ten minutes of hitting the market. Turned out both Dian Cecht and Panacea Familia purchased half of the stock for five million Valis each, keeping it for their own use. 

As for Rex, he spent most of his mornings in the library, studying monsters and anything else that piqued his curiosity. Afternoons were dedicated to mass hunting in the Cave Labyrinth, pushing his stats as high as possible in preparation for his upcoming battle with the Goliath. 

And today, just like every other day, Rex was on the third floor of the library, flipping through a book about the hero Albert Waldstein. He wore his adventuring gear: a form-fitting charcoal-gray long-sleeved shirt and dark trousers with subtle red accents, held up by his utility belt. 

Over this, he wore his sleek dark-red breastplate, segmented dark-red sabatons, and a fingerless black glove. Nearby, on a wooden table, rested his adventuring bag, containing his weapon—the halberd head sticking out of a conner of the bag—and beside it lay his dark-red bicep-length gauntlet and his black cloak.

He closed the book. "It should be soon, right?" he muttered to himself.

Yesterday, his spying Cat Man had reported that Bell had asked his advisor about descending to the Middle Floors. The advisor had given Bell a Salamander Wool coupon, instructing him to secure the heat-resistant gear for himself and his group before venturing down—today.

From his observations, Bell typically entered the Dungeon around nine, and that time was quickly approaching. 'I hope the Takemikazuchi Familia is there,' he thought as he returned the book to the shelf. 'Well, if they aren't, I can just send the monster party to Bell myself.'

This wouldn't be the first time he had done something like that.

"Let's get going." he said with a groan as he stretched. 

Going to the table, he quickly slipped on his gauntlet, fastening the segmented plates securely around his arm, then draped his black cloak over his shoulders. After wearing his adventuring bag onto his back and ensuring everything was in place, he stepped out of the grand library building and into the crisp morning sunlight, making his way toward Babel.

As always, the plaza was bustling with adventurers streaming in and out of Babel's towering arches, which lined the circumference of the colossal structure. He maneuvered through the crowd, heading westward, knowing that Bell would enter from that direction, given the abandoned church he lived in was situated in the western district.

It wasn't long before he spotted the protagonist. Bell Cranel—clad in a calf-length Salamander Wool cloak—walked with his party of two others, going towards the dungeon. This was only the second time Rex had seen him in person, the first being when he had led the Minotaur to Bell nearly two weeks ago.

'Bell…' he thought, his gaze then flickering over the white-haired boy stats.

— — — — — — — — — —

Bell Cranel

Level 2

[Strength] G267 | [Endurance] H144 | [Dexterity] G288 | [Agility] F375 | [Magic] H189

[Luck] I

[Magic]

"Firebolt"

— Shoot fort a bolt of fire from hand. No chant.

[Skill]

"Liaris Freese"

— Accelerates growth rate based on the strength of romantic feelings.

— Grants immunity to charm effects.

— Allows stats to exceed normal limits, achieving SS and SSS ranks.

— Ceases functioning if romantic feelings change.

"Heroic Desire, Argonaut"

— Charges stamina and mind to unleash a single, powerful "hero's strike."

— Power and cost scales with charge duration up to 3 minutes.

— Requires envisioning a hero to activate.

— Emits a faint chime during charging.

— — — — — — — — — — 

'Right, these were his skills.' The sight jolted a flood of old memories about the show that Rex had nearly forgotten. 'If I'm not wrong, Liaris Freese is activated on the Sword Princess, Ais,' he noted, nodding slightly as he observed the boy. 'Though...he's much weaker than I expected.'

To Rex, Bell was underwhelming. He knew the boy's growth wasn't as rapid as his own, but he had assumed that by now, all his stats would be at least above E. Yet, not a single one had reached that threshold. 'I guess they'll reach E after he gets through the Middle Floor trial.'

Beyond that, Bell's skills and abilities felt lackluster. 'Then again,' Rex smirked slightly, 'I'm built different.' He felt a slight swell of arrogance, but quickly tempered it. 

He had to admit that if he were ever hit by a fully charged Argonaut, he'd be obliterated in an instant. But, realistically, that was nearly impossible. If they fought now, the winner was obvious.

Bell, Liliruca, and Welf entered Babel, but Rex didn't follow them. He could always track them with Scavenger, so for now, he decided to wait for the Takemikazuchi Familia.

It didn't take long for them to arrive, their god Takemikazuchi walking at the front. Rex glanced at their stats and nodded to himself—he could dog-walk this entire group, literally. They didn't stand a chance against him. However, just like Bell, if he were caught in Yamato's magic, Futsunomitama, then he was cooked. Even Scavenger confirmed that.

'All magic is a cheat,' he sighed internally. 

Yamato's magic could probably fatally injure a Level Four if they were caught in it—maybe even kill them outright. That fact made him wonder what his first real magic would be. For a brief moment, he considered buying a grimoire to force the issue but decided against it. He would let his magic manifest naturally. If it never came, well, he still had Scavenger.

With that thought set aside, Rex stayed back and followed the group down into the dungeon.

———

'They are being held back.' Rex crouched atop a tall stalagmite, gazing down at the Takemikazuchi Familia like a predator watching its prey. 

The six members of the Familia were engaged in combat against two Silverbacks and two Hellhounds, and they were struggling. Rex knew better than to compare others at his level to himself—especially if they weren't Bell—but what he was witnessing was almost pathetic. Their fear of the Hellhounds was making them fight like fools.

It made sense, to some extent, as he would have been scared if he didn't have fire resistance, but still… this bad? If Ouka and Mikoto—their two Level 2s—had come down alone with their supporter, they'd have had a much better time.

Not that it mattered to him. He was only here for the monster party. Based on his hypothesis, the event should trigger when Bell's group got close enough, leading this struggling team straight into their path. And Bell's group was getting closer.

'Any moment now,' he mused, watching from above as more monsters—Imps and Bad Bats—were drawn by the commotion. They weren't a real threat, but if the Takemikazuchi Familia wasn't able to deal with them, then—

'Ah?'

Ouka had noticed the shift. The seasoned fighter locked in, stepping forward with Mikoto as they cut through the monsters with newfound focus. The rest of their team, seeing the shift in momentum, hesitated and fell into a supporting role, the archer and supporter occasionally assisting. At this rate, they would wipe out the monsters before the monster party could trigger.

'This is bad.' Rex's eyes narrowed as he activated Scavenger to mark Bell as his treasure. Bell's group was just one room away. 

The Takemikazuchi Familia will be able to take care of these monsters, and while they are resting, Bell's group will enter this room and they will likely meet. His butterfly effect had indeed caused fewer monsters to spawn around the Takemikazuchi Familia. The monster party and the event will never become reality...

'I can't let that happen.'

His gaze shifted to the four members standing at the back. A well-placed fireball at their feet would disrupt their rhythm—but that wouldn't be enough to trigger a monster party. And he had no intention of outright killing them or hurt them too much.

'What to do…?' His eyes flickered around then toward the ceiling, spotting a hanging stalactite. A smirk crept onto his face.

Lowering his center of gravity, he crouched deeply, his fingers tightened around the shaft of his halberd as he drew it from his back, the polished metal gleaming dimly under the cavern's light. The jagged stalagmite beneath him groaned under the tension of his weight.

Then—

With an explosive burst of power, Rex pushed off, shattering the tip of the stalagmite as he propelled himself forward and up. His cloak billowed behind him as he twisted in midair, his halberd sweeping outward in a deadly arc. The force behind the swing sent a sharp gust rippling outward.

A streak of silver cut through the darkness, the halberd's keen edge carving a thin, precise slash along the middle of the stalactite's length.

*Rumble.*

The massive rock formation shuddered as he landed on another stalagmite, fine cracks webbing out from the point of impact. Below, the four Takemikazuchi members looked up as debris and dust began to rain upon them. Ouka and Mikoto, mid-fight, turned sharply at the disturbance, their eyes darting between their teammates and the incoming danger.

"GET BACK!" Ouka roared.

A heartbeat later, its immense weight succumbed to gravity.

The streamlined shape of the stalactite sent it plummeting toward the ground at terrifying speed. The four adventurers reacted instantly, leaping out of the way as the colossal rock slammed into the cavern floor.

*BOOM!*

The impact sent a thunderous shockwave rippling through the chamber, its force strong enough that even Bell, in the adjacent room, momentarily heard the echo despite his focus on the rabbit-like monsters attacking him.

A dense cloud of dust surged outward, swallowing the area in a choking haze. Ignoring the remaining monsters, Ouka and Mikoto dashed into the billowing fog.

Rex remained perched above, his keen eyes tracking the movement below. He knew they hadn't died—he had watched them all evade the direct hit—but the explosion of rock fragments had likely struck some of them hard. He sniffed the air, catching the faint metallic tang of fresh blood.

'Not enough for a fatal injury.' His gaze moved to the far side of the room. 'Seems like only one of them got hit bad.'

Then, chorus of guttural howls and roars echoed through the cavern.

"Ruff! RUFF!" "OooOOOOO!" "OWOOOO!"

Hellhounds, Silverbacks, and other lurking monsters were rushing toward the scene, drawn by the massive disturbance.

Turning his attention back to the Familia, Rex spotted multiple Al-Miraj bounding into the dust cloud. The obscured visibility made it difficult to see, but one thing was clear—Chigusa had taken a hard hit to the temple, blood trickling from the wound.

'That should give her a concussion, right?' he mused as he watched Mikoto attack with blinding speed. Her blade flashed in a blur, slicing through the encroaching monsters with a swiftness that would leave a Level One seeing nothing but afterimages.

"Captain Ouka, lead the retreat!" she shouted, positioning herself between the injured and the monsters. "I'll cover you!"

Ouka, without hesitation, hoisted Chigusa onto his back. "Thanks, counting on you!" he called back. "Everyone, move!"

The other three had also been struck by the explosion, but none were injured badly enough to hinder their movement. They fell into formation behind Ouka as he led the retreat as Mikoto took her place in front of the monsters to cover their retreat.

"Haaaaanh!" she roared, charging the first Al-Miraj with lightning speed. 

She easily dodged one of the rabbit's tomahawk strikes and countered with a flash of her blade, splitting the monster cleanly down its middle. As a Level Two, she could handle herself, as long as she wasn't overwhelmed by more than ten of these creatures at once.

But—

"—oooooghhh!"

Her breath hitched as she spotted even more monsters approaching. More than she could handle alone. She instinctively took a step back—then stopped. Rather than retreating, she chose to stand her ground and fight.

'Dumbass,' Rex thought as he watched from above. If things got bad, he would step in. But for now, he didn't need to.

"Mikoto, that's enough!" Ouka's voice rang from ahead. "Catch up to us!"

"On my way!" Mikoto didn't hesitate. She turned sharply and sprinted at full speed, quickly catching up to her party, who had built a considerable lead.

Rex followed like a shadow, leaping effortlessly from stalagmite to stalagmite, moving above them like a specter. He was fortunate—this part of the Dungeon was dense with rock formations. If it had been one of the more open sections, he would have been forced to descend and run along the ground, which would have been far less ideal.

'Things are going well,' he thought as he observed their path. 

The entrance to the hall leading to the next room was visible on the far wall, and Ouka had spotted it, steering his group toward it. The moment they crossed into the next room, they would see Bell's party, drawing them into the chaos. But this... this was too much.

His gaze flicked to the ever-growing swarm of monsters. If they led these creatures to Bell, the boy would die—no question about it.

Perched atop a stalagmite, Rex watched as the Takemikazuchi Familia sprinted through the entrance, hounds barking and Silverbacks roaring in pursuit. A few of the faster Hellhounds and Al-Miraj darted through first, slipping past the main bulk of the horde and entering through the door. It was time to intervene.

He couldn't let the rest through. 'Well then...' In an instant, red skulls appeared above each of the monster's head.

He activated Mental Compartmentalization and opened his mouth. His sharp canines gleamed as sparks and fire flickered to life around his mouth, rapidly condensing into a swirling, yellow-orange fireball in front of his fanged maw. The light illuminated his face for a fraction of a second before—whoosh—he fired

The projectile streaked down the room, lighting up the area, before slamming into the ground just before the incoming monsters.

*BOOM!*

The ground erupted as the fireball made contact. Nearby monsters were caught in the blast, some incinerated instantly, others flung back into the oncoming horde. Before the dust could settle, another fireball that had formed in his throat was launched downward.

*BOOM!*

A blinding flash lit up the area as the second swirling mass of heat and compressed energy struck the ground, vaporizing more of the front line of monsters and sending a shockwave through the area. 

Rex didn't stop. Even as the explosion roared, another fireball began condensing in front of his mouth while he simultaneously shaped another in his throat. He had perfected this rhythm—two fireballs forming at once, using his inner and outer fire breathing simultaneously.

After about two seconds, first shot forward, scorching the air before smashing into the ground, and the second followed about a second later.

*BOOM! BOOM!*

The dual explosions rang out, their concussive force casting erratic shadows across Rex's expressionless face. From his vantage point, he fired relentlessly, sending destruction down like a relentless barrage. Every two to three seconds, pairs of fireballs fired almost simultaneously ripped through the monster horde, reducing them to charred remains.

And then—silence. The once-roaring monster wave was no more. The battlefield was littered with smoldering corpses, the acrid scent of burnt flesh thick in the air.

'Easy peasy, lemon squeezy~' Rex thought, exhaling a breath of hot air. Though, if he didn't have the higher ground to spam fireball and fought them on ground level, it will be on a whole nother level of difficulty.

His magic reserves would have been drained by the barrage of fireballs, but the sheer number of kills had replenished him almost instantly due to Predator activating on them. It was as if he had barely expended any energy at all.

Ignoring the fallen magic stones and loot, he leaped from the stalagmite, landing with a resounding boom, dust swirling around him. Without hesitation, he sprinted out the dust toward the entrance leading to the next room.

'They definitely heard what was happening.' Rex thought as he entered the long passage but seeing as no monsters had returned, this means they are still chasing the Takemikazuchi Familia. 'By now, they should have passed it on…'

So now, he has to make sure Bell survives and make it to the 18th floor. The limited time raid boss event must happen.

[Author's Note: It seems my yin energy has surged, overwhelming my yang essence. This imbalance has left my meridians chilled and my qi flow sluggish, manifesting as this wretched cold. I must meditate and restore harmony, lest my cultivation suffer further stagnation, so there might be no chapter tomorrow.

I hope this chapter was a fun read to all of you so I will humbly ask for your stones. Thanks for reading and stay warm~o(*￣▽￣*)ブ]