The following morning was a slow one for most of the Zeus and Hera members. Those who drank themselves into the ground now felt the backlash of their actions with a horrible hangover from the booze.
In their respective rooms...
Callisto: *Covering her head with her pillow* Agh... mercy...
Alexander: Ugh, gods dammit! *In pain*
Chiron: *yawn* Another beautiful day.
He didn't drink.
In another room...
June: *groaning*
The maid held her head in her hands while groaning in pain. She was still too messed up in the head to fully process everything that was happening around her, so she didn't notice Zald enter with several plates of food and water.
Zald: Finally awake, huh.
June: Agh... what happened?
Zald: *Hands her a glass of water* Drink this first.
She gratefully downed the cup and massaged her head before recalling the previous night.
Zald: We all had a big party to celebrate the successful expedition. As a result, most of us are knocked out, so today is a day off for all of us.
June: N-No, there's still work to do-
She tried to get up but was quickly stopped by the man.
Zald: Just stay there. No one else is doing anything today, so you may as well rest the hangover.
June: Nnn... how did this happen anyway?
Zald: You started getting clingy again after your first glass of wine. I wasn't expecting you to drink with how much of a light-weight you are.
June: Ah...
The memories started flowing back and she remembered most of what happened. The moments she three herself over him and him trying to keep her under control. SHE of all people needed a leash.
June: *Embarrased* No...
Zald: You at least had fun with the rest of us, so all's well that ends well.
June: No, it isn't!
She gripped her blankets tightly and trembled.
June: I can't believe I humiliated myself like that! It's far too unbecoming of a maid!
Zald: *Brushing it off* I hardly think it counts considering you were drunk.
June: That's no excuse! I can hardly call myself a maid, much less a Head Maid after that!
The man was growing weary of this and flicked her lightly on the forehead.
Zald: Quit overreacting.
June: But-
Zald: No buts. None of us are going to hold it against you. Just rest today.
June: I can't. I must attend to my duties- ow! *Holding her head*
Zald: You're really not going to listen to reason, are you?
She tried to give him a glare, but her lack of glasses and not having her hair tied into a neat bun made her much less intimidating.
Zald: Guess I have no choice.
June: What are you- AH!
She was startled when he threw his arm over her and held her down so she stayed in the bed.
Zald: If you're going to be like that, I guess I'll have to keep you here.
June: *Blushing* Unhand me! What if someone see?!
Zald: They're too tired to stop us anyway.
June: B-B-But...
Zald: *Sigh* You know, for a workaholic that handles most of the chores by herself, you're quite bad at taking care of yourself.
June: *Offended* Excuse me? I take care of myself fine. I make sure to take a break while I work.
Zald: Yeah, A break. One for the whole day. You're still trying to get up now even after having this hangover.
She couldn't say anything back as he was entirely correct. They stayed in relative silence until she spoke up again.
June: How did you even get into this Manor? There should be plenty of us out here to keep Zeus men out.
Zald: Everyone is out. Even if there were people, all I'd have to do is open some curtains to disorient them.
June: I see.
As she laid there, she felt herself becoming enveloped in a warmth that began lulling her back to sleep. Even her hangover was becoming a second thought. By the time Zald realized it, she was snoring lightly in his arms.
Zald: (Finally. Now, time to get out of here.)
He went to leave, but not before turning back and smiling a little at the sleeping maid.
With Silver...
The boy was getting up and ready for the day ahead of him.
Silver: *Yawning*
Jupiter: [Morning.]
Silver: [Morning, Jupiter. Any ideas on what to do today?]
Jupiter: [Check if she's awake and wants to join you. Otherwise, you and Brioche can do your daily Dungeon work. You've still got a little to go before your stats are ready per your restrictions.]
Silver: [Good point. Let's just check the thing first.]
He went to Zeus' room to check on the god. Inside, he saw him sound asleep and not looking like he would be up anytime soon.
Zeus: *Sleep talking* Your ass isn't ready to handle my thunderclap, Hera... *snore*
Silver: [Good, still asleep.]
Jupiter: [Are we really just going to ignore that?]
Silver: [Yes.]
He quietly closed the door and went to the pantry to get some food before leaving. There, he saw Chiron sipping a cup of coffee while enjoying the early sunrise.
Silver: Master?
Chiron: Ah, Goodmorning. Off to the Dungeon?
Silver: That is the plan.
Chiron: Lucky you. Just because everyone drank themselves into the ground doesn't mean you should let yourself go soft. Stay diligent with your training, son.
Silver: I will.
With that, he left and went to see if Meteria was awake. He arrived at her room and opened the window she kept unlocked for him.
Silver: Hey, Meteria! Are you...
He looked inside and was met with the sight of her fresh out of the shower with only a towel covering her. She turned to the voice with a smile, but soon blushed when she remembered her appearance.
Meteria: *Getting out of sight* M-Morning, Silv!
Silver: S-Sorry! *Turning away*
Jupiter: *Admiring the view* [A good start.]
After a few minutes, she eventually clothed herself and went outside with him.
Meteria: *Blushing* I-I'm geared up and ready.
The boy nodded and the awkwardly walked to the meeting point where Brioche waited for them along with some newcomers.
Silver: Brioche!
The boy turned to them and waved.
Brioche: Hey, you guys made it!
They greeted each other again before getting deep into the topics for the day.
Brioche: Glad to see you weren't dead drunk like your Familias.
Silver: We don't do that.
Jupiter: [Yet.]
Meteria: Who are these people?
There were two extras with the boy. One was a Chientrop girl. She had a light cream-like colored hair and blue eyes. She had basic light armor around her body and a bow and quiver around her back. The other was an elf man with blonde hair. His eyes were green and he had blue colored clothing along with brown boots and fingerless gloves.
Brioche: These two were looking for a party to join, so I talked to them for a little bit. They seemed nice enough and I figured they would make great additions. The Chienthrope is Nory and he's Cester.
Nory: N-Nice to meet you.
Cester: *Nods*
Silver: Well, glad to have you with us. I'm Silver and she's Meteria.
Meteria: Let's all do our best from now on!
Nory: I'll try not to slow you guys down. *Nervous*
Cester: I only promise to do what I can.
Silver: That's about all we need. So, what do you guys do?
Nory: I can shot with my bow and I've got some daggers with me.
Cester: I mostly wield a sword, but I have some magic I can use. Just a small barrage of explosive light, but it does its job.
Meteria: You have magic?! Thats great!
Cester: Elves do have the natural affinity for it. What about you two?
Silver: I'm a supporter, but I've made en effort to fight with you guys. I can hold my own.
Brioche: Meteria and I made up the vanguard and rear guard. It's kind of hard to make positions with only three of us, so we just did our best to support each other.
Cester: Then allow me to assist in the rear guard.
Silver: I'll stay in the middle and help you support Nory. I assume you both are level 1 too?
They nodded.
Brioche: Looks like we know where we're going. Let's aim for the Middle Floors again. We should be a lot faster with five of us.
The five of them then went and tackled their first dive together. It was immediately clear that Nory and Cester had experience working alone. It took them a few floors to adjust to having a coherent party, but they picked it up quick. A few hours later, they arrived at Floor 12 and took a rest.
Cester: Hah... you guys are quite skilled for level 1s. I could barely keep up.
Silver: You aren't half bad yourself. You're good with a sword and you have a useful spell.
Nory: Y-Yeah, having someone with magic is a big help!
Cester: *Smiling* I appreciate the kind words.
Brioche: You aren't bad either, Nory. You have a good eye with that bow.
Nory: T-Thanks! I had a lot of practice shooting.
She eventually warmed up with everyone, but assured them that her nervous stutter would disappear once she got used to them. Cester also grew more friendly with his new party. They just needed to be wary about elves and touching, which he appreciated.
Silver: I'm not trying to be insensitive by asking, but you seem a lot friendlier than most elves I've seen.
Cester: My parents raised me away from a forest. They felt that our race's pride would be our undoing, so they decided to rebel and live among other races. Overtime, they saw the value of interacting with others as equals and I grew up like that.
Nory: And your family?
Cester: They live outside Orario. I simply came here to better myself and maybe even help my brothers and sisters see the truth.
Meteria: Wow, that's deep.
Cester: My apologies. I can ramble about my beliefs at times.
Brioche: *Waving it off* No, it's fine. Don't worry about that. I actually found it interesting. Not many elves think like you.
Cester: Haha, I see. I'm glad I meet people like you. Living over 20 years, I haven't found many people as good as you.
Nory: That isn't very long for an elf.
Cester: It isn't, but I've never been one to care about my age.
Nory: I guess I can't either. I'm only 15 anyway.
Meteria: Seriously? I'm still the youngest?!
Nory: Yeah, but you're one of the best here.
Meteria: Aw, thanks.
Brioche: Well, ready to get back to it?
Silver: I'm game. I got all the magic stones here.
One by one, they prepared themselves and descended further into the dungeon. This became the norm for them in the days to come.
Timeskip 1 month...
Silver and Meteria were now in the girl's room discussing their plans moving forward, while no one knew they were there of course.
Meteria: All we need is one good push. My magic is beginning to catch up with my other stats. Even my strength and dexterity are already maxed out.
Silver: Yeah, I'm almost there myself. I only need a few points left in each ability.
Meteria: We still need a worthy feat to climb to Level 2. Any ideas?
Silver: Maybe an infant dragon? Those are supposed to be floor bosses on the upper floors.
Meteria: I just want to do it within the next week! The big meeting of the Gods is happening and I want to get an nickname!
Silver: Yeah, and your sister is going to get a new one too. Well, the executives are at least.
During the last expedition, Zeus and Hera updated their children and made history. Callisto made history as the highest level adventurer at Level 9. Maxim also leveled up and rose to Level 8. Zald, Alexander and Io also rose to Level 7. Alfia even rose to Level 3. Needless to say, Zeus and Hera were very pleased with their children. Many others also leveled up, but there were a lot of them.
Jupiter: [Hey man, time to go.]
Silver: I'm going to go get ready. See you in a bit.
Meteria: Bye!
He left from the window again and with good timing as Alfia entered the room right after. The girl let herself in and saw the open window with a grimace.
Alfia: That stupid boy was here again.
Meteria: Ahaha...
Alfia: So, are you going to try for your level up?
Meteria: I want to bring my magic up as quick as possible before that, though. Luckily, Goddess was able to give me that grimoire before.
Alfia: *Sigh* At least it fits you well.
Meteria: It sure does! Serenium Eden is just the support spell our party needs!
Alfia: Just be sure to remember to use is sparingly. I don't want to have you dragged put because you went Mind Down like when you first got it.
Meteria: *Embarrassed* I was just excited! I've never had magic before, so can you blame me?!
Alfia: *Smiling* No. Just be careful.
The girl nodded and armed herself as well. After some time, she met up with everyone else for the day.
Meteria: Ready?
Brioche: I think so. Let's make for Floor 14 and try to stay there as long as we can.
With that, they agreed on the plan and made their way down. After a few hours, all was normal until they found themselves being slowly surrounded.
Nory: Uh, there's a lot of them now!
Slash* *poof*
Brioche: Don't break formation! Stay together!
Wave after wave of hellhounds and almiraj pummeled them, but they didn't buckle. After a long period of fighting, they managed to kill all the monsters. They leaned on their weapons and caught their breaths.
Brioche: *Panting* okay, I think we're done here...
Nory: Can we go back up? *Tired*
Silver: I'm full anyway. Let's break the rest of these and head up.
They dealt with their final task and began their ascent up. They were on Floor 11 and Silver felt something off.
Jupiter: [So, is it just me, or does something feel wrong here?]
Silver: [No, I feel it too.] Hey guys, something isn't right here.
Cester: It's too quiet.
They heard rumbling coming from a corridor near them. Some time later, they then heard it coming closer to the field they were in and it was slowly becoming more clear. Another party of adventurers ran past them and they looked to where they were running from to see where the boy's feeling came from.
Nory: What the-
Brioche: Ah, crap.
Jupiter: [Look there!]
From behind, there was a massive group of monsters behind them. Imps, silverbacks, and orcs. Their numbers were massive and unnerved them.
Silver: We can't take on that many! We have to go!
With that, they began running as well, but the horde had already gotten them in their sights and wouldn't let them escape.
Meteria: I don't think we're shaking them!
Cester: No choice! We have to take a stand here!
Silver: That's suicide! Look how many there are!
Jupiter: [We don't have a choice. You guys aren't going to outrun them. It's do or die time.]
Silver grunted before they all turned to face them.
Brioche: Nory, cover us!
Nory: On it!
Woosh*
She let her arrows loose and picked off the smaller monsters.
Meteria: Hyaa!!
Slash*
She and Brioche worked to split the work of the bigger ones while Cester and Silver did what they could to keep them off Nory.
Cester: Light Shower!
His magic spell shot arrows of light at them and killed a few, but the sounds of battle soon attracted more from around the floor.
Brioche: Silver!
Silver: I got it!
He dropped his backpack and went to deal with the ones in front of them.
Silver: Strike, Jupiter!
His speed increased and he dealt blows to as many of them as he could including those around Meteria and Brioche. The two used the opening to finish them off before the newer monster came into the fight. This repeated itself as the minutes ticked by.
Brioche: Gah! Rrr... there's no end to them!
Meteria: Quick, to me!
They regrouped to the girl and she was quick to assist them.
Meteria: Iremia
A wave of white light expanded from her and out to everyone else, healing them of their wounds.
Cester: Come on! HAAAA!
They quickly went back to the fight which was going on for almost half an hour now. By now, Cester and Meteria repeatedly cast their magic along with Silver. They burned through most of their mind potions and were down to a few left.
Nory: Meteria! Duck!
The girl got down and saw the silverback she was fighting die after being shot in the head by an arrow.
Meteria: Thanks!
Everyone was reaching their limits, but the flow of monsters was beginning to slow down. That is, until they heard two large crashing sounds in the distance.
Slash* *Poof*
Meteria: Hah... what was that noise?
She heard stomping in the distance along with the others.
Brioche: Whatever it is, I don't like it.
Silver: We fought off the rest of the monsters. Now would be a good time to retreat.
Nory: I'm with him.
They all agreed not to stick around and find out what happened, but they wouldn't have much of a choice when they saw the exit had collapsed.
Nory: What?
Brioche: Did those bastards do this?!
Jupiter: [Incoming!]
Silver: ?!
The stomping grew louder until they saw two infant dragons closing in on their positions.
Nory: Two of them?!
Brioche: Well, that's just great...
Meteria: Any ideas?
Cester: Split apart!
They separated and handled two of them for each dragon while Nory kept her distance.
Silver: You sure this is a good idea?
Cester: Not much of a choice here. Let's just do what we can.
Silver looked to the others and saw they were far more winded than he was since he mostly supported the back rather than fighting in the vanguard. Cester was in the awkward middle ground, but somehow held on. His fatigue was showing, though. They dodged bites and tail swipes before Silver knew he had to end it.
Silver: I need an opening! If you can make one, I'll end this quickly!
The Elf promised to try, but couldn't guarantee anything. Silver cast his magic to first deal with its legs. He ran around it and gave it several cuts to hinder its movements, but his current gear wouldn't allow for anything deeper. Eventually, the elf landed a good hit with his spell and temporarily blinded it long enough for the boy to make his move.
Silver: Not entirely sure where the stone is or if I can even reach it. The old fashioned way it is.
He enchanted himself once more and rushed right under its head as it cried out in pain. He jumped and delivered a strong slash right at its neck and blood spewed out of it. He jumped back and forth and cut open more segments down its neck before it dropped to the ground. After bleeding out and exploding into ash, he turned and saw Meteria's group not doing very well. The monster was covered in arrows and looked weakened, but the others were also on their last legs. Brioche was barely standing and Meteria was covered in blood and bruises.
Nory: I'm out of arrows!
Silver wasted no time and rushed over to them. Using his speed, he picked up some arrows from the ground and tossed them to the Chienthrope girl.
Silver: Take the eyes out!
She nodded and eas able to blind it. The dragon roared louder when Meteria brought her axe down on its side, opening a wound at the spot. Silver and the others soon joined in and began to overwhelm it slowly. Brioche and Cester managed to keep the tail in check while Silver worked with Meteria to handle its head.
Silver: Woah!
He narrowly dodged another attempt at being bitten while the girl slammed hard on the top of its head.
Meteria: You're mine!
This brought it to the ground before she repeatedly drove her weapon down on its neck before it finally cut through.
poof*
It exploded into dust before everyone collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.
Meteria: Please tell me it's over...
Brioche: I... I doubt it. We still need to... hah... find a way out.
They saw in the distance that the exit was still blocked off. Suddenly, the rubble was blown away and showed Alfia running down with a worried look on her face.
Alfia: Meteria!
Meteria: Sister?
She ran to the girl and hugged her before bringing several elixirs out to heal her.
Alfia: You took so long to come back! I was worried!
Meteria: Yeah, we sort of ran into some trouble here.
Alfia glared at Silver when he saw him and the rest of the party in a similar state.
Meteria: *Interrupting her before she can say anything* Sister, please don't try to blame him again. This was just an accident.
Alfia: *Sigh* Let's just go back.
She helped to assist them back to the surface. Even though they were tired, they had little trouble getting back up especially with Level 3 support, all the while Alfia berated Silver on their way up.
Timeskip...
Silver and Meteria returned home after a quick check up at the clinic to have their party patched up. Hera and Zeus met them at the gates and checked on their children.
Hera: Meteria, my sweetie! You're covered in blood! You aren't hurt, right?! *Worried*
Meteria: Goddess, we just came back from the clinic. We're fine now.
Zeus: Good to see you two still in one piece. What happened? It's almost past sundown. You two aren't usually this late.
Hera: What did the boy drag you into?
Meteria: It was just an accident! We got pass paraded on our way up from the Middle Floors and had to fight our way out.
Hera: *Angry* Grr... when I find out who did this, they can kiss this place goodbye!
Alfia: Is there anything else I should know about?
Meteria: Oh, we killed infant dragons!
Hera: You what?
Silver: We both got one. *Still slightly irritated*
Zeus: Haha! Well done, son! Let's go to your room and update you! This should definitely suffice as a level up feat!
Hera: You as well, Meteria. Your sister leveled up, so it's natural you do as well.
Meteria: Yes!
Later that night, they finalized their updates and had their stats risen to their peaks. The last few points they needed was acquired and they met their goals for their level ups.
Meteria Morningstar
AN: Someone suggested this a while back. I thought it was good, so I'll roll with this for them.
Hera Familia
Level 1 - 2
Str S-999 - I-0
End S-999 - I-0
Dex S-999 - I-0
Agl S-999 - I-0
Mag S-999 - I-0
Magic
Serenium Eden
-Swift strike magic that creates a wave of healing for allies.
Chant: Iremia
Skills
(New) Heavyweight
-Greatly decreases the felt weight of heavy weapons.
Development Abilities
(New) Hunter-I
Hera: All done. Here you go.
Meteria: Wow, I can't believe I'm Level 2 now!
Alfia: You earned it. Good job.
Hera: As much as I want to celebrate, I'll have to wait until after the Denatus. We can celebrate with everyone once you and the others get their new aliases.
Meteria: Fine by me! *Happy* (Aw! I want to give hum the news so badly, but they won't let me go see him!)
Alfia: It's only too bad that fool is likely to have leveled up too.
Hera: *Irritated* Let's not talk about him.
With Silver...
The boy was still slightly sulking about what Alfia said. He was praying this level up would bridge the gap between them.
Silver: (I'll show her.)
Zeus finalized the update and gave the paper to him.
Silver Cranel
Zeus Familia
Level 1 - 2
Str S-999 - I-0
End S-999 - I-0
Dex S-999 - I-0
Agl S-999 - I-0
Mag S-999 - I-0
Magic
Jupiter
-Lightning enchant magic
Chant: Strike/Jupiter
Skills
(New) Thermopylae
-Raises basic abilities (up to 300%) based on how outnumbered the adventurer is. The greater the difference, the greater the boost.
(New) Spartan Drive
-Inverts the effects of the letter rank curve. Excelia gained becomes easier to gain with each successive letter rank.
Development Abilities
(New) Hunter-I
Zeus: Well, this is strange.
Silver: Something wrong?
He looked at the paper and saw what he likely meant.
Silver: Dad, what is this?
Zeus: I'm not certain myself. Looks like you manifested two skills this time.
Silver: The first one is probably from the Dungeon, but what about the second one?
Zeus: I'm not sure exactly. I've only seen it a few times, but it is a powerful skill.
Silver: What does it do?
Zeus: You know how the curve to gain excelia grows steeper with each level and letter rank? Well, it gets rid of the one for the letters and reverses the effects. You basically grow stronger faster the higher rank they go.
Jupiter: [Haha! Lucky you!]
Silver: That is a powerful skill! Where did it come from, though?
Zeus: Every child I've seen who got it was experiencing a great sense of inferiority to a particular thing. I can see clearly you feel that way. There were other conditions too, but thatvisnt inportant. Now you have a method to fix that.
Silver: *Nods*
Zeus: Now then, that adds another thing to do. Now that you've leveled up, I have another thing to brag about at the meeting!
Silver: [And I have a way to get back at that evil woman now!]
Jupiter: (All you folks in the comments. Guess how long it takes him to change his mind because I give him a year or two at best.)
AN: Hey! Follow the script!
The silly spirit shut up and Silver was considering going to Meteria to tell her the news. However, he decided to call it a night for now and tell her with everyone else in the morning.
AN: I did plan to extend it a little with the Denatus, but I decided it was long enough of a wait and I can just start with that next chapter. I've also been dragging out this starting arc for long enough and want to pick up the pace a little bit. Some new faces join the fray and several people level up. I have the road map drawn out, now I just need to set it all up. Stay tuned because there are more adventures waiting just over the horizon.
Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed. Let me know what you thought and I'll see you in the next one.