Ladies and Gentleman... Magic!

"Alise, two Orcs on your left!"

"On It!" The female voice dashes off the grassy plains, her red hair bustling in the wind of her creation. I watch on, marvelling at the intricate and skilful display being enacted in front of me.

"Ryu, Kaguya, get rid of those imps pronto!"

My eyes follow the swift movements of the elf and far-eastern girl as they dance around the grey-skinned monsters, their swords glimmering with each slice. It was almost enough to make me want to turn into a swordsman.

"Neze, couple of hard-armoured coming your way!"

"Way ahead of ya Lyra!" The tanned-skkin Chienthrope girl remarks with a grin as she rushes towards the rolling monster with armoured-like shells covering their entire body. With a quick punch, followed by a kick, her two opponents were quickly dealt with.

I turned my attention back to the pink-haired prum who was the furthest back, shouting out commands to her fellow Familia members. Lyra seemed to be able to see everything that was going on. Even though we were the same level, my eyesight was almost obsolete compared to hers.

I had seen various adventurer parties work together over my time spying on different people in the dungeon. However, I had not seen one so efficient. Brant had tried to teach me the intricate roles of a normal party, even though I was a solo diver.

Alise, Kaguya and Ryu were what is known as the vanguard. They seemed to take turns to be the main attacker, with the other two being the one at the back of the party as a watch-out and the final one being a backup vanguard. This time, since they were not traversing the dungeon floors, they didn't need a watch-out as they were sticking to a single battlefield.

Lyra was the commander. When I asked why, since Alise was the captain, I was given three reasons. One, Lyra was the smartest. Two, apparently Prum's had the best sight out of all the races, something I had never heard of but from what I've seen, I can't argue. The third reason was that she wasn't a frontline attacker, meaning she was best utilised on the back lines, where she could shoot her arrows and throw her bombs if needed.

Lyra could combine her battle style with her eyesight to allow her to give callouts while also not just sitting back and doing nothing. Though to be honest, I wasn't really interested in that. I mean, I know information is key in the dungeon but mine and Lyra's fighting style were complete opposites. No, I was more interested in Neze, a fellow brawler.

They designated her the tank role as she was the biggest and strongest in terms of brute strength. I didn't understand at first why she was given the role of tank instead of just being another Vanguard member as I thought a tank was normally a beefy dwarf with a lot of armour and a giant shield.

However, Neze decided to play it differently. Instead of just taking the damage and allowing the vanguard to get the kill, Neze used her fists to stop any of the big monsters from getting close to Lyra, the commander, and tried to kill them with a single action. If that failed, then she would have damaged the monster enough for party member closest to her to quickly swoop in and finish off the monster, a bonus for a party with three Vanguards.

Even though I was watching a party without spying and I was sitting in the middle of floor 11 not having to worry about monsters, the weirdest thing about all this was the thing in my hand.

As Lyra scanned the open plain one last time to check for monsters, she turned back to the young, black-haired, green-eyed boy who was currently perched on a fallen tree, munching away at a sandwich.

When they first offered him the sandwich, he seemed to have short-circuited. Apparently, he had never brought food down into the dungeon once, though he confessed to thinking of doing it once or twice.

They understood when he struggled to take the first bite. They had all been there. Eating in such a hostile environment, it was foreign to their mind. It was something all adventurers had to hardwire into themselves, so they weren't surprised with how long it took for Percy to get used to eating in the dungeon.

"Sit back and enjoy the show."

That's what Lyra had said to him before she put her commander head on and began directing her sisters on the battlefield. The fight only lasted minutes, the top floors becoming ever easier for the party of Level 2s, But this fight wasn't about getting stronger, it was about showing their already existing strength to the young observer.

"What ya think?" She asked, pushing the sweaty strands of pink hair from her eyes as she walked over to Percy. He gulped down the remaining bite of his sandwich as he turned to her.

"... you did faster than I would've."

Lyra couldn't help but chuckle at that. She had come to realise the young boy wasn't the best at holding conversations, choosing to be more direct and quicker, much like his fighting style. And what a way he fought.

When they had entered, the first plan of action was to get Percy accustomed to his new strength, syncing his body and mind. He also wanted to use his new weapons, almost as much as Alise wanted to see them in action but Lyra recommended saving them for stronger monsters. He begrudgingly agreed. So he kept them nestled over his knuckles as he gave a demonstration to the Astrea captain on how they worked without having to cave a goblin's skull in.

Speaking of goblins, the girls noticed a strange... behaviour the boy had towards the pudgy green monsters. When they first came across one, none of them not knowing what to expect from the boy, watched with shock and horro as he dashed at speed to the monster and plunged his fist straight into the goblin's stomach, ripping out the magic stone immediately.

All 4 of them were stunned, that was until Neze broke the silence.

"Hell yeah lil man, I like ya style."

After that, it seemed the Chienthrope girl and the young boy got along, both showing clear similarities in their fighting style. It simmered down to punch first and ask questions later. That's what they initially thought anyway.

But Lyra saw it, something different to how Neze fought. It was when they came across a pack of killer ants. Even for a level 2, they needed to be wary. They had wanted to observe the way the boy fought but this time they would take care of it. Well, they would have if it wasn't for the boy dashing in.

At first, they thought it was mindless, meathead behaviour but Lyra quickly realised it was something more. The way he dodged, punched, spun and parried, yes parried a killer ants attack. It was as if he could read their movement.

'No, it's because he already knows the moves they will make from prior experience.'

Lyra would compare Neze and Percy. While Neze jumped in and asked questions later recklessly, Percy jumped in because he already had the answer to the questions, every single one of them. Not just the killer ants, but every monster he came up against. Kobold, War Shadow, Orc, Imp. All of them, he seemed to have the attack pattern down to perfection.

That wasn't only the part his amazing memory seemed to be in use in the dungeon. Lyra had questioned what Percy did out of the dungeon whenever he wasn't fighting, a weird question to ask a brawler but hey, why not, she thought. What she wasn't expecting was a detailed layout of every single floor from 1 to 11. He said he explored most of the floor he was on before descending to the next one and mapped out each one. If he didn't have time before he left, he finished it off when he got back home.

The way he said he finished off a detailed map of a dungeon while outside the dungeon as it was nothing floored the prum. The guild-issued maps weren't as good as the one he had in his book. Lyra believed Percy's mind was closer to Alise or Neze but when he showed them his map, only Lyra understood after some thinking, and the redhead and the dog girl were completely lost. She quickly realised something.

'That boy is a genius.'

Then there was his strength itself. Alise was the first to get to level 2, Ryu had been the last. Ryu had been level 2 for getting close to 9 months, around the same time Percy had been an adventurer. Percy was already caught up to Ryu and Lyra in terms of strength and he had not even had a single update at level 2. It was absurd.

A mixture of an intelligent, remarkable mind and amazing strength even for a newbie level 2 was a combination not to be messed with. Combine that with a growth rate of levelling up in under a year and Lyra couldn't fathom where the boy would be when he reached their age. She was glad that they had found him now, the Prum's curiosity looking forward to seeing the boy's growth.

"H-hey?" Percy asked nervously to her.

"Yeah, what is it?" She responded, curious about what he wanted. He hadn't asked for anything, having quietly observed and listened to commands when told.

"When can I try out my Galva-knuckles and magic?"

Lyra couldn't help but bark out a laugh. Yeah, he was still an adventurer, any one of them doesn't like to sit about for too long, especially after watching others fight. Not to mention when they have new toys and tricks to try.

The Prum remembered when the boy proudly told them the name he gave his weapons after showing off his light armoour set properly. Lyra couldn't help but laugh while Ryu and Kaguya sighed, with the far-eastern girl muttering something about boys being stupid.

However, both Neze and Alise loved the name, especially after Percy explained how he came to the name. Just another example of the mixture of his personality. It was also a nice reminder that he was still a 5-year-old child, something they needed after he swiftly dealt with a pack of kobolds like they were nothing.

"Ok, ok. We'll move to floor 12 after this and you can go at it, deal?"

The boy gave a quick nod, not bothering to hide his small smile as he hopped off the log. He then dropped off the small cliff where Lyra had been giving orders from, as it was a nice vantage point.

He fell to the floor with a quiet thump as he drew his knife and began helping dig out the magic stones, something he seemed to be very skilled in. Though, that was to be expected from a solo diver whose main drive was to get money to help out his family.

"Yo Percy, thanks for the help!" Alise shouted as she bounded over to the boy. She had already dug out the two stones from the Orcs she slaughtered, with Ryu and Kaguya making quick work of their kills.

The boy gave a quick hum to acknowledge that he heard her, pocketing the magic stone in his satchel before moving on. Alise smiled at the boy, sheathing her sword as she skipped towards him.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you get your fair share. Enough for you and your family!"

Percy looked at her with a side-eye, giving her a quick smile before scanning around looking for any other corpses. The quicker he got the magic stones, the quicker they got to floor 12.

"Hey, how's your ankle doing?"

Perseus looked up at the young girl walking next to him with a tilt of his head.

"Fine... I guess."

"You guess? What's that supposed to mean?" Alise said as she looked over at Ryu and Kaguya who had met up with Lyra. Now was her time to act captain-y towards the boy.

"I can fight fine on it, so I guess it's fine."

Alise couldn't really think of anything to say after that. If the boy felt fine, he felt fine. What else was she meant to do; he knows his body better than her.

"Come on, let's go meet with the others now, we'll descend to the 12th floor afterwards," The redhead said calmly as she knelt down and began splitting a hard-armoured body open.

Perseus wasn't sure how he felt about Alise Lovell. She was loud, something he didn't enjoy but she was also kind and strong. Not everyone could be perfect he concluded. He realised he had enjoyed his time in the dungeon with her though, along with the rest of the Astrea Familia.

"Yo lil man, enjoy the show?" Neze asked as she wiped the blood from her small knife that she used to get magic stones. This was the second time he had been asked this, what was he supposed to say?

Perseus bit his lip slightly as he thought of what to say before just telling the dog girl they were good. He had gotten along with Neze, but like Alise, she liked to ask questions. He didn't know which one he preferred. The energetic duo of Neze and Alise, or the solemn, judgy pair of Kaguya and Ryu.

"Bet you're itching to get back to fightin'," Neze said as she knelt down and helped the boy open up the hard-armoured he was dissecting. Putting her hands in between the small incision he made, she tore the body open, allowing Percy to reach in and grab the magic stone, the monster's body subsequently turning to dust.

"Group meeting!" Alise shouted with a quick clap, making Percy cover his ears in discomfort. Neze giggled slightly as she ruffled the boy's black hair before standing up. The boy followed suit as the trio began walking over to the other three girls.

"Right, I think that was good enough, we're gonna go to floor 12. Everyone alright with that?" Lyra asked as the rest of the party sat around, eating. Perseus had already eaten so he was preparing his Galva-Knuckles and checking his armour, doing his best not to get excited.

The group hummed in agreement, most of them unable to talk as they had food in their mouth. Not that that stopped one of them.

"We *munch* giving..." Alise tried to start with a mouth full of food.

"Swallow ya idiot!" Kaguya admonished her.

" *gulp* Aaahh, sorry. I was gonna say are we giving Percy a chance to use his stuff?"

"I was just gonna get on to that Alise. Percy has asked if he could use his new weapons and..."

"Galva-Knuckles!" Alise corrected with a grin. Perseus struggled not to flush red as he looked down, not wanting to be part of this.

"Sorry. Percy wants to use his Galva-Knuckles and his magic. I propose we let him use them on floor 12 before we hit the middle floors. Does that sound good to you lot?" The Prum asked. She had given her own green light to the boy earlier but unless the others agreed, mainly Alise, then she couldn't promise anything. Though it seemed that wouldn't be hard.

"Hell Yeah! I've been dying to see his shiny Knuckle Dusters in action!" Neze remarked loudly, earning an eye roll from Kaguya. "I don't see why not, it's the main reason we came down here anyway," The far-eastern girl said with a sigh as she finished off her lunch.

"What about you Ryu?" Alise asked her friend. The young elf just tilted her head in thought before shrugging her shoulders. "If you're alright with it, then I'm fine with it too Alise," Ryu responded as she wiped her fingers on her green battle shorts of any crumbs.

"What say you then, captain?" Lyra asked, already knowing the answer.

"Do you even need to ask? Come on Percy, I want to see you tear some stuff up!"

The black-haired boy couldn't contain his excitement as he finished off his preparation of his Galva-Knuckles before jogging to the front of the group and headed towards the entrance of the twelfth floor. The Astrea Familia had to quickly pack their stuff to keep up with the boy who was too busy wrapped up in his excitement to wait for them. They all looked at each other and smiled at the boy's back, even Ryu couldn't withhold a smile at the boy's energy.

Finally, I get to use Reg's weapons, and my magic too. I have been aching to get back into the dungeon properly. The ride down here had not even constituted as a warm-up. I had killed a few goblins, kobolds, war shadows and a single horde of killer ants. While I was glad that I was diving with the Astrea Familia, I had sorted the issue with my mind and body being out of sync with a quick self-sparring lesson in a couple of minutes the morning after I levelled up. I didn't really get what the fuss was about but I didn't see the point in arguing, especially when the payoff was getting a first-hand lesson of the middle floors.

That was still on the backburner though. I felt the cold steel of the bar nestled between the middle of my fingers, the muscles itching at the thought of squeezing it down. I decided to use my Galva-Knuckles first before my magic as they seemed a good way to get back into the swing of things.

Letting my ankle heal had given me my first taste of a proper rest day, and while it felt nice, something felt off not going to bed with my muscles aching. It felt like I wasted a day. So I had to make up for that. But being Level 2 had more perks than just more strength. I could stay awake later, go longer without food or water and have more energy stored up. That meant I could probably do an entire 24-hour day in the dungeon without many negative side effects.

"Stay focused Percy, we're leaving this floor to you. We'll still step in if we see that it's getting too much for you. Don't be afraid to ask for help, that's why we are here," Alise stated from a couple of metres back. I smiled at the kind gesture but as I saw the first cracks in the floor and the sound of monsters filled the air, I felt a wave of confidence fill him.

Before I even gave any of the other girls a chance to say anything else, I pushed off and went straight for the first imp that had spawned in. The Level up was truly amazing, I cleared a distance of about 100m in a second and then a second later the imp evaporated in a single hit.

Now I could kill Imps before in a single hit just before I levelled up but that was with a direct punch or kick to the head, their weakest point. However, with this, I punched directly in the stomach. And the body didn't even drop to the floor, it just disintegrated, with only the faint glow of purple from its core remaining.

Whether that was my Galva-Knuckles, my new strength or a mixture of both, the increase in strength was amazing. But a simple Imp wasn't enough. So I dashed off, looking for any Orcs or hard-armoured to properly test my new combination, not bothering to see the look of amazement and shock spread across the faces of the girls watching me.

My next victim was in sight. A giant Orc standing at least 4 times my height. Before it even had time to swing its giant fist, which almost moved in slow motion for me now, I leapt off my level 2 legs and punched straight at its temple.

I had never killed an Orc in one hit, not until now. The force I generated behind my punch was enough for the Orc to suddenly drop to the ground, dead as soon as my steel fist made contact. What was even more fascinating, unlike before with just my leather gloves, I felt little vibration or after-shock from my attack, my new weapons absorbing most of the impact. Reg truly was a smithing genius with these, I thought.

I spent about an hour doing this, testing out my Galva-Knuckles. After 20 minutes of running around on my own, Lyra chimed in and wanted to test being my commander in case we teamed up again. I thought this was fair, as long as I got to test my Galva-Knuckles I wasn't too bothered.

I'll admit, the initial thought of being told what to do doesn't sound appealing but this was different. It was amazing. I felt like I didn't need to worry about looking around constantly. Every time I finished off a group of monsters, Lyra just told me where the next batch was and off I went. It was fantastic. No wonder people travelled in parties. They would get through monsters faster, safer and more efficiently, all the while earning more money as you could spend more time in the dungeon. I still wanted to stay solo but the idea of traversing with the Astrea Familia now and then or maybe even Brant one day was becoming a more open idea.

It didn't take long until we made it to the descent to the 13th floor. I could feel the allure of the middle floors but this time I felt ready, knowing I had the strength to face it. Without even turning to face the Astrea Familia, I began to make my way to the steps.

"Hold it!"

Alise grabbed my shoulder from behind and spun me to face her. I went to voice my concern and tell her that she didn't need to worry. I was strong enough now but she stopped before I began speaking.

"I know you think you are invincible now; we all did after our level-up. You think because you easily beat the monsters who you might've struggled with when you were level 1, you can take on anything. Trust me when I say this, but down those steps..." Alise muted herself for a few seconds as she made sure I was paying attention.

"This, up here," She gestured to the surrounding area. "It doesn't compare. Walking down those steps is like entering another dungeon for the first time. There is a reason the guild forbids level 1s to enter down there without an experienced party around them."

'They do?' I thought, knowing nothing about the guild or how it operates. I only really care that they trade magic stones for money. But I listen to Alise's advice. I know from Brant that experience means a lot in the dungeon and I should listen to it. She is right, I do feel invincible. Is this that hubris thing that is mentioned in the Dungeon Oratoria loads of times? That was the main way most heroes failed.

"...ok, I understand," I say as I properly turn away from the stairs and walk away from them.

"Wait, really? I'm getting good at this captain thing!" Alise stated, a smile spreading across her face as she folded her arms in triumph.

"No, it's just that Percy is smart enough, unlike someone else we know," Kaguya said, giving a side-eye to Ryu.

"Hey, what do you mean by that Kaguya?" Ryu argued back before Neze jumped in.

"Oh please, we had to basically drag you away from those stairs after you levelled up. You were hellbent on going down there for days," The Chienthrope laughed at her friend as she turned a couple of shades of red.

I couldn't help but smile at this. I guess it's normal to feel this way.

"Anyway, don't you have something else first you need to do before we go down there?" Lyra said, her hands on her hips as she smiled at me. My eyes widen as I realise what she meant; how could I forget? I had wanted to test my magic for almost a week now, this was finally my chance.

"Have you got your chant written down on a piece of paper?" The prum asked. I look at her, confused at the question.

"No, why?" I asked, not knowing why I'd do that.

"So you can cast your magic. Wait, have you already remembered your chant?" She asked. I nod, wondering if it was weird for me to have memorised it by now. I mean how could I not. Even if I didn't have my memory, I had read my status sheet every morning, evening and night, silently reading my magic chant. I knew all three lines off by heart.

"Heh, should've guessed," The prum said with a sigh, dragging one of her hands through her short, pink hair. "Well before you cast it, what kind of magic is it?"

"I... don't really know. I've never seen much magic, only a few spells that cast water or fire. The only proper one I've seen is..." I trail off as I see that adventurer who casted that giant beam of light at the irregular ape monster. That was real magic but I don't think mine is anything like that.

"Well, what kind of chant is your magic?" Ryu asked. She couldn't help but be interested in magic, it was in her blood.

"What do you mean?" I ask, unsure of her question.

"Well, there a two main types of chant. Quick chant, where just by saying the name of the magic, it casts it. Or one where you have to say, or sometimes even sing a chant before saying the name to cast it." The elf explained.

"Ok... I don't think it's the first one."

"Well, then could you tell us the name of your magic?" Kaguya asked. "Since it isn't quick chant, if you say the name it won't cast it, making it safe to say."

"Mmmm..." I try to think of the name. "Where about on the chant does it say the name?" I ask.

"It should say it at the end," Ryu said.

I think back on my magic.

Bestow upon me the strength to beat my foe

Gift me the power to withstand their attacks

Absorb their strength and make it my own

I tilt my head in confusion as I replay it again, and again. Over and over until I face the fact that I'm probably going to get some more weird looks.

"It doesn't... have a name," I say with a sigh. And just as I said it, those looks I envisioned appeared on the girl's faces.

"What do you mean? The last word should resemble a name, like Noah Heal or Luminous Wind." Ryu said, giving her magic as an example.

"The last words of my chant are foe, attacks and own."

"That sounds like a quick chant."

"Wait, there are three last words. How are there three?" Kaguya questioned.

I struggle to talk, as the voices begin to rise alongside the questions. I don't understand magic, so how am I meant to understand my own.

"How about we just try it out and see what happens?" Alise said, quietening the questions.

"Alise, magic can be dangerous, we all know that. What if something goes wrong?" Lyra said, caution in her voice.

"Ain't that why we're here?" Neze said with a large grin. The other girls didn't seem to respond to that, seemingly giving in and allowing the test to go ahead.

"All right then Percy, take it away. If anything goes wrong, which I'm sure it won't, we'll be here," Alise finished off with a thumbs up.

I couldn't help but feel grateful to the Astrea Captain. She had stopped the questions and was still allowing me to use my magic. She had defused the situation perfectly, a situation I created.

I just nod my head at the girl before I close my eyes and begin to concentrate.

"You're going to feel somewhat tingly in your arms and hands, that's where magic is mostly expelled from," Ryu explained.

I listen to her. I remove my Galva-Knuckles, passing them off to Neze before going back to concentrating. I try to imagine what my magic will do but for some reason, my mind is drawing a blank so I just go for it.

"Bestow upon me the strength to beat my foe."

I recite the first line but before I go on to the second, I feel a tingly feeling in body, similar to how Ryu described it. I tilt my head in confusion. Maybe this is just how magic feels when you start. Then I feel it.

Everything is sharpened. My hearing, my vision. Has my magic already worked?

"Wow!" Alise muttered.

"So it was a quick chant one?" Ryu quietly stated.

"It's kind of similar to yours Alise," Lyra said.

What were they going on about? Then I look at my arms and legs, the places where the skin is showing. Swirls of blue lines wrap around my skin. It didn't fully cover my skin but it looked... weird. It was almost as if the blue lines were moving as if liquid was inside. No, liquid wasn't the right way to describe it.

"It's kind of like lightning," Lyra muttered.

That was what it was. Blue jets of lightning buzzed across my skin in constant movement. I turn to face the girls.

"Wh.. what is it?" I ask, unsure of how I feel, and more unsure why my magic has already worked when I have two more lines left to chant.

"If I had to guess, I'd go with Lyra's theory. It seems to be similar to Alise's enhancement magic," Ryu muttered as she continued to examine me.

"Enhance... m-ment," I struggle to say the word Ryu just used as I look back at my skin. The buzzing feeling hadn't faded as Ryu said it would. I still feel it, almost as if it's like a heartbeat.

"Yeah, an enhancement," Alise started. "I have magic that grants me power as it wraps my body in fire. Basically, it increases my status by almost a level. Judging from the way that lightning-like thing wraps around you and from your chant, it's safe to say yours is similar."

"So... th-this makes me stronger?"

"I think so but by how much... well, I guess we should find out."

At that statement, Alise begins telling Ryu and Kaguya to go look for some monsters for me to fight but that isn't what's on my mind right now. I do want to see if this does make me stronger but what about my other two lines?

"W-wait!" I manage to muster enough loudness to get their attention.

"What, don't ya wanna see how strong you are?" Neze says.

"That's not it. I... I didn't finish my chant," I say, my voice slowly getting quieter as I trail off.

"Huh? But your magic was cast?" Kaguya said.

"I know but I still have two more lines of my chant."

I begin to feel uncomfortable at the looks the Astrea Familia are giving me. I just stare at my feet as I watch the swirling lightning wrap around my exposed legs. I start to wonder why my magic looks like this. Alise said hers was fire and I've seen Ryu's wind magic plus her healing spell.

"Magic is something that comes from a person's soul. It is the Falna that helps release that."

That was how Lady Astrea described it when I asked. I can understand Alise, as she's loud and blazes forward, like fire. Ryu is an elf and is calm, like the wind but can also be deadly. I get that, but why does mine look like lightning?

"Ok... maybe this is just the start of your magic. How about you move on to your next line," Lyra suggests, interrupting my train of thought before I came to an answer. I give a quick nod and begin to focus again.

"Gift me the power to withstand their attacks," I mutter, feeling another buzz flutter through my body. I kept my eyes open, looking to see if anything had happened to my body or if something changed about the blue coils on my body.

I feel the blue lightning hum on my skin but nothing about them changes. In fact, I didn't see much of a change until something caught my eye. I squinted hard at my arm and saw fuzzy images of rocks.

My eyes widen as I realise what it is. I look up at the dungeon ceiling, then back down at my arm, then back up.

"Do you see that slight shimmer?" Lyra asked. The others shook their heads. "It's wrapped around him, like some type of armour."

'Armour?' I think but then I replay the second line in my head again. The first line gave me strength, represented by the blue lines wrapping my body. The second line mentions something about withstanding attacks, something armour normally does.

I carefully move my hand and tap my forearm and a slight ripple appears. This caught the attention of the others.

"I saw that!"

"Same here!"

Alise and Neze both speak up as they see my almost invisible armour ripple. It seemed only Lyra could tell at first glance as her Pallum eyesight gave her an advantage.

"Look closely," She said. "We can make out our reflection somewhat, Percy turn towards us."

I listen to the girl and when I turn, the Astrea Familia begin to squint before their eyes widen like saucers.

"It's almost like a mirror, it's clear but hard to make out unless you look closely" Kaguya muttered.

"And like Lyra said, it's covered Percy like some armour.," Ryu continued.

"I'm starting to understand this now," Lyra mentioned, earning everyone's attention.

"Percy's first line of his chant gave him extra strength. That was a chant on its own. However, the second line was also a chant on its own, as this invisible reflective armour gives him the power to withstand attacks. They are both a separate chant. Maybe you didn't get one magic, Percy, maybe you got three?"

"But a person only gets three magic slots. It's insanely rare, even among elves for that to be filled on the first level up, not even Ryu has done that," Kaguya stated. I decide to interject.

"No, my Goddess said that it was one magic. She confirmed that it had taken up one slot," I say, earning a puzzled look from the pink-haired prum.

"Hmmmmm. Percy, do you mind releasing your magic?"

"O-ok," I mutter as I try and undo my magic. I figure it out easily as I just push away that buzzy feeling. The blue colour and the reflective armour begin to disappear before I'm left back to how I was before.

"Now, could you say the second chant of your line please, without your first?" She asked. I start to understand her. So I chant my second line again but nothing happens, neither I nor Lyra can spot any shimmer or reflection coming off me.

"So what, he can't have the armour without the blue lightning?" Neze asked, confused at what was going on.

"Something like that. I think that his spell is a continuous spell. He says the first line, beginning it and giving him the enhancement. That then allows him to get his armour from his second spell and if that was the case, most likely his last line can't be activated without his second chant being activated first.

"So it is effectively three spells in one," Ryu concluded.

"Ain't that..." Neze began but for some reason didn't want to finish her sentence. Her vice-captain was more than happy to though.

"It's cheating in a sense."

"Kaguya!" Alise reprimanded her friend. She looked back at me but I couldn't help but agree with the raven-haired girl. I had gotten three spells but only taken up one spot. That meant I had room for 2 other spells at least and if I got them, they might even be similar. I could end up with 9 spells while others were only allowed 3.

"Why are you acting like that's a bad thing!" Kaguya argued back, making me look up at her. " Who the hell wouldn't want that, it's amazing. Yeah, it's cheating but so what, screw everyone else, use what's given to you. Like Lady Astrea said earlier, magic is a representation of our soul, so that means your soul is amazing!"

She must have seen me get upset as she told me to stop moaning about having something others would die for. I'd never been complimented and shouted at at the same time but it helped.

'She's right, I should be happy with what I got, not feel sorry for myself or others.'

I smile at her before turning to face the others.

"Can I try out my first two lines before going onto the third, please," I say with renewed excitement. Kaguya gives me a sly smile as the others shake their heads with a smile and agree to help me.

For the next half 'n' hour, the Astrea Familia helped Perseus test his magic. They were right about what they thought his magic could do.

His first line gave him extra strength in his arms and legs, something he tested sparring against Alise. Lyra had decided it would be best to test it through sparring instead of monsters, so she asked Ryu and Neze to stay on the lookout and deal with any monsters that came near them.

During their dungeon dive, they had been fairly lucky to not encounter many adventures but they had stopped just before the descent onto the middle floors, which was a constant stream of adventures. They quickly decided to move spots to a more remote location. This meant they could deal with fewer monsters and less adventurers at the same time.

After sparring with Alise for a while, Alise concluded that his enhancement gave him about an extra 300-500 boost in his stats, which was incredibly impressive, even though Perseus got bummed knowing Alise's gave her an equivalent to a level-up, but he decided it was a fair trade since he got 2 extra spells.

Then he tried his armour, with Lyra trading Alise out for Neze, as using a sword might turn dangerous.

To those watching, they were shocked by how resilient the armour was. They watched as Neze pounded her fists on the boy's arms, kicks to his shins and even some to his torso. While Percy still felt some part of the collision, it was considerably dulled. Though, when Neze got a bit more serious and added a lot more strength, the armour showed it wasn't as strong as it was invisible.

A clear crack ran down the middle of his left arm as Neze struck Percy with almost all her strength, sending the boy back quite a bit.

"So it isn't invincible," Lyra muttered.

"What even is it?" Neze asked as she wiped some sweat that had built up on her forehead.

"I'm not sure yet but It'll come to us at some point," Lyra concluded. The Prum then pulled out something from her pocket and looked at it.

"Wait, it's already that late!" Lyra remarked.

"What's wrong Lyra?" Kaguya asked.

"We spent too long focused on this that I lost track of time, damn!"

"What's wrong?" Perseus asked, confused by what was wrong.

"To put it simply, we don't have time to go down to the middle floors today."

At that, Perseus' mood visibly dropped. He had spent so long testing out his magic that now he wouldn't be able to go down any further, something that he was itching to do.

"Can't we just go down the stairs and back up?" The boy pleaded but he got a shake of the head in response.

"You can't just walk down the stairs and just come straight back up. If you want to experience the middle floors for the first time, it needs to be done properly, understood?"

Percy solemnly nodded his head in disappointment. The sight of the young boy upset was enough to trigger thoughts of a kicked puppy in the eyes of the girls, who now felt terrible they had made the boy sad.

"D-don't worry Percy, there is always a next time!" Neze quickly intervened, trying to cheer the boy up.

"Y-yeah, we'll explore them tomorrow or the day after if you want?" Even Kaguya tried to cheer the boy up, not even the usual stoic girl was immune to the saddened look the boy wore.

"..ok," The boy muttered trying not to seem too upset but failing miserably. His sad voice breaking the girl's hearts.

"W-wait!" Lyra said, thinking of something to cheer the boy up. The boy slowly turned to face her.

"We still haven't tested your last line of magic, I'm sure we've got time for that!" The prum stammered out, hoping to cheer the boy up. To her and the other girl's relief, it did seem to brighten the boy's mood again.

"O-ok, yeah," Perseus managed.

So Lyra brought Ryu and Alise back in, explained the situation and then they all waited for Percy to begin chanting his magic.

"Bestow upon me the strength to beat my foe."

The blue lightning began to wrap itself around the boy's body and limbs, reaching his ankles and fingers. The buzz if the magic tingling in his skin as he prepared his second line.

"Gift me the power to withstand their attacks."

Since everyone knew what to look for, they could all see the slight shimmer of the boy's armour that encased his body.

Then they waited with bated breath for the last line.

"Absorb their stre-"

Before Perseus could finish off his last line, he fainted from mind down, having used all his mind from constant use of magic for the first time for almost an hour straight.

"Woah... we should've seen that coming," Alise remarked as she caught the boy's small body just before it fell to the ground, his magic evaporating from his body as he fell asleep. The other girls quicklt rushed to the boy's side, Lyra pulling out a potion, while getting a quick reprimand from her vice-captain for getting to infatuated with the boy's magic and not focusing on the boy himself.

I woke up to a bump.

The first thing I sensed was a nice smell. I then opened my eyes and saw black. I wriggled my nose slightly and realised that my head was planted in hair.

I groan awake as I begin to take in the rest of my surroundings. I quickly notice that I'm on the 1st floor of the dungeon, not too far away from the mouth of the dungeon. I give a quick yawn, alerting the owner of the hair.

"Oh, finally awake lil man? Quicker than expected actually," I hear Neze say as she adjusts me on her back.

"Wh-what happened," I manage to say through another yawn.

"You experienced a mind down, that's what happened."

I turn my head to see where the voice is before looking down, seeing Lyra walking beside the Chienthrope girl. I'm not used to looking down on people when they talk to me.

"A what?" I ask.

"A mind down is where you over-exert your magic power and your body shuts down," Ryu said from the other side of Neze, making me jump slightly as I didn't notice her.

"...oh," Is all I manage.

"Do not worry, it happens to all of us," The elf girl said, probably to try and reassure me, they her monotone voice did little to help in that regard.

"Yo Alise, Kaguya!" Neze shouted, forcing me to cover my ears in discomfort. "Percy's woken up!"

I peek over the tan girl's shoulder to see Alise and Kaguya up ahead. They stop and turn to face us, Alise giving me a quick wave before bounding over while Kaguya stood still, waiting for us to catch up to her.

"Yo, how do you feel?" She asked, her green eyes looking up at me. It was weird but I was getting a piggyback from the tallest member of the group.

"Tired," I mumble.

"Yeah, you'll feel that for a bit. When you get home, have some food and you'll be right as rain!" She said in her usual positive tone. I just gave another small groan before nestling my head back onto Neze's shoulder, earning a small giggle from the Chienthrope.

We finally reach Kaguya and the far-eastern girl begins to talk to Lyra.

"We're almost out now, only a few more turns," Lyra said, earning a quick nod from the vice-captain.

"Hey, Kaguya, you thought about Percy's magic a bit more?"

"You mean his second chant a.k.a, his armour?"

"Yeah, that," The prum confirmed. I'm now listening in on their conversation. I'm allowed to be curious about my own magic.

"It looked like light to me," Kaguya said.

"I was thinking along the same lines," Lyra agreed with the girl. "The only things that reflect are glass and water until I remembered that light could reflect stuff as well."

"Huh, can it?" I ask, not knowing much about light apart from how it makes things well, lighter.

"Yes, I read it somewhere in a book once," Lyra said.

"I learnt it from someone from where I grew up," Kaguya briefly explained what she was told, not bothering to go into much detail about where she grew up or who she learnt this from.

"So his first chant gives him some sort of lightning enhancement, though, it doesn't really use lightning it just resembles it," Neze starts.

"Then his second uses light magic, something very rare. The last known case of light magic that wasn't a blinding spell was someone in the Hera Familia if I recall the records correctly," Alise said as she interjected herself into the conversation.

Perseus froze at the mention of the Goddess.

'Hera... Familia!'

"That's kind of funny then since his first magic is like lightning, something that is a symbol of the God Zeus," Neze says with a quick laugh but Percy's face goes white.

'Zeus too. My magic resembles the Hera and Zeus Familia... no.'

"Weird that," Alise muttered. The Astrea Familia had seemed to chalk up my magic to mere coincidence, not thinking anything more down that line but I was currently fighting my own mind.

'No, it can't be. I don't want anything to do with them!'

'But I'm their descendant, doesn't it make sense that I got something from them?'

'But not like this, I rejected them. Magic is meant to represent my soul, so that means my soul...'

I didn't want to finish that train of thought.

After we left the dungeon, I did my best to not show my disappointment and anger, putting it down to being tired. The Astrea Familia offered for me to stay with them but I rejected them, saying I just want to go home. Even though they tried, I insisted and said a quick goodbye before leaving them.

The walk home was slow, I wasn't in the mood to run.

'Why?'

I tried not to get upset. The Zeus and Hera Familia were really strong so getting magic from them might be good.

'But It's not my magic, it's theirs. I don't want anything from them. I rejected them... like they rejected me.'

I wipe away tears that were forced to leak from my eyes.

I made my way into Daedalus Street, through the maze and finally back to the place I slept at. I know Alise said I should eat but I wasn't hungry.

I slowly took off my armour and put it away. I took off my clothes and put them away, leaving my boots by the side of my bed. I knelt on my flat mattress and dug my face into my pillow filled with cheap straw.

'I just want one thing... for me.'

I woke up this morning, excited to use my magic for the first time. I eventually got to sleep with a wet pillow hating my magic and never wanting to use it again.

Magic, wooooooooooooo!

No middle floors... nooooooooooooooo!

Sorry but the chapter got too long so it will have to wait.

Also, the delay was because of exams and a side-project but both are dealt with and sorted.

Reviews:

Roland Tepes - I also like Percy's soul. As for the orphanage, well that isn't something fixed with a quick and an apology unfortunately.

calderoneric758 - Thanks for the offer, I'll consider your help if I'm stuck at all. As for Allen, there will be more of him in the future.

Jose Blas - Cheers man, appreciated.

cloudman3011 - Don't worry, the similarites between Percy and alfia have just started.

Muhammed Ibrahim Faisal - Thanks but you will have to wait for the middle floors chapter to truly see how much Perseus has improved.

Guest (0) - I also thought of a path with Percy joining Freya but don't worry, his relationship with them, especially Ottar will be interesting and similar to that in Vinland Saga.

Brendan1479 - Thanks for the support and Astrea Familia will be present for most of Percy's growth, though will that benefit or hinder him, only time will tell.

korakovroman9 -Hope you enjoyed the new chapter and I'm glad you liked how I described Percy's soul.

Sora Stream - Freya is character you love to hate, she's written well by Omori, which makes it easy and fun to write her. And no, this won't be harem. I don't like writing them and i always find it awkward when reading them, especially when it isn't thought out properly. Sorry to anyone who wanted or expected Harem, no this is a single pair fanfic. Thanks for the support as always.

Dickwizard(lol) - Was Brant and Reg ex-Zeus Familia, I'm not sure, though there is a connection, but how. Maybe that's why they can't link Percy and Alfia together, hmmm. For Hera, I assume Zeus and her agreed to take one twin each but why did Hera end up leaving Percy behind, hmmmmmmmmmm. And yes, I will be taking inspiration from the Perseus myth and their is a really weird coincidence between the helm of Hades and the Stealth skill, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

004 - Review 1, I'm not sure if Freya is a masochist, wouldn't put it past her, but it was more along the lines of she doesn't normally experience being yelled so it was just another fun thing that happens in her mortal role playing. Review 2, in regards of Syr, I have also wandered this with her age. I'm gonna stick with she ages alongside the Horn, meaning yes, she does get older in looks, though I guess it barely changes in the world of anime.

Guest (2) - Persues and Bell meeting is a long way off but it will be a major event and yes, Bell will most likely end up with Ais.

Thank you all for the wait and hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'll see ya next time, Peace!