Chapter 24: Repast

The ordinarily cheery, and rowdy, dining hall was silent, as a cloaked stranger made his way around the buffet. Everyone had stopped in their tracks to gawk at the trespasser, who seemed to falter in his actions at times. It was incredibly awkward for Hit, the 'invader', and he had nearly given up on eating here, were it not for the hunger and annoyance that drove him on. Delectable meal acquired, Hit scanned the hushed room. A tanned hand waved about in the centre of the grand hall, seeking his gaze.

"Over here, Hit!" It belonged to Tiona, who pointed, in an exaggerated fashion, to a vacant seat beside her.

Hit continued to look around; yet, sadly, saw no empty tables. He sighed and trudged his way to the high-level adventurers, who either smiled, acted indifferently, or scowled at him. His tray clanked onto the table as he settled in beside the excited girl. "Is this place usually so unpleasant?"

Tiona swayed back and forth merrily, happy to see him. "Hihi! No, everyone's just shocked to see you, is all!"

Gareth nodded, relieved to see the rookie again. "Aye, you've got quite a reputation here lad, a mystery boy. Some say yer a ghost."

Finn chuckled at him. "I must admit, the rumours that have spread about you are quite ridiculous."

Tione added onto his remark, arms crossed. "It's only natural, everyone likes to unravel mysteries. Some people thought you weren't even real, just another one of Loki's jokes."

Hit rolled his eyes and dug into the roast leg of pork on his plate. He had gotten used to the luscious delicacies in this world, so wasn't too amazed. Still, it was very tasty. "Those individuals obviously have far too much time on their hands".

Tiona peered up at him, a small smile playing on her face. "Lighten up, Hit! This is our first meal together, so we shouldn't argue."

Riveria smiled at her, approvingly. Her childishness could sometimes be her most commendable feature. "Quite so. Let us relax after our trials of the day."

Conversation bubbled about the hall once more, as the mystery of Hit had finally been solved. Hit and his colleagues enjoyed a pleasant meal.

...

Hit hummed to himself contentedly, hunger satiated. He sat, occasionally peering over to his superiors, who were discussing a very engrossing topic. Finn adopted a stern expression as he addressed each of his fellow adventures. Despite his diminutive size, he was a master commander. "I want you all to be at your best for this expedition. I'm sure I don't need to tell you how dangerous this is going to be; you all know first-hand."

They seemed to be discussing a dungeon dive of epic proportions, to the uncharted 59th floor. Finn had even enlisted the aid of Hephaestus familia smiths, to ensure their weapons could be maintained during the descent. Apparently, their previous adventure had been cut short due to acidic caterpillars, which destroyed their supplies and armaments. Tiona was especially furious at their mention, and was seemingly looking forward to getting her revenge. A lull in the conversation allowed Tiona a moment of respite to glance around. Her beady eyes spied an unusually invested Hit. Perhaps this could be a way to involve the strange boy in their adventures. "What about you, Hit? Wanna come along?"

Riveria seemingly put an end to this and narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Don't be ridiculous, Tiona. He joined us less than a month ago; we cannot afford to put him at risk. I do not mean any offence, Mr Hit, but we cannot guarantee your safety."

Tiona showed the more negative side to her childishness and whined at the familia's mother figure. "But it'd only be part-way, to the 18th floor! Please!"

Unfortunately, Riveria's scowl did not waver. Frustrated, Tiona racked her mind and remembered what Hit had mentioned, following their spar: he had a score to settle in the dungeon. Just how far had he delved? She turned to him and tilted her head. "Say, Hit... what did you do after our match?"

The boy looked at her impassively; Hit wasn't too disappointed at missing out on their dive. He'd assuredly make his way down on his own. Although, facing a hoard of level 2 monsters would be suicide, currently. He wasn't completely against the idea though, it'd certainly be invigorating. The best course of action would be to continue fighting on the fifteenth floor, where level 2 monsters should spawn comparatively rarely, and in fewer numbers. 'If only this body could use ki; I could evolve far more quickly if that was the case.'

A poking sensation brought his attention back to a curious Tiona, who was jabbing at his side with a fork. Hit shook his head; it was getting a little late. "I finished off my opponent, a Ligerfang on the fifteenth floor."

His peers looked incredibly impressed, with Gareth whistling and Bete raising a brow. Ais took on a determined expression; whereas, Lefiya jumped a little in shock. Riveria knew beforehand, and simply took on a disapproving look. Tiona smiled brightly and was about to congratulate him, but noticed his dour expression.

Hit was still slightly uncertain as to the origin of the irregular monster; perhaps it had mutated due to rage. Although, those wounds were far too precise to be generated during normal combat. They avoided all vitals and focalised around areas of soft tissue. Whoever inflicted the wounds did not want the animal to die. Was it even an irregular...? The literature did not describe every monster's irregular form, and some had distinct morphologies, for unknown reasons... Hit decided to gain some intel. "...There is something I wanted to discuss..."

His peers leaned in, not expecting the recluse to start a conversation. Finn nodded and addressed him warmly. "Of course, you can talk to us about anything."

Hit nodded and recalled his odd experience. "During our first bout, the creature was as to be expected: orange with black stripes. However, when I returned to finish it off, the beast was discoloured: black and red."

It was difficult to judge how much stronger it had grown, due to his own burst in strength; however, the collateral damage had been even greater than during their previous encounter. The Ligerfang was also still far faster than Hit, even after his update: its speed had skyrocketed drastically.

Interestingly, the Ligerfang was the first opponent, which Hit intended to kill, that took multiple attempts to finish off (after learning to skip time). Even Goku was dead for a few moments, after receiving the brunt of Hit's time release: his most deadly time skip attack. Multiple attempts were unfitting for someone known as "Never Miss Hit".

The adventurer's expressions went from impressed, to balking at the insinuation. Even low/mid level 2s would struggle when fighting alone against such an enemy.

Bete scoffed and glared at the boy, fatigued by his unbelievable claims. "You expect us to believe you? I'll admit, your status isn't complete garbage, but it's just not possible."

The werewolf's disbelief was not misplaced. Despite Hit's incredible status and combat abilities, an irregular Ligerfang would simply be too fast for him. The werewolf wasn't sure how the boy compared in terms of strength, as Tiona was annoyingly silent on the matter. His odd movements still eluded the werewolf, although he also concluded that it was a skill of some kind.

The reason was quite simple: Hit had grown even further, in a subtle, yet significant manner. His cold fury had enabled him to disconnect his time skip from his mind, linking it to a specific stimulus in this case. This reflex-driven technique was ludicrously dangerous: any lapse in concentration would render him dazed and utterly defenceless; and if it was activated accidentally by any stimulus other than his opponent (such as debris), he would waste valuable energy. It was also useless against multiple enemies at this stage, due to the simplicity of the technique's instructions, and due to not knowing when exactly his body would skip time. If it were to be given a name, Subliminal Time Skipping would be an appropriate descriptor. Thankfully, the beast had chosen to disregard any form of strategy or defence, instead going completely on the offensive, which suited Subliminal Time Skipping perfectly. The Ligerfang could likely barely think, above its pain. All Hit needed to do, was mechanically whittle its health down.

Hit reached into his pocket and pulled out a reddish object. He placed the Ligerfang fur on the table, forcing the onlookers to accept the undeniable truth. "It was my target, and I completed my mission. I always finish my job, no matter how long it takes, nor how many tries I need."

Bete scrunched his nose and sniffed at the drop item, eyes widening when he confirmed its authenticity.

Tiona was the first to recover and cheered at Hit's success. "There! His abilities are super high for a level 1, and he even beat an irregular! I'm sure he'd be fine if he came with us!"

Riveria scoffed at the girl's pestering. "Do not get ahead of yourself. We haven't even asked him whether he wishes to venture with us."

All eyes darted to the man of the hour, who sat quietly, with a calculating expression, as always. 'Hm. There are obvious benefits and risks to descending as a group. On the positive side, it will allow me to study their fighting styles and techniques. Conversely, they will be able to analyse mine as well.'

At first glance, the prospect wasn't too appealing, and Hit's expression morphed into disapproval; his mild paranoia had seemingly also carried over from his past life, acting as resistance to sharing any abilities with experienced fighters.

Tiona balanced on her chair, nearly keeling over, and brought the wooden object back to Earth, letting out a harsh clack. Her black twin tails swung forwards and back. "If you do come along, we can train together...if ya like? It'll be great practice for the two of us! I'll even give you some pointers!"

Hit raised an eyebrow at her, his position swayed. At this stage, fighting against higher level adventurers would be the fastest means to strengthening himself, particularly his time skip duration. He might even be able to weasel some more information from the naïve girl. Besides, she was not unpleasant to be around. Spending time with the quiet and agreeable Ais had certainly impacted his reception to the offer.

The 18th floor was also incredibly tantalising to Hit, home to the mysterious adventurer town of Rivira. Above this, the 17th floor was the spawn point of Goliath, a level 4 monster rex. During his voracious dives into the library, Hit had learned that these were incredibly powerful monsters that spawned on particular floors, acting as buffers to the areas below. In exchange for ludicrous strength, their spawn times were immense. What were they like to fight against, he wondered.

"Fine...I accept your offer. I'll descend with you, but just this once".

Riveria huffed, whilst the others looked at him warmly, except for the ever-annoyed werewolf. Strangely, Ais was pouting at Tiona. Lefiya gasped and looked between the Ais and Hit frantically, ears drooping. Did she have another rival? The younger amazon did not seem to notice this, and beamed at Hit, cheeks rosy. "Great! I can't wait! Our little group keeps growing!"

..

Tiona's sweet smile was undercut by a bitter self-loathing from her past. The two Hiryute sisters had been forced into the ruthless Kali Familia the moment they were born, a familia whose members faced off in battles to the death, regularly. When her sister, Tione, was forced to kill a dear friend, she promised to never allow her sister to suffer such trauma ever again. Each time Tione was assigned to kill a roommate, Tiona took her place, enacting the slaughter herself. She was now part of a true family, and the idea of it expanding filled her with a growing warmth. She wished that her friends were with them too... All she could do now was hold them in her heart and keep positive.

..

Back to the others, the executives remained stony faced and gazed at one another. An unheard conversation seemed to pass between the three, as eyes darted and ears flicked. The 'chat' was concluded by a trio of nods. Riveria was the first to speak. "If you are absolutely certain, then we will let you join us, Mr Hit. However, I advise you to prepare as best you can for the dangers below".

Hit cocked his head. "What do you think I've been doing all this time?"

In reality, Hit had mainly managed to make it so far down, as he only encountered a single level 2 monster. Perhaps the dungeon did not register him as a great threat. He decided to stay quiet about this, as it may dissuade the strict elf.

Hit narrowed his eyes at the scruffy haired amazon sat beside him. "I'll be needing some new under armour though."

Tiona's radiant expression did not dim; instead, she adopted a goofy expression and stuck out her tongue. "Oopsie..." *bleh*

Finn broke the tension, offering a helpful suggestion. "Why not visit the Hephaestus familia smith, Tsubaki? We've hired her for the dive, so you can get a sizeable discount at the moment. I highly recommend her."

Hit's eyebrows rose and he sat up a little straighter. Being part of a notable familia had some hidden benefits. "That is rather fortuitous... Where can I find them?"

Finn chuckled, confusing Hit a little. The pallum waved a hand, dismissively. "Heh. Sorry, your mature attitude doesn't fit a rookie, but your lack of experience certainly does. Just head to the Hephaestus familia's northwest shop: a large building with a blue roof. It'll save you walking up the tower...or taking those awful elevators."

Hit shivered a little and glanced at Ais, who blinked owlishly. "Right... Appreciated."

Finn nodded cheerfully at the boy. "We'll be departing in a week. Don't be late."

Gareth put down his tankard, cheeks red. "...And don't go disappearing on us, down there! Haha!"

Hit smirked. These people were starting to understand how he operated. Hit was looking forward to exploring the 18th floor and was absolutely certain there would be secrets and treasures to find. It wouldn't count as disappearing if he came back, right? The dwarf didn't specify a time limit. His small smile dimmed as he remembered something.

Hit fixed Finn with a serious stare, as if boring into his very soul. The pallum matched his intensity. "One last note... The Ligerfang I put down was covered in sword gashes, none with the intent to kill. The floor was otherwise barren... eerily so."

Finn's eyes seemed to grow old, and his sunny disposition froze into one of cold calculation. "...Is that so..."

Adventurers throughout the room seemed to notice the temperature drop and began whispering, worriedly.

As quickly as it came, Finn's eery look disappeared. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about, Mr Hit. Monsters fight regularly down there to maintain their strength..."

The familia captain couldn't afford the loss of morale, not when they were so desperate for information on the 59th floor. However, he couldn't simply ignore this abnormality. "...But if you notice anything similar, inform me immediately."

The other senior members seemed quite perturbed as well, as if the stress they were hiding had resurfaced. Were they facing problems in the dungeon? Was this dive really just to set a new record? Why the 59th floor?

Hit nodded at the commander, satisfied that he had interpreted the meaning of his message, and stood up.

Finn smiled at the newbie and attempted to lighten the mood, and potentially involve Hit even more. "Oh! Before you leave, we'll be holding several pre-dive seminars and planning sessions for all our members. You're invited to come, of course..."

One might think that Finn would be against the idea of Hit's inclusion; however, the pallum was more observant than most, and could now tell that Hit was far beyond normal.

Hit rolled his eyes and walked off, tray in hand. "Sure, I'll be first in line when the demon realm freezes over."

.

..

...

The adventurers cocked their head as they watched the unusual teen stride away, completely baffled. Tiona blinked, utterly confused at the shift in tone: from deadly serious, to cheerful, to completely insane.

"Well, that was weird... what's a 'demon realm'?"

Her peers shrugged, unable to pin an image to the foreign words.

Finn shook his head and looked at his thumb. "It doesn't matter, perhaps it's from a story that only he is familiar with. I'm more interested in his previous comment... Just what we needed, more threats."

Riveria agreed with her colleague, although her scholarly nature compelled her to research this 'demon realm'. "Someone tortured that creature and left it there as a trap... They must be above level 3, to deliver such precise cuts without tiring. And to clear an entire floor for a prolonged period... only a handful of individuals could do that. I knew allowing solo diving was a mistake..."

She lowered her voice and spoke to Finn, gaze flitting to Ais. "Could it be related to...".

Finn shook his head. "I don't believe so. He's completely unrelated. If they wanted a hostage, there are plenty of more suitable candidates..."

Glum faces plastered every one of them, saddened at the recent confusing events. New monsters... Creatures... Enyo… Spirits... Aria... What did it all mean?

Tione addressed her commander, confused at his decision. His enigmatic nature was always so attractive. "Why did you decide to include him, captain?"

Finn laughed merrily, casting his worries aside. "Why? Because, his growth is ludicrous, of course! I'm sure that with the correct guidance, he'll be a first-class adventurer in no time... I can feel it. Besides, right now we need all the help we can get."

Gareth chuckled, toothy grin on display. "The lad's not too receptive to guidance though, is he? 'Es as stubborn as a mule!"

Tiona got up and danced around, excited about their future. "Hit's not stubborn, he's just a tsundere! Soon enough, we'll all be best buddies!"

Laughter and clapping burst throughout the hall, as the party just got started.

Author's Notes

Thank you for the favourites, follows, and reviews 😊Nice to know people are enjoying, and it cheers me up.

Any constructive criticism? How are my writing and spelling?