The Dungeon in the world of DanMachi is, in fact, 'alive'.
It holds an extremely strong malice toward all living beings from the surface.
And that isn't even the most terrifying part.
If a deity enters the Dungeon and 'inadvertently' reveals their divine power, then, out of its aversion to the gods, the Dungeon will spawn a black monster on the spot—a Divine Assassin—stronger than a normal specimen and capable of countering divine power.
For instance, the 'Young Black Dragon,' which theoretically should only be born on the 11th or 12th floors, has now been spawned on the 5th floor.
Levi had watched the anime in his past life, so he understood the principle behind the birth of a 'Divine Assassin,' or in other words, a 'Black Monster.'
In his original plan, he intended to spread Hestia's divine power in a corner of the first floor to see if he could make the Dungeon spawn a Black Goblin or a Black Kobold.
As two of the weakest beings in the Dungeon, whether it was a Goblin or a Kobold, even if catalyzed into a Divine Assassin, he could have easily killed them with his current combat power, which was comparable to a high-tier Lv.4 adventurer.
But the Dungeon, in the end, was still the Dungeon—always full of unknowns and surprises.
"AAAAEEEEHHHHH!!!!!!"
Not far ahead, the Young Black Dragon let out a piercing roar the moment it was spat out by the Dungeon and hit the ground.
Although Levi was surprised, his actions were not the least bit slow.
He started with the burst magic from the Pristina Nola Constellation, 'Adeptal Art: Preserver of Fortune,' followed by the combat skill 'Adeptal Art: Herald of Frost.' Then, the phantom liquor condensed by Felis Catus's 'Signature Mix' was smashed onto the ground, and five Icy Paws flew toward the young dragon.
The instant the latter was hit, a translucent, pale-blue shield formed around his body.
That wasn't all. Seizing the opportunity while the young dragon charged toward him, he chanted the words for 'The Goddesses' Loving Protection.'
"Hestia, I pray to you now, please grant me the goddess's protection!"
A translucent phantom of the goddess materialized behind him, then instantly dissolved into points of light and merged into his body.
Finally, he activated 'Mana Burst (Ice).' The surrounding area filled with ice elements, and his four ability scores, excluding Magic, increased by another 1000 points from their base values.
A breath later, the young dragon closed the distance and slashed down with its sharp claws.
Levi used the Star-Treading Steps to evade the attack while deliberately letting the shield graze his opponent.
The result was just as he had expected.
The black dragon, considered a mini-boss in the Upper Floors, even when enhanced by the Dungeon to a potential of Lv.3, was clearly unable to break a Lv.5-class shield. Of course, this was also related to the two layers of Strength-reducing debuffs it received from 'Signature Mix' and the constellation buff of 'Adeptal Art: Preserver of Fortune.'
On the other hand, the five Icy Paws Levi casually condensed easily pierced through the Young Black Dragon's head.
If it were any other monster, losing its head would mean death.
However, most Divine Assassins possess a self-regeneration ability.
As long as the Magic Stone that served as the foundation of its existence wasn't destroyed, it could continue to act no matter how many times it was 'killed.'
"AAAEEEEHHHHH!!!!!!"
The Young Black Dragon, having regrown its head, used 'Roar' on Levi.
Ripples were now clearly visible spreading across the surface of the translucent shield surrounding him.
Levi remained silent, simply continuing to test his offensive methods.
"Decree!"
He raised his right hand, made a gesture, and uttered a soft command.
Immediately, a bolt of lightning materialized from thin air and struck the base of the Young Black Dragon's right wing.
Although, due to lack of time, Levi hadn't raised the proficiency of his Decree skill much.
However, his own Magic stat was high enough to easily make the lightning's power reach the level of Lv.2, or even Lv.3.
However, as expected of a specialized monster created by the Dungeon specifically to counter deities, the Young Black Dragon only suffered a minor scratch from the elemental attack before recovering under the effect of its self-regeneration.
'So it's no use, huh?'
Seeing this, Levi shook his head.
He then drew the Primordial Jade Cutter hanging at his waist and began a close-quarters battle with the Young Black Dragon.
...
Levi was using the Young Black Dragon to adapt to his new body after his Falna-induced level-up, while also searching for a way to kill it completely without destroying the Magic Stone inside it.
However, this was still the upper region of the Dungeon, even if he had found a relatively secluded corner.
But the roars of a Young Black Dragon, which shouldn't have appeared on this floor, still attracted the attention of interested parties.
About four minutes later, while playing a 'close-quarters archer' game with the black dragon using Amos' Bow, Levi's ears twitched. He no longer hesitated. With a surge of magic, he allocated all 2000 attribute points granted by 'Mana Burst' into his Dexterity.
He switched his weapon back to the Primordial Jade Cutter and, with a single Nine-Headed Dragon Flash, dismembered the Young Black Dragon before him into several pieces.
Its exposed Magic Stone was then instantly shattered by an Icy Paw.
With the death of the Young Black Dragon, the system's main quest completion notification sounded in his ears.
But Levi had no time to listen closely. He just frowned, turned around, and looked toward the only entrance to the cave he was in.
A few seconds later, three burly men clad in full-body armor appeared around the corner.
Levi didn't speak, calmly watching them with the Primordial Jade Cutter in hand.
These three had likely appeared with certain intentions, either for the young dragon or for him.
But after Levi slayed the young dragon in such a short time without sustaining any apparent injuries—and most importantly, with the clearly formidable translucent shield surrounding him—the men, after some thought, suppressed whatever dark ideas they had. They simply nodded at the boy inside the cave and turned to leave.
The appearance of the three passersby was hardly a ripple for Levi.
After all, he was no longer the same person who had just received his Falna half a month ago. With a true combat strength reaching high-tier Lv.4, or perhaps pseudo-Lv.5, while he couldn't exactly run rampant in Orario, protecting his own life with his host of support magic was not as difficult as one might imagine.
That being said, after finishing off the young dragon, Levi still returned to the surface first.
The moment his feet touched the ground, he opened the 'Exchange Shop' page that only he could see.
[Exchange Shop (Stock refreshes every 30 days)]
[Crystals of Law: 3][Valis Vouchers: 0]
[Purchasable Items:]
[Crystal of Law x1 (Stock: 15, increases with character level), Price: 100 million Valis or Valis Vouchers]
[Valis Vouchers x50,000,000 (Unlimited), Value: 1 Crystal of Law]
[Gacha Pool Solidification Ticket x1 (Stock: 1), Value: 1 Crystal of Law]
[Sellable Items:]
[Magic Stones, Price: Varies with size, minimum 50 Valis Vouchers, no maximum limit]
[Various Monster Drops, Price: Varies with the monster's potential and the item's rarity]
[Various Ores and Metals, Value: Varies with the item's rarity]
[Various Herbs, Value: Varies with the item's rarity]
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