Levi certainly had some ideas on how to increase his strength and earn Valis.
However, he was currently severely short-staffed.
His own strength hadn't reached a level where he could suppress all opposition.
Once many of his plans were implemented, although they could be quite profitable, it was more likely they would just end up benefiting other Familias.
In any case, Levi would never play the fool.
Even if he were to cooperate with other Familias, he had to secure a sufficient share of the profits.
Fortunately, with his strength improving and the added drop bonus from his "Luck H" Development Ability, Levi earned over 1.8 million Valis after just a day and a half of grinding in the Middle Floors.
300,000 of that came from Magic Stones, while the remaining 1.5 million was from the sale of five Minotaur horns.
The reason he didn't toss the Magic Stones and materials into the exchange shop was actually quite simple.
While the shop's existence bypassed The Guild's exchange system to some extent, the buyout prices were consequently discounted.
Magic Stones were only worth half of The Guild's set price, and dropped materials were even worse, fetching between one-third and one-fourth of the market price.
Fluctuations of hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of Valis wouldn't cause any waves in Orario's economy at this point.
Therefore, Levi wasn't in a hurry to use the exchange shop's feature.
However, once he started exploring the Lower Floors or even the Deep Floors, he would need to combine the exchange shop with surface merchants who specialized in buying materials, mixing his acquisition of Valis and Valis vouchers to keep a card up his sleeve.
On the morning of the fourth day after his Falna was updated to Lv.3.
Levi woke up early, first making breakfast for Hestia who was still resting in the bedroom, then went to the commercial district to restock on consumables like arrows and potions.
After finishing all this, he headed to the workshop of the Hephaestus Familia's captain.
He walked up, knocked twice, and after a short wait, Tsubaki emerged from the workshop carrying a large backpack.
"Morning, little Levi."
"Good morning, Tsubaki."
Considering the place was full of prying ears, the two just exchanged simple greetings.
They then turned and headed towards the Dungeon entrance.
It wasn't until they had officially entered the first floor of the Dungeon and confirmed no one was following them that the one-eyed master smith could no longer contain her curiosity. She turned her head, her eye seeming to sparkle with little stars, and asked, "Little Levi, have you figured out how you're going to achieve the feat you need to level up to Lv.4?"
Levi didn't hide it: "I plan to challenge Goliath."
"Goliath?" Tsubaki wore a surprised expression. "Goliath's potential is indeed Lv.4, and other adventurers who challenge it can most likely accumulate enough of a feat to level up. However, first, Goliath was just defeated by the Loki Familia a week ago, so it's still on its respawn cooldown. Second, given the strength you've shown before, little Levi, challenging that thing might not even count as much of a feat for you anymore, right?"
Levi nodded, then shook his head. "I'm not talking about a normal Goliath."
"Oh? Is there such a thing as an abnormal Goliath?" The black-haired, single-ponytail-wearing girl's excitement grew.
Perhaps because he was about to challenge a powerful enemy and was a bit nervous, Levi was noticeably more talkative than usual. "Tsubaki, have you ever heard of a 'Divine Assassin,' or a 'Pitch-Black Monster'?"
"I don't know about a 'Divine Assassin,' but as for 'Pitch-Black Monster,' The Guild's three great adventurer quests—'Behemoth, the King of the Land,' 'Leviathan, the Tyrant of the Sea,' and the 'Symbol of the End,' the One-Eyed Black Dragon—those should be the so-called Pitch-Black Monsters you're talking about, right?"
"That's right." Levi explained slowly as they advanced towards the deeper floors. "Pitch-Black Monsters are anti-god weapons specially created by the Dungeon. They are immune to divine power, and their potential is one level higher than that of their regular counterparts."
Tsubaki was no fool. With Levi having said this much, how could she not understand?
With a face full of astonishment, she asked, "You can summon a Pitch-Black Monster? No, a Pitch-Black Goliath?"
Levi didn't deny it, because that was exactly what he planned to do next.
"Summoning a Divine Assassin isn't that difficult in itself. As long as a god enters the Dungeon and releases their divine aura on the corresponding floor, the Dungeon will produce a Pitch-Black Monster out of its hatred for the gods."
"However, according to my tests from the day before yesterday, it seems not all monsters can undergo this transformation. At least among the monsters of the Upper Floors, only young dragons have this potential."
"Uh..."
Tsubaki clicked her tongue. The few short sentences from the young man beside her seemed to contain a massive amount of information.
"Little Levi, leaving aside how you confirmed this information, you're a mortal just like me, right? Or are you actually one of those legendary 'demigods' whose existence is uncertain?"
Levi glanced at the one-eyed master smith beside him and said, "I'm human."
"Then..."
Seeing Tsubaki was about to ask more, he made a hushing gesture.
"You'll find out when we get to the 17th floor."
Tsubaki: "...Alrighty then~"
┓(´∀`)┏
Tsubaki was a genuine Lv.5. When Levi activated Mana Burst - Cryo and focused the extra stats on his Agility, his movement speed could also touch the edges of Lv.5.
By only clearing the monsters they ran into along the way, it took them just over seven hours to reach the fixed spawn point of the 'Lone King of the Labyrinth,' Goliath.
"Can you show me your method now?" Tsubaki asked, standing to the side, her voice laced with excitement and curiosity.
Levi nodded and took a deep breath, but he didn't act immediately.
Instead, contrary to his usual self, he began making preparations.
"Hestia, I pray to you. Please grant me the goddess's blessing."
A phantom of the twin-tailed goddess manifested with the sound of the boy's incantation, then instantly turned into specks of light and merged into his body.
Next, 20 consecutive casts, totaling 100 Icy Paws, were smashed onto the ground.
A shield so thick it was almost tangible formed around Levi and Tsubaki.
And that wasn't all.
—Mana Burst - Cryo!
A surge of mana erupted from his body, turning into a pale, bluish-white, cold mist that swirled around them.
After doing all this, Levi finally opened his inventory and took out the divine blood whose divine aura he had temporarily sealed with Decree.
"Release!"
In the next second, the unique pressure of a god spread out in all directions.
Even though she had mentally prepared herself, Tsubaki, standing nearby, was still suppressed by the sudden change and momentarily lost her ability to move.
As a mortal, the one-eyed master smith had no way to resist the divine aura.
At Lv.5, at least, she couldn't do it.
But that didn't mean the Dungeon, which was hostile to the gods and equally hated all life on the surface, would allow a deity to set foot in its territory.
Before the power of the divine aura could even fully spread, the crystal wall in front of where the two were standing suddenly shattered.
"AAAAAEEEEEHHHHHH!!!!!"
Accompanied by a piercing shriek, a Goliath, pitch-black from head to toe and even taller than a regular Floor Boss, was spawned by the Dungeon in a short amount of time.
_____
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