Returning to the surface, Roy and Ryuu proceeded to the Guild Headquarters as usual to exchange the Magic Stones for money.
Today's haul: 2.42 million Valis!
The integrity of Goliath's Magic Stone fragment was quite good, selling for nearly 1.5 million Valis alone. Another large bag of gold coins was placed before Roy and Ryuu.
The surrounding adventurers, watching the two leave with a large bag of gold every day, were numb. What kind of money-printing speed is this? It's faster than a mint's assembly line.
Of course it was.
Roy and Ryuu appeared to be only two people, but they were effectively doing the work of five, six, or even seven or eight people.
The two were responsible for the slaughter in the Dungeon, while several lightning avatars followed behind, picking up the loot. These free laborers didn't need a share of the money, making the earnings incredibly satisfying.
Leaving the Guild Headquarters,
Roy walked side-by-side with Ryuu, his eyes rolling as he deliberately sighed. "This is so slow. When will we ever pay off this debt?"
Over the past week, their total earnings were about 8 million Valis, which included the extra income from the large Goliath Magic Stone. Since Goliath couldn't be farmed daily (its regeneration interval was one week), their limit was around seven or eight hundred thousand Valis daily.
To amass 60 million Valis, they would need at least three to four months, and even longer if unexpected incidents occurred.
Going down to the twenty-something floors meant Ryuu would have to take time to educate Roy on those floors, which would take more time. Regardless, it would take at least three months to pay off the 60 million Valis debt.
The elven girl's steps paused.
Roy's words successfully caught Ryuu's attention, and a flicker of guilt appeared in the depths of her eyes.
This matter had nothing to do with Roy. He had already gone above and beyond by helping her destroy the Rudra Familia, yet she was dragging him into more hard labor.
Ryuu's face was serious. "You don't have to keep accompanying me. You can focus on your own matters."
Roy was already LV.2. As long as he didn't run off to those particularly dangerous secret realms and remained cautious, his life wouldn't be in danger…
Suddenly, Ryuu lowered her head in frustration. She had almost forgotten—Roy intentionally sought out dangerous places. Without her following him, who knew what might happen?
"No, I won't do that. I dislike giving up halfway," Roy said with a shake of his head and a smile.
Roy's words only made Ryuu feel more guilty.
"Actually, I have a safer and faster way to make money. I wonder if you'd be interested," Roy said, his lips curling up as he stared intently at Ryuu.
Ryuu keenly caught the dangerous glint in Roy's eyes. "Could I possibly not be interested?"
"No!"
Roy said with a smile. The authoritative tone in his voice made even the LV.4 Ryuu feel helpless.
Ryuu sighed. "I'll just listen."
"Let's deal with the Apollo Familia!"
"—What do you mean?"
Roy's next sentence nearly made Ryuu choke on her own saliva, leading to a violent cough.
Roy lowered his voice. "We'll take their assets through a War Game!"
"???"
Ryuu's moist lips parted slightly. She looked at the boy next to her in disbelief, as if asking, Do you have a fundamental misunderstanding of the word "secure"?
The Apollo Familia was no easy target.
As seen in the Dungeon battle, the Apollo Familia was not a disorganized rabble like the Rudra Familia.
Many members of the Apollo Familia were forcibly included. The absolute authority from the top effectively governed the Familia's strength, making them like a strictly disciplined army.
In a War Game on the surface, two people against over a hundred would have no chance of winning.
To prevent eavesdroppers, Roy leaned close to Ryuu's pointed ear and whispered, "First, we do this... then that... and finally, we add a little flair…"
Roy's hot breath brushed against the elven girl's ear. Her pointed ear seemed to take on a reddish hue. Ryuu gave him a chastising look.
But after hearing Roy's plan, Ryuu had no time to worry about trivialities. Her sky-blue eyes widened.
She suddenly recalled a week ago, Roy dragging Remmel aside to discuss something, and Roy's adventurer profile still being un-updated.
The pretense that his Magic required a chant during the Goliath hunt.
Everything seemed to connect at this moment.
It is likely that on that day in the plaza, when the Apollo Familia members provoked him, Roy already began formulating this plan in his mind, arranging their downfall perfectly.
This person truly would not suffer a loss. If he took one punch, he would return it tenfold, a hundredfold!
Ryuu couldn't help but feel sorry for the Apollo Familia. Crossing paths with Roy was definitely their biggest regret.
"Are you truly confident? What if we fail…" Ryuu looked at Roy with complicated eyes.
"It's always worth a try. What if they take the bait?" Roy said with a smile.
"Besides, the Apollo Familia isn't anything good. Forcing people to join their Familia, even injuring innocent bystanders. These people deserve to die, so why not let their accumulated wealth contribute to us?"
"That's true, but—"
Ryuu's face was conflicted. Initiating a War Game specifically for money felt highly questionable.
"But the 60 million Valis debt…"
"I need to think about it!"
Roy smiled, as Ryuu's reaction was exactly what he expected. Adventuring was a life-risking profession, and no one knew when misfortune might strike.
Ryuu was no exception.
She was worried about Goddess Astrea being left homeless if the debt wasn't repaid, and she still wanted to quickly free up time to eliminate those connected to the Dark Faction…
Roy had no patience to spend three months on this matter, and neither did Ryuu.
Ryuu walked behind Roy. Her hesitation stemmed from another reason: this was the Astrea Familia's problem, and there was no reason for Roy to sacrifice himself.
What if they failed…?
Then, Ryuu looked up and noticed a hint of fierce madness subtly emanating from Roy's profile.
Ryuu seemed to understand something.
She had been overthinking it. Revenge or debt repayment were not the motivations driving him to do this.
The fundamental reason was simply that Roy wanted to do it.
Because the Adventure was there!
Understanding that Roy wasn't choosing to sacrifice himself, Ryuu's psychological burden lessened considerably. With an inexplicable impulse, she agreed, "Alright, I agree."
"Hold this. I'm going to the Guild Headquarters."
Roy's eyes lit up. He immediately tossed the large bag of gold coins he was carrying to Ryuu, fearful she might change her mind, and dashed into the crowd, his figure quickly disappearing.
Ryuu stood frozen, clutching the large bag of gold. She was filled with regret. What am I doing?
The desire to do something for Roy, the unwillingness to refuse him, and the guilt over him sacrificing himself for the Familia were all intertwined.
She had never experienced such complex feelings before.
Roy rushed back to the Guild Headquarters, grabbing Remmel. "Update my adventurer profile!"