Chapter 50: Rowene Dungeon(10)

Having arrived at the entrance to the 4th floor, Sedral, after dividing the magic stones, whistled cheerfully.

“The stones are unusually pure today. I’ll have to treat Henrik when we get back.”
“Unusually pure? What do you mean?”

Professor Pel’s interest was piqued by the mention of magic stones. It was his area of expertise.

“Well, the monsters around here are all newly spawned, so their magic stones are tiny and low quality, right?”
“That’s usually the case.”
“But take a look at this.”

Sedral picked one of the magic stones and handed it to Professor Pel. It was tiny, as he’d said, barely bigger than half a fingernail, but… its color was striking.

“Crimson?”
“Surprised me too. A crimson magic stone from a Skeleton? Never heard of such a thing. There weren’t many, though.”
“…This dungeon might be more valuable than I thought.”

Lucy, who had been listening quietly, glanced at Avalli.

-Was that you?

She mouthed the words, and Avalli winked and put a finger to her lips.

‘…I knew it.’

Sedral and Avalli had been the ones extracting magic stones during their dungeon crawl. Avalli had discreetly transferred the stones she extracted. Lucy hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but now she understood.

“Well, I’ll be going.”
“You’ll be alright on your own?”
“No problem. If I hurry, I can catch up with your students.”

Sedral said cheerfully and then left, clearly pleased with his unexpected earnings.

“…Shall we descend?”, “Yes, Professor.”, “Let’s go, Professor!” ,“Lead the way.”

With Sedral gone, Professor Pel naturally became the leader of their now four-member group.

They descended a long, gently sloping staircase and emerged into a large, open chamber.

“It’s surprisingly bright here.”
“This area contains luminous stones. We need to be cautious here.”

The monsters on the fourth floor were Zombies and Banshees. Individual zombies weren’t that strong or intelligent, so they weren’t much of a threat.

“If it were just zombies, we could avoid combat…”

But encountering a Banshee would be disastrous. Banshees, being spectral, could fly through obstacles and would quickly alert the nearby zombies. And from the fourth floor down, the monsters outnumbered the adventurers. Escape would be difficult.

“We’ll have to clear the zombies as we go. The entrance to the fifth floor isn’t far, so stay alert.”

Despite his words, Professor Pel wasn’t particularly worried. He had witnessed their combat prowess on the third floor.

Hans, the swordsman with monstrous strength, capable of crushing any opponent before him. Lucy, the mage whose skills had improved dramatically, supporting Hans. And finally, the one who erased enemies from existence.

‘…That was terrifying.’

Avalli had used an ordinary-looking Fireball spell. Hans and Sedral hadn’t thought much of it, but Professor Pel, a high-ranking mage, had seen the truth.

‘It was closer to a word of power.’

The skeletons hit by Avalli’s Fireball weren’t simply burned; they were erased from existence.

“…Avalli.”
“Yes, Professor?”
“Have you considered joining the Eastern Magic Tower?”

Professor Pel asked cautiously. Any young mage receiving such an offer would be thrilled and accept immediately—but—

“I don’t know.”

Avalli just tilted her head, seemingly uninterested in the Magic Tower.

“Besides, I still have much to learn from my teacher.”, “That’s not what you said earlier, Avalli.”, “Heehee, you got me.” ,“…You mean you would only consider it if Lucy was there?”

Despite her subtle refusal, Professor Pel pressed further.

“Lucy’s skill has improved dramatically in the past few months. If she returned to the Tower, she could easily secure a position on the sixth… perhaps even the seventh floor.”
“Seventh floor? How could I—”
“I would recommend her. She’s earned it.”

He was being sincere. Lucy Ignis’s skills had indeed improved dramatically.

Her mana manipulation, casting speed, judgment… and most importantly, the sheer density of her magic power. The quantity hadn’t changed significantly, but the quality… she was like a different person.

‘…It must be related to this Avalli girl.’

Professor Pel’s assumption was correct.

Those who spent time with Avalli, especially the young and impressionable…

In Avalli’s modern terms—

Hans and Lucy had been unconsciously absorbing experience points from the max-level Avalli. Even the other children in Asha Village were developing their talents, their Gifts taking root.

Of course, Avalli herself was unaware of this, simply radiating power unconsciously.

“Well…”

Lucy glanced at Avalli, hesitant. Avalli just smiled and shrugged, giving Lucy the freedom to choose.

“…Honestly, I don’t want to go back, not for a while.”

She had grown fond of Asha Village, and she felt guilty about leaving Karls, who had worked so hard through the winter to build her house.

“I see. I understand.”
“But… when I’m finished with my current research, I’ll reconsider.”

Professor Pel nodded at Lucy’s carefully worded reply.

That was enough. The Magic Tower wasn’t a place a mage could easily abandon. Lucy would return eventually. And when she did, Avalli would likely follow. It was his duty to prepare for their arrival.

While the Tower attracted talented individuals from across the continent every year… Avalli was different. Her presence would undoubtedly cause a dramatic shift. And he had to prepare the Tower, its mages, for that change.

“Incoming!”

Hans drew his sword and shouted, snapping Professor Pel out of his thoughts. Fifteen zombies were charging towards them.

“…Teacher, aren’t zombies supposed to be slow?”
“Only the completely decayed ones. These are still relatively… fresh.”
“Ugh, they’re disgusting.”

Despite the urgency, Avalli simply complained, her face calm, a clear indication that she wasn’t threatened.

“Lucy, you and the children handle the zombies. I’ll prevent the Banshees from flanking us.”

It seemed like a sensible decision.

No matter how much potential Avalli had, she was still a child. Only a powerful mage like himself could deal with the fast-moving Banshees.

It was a perfectly reasonable command, but—

“Oh, you don’t have to do that.”

Avalli said, gathering mana in her clasped hands. She wanted to test the new Gift she had recently developed in her inner world.

As she opened her hands, the mana, as if imbued with a will of its own, flew into the air—

—and then—

-KIIIEEEEEEEK!
-CURSE YOU!

The death cries of Banshees echoed from beyond a distant hill. Lucy and Hans were too busy fighting the zombies to notice, but Professor Pel saw everything.

“…What did you do?”
“Ah, it’s something I’ve been working on. Like… guided missiles. Or rather, closer to an AI.”

He didn’t understand what “guided missiles” or “AI” meant, but witnessing her almost miraculous mana manipulation made him rethink his priorities.

‘…I don’t know what Lucy’s researching…’

…but he had to support her, by any means necessary. It would hasten her return to the Tower, bringing Avalli with her.

“Avalli! Stop messing around and help us!”, “These zombies are tougher than they look!”

Lucy and Hans called out for help, their voices panicked. Lucy even forgot her usual polite speech.

“I’m coming!”

Avalli thought, realizing they were struggling, and then she dashed forward.

Two hours later. Five and a half hours after entering the Rowena Dungeon, they reached the fifth floor.

And less than thirty minutes after entering the fifth floor…

“…It seems this is where the advance team was defeated.”

They arrived at the entrance to the sixth floor, the area littered with corpses and drenched in blood.