Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

"..."

"How long do you intend to continue?"

"..."

"—I'm just asking you, how long do you plan to stay in bed?"

"...Calm down, meow, Lunova."

"Don't stop me! Kroy! Anya, you already know that the goddess Freya is Seele, right!?"

"..."

"In that case, even if I have to punch her, I have no choice but to go find her and get to the bottom of things!"

"..."

"If we just go help the adventurer buddies and try to bring Seele back, wouldn't that be great!?"

"..."

"At least reply, you stupid cat!"

"Lunova, calm down."

"Get your act together!! If you don't come out, I'll force you if necessary—!!"

"Lunova!!"

“…………!”

"..."

“…………”

"..."

"We're leaving now."

"..."

"You're just going to stay huddled under the covers and never come out of there for the rest of your life!"

The door was then forcefully opened.

After the girl's voice, full of resentment, echoed throughout the room, only the two of them remained.

"Anya, the cats are going to participate in the war game that starts today, meow."

"..."

"The other shop assistants (Mei and others) also went to ask the gods Nyod and Demeter for help in converting to Christianity."

"..."

"Although we don't know where Ryu went yet... all the cats have decided to join the battle."

"..."

"Anya, don't you want the bar to go back to how it used to be?"

"...!"

"At least I hope so... so, I'll be going now."

Only one person remained in the room.

After the door closed, Anya, who was curled up on the bed, hugged her legs tightly.

Runova is strong, and so is Roy.

Anya could no longer fight.

My brother (Allen) is so scary.

The goddess (Freya) is terrifying.

Anya can no longer tell who the girl (Seele) who once saved her is.

They also couldn't muster the courage to face the truth.

As Lunova said, Anya was always that lost kitten who couldn't do anything once she was alone.

Anya was dejected and disappointed in herself.

Just then—

"Hello."

Suddenly someone rudely pushed open the door and approached the bed with rough footsteps.

That rude voice was remarkably similar to, even identical to, that of the person Anya knew.

Anya, who had buried her face in her legs, shuddered.

"────…………Big brother?"

The lost kitten cautiously raised its face.

*

A faint white light emanated from the massive city wall standing on the east side.

As the darkness gradually dissipated and the first light of dawn appeared on the horizon, I moved quickly, sweating profusely.

"Drink it—!"

The next second, the scattering sweat and the few strands of hair on my head were all taken away by the large double blades that were barely visible to the naked eye.

Even though I held my breath and widened my eyes, I didn't stop moving.

After dodging the attack with a wide sidestep, I quickly turned around by kicking the ground twice as if I were dancing, and swung the "White Illusion" in my right hand.

"snort!!"

This is violence created by combining the abilities of "strength" and "agility".

This action seems incredibly exaggerated at first glance; I definitely couldn't have done it in the past.

Thanks to the Lv.5 ability value, this action of combining dodging and attack is possible.

"I advise you not to let [ability stats] lead you by the nose!"

However, my violence was defeated by my opponent's even more "unreasonable" actions.

She displayed exceptional dynamic vision and courage, as well as the arm strength unique to female warriors (Amazons), grabbing my right wrist as I launched my attack and forcefully throwing me behind my back.

"Ughhhhhh!?"

I flew out in a parabola and bounced back into the air like a ball.

As if I had been slammed directly to the ground, I quickly punched the lush green grass with one hand, using the reaction force to forcefully adjust my posture. At the same time, I kicked the rapidly approaching wall and quickly jumped to the side.

I did this because another female warrior with flowing long hair had already slashed at me.

"You're too easily lured by bait displayed right in front of you!"

"...! Ahhh!"

A pair of recurve kukri knives transformed into two streaks of light, and a large double-edged sword also leaped down from the sky.

I roared from deep within my abdomen, facing the twin sisters' continuous attacks head-on.

Dawn is approaching, and we are located in the headquarters of the Hestia Familia.

I've lost count of how many times I've received training from Miss Tiona and Miss Tione in the courtyard.

They suddenly stormed into the Fireplace a few days ago. Faced with their request, "We want to help the little hero Argonaut!", the fairy and I were stunned. However, Mr. Finn, who volunteered to be Lily's "mentor," suggested, "Let them help you get into shape." So, we have been conducting practical training at the base camp until today.

I originally thought that since we were going to train, it would be better to go to the huge city wall or the underground city where Miss Ais trained. However, Miss Tione said that "going back and forth to the rest and training location and the preparations beforehand would be a waste of time." So, we changed the location to the courtyard of the main camp.

"Take this!────────!!"

The courtyard was utterly unsuitable for first-tier adventurers to engage in a fierce battle. The grass was a wrecked mess, the plants were severely damaged, and the pillars housing the magic stone lamps were knocked askew. Although the repair costs would undoubtedly enrage Lily, I had no time to worry about that, as the battle was too intense for me to afford even a moment's distraction.

Although it's called training, this is really what "battles between first-level adventurers" are all about.

"Act first, think later! Otherwise, you'll fall behind the combat pace of a first-tier adventurer!"

"The Freya Familia's attacks are even more intense!"

My limbs, covered in wounds, were in excruciating pain; the impact that went straight to my bone marrow made my whole body numb.

The sharp combos of the recurve blade and the heavy blows of the double-edged sword repeatedly shocked me, as I could only defend.

The relentless onslaught, which could only be described as a tidal wave, overwhelmed me, leaving me defenseless. Ninety percent of my counterattacks were thwarted, and I only managed to survive by cowardly dodging. When I thought I had delivered a powerful side kick, like a cannonball, it was easily neutralized by an elbow. I felt like this was a nightmare.

As fellow first-level adventurers, Miss Tiona and her ilk possess far greater experience and skill than I do.

So it's normal for this to happen, and it's only natural that Bell Craney gets a severe beating every day.

"Remember your training sessions with Ais!"

"The skills and strategies you learned are now deeply ingrained in you! Remember to put them to use!"

However, the words spoken by Miss Tiona and Miss Tione repeatedly irritated my body and mind.

-- Cannot be controlled by [ability values].

--Don't rush in as soon as you see a flaw.

Yes, these are all things that I admire (that person) has guided me through.

Now that I've reached Lv.5, I should return to my original intentions even more.

Link ability parameters with "skills", combine weapons with "combat methods", and create a resonance between "body" and "mind"!

"[Grow Bigger!] ———— [The Magic Hammer!]!"

Just then, the voice of "Support" landed on my scarred back.

Miss Haruhime, who had been kneeling in the corner of the courtyard, stood up after finishing her chant.

Compared to me, she was equally sweating profusely, sweat pouring down her forehead as she struggled to muster her mental energy to give me a level boost.

"────!!"

I harnessed my surging [ability points] to launch a counterattack.

The movement accelerated as the beautiful light spots wrapped around his body accelerated, and the black and white daggers he held in his hands turned into flashes of light.

I used "skill" to slash at the side of the enemy's weapon, deflecting Miss Tione's attacks.

Then, he deliberately exposed an opening to lure Miss Tiona into attacking—using his "countermeasures" to seize the brief opening she made, and forcefully swung the "Goddess Blade" held in his left hand in a reverse grip.

"Drink it all!!"

I swung my sword with all my might, a full-force strike, just as the words say.

Miss Tiona, who blocked the attack head-on, opened her eyes wide and smiled, then was sent flying along with the large double blades in her hands.

The impact caused even the large double-edged sword, made of an ultra-hard metal (hard steel), to tremble slightly.

This was the first time since the start of this training session that such a satisfying impact had been heard.

The clear sound, reminiscent of a tuning fork, reverberated throughout the central courtyard of the main camp.

"Hey...! Argonaut, little hero, how are you feeling now?"

"...Hmm, I think it should be fine."

After Miss Tiona gracefully landed after a somersault in mid-air, she spoke to me from a distance, expressing her concern.

I panted as I sheathed the two daggers, repeating the motion of opening my palms and then clenching them into fists several times.

"That sense of 'disharmony'...has completely disappeared."

Whenever we level up, we often experience a "sense of disharmony between the body and mind".

In short, my mental strength couldn't keep up with my suddenly increased physical abilities. Perhaps it's because I'm too inexperienced as an adventurer, and it took me quite a while to get rid of this "incongruity." Just like in the "Expedition" two months ago, I only managed to get rid of this feeling when fighting the fastest creature in the lower levels (Flash Swallow).

Therefore, the purpose of this training is not to seize the time to continue improving strength, but as Mr. Finn said, to eliminate the "disharmony" between body and mind through "adjustment".

"It feels like you managed to achieve your goal at the very last minute. Your fighting style is finally less nerve-wracking... Also, it's a wonder you were able to cooperate from the side. Although I've heard rumors about you several times, this sorcery is really powerful."

"Thank you so much for the compliment!"

Miss Tione, with a smile on her face, praised Miss Haruhime, who was so dizzy that she was about to lose consciousness.