That night's night-watch… well, no one could sleep.
Even though this was a group of seasoned adventurers who had long mastered the fast sleep technique, the entire team ended up suffering from insomnia…
Truly, they owed a big thanks to that silly little sister
Time passed relentlessly for eight hours…
Outside the dark-golden hut, Finn held his Fortia Spear, staring at the team members with dark circles under their eyes. Rarely did he show such an exasperated expression.
Oh, he had panda eyes too, but that was fine.
Speaking of which…
"Huh? Bete, why do you also look so exhausted?"
Tiona, ever straightforward, noticed something was off and immediately asked.
"Didn't you sneak out early yesterday?"
Seeing her suspicious look…
"Blah, blah~"
The young wolfman looked uneasy, his eyes darting around. After a moment, he muttered:
"You were muttering all night… it kept me awake."
"Oh, sorry about that."
One dared to say it, the other dared to believe it.
Tiona glanced at the silly little sister next to her, shook her head, and pressed a hand to her forehead in helplessness.
Then she instinctively looked at the other silly little sister… and her brother…
"Why do you all look like nothing's wrong?"
Even though they had stayed up all night, Renjiro (Aether) and Lumine were bright-eyed and energetic, seemingly completely unaffected.
Regarding this…
"I already mentioned this the day before yesterday, but…"
Renjiro shrugged.
"Miss Tione, have you forgotten the first great achievement Lumine and I accomplished?"
Well, after seven days and nights of continuous combat, possessing endurance even more extreme than the Dwarves, staying up one night was nothing.
As a side note, during the early-morning gacha at 4 a.m., Renjiro's reward was: Sword Bathed in Dragon Blood ×3.
No complaints, this instantly upgraded Razor's original "Refined +2" three-star weapon to Refined +5.
At this point…
"Seems like Xiao-sama has been causing trouble on the 49th floor all night."
"Let's check the backend XP… Whoa!!!"
Renjiro stood to the side and, on a whim, summoned the "Genshin System" virtual interface that only he could see.
He saw…
Lv. 40
Xiao, himself, and Lumine had all reached the current level cap.
Several Genshin characters left running in the background had also climbed above Lv. 30.
"The experience from killing Barbarians… is this much?"
Renjiro instinctively glanced toward the giant rock platform's edge, where the stairway led to the 51st floor.
I'm actually looking forward to today's adventure rewards.
Just as he thought this…
"The rehearsal for attempting the 58th floor is canceled."
Finn's simple statement froze Renjiro in place.
Not just him…
"Sigh~~~~~?"
Tiona couldn't help but drag out the sound.
"Canceled? We finally pushed this far, and now it's canceled?"
Hearing her complain…
"We have no choice. Our current mental state isn't ideal."
Finn shrugged.
"Staying up late is normal for us, but as you know, starting from the 52nd floor, the conditions are harsh. To face such an environment, each of us must be in peak condition to proceed."
"Clearly, we're not at that standard now."
"Sure, we could rest a few hours and maybe meet the minimum condition to continue, but even when we were fully prepared before, we couldn't conquer the 58th floor. Now, with most members not in top form, it'll be even harder."
"Besides, this wasn't a formal expedition. We hadn't informed the guild, we only planned a preliminary rehearsal."
"The main goal was to help Renjiro and Lumine set up teleportation anchors for the next official expedition."
"So now that the core task is done, there's no need to force the rest."
Undoubtedly, Finn opted for the safer course of action, which aligned closely with Renjiro's thinking.
At that moment…
"Next time we do a joint expedition, we'll need a rule."
Riveria pressed her hand to her forehead in exasperation.
"Lumine isn't allowed to tell stories during an expedition."
"Ha, haha~"
Lumine scratched her head, laughing awkwardly, trying to get out of it.
Tiona, who had originally wanted to protest, was immediately pulled away by her hot-tempered elder sister, the team's "chef and captain."
Naturally, the others didn't object to Finn's decision.
Even Ais, pacified by Lumine's chat-therapy a couple of nights ago, wasn't impulsive.
Of course, some regret remained over the abrupt end to the journey.
"Finn, you really canceled the rehearsal just for that reason?"
As the others went back inside the dark-golden hut to gather their gear, Riveria quietly spoke with Finn aside.
"I knew you couldn't hide it."
Finn gave a helpless smile.
"Adventurers must challenge the unknown in full readiness. Our current state isn't ideal… that's one reason."
"But the real decisive factor is…"
He lifted his right hand.
A sharp tingling ran through the tip of his thumb, a nearly undeniable warning of bad omen.
And this time, it was especially strong.
"I trust my instincts."
Holding his Fortia Spear, Finn tilted his head toward the stairway to the 58th floor.
"If we attempt the 58th floor now, it will be dangerous… no, it will definitely end in disaster."
Adventurers cannot adventure unprepared.
As the current captain of the Loki familia, Finn had to account for everything.
With Grace absent from Orario, Riveria, as vice-captain, needed to fill the gap.
"I see."
Riveria nodded.
"This rehearsal isn't mandatory. No need to risk ourselves for something unimportant."
"Let's call it a day."
She turned toward the dark-golden hut.
"It'll take several days to return anyway. Without other pressures, we can relax and listen to Lumine's stories."
"Heh~"
Finn smiled.
"True enough."
As the leader, Finn's words carried great authority.
Even Tiona's reluctance was limited to a few complaints, and she cooperated with the others for the return trip.
Shortly after Lumine withdrew the dark-golden hut and the group left the 50th floor…
A mysterious figure appeared near the teleportation anchor.
Curious about the new object, it observed for a while but hesitated, ultimately doing nothing.
Of course…
Even if it wanted to act, it would be futile.
The power that stabilized the teleportation anchor in this world… was far beyond the essence of its own existence.
=============
129+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon! Patreon.com/Veltoria