"Sh-shouldn't be, right?" the black-haired human girl, Line, said with a dry laugh.
She had met Levi once before. At that time, he had to be careful to defend against fall damage from crossing just one floor of the Dungeon. There was no way he could be over Lv.3.
Even if he had now revealed himself as a holder of the 'Mystery' Development Ability and could concoct a sparkling wine that accelerated stat growth, by common sense, it was impossible to level up twice in less than a month.
"After all, after Lv.3, there are only two choices to acquire the Feat needed to level up: either go to the Deep Floors or challenge a Floor Boss."
"The 17th Floor's boss, Goliath, was recently defeated by Hyakinthos of the Apollo Familia, and the time before that, it was surrounded by our Familia."
"As for going to the Deep Floors... I heard the Hestia Familia and the Hephaestus Familia are close, but with the strength of the 'One-Eyed Master Smith,' it should be impossible to safely escort someone to the 37th Floor."
Finn nodded and added, "The Two-Headed Dragon that spawned on the 27th Floor a week ago, according to information from the Ganesha Familia, was intercepted by someone else. Combining that with Levi Bright's current level, I speculate that he completed his level-up by teaming up with others to subjugate the Amphisbaena."
"As for the Feat to reach Lv.5..."
He didn't continue.
But the adventurers present weren't fools; they could all understand the subtext from their captain.
—Even if Levi Bright could max out all his stats with his homemade sparkling wine, without a way to get down to the 49th Floor, he could only honestly wait for the 37th Floor boss, Udaios, to respawn, then form a party to challenge it. Or wait a month and succeed in soloing the Two-Headed Dragon before all the major Familias.
Because they didn't know Levi had a skill that could 'summon' a pitch-black monster, the Loki Familia's reasoning process was undoubtedly completely wrong. But their conclusion was, surprisingly, quite accurate.
Loki also felt she was making a big deal out of nothing. It made sense; Hestia's little boyfriend had already reported a level of Lv.4. If it were her and she had truly reached Lv.5, she wouldn't choose to hide it either.
However...
"If your predictions are correct, then this is very interesting." The goddess with her long red hair tied into a single ponytail chuckled.
"How does a Lv.4 dare to face the siege of six adventurers of the same level alone?"
"Even if... he has mastered chantless shield magic and a rather powerful healing magic?"
The same question was raised by many Familia's patron deities or high-ranking members that night. Based on everyone's observations of the Hestia Familia's captain during the day, it was easy to see that he wasn't the kind of arrogant fool who didn't know his own limits.
With just a few words, he had pressured the Apollo Familia into crippling itself, making them declare they would only dispatch Hyakinthos and five outsiders for the War Game. He even used a so-called 'quarterly healing package'—which was practically free in the eyes of other Familia executives—to easily establish a friendship with the Ganesha Familia.
It was only that he hadn't yet revealed his true combat power, and his command ability was unknown. Otherwise, some busybodies might have already started comparing him to the Loki Familia's 'Braver' or the Freya Familia's 'White Demon's Cane'.
Even so, for tomorrow's War Game, the vast majority of people in Orario were already brimming with curiosity. They really wanted to know what trump card supported Levi Bright's decision to solo six adventurers of the same level.
...
Amidst great anticipation, time moved to the next day.
Levi woke up early as usual and began preparing breakfast for everyone at the base.
He had full confidence in his strength, so he appeared extremely calm and composed.
Hestia, Alise, and Gojouno Kaguya were the same.
The former had just updated her only familia member's Falna status last night and knew exactly what kind of boost Levi had received after exposing himself to the gods of Orario.
The latter two had personally witnessed him one-shotting the Two-Headed Dragon. Although they didn't know their employer's current true combat power, a mere six Lv.4s would most likely not even be able to break through his shield defense.
That being said, not everyone at the dining table was so calm.
For example... Liliruca, who was temporarily staying in the living room.
"Lord Levi, are you really not nervous at all?"
The brown-haired Pallum girl, since she was at their base, didn't use her transformation magic. Seeing that no one present was taking the upcoming War Game seriously, she held back as long as she could but finally couldn't help but ask.
Levi glanced at her. "I've already made all the necessary preparations. Or do you think I can't even overcome a trial of this level?"
"Uh..." Liliruca was taken aback by the retort, an awkward expression on her face.
"Lili was just worried about Lord Levi."
"So I'm supposed to say thank you?" After speaking, Levi looked at Alise and Gojouno Kaguya, who were quietly drinking millet porridge.
"I'll have to trouble you two to watch the house later. Also, remember to keep an eye on Liliruca. Don't let her drink too much Fire Wine in one go like yesterday. High-grade recovery potions and mind recovery potions may not be expensive, but they're not meant to be wasted like that."
The two women exchanged a glance upon hearing this, then nodded.
Yesterday, while Levi was out, Liliruca had 'accidentally' drunk a fifth of the bottle, about 100ml, of Fire Wine in a short period. As a result, if Alise hadn't discovered it in time and saved her with high-grade recovery potions and mind recovery potions, she, whose entire body had been scorched by the high temperature of the fire element, might have already been sent to the cemetery.
Liliruca also knew her actions yesterday had been a bit too reckless. She smiled sheepishly, "In that case, Lord Levi, Lili wishes you a swift victory."
...
On the way to escort his patron goddess to Babel's Denatus hall, Levi suddenly let out a sigh for no reason.
Hestia, holding her boyfriend's arm, raised an eyebrow slightly. "Thinking about Liliruca?"
Levi didn't deny it, nodding frankly. "She hasn't truly submitted yet."
Unlike the Liliruca from the anime whose personality was corrected by Bell, the Pallum girl in reality could hardly be called a good person. She didn't say it, but in her heart, she held a strong hostility towards adventurers. This naturally included Levi, her employer.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have done something so foolish as to nearly die by accident, despite already having received 10 bottles of 1-star Fire Wine.
"Levi, you're too impatient." Hestia patted the shoulder of the person beside her.
"Liliruca isn't Alise or Gojouno, after all. Because of her background, she'll be more cautious and careful when entering a new environment. After some time, when she realizes you really won't harm her, she'll try to place her trust in you."
"Besides, although my Levi has a sharp tongue, the things you do have always been gentle."
Levi pointed at himself. "Me? Gentle? Hestia, are you joking?"
He didn't consider himself a good person.
But the twin-tailed goddess clearly thought otherwise. "Am I not right?"
"As the one who's always watching by your side, I know best~"
____
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