CHAPTER 41: 041 ’EXPEDITION

"Welcome."

As Reiger slowly approached from outside the door, Finn, Revilia, and Grace, who had been talking about something, simultaneously turned their heads and focused their gaze on him. Their expressions were like those of someone beholding a precious treasure, filled with satisfaction and relief.

"Leader, Lord Revilia, Elder Grace."

Reiger bowed to the three clan leaders one by one. His manner was not exactly reverential, but it was sufficiently respectful.

"Don’t be too formal, just relax a bit,"

Revilia, usually so serious and strict, rarely altered her demeanor, smiling at Reiger.

"There’s no need to be nervous. We old men just wanted to have a chat with you. As for your solo venture challenging the 17th-floor boss, Loki will have a proper talk with you about that later; we won’t play the bad guys in this."

Grace, stroking his beard and with a half-smile, made such a remark, causing Reiger to feel somewhat embarrassed.

He naturally wouldn’t tell Grace that Loki had already given him an earful.

After all, Reiger had not told anyone about his decision to challenge the floor boss, Goliath, on the 17th level alone; he had sneaked off on his own. Not even Rephia, let alone Loki, had been informed, which left them somewhat resentful.

If Reiger hadn’t succeeded in his challenge and leveled up, thereby diverting some of Loki and Rephia’s attention, he might still be getting an earful from them.

On the other hand, Ais, upon seeing Reiger’s successful solo challenge, seemed to have received some inspiration. Starting from the morning, she appeared to be lost in thought, which made Reiger worry whether this puppet princess might be misled by his actions into doing something reckless and dangerous.

In such circumstances, Grace’s teasing was indeed a bit hard for Reiger to bear.

"Really reckless."

Revilia even slightly restrained her smile. It seemed that she, too, was not without opinions about the dangerous act Reiger had committed.

Only Finn, looking at the youth before him who had achieved incredible accomplishments and was promoted from Lv.1 to Lv.4 in just over a month, began speaking with a smile.

"How is it? Have you adapted well to the strength gained after leveling up?"

Finn’s remark offered Reiger some relief.

"Pretty much," Reiger responded truthfully, "After one or two more real battles in the underground city, I should be completely used to it."

"That’s good." Finn nodded, then said, "The main reason we called you here was to check on your progress and to prepare for the upcoming expedition."

"Expedition?"

Reiger was first stunned, then his eyes lit up.

"Yes, an expedition." Finn saw Reiger’s reaction, a mixture of resignation and understanding, "It’s been over a month since our last expedition, and it’s time for the Loki Clan to wage another campaign in the underground city."

As one of the strongest clans among the exploratory families, the Loki Clan had always been at the forefront of battles in the underground city.

Just as adventurers take exploring the underground city as their profession, leading an expedition into the underground city is a must for large clans.

However, for a clan like Loki’s, which needed to venture below the 50th level in every expedition, preparing alone took a great deal of effort.

Not to mention, the resources required for the expedition required a lot of time to prepare.

Food and water were secondary—these could be sourced within the underground city. The main preparations, usually time-consuming, involved weapons, equipment, medicine, and special items needed for various situations.

Thus, large families like the Loki Clan typically launched an expedition every one or two months.

Now, the time had come.

And the reason Finn and the others had called Reiger here was simple.

"Although you haven’t been with the clan for two months yet, and normally we wouldn’t involve you in such significant clan activities like an expedition so soon, you’re already Lv.4. For the next expedition, we’d like you to join us," Finn explained. "This decision was made together by the three of us, and Loki personally agreed. If you have any objections, you can voice them here."

Objections?

Reiger had none.

Battling against high-level monsters dwelling in the deep layers of the underground city was exactly what Reiger had longed for.

He had been looking forward to an expedition, and now that the opportunity had arrived, he certainly would not miss it.

So—

"I have no objections," Reiger answered without hesitation. "Please, let me participate."

Reiger openly expressed his anticipation and desire.

This made Finn and the others exchange looks and let out wry smiles.

"I knew you would be eager,"

Grace said, seemingly a bit annoyed.

"I thought you’d be less trouble than Ais and the others, but it seems we still need to keep a close eye on you,"

Revilia sighed.

"It’s best that you have no objections," Finn said, shaking his head with a laugh, then continued, "However, because the stakes of an expedition are high and this is your first one, think it over carefully. Is there anything you might need to prepare?"

Finn’s words plunged Reiger into thought.

He hardly needed any preparation at all.

If it were someone else, they might have had to get their equipment in order, prepare some medicines and such, but Reiger scarcely needed to.

The ability "Light Equipment" meant that Reiger no longer required protective gear—the less equipment he carried, the less burden, so he had discarded his armor when he ascended to Lv.2.

Reiger also didn’t need many medicines, whether for physical or spiritual power, because of the skill "Endless Sight," which kept him at peak "Healing Power" and "Spiritual Healing," he had never been worn out. Coupled with the highest level of "Resistance to Abnormalities," he wasn’t afraid of abnormal statuses. Apart from high-class Spiritual Medicine and Panacea Medicine, Reiger’s demand for other medicines was low.

During the expedition, the clan would take on the major part of preparing medicines, so Reiger really didn’t need to go through the trouble of arranging them himself.

This meant that Reiger’s necessary preparations were virtually nonexistent.

.....No, that’s not right.

There was one thing that he really needed to address.

Thinking this, Reiger involuntarily turned his gaze towards his waist.

There, a sword hung, carried at his side by Reiger.

Finn noticed this detail.

"I see, are you having problems with your weapon?"

Finn hit the nail on the head regarding Reiger’s condition.

Revilia and Grace looked at each other, showing no confusion.

"Is it because of Ais’s Magic?"

Revilia said this.

"Yes," Reiger nodded and sighed, "Due to the Magic effects, the weapon I have now is indeed struggling to keep up with the current combat intensity."

The weapon Reiger was using had been specially crafted for him when he ascended to Lv.2.

In the battle against the Crocodragon, Reiger’s primary weapon, a rapier, due to the maximum output of "Wind Spirit Swift Walk," bore too much strain and shattered then and there.

Afterward, Reiger found a reputable weapon shop, designated the Crocodragons’ claws that Rephia had collected for him as the material, and entrusted it to the forge master there to craft him a new weapon.

In the end, having spent eight hundred thousand faulites—a friendly donation from a certain elf girl—Reiger successfully acquired a third-grade armament, which was the weapon he now used.

A third-grade armament should have been sufficient as a primary weapon for a second-grade adventurer.

At least, for a normal adventurer, it would still be barely usable even after reaching Lv.4, without being a hindrance due to the weapon.

But for someone like Reiger, who possessed a freakishly powerful Magic like "Wind Spirit Swift Walk" that could overload his weapon at any moment, using this third-grade armament crafted from a Crocodragon’s claws was already proving inadequate.

Not just since ascending to Lv.4—it had been somewhat precarious even before that.

For example, during the encounter with the Feast of Monsters at level 16, in order to break through and to protect Rephia, Reiger had again released the maximum output of "Wind Spirit Swift Walk," resulting in a crack in the weapon.

In the solo battle with the floor boss at level 17, Reiger again unleashed the maximum output of "Wind Spirit Swift Walk." This time, not just one crack appeared, but several, nearly leading to the weapon breaking entirely.

Both incidents had led to considerable repair costs afterward for Reiger.

Now that Reiger had reached Lv.4, his strength had surged once more, and the power of his Magic was bound to be stronger than before. If he were to fight using "Wind Spirit Swift Walk" again, he feared that even without maximizing the output, just a bit of serious exertion could damage the weapon.

This really affected the combat.

Especially since Reiger had acquired the "Swordsman" ability, having a sword significantly impacted his strength.

So—

"If there’s something I really need to prepare thoroughly, it would probably be to find a weapon sturdy and strong enough."

Reiger thought it over, and felt this was the only real effort he needed to make for now, and it was an urgent matter.

"A weapon?"

Revilia and Grace nodded in unison.

"Alright," Finn also pondered for a moment, then said to Reiger, "In that case, come with me to the Hephaestos Clan."

The Hephaestos Clan.

This was one of the foremost Forging Master clans in Orario.

In Orario, there are all kinds of clans for every system, from exploration-focused clans that mainly explore the underground city to business clans that engage in commercial activities. The Hephaestos Clan is among the latter.

The main business tactic of this clan is to sell various weapons and equipment, with members primarily being Advanced Forgers, also known as individuals who have acquired the "Forging" ability.

"I have some orders to place there, and since you need a good weapon, come with me."

Finn extended the invitation to Reiger.

"Yes!"

Reiger strongly nodded his head.

Not long after, the two left the office together, departing the Dusk Pavilion.