Chapter 122: Evan D. Sherden, Enters the Dungeon Again (3)

Evan D. Sherden, Enters the Dungeon Again (3)

[You have evolved to level 5. Without any hesitation, you ran through the dungeon and surpassed everyone else's record to reach this place. You are truly worthy of carrying the work of the wind.]

[Your achievements and aptitudes will remain the same, so we will be presenting you with a new ability. There isn't any bargaining. 'Wind Step' would add stability to your steps. You will be able to walk your path more securely from now on.]

Arisha had succeeded in obtaining a skill reward from the dungeon's gods after swiftly running through the dungeon floors 1 to 4.

Clearing the dungeon stairs weren't awarded naturally, but breaking through several stairs at such a rapid pace resulted in better rewards.

Of course, from the standpoint of raising a character, it was impossible to try it out while attacking the dungeon in real-time, and it was a good thing to try only when raising a new member in a party that already had some experience beforehand. In other words, it was an achievement perfectly suitable for the current situation.

Nonetheless, it was still quite surprising that she had been rewarded with such a skill.

"That's 'Wind Step'..."

"It's almost like she's flying. The guide role was taken away by the Master. My agility has been stolen by Miss Arisha, so my remaining identity is being only a Rogue..."

"You're still dealing with two daggers, Shine. Stop complaining."

"Oh, really..."

No matter how much you got skills as a reward for clearing the dungeon, it was impossible to receive skills that were not related to your aptitude.

Just as Raihan had gotten the skill to better deal with his shield, Evan had gotten the skill of 'Heavens Press' and Shine had gotten the ability to train the Rookie children; the skill 'Wind Step' acquired by Arisha was also related to her existing aptitude.

As with the training method that strengthened the humans, Arisha's ability was deeply related to the wind.

"... I really like this ability. I didn't know I could use my mana in this way."

"All the skills given by the gods are useful in one way or another. Why do you like it?"

"It's because I feel stronger than before... It's fun. It's very fun."

"That's great. Even if you say that, it's still a skill you need getting used to..."

It was extremely difficult to realize the unknown possibilities of her skill, yet. The skills the gods gave were usually like that.

Arisha also had the ability to reinforce her rapier's sharpness with the mana of the wind or to create a blade out of the air to aid her attacks. Her new skill directly assisted her movements with her magical powers.

'It's a buff skill that allows you to move quickly for a limited time. It looks similar to the quick magic that you can receive from the priest, which is originally called Haste, but it is different from that. It's different in the sense that she can use it twice. It's quite terrifying too...'

In fact, by using the 'Wind Step' skill, she could attack with her rapiers while dealing with the magic of the wind too.

The combination of her ability to engage in close-quarter combat and her new ability that drastically sped up her steps was truly outstanding, and if she triggered it at the right time, she could wipe out complete enemy camps by herself.

'Because she was already very quick in the first place, she might achieve other skills like this while going around the dungeon.'

However, one thing was certain. It wouldn't have been possible for her in the game at such a young age to get 'Wind Step' ability from the lower levels of such a dungeon.

Getting skills that could be used in the middle of the battle was a matter that was directly connected to the future combat power.

In particular, 'Wind Step' was a core skill that increased Arisha's movement speed, her evasion rate, and accuracy. As she had succeeded in obtaining it, her fighting power had increased by at least 1.5 times, or hopefully twice as much.

"Then let's go to the 5th floor. If we reach the 5th floor quickly enough, the gods may raise the level of 'Wind Step'."

"... But before I go down to the 5th floor, I have something I want to ask Evan."

Arisha stopped exactly in front of Evan and asked, staring at his face.

"I want to hear more about the hidden boss that appears after clearing all the Floor Masters. And if possible, I want to fight him. Alone."

"I didn't tell you about that earlier because it would've seemed pointless to talk about it then but... Wait a minute. Who told you about that?"

The moment Evan looked at the party, Shine turned his head. Evan continued to speak after punishing Shine with a punch to his stomach (Shine let out a small scream).

"I know you're confident because your dungeon level has risen and you got new skills. In fact, it's true that you have a lot of talent. But the hidden boss is different. It's not even easy to battle the Floor Master by yourself in the first place."

"Wasn't it possible for Shine and Belois?"

"Well, it was, of course..."

That couldn't be helped. Shine and Belois had grown up under the intensive care of Evan from the tender age of nine.

There was a huge difference between their main skill and Arisha's main skill. No matter how much Arisha had mastered her dealing in both magic and weapon skills, the contrast could not be ignored.

Strictly speaking, the circumstances and the race in which she was born was also different from others. If she was one of the strongest in the top 10 in Yo-Ma Great War 3, Shine and Belois, with their absurd superpowers, could easily be ranked among the top 3 in the whole Yo-Ma Great War series!

"Damn it! That hurt. Whoo! We were able to kill the Floor Master in a single try. Master Evan was the one who did it."

"That's because... It must have been that it was strangely weak at that time."

Evan, who did not retreat after taking the No. 1 position in the rankings even after he knew he was a naturally-dying extra among the others, replied with a quiver.

The main heroine of Yo-Ma Great War 3 and a regular, Arisha von Pellati, spoke to Evan with a serious expression.

"Give me a chance to prove myself. You just have to say yes."

"Uh, um..."

After clearing up to the 4th floor, Evan objectively weighed the abilities Arisha had shown in front of him.

Of course, it was difficult for him to start judging her because the opponents they had fought up until now hadn't offered much, but apparently, she showed a sense of determination that by far exceeded that of the explorers who challenged dungeons on an average.

Evan was able to realize that and admired her, coming to the obvious conclusion that she was truly regular.

'If it were Arisha in the game, she would never have faced the hidden boss as a twelve-year-old. But still...'

Just as Shine and Belois had walked a completely different path as in the game and were able to grow proficiently, Arisha had also stayed in the dungeon city with a specific goal of joining the Dungeon Knights Squad, which was quite different from the Arisha von Pellati who appeared in the game. It was also true that she was able to lead on her own.

'Is it because of the sudden increase of rivals around her at a young age?'

Her weapon skills, wind magic, and her ability to deal with rapiers were already sufficient to play an active part as a dungeon explorer. Now she had almost mastered those and the 'Wind Step' ability too.

It was true that her level of martial arts and magic power was much lower than that of Shine and Belois, but given the existence of a buff skill, it could not be affirmed that Arisha was falling behind them.

"... Alright then. You'll go against the Floor Master alone. I will judge by looking at you."

"Okay."

Arisha's complexion had gotten noticeably brighter. However, Evan still maintained a strict tone and added.

"If you challenge the hidden boss, you should drink auxiliary potions. Otherwise, challenging the hidden boss in itself would be foolish."

"I knew that already."

Arisha nodded seriously. It was the same expression she had made while talking with Evan, immediately before entering the dungeon.

"Of course, the Master only threw a bead and burst the Floor Master's head without needing our help at all."

"Well, I think I told you to be quiet, Shine."

"Oh, no!"

Although the 5th floor of the dungeon was expansive and had a lot of traps, Evan, who not only completely penetrated the structure of the 5th floor but also left his own mark in several places when he had entered the dungeon once before; due to those, he was able to find the location quickly and led them to it.

"Okay, we will be arriving at the first boss room."

"I don't think it took even 5 minutes!?"

Of course, their movement speed was faster than when they previously had entered the dungeon, and now they were accompanying Arisha too. She was thrilled at Evan's formidable talent as a guide.

"Arisha, if you really want to fight the hidden boss, Blood Goblin Fighter, on your own, you should be able to beat the Goblin Warrior overwhelmingly."

"I am prepared."

While running in the dungeon being led by Evan, Arisha nodded firmly, keeping her breath under control and trying to calm her nerves.

At that moment, the air around her rapier, held in her hand, started sharpening it.

"Then I'll be back."

"Be careful, Goblin Archers will be there too."

"Yes, and don't get hit by their arrows."

The door of the Floor Master Battle Room opened after Evan threw a gold coin into its hole.

Arisha entered it alone.

"Ah... I let the youngest kid of the Pellati family into the battle room alone."

"She won't die even in the worst case. I've prepared her defenses that much, so don't worry, Master."

"Of course, I know that, but if she even gets some kind of bad trauma due to the battle..."

"... It's over."

As Evan and Raihan were having a conversation, all of a sudden, the door of the battle room opened again, and Arisha walked out of it with a casual expression on her face.

Black blood was dripping from the tip of her sword. It was the blood of a Goblin Warrior.

"What, it's over already?"

"You really killed everyone?"

Shine was holding a scimitar and charged inside due to the force of habit. While holding a sword, he touched all of the goblin's corpses with its tip, absorbing blood and performing a ritual of life and death.

Evan looked at Arisha with a quaint expression. Arisha said calmly and politely.

"Thanks to my newfound ability, my movements have increased in momentum, so the speed of my combat actions naturally also increased. And the enemy was relatively slow."

"... Was there any problem?"

"Nope. And by the time we arrive at the next battle room, I think I will be able to use 'Wind Step' again."

It was an active skill with a time limit. It also required a significant consumption of mana. And if you used it continuously, it put a burden on your body.

Therefore, in order to relieve the fatigue, she received divine magic and drank Evan's potion. Conversely, the help she received from the group was enough.

"It was so easy."

"All of them had the same pattern. It was actually kind of boring.

"These guys weren't fun at all."

"... I want to fight more challenging monsters."

In less than an hour, Arisha successfully conquered all the Floor Master battle rooms spread out on the 5th floor as they collected the gemstones.

Evan was leading them as they cleared all those places in just one hour and were able to defeat the Floor Masters in just a few seconds.

Arisha's skill was very useful.

Only

"What the hell? You aren't even a Rookie!?"

"Well... I was able to prove myself to Evan after all."

Evan would not have been surprised if Shine or Belois had been like this, but Arisha, who had been with them for only half a year, had become rapidly stronger.

Evan was astounded.

But Arisha was looking at all of them coolly... Then she asked Evan with a proud face.

"So now you will regard me the same as yourself."

"... Okay, I got it."

Evan sensed that she was blaming him somewhere in those words as she gave him a grim expression. Finally, he had no choice but to send her to the Hidden Boss Battle Room.