Danmaku, my skills refresh weekly.

"Commander, the Magic Stone Workshop in the industrial zone east of the city has been vandalized by unknown individuals!"

"A violent incident also occurred in the Southwest Trading Zone, resulting in multiple casualties!"

"There are also troublemakers in the South District gambling dens trying to confuse the public!"

……

One intelligence report after another was quickly passed to the blond-haired Palum behind the desk.

Finn Timner, a level 5 adventurer crowned with the title of hero by the gods, is now a key strategist and commander in the fight against the entire Dark Faction.

He stared at the intelligence reports coming from all over the city, biting his thumb as he pondered: "The locations of the attacks have no connection. Were they random? Or are they trying to cover up some unknown scheme?"

"Commander, what should we do?" the young human man with spiky hair asked nervously.

“Raul, tell them not to be led by the nose. Focus on the rescue first, then increase patrols. Don’t forget to interrogate the prisoners, and let me know immediately if you find anything.”

"Yes!" Raul stood at attention and left.

Finn sat back in his chair, rubbing his temples.

The Dark Faction has been increasingly active lately, and Finn senses an impending storm.

Not long after, Raul returned to his room after delivering the message.

Finn looked up at his outstanding junior: "Raul, how are you? Are you settling in well?"

"Compared to the commander, I can only do this kind of messenger work. I'm just glad I can help the commander," Raul declared excitedly.

Finn sighed, "Sigh, I feel bad for you. Compared to you, Ais is... By the way, what is that child doing? Are you getting along well?"

Raul's expression froze, and he said, "I... I'm not really sure either. We... always feel a little afraid of Essan."

“San? Raul, you’re older than that child, aren’t you? Use honorifics?” Finn asked, slightly surprised.

“Ais…san. She always manages to slice these monsters, which we can’t possibly defeat, in half like cutting a cake…”

"Hmm... that's true. It's really hard to get along with kids who are so much younger than you."

Finn paused, then hesitated before asking, "So, the child is alone now?"

Raul scratched his head: "Normally, it's Riveria who's taking care of things. We're a bit behind Essan, and we always feel like we're holding her back."

“Riveria…” Finn frowned, biting his throbbing thumb. “I remember, Riveria went to visit those black market dealers who resell ‘Great Sage Tree Branches,’ right?”

“It seems…yes.” Raul recalled the tasks of each member.

Outlaws are plundering and selling "Great Sage Tree Branches" from various elven villages. This special material, with its powerful magical conductivity, is the best wand material for every spellcaster.

At the same time, the Great Sacred Tree is a revered and worshipped existence in every elf village, and is generally only used by the elves of their own village, making it extremely rare.

As the Queen of the Elves, Riveria naturally has the right to interfere in this illegal trade, but given Finn's understanding of those merchants, Riveria's trip is unlikely to go smoothly.

at the moment……

"So, Ais is alone today? Did she go to the dungeon?" Finn asked, voicing his concerns.

"I think... no way. Esther's sword broke yesterday and hasn't been replaced yet. Rivera said she had a surprise for her. She asked Miss Esther to wait a moment..."

"So, Ais doesn't have a weapon?"

Finn felt a little relieved.

Even if Ais is reckless, she wouldn't go into the dungeon without carrying any weapons... right?

The unease persisted until dawn, when the new day's sunlight illuminated the earth, and the lurking darkness quietly faded away.

Exhausted, Rivera hurried back to the base and discovered that something was amiss.

She forcefully pushed open the door to Finn's office and spoke in a low voice to the exhausted Finn:

"That child, Ais... didn't come back last night!"

“…Just as I expected.” Finn touched his thumb, a bad feeling rising again.

“The other members of the group also said they hadn’t seen Ais all day!” Riveria Emerald’s brows furrowed.

"..."

"Why do not you speak?!"

"Now is not the time to shirk responsibility; I'm trying to figure something out." Finn rubbed his temples vigorously.

"..." Riveria opened her mouth, but did not interrupt Finn's train of thought.

“That child has no weapon, so he shouldn’t be running around. Let’s be patient and have Raul go and ask the other clansmen who were on patrol yesterday for information.”

……

Raul: ...It's me again?

Raul, who had just fallen asleep, was pulled out of bed once again.

Catgirl Annaci patted her friend on the shoulder: "The leader's order, meow. The capable should do more..."

"Hey! I will definitely live up to the Commander's expectations."

……

Another two hours passed.

hall.

Loki stomped his feet frantically, his squinty-eyed face filled with impatience:

"Well, is it... not ready yet?"

"It'll be soon. Don't worry."

"Oh dear? How can you not be worried? That's our Ais! If anything happens to her, can you take responsibility?"

“…Loki, we’re anxious too, but for now we’ll wait for Raul…” Riveria hadn’t finished speaking.

"Commander—" Raul's voice came from outside the door.

"Hurry up and tell me!"

Raul swallowed hard and took a sip of water from the table...

"Hey? Just say it! Drink some water! You're driving me crazy!" Loki urged in a Kansai accent that sounded like a stand-up comedian.

Raul almost choked on his water before finishing it, and quickly said, "I found out! This morning, an adventurer saw Ais and a supporter enter the dungeon together."

"Supporters? Do you know which clan they belong to?" Finn asked.

Raul nodded: "I asked a few of the supporters who were with us, and it seems to be the Soma Familia."

"Soma? Oh, so it was that kid who had our Aistan kidnapped! Waaah, staying out all night! Death penalty! Death penalty! Just you wait!" Loki angrily kicked open the door, kicking up a cloud of dust, and charged toward the other side of the city.

"Wait... Loki!" Finn didn't have time to stop him; Loki had already disappeared from sight. He looked at Grace, who was watching the show, and said, "We can't let Loki wander around the city alone. Old man, you go and check on him."

"Hmm, you really know how to order people around."

After the dwarf Greys left, Riveria stared at Finn: "Aren't we going to do anything?"

Finn breathed a sigh of relief: "The strongest member of the Soma Familia is only level 2. Even if they have bad intentions, they're probably no match for Ais. I guess that kid couldn't stay still and persuaded someone to take him to the dungeon."

At this point, Finn changed the subject: "However, we still need to look for them. Recently, there have been cases of 'Adventurer Hunters' in the dungeons, so it's not very safe either."

He glanced at Rivera and pointed to the pile of intelligence on the table: "As you can see, I don't have time."

Rivera understood: "I'll go."

Chapter 34 Magic Kaleidoscope

The 24th floor of the maze.

The enormous crystal that fell from the ceiling shone with a light as bright as day.

As if summoned, the plants in the great tree maze stretched out their branches and leaves, dispelling the deathly silence of the night. The slumbering monsters raised their heads and let out roars as if about to go on a hunt, while the firebirds flapped their wings to the sky, leaving behind specks of fire.

In a secluded tree hollow, a sleeping mammoth raised its trunk, sneezed, and leisurely strolled to fill its belly.

Five meters away from its territory, a transparent curtain fell. After looking around and confirming there was no risk, Charles patted the sleeping girl who was lying on his lap.

Last night, the two traveled day and night, defeating countless monsters before finally reaching the 24th floor. This short distance of 5 floors seemed incredibly long to a team consisting of only a level 2 player and a newbie supporter.

Several times, Sharl was unfamiliar with the terrain and was ambushed by poisonous mushroom beasts. Fortunately, Sharl always acted as a human shield, taking damage for Ais whenever she was exhausted or low on energy, and carrying her away from the battlefield. Finally, after consuming half of the antidote, the two successfully reached their destination.

Staring at the girl in his arms, who had fallen into a deep sleep from exhaustion, Ciel pinched her delicate cheek and pulled hard...

"ah!"

Ais stared wide-eyed at Ciel with a look of utter astonishment.

"Time to get up, you lazybones. Aren't you going to break through the barriers and become the strongest?"

"How long have I been asleep?" Ais asked, rubbing her eyes as she regained her senses.

"About 8 hours."

"Whoa! Why didn't you wake me up?!" The girl's eyes were full of frustration.

"Before you get stronger, make sure you're in good shape." Ciel tossed the remaining potato balls to Ais: "Eat them before we continue our journey."

Ais nodded and ate the cold potato balls in small bites.

Charles was taking stock of the supplies.

There are still two weapons left, 10 bottles each of stamina and spirit potions, one bottle of panacea, and 8 doses of antidote. The weight has been reduced a lot, but correspondingly, it is more difficult to deal with risks.

"Unfortunately, we have no more supplies to return with. Let's pray we can complete this mission and retrieve some of the original herbs from the maze to replenish our strength."

After informing the main force of their predicament, Ais nodded silently, a resolute glint in her eyes.

No adventure is ever smooth sailing; only by experiencing despair and overcoming it can one achieve great things and become stronger!

She knew very well that with the power of the Loki Familia and Ais's own talent, even if she played it safe, her leveling speed would not be slow. But for her, who harbored ambitions, seven or eight years was still far too long for a nine-year-old! It was twice the length of a human life!

She can't wait!

And if I die, I can reunite with my father and mother, but I'm sorry to Rivera...

Worries vanish in a flash, replaced by perseverance.