Chapter 573

Chapter 580: Astelia Familial Group (Please Subscribe!)

After tearing down the last barrier—or veil—between them, Ryu and Victorica were clearly getting along much better.

At least even without Izay acting as a bridge, the two could occasionally communicate now.

But there was something strange.

It came from the personal impression of the fairies…

Ryu always felt that the scene of Water Riddle City before her eyes had a sense of déjà vu, as if it were familiar.

This feeling couldn’t be described, only able to be called “weird.”

And as the team delved deeper into Water Riddle City, this feeling became stronger.

Furrowing her brows slightly, Ryu suppressed this strange feeling in her heart, not letting it interfere with her emotions.

Let’s just call it a gift of biological adaptability～

After having just accepted Victorica’s identity from another world, Ryu thought that it would be hard for anything to cause her emotions to fluctuate dramatically in the short term.

The fairies had yet to realize the severity of the situation.

And just as the trio of Izay began descending from the twenty-fifth floor, at the same time, deeper within Water Riddle City…

“I don’t know why, but this time entering the lower levels feels easier. Looks like we’ll easily catch our target off guard!”

That was a chirpy, youthful voice, full of energy that easily evoked feelings of warmth.

The owner of this voice was a red-haired adventurer girl dressed in light adventurer armor who seemed very optimistic about the current situation.

“Even though we’ve just arrived at this level, we haven’t started investigating yet. We can’t let our guard down so quickly, Alice.”

A beautiful girl with flowing black straight hair frowned gently, warning: “Arriving smoothly at the lower areas doesn’t mean anything. Have you forgotten the nightmare on the twenty-seventh floor a year ago? The same thing happened here…a trap-laden atmosphere.”

The black-haired girl seemed to be of Far Eastern origin, wearing region-specific adventurer gear with a flower-shaped wooden hairpin adorning her black tresses.

Every move she made exuded elegance, and at this moment, that elegance was accompanied by visible seriousness.

“I understand that, Kaguya… But even so, aren’t we here? To prevent such a tragedy from happening again…”

Hearing this from their deputy leader, Alice shook her head.

None of the members behind her said anything, seemingly agreeing with her statement.

The reason for all this goes back to before the girls took action.

A few days ago, the Astelia Familial Group received a message from the guild staff.

It mentioned that there was some activity from the Dark Faction in the lower regions, and they hoped the Astelia Familial Group would investigate.

If they could find any trace of the Dark Faction in the lower levels, the guild would pay them accordingly.

Naturally, stopping the enemy’s plans would be ideal, and capturing members of the Dark Faction would be even better!

Upon receiving this message, the Astelia Familial Group—Alice and her companions—rushed here almost immediately.

They only prepared the bare minimum logistics beforehand, prioritizing speed.

Because they feared that the Dark Faction might escape before they arrived.

After all, the nightmare event on the twenty-seventh floor a year ago caused severe damage to the guild factions’ Familial Groups, still making some people shudder when they hear about it.

However, the Dark Factions also suffered heavy blows during that incident.

Many of the Dark Faction’s evil gods were sent back to the heavens by the Hero-led team.

Due to that event, although the Dark Faction was indeed declining,

their conflict with the guild had reached a point of no return.

Now, deliberately setting traps within the dungeon to exact revenge on the guild forces was not surprising.

The Astelia Familial Group chose to take on this mission after anticipating this possibility.

The goal was to prevent the tragedy of a year ago from repeating itself.

“The only group within the Dark Faction that still retains significant strength is the Rudra Familial Group. Their power level isn’t strong; at most, they have three Level 3s including their leader and two deputies, and some Level 2s. As long as we’re careful, they won’t be able to pose a threat to us.”

In the group, a small human girl with peach-pink hair named Lila spoke up.

Lila was the supporter of the Astelia Familial Group and also the group’s strategist.

Perhaps due to racial traits,

the small humans, who lack innate combat abilities, seemed particularly adept at tactical planning.

The Hero Finn was like this, and Lila of the Astelia Familial Group was too.

The calm analysis of their companion, who stood less than 120 centimeters tall, gave everyone a boost of confidence for this risky adventure.

Before each mission, Lila would gather intelligence and plan strategies, earning trust from her companions.

“See, Kaguya? That’s what Lila said! This battle will definitely go smoothly.”

With support from the group’s strategist, Alice continued to display her usual cheerful personality.

Still, this ability to remain optimistic regardless of circumstances really was a talent none of them could emulate.

Kaguya sighed helplessly upon realizing this.

Our leader is always like this… impossible to dissuade…

But precisely because of this, the group of girls here were drawn to her and gathered together.

She herself was like this, as were Ryu and Lila.

This might be what’s known as charisma.

“Further ahead is the suspicious location indicated by the guild’s intel. Should we rest one more time before heading there? Let’s adjust everyone’s condition before the battle!”

Alice suggested in a tone that left no room for argument.

Look, she herself acknowledged the danger ahead.

But while making prudent decisions, she still maintained her usual cheerful demeanor.

Behind her, a blonde fairy girl looked at her form and seemed to want to encourage the group?

Or maybe she wanted to boost morale～

Her thoughts escaped her brain and out of her mouth.

“In fact, we don’t need to rest. We can rush forward and capture all those Dark Faction members!”

As soon as these words were spoken, a question mark appeared above Kaguya’s head at the front.

“Our straightforward fairy seems to be talking nonsense again… Maybe she hasn’t woken up yet… If you want to send yourself to your doom, go ahead, but don’t drag us all along～”

Saying this, the beauty with black straight hair waved her hand dismissively, as if trying to shoo away some small animal, her expression somewhat disdainful.

How could Ryu tolerate such an insult!?

Her eyes flashing fiercely, the fairy took a deep breath and was about to start arguing with her.

Seeing the situation turning sour, Lila immediately stepped in to mediate, jumping up and pulling Ryu’s cloak to bring her down.

“Eh eh eh—! Ryu, sit down! Sit down! Don’t let Kaguya provoke you, she’s just teasing you, um… no, you know her nature, she’s just like that～ Don’t mind her!”

Within the familial group, Kaguya always managed to make Ryu explode with just a few words. This wasn’t because their relationship was bad.

They were simply… incompatible in temperament.

The current Ryu hadn’t experienced the harsh realities of society, being straightforward like a young person just stepping into the workforce, full of ideals.

Kaguya, on the other hand, was very pragmatic, seeing the present situation clearly and understanding it deeply.

For Kaguya, ideals weren’t as important as focusing on reality.

They often bickered during regular times.

But now, at least, they were in the dungeon. Give the dungeon some respect, this isn’t the place for your arguments!

The little human girl roared inwardly.

Behind them, the other several members watched this common scene in daily life, smiles appearing in their eyes.