The joyous time always passes quickly.
After a lively celebration feast, Loki Familia's activities transitioned to the right track.
Everyone had their own tasks to take care of.
Finn, Riveria, and Gareth, the top executives and higher-ups of the familia, needed to prepare for the next expedition. The rest of the familia members, following the three top executives' orders, began investing the money earned from the expedition in various areas.
Tiona, Tione, and several others had to go for weapon maintenance.
Bete, due to his absence yesterday, was caught and scolded by the three top executives. Today, as he intended to go to the dungeon again, he got caught once more and was ordered to handle miscellaneous tasks.
Even Lefiya was not idle. With a few elves, she helped Riveria gather information, seemingly intent on finding out about the new species of monsters.
In such a situation, Riezel and Ais unexpectedly found themselves with some free time.
After all, both of them wielded Durandal weapons. While they still required maintenance, they weren't as worn out as the weapons of other members. Furthermore, with Bete handling miscellaneous tasks, the two didn't have anything to do.
Naturally, she had no reason to refuse.
The young girl knew that he needed to adjust to his power every time he leveled up to avoid any inconsistencies in his body.
This time was no different.
Riezel had reached Level 5 with the expected feelings of imbalance. He urgently needed someone to spar with to adapt to his current power.
As was customary, Ais casually agreed.
However, the outcome of this sparring match was completely different from the past.
*Clang!*
When Ais raised her sword to block the thunder-like strike that came at her, the astonishing power from Riezel's bright silver sword made her groan involuntarily, forcing her to retreat.
Riezel's form had turned into a blurry phantom, giving the impression of teleportation with every flicker. Even Ais struggled to catch his incredible speed. Her golden eyes narrowed to pinprick size, while her entire body tensed up, showing no hint of underestimation.
*Whoosh!* *Whoosh!* *Whoosh!*
Suddenly, Riezel closed in on Ais, and the sword in his hand transformed into bursts of cold light, thrusting toward her body at a very fast speed.
'?!'
'So fast!'
'Too fast!'
Ais barely managed to react.
She relied on her keen senses and exceptional abilities to barely counter Riezel's attacks, wielding her sword to deflect the rain of sword tips coming at her.
Fighting with all her might, Ais found herself constantly retreating, unable to stop the relentless attack from Riezel.
On the contrary, Riezel not only grew stronger with each clash but also moved with a fluidity that seemed to have no bounds. Whether it was attack speed or movement speed, everything continued to improve, leaving Ais feeling trapped in a storm that only intensified, making each attack more challenging for her.
Until finally—
*DING!*
With a loud metallic collision sound, her sword was flicked away.
'No!'
Just as Ais exclaimed inwardly in panic, Riezel's silver sword pointed directly at her throat. Her movements came to a complete halt, her expression frozen in place.
""...""
Silence enveloped the surroundings.
"Sorry!"
Realizing he might have gone a bit too far, Riezel quickly withdrew his sword and apologized.
"..."
Ais remained silent, her hand clenched slightly.
She had lost.
She had lost to Riezel.
"Ais?" Riezel looked at the now-silent Ais with a hint of worry. "Are you okay?"
"...I'm fine." Ais shook her head, then looked at him complex expression. "You became stronger than me."
It was an unbelievable turn of events.
Riezel had just reached Level 5, while Ais had been struggling at this level for over three years, maintaining a superior status. However, at this moment, Ais, a seasoned and veteran Level 5, lost to Riezel, who had just reached Level 5.
The impact it brought was greater than she had imagined.
"It's just a sparring, doesn't mean much, right?" Riezel said softly, trying to console Ais.
Indeed, it was just a sparring, not a life-and-death battle. Saying he was stronger than her based on this sparring alone was too hasty.
But Ais could sense that he was merely comforting herself.
What did sparring or practice prove?
What would demonstrate his power then?
A life-and-death battle?
Ais had witnessed Riezel's strength in such situations more than once!
If she couldn't even win during sparring, how could she beat him in the so-called life-and-death battle?
Thinking about his battles at Level 1 against the Crocodile Dragon and at Level 4 against the female-like worm monster, Ais's emotions became even more complex.
This complex feeling lingered until the end of their sparring match.
Later on, Ais left.
She left the training ground and Twilight Manor, disappearing somewhere unknown.
Back in his room, Riezel, having put down Hermit, couldn't shake off the complicated look and expression Ais had when leaving.
Eventually, he stood up.
"No, I can't just leave that girl alone."
Worried, Riezel left the room to find Riveria.
===
At this moment, Riveria was in Finn's office, discussing the familia affairs with Finn and Gareth.
"Wait a sec, you actually defeated Ais in sparring? You've gotten this strong already?"
Gareth exclaimed in shock upon hearing Riezel's explanation. Riveria and Finn were no better either.
Ais was not just anyone.
Even before Riezel appeared, various gods considered her the most talented individual in the lower world. Despite her young age, many saw her as the strongest Level 5, capable of challenging Level 6 with the help of her magic, Ariel, making her comparable to Level 6 adventurers.
The moniker of the strongest swordswoman wasn't just a mere moniker but a well-deserved reputation. Even within Loki Familia, apart from the three Level 6 top executives, Ais was the strongest adventurer.
The fact that Ais lost to Riezel in a sparring match was indeed surprising for the three top executives.
"It was just a friendly match, and I happened to win by luck..." Riezel explained carefully.
Unfortunately, the three weren't fools and didn't buy it.
"If it was just luck, Ais wouldn't be so affected by it..." Finn said calmly while looking meaningfully at Riezel. "You should understand that better than anyone."
"..." Riezel instantly fell silent.
Did he understand? Of course, he did.
Despite his excuse, he had realized through this sparring match that his strength did indeed surpass Ais's.
His latent basic abilities were extremely high, and his development ability was stronger than others at his level. All his development abilities belonged to the combat type, amplifying his status. Even though he had just reached Level 5, he was no less powerful than anyone at this level.
Even though Ais was the strongest Level 5, it didn't matter. Without development abilities to enhance her power and only possessing the 'Swordsman' development ability, which was lower ranked than Riezel's, she couldn't compete with him at all.
If she had an advantage in other aspects, like superior swordsmanship, it would be a different story. Unfortunately, Riezel had mastered her swordsmanship, leaving her without an edge.
Considering his accumulated latent basic abilities, development abilities, and the variety of magic at his disposal, Ais couldn't match up.
Knowing this, Riezel couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible.
As she saw the conflicted expression on Riezel's face, Riveria spoke up.
"You don't have to blame yourself..." Riveria said gently, trying to comfort him. "It's not your fault."
"Yeah..." Gareth added. "If you were intentionally trying to bring Ais down, that would be a different story. But you were just doing what you normally do and sparring like you usually do, where's the fault in that?"
"Ais won't blame you for sure and likely blaming herself..."
Finn also chimed.
"She's always been eager to go above and beyond, constantly pursuing power. Besides getting stronger, there's almost nothing else in her eyes."
"You winning against her today might make her feel she's still weak, and getting surpassed quickly is also a big blow to her."
"In short, she's dissatisfied with herself."
At Finn's explanation, Riezel fell into silence. His perspective was blunt, hitting the core of the matter.
Riezel knew Ais was dissatisfied with her own growth and desired more power. The three top executives were also well aware of this. It could be said that she had this dissatisfaction and tendency from the start and the outcome of her sparring with him was just the spark that ignited the fuse.
"So, what should we do now? We can't just sit idly, can we?" Riezel asked while looking at the three top executives.
"Of course..." Riveria furrowed her brows and made a worried expression. "Knowing her temperament, she's probably already delved into the dungeon, likely planning to do something dangerous."
Ais's current condition was more worrisome than Bete's yesterday.
Bete, at least, should know some limits.
Ais, on the other hand, was different.
If that girl were to lose control, she might throw caution to the wind and recklessly slaughter monsters without stopping.
"Looks like we can't just stand by, after all..." Finn pondered for a moment. "I'll send someone to look for her."
"I'm going as well." Riezel declared without hesitation.
"I'll join." Riveria turned to Finn. "Sorry, I'm just a bit worried about that child."
"No problem, go ahead." Finn agreed with a nod. "We're not in a rush anyway. Let's find Ais first and then decide."
Everyone nodded in agreement and began to move.