Hestia trotted over to Ren Isana and the others, calling out happily, "Welcome back!"
Seeing Hestia, the corners of Ren's mouth couldn't help but rise slightly as he replied softly, "I'm back."
The others chuckled at the sight and greeted Hestia one after another, making her incredibly happy.
She hurriedly told everyone, "I've already had dinner prepared! Hurry, hurry, you all must be starving. Let's go eat first!"
Saying that, she reached out, grabbing Ren and Asuna by the hands, and pulled them into the Familia estate. Today, she had specifically instructed the cooks in the Familia to prepare the food so that Ren and the others could have a hot meal the moment they returned.
Hearing that dinner was already prepared, everyone's eyes lit up, and they quickened their pace toward the dining hall.
By the time they arrived, the cooks had already brought out the dishes. Several tables were piled high with food. Seeing this, everyone rushed to wash their hands before taking their seats to eat.
Although they had only been down in the Dungeon for three days, they truly hadn't eaten or slept well during that time. This hearty dinner thoroughly satisfied everyone's ravenous appetites.
After eating and drinking their fill, they chatted with Hestia for a while before heading back to their respective rooms to wash up. Right now, all anyone wanted was a good bath, Ren included.
"After everyone finishes bathing, come gather to update your statuses," Ren told his classmates as he headed to his room. Hearing this, everyone immediately agreed.
After letting Hestia know, Ren went back to his room to wash up. Hestia was also quite looking forward to it, wondering what everyone's status boards would ultimately look like.
Everyone returned to their rooms to wash away their fatigue before gathering in the conference hall. Ren was the first to arrive. Seeing him, Hestia hurriedly said, "Ren, I'll update yours first!"
As the very first member of the Hestia Familia, it was only natural that Ren went first. Hearing Hestia's words, Ren didn't refuse, simply nodding. "Sure."
Seeing this, Hestia immediately stood up and walked toward a room adjacent to the conference hall. As she walked, she said, "Come quick, I'll update yours first, and then I'll do the others."
Ren followed Hestia into the room. There was only a single bed inside. Seeing it, Ren took off his shirt and lay face down on it.
Hestia hurriedly took out a silver needle and pricked her finger. A drop of golden blood welled up, which she then let fall onto Ren's back.
Feeling her actions, Ren couldn't help but ask, "Speaking of which, Hestia, is it really okay for you to do this? There are so many people in the Familia. If you use your blood to update everyone, your hands are going to be covered in needle marks, aren't they?"
Hearing this, Hestia explained as she worked, "Of course I won't use my blood for everyone! I made preparations before you all came back. There's a special potion used by gods that's made by adding divine blood. I'll just use the potion for the others later."
Ren nodded thoughtfully. He didn't ask any further questions. Asking something stupid like *Then why use your actual blood for me?* was completely unnecessary.
Some things were better left understood in silence. He waited quietly for Hestia to finish. After a short moment, Ren heard Hestia exclaim, "What is going on here?"
Hearing her exclamation, Ren was slightly taken aback. The next moment, he activated his perception and saw the status board on his own back.
Level: Lv.4 (68%) Talent: ? Development Abilities: ? Martial Arts: [Omni-Weapon Mastery] Magic: [Lightness Technique], [Piercing Magic Bullet], [Protection Magic], [Healing Magic], [Perception Magic], [Flight Magic], [Ariel・Wind Spirit Dash], [Piercing Magic Cannon].
*Huh?* Seeing the extra 68% behind his level and the two additional magic spells, Ren felt a bit surprised.
The magic wasn't a big deal. After all, he had indeed learned two new spells this time—one from Aria, and the [Piercing Magic Cannon] he had created himself.
Neither of those was the important part. The important part was that 68%. Was this an Excelia bar? Seeing this, a flash of pleasant surprise crossed Ren's eyes. It had actually turned into an Excelia bar format?
In other words, if it reached one hundred percent, he would be able to break through, right? Thinking of this, Ren grew excited.
Hestia quickly stamped the status board from Ren's back onto a piece of paper and began explaining the situation to him. Ren listened to her explanation while putting his shirt back on.
"There's an extra 68% here. Does this represent your current level progress? Does it mean you can break through once it reaches 100%?" Hestia wasn't entirely sure what was going on either.
Hearing her say this, Ren immediately replied, "Probably. Our status boards are different from the ones in this world. This might just be how our ability values are displayed."
If that was the case, all they had to do was fight hard, and they could break through? This was undoubtedly great news. The others would probably be thrilled when they saw it.
"I suppose? But Ren, you gained two new magic spells?" Hestia wasn't entirely certain if that theory was correct. They would just have to wait until they returned from their next expedition to see.
"I did indeed get a bit stronger just now. If we go by my current progress, saying it's at 68% makes perfect sense." Ren sensed the extra energy within his body.
This was the effect of the Falna. It directly converted all the monsters Ren had killed in battle over the past few days into actual strength, and Ren could clearly feel the stimulation of that divine power.
"Is that so? As long as you can get stronger, then there's no problem! At this rate, Ren, you'll reach Lv.5 in no time!" Hestia was extremely excited to hear that Ren had grown stronger.
With this, there wasn't much of an issue. As long as it worked, that was all that mattered; the only fear was that it wouldn't have any effect. Plus, this way seemed much more intuitive. They could directly see how much more they needed to level up.
"Go do the others. Let's see how everyone's Excelia is doing. And when they level up later, we can see if they also gain magic or something." Having finished dressing, Ren said this and walked out.
Hestia nodded. She hurriedly followed, returning to the hall with Ren. Once back, Hestia called out, having the others go in one by one.
Asuna wasn't in a rush. Instead, she came over to Ren and asked, "Are there any changes?"
Hearing Asuna's question, Ren nodded and explained, "There's an extra Excelia bar. Mine shows 68%. That means if it reaches 100, I reckon I'll be able to break through to Tier 5."
As soon as he said this, everyone's eyes lit up. An Excelia bar? That really was a good thing. It would allow everyone to intuitively feel the speed at which they were growing stronger.
"Is there anything else?" Although Asuna was pleasantly surprised, there had to be more to it, right? If that was all, then this status board would be far too useless.
"Also, all the Excelia gained from fighting in the Dungeon has been converted into actual strength. In other words, once Hestia finishes updating everyone, your strength will increase quite a bit." This statement made everyone even more excited.
Many classmates even hurriedly ran over to line up, ready to have Hestia quickly update their statuses, Asuna included.
If that was the case, then this status board was truly amazing. No one could refuse the prospect of growing stronger; everyone was the same. Because of this, they all lined up, waiting for Hestia to update their boards.
The first batch of people to finish their updates came out. Seeing their increased strength, they were overjoyed. Everyone could feel that their Magic Power and True Qi had grown stronger.
This feeling was simply too good. The next time they went to the Dungeon, things would be much easier for everyone. Those who had finished updating sat together, chattering excitedly.
It took Hestia nearly an hour to finish updating everyone's statuses. She was quite pleasantly surprised by their improvements.
"I'm already at 51%. That means I'm only halfway away from reaching Lv.4." After finishing her update, Asuna came over to Ren and shared the good news.
"I'm only at 45%. It's a bit frustrating!" Yukino Yukinoshita, on the other hand, was very dissatisfied with her progress. She truly hadn't expected to be so far behind Asuna.
However, thinking about how Asuna had killed more monsters than her, she felt relieved. After all, when they were in the Dungeon, it was mostly Ren and Asuna who were slaughtering everything in sight.
Asuna's talent gave her a massive advantage in the Dungeon. Killing monsters was truly as easy as harvesting crops for her.
"I'm only at 40%. Much worse than you." Megumi Kato spoke up at this moment. Her progress was the slowest among them, but she didn't mind too much.
Everyone in Ren's party was very strong, and their progress was the fastest. Most of the other students in the class were between 20% and 30%, so their group was already considered very fast.
Listening to Megumi and the others, as well as the conversations of his classmates, Ren gained a basic understanding of the situation. He checked the time and said, "Everyone, go back and get some good rest. Sleep well tonight. Tomorrow, I'll start forging weapons for all of you."
Seeing that it was getting late, Ren decided to put these matters aside. After saying this, he stood up and left the conference hall.
The status boards had been updated, so there was no need to stay here. Everyone's progress was quite good. The next time they fought on deeper floors, they would probably be able to figure out the speed at which everyone gained Excelia.
Hearing Ren's words, everyone nodded. After saying goodnight to Hestia, they began returning to their rooms, ready to get some proper rest.
Hestia also understood that these people were tired, so she didn't say much, simply reminding everyone to rest well and that any other matters could wait until tomorrow.
She was quite satisfied with their progress. It probably wouldn't be long before everyone could break through to Lv.4. Looking at the entirety of Orario...
A team like this was already considered quite terrifying. Of course, excluding those few major factions, since those factions easily had hundreds or thousands of members.
Even that woman from the Freya Familia had close to ten thousand members in her Familia. Although that included believers, it was still a form of strength.
From this alone, one could see just how strong those top-tier factions were. If she wanted to develop her Familia, she still had a long and arduous road ahead.
She just wondered if Ren would want to recruit some people from this world later on. She had promised Ren not to interfere with Familia matters, so she would leave this decision entirely up to him!
Returning to his room, Ren had no idea what Hestia was thinking. He lay down on his bed and entered a meditative state, ready to get some good rest.
The night passed without incident, and the Hestia Familia soon fell silent. The Magic Circle was operating at all times, and coupled with Natsuki Minamiya and the others flexing their muscles earlier, no blind fools dared to come looking for trouble with them now.
The next day arrived. Ren got out of bed feeling refreshed. After brushing his teeth, he headed downstairs. Everyone else was already up by now.
There were people doing morning exercises in the plaza in front of the Familia estate. The teachers were also present, and many students were asking them for advice on certain moves and combat techniques.
Ren glanced at everyone before heading straight for the dining hall. The cooks had prepared breakfast early on, so anyone who wanted to eat could come over at any time.
There weren't many people in the dining hall; only a few classmates were chowing down, while some hadn't even woken up yet. Ren greeted the classmates in the hall, grabbed a portion of breakfast, and began to enjoy his meal.
"Class Rep, when are you going to start forging weapons?" Sora was in the dining hall. Seeing Ren sit down, she immediately leaned over.
Hearing Sora's question, Ren asked while eating, "I'll start in a bit. Why, do you have some ideas?"
Glancing at the expectant Sora, Ren understood that this talkative classmate probably had some ideas she wanted to share with him.
"Hehe, can I design the look of the weapon? I want a weapon like this." Saying that, she pulled out a sketchbook, which displayed a weapon design she had drawn.
Ren glanced at it and frowned. "This is highly impractical. It's too flashy. Even if I forge it, it'll easily break in combat. If you really want it, I can make it for you, but are you sure?"
At these words, the initially expectant Sora immediately froze. She looked at Ren in bewilderment, then looked down at the cool blueprint in her hands, and asked in a somewhat depressed tone, "Really?"
She clearly wasn't willing to give up. This was her dream sword that she had spent a long time thinking up last night, yet Ren had rejected it after just one glance.
"Do you think forging weapons is a joke? If you really want it to look like this, the materials required would have to be absurdly high-tier. To put it simply, the hardware has to keep up." *Don't think you can just forge whatever you draw.*
This was highly technical work. Although the weapon on the blueprint could be forged, it would absolutely be prone to breaking. After all, some parts were simply too thin. *You want me to forge a sword with a hollowed-out blade?*
*Are you freaking kidding me?* Ren guaranteed that this weapon would be scrapped after just a few swings, which was why he directly rejected her blueprint.
After Ren's explanation, Sora understood. To put it bluntly, the current materials just weren't up to par. This was quite frustrating.
"However, we can modify it. The middle can't be hollowed out, and those flashy decorations around the edges have to go. If you want them, you can attach them yourself later, but it will severely affect combat. Also, those blood grooves need to be filled in," Ren offered his suggestions to Sora while eating his breakfast.
Hearing Ren say this, Sora visualized the changes he mentioned and agreed. "Alright! I'll listen to you then."
What else could she do? Since the expert had spoken, she naturally had to listen to the expert. She would just do whatever Ren said. Having the general shape was good enough anyway. To put it bluntly, it just meant removing all the flashy parts.
"Mm, then I'll forge it for you based on this blueprint later." Ren didn't say anything more and continued eating. The people in the dining hall had also overheard Ren and Sora's conversation, and their eyes lit up.
*We can design our own weapons?* If that was the case, then they would have to unleash their imaginations. Thinking this, many people made up their minds to go back and draw one themselves!