Is It Wrong to Want Luxury in a Dungeon? [13]

To Catch the Braver

The rules were simple.

Five minutes. One hit.

That was all she had to do—land a single, clean strike on Finn Deimne.

And he was even lowering himself to Level 1 standards. His stats, normally far beyond what she could hope to match, were restricted to a flat 200 across the board.

It should have made her feel better.

It didn’t.

Because Finn was still Finn.

Even holding back, even tying his own hands with arbitrary limits, he was a monster. She could feel it in the way he stood—calm, relaxed, like he was barely even paying attention. Like this wasn’t a fight.

Like this was nothing.

Loki leaned forward on her throne of stacked crates, grinning ear to ear. “Alrighty, y’know the deal, kid. If ya can land a hit on my little Braver, ya win.”

Calista rolled her shoulders, adjusting her grip on the spear. One hit. Five minutes.

She could do this.

…Right?

Finn smiled, unreadable as always. "Whenever you're ready."

Calista moved.

She shot forward, spear in hand, eyes locked on him.

He didn’t move.

Just stood there, waiting. Watching.

Testing me.

She gritted her teeth. She hated that look. That unreadable, calm patience, as if he already knew exactly how this was going to play out.

Fine. Let’s see him stay calm after this—

Her spear lunged for his chest.

Finn sidestepped.

Calista clicked her tongue, twisting on her heel, bringing the spear around for a wide sweeping arc. He ducked. She flipped her grip, stabbed low. He pivoted. Every attack slipped through empty space, missing by inches, but missing all the same.

He’s reading me.

That realization only made her angrier.

---

Finn observed, unshaken.

Her form was solid. Footwork sharp. She had an innate sense of spacing—she didn’t just attack blindly. She adjusted. Calculated. The spear strokes were quick, controlled, never overextending. Good instincts.

But instincts weren’t enough.

She was too eager. Every movement carried frustration, not patience. And more than that—

She’s thinking about just hitting me. Not about how to control the fight.

He shifted, letting her next strike scrape air just beside his shoulder. He didn’t even need to look. He already knew where she would attack before she did.

If she wanted to land a hit, she needed to rein herself in.

---

Calista leapt back, her breathing sharper now. She wasn’t getting anywhere.

No counterattacks. No retaliation. Just dodge after dodge after dodge.

He wasn’t fighting her. He was playing with her.

Gareth let out a thoughtful hum. “Hoh. That’s some decent footwork for a newbie.”

“Pfft, she ain’t landing a damn thing,” Bete scoffed from the sidelines.

Tiona tilted her head. “She’s good for a rookie, but Finn’s on a whole different level.”

Loki cackled. “Ooh, he’s toying with her.”

Tione's smirked slightly, her arms tightening around her chest. “Hmph just as I expected.”

Aiz, still watching intently, spoke softly. “…She’s learning.”

Calista ignored them. She could feel it now—that shift in Finn’s stance, the absolute control he held over the fight.

A wall. That’s what he was. A moving, untouchable, impenetrable wall.

Four minutes remaining.

This was not how this was supposed to go.

Calista was used to winning. She had always been good at things. Maybe not instantly, but fast enough that it felt effortless. A few tries, a bit of practice—and then she dominated.

This? This was a joke.

Finn wasn’t even trying.

And that fact was burning her alive.

She pushed forward again, twisting her spear into a rapid flurry of strikes, each one faster than the last. Her movements were clean, honed, precise—but none of it mattered.

Finn weaved through the barrage like a breeze through silk.

Step. Pivot. Sidestep. Shift.

Each dodge was just enough to avoid her spear by inches. Not a single unnecessary movement.

It was so damn effortless that Calista nearly snapped her spear in half out of sheer frustration.

She exhaled sharply, forcing herself to shove down her growing temper. Anger wouldn’t get her anywhere. She needed more.

She needed—

Her eyes flicked down to her hands.

Her [Skill].

[Torrent of Light].

It’s there.

She could feel it. Waiting. Dormant. Like a beast sleeping inside her. She just had to wake it up.

Alright, let’s do this.

She reached for it.

Nothing happened.

Her fingers twitched. She tried again.

Still nothing.

She grit her teeth, trying to force it out.

Still. Nothing.

Three minutes left.

Oh, this was bullshit.

Why wasn’t it working?! It worked in the Dungeon, didn’t it?! Sure, she hadn’t consciously activated it, but it happened when she needed it! So why the hell—?!

She adjusted her grip, lunged forward, and—

Finn dodged. Again. Like breathing.

Calista barely bit back a scream.

...

One minute left.

She was trying her best.

But it wasn’t good enough.

Her [Skill] wouldn’t answer. Finn wouldn’t stop dodging. And she was losing.

Losing.

She hated that word.

Her hands tightened around the spear.

She was not going to just accept this.

She had one minute left. One damn minute.

Calista sucked in a breath. Her [Skill] wasn’t working. She couldn’t brute force this.

And she was not about to just accept failure.

Because who the hell did she think she was?

Calista Aldebrand did not lose like this.

She was not some mindless brute. She didn’t just swing wildly and hope for the best. She was better than that.

She adjusted her grip, rolling her shoulders back, exhaling slowly.

Cool. Collected. Calculated.

---

Finn watched as something shifted.

She wasn’t charging forward mindlessly anymore.

She slowed down.

Instead of rushing him, she stalked.

Finn’s eyes narrowed slightly. Now that’s different.

---

Calista’s mind was moving fast. New plan.

Brute force wasn’t working. But that was never her best quality anyway. Speed. Precision. Misdirection. That’s what she was good at.

Time to use it.

She took a step forward—deliberate. A feint. Not an attack.

Finn didn’t react. Just watched.

She took another step.

Her eyes flicked to his left side, just for a second. A bait.

She lunged for his right.

Finn didn’t fall for it.

Of course, he didn’t. He was too good for that.

But he did shift slightly—just enough for her to pivot at the last second, twisting her spear toward a new opening—

---

Finn blocked.

For the first time, he actually moved his arm to redirect her attack instead of simply dodging.

A calculated choice. He had seen her adjust. Seen her change tactics.

Good.

She wasn’t just attacking now. She was setting up attacks.

Still—it wasn’t enough.

---

Finn countered with minimal effort, stepping just outside her range as if he already knew what she would try next.

She clicked her tongue, quickly shifting her stance.

Thirty seconds left.

Finn could see it now. She wasn’t playing the same game anymore.

She wasn’t just swinging. She was looking for patterns.

Adjusting. Adapting.

The moment he dodged, she adjusted her footwork. The instant he pivoted, she was already preparing a new angle.

She had stopped thinking about landing a hit and started thinking about controlling the flow of the fight.

Finn almost smiled. She has potential.

She wasn’t full of hot air. She was capable. She had the right pieces—they just needed refinement.

But potential alone wouldn’t be enough.

Not yet.

Ten seconds left.

Calista grit her teeth. Close. She was so damn close.

She could see it now. Not just Finn dodging, but how he was dodging. The minimal shifts, the tiny adjustments—

Calista exhaled.

Every move, every step, every strike—all of it had led to this. Finn had dodged her again and again, but she hadn’t been attacking to land a hit. Not yet.

She had been guiding him.

And now, he had only one way to move.

---

Finn remained composed.

He had seen her adjust, shift, tighten her movements. There was no wasted energy now.

She's been planning ever since she changed her approach.

And the moment she swept for his legs, he saw what she had been setting up.

So that’s what she was after.

Rather than sidestep, he jumped back.

Calista smiled.

Got you.

Then she let it happen.

No strain, no doubt—she simply let [Torrent of Light] surge forward.

BOOM.

A pulse of white light exploded from her feet.

The force blasted outward, cracking the ground beneath her. The air rippled, trembling from the sheer volume of Mind surging all at once.

And in that instant—

She was gone.

Everyone felt it.

Lefiya’s breath hitched. “That’s—!”

Riveria’s sharp gaze locked onto the battlefield. “Her [Skill].”

Tiona’s eyes widened. “Woah!—”

Bete’s ears flicked, pupils shrinking. “Tch—”

Loki’s grin split wide. “Now that’s a proper damn explosion.”

Even those without magic could feel the weight of it. The pressure of Mind gathering and releasing in a single instant.

Lefiya swallowed. “Calista....”

Tione’s arms were crossed, but her fingers dug into her sleeves. She knew Finn would be fine, but watching Calista surge toward him at blinding speed made her jaw tighten.

Aiz, standing beside her, said nothing.

But her golden gaze tracked every movement, unblinking.

She understood what had just happened. The moment Calista had forced Finn to jump, the second she chose to trust her [Skill] completely—

Aiz’s fingers twitched at her side.

Gareth let out a low whistle, stroking his beard. “That kinda power ain't normal for a Level 1.” His eyes flicked toward Finn. “But he saw it comin’.”

---

Finn felt it too.

The surge of raw Mind igniting beneath her feet, like a mana-fueled explosion launching her forward.

His eyes tracked the movement—

She was already there.

A streak of white light.

A spear, aimed straight for his shoulder.

---

Her spear hit.

The moment her attack connected, a sharp, electric thrill shot through her.

She had done it.

Finn had dodged everything she threw at him—until now.

Calista wanted to whoop in triumph, to drink in the feeling of landing a hit on Orario’s Braver.

But before she could even blink—

Everything went dark.

Her body gave out all at once.

One second, she was airborne, her Mind blazing, spear finding its mark—

The next, her limbs just stopped working.

The world tilted.

Then—

Face, meet dirt.

She hit the ground hard, full-body collapse, no grace, no dignity. Just a complete, lifeless drop like a puppet with its strings cut.

She barely had a thought left before the darkness swallowed her whole.

This is bullshi—

---

Finn watched her drop.

A slow exhale left him.

He rolled his shoulder, glancing at where her spear had clipped him.

It hadn’t been a clean hit—he had been moving to dodge.

His body had reacted instantly, just as it always did. He had already begun to shift away, pivoting to avoid the attack entirely.

But then—

He stopped himself.

His own rule. 200 stats. No exceeding limits.

And so, instead of a perfect evasion—

He let himself get clipped.

A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

She really does have potential.

Silence.

Then—

Bete snorted. “Pfft—”

Tiona stared, mouth slightly open. “Did she just—”

Loki wheezed. “Holy shit, she dropped like a sack o’ potatoes!”

Riveria pressed her fingers to her temple. “Mind Zero.”

Lefiya let out a long sigh, shoulders relaxing. “At least she’s not dead.”

Aiz had been quiet the entire fight, watching intently. Now, her golden eyes flicked to Finn. “She’s strong.”

Finn crouched beside Calista’s unconscious form, studying her for a moment.

Flat on her stomach, arms sprawled, face half-buried in the dirt. Completely out cold.

A sigh left him.

I suppose that was inevitable.

Even before the fight, he had expected it—that she wouldn’t be able to to properly use her [Skill].

It had been too much, too fast. She had dumped everything into that final moment, no restraint, no management.

Reckless.

But also—

Worth nurturing.

“Welp, she’s dead,” Bete muttered.

“She’s not dead,” Riveria said without looking up.

“Eh, she ain’t movin’,” Loki pointed out. “And ya gotta admit, that was one helluva dramatic pass-out.”

Tiona clapped her hands together. “That was awesome! She really pulled that off at the last second, huh?”

Lefiya sighed, her eyes lingering on Calista’s still body. “It wasn’t just the magic,” she said. “She was gathering Mind for a while. I could feel it building up before she used it all at once.”

Finn nodded. “She planned for it.”

Riveria’s gaze sharpened. “Not entirely. What if she couldn't use her [Skill]—”

“She didn’t hesitate,” Finn corrected. “She trusted herself to use it when the moment came.”

That was the real difference.

Some adventurers hesitated at the edge, teetered on doubt, afraid to commit until it was too late.

Calista didn’t.

She never hesitates.

The moment was there, and she took it.

“She’s gotta work on that whole ‘collapsing immediately’ thing, though,” Loki snickered, nudging Calista’s unmoving body with her foot.

Bete scoffed. “Tch. What’s the point of power if she drops like a damn fly after one hit?”

Finn hummed. “That’s exactly why she’s got potential.”

Bete raised a brow. “What?”

Finn stood, dusting off his coat. “She has a strong foundation. Speed, precision, adaptability.” He glanced back down at her, considering. “She just doesn’t know how to control it yet.”

Lefiya blinked. “You mean—”

“I’ll train her.”

Tione stiffened. Her grip on her arms tightened slightly.

Finn didn’t see her expression, but he felt the shift.

Tione’s eyes flicked between Finn and Calista’s unconscious form.

One-on-one training with Finn? 

Her lips pressed into a tight line.

Then Loki grinned. “Oho? The Braver himself, takin’ a newbie under his wing?”

“She’s promising,” Finn said simply. “She just needs refinement.”

Riveria crossed her arms. “And when she collapses during one of your lessons?”

Finn exhaled, looking down at Calista’s unconscious form.

“…Then she’ll learn how to fall better.”

---

She woke up to the familiar scent of suffering.

Herbal tonics. Fresh linens. A lingering trace of Potions.

The infirmary.

Again.

A groan clawed its way out of her throat as she flopped an arm over her face.

"Gods, I hate this place."

A quiet shuffle.

Calista peeked through her fingers and found Lefiya, sitting beside her bed, arms crossed, her expression too neutral.

That was suspicious.

“You lasted longer than I expected,” Lefiya said.

Calista blinked, processing that. Then blinked again.

“…I beg your pardon?”

Lefiya tilted her head slightly, voice flat. “I mean, you still lost, obviously.”

Calista propped herself up on her elbows, ignoring the sharp ache that shot through her arms.

She sucked in a breath through her teeth. Pain. Betrayal. A personal attack.

“I hate that you expected me to lose,” she muttered.

Lefiya’s deadpan stare remained unflinching. “You face-planted.”

Calista stared back.

Then she sighed dramatically, tossing her head back against the pillow. “Ah, my dearest Lefiya, if you wanted to see me in such a vulnerable state, you could’ve just asked.”

Lefiya’s brow twitched. “That’s not—”

Calista hummed, tapping her chin. “But I suppose it’s nice, isn’t it? Getting to watch over me like this. Alone. In a quiet room. With nothing but our tender—”

“Stop.”

Lefiya’s ears were turning pink.

Calista smirked. Success.

She shifted closer, dropping her voice to something soft, teasing. “I must’ve worried you terribly, sweet thing. Sitting by my bedside all this time, waiting for me to wake up~”

Lefiya huffed, but her shoulders were tense now. “You were only unconscious for an hour.”

“So you were counting.”

Lefiya stood up so fast her chair scraped the floor. “I’m leaving.”

Calista beamed. “I’ll dream of you.”

Lefiya stormed out.

Calista let herself sink back into the bed, grinning at the ceiling.

Totally worth it.

---

A/N: guh HUH BUT IN OTHER DANMACHI FICS THE MC WOULDVE BEEN BE LIKE HEH ILL DRAW OUT MY TRUE POWER THEN HIT FINN FIRST TRY WHILE THEY ARE STILL LEVEL 1 (idk actually hehe) WHY IS cALISTA SO WEAK, erm akshually Calista is still a fresh level 1 basically, and while she knows her way around a polearm it can't make up for the sheer difference in stats and experience, remember Finn is like 40 years old he's been doing this for years, even if he lowered his stats all to Level 1, 200, his stats is still above Calista, and experience even moreso so there was no way for her to touch him even if she was a master spearman the stat diff was too much, she wasn't even half his speed, it was only through planning and catching him off guard with how much Torrent of Light made her faster was she able to clip him (heh i did calculations and her agility briefly went over 200+ hehehe) anyway enough yapping i love you