Danmachi - Infinite Mana System! - Chapter 170 - Altena 10.

[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]
Third Person POV
Altena.

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The silence lingered for a moment as Lucius stared at Athena.

"You could have gone easier on them..." Athena commented, glancing at all her children lying across the arena.

"Maybe just a little." Lucius allowed a small smile to form.

At that moment, everyone began moving again, trying to get up now that they were fully healed thanks to the healing spell. Still, the trauma of having endured the heavy attacks of the Black Goliaths left the family members visibly shaken.

Lucius didn’t care; they should be used to it by now. After all, this wasn’t the first time he had done this to them, even in Athena’s presence.

Once everyone was back on their feet, Lucius also restored their torn clothing, making all the damaged pieces return to their original state.

"Well, it didn’t last long today, but I believe it was enough," Lucius said to the group.

"You could’ve gone a little easier on us, Lord Lucius," Squad, the level 3 adventurer, murmured, complaining. Even though he was healed, it hadn’t been a pleasant experience being crushed by 20-meter-tall creatures.

"Stop complaining! Besides, you lasted longer today. The pain you felt is a reminder that you need to improve. Here in Altena, you don’t fight in the dungeon every day like in Orario. That’s why you’re not used to this kind of pain. Use it as a lesson to stay on the battlefield and get better," Lucius replied firmly. "Still, I want you all to spend the rest of the day training the speed of your spellcasting. After your other duties, I want you to cast at least 10,000 times."

"Wait, you can’t be serious! Ten thousand times?" another level 4 adventurer exclaimed, stunned at the absurdity of the demand.

"Oh, perhaps I misspoke. You misunderstood. It’s not just 10,000 times. It’s 10,000 times for each spell you have," Lucius corrected with an impassive tone.

Everyone fell silent, unsure of how to react. Suddenly, a soft laugh filled the air. Everyone turned to look at the goddess Athena, who was watching the scene with a hand over her mouth, clearly amused.

She laughed quietly but, realizing the gazes on her, quickly adjusted her posture to something more serious. Some of the family members were stunned, as they rarely saw Athena act this way. But Lucius had already noticed that Athena had this habit: she always tried to maintain an austere appearance, but every now and then, she couldn’t help herself and acted like a young mortal woman.

"Well..." She then closed her eyes in her usual indifferent demeanor, clearing her throat before continuing. "I believe you should listen to Lord Lucius. Even though I don’t think it’s possible, do your best..." she said at the end before turning directly to Lucius.

"Anyway, I’d like to talk with you," Athena said as Riveria approached Lucius.

"Are you heading to the magic academy?" Lucius nodded to the goddess and turned to Riveria as she came to his side.

"Yes," she replied.

"Alright. I’ll see what the goddess wants," he said. Then he turned and began walking with Athena and part of the group. Meanwhile, Riveria went along with the academy’s director, Victoria, and a few other members to Altena’s academy.

The members of Athena’s family dispersed, some heading off for training or to the academy, while others accompanied the goddess to the main tower. Lucius walked alongside Athena, with townsfolk glancing at the goddess and exclaiming or smiling upon seeing her in the streets. She acknowledged them briefly but continued toward the main building.

Upon arrival, Lucius once again took the elevator, but this time they didn’t go to the training floor. Instead, they went to the very top of the tower, where the goddess herself resided.

"You may leave us. I’d like to speak with Lord Lucius alone," Athena said, addressing her family members. They left to carry out their daily tasks in other laboratories, leaving Lucius and Athena in a well-organized space, resembling a tea room yet filled with various trinkets.

She approached a table and picked up something from the floor—a floating magical item—while sipping her drink. She offered some to Lucius, who declined.

"I heard you’ve been creating some magical artifacts," she commented, looking at Lucius. Over the past three weeks, Athena had rarely spent time with him, but she knew everything through her family, who reported the events to her daily.

"I’m creating a few little things, but I’m still learning," Lucius said. Although he wasn’t taking it very seriously, he was practicing making basic items, leaving the more complicated projects for the future. After all, he was only interested in acquiring the knowledge of creation, which would allow him to work on inventions that didn’t yet exist in Altena.

"Minerva mentioned that you have quite a talent," the goddess murmured, referring to the academy’s director and commander of the family.

"Maybe I can pick up one or two things quickly," he said in a calm tone.

"That’s impressive. My family usually takes at least two years before they can start creating anything, and that’s after completing all the years of study at the academy. Even Victoria hasn’t been able to create magical items yet, though she has become an excellent fighter."

"Speaking of which," Lucius said, raising an eyebrow. "You’re not the one pushing her to insist that I become her master, are you?"

Athena gave a small smile before answering. "No, it wasn’t me. I didn’t influence her, although when she asked, I didn’t deny it. I’m sure everyone needs an apprentice. Perhaps my daughter is suitable for you."

"I highly doubt that. I’ve been quite busy lately," Lucius replied, dismissing the idea.

"Precisely why you need an apprentice. It would help divide the workload," Athena suggested.

Lucius hesitated for a moment but ultimately gave a partial agreement. "I might think about it another time, in any case," he responded firmly, while Athena sighed.

"You’re very mysterious, Lucius. I get the impression you’re hiding many things from me," she murmured.

"Well, why should I share? Everyone has their secrets, Goddess Athena," Lucius replied in a calm tone.

"You’re right. After all, it’s a bit rude of me to insist," Athena admitted, though she wanted to know more about this mortal. "Usually, I don’t like men, but you are an interesting person. Full of secrets and a unique mortal in this world. I doubt there’s anyone like you," she said, analyzing him with curious eyes.

Lucius was, indeed, a mystery. He piqued the goddess’s interest, which was unusual, and she even acted in a way her family had never seen before. It was no secret that Athena didn’t like men. Even though her family had some male members, they were not allowed on this floor of the tower, where only women carried out their tasks. The men were assigned other duties, rarely being near the goddess.

"Well, you don’t seem to like many people," Lucius said with a shrug. "After all, you don’t even like Riveria..." he added, observing the goddess. Though she always seemed serious, Athena was, in his view, a peculiar deity.

"Well, these are habits I’ve acquired over my long life," she admitted. "I’ve developed a few quirks," she said before looking directly at him. "Anyway, about what you did to the professor this morning... We had to get him down from one of the western towers," she said, changing the subject.

"Really? I thought I put him somewhere no one could reach him..." Lucius joked.

He had sent the professor who tried to blackmail him to one of the tallest towers, leaving him hanging by his clothes, unable to fall. Athena had learned of this before going to the arena and had to send people to rescue him.

"I’d appreciate it if you didn’t do things like that," Athena commented. "That professor is highly respected here, and you should already know that professors are as respected as my family... After all, you’ve been here for three weeks," she said, crossing her arms as she waited for a response.

"Well, you had already made it clear that you would not tolerate blackmail. That old man wants my blood and used you to try to get it," Lucius said, as Athena sighed.

"You really can’t do it? Your magic and the amount of magical power you possess should be impossible. And yet, you’re a mortal who has them," she commented, clearly aware that Lucius’ blood could be useful.

"Forget it, Athena. I won’t give you my blood or my genes. This is getting too crazy, and I’m losing my patience," he replied in a serious tone.

"Fine, I’ll respect your decision," she said at last. "But I still think Victoria could be a good apprentice," she added, persisting on the other topic.

"I’m sure you didn’t call me here to talk about an apprentice, or about someone wanting my blood or any part of my body, or even wanting my children," Lucius retorted.

Athena nodded and said, "Yes, I want you to accompany me." She began walking toward a room, and Lucius followed her calmly, a bit behind.

When she opened a magical door, he saw the goddess’s personal laboratory. It was a space filled with items for creating magical artifacts and practicing alchemy. There were several cauldrons, tubes containing potions and strange liquids, and a large assortment of magical stones. Athena approached one of the tables and picked up a piece of rock.

"We’ve been trying to study this for a week," she commented, looking directly at the rock in her hands. After Lucius had told her about what he found in the abandoned world, Athena sent a patrol of level 3 adventurers to the location. They confirmed what Lucius had reported and even fought some monsters before retrieving a piece of the dungeon, just as Lucius had done. Being a level 3 squad, they managed to escape easily, bringing the item back.

"We’re researching this and managed to track its trajectory using our magical items," Athena explained. She then approached a blue crystal and activated it. The next moment, the crystal glowed, projecting a map of the continent onto the wall. Athena manipulated the item, and red lines began to appear on the map.

Lucius watched calmly, his mind beginning to grasp what it was as the lines spread across the map, reaching other regions beyond the abandoned world.

"So, it’s already covering the entire continent. But only the abandoned world is being affected," Lucius murmured, looking at the continent covered in red lines everywhere.

"Yes, it seems the dungeon is drawing energy from a specific location, rather than absorbing the entire continent," Athena responded.

"If I had to guess, I’d say the dungeon wants to eliminate all the inhabitants of the mortal world. After all, it needs energy to generate monsters, so it chose the farthest point to draw energy from. If it absorbed the entire continent, it would self-destruct. Isn’t that it?" Lucius asked, turning to Athena while the crystal continued projecting the map onto the wall.

Athena pressed her lips together, appearing hesitant. Lucius noticed that she knew something. He was certain that Athena had some idea about why the dungeon was acting this way, something she had likely known long before the gods arrived in this world.