"Hmm? They didn't need me for their training. And I'm tasked to protect The Adventurer's Beginning. So here, I shall stay." ~Arun'dul zel Valar

The Advanced Dungeon not only had a different look than the Beginner ones did, it also exhibited a different style of behavior. It had no interest in mimicking its surroundings, for example, just teleporting Shallies and the others onto a deserted beach.

The good thing was that there weren't any monsters attempting to ambush them. Not that it would be a problem if there had been. Shallies simply didn't want to bother dealing with such distractions.

"Give me a sec," she said to the entire group, reverting her disguise and tapping into her Stellar Mana.

"Scan," she said.

Her Epitome Skill Proficiency, matched with Stellar Mana, and Attributes far greater than anyone else, allowed Shallies to use Scan to its utmost potency.

She began working on her System Console. This was a task that she would usually leave for Stachie to complete, but she decided to do it this time, as a gesture to her students.

Everyone surrounded her. Yes, even Valor'el. They were all intrigued at what was going on with her System Console, at her hands moving like a blur, at the amount of data she was consolidating.

"You're drawing the entire dungeon," Tayin said, gasping.

"Amazing!" Grace added, her breath also held back by sheer shock.

"We're on a deserted island," Ren concluded after Shallies had completed most of the outlines.

"You're even including the monster locations," Valor'el noted.

"I want to sort out the best path, so that they can use it to hunt all the monsters in this dungeon before they fight the boss," Shallies said, analyzing the completed map to determine exactly what she wanted.

"We'll hunt everything?" Grace asked.

"We have the time." Shallies looked up to see her students looking at each other in confusion. "What?"

"Clearing the entire dungeon while hunting everything in just four days sounds…" Ren scratched his head, looking at his partymates. "It sounds pretty crazy."

"That's true," Shallies admitted. "But I'm doing almost ninety percent of your work. All you need to do is follow the path. I'll direct you to all the hidden routes, all the hidden treasures, and all the monsters in the fastest way possible, while helping you avoid any kind of trap or ambush. Hunt everything you see, and gather everything you find. Eventually, you'll be at the Dungeon Boss Lair. I'll even guide you on how to fulfill the Delve Gate conditions."

The mentees were considering what she had said. Based on their expressions, Shallies determined that they still had doubts.

"I could even show you the types of enemies you'll be facing, but that would be too much handholding. Some of them might've even caught wind of my Scan, but they won't be able to track me down. Eventually, they'll think nothing of it.

"And, as a final note, this map is optional. If you think this is cheating, or some other trivial thought like that, then I won't push you to use it." Shallies turned to Grace. "But you need to be an Advanced Class holder by the time you're done with this place. And you two, should have your second Classes at Level 30 at least."

"That's a lot of levels," Grace said. "You're practically asking us to beat the record."

"It's really not," Shallies countered. "You have two Base Classes, while Ren and Tayin have one Advanced Class each. You three have access to the easiest way to level, and I'm providing you all the means of doing so in the quickest time possible.

"If it were up to me, I'd have you all in Hero Class even before Thrush'ven Alir shows up. That would make fighting in a sub-raid a lot more fruitful. But there's absolutely no way for us to justify that speed without making anyone suspicious. Not to mention the sheer abruptness of it all would be quite disorienting, rather than helpful."

"If we follow your path," Ren started. "We're guaranteed to get that amount of levels?"

"Still depends," Shallies admitted. "Depends on you three, of course. Providing you this extremely detailed map, your inherited Skills, your supplies, and your Food Buffs, those are all things that I can do. But the actual fights, the actual delving, the actual planning of engagement, those will be up to you. How soon you want to re-engage, how long you want to take a break, those will depend entirely on you three."

"I see…"

After much deliberation, her mentees were finally in agreement.

"Since it's up to us," Tayin started. "We'll take it slow, find the first monster pack, then go from there."

"Alright, make sure you guys are prepared. Check your equipment and your supplies, and everything. Give me thirty minutes to cook something for you."

"What should I do?" Valor'el asked. He had been on the side, patiently waiting for Shallies to get to him.

"Help me out."

This time around, Shallies made specific meals for each of her students. For Ren, Stewed Noldzwjak Shoulder with Mashed Potatoes. This would provide the Shield Knight and Disciple a hefty +60 to Strength and Mana Multiplier in Beginner proficiency.

For Grace and Tayin, they shared a large portion of Skewered Crolikin Tail. It had a more humble +30 to Mana-Affinity, but Shallies paired it with some ponions to give the Food Buff an additional Increased Mana-Regeneration Rate.

"For now, I'll only give you one Food Buff each. You might notice in your map, I've skipped some areas. Those have points of interest that might have some potential ingredients for me, so leave them out of your route."

Her students nodded along, too busy eating.

"Oh, and don't forget this…"

Shallies stood and gestured towards Grace first. "Star Shine."

The little familiar star popped into existence beside Grace. She was visibly surprised. Even Chippy panicked a little, pecking it desperately as a way to protect his mom. The half-orc calmly pulled the phoenix back.

"I thought we won't be getting these?" she asked.

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"Changed my mind. It's just us here anyway. As usual, +10 to all your stats, Grace. You should know how to use it."

"Thank you!"

Next, Shallies turned to Ren. "Bright Sun."

The halo of light appeared behind the Shield Knight's head. He swallowed whatever he had been eating and rushed to speak.

"What does it do?" he asked.

"Increases your resistances on Physical Conditions, on top of what your Constitution provides," Shallies started. "It will also provide you with a temporary mana-shield based on your Strength and Constitution Attributes. While it's active, it'll provide you the constant effect of Taunt, but you can still use that same Skill. It'll almost guarantee that you'll take the attention of whatever you're facing. Grace will tell you how to activate and deactivate it."

Next, Shallies turned to Tayin, who was already expecting her own buff. There was a gleam of expectation in the halfling's eyes, and it almost urged the Godkiller not to give her one just to tease her.

Shallies thought better.

"Star Stream."

A faint veil of mana surrounded Tayin, wrapping around her limbs and carrying her afloat. She panicked, losing balance, but rather than fall on her back, she simply rolled and floated until she was upright again.

Shallies used mana-control to quickly hold her food in place.

"Woah…" said the halfling. "I'm assuming it does more than just making me float?"

"Star Stream amplifies every projectile-based Skill that you use," Shallies said simply. "Paired with your twin-casting, you should be able to dish out some really hefty damage."

"That's awesome!"

"Celestial Eclipse."

All three of Shallies' students glowed, their respective Guiding Star markers growing a tad larger. Their excited faces changed one by one into amazement.

"What happened?" Ren asked.

"I doubled the effects of your Guiding Star buffs," Shallies explained. "In exchange, their duration will only last for a day, instead of the usual three days. Since I expect you guys to return during the evening, the shortened duration shouldn't have much of an impact."

Her students were now a bit conflicted.

"Aren't we getting too many power-ups?" Grace asked. "Wouldn't this make us reliant on it?"

Rather than express the same sentiment, Ren and Tayin turned to the half-orc with a confused expression. Grace noticed it, of course.

"Am I wrong?"

Shallies scratched her head. Of course, Grace would say something like this. It was very much like her.

"I'm guessing you two are hesitating for a different reason," she said to Ren and Tayin, offering them a chance to speak up.

"We also think it's too much," Tayin started.

"We think it's beyond your obligations as our mentor to give us these many buffs," Ren added. "Not as a dependency of sorts, but as a favor of sorts. There must be something we can do to repay these buffs, at least."

"Eh…?"

"Grace," Shallies said, grabbing the half-orc's attention. "Even Favored Class holders use as many buffs as they can get. It's not being dependent or reliant. It's about increasing your chances of success and survival as much as possible. If you're receiving a lot of help, then the best you can do is to either return the favor, or pass it forwards."

"What about those stories that about soloing dungeons or towers?" Grace rebutted.

"What you usually hear or read are the achievements," Shallies started. "You don't hear or read the details behind them."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's take Pat, the Fearless for example." Shallies gestured to Ren and Tayin. They knew the story well.

"He conquered an entire Abyss Tower on his own," Ren said. "In a single week, I might add."

"It was actually seven Abyss Towers," Shallies corrected. "One Abyss Tower a day."

"What!?" her students exclaimed, almost dropping their food.

"What he conquered was a Cascading Abyss Tower," Valor'el said, joining the conversation. He distributed drinks for everyone. "Very malicious, that one. It'll throw you to the next Tower after you conquer one. No rest, no return, no escape, until you finish the entire cascade."

"That's impressive," Grace admitted. "But still, he soloed it."

"He did, because he had no choice," Shallies concluded. "No one in their right mind would enter an Abyss Tower alone."

"So why did he?" Ren asked.

"He…" Shallies scratched his head, turning to Valor'el.

The seraph cleared his throat. "He was drunk."

"What!?"

"Yeah…" Shallies sighed. "It was after a Divine War. The giantkin have a real penchant for revelry. After some casual goading from his friends, Pat went into the Cascading Abyss Tower to prove that he was the strongest among them. They were preparing for a rescue operation when he sent a message that he just conquered one.

"What they didn't realize was that Pat still had lingering buffs from a number of gods. Did that take away from his achievement? Not really, no. The buffs were there, sure, but he was the one sending the punches. He was the one avoiding the danger. He was the one deciding his routes.

"After that, he became an Avatar of Destruction," Shallies concluded. She saw the wonder and confusion in her students' eyes.

"A Favored Class holder under the direct influence of a god," she explained. "There's a more formal term for it, but we'll leave it for next time."

"Was that the case for every person that soloed dungeons or towers?" Grace asked.

"Semantics might be different, but that's pretty much the case, yes. Gods may or may not be involved, the difficulty varies, the desperations and situations are unique. But, yes. They most certainly soloed dungeons or towers with buffs, items, enchantments, boons, or whatever else that didn't come solely from them.

"If you're to do the same, you'll need to find a way to get these buffs one way or another." Shallies pointed at Grace, who she suspected would be stubborn enough to attempt one in the future. There was no hesitation or doubt in that half-orc's eyes. "It could be help from other people, it could be items you gather in preparation for it, whatever. But you need to understand that these will help you improve when you have them, not impede you when you don't."

Though hesitant still, Grace gave a nod. "I understand. That's still a long way away anyway."

"What about you?" Tayin asked this time. "Did you solo dungeons and towers the same way?"

"Of course," Shallies said. She didn't bother adding soloing raids to the halfling's assumption.

"Mostly the items aspect," she added. "I do have most of the buffs I need available throughout all my Classes. But that's a different matter altogether."

Ren turned to the seraph. "Did you conquer dungeons and towers, too?"

Valor'el shook his head lightly. "I have no need nor purpose to do so."

"But you can?" Tayin asked.

"I've never tried."

Shallies clapped her hands, saving the seraph. "Alright. That's enough questions for the day. Relax for a bit, then be on your way."

"Wait," Grace interjected. "You still haven't told us what you want in return for these buffs."

"Hmm…" Shallies rubbed her chin, blinking thoughtfully as she stared at the half-orc. "If you ever find any ingredients, take them. You have my Containers."

"That's it?"

This time, she shrugged. "Come back alive, I guess."

"Are you sure you don't want this necklace?" Grace asked Tayin. "It's a Necklace of Mana Reservation."

"I'm sure," said the halfling. "I have enough mana to light up Cinterbrim Town for an entire day. You don't have to worry about me. You should just use it. Besides, you already gave your Gem of Improved Movement Speed to me. I already have it socketed in my boots."

"Thanks for the ring, by the way," Ren said, admiring his Ring of Strength +4 on his right pointing finger. He got a punch on the shoulder from the halfling. It barely hurt him.

"You shouldn't have taken it!"

"If you got one, I get one," Ren complained.

"How childish!"

"They're my thanks for the noldzwjak," Grace said. "If it weren't for you two, I wouldn't be here."

"You didn't have to bother, Grace," said Tayin. "Besides, we chose to fight that noldzwjak. If it was just you, you wouldn't have attempted it in the first place. What else did you get?"

"I enhanced my belt, socketed a gem, too. Leather Belt of Health Regeneration +4. Should help me with minor injuries. I also had my Mana-Edge +3 upgraded to +4."

"That's good," Ren said, nodding along while he kept Shallies' map open on his System Console. He was leading the way. "Just remember, healing equipment can't heal you if you're dead."

"That's all of it, right?" Tayin asked.

"Yep," said the half-orc. "Arun'dul didn't take anything. Of course, Shallies didn't need anything either."

Ren raised his fist, and everyone suddenly went quiet, crouching down behind the bushes. Even Chippy, who had been merrily chirping along, sat on Grace's shoulder, head low and wings folded. The cheerful embers in his feathers disappeared.

The Shield Knight signaled for them to come closer. Quietly. Grace and Tayin did so, making sure they didn't step on a random branch on the ground.

In the distance were a pack of weird-looking bears resting underneath a cliff. They were covered in smoke-like fur. One of them had its fur actually covered in flames, while another's coat was made up of an outer layer of frozen crystals.

"Brontrels," Tayin said. "I count five."

"I count six," Ren said.

"Where's the sixth?" Grace asked.

The Shield Knight scooched aside, providing the half-orc with some space. "Over there, behind one of the trees."

"Ah, I see it!" Grace narrowed her eyes. "Something's different about it."

The tree that the hidden brontrel was scratching its back on had a peculiar set of markings, those of both burns and frostbite. The creature then slowly returned to the pack, letting them see that it was much larger than the others, and had half of its fur covered in ice crystals, and the other in tongues of flame.

Grace realized what it was.

"Mini-Boss."

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