Outsider.
Loki's confused gaze lingered on the description at the end of the parchment.
She had reviewed the other skills Zephyr had—Gluttony, Appetite Demon, and Rapid Absorption—and couldn't find anything similar.
But the description at the end of this skill delivered an even stronger impact.
Hated by the Dungeon.
This kind of thing was quite common when it came to gods.
Ouranos strictly forbade gods from stepping into the Dungeon because divine blood and divine aura would trigger abnormal reactions in the Dungeon. Monsters would constantly pour out, floors would collapse, and special monsters capable of killing gods would appear. After all, the Dungeon held an extremely intense hostility toward gods.
But the problem was, for such a thing to happen to an Adventurer was outrageous. Zephyr was just a child granted a Falna. He was clearly just a normal Adventurer, so how could he make the Dungeon feel the same level of disgust as it did toward gods?
What made Loki feel even more unnerved were the following effects.
Changing the surrounding terrain at any time.
Encountering special Gourmet Creature.
Just by reading it carefully, Loki could imagine the scene.
The moment Zephyr stepped into the Dungeon, the environment of the floor would begin to change, and monsters that had never appeare would constantly pour out.
She recalled her conversation with Zephyr just now—today's exploration had not gone smoothly.
So that was the reason?
If he were in the Loki Familia, would he become a burden to the Familia?
Given the level of absurdity, simply going to the Dungeon would incite hatred—if other Familia members were to accompany Zephyr, they would likely have to deal with trouble every single day.
But Loki just thought about it for a moment before waving the thought out of her mind.
Putting aside how troublesome it was, upon closer reflection, Outsider and the other skills Zephyr had actually echoed each other on an underlying logical level.
The Dungeon had its own ecological cycle.
Monsters were born in the Dungeon, and after being killed by an Adventurer, they turned into dust and returned to the Dungeon, it was essentially a cycle. Magic Stones and drop items were the rewards plundered from it, and for thousands of years, this rule had never been broken. This was also the reason why monsters hated Adventurers.
But Zephyr completely disrupted this stable cycle. He didn't just kill the monsters, he even packed up and took away the Magic Stones, drop items, and meat after killing them, causing the Dungeon to be unable to complete its cycle normally.
Was this not an act that broke the Dungeon's balance?
The Dungeon hating him was reasonable.
"Uh... It really is hard to describe." Loki sighed.
She gazed at the boy with his back to her, her crimson pupils surging with complex emotions, and she tried her best to keep her tone relaxed.
"Zephyr. Did you encounter any particularly strange monsters in the Dungeon today?"
Upon hearing this, Zephyr didn't choose to hide the truth—there was no way to lie to a god, especially when Loki had already seen his status clearly.
"Yeah. We encountered a new monster that we hadn't encountered in the Dungeon before. Lefiya tested them with magic and found that we couldn't beat them. So we had no choice but to run away."
Loki listened, remaining silent for a moment.
The emotions surging in her pupils were indescribably complex, but before Zephyr could ask anything further, she waved her hand casually, her tone becoming relaxed.
"Don't think that your talent will be a burden to the Familia."
The corners of her lips curved into an arc, filled with a frivolous tone. "Lefiya brought you over, didn't she? Then you must believe in the strength that our Familia possesses. Our Familia has quite a few First-class adventurers. If we really encounter troublesome monsters, those kids will be very happy."
She looked at Zephyr again, her eyes filled with nothing but intensity.
The Dungeon would evolve brand-new monsters because of Zephyr's existence. So looking on the bright side, could these monsters bring about improvements to the Familia members' strength that they had never even imagined?
After all, a genius's growth required the tempering of battle. If it really could, the future of Orario would be made spectacular by Zephyr's existence.
Loki did not voice her inner thoughts, maintaining a lighthearted tone. "Next, do you want me to help you perform a level up?"
Zephyr took the parchment she handed over. His gaze scanned his updated stats, and when he saw those numbers clearly, he finally understood why Loki had been so shocked just a moment ago.
Every attribute rating was SSS, and the average was around 1300 points. This had to be the limit, right?
However, Zephyr recalled what Loki had said to him personally in this very spot a few days ago—the maximum limit for an Adventurer's stats should be an S rating.
"If I remember correctly, you told me that the limit for an Adventurer's stats should be S, right? How did my current stats become SSS?"
"..."
The corner of Loki's eye twitched slightly.
She didn't answer directly, her expression full of oddity. "I think this kind of question should be asked of the talent you yourself possess and not asked of me."
In all the years she had spent in the Lower World, she had never seen such a thing with her own eyes. In her memory, legends of attributes breaking a thousand could only be traced back to over twenty years ago, to Alfia of the Hera Familia, known as Silence.
As for having all attributes break through to the SSS rating, the guy in front of her was the very first.
So I really am an expert?
Watching Loki's attempt to shift the blame, the corners of his lips twitched.
Zephyr did not continue to press the issue. It felt strange somehow, but looking only at the final result, he could say he was quite satisfied with his stats reaching this level.
However, as his eyes swept over the parchment again, his gaze landed on the stats that hadn't reached their limits. It was a pity, it would have been nice to be able to continue maxing out the remaining stats.
Although reality was not a game, with the shortcut provided by Strongest Gourmet Hunter System, it would take at most a few meals, so there was no reason not to pursue being a stat monster.
Zephyr put down the parchment in his hand and asked, "Loki-sama, is there a kitchen in the Familia headquarters where I can cook?"
"Yes, there is."
By this point, Loki had already guessed what Zephyr was expressing, and she didn't refuse. To be precise, she was also curious in her heart how ridiculously fast Zephyr's skill could allow him to grow.
"I'll take you to the kitchen. After you finish cooking, I will help you with your Level Up."
"As for Lili, I will help her handle the matter of transferring her Familia first."
"No problem." Zephyr nodded readily.
However, when Loki watched as Lili pulled out dozens of kilograms of Minotaur meat from her backpack and gradually laid it out on the floor, the corners of the her lips began to twitch slightly.
Wasn't this amount a bit too much?
Noticing the increasingly odd expression in Loki's eyes, Lili shrank back into her hood and chose to add softly, "Uh... Zephyr's appetite is just like this. I suggest preparing yourself mentally in advance. It's the kind where he never seems to get full."
When Loki thought about the fact that Zephyr's diet consisted only of monsters from the Dungeon, her initially worried expression gradually became relieved.
Good news!