Tossing these existential crisis provoking thoughts aside I focused my mind on the task ahead of me, preparing for my second expedition. Miach tried to persuade me to postpone my expedition or even outright cancel it but I was firm in my refusal. Still even though he couldn't get me to do so didn't mean he wasn't going to try his best to make sure I returned from it. As a result I ended up with more mana and health potions than expected. I put away the vials carefully and said my goodbye before heading to the market square to collect produce for food.-
My ability was great for keeping food fresh for a long time or at the very least preserving it's nutrients through dehydration into powder. Honestly I was kinda embarrassed that I hadn't thought about doing this before attempting to make a food cursed tool. With the water removed most fruits and vegetables took up vastly less space than normal and thus could be stocked up on easily. The rations that the Loki and other exploration type familias used were based on a similar idea but with lots of jerkies and vegetables bars. -
It was all very bland though due to how it was made but filling all the same. I preferred my meals to have flavor though and was only one person so I could afford to carry dried vegetables and meat with me without trading flavor. My loot bags were also quite unfair in this regard as I didn't need bags bigger than me to carry all this stuff. I still felt the weight though as it wasn't like all that mass vanished, just got put in a smaller size. Honestly speaking I was tempted to give Lili one of these bags just so she could get an extra buff from her [Artel assist] skill because of the extra weight.-
Anyway once I collected a couple weeks worth of vegetables I headed back to the manor with them hanging over my back in a cloth sack that the seller gave me for buying in bulk. Along the way I ran into Ais and Rivera who were out shopping as well.
"Good afternoon Mr. Drake." Rivera said politely in greeting.
"It's just Alex, calling me mister makes me sound like an old man." I said and she nodded in understanding.
"Very well then Alex. Running errands for your familia I take it?" she asked motioning to the sack over my shoulder.
I shook my head "Nah, I'm prepping for my next expedition into the dungeon. This is just produce I bought to powder back home so I can have decently flavorful meals while I'm down there." I explained honestly.
"Oh? Planning to push for the water palace floors or is it a resource expedition?" She asked intrigued.
"Resources this time, running low back at home on crafting materials and need to stock up. Unlike normal craftsmen I prefer to get most of my materials myself since it saves time and money and I can guarantee quality while I am at it." I said honestly.
"Efficient." Ais commented her opinion with a nod of approval.
"Quite, though as you said this is a rather unorthodox approach. Are you not worried about spreading yourself too thin?" Rivera asked curiously.
"While I admit theres some challenge to balancing everything I can assure you that I take great care to not overload myself with tasks to complete. I sort of do things as needed without rushing myself. If I need materials I focus on that and if I have a commission I focus on that. The rest of my time is dedicated to refining my combat style, crafting abilities or raising my stats. A nice tightly packed schedule with all things coming only when they should." I say seriously.
"I can't help but notice a lack of entertainment being mentioned." the elf pointed out.
"Ah but that's the beauty of it all, I enjoy seeing my own growth! Every drop of sweat and monster broken means I inch ever slightly forward. What more could I ask for to content myself?" I asked with a bright smile.
"Contentment through action then? No wonder Tiona gets along with you so well." the elf says with a sigh.
"She says you are strong, are you?" Ais asked with a clear battle intent radiating off her.
"I'm unrivaled in my level but compared to you or even Tiona I'm not anywhere close to your strengths." I said honestly.
"Unrivaled you say? A rather arrogant claim no?" Rivera asked skeptical.
"I can at this exact moment match even a peak level four in combat and survive against a new level five. If you can find anyone else at level three capable of that I'll admit my wrong but otherwise I am indeed unrivaled at my level." I say confidently.
Between my RCT and regular cursed techniques as well as my stats I hadn't overstated my prowess at all this time. I could indeed fight a peak level four to a standstill and survive a new level five with some serious difficulty. This was only natural given the path I walked and was only going to grow more pronounced the further I went. The falna isn't as simple as one plus one equals two but rather was like a snowball rolling down a hill.-
The difference between me and everyone else was that my snowball simply started out much bigger than everyone elses and that meant it's growth at the same rate was also greater. That was assuming I didn't allow myself to stagnate that is. Anyways I bid farewell to the two women after that and finally reached the manor. Hestia was sunbathing like a cat near the pool when I arrived and besides giving me an odd look barely reacted to my return. It was rather funny how she had gotten so used to me doing odd things that at this point she shrugs off anything strange to do with me as "Alex being Alex".-
Unless I gave her a reason to worry she trusted me not to cause too many problems with whatever I was doing. Bell didn't get the same treatment after all but risking the familia no less than twice now by provoking stronger familias. By comparison I was practically a golden goose as I created more and more connections just by being me and the only person I affect with my actions tends to be me alone. Her only real gripe ironically was exactly that as I put myself in seriously risky scenarios all the bloody time.