Frostfire Legacy

"Back off, bastards, before I open new holes in your foreheads!"

Kali didn't like the current situation and growled at the crowd around them. She already had her finger on the handle of her revolver and was about to pull it out. But Aster moved fast, extending a hand to hold her back.

They couldn't carelessly threaten anyone and everyone around them, as the ones before them could be someone from the 200th floor. While Aster might be capable of handling them, it would be challenging to engage in combat while simultaneously defending Kali. Better safe than sorry.

"Sorry, but we're not interested." He replied to the persistent hawkers before pulling Kali through the crowd—or at least he tried.

"Don't be so cold~! I'm sure you wouldn't want to miss out on this generous discount!"

"Heh! A 4480's Single-action Mana Revolver? We've got tons of better revolvers than that! Come check them out!"

"Come over... Hehe... He... Or you'll regret it...."

"...!"

Hands extended from all directions, grabbing Aster and Kali, and to his surprise, the strength of their grips exceeded his estimations. Especially the thin man who kept laughing as if he was a druggie, his hold was as tight as a vice grip!

"L-Let go!"n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Kali grumbled, but as expected, she couldn't fight against the hawkers. With a swift yank, she got separated from Aster, causing him to turn around in panic.

"Kali!"

At this rate, they might get separated. At worst, something bad could happen to her!

'If only Argus were here!' Aster belatedly thought.

The puppy was left in Tina's care, as she was left on her own after the group splitting. If he was right here, then a short blast of lightning should be enough to make these hawkers paralyzed for a short period.

Just as Aster was thinking whether he should push himself and use Crysta's power, a voice echoed from up high.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!"

Along with her booming, fluffy voice, a blinding flash of light fell, hitting all hawkers around Aster and Kali accurately, without affecting the two.

"This is...!" Your next read is at empire

What fell over the surrounding crowd's heads were lightning bolts! Despite being physically in contact with them, Aster didn't even feel the slightest shock from the lightning bolts. The caster's control over the lightning was beyond insane!

"Are you alright, little kitty?"

After neutralizing everyone around them, a figure swooped down like a bird of prey and helped Kali up to her feet. Aster, seeing the familiar figure, let out a gasp. A woman with silver-gray hair and a pair of pure white wings adorning her exposed back.

"Miss Octavia?!"

The one who came and saved them was the angel-like, winged-kin Octavia Nebula!

Hearing her name get called, she turned toward Aster and tilted her head cutely. "Huh? Do I know you? Hmm... I don't remember anyone with a white face, though..."

"Huh? Ah! This is just a mask." Aster explained, before moving his hand to remove it—and stopped.

He recalled telling the girls to never remove their masks, and here he was, about to remove his in the middle of the street! He quickly shook his head, chasing away the thought, before introducing himself.

"I saw you a couple of times in the Adventurer's Guild. I'm Aster, Aster Mistral. I hope you remember me." He explained in a low voice, wary of any scrying ears around.

"Aster...? Ah, the owner of that cute puppy!" Octavia quickly recalled who he was, thankfully, and turned to Kali. "Then this kitty must be the one with you back then. And? Where's the puppy~? Didn't you bring him inside the dungeon?!"

Instead of remembering Aster, she appeared to be more interested in Argus, searching the area for the fluffy creature.

Aster scratched his neck awkwardly, explaining. "Ah, Argus is with Tina, my other party member. They should be going around the Street Market Area right now."

"Oh, is that so..." Octavia looked disappointed before her blue eyes turned golden as sparks arced around her wings and body. "Then, I gotta go. I'm still in the middle of patrol, after all. I'll meet you later when my shift ends~!"

Without waiting for Aster to finish his words, she had already zoomed away, heading in a familiar direction—toward the Street Market Area that Aster just mentioned.

"... She must be busy." Aster sighed before looking at the fallen bodies around them.

Of course, none of them were dead, but some were quite close to breathing their last. Octavia adjusted her strength to the point where the hawkers were just barely alive.

"Leader, we should go..." Kali whispered, feeling the gazes of others around them.

Standing in the midst of a large number of fallen bodies was bound to attract attention.

Aster nodded, agreeing with Kali's judgment, and pulled his windbreaker up—further hiding his face—before walking away.

The pair continued on their plan, going around the Central Market and looking for items that could help them during their exploration of the 101st up to the 200th floor. Other than that, they also kept an eye out for rare items that couldn't be bought from the surface—things like items from treasure chests, and so on.

Since the Central Market serves as the focal point of the 100th floor, a variety of items and information are readily available within its confines. The only challenge was locating them.

"Is this it...?"

Of course, Aster didn't come here without any plans. Before going to the 100th floor, he had already asked a few of his acquaintances—namely Vanessa, Faeloria, and Zena—for tips on where he could buy reliable information.

Weirdly, all three of them pointed toward the same place.

"It should be right. Look, the faded signboard does indeed say [Black Dice]." Kali commented from beside him, pointing at the mossy signboard next to the building.

"... Is this really the right place?" But Aster still felt confused.

Three of his trustworthy acquaintances had recommended the location, so he anticipated a spotless environment. However, the building in front of him appeared as if it would collapse with a single push, akin to a tumbling pyramid of cards.

The small hut had crumbling walls and roof, a mossy signboard, and a rusty doorknob. If they weren't pointed to this place, then they would not even bother checking it, as it looked abandoned for a long, long time already.

"Well, I guess we can just try..."

Aster stepped forward and reached for the door knocker... which quickly fell to the ground at the slightest touch, eaten by rust until it was barely hanging on the door.

"..."

He persisted, curling his fist and directly knocking on the door in a specific rhythm that Faeloria had personally taught him.

*KNOCK!* *KNOCK!*

*KNOCK!**KNOCK!**KNOCK!*

*KNOCK!*

*KNOCK!* *KNOCK!*

After he finished the signature knock as instructed, he took a few steps back and waited. A few seconds passed, but nothing happened.

"... As expected, it is abandoned." Kali sighed. "I don't know which grandma told you about this place, but it must've fallen out of busi—!"

But right then, the door suddenly creaked open, causing Kali to stop mid-sentence. From within the dark interior, a thin, white hand was visible, holding the door open.