第５８掘：レベルの認識
### Dungeon 58: Understanding Levels
**Side: Seraria**
"Haa... haa..."
I was currently gasping for air. It was a rare occurrence. A level of 63 is considered quite high among humans, and I am a Valkyrie, a class said to be the pinnacle for female combatants. Yet, I couldn't land a single blow on the woman before me.
"Good, very good. Seraria, was it? Your swordsmanship is likely superior to mine."
Standing before me was a woman named Deryu. She was younger and shorter than me, dressed in a beautiful white gown. She held a training sword just like mine, yet she employed techniques I had never seen before. Superior swordsmanship? Hardly. Every single one of my strikes had been deflected with ease. Her beautiful blue eyes and cream-colored hair didn't even have a single bead of sweat clinging to them, unlike my own. Our skill levels were in completely different leagues.
"You have a look of confusion on your face. It is simply that my stats are higher; in terms of pure swordsmanship, I am inferior to you."
"So, the 'Demon Lord' thing... it wasn't a joke?"
"Naturally. There is no need for me to hide it."
I had only met Deryu after she entered this dungeon following the Fairy tribe, only to be captured by Yuki. For some reason, they had ended up sleeping in the same futon, so I brought her here to talk, and after learning she was a Demon Lord, we decided to spar.
"May I ask your level? I am a level 63 Valkyrie."
"Very well. Though, thanks to losing to Yuki, I checked my own status for the first time in a while. My level is 412."
"That is... truly absurd."
Deryu didn't seem to be lying, and in truth, she had been dodging my attacks with plenty of room to spare. With a gap of 350, the difference in our detailed stats must be even greater.
"To think my husband could win against you..." I said, glancing at my husband, who was watching us.
"Don't dwell on it. You've spoken with Yuki before, haven't you, Seraria?"
"Yes."
"The quality is different. Whether for better or worse, you and I think in terms of fighting. Yuki, however, lays the groundwork to ensure he doesn't have to. Since you call him husband, you should understand at least that much, right?"
"I do. But can he really handle someone as peerless as you, Deryu?"
"In fact, I was defeated. By that slime over there."
"Slime?"
As Deryu turned her gaze, I saw a strangely shaped, slime-like creature nestled in Aslin's hands.
"Pikii."
"It's so soft~"
"Aslin, I want to hug it too!!"
Yes, there are two angels here.
"...Phew. Deryu, may I have one final strike?"
"Very well. I shall face you with my full strength."
I lunged with everything I had, swinging my training sword with all my might. Deryu caught the blade with her bare hand, stopping her fist right in front of my face.
"...Total defeat."
"That was a good attack."
"By any chance, is hand-to-hand combat your specialty?"
"Indeed. My fists are what I am most comfortable with."
We both lowered our arms.
"Seraria-oneechan, Deryu-oneechan, you were both amazing!!"
"It was amazing!!"
"Thank you, Aslin."
"Y-yes."
I picked up Aslin and nuzzled her. Ah, I feel so healed. Deryu was also stroking Firia’s head. Yes, even if she is a Demon Lord, she isn't a bad person. After all, anyone who cherishes these angels couldn't possibly be evil! Though, if any lowlife were to harbor impure thoughts about such small children, I would kill them.
"Aslin, is there anything you want?"
"Hmm, I don't need anything because everyone is here. But there is something I want to become."
"What do you want to become?"
"Just like Seraria-oneechan! I want to be Onii-chan's bride! I want to have babies!"
"Oh my, oh my. That is a wonderful thing."
"Hey!!"
"What is it, you? There's no way I'd give a sweet girl like Aslin to just any random person. Well, if Aslin insists, I might consider it—if they can defeat me."
"That's impossible."
"Yes, but Aslin said she wants to be your wife. That is a wonderful answer. Now Aslin and I will be together forever!!"
"I want to be Onii-sama's bride too!!"
"Oh my, Firia as well!! This is wonderful, we'll all be together!!"
I lifted both of them up and rubbed my cheeks against theirs. Ah, happiness.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but I have a question. Can I ask?"
"What is it?"
"What?"
"When your level is high, you get stronger accordingly, right?"
"Yes, there are individual differences, but I've never heard of anyone getting weaker."
"I am the same as Seraria."
"But, setting aside Seraria, and Kiyu too, Deryu's skin is soft to the touch. When you hugged me in the futon, you were definitely soft."
"What? Did you get lustful for me? Shall we head to the bed now?"
"Next time. What I want to know is, you stopped Seraria's full-power attack with your bare hands just now, even with a training sword."
"Yes, I did."
"Why is it that your soft skin can take that impact and be completely fine?"
"That would be because of my defensive stats, wouldn't it?"
"Hmm? If you're soft, the impact should still be felt, right? No, even if you're hard, the impact should still register, so in terms of damage, your HP should decrease, even if only a little. Is it decreasing?"
"No, it isn't."
"???"
My husband and Deryu tilted their heads in confusion.
"I see, you want to know about the realm of the gods?"
"The realm of the gods?"
"Yes. The numbers shown by a level are a complete numerical quantification of a person's strength. However, no matter how much a person's defensive power increases, their softness does not change. Long ago, a scholar who had the same question as you investigated it, but they never found an answer. It is considered beyond human understanding—the realm of the gods."
"Hmm."
"But, even without an answer, we learned something through the process."
"What?"
"The overwhelming gap. In other words, when the numbers are absolutely insufficient, like between Deryu and me, you aren't affected by attacks like that. That is the reason why legendary heroes of the past could defeat large numbers of enemies without a scratch. In my country, we have a Captain of the Royal Guard who is over level 100. Let's see... he could win against an attack power of level 20 or lower without a single scratch."
"Level 20... I don't know if I should call that convenient or just limited."
"True. Generally, soldiers in the Kingdom of Roschur are in their late 20s, so they could deal at least a little damage. Still, they can cause plenty of chaos. It’s not like they rely solely on defense to fight."
"I see. Thinking about it comprehensively, they are even stronger."
My husband nodded thoughtfully. Fufu, I like that expression on him too. It was worth it to ignore my father's opinion and become Yuki's bride. National interests? Don't make me laugh; I created this situation solely to become my husband's wife.